Schwarzenegger Considering Release of 12% of California's Prison Population
Good thing we're getting free health care for the future victims of those 22,000 criminals
By Neil Stevens Posted in Arnold Schwarzenegger | Budget | California | Crime | girly man | Policy | Republicans | Spending — Comments (12) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
After California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger fought Republicans for months over their pesky demands that we cut spending to prevent a disastrous budget deficit, it turns out that gee, we're facing a disastrous budget deficit after all! The conservatives were right.
So how does the Governor want to go about saving some money that we can't afford to spend? He's weighing the early release of 22,000 of the state's 172,000 prison inmates in order to save a few hundred million dollars we would spend keeping society safer.
Read on...
Says the San Francisco Chronicle:
The idea is one of many that have been presented to the governor by his departmental budget directors, and he has not decided if he likes it or not, Schwarzenegger spokesman Bill Maile said Thursday. But if the plan were to be put into action, it would constitute one of the biggest early releases of prisoners in U.S. history.
"The governor asked his department heads to work with their budget managers to find ways to cut the budget by 10 percent because of the budget crisis we are facing, and this idea was one of many that was floated in reaction to that request," Maile said. "It's not a proposal yet, just an idea."
Recidivism rates in California run upwards of 70% according to criminology professor Erick Hickey at CSU Fresno, says the Chronicle. So now, we have evidence that the free-spending ways of Governor Schwarzenegger and his left-wing Democratic buddies are not only bad for our economy, but they're also bad for our safety and security.
Next time, Governor, listen to the Republicans in the Assembly and the Senate, not the Democrats. It takes three to tango in our state's budget process. If you team up with the conservatives, you can force concessions from the Democrats. You ran for our nomination last time, and we gave it to you. So why won't you work with our other nominees who won office in Sacramento?
It'd beat being the biggest girly-man on crime in the state, wouldn't it?
« Fighting Eminent Domain Abuse in California [Updated] — Comments (11) | Arnold Schwarzenegger: Team Player — Comments (31) »
Schwarzenegger Considering Release of 12% of California's Prison Population 12 Comments (0 topical, 12 editorial, 0 hidden) Post a comment »
This is the method they've used for years and they're less likely to stop than an addict is going to stop using.
First gimmick is the old "excrement rolls downhill" - shifting costs to the counties. The costs you listed above, cops and court costs will be city or county expenses. Jails will fill up at the county level initially and later on move to the state level. Thus you've managed to shift costs to the county.
Which leads to gimimick number two, move expenses from this year to next year (or later). Here, they reduce prison costs this year, and will have a breathing space before prison costs rise with the recidivists.
This is nothing compared to one of Arnold's earlier strokes of "genius" - floating bonds to cover current operating deficits (successfully defying the state constitution in the process). The state habitually steals restricted highway funds for unrelated budget items (though they call it "borrowing") as well as "borrowing" from designated school funds.
Arnold is just playing politics as usual. I don't know if he was ever a "small government" guy, but now he's certainly a "big government" guy. Then again, perhaps he just likes anything "big".
Gray Davis doesn't seem so bad after the last few years of this guy.
---
Underlying most arguments against the free market is a lack of belief in freedom itself. - Milton Friedman
I also doubt he'd have called a special session of the legislature to demand a universal state medical care plan.
Is there any reason, any reason at all aside from perhaps the party affiliation check-box on his voter registration form, why we should continue to refer to Arnold Schwarzenegger as a Republican Governor?
-------------
Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock.
Then again, I may already be living that lesson and future here in MA. And if CA ever goes as "blue" as MA we may never see a Republican-controlled congress again.
-------------
Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock.
Massachusetts is a small, homogenous state. California is large and diverse. If California were to become uniformly Democratic, it would mean the whole country had, too, and it just doesn't matter anymore.
Just look at the nominees we tend to put up. They're perfectly mainstream Republicans. Scwharzenegger only got in by the fluke of the recall, and won nomination because he was the incumbent.
Other states (and also Presidential primary voters everywhere) can learn from the dangers of having a maverick, bipartisan-minded media whore leading your party, though.
-------------
Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock.
in front of his house.
Envisioning when all that is Left is the Right.
-------------
Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock.
"Crime rates up, despite release of criminals" since journalists are always surprised by the opposite.
___________________________________
Two thirds of the world is covered by water,
the other third is covered by Champ Bailey.
Like you said, with recidivism rates at 70%, the following costs will increase with more criminal activity-
More cops will be needed to handle all of the increase in crimes, and this will be an additional cost in the budget.
Court costs will increase, as those criminals who will get caught will have to stand trial, and these will be additional costs in the budget.
The jails will then be full again, as these criminals will get caught again. Also, since this will be a 2nd conviction(or even a 3rd, which if they are felonies, will require LIFE in prison), this will be more time spent in jail, then they would have origionally been charged for, which is additional costs in the budget.
This may reduce costs for 1 year, but look at all of the additional costs which the state will incur!