Good Job California!

Way to go. California Citizens, already faced with skyrocketing foreclosure and unemployment rates and mounting losses in 401k's and home values are rewarded by...increased taxes. From the state with the 6th highest tax load on its citizens already.

The Rat that broke the citizens back was even a "Republican". Name: Sen. Abel Maldonado.

The newly passed package includes about $13 billion in new taxes in the forms of state sales tax, personal income tax and higher fees to license your vehicles. Those will hit everyone....at least they didn't just "tax the rich".

But the Rat Maldonado claims victory through his compromise. From an AP article:

He also was able to force Democrats and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to remove a 12-cent-a-gallon increase in the gas tax and authorize a ballot measure asking voters to freeze lawmakers' salaries when the state runs a deficit.

"If we're going to take from the people of California, then we got to give something back," he said Thursday morning after the Senate approved the package of bills.

Well that is just peachy. That is like declaring yourself a victor over a mugger. The mugger says, "give me your wallet, your watch, your rings and your pocket change". But you declare, "let me keep a quarter to call a cab", to which the mugger says, "fair enough". Not really a victory is it?

And, if things are ever financially healthy again in California, we can assume the state will rescind these new taxes? Uh-huh.