CA: Public financing passes Assembly (with POLL!)

Well, casually researching state politics I stumbled upon this:

http://www.sfgate.com/...

On January 30, the California Assembly voted, by a vote of 47-31, for public financing of elections in California. The vote was mostly partisan, with 47 of the Assembly's 48 Democrats voting "aye" (one, Tom Umberg of Anaheim, joined all 30 Republicans who voted in voting "no"). Two Republicans did not vote.

The bill, Assembly Bill 53, still has to be voted on by the State Senate, but since the Senate is also dominated by Democrats I expect it to pass. My thoughts below the fold...

Well, once again my home state is ahead of the game. Again, we are one of the first states to lead the nation in progressive legislation. We were one of the first states to legalize choice...years before Roe v. Wade. We have some of the most citizen-friendly procedures for getting an initiative on the state ballot. Our legislature even voted last year to legalize gay marriage, until Ahnoldt vetoed it.

If the Senate passes AB 53, California will be one of only four states with publicly-financed elections (along with Arizona, Connecticut, and Maine). It is high time for this kind of progressive reform. No longer should money decide who has the electoral advantage.

Public financing is the right way to go. Most developed countries of the western world already have it. There is no reason we can't, especially if we cut out the needless waste in our national budget. And while I don't live in California anymore, I'm just glad my home state will have been one of the first.

That is, if Ahnoldt doesn't veto it. Oh shit, he probably will!