California currently has no Lieutenant Governor. The incumbent, John Garamendi, a Democrat, resigned recently to take his seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has nominated Republican State Senator Abel Maldonado, author of the “top-two open primary” ballot measure to be voted on in June, 2010, to be California’s new Lieutenant Governor. However, recently California Democratic Party state chair John Burton said that he does not believe the legislature should confirm Maldonado.
If no one fills the vacancy in the Lieutenant Governorship, the next person in line to be Governor is the President Pro Tem of the California State Senate. Currently that is Darrell Steinberg, a Democrat. The annual salary of the Lieutenant Governor is $159,134. This interesting column by Professor Michael A. Moodian advocates that California ought to elect its governor and its lieutenant governor on a joint ticket, so that they would always be of the same political party. Failing that, Moodian also suggests that California might consider doing without a Lieutenant Governor.
Of course New York spent some time recently without a Lieutenant Governor and it didn’t work out so well. For those of you who weren’t following the circus, the Governor and Lieutenant were elected on a ticket. When Spitzer resigned after a professional affair, the LG Paterson became Governor and the office of LG was open. Like in California, the President Pro Tem of the Senate was next in line. No problem, except the Senate was divided 32 D/30 R and the Rs got 2 Ds to switch, then the Ds eventually got then to switch back. During that time, it was unclear who exactly was the President Pro Tem of the Senate, and therefore no one knew for sure who was next in line. Eventually, Paterson appointed an LG, even though it wasn’t clear he had the power to do so, and the courts went along. It seems advisable for states to put in place some sort of procedure like that in the 25th Amendment regarding appointing a Vice President.
There, now if I could only get my son, Demo Rep, to get a job, an apartment and write in actual sentences and paragraphs, my life would be complete.
As the wise man once said, “In order to be happy, there must be something in your life that you deeply desire, but that you may not have.”
Maldonado is a liar and a fascist. Term limits can’t happen fast enough for him.
The so-called Demo Rep’s Mom is a pre-school imposter trying to be New Age cute/stupid.
Nonpartisan A.V. for electing all elected executive and judicial officers.
The Lt. Guvs. being in any state senate is a vestige of the EVIL divine right of kings era.
Lt. Guvs. should be the head of an executive dept — and NOT in any legislature — to increase separation of powers.
#4 Why don’t you try writing real sentences and paragraphs? Your Dad and I sent you to school-all the way through 4th grade.
Plus, for crying out loud, try to say something positive 1 time out of 10.
#5 One more moron posting by a moron imposter.
No sentences needed – in this time of about 3 second attention spans.
P.R. and A.V.
If the voters didn’t want Garamendi to be the Lieutenant Governor, they should have voted for someone else.