CALIF BREAKS RECORD FOR LONGEST PERIOD WITHOUT AN APPROVED BUDGET...

So, it's day 79 of California's budget impasse. It's a record-breaker, as the longest before this was 78 days in 2008. For the Clueless: California is in the hole for $19 BILLION and Gov. Schwarzenegger continues to battle with lawmakers over which cuts to make and whether to adopt new taxes. The Governor and legislators are meeting again today after 2 hours of fruitless talks Thursday. Well, maybe it wasn't completely fruitless, as the Governor did take Calpers (borrowing from Ca's retirement plan) was taken off the table. If a new spending plan is not approved soon, the economic downturn will continue to erode state revenues. Democrats and Republicans continue to butt heads about how to close the budget gap. Dems favor selected tax increase and delaying corporate tax breaks to raise revenue along with spending cuts, while Republicans (including Schwarzenegger) want to balance the state's budget largely by slashing spending-- most likely in education and social services.  All we know is, with CA's unemployment rate at 12%, this budget issue needs resolving ASAP.  Get it together, People! [Source]