Weekly Web Gems- The Politics of the States

– A (somewhat unexpected) tip of the hat goes to California, where Democratic governor Jerry Brown and Republican Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher of San Diego have hammered out a rare, especially in the hyper-polarized California political climate, bipartisan tax deal that would eliminate certain loopholes for out-of-state companies while lowering personal tax rates and tax rates for small businesses based in California. The bill was expected to have all the necessary support in the state Assembly, but possibly run into trouble in the Senate… [NY Times]

– … Which it did. Because this is California, the bill failed in the Senate only two days later, receiving no Republican votes and multiple Democratic abstentions. Senate Republicans, including Sam Blakeslee, scoffed at Governor Brown and Assemblyman Fletcher’s plan, referring to it, as the San Luis Obispo Republican did, as “a slapdash collection of ideas that look like they were made for a press release, not serious policy.” Brown, for his part, called it “unbelievable that so many politicians in Sacramento would choose to protect cigarette makers and out-of-state corporations to the detriment of California jobs. [Sacramento Bee]

– Wisconsin Assemblyman Brett Hulsey (D-Madison) recently made the incendiary accusation that the Wisconsin State Assembly, controlled by Republicans since the beginning of the current legislative session, voted on 376 bill amendments by Democrats and voted for precisely one. The sad part? According to a PolitiFact investigation, he is completely correct. The single amendment, to Assembly Bill 94, dealt with administering Milwaukee’s school choice program, and was introduced by Jason Fields, a Milwaukee Democrat who supports such vouchers. [PolitiFact]

– In today’s second unexpected hat tip, another hyper-polarized state, Ohio, has managed to keep its AAA credit rating from Standard & Poor’s, even as other states, including Florida and Illinois, lose theirs, according to State Treasurer Josh Mandel. [Columbus Dispatch]

– Seemingly in a response to recent threats to State Senator Roy McDonald (R-Saratoga), Mayor Michael Bloomberg is hosting a fundraiser for the four Senate Republicans who voted in favor of same-sex marriage in July. The even is being co-hosted by Paul Singer, chairman of the right-wing Manhattan Institute, and Tim Gill, an LGBT activist from Colorado who founded Quark, Inc., a software company whose XPress software is widely used in print media. The event will be hosted in October and cost as much as $16,800, the maximum allowed by state law, to attend. [Albany Time Union]

– Well, all that good will couldn’t last forever (or for this whole post). Redistricting fights have already begun in the Empire State, with Republicans protesting new laws that count prisoners as residents of their last known address, rather than the prison in which they are serving time. Additionally, state-level redistricting is being scrutinized in light of the increase in Asian population in the New York borough of Queens, especially given that there is currently only one Asian-American state legislator, Democratic Assemblywoman Grace Meng of Flushing. [Albany Times Union]

– Finally, proving that you governmental dysfunction and divide need not come from states with deep legislative divides, or from legislators at all, we have South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley. Haley, an underdog-turned-Tea Party-favorite, dismissively referred to a reporter from Charleston’s Post and Courier, as a “little girl” following a September 5 article that was critical of the Governor’s use of state funds on a purported “jobs” trip to Europe over the summer. In the article, Renee Dudley discussed high-end meals and hotels that Governor Haley and her husband enjoyed while on the trip, questioning whether the primary purpose was state business or personal enjoyment. [Huffington Post]