You have to be kidding? The state waits until AFTER it fails in its attempt to force Propositions 1A-1E on voters before enacting an 18 percent pay cut on all elected officials?

Talk about doing something that plays right in to the hands on the cynics.

Legislators have been claiming voters must pass 1A through 1E or face horrific scenarios because everything that can be cut has already been cut.

So what happens less than a day after the propositions fail? Yep, the legislators NOW get their salaries cut. Better yet, the pay cut cannot take effect until December 2010!

Why not do something like this months before the election in an attempt to show voters the legislators were willing to take a cut of their own. Businesses throughout California have been cutting back on pay and hours to try and make their individual bottom lines better off in tough economic times.

Sure, the cut comes from the California Citizens Compensation Commission and not directly from the state elected officials themselves, but when it comes to cutting back the electeds should have taken care of this a LONG time ago.

Arnold now says he is cutting his office's staff from 174 down to 147 and will cut more in time. He is also ordering a 9.3 percent cut in hours and pay for his office's staff.

Arnold is quoted in his press release on the pay cuts as saying, "The people of California have spoken loud and clear: they want the state to live within its means and do not want any more government waste or pay raises for California’s elected officials. I completely agree and that is why I have cut back in my own office and ordered layoffs of state employees to save money. The state’s elected officials need to follow suit and cut back just as California families and businesses have in this tough economy.”

Come on, doing this after the election is a message to the no-on-all-propositions crowd that the administration and legislature was waiting to see the cuts citizens would accept before offering to make cuts of their own.

This is a terrible message, one that only makes it all the more difficult to believe the electeds when they come and call for help with more cuts in the future.

This may come across as Monday morning quarterbacking, but jeez folks up in Sacramento, you're going to have to do a lot better to convince Californians you've truly exhausted all avenues before the massive cuts start.