This year’s California legislative session ended with a whimper rather than a bang – particularly for Governor Jerry Brown, who failed to win passage of several of his top priorities.
The governor has had success in the past waiting until the last minute to negotiate. But USC political analyst Sherry Bebitch Jeffe says that didn’t work this year. Much of his climate change agenda stalled in the Assembly from lack of support in his own party.
“He could have put up an opposition television and radio campaign,” Bebitch Jeffe said. “He could have sent mail. He could have traveled more frequently and more consistently than he did to get his message across.”
Brown was also unable to win support from Republicans and moderate Democrats on new revenues for transportation and health care financing. He says he’ll keep trying in the coming months.
Those were Brown’s first political defeats since he failed to convince legislative Republicans to place a tax extension measure on the ballot in June 2011.
This story was produced by Capital Public Radio.