Laird is part of the problem

EDITOR,
I read with interest former Assemblyman John Laird’s lament that our current governor doesn’t know how to do his job. He pines for the return of former Gov. Pete Wilson in the July 10 edition of the Press-Banner. Unfortunately, Mr. Laird is a classic example of the problem.
Given similar circumstances, I question whether former Gov. Wilson would have acted any differently than current Gov. Schwarzenegger — I doubt it. For example, Mr. Laird failed to mention the nearly two-thirds landslide defeat of propositions 1A through 1E last May. Californians overwhelming told California’s de facto political class we are taxed enough — and probably too much! While nobody would consider me a fan of Gov. Schwarzenegger, he deserves credit for listening to the people and not caving to the myriad special interests that expect Californians to believe we are not taxed enough.
Mr. Laird and the Democratic Party’s pandering to the state employees’ unions have led to the fact that, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2008, California public-sector employees are paid on average $13,500 per year more than their private-sector counterparts — and that doesn’t include the value of a medical care and pension plan that no private employer could match and stay in business.
Thankfully, those employee union campaign contributions couldn’t help Mr. Laird beat term limits, but the damage he and his contemporaries wrought is already done. Gov. Schwarzenegger deserves our support for his stand and efforts to reduce the size of government.
The terrible financial situation we find ourselves in can be attributed to the John Lairds some of us have elected to California government — and their failed stewardship. California government has somehow allowed the pay of the average California prison guard (with overtime) to be similar to a typical software engineer.
Steve Schall, Ben Lomond