More Democratic voters are saying they oppose tax increases, according to veteran pollster Mark Baldassare of the Public Policy Institute of California. Addressing the Sacramento Press Club on December 17, he said the percentage of Californians saying tax increases should not be included in the state budget has risen 14 points since January 2004 (from 51 percent to 65 percent), and that much of this change is due to a shift among Democrats.
Mr. Baldassare attributed the Democrats' change of heart to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's appeal to the party's moderates. "That speaks to the governor's popularity … and persuasiveness," he said. (Sources: Public Policy Institute of California poll; The Sacramento Bee, December 17.)
Cal-Taxletter January 4, 2008
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