By Kevin Yamamura and Shane Goldmacher
Senate Republicans have a new leader today after the caucus ousted Sen. Dave Cogdill and replaced him with Sen. Dennis Hollingsworth shortly after midnight.
Despite speculation that Senate Republicans may ask to reopen budget talks, Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg insisted the change has absolutely no effect on his strategy to break the budget deadlock this week.
"We're going to maintain our focus towards solving the problem of getting one vote regardless of who the leader is," Steinberg said after his house took a recess around 1 a.m. "Leadership doesn't change the fact that there is no other idea put forward that would take $41 billion out of a budget deficit. And so, for me, it doesn't change anything."
After the Senate failed to approve the contentious tax hike bill, Steinberg made good on his threat to keep his members locked in for the night. He said he plans to resume talks later Wednesday with Sen. Dave Cox, R-Fair Oaks, and Sen. Abel Maldonado, R-Santa Maria, to see if either one will back the budget package.
"I would describe it as a bit of a discouraging day," Steinberg said of Tuesday. "Despite a lot of effort, and a lot of work today by our office, the governor's office, they're not there. But they have to be there eventually."
Schwarzenegger flew home to Brentwood around 9 p.m., a sign that the budget deal remained elusive Tuesday. His spokesman, Aaron McLear, said the governor plans to continue speaking to Cox and Maldonado on Wednesday.
Hollingsworth, an ardent tax opponent, made it clear that he continues to oppose the budget. When asked whether he wants to reopen the "Big 5" negotiations, he said he'd take a wait-and-see approach.
"I think the majority of my caucus doesn't want to see a tax increase passed in this particular package," Hollingsworth said. "But we'll see what happens in the next few minutes, the next few hours, the next few days."
BIRTHDAY: Assemblyman Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael, turns 45.
EVENTS: State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell will speak to a conference of the California County Superintendents Educational Services Association, or CCSESA as people who like long acronyms call the group.
Sen. Barbara Boxer, a Democrat, and Rep. Dan Lungren, a Republican, will be in town today. The congressman and the state's junior U.S. senator will be part of a large panel this morning talking about how to spend the federal stimulus money headed toward California.
Boxer is also slated for a press conference Darrell Steinberg and Karen Bass on the topic.
GOVERNOR 2010: Former eBay chief Meg Whitman gave her first speech as a candidate for governor on Tuesday.
"I love California too much to let it fail, and I refuse to sit by and watch it happen," Whitman said.
She promised the creation of 2 million jobs by 2015.
Ok, so Whitman may be new to running for office, but that's some classic campaign-style promising. 2015 just happens to be a full year after a potential first term would end...meaning there's no way for voters to judge the success of the pledge.
Whitman will give another speech in Irvine today. She's also expected to announce the endorsement of Rep. Ed Royce.
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