Budget talks postponed as Schwarzenegger calls in sick
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A meeting of top lawmakers and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger planned for Monday has been postponed, with the governor sick and staying in Los Angeles, according to his spokesman, Aaron McLear.
The group of leaders -- known in Sacramento as the Big 5 -- met Thursday, the day that Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento) declared he expected an agreement by ‘tomorrow or by the weekend at the latest.’ But McLear said that same day that there had been ‘no major breakthroughs.’
The five leaders met again on Friday, but legislators slipped out the backdoor of the governor’s office to avoid answering media questions about the budget talks.
McLear said there were no plans ‘at this point’ for Schwarzenegger to have a videoconference meeting with lawmakers on Monday, but that staff were continuing to meet.
-- Shane Goldmacher in Sacramento