Orange County Register

Action on the budget appears like it’ll wait until Monday. Orange County State Sen. Lou Correa, D-Santa Ana, headed back home at noon today, along with many of his colleagues.

Senate Leader Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, told reporters this morning that most senators are headed back to their districts for the July 4th Weekend, however, Steinberg and his top lieutenants will remain in Sacramento to continue negotiations on the budget.

On the Assembly side, Orange County Assemblyman Jose Solorio, D-Santa Ana, is one of the few who will be sticking around Sacramento to help on budget talks. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s office said the governor will be in Sacramento if his presence is needed.

For an outsider, taking the weekend off may look lazy, especially with the state starting to issue IOUs today. But keep in mind that lawmakers and their staffs (and reporters!) have been working virtually round the clock on this stuff since Wednesday of last week. There are a lot of frayed nerves and tired people in Sacramento today.

In other words, the roar you hear is the collective cheer from the State Capitol. Everybody needs a break.

That said, a break might push all sides into their corners, resulting in everybody hunkering down for a protracted battle. Who knows? Steinberg, for his part, said it’s time to get it done. We’ll see if the break helps.

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