WAR OF RULES DEMOCRATS' STATEHOUSE EDGE STAYS SHARP.

Byline: Jill Stewart Capital Punishment

SURELY one reason to give thanks this year is that you need not visit California's statehouse, where the Legislature launched its not-so-special session of nasty partisanship, mocking the voters who demanded change when they recalled Gov. Gray Davis.

I was at the statehouse, however.

And I can report that Republicans in the Assembly drew first blood, springing a surprise vote on the Democrats to dispense with the usual rules so the Assembly could instantly consider repealing Senate Bill 60, which gives driver's licenses to illegal immigrants.

Had the Republican leaders chatted with Democratic leaders about the repeal (by means of a one-page bill stating SB 60 is repealed), Republicans would have known the Democrats had no intention of suspending rules the majority Democrats suspend only for their advantage.

Keeping to the rules, Assembly Democrats sent the one-page repeal bill to committee for debate. The Republicans knew this would happen. But the Republicans wanted to embarrass the Democrats in front of major media who were around after Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's swearing-in. Republicans wanted to cry that Democrats are obstructionist lefties.

It doesn't matter whether you agree or disagree with repealing SB 60. The Assembly Republicans ignored Schwarzenegger's call to change. They acted like hard-core partisans and quacked like hard-core partisans.

How did Assembly Democrats respond? They came out with knives drawn. Like the hard-core partisans they are, the Democrats drew blood right back - and they haven't stopped.

It's went like this (abridged):

``What we are getting instead of action, action, action, is delay, delay, delay!'' - Tony Strickland, R-Westlake Village.

``The people did not say throw away every bit of process!'' - Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento.

``We are doing what your governor ... asked us to do - not come out and throw the punch!'' - Sarah Reyes, D-Fresno.

``That we need to have a bill, so simple, vetted in committee, is absolute hogwash!'' - Dennis Mountjoy, R-Monrovia.

That first week, the Assembly met for only two hours, spending 30 minutes of it insulting one another and 40 minutes adjourning in commemoration of various pals.

Forty minutes adjourning.

On Dec. 5 - the deadline by which Schwarzenegger must get legislative approval to place before voters a $15 billion bond to refinance California's debt - watch 'em cry that they had no time.

Democrats began exacting retribution for the SB 60 ploy in a committee room jammed with people wanting to hear the governor's director of finance, Donna Arduin.

Forget the cleansed media reports. Here's what went down:

Arduin was invited to present her fiscal audit. But committee chairwoman Jenny Oropeza, D-Carson, double-booked Chief Legislative Analyst Elizabeth Hill to also testify.

Hill went first. Arduin, who the committee knew had to be at a noon meeting with the governor, was made to wait one hour and 15 minutes. Oropeza refused Arduin's request to testify in a timely manner. When Arduin finally spoke, it was 11:45 a.m.

Suffering a nasty sinus infection, Arduin asked if she could sit down. Oropeza refused to let Arduin sit, using the lame excuse that the committee needed to see her face.

People couldn't believe it. A murmur went up. Was this for real? But Oropeza again insisted Arduin stand. Partway through her testimony, Arduin pleaded for a chair. Two men rushed over. Oropeza - in a dripping, saccharine voice - exclaimed, ``Of course sit down, of course, if you really need to!''

A joke spread: ``Oropeza went to the Cruz Bustamante School of Condescension.''

As Arduin answered questions, her noon appointment time passed. Finally, as a legislator asked another question, Arduin ended her testimony and left.

Most media reported that Arduin abruptly left, but sanitized the mistreatment by Oropeza. The Los Angeles Times, for example, did not tell readers that Oropeza forced Arduin to stand, and buried the fact that Oropeza made Arduin late.

Maltreatment of Arduin spread. Sen. Joe Dunn, D-Garden Grove, stated at another hearing: ``Let's have a little fun here,'' then turned to Mike Genest, Arduin's top aide, and caustically stated, ``You are the director of finance, and she is more of a figurehead.''

Tom Martinez, aide to Sen. Majority Leader Don Perata, told me of Dunn's slam: ``That sort of behavior does not happen in the Senate.''

But powerful Sen. President Pro Tem John Burton is worse than Dunn. On Nov. 25, Burton introduced an awful bill to repeal even the wimpy workers' compensation reforms the Democrats approved this year. Burton is insulted that Schwarzenegger criticized the wan reforms.

Burton's foolish leadership has helped put California right where it is, and he can do tremendous harm to California's fiscal health.

But let's not forget the Assembly Republicans started this cascading series of events, purposely embarrassing the Democrats on Day One.

I hope it was well worth the 20 minutes of public crowing the Republicans got to perform.