“Facing a deep budget deficit, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger on Monday declared a ‘fiscal emergency’ in California and called a special session of the state legislature to deal with the crisis. ‘Without immediate action our state is headed for a fiscal disaster,’ said Schwarzenegger in a statement. California, with a population of 38 million, would be the world’s sixth largest economy if it were an independent country. ‘We must act now to address the current year revenue shortfall of 11.2 billion dollars and we must implement an economic stimulus package to help retain and create jobs, keep Californians in their homes and fix the state’s Unemployment Insurance Fund,’ Schwarzenegger said at a Los Angeles press conference.” (12/01/08)