The State of the State, according to Jerry Brown
Here are some notable moments from Gov. Jerry Brown’s speeches, which span more than four decades of California politics and government.
1975
“An honest government is not enough. We also have to be effective.”
1976
“In short, we are entering an era of limits. In place of a manifest economic destiny, we face a sober reassessment of new economic realities; and we all have to get used to it.”
1977
“We are facing the prospect of a very serious drought ... We are going to require conservation measures; in some places rationing. We are going to have to learn to share, north and south, all of us together.”
1978
“I see over the years ahead a growing emergence of the people and institutions of this state.”
1979
“In this post-Proposition 13 era, we have to recognize that the local bond issues and funding that we often have used to spread the urban and suburban sprawl is a thing of the past.”
1980
“There is much ambition in the hearts of this room, but there is much trouble in the people of this land.”
1981
“Never since World War II has a budget been so tight. The reason is simple. For the last three years you have dramatically responded to the desire of our citizens for tax relief.”
1982
“And I tell you, the people we serve ... have not forgotten the dream that took them or their forebears to California to create the good life.”
2011
“If you are a Democrat who doesn’t want to make budget reductions in programs you fought for and deeply believe in, I understand that. If you are a Republican who has taken a stand against taxes, I understand where you are coming from.”
2012
“Contrary to those critics who fantasize that California is a failed state, I see unspent potential and incredible opportunity.”
2013
“Lay the Ten Commandments next to the California Education Code and you will see how far we have diverged in approach and in content from that which forms the basis of our legal system.”
2014
“I have some playing cards with a chart from this year's budget summary that shows our last 15 budgets. It's not pretty. So I decided to put a picture of Sutter on the other side to keep our spirits up.”
2015
“Over the next four years — and beyond — we must dedicate ourselves ... to seeing that the massive changes in education, healthcare and public safety are actually carried out and endure.”
2016
“Incredibly — though last year was the hottest on record — there are still those, particularly in Washington, who are in denial.”
2017
“The recent election and inauguration of a new president have shown deep divisions across America .... Familiar signposts of our democracy — truth, civility, working together — have been obscured or swept aside.”