By Fred Warchol

Monday night marked the first of many anticipated meetings, in which the Atwater City Council will attempt to bridge the gap of  a $1.9 million budget shortfall.

In the audience were key members of the Merced Tea Party, ready to fire their proverbial muskets at a tax, spend, and waste City Council.

Mayor Joan Carol Faul immediately got a favorable split vote to close down the meeting at 11:00PM.  Her rationale was, " it's difficult to focus one's mind after 11PM ". Some would claim that her particular difficulty is unaffected by time....

Atwater citizens, Jim Price, and Atwater Good Government leader, Pete Robinson, pummelled the Council with straight forward and hard hitting questions on the council's inability to rein in questionable spending.

They pointed to the obscene council benefits that amounts to a slap in the face to all the  suffering that being experienced by  Atwater citizens.

They also pointed out  the gold-plated pay and retirement and medical plans enjoyed by city employees, and how by just roping them onto line, to what is fair and generous, would instantly wipe out the budget short fall......

As to be expect from a spineless Council, all of the hard decision were kicked down the road to the next meeting.......

More on  the budget hearings will be reported to the public  on our next report,  as
important issues are streamed from the Bluegrass State of Kentucky, to the jewel of  California's Central Valley---- Atwater,  California.......