Over 2,000 students from UC, CSU, and community colleges gathered yesterday for a protest march from Raley Field in West Sac to the State Capitol to denounce Arnold's planned higher ed cuts, and 200 more gathered at Arnold's LA office. The protest is getting big coverage - it's the featured article at SFGate this evening:

"Kick us out, we will vote you out," the crowd in Sacramento chanted as they walked along a bridge crossing Highway 99, through downtown and onto the Capital steps. The line of students, which included hundreds from the Bay Area, stretched six blocks, and dozens of motorists honked in support as they drove by.

The fears, voiced again and again, where that if Schwarzenegger's proposed funding cuts go through, students will end up paying more to attend, while reduced services and a narrower selection of classes....

One student from San Jose State, 24-year-old Joel Bridgeman, said raising the money for college was so tough that he was homeless - couch surfing - for about a year as he went to school.

"Most of the people who work in this building probably either went to CSU, UC or (community college), but as the next generation comes up they are looking for the easy solution," he said. "They are looking for what is going to get them re-elected. They say our voice doesn't matter, but I have a message for them... we are here to demand our chance."

I especially liked that framing - it's worth noting that millions of Californians owe their current wealth and prosperity to investments in higher ed made in earlier decades. Lt. Gov. John Garamendi, whose office helped organize the march, mentioned that both Ronald Reagan and Pete Wilson increased taxes to prevent destructive education cuts.

Of course, Arnold has no interest in doing the same - he's a true believer in Milton Friedman's shock doctrine theories - but lying to the public seems right up his alley:

Aaron McLear, a spokesman for Schwarzenegger, said higher education continues to be high priority for the governor, but considering the scope of the budget deficit, it would be unfair to cut certain items in the state budget while leaving others untouched.

"The governor is as frustrated as the students are that he has to make these cuts. He doesn't want to make these cuts," McLear said.

Students weren't buying it.

And they're right to not buy it, because it's a lie. Arnold doesn't have to make these cuts at all. If he hadn't cut the VLF and insisted on borrowing our way out of the last big deficit we'd have a much smaller hole now. And if he supported closing the tax loopholes he could potentially raise $12 billion, which would prevent budget cuts that would destroy California's economic competitiveness.

Organizers of the protest tell me this is just the beginning of activism on the budget. This is the fight of this generation's lives, and the longer the Yacht Party refuses to accept reality and the need to find new revenues, the more activism we're going to be seeing from young Californians.