LOS ANGELES — The day a governor signs a budget bill into law usually marks the end of acrimony, threats and political dodge ball. But this is broke, embattled, politically crippled California, and so with the sweep of his pen, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger opened the door Tuesday for more fights. Seeking to close a final hole created by a last-minute rejection by lawmakers of two large revenue-producing measures, the governor made a slew of line-item cuts to programs for children and the poor to close a roughly $24 billion two-year gap. His trims to programs that legislators took pains to protect over these many weeks prompted instant screaming from lawmakers, as well as implications of lawsuits. The Democratic-controlled Legislature insisted that Mr. Schwarzenegger overstepped his authority to veto new appropriations by editing out existing funds and interfering with items written to avoid a veto. ‘I am asking legislative counsel for a definitive opinion on the legality of the governor’s actions, the Assembly leader, Karen Bass, said in a statement. ‘The cuts the governor made today will have catastrophic effects on children, domestic abuse victims and seniors. Legislators finalized the document last week after a series of […]