NEWS ANALYSIS - Partisanship keeps grip on Capitol - Deep ideological splits in the Legislature stymie the governor on key goals. Decisions on major issues such as healthcare may end up before voters.

Extending health insurance to all Californians, Schwarzenegger's top priority, foundered amid disagreements with Democrats about who should pay for it and opposition from Republicans who questioned the need for systemic change.

Lawmakers could not agree on how to safeguard the state's water supply, despite a pressing drought and a court ruling that could imperil one of the primary sources of drinking water for Southern California.

And one political change Schwarzenegger sought, to make the Legislature less partisan by stopping incumbents from drawing their own district lines -- in effect, choosing their voters -- never got off the ground for the third year in a row.

"This was the session of missed opportunities," said Tony Quinn, a political analyst and former consultant to Republicans.

Even when lawmakers did reach agreements, they were often inadequate.

A $7.4-billion plan to add prison beds to ease overcrowding failed to appease federal judges weighing a cap on the system's population. Legislators refused to authorize an independent evaluation of the length of jail sentences, which the judges have identified as a major cause of overcrowding. A court takeover of the entire system still looms.

And legislators failed in their most basic job, to deliver a state spending plan on time. The budget came in 51 days late, after Republicans in the Senate mounted a rebellion. On the one hand, the final document protected a tax break for yacht buyers and gave railroads access to taxpayer funds to cut pollution. On the other, it prompted Schwarzenegger to eliminate programs to end homelessness and protect the elderly from greedy conservators.

Before lawmakers adjourned early Wednesday morning, the governor called them back for two special sessions to deal with healthcare and water. Although the Democrats who lead the Legislature expressed optimism that pacts could be reached, the issues that have bedeviled them for nine months will still be present.

Schwarzenegger maintained that he was satisfied with progress legislators made, but the contrast between two speeches, at the start and end of the session, suggests disappointment.