Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger called members of the Assembly gutless Wednesday for not passing his package to cut prison spending.

"They don't have the guts to now make these decisions because they're more worried about their safe seats rather than the safe streets," the governor said.

Hours later, the Assembly once again postponed taking a vote that had been expected to occur today on a prison plan. No new date was set.

Schwarzenegger's criticism came toward the end of an otherwise lighthearted online video interview that he taped with Twitter founders Biz Stone and Evan Williams.

Assembly Majority Leader Alberto Torrico said he was offended. "If he's going to insult, if he's going to govern through Twitter, it's just ridiculous," the Newark Democrat said.

"His comments are not helpful," Torrico added. "If he's so anxious to release inmates, to put felons on the street, then he should do it on his own - and stop Twittering."

The Schwarzenegger-backed plan to cut prisons costs by $1.2 billion and reduce the inmate population by 27,300 in the next 10 months was narrowly approved last week in the Senate without any Republican votes, then stalled in the Assembly.

Key components of the plan facing resistance include proposals to release as many as 6,300 low-level, nonviolent inmates to house arrest with electronic monitoring and to create an appointed commission to alter sentencing guidelines.

"The governor, who has vetoed prison reform legislation in the past, should spend less time rattling his rhetorical sword and more time producing Republican votes for his public safety proposals," said Shannon Murphy, a spokeswoman for Assembly Speaker Karen Bass.

Torrico said the governor's plan for alternative custody could endanger public safety and that the Assembly is nearing agreement with law enforcement groups on a different approach.

The Assembly's package would not release any felons before their sentences expire and would sever the sentencing commission proposal, leaving the issue to be resolved later, he said.

Unlike the governor's plan, the Assembly version would allow suspects to continue to be charged with felonies for writing bad checks, receiving stolen property or for petty theft with a prior conviction, Torrico said.

The Assembly alternative also would expand sentencing credits for completion of education or rehabilitation programs in prison.

"The stakes are very high," Bass said of the package. "So of course we want to do this right."