FLASHREPORT

I am not one to reprint press releases -- but this missive from the Poizner campaign was awesome...

Does Jerry Brown Oppose Both the Budget Deal and Proposition 1A Over Taxes? 

Political chameleon Jerry Brown is at it again. This week he's claiming to be a born-again taxpayer advocate who'll oppose new taxes. 

Brown made his claims in a lengthy interview with the San Francisco Chronicle's Carla Marinucci that she posted on the newspaper's politics blog on Tuesday. The column states at one point: 

The California governor's job this time around could be a no-win situation, he acknowledged. It's an era when just the state deficit is out of control and budget battles are bloody. There's no one easy answer, "there's just pain," he said. Still, "I would not be advocating new taxes, I'll tell you that," he said. Already, California is "one of the highest tax states around," he said. "So we've got to be competitive. We can't drive all the jobs out and tax the few people who stay." 

It's a given that this is ironic coming from the man who made Proposition 13 necessary and was its leading opponent.  This is the same career politician who has repeatedly called for businesses to pay higher taxes.  Now he's echoing Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner on the issues of taxes and economic competitiveness - almost verbatim. 

Coincidence? 

Hardly. 

So Brown's latest statements beg some pretty obvious questions. Does the Attorney General now oppose the budget deal recently approved by the Legislature and signed by the Governor because of the tax hikes it contains?  Are there any of the tax increases that Brown does support if he opposes the overall budget deal? Is Brown going to oppose Proposition 1A, the spending cap placed on the May 19th special election ballot, which would keep the recently approved tax increases in place for an additional two years if the measure is approved by voters? Brown has been playing the political version of "duck and cover" on most issues since he started plotting his campaign for a third term as California Governor.  He often refuses to take a position or offer anything more than vague and non-committal rhetoric. But Californians deserve to know where Jerry Brown stands on the key issues of the day, particularly given his latest political posturing. So, Jerry, we're waiting.