I’d like to see a debate between Mark Leno and Pete Wilson. Not on the subject of Jessica’s Law, which will be decided in November when California voters pass a ballot initiative that, reasonably, separates child molestors from children. No, the debate I’d like to see is a larger one on government spending priorities that is not going to be settled anytime soon.

In today’s Los Angeles Times, Leno tells George Skelton that the peculiarly named Assembly Public Safety Committee that he chairs is not too liberal. Rather, his committee "kills ‘a lot of bad bills’ that are just too costly." He goes on to say that: ""The percentage of our general fund spending on corrections is out of control. Growing, growing, growing. After all, we’re dealing with a Legislature that refuses ever, ever to raise a tax."

So Leno is a fiscal conservative, which is heartening. Except that it is completely and totally at odds with his voting record since the day he arrived in the state… Read More

Well known is LA Mayor, Antonio Villaraigosa’s attempt to take control of the Los Angeles Unified School District. His ambition is shown by his response to the State of the Union.That is not enough.

The La Mayor has four appointments on the all-powerful, semi-public Metropolitan Water District. If you want to control water politics control the MWD. The Mayor campaign to choose Democratic Assemblyman and lobbyist Richard Katz to head the agency is making waves. Read about it here.or is this really linked to Katz, Anonio trying to help a aplan to takewater from the Mojave Desert. See it here. Will the rest of the MWD board resist?… Read More

Congressman David Dreier’s 26th Congressional District covers significant parts of two counties. The eastern portion includes the San Bernardino County cities of Rancho Cucamonga, Upland and Montclair. Moving west, the 26th covers a large swath of Los Angeles County in the San Gabriel Valley before dipping south to include San Marino. Registration figures for CD 26 stand at 46 percent Republican and 35 percent Democrat.

Dreier (pictured above)survived a scare in 2004 when popular Los Angeles talk radio hosts John Kobylt and Ken Chiampou of KFI relentlessly blasted Dreier for allegedly being soft on illegal immigration. Despite the two-pronged attack David Drier faced — on his right from the John and Ken show, and on his left from Democrat challenger Cynthia Matthews — Dreier won with 53 percent of the vote. In 2002, Dreier had beaten his Democrat opponent with 63 percent of the vote.

In December, I wrote a… Read More

It seems as though every day, it is getting harder and harder to read the tea leaves and keep track of the changing dynamics of the special election in the 50th Congressional, to replace the disgraced and resigned Randy "Duke" Cunningham, who infamously admitted his guilt in taking over $2 million in compensation for doling out government contracts.

It is the backdrop of this being ground-zero for an electorate betrayed by their Congressman that makes the drama so intense. There is a dynamic here that has never existed in a California Congressional special election before…

I have told a number of people that because of the pricy real estate values in much of this coastal San Diego district, there are literally tens of thousands of potential candidates one mortgage away from self-funding a race. Well, today there is a new Republican candidate jumping into the race, and he won’t have to mortgage any of his (multiple) houses, including the one in Rancho Santa Fe that he, his wife, and their five children call home.

… Read More

It seems as though every day, it is getting harder and harder to read the tea leaves and keep track of the changing dynamics of the special election in the 50th Congressional, to replace the disgraced and resigned Randy "Duke" Cunningham, who infamously admitted his guilt in taking over $2 million in compensation for doling out government contracts.

It is the backdrop of this being ground-zero for an electorate betrayed by their Congressman that makes the drama so intense. There is a dynamic here that has never existed in a California Congressional special election before…

I have told a number of people that because of the pricy real estate values in much of this coastal San Diego district, there are literally tens of thousands of potential candidates one mortgage away from self-funding a race. Well, today there is a new Republican candidate jumping into the race, and he won’t have to mortgage any of his (multiple) houses, including the one in Rancho Santa Fe that he, his wife, and their five children call home.

… Read More

Even one of the most prolific writers has to take some time for himself. So I will not be penning a lengthy commentary for today. I would simply suggest that you should definitely read several of the articles featured on the main page today:

* The Chronicle looks at the controversy surrounding the Governor’s Chief of Staff, Susan Kennedy, being simultaneously on the government payroll and the campaign payroll. Carla Marinucci, the piece’s author, delves into this growing controversy. * In the Daily News, there is an article highlighting that Senate Democrats, lead by President Pro-Tem Don Perata, see ‘no need’ for the Governor’s proposed 6% spending cap. That it could tie the hands of future efforts at borrowing. Actually, the cap is one of the positive things in the Governor’s proposal. Perhaps their opposition to the cap will nix the whole borrowing scheme and we can focus on the Assembly Republican pay-as-you-go plan. * Debra Saunders has secured today’s "Golden Pen" award as she looks at a controversial issue – which… Read More

Even one of the most prolific writers has to take some time for himself. So I will not be penning a lengthy commentary for today. I would simply suggest that you should definitely read several of the articles featured on the main page today:

* The Chronicle looks at the controversy surrounding the Governor’s Chief of Staff, Susan Kennedy, being simultaneously on the government payroll and the campaign payroll. Carla Marinucci, the piece’s author, delves into this growing controversy. * In the Daily News, there is an article highlighting that Senate Democrats, lead by President Pro-Tem Don Perata, see ‘no need’ for the Governor’s proposed 6% spending cap. That it could tie the hands of future efforts at borrowing. Actually, the cap is one of the positive things in the Governor’s proposal. Perhaps their opposition to the cap will nix the whole borrowing scheme and we can focus on the Assembly Republican pay-as-you-go plan. * Debra Saunders has secured today’s "Golden Pen" award as she looks at a controversial issue – which… Read More

As the famed, late Assembly Speaker Jesse Unruh (pictured) was famed for saying, "Money is the mother’s milk of politics."

For years now, Matt Rexroad over at Meridian Pacific has been known for producing some of the best information to keep track of how much folks have raised and spent on their campaigns. Hopefully Matt will continue with his great tracking of late-expenditures when we get to that season. But for now, you can direct your browser over to Meridian’s Cal-Races website and download an Excel Spreadsheet for your computer, that will allow you to look up any statewide or legislative races, and see the current snapshot of latest numbers filed with the Secretary of State.

THANK YOU to Matt and the team at Meridian for providing this resource!… Read More