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When I first became a member of the Board of Equalization in 2002 the job I found least satisfying was sponsoring legislation. I had left the Legislature and no longer thought it was my job to make laws. Since that time I have grown even more wary of this and last week’s meeting of the Board is a good example. There are always legislative proposals that can reasonably be called “technical housekeeping” — like fixing drafting errors in law. I am happy to support these efforts. What I do not like is the tendency of the Board to lobby the Legislature to make the tax agencies more powerful and to prop up bad tax programs. I appreciate that the Governor has vetoed many egregious recommendations from the BoE — while also signing some that came out of the BoE over my objections — but at the very least there should be much more public pushback when the BoE asks the Legislature to make laws affecting taxpayers.

At last week’s BoE meeting, the Board, over my objections, approved sponsoring legislation to mandate that certain small businesses and individuals apply for a Use tax permit; another to validate the uncollectable Use tax… Read More

"You know you’re in trouble when you’re being lectured by communists about the size and scope of government. That’s never a good day." – Stephen Hayes, from The Weekly Standard commenting on China’s concern regarding the mounting public debt in America. "Who knows, man, who really knows." – Ed Pound, Director of Communications for Recovery.gov when asked why stimulus fund recipients would pluck random numbers to fill in for their congressional district.

There are lots of sources for news these days. That’s a good thing since we are no longer captive to the messages espoused by a single local newspaper or 3 TV network anchors. But, with such media diversity, it is hard to know all that is going on.

In the weeks and months ahead we will likely be hearing much about the "Manhattan Declaration," a 4,700 word document released Friday, signedby several leading Orthodox, Catholic, and evangelical Christians, united in efforts to "reaffirm fundamental truths about justice and the common good" and calling upon their fellow citizen to join in the defense of:

-The sanctity of human life.

-The dignity of marriage as the conjugal union of husband and wife.

-The rights of conscience and religious liberty.

Anyone can now go to www.manhattandeclaration.org and sign on as well. It will be interesting to see which politicians are willing to be included.

Of the over 150 original signers, the following are from California (note that the FlashReport’s own Frank Schubert is included)..

Pastor Randy & Sarah Brannon Senior Pastor, Grace Community Church (Madera)

Most Rev. Salvatore Joseph Cordileone Bishop, Roman Catholic Diocese of… Read More

I am getting sick of reading Frank Mickadeit’s stupid columns in the OC Register. Who the hell is he to have all that column space anyway? Was he born in California? He writes about himself going to law school at Chapman. Hell, I went to Pepperdine Law School when it was in Anaheim in the early 1970s and I never heard of Frank Mickadeit when I was there! He writes frequently about "pollster" Adam Probolsky and what he does. Well, all it takes to be a pollster is toread a book! BIG DEAL. Mickadeit just writes about people who call him or get in his face, sometimes manipulating himjust to get written up in his column in the Register. That is a problem with "journalists," they love brown-nosing and have too much power, There is a lot more going on in California and Orange County politicsthan Frank’s column, and his column seeks to be "insider" outlook, but it is more than a littlelame. Last Thursday, he wrote that former State Senator Dick Ackerman should get a lobbying contract regarding the Orange County Fairgrounds. Frank, did you… Read More

When I learned of the passing of Nao Takasugi, my first reaction was “no way” – to me Nao was the forever man, an unchanged rock of calmness and integrity. He was nearly always cheerful: a rare man who would pat you on the shoulder, say “good to see you” – and truly mean it every time.

For those who knew Nao, they will remember his enthusiastic smile, warm handshake and genuine goodness. I was a brash young politico when he took me under his wing. He taught me that humility in politics was more important than bravado, he showed me that we could hold on to our beliefs, fight hard for them while still respecting and genuinely liking those who oppose us. He showed me that nice guys don’t finish last.

Nao was a humble man who treated everyone with… Read More

When I learned of the passing of Nao Takasugi, my first reaction was “no way” – to me Nao was the forever man, a unchanged rock of calmness and integrity. He was nearly always cheerful: a rare man who would pat you on the shoulder, say “good to see you” – and truly mean it every time.

For those who knew Nao, they will remember his enthusiastic smile, warm handshake and genuine goodness. I was a brash young politico when he took me under his wing. He taught me that humility in politics was more important than bravado, he showed me that we could hold on to our beliefs, fight hard for them while still respecting and genuinely liking those who oppose us. He showed me that nice guys don’t finish last.

Nao was a humble man who treated everyone with dignity. He… Read More

This campaign memo has been buzzing around Team Whitman, and has made its way to the public square (clever technique, mentioning "prominent bloggers" by name in the memo — nice — it was forwarded to me many times over by FR friends on Meg’s campaign team)! TO: Campaign Leadership FROM: Jeff Randle, Senior Advisor, Henry Gomez, Senior Advisor DATE: November 20, 2009 RE: State of the Race Update With less than a year until Californians vote to elect the… Read More