Who Runs California?

Special elections for the House in one-party districts are often very low-turnout affairs, with victory going to whichever special interest group cranks up the most supporters on behalf of its preferred candidate. That was certainly the case in Long Beach, Calif. this week when voters selected a replacement for Democratic Rep. Juanita Millender-McDonald who died in April of cancer.

The two major competing special interests, I mean candidates, were State Assemblywoman Laura Richardson, who like Ms. Millender-McDonald is from a long-powerful African-American machine, and State Senator Jenny Oropeza, with her own base in the district’s strong Hispanic population. Ms. Richardson wound up winning the first round by 38% to 31% over Ms. Oropeza, positioning herself for a certain victory over a hapless Republican in the August runoff.

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maintaing his position as King of the Nanny State, The Governor signed AB 951. AB 951 bans allalochol on rafts on certain holidays on the American River. See press release here.There is no word on whether you can set up a tent in the middle of the river and declare yourself free from such laws.

You can see my take on the ill-advised law here.You can see a defense of the law by the Sheriff of Sacramento here. You will notice that out of 10,000 people average compalints involving 1% of the people. Now they will spend more sources targeting the others AND force some people to drink on other nights while there is no law enforcement around. Arrest law breakers don’t make more people break the law!… Read More

I think that when the voters put term limits in place, one reason that many did so was because being an elected legislator should not be a career. Rather, it should be an opportunity for those who have had very real life experiences to spend a six or eight years in Sacramento, and then they would return back to the private sector, allowing other noble citizens to step forward and give of their time.

Long gone are the days of ‘career-politicians’ who serve twenty, thirty or in some cases over forty years in the legislature. Long gone are the kind of parochial politicians who use their offices to milk millions out of political supporters to enhance their lifestyles, and to live supremus alius – above others. Willie Brown is and his kind are long gone, right? WRONG.

I was absolutely floored today when I received a copy of a complaint filed with the Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) against State Senate President Don Perata… Read More

WINNERS: The GOP Senators who stepped up and told the President: "Amnesty, proposed by a Republican, is still amnesty." LOSERS: The "dirty dozen" Republican Senators that cast the pro-amnesty vote: Bennett, Craig, Graham, Gregg, Hagel, Kyl, Lott, Lugar, Martinez, McCain, Snow, Specter. WINNERS: Grassroots activists all around America who got active, and made a difference with their lobbying of Washington politicians. THE BIG LOSER: President George W. Bush. My faith in the judgement of the George W. Bush has been profoundly, negatively impacted by this totally outrageous and misguided effort. WINNERS: All legal immigrants to the United States, whose journey to come here would have been immeasurably cheapened with an amnesty for the lawbreaking… Read More

Last week we featured a column from State Senator Tom McClintock critical of a decision by the California Air Resources Board to require that 10% of gasoline be made up of ethanol. Yesterday, former California Secretary of State, now Chairman of the Board of Pacific Ethanol Bill Jones responded with this column.

Last night Senator McClintock sent me the following ‘rebuttal’ to Jones’ response, which I am publishing to further this outstanding discussion!

The Farce About Ethanol… By State Senator Tom McClintock… Read More

There are a lot of reasons why the massive state government expansion into California’s health care marketplace is a bad idea. But there is a very good chance the the proposals by the Governor and Democrats violate the Federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act. FR friend and San Diego Union Tribune editorial writer Chris Reed has been the loudest trumpet on this issue, but now six Assembly Republicans have signed a letter to Democrat Assemblyman Mervyn Dymally, Chairman of the Health Committee, formally requesting a hearing to examine how ERISA might impact proposed plans… The signers were all five GOPers on the Health Committee, along with the Assembly Republican Leader: Dr. Alan Nakaniski, Dr. Bill Emmerson, Ted Gaines, Bob Huff, Audra Strickland, and Mike Villines. The letter is thoughtfully written, and worth a looksee. It’s linked below.

I’m not sure that actual legitimate policy concerns matter much to the Nunez machine, on their endless quest to expand the size and scope of state government… But I am proud that Assembly… Read More

Well, I don’t there is such a caucus, but there is no doubt that if there was one, it’s Chairman would be none other than Orange County’s Assemblyman Mike Duvall.

I get LOTS of e-mail newsletters from state legislators (if I am not on your list, you should add jon@flashreport.org), and today I received Duvall’s Dispatch. I ‘lifted’ this cool photo of the Assemblyman straight from it…

Did you know that Mike Duvall was born on Flag Day? See what you can find out by reading legislative newsletters? Of course, Duvall does not mention that he shares a birthday with none other than Donald Trump!

Perhaps when ill-fated attempt to extend term-limits fails next February, Duvall can go up to Fabian Nunez, and say,… Read More

I don’t have a problem with what Ann Coulter has to say. That’s her right. Her "side show" is all about making herself a pile of money, selling books, and getting obscene speakingfees. But I do have a problem with her doing what she does at the expense of the credibility of the conservative movement. Conservatives and conservative organizations need to rethink continuing to empower her by paying her speaking fees and providing crediblefora forher self-serving antics.

Ann of course is known as the journalist who at the national Conservative Political Action Conference last March sullied the reputation of former Senator John Edwards by callinghim outas a "faggot." Now she is at it again against Edwards. "So I’ve learned my lesson," she said ona recentABC program. "If I’m going to say anything about John Edwards in the future, I’ll just wish he had been killed in a terrorist assassination plot."

When Coulter appeared Tuesday on MSNBC’s "Hardball," Elizabeth Edwards, the wife of the former Senator,called in to ask Coulter to stop making personal… Read More