It has been a busy couple of weeks here in the Capitol, what with the budget, health care reform, the bond proposals, and everything, it has been hard to keep up. I thought I would let things settle down a little, and then comment.

First its time to give credit where credit is due. October, November and December were unusually warm throughout the country, and we were starting to read about how global warming was kicking in. Then, AB 32, California’s global warming solution came into effect on January 1, and within a week, California experiences a record cold snap. Good job, California government. I am sure that the country would not have experienced that cold snap without the hard work of our legislature. What is next? To paraphrase an old musical–"I know we made a law a year ago here. July and August mustn’t be too hot. And next, a legal limit to the snow here?" You finish the song. You’ll get the idea.

But what about health care? The Governor’s proposal is basically the old SB 2 on steroids. Remember SB 2. The Governor opposed SB 2, which was referended and defeated by the voters in 2004, saying… Read More

In Roll Call Magazine (the foremost newspaper covering the ‘insider news’ of Capitol Hill), they profile a handful of GOPers (five in the Senate, five in the House) worth keeping an eye on — one of these ten is a Californian… Freshman Kevin McCarthy.

Here is was Roll Call had to say about McCarthy: Rep. Kevin McCarthy (Calif.). In his first weeks in Congress, McCarthy already has shown signs of the same political acumen of his predecessor, Rep. Bill Thomas (R-Calif.): He was tapped to serve on the transition team at the National Republican Congressional Committee, the freshman class elected him as their representative on the powerful GOP Steering Committee, and he landed a seat on the House Administration Committee – a panel once chaired by Thomas before he took over the House Ways and Means Committee. McCarthy’s… Read More

Ensuring Accountability on Infrastructure Spending Yesterday, I stood with Governor Schwarzenegger as he signed an executive order making state officials accountable for how they spend the $42.7 billion infrastructure bond package approved by the voters. While many of us had concerns with the bonds in the past, now is the time to ensure accountability and transparency. With the stroke of a pen, Governor Schwarzenegger acted decisively to ensure that these critical infrastructure dollars be spent exactly as the voters intended — easing traffic congestion on overcrowded roadways, strengthening flood control protections, building new schools and modernizing existing campuses. … Read More

Today we feature columns from the two candidates who are running to head up the organization of California’s 58 Republican County Chairmen, aptly called the Republican County Chairman’s Association. I asked the current President of the CCA, Tom Del Becarro of Contra Costa County, to give FR readers a quick description of the group. In Tom’s own style, he penned this:

Today we feature columns from the two candidates who are running to head up the organization of California’s 58 Republican County Chairmen, aptly called the Republican County Chairman’s Association. I asked the current President of the CCA, Tom Del Becarro of Contra Costa County, to give FR readers a quick description of the group. In Tom’s own style, he penned this:

The County Chairman’s Association (“CCA”) is the association of all of our County Chairs. At its best, it provides ongoing training to incoming Chairs and communicates our successes and areas for opportunities to each Chair so that they may benefit from the collective wisdom of its… Read More

Just a few minutes ago, I got off of the phone with a very excited Julie Soderlund. Those in the media, and anyone who followed the Gubernatorial Campaign of Arnold Schwarzenegger know that Julie (pictured to the right) served as the Governor’s Press Secretary for his re-election effort. In that capacity, I got to deal with Julie quite a bit. I can assure all FR readers that she is a really great communicator, and a consumate professional. Julie was sharing the news that she has decided to take the leap into the private sector, becoming the managing director of Wilson-Miller Communications. The "Wilson" is Marty Wilson, who is a chief political advisor and fundraising coordinator for Governor Schwarzenegger (he played a similar role with former Governor Pete Wilson), and the "Miller" is Beth Miller, whom I have know for many years, and who has a long history of working for GOP candidates and causus.… Read More

He may be considered a longshot by many, Quixotic by some, but that doesn’t make his effort any less interesting to those of us living in the San Diego area…and especially those of us who have called him our representative for the last 26 years. Duncan Hunter will announce for Pres from South Carolina this morning. See Tuesday’s blurb in CQPolitics.com

A missive from Larry Cutting at the campaign:

YOUR CHANCE TO BE A PART OF HISTORYDuncan Hunter for President

Duncan is moving closer to the White House and we’re doing everything possible to help make it happen. He will be making his historic official announcement Thursday morning in South Carolina , and we are going to be there vicariously to inject our energy and support.… Read More

As the debate takes place in Sacramento about whether to move the California Presidential primary to the first Tuesday in February, there seems to be widespread consensus amongst the Sacramento-Insider crowd that the legislative primaries should stay in June. As is being reported in the San Francisco Chronicle, the cost for holding an additional statewide election is somewhere in the neighborhood of $90 million smackers. So why not move the legislative primaries to February as well? I can think of a practical consideration — which is that it would cause folks to have to decide pretty early if they want to run for office. But, heck, everyone seems to decide awfully early right now! But moving off of that logistical challenge for potential candidates, I think that it is obvious that many politicians in Sacramento see a statewide Presidential primary in February of ’08 as one last opportunity to place a measure on the ballot to somehow loosen term limits. What is $90 million bucks compared to the opportunity to keep such amazing legislators in office for a few more years! (Not!) I look at the legislation that passed before we… Read More