FIRST POSTED AT 8:22AM. Updates below. I am sick this morning over the news that last night, while playing basketball, longtime GOP Capitol staffer Will Smith suffered a heart attack that took his life. Will was a great guy and what a tragedy to be struck down in the prime of his life. Smith had been serving as Chief of Staff for State Senator George Runner. Please keep his family in your prayers. I’m sure we’ll have more on this.

Breaking political news generally is a fun task. This morning, it is a horrible one.

Rest in peace, my friend. UPDATED 8:55AM.

Below is a brief statement from Will’s wife, Anissa, and also some thoughts from one of Will’s friends, Chris Jones. FR readers with thoughts of Will are invited… Read More

We talk about how 2010 is going to be the "It Year" for politics — and it’s already started. Between the policy changes facing Sacramento including a projected $20 billion shortfall (and those predictions always seem to be low), and what will be a staggering year for politics – what, with Gubernatorial, U.S. Senate and down ticket races, and an expectation of a few thousand ballot measures qualifying for November, there will be no shortage of material to write about here on FR.

But not to be missed as a critical happening in 2010 will be the outcome of legislative elections up and down California. Right now Democrats enjoy a 25-15 majority in the Senate, just two shy of the 2/3 vote necessary to pass taxes increases, and in the Assembly Democrats sit at 51 seats, just three shy of the 2/3 mark.

There is no doubt that Senate President Darrell Steinberg, and Assembly Speakers Bass and Perez, along with their public employee union allies will be working overtime to try and pick up those five critical seats.

… Read More

This just in from conservative Los Angeles County Supervisor Mike Antonovich…

Governor’s Budget Rearranges Deck Chairs On The Titanic Michael D. Antonovich, Los Angeles County Supervisor Without structural reform to fix California’s broken budget system, this budget is a mix of tax schemes and band aids that only delays the inevitable. Our state currently has some of the highest gasoline, sales… Read More

We talk about how 2010 is going to be the "It Year" for politics — and it’s already started. Between the policy changes facing Sacramento including a projected $20 billion shortfall (and those predictions always seem to be low), and what will be a staggering year for politics – what, with Gubernatorial, U.S. Senate and down ticket races, and an expectation of a few thousand ballot measures qualifying for November, there will be no shortage of material to write about here on FR.

But not to be missed as a critical happening in 2010 will be the outcome of legislative elections up and down California. Right now Democrats enjoy a 25-15 majority in the Senate, just two shy of the 2/3 vote necessary to pass taxes increases, and in the Assembly Democrats sit at 51 seats, just three shy of the 2/3 mark.

There is no doubt that Senate President Darrell Steinberg, and Assembly Speakers Bass and Perez, along with their public employee union allies will be working overtime to try and pick up those five critical seats.

**There is more – click the… Read More

I try to be creative here on the FR, but I can’t tell you how many times I want to start my post with "only here in the Bay Area." Yesterday’s "No Pants" day on BART is a great example. Although since the silly stunt was sponsored by a New York performance art group, I guess we’ll just have to categorize it as an "only in New York or San Francisco" event.

Thank goodness, I didn’t plan to take my kidsinto the City yesterday. I don’t think my 11 year has recovered from the time we were trapped on a cable car outside of the St.Francis whenUnion Square was taken over by bicyclists taking part in the once-a-month, anti-carCritical Mass bike event. On that day, everyone on the cable car lost their appetite when an extremely large, extremely white and extremely naked man rode by on his not-quite-large-enough bicycle. Truly an image that no one needs to have in their head.

Here’s an image from yesterday’s stunt:

… Read More

This just came in as I am out the door… So my apologies as we usually don’t reprint press releases. Good news for this candidate I suppose, they get their "exact" spin.. Take it for what it is, Fiorina’s take on her own finances… Carly Fiorina Kicks Off 2010 With More Than $2.7 Million In The Bank For Senate Bid Banks $232,000 in online donations Sacramento, CA – U.S. Senate candidate Carly Fiorina today announced that, after a strong first 60 days as a declared candidate, her campaign enters the 2010 election year with more than $2.7 million cash on hand. … Read More

State Senator Tom Harman has to be feeling a little crowded about now. Heck, just a few days ago there was nothing standing between him and the Republican nomination for Attorney General except the technical need to be nominated by GOP voters in the June primary. A few days ago I reported that Dean John Eastman of Chapman University’s Law School had started making calls and will be formally announcing his candidacy very soon.

Today brings the (anticipated) formal entry into the race of Los Angeles County’s 9-year top prosecutor, District Attorney Steve Cooley. In a prepared statement announcing the formation of his Exploratory Committee, Cooley had this to say: "Many people from law enforcement and throughout the political spectrum are urging me to run for Attorney General. I am proud of my crime fighting record as District Attorney. As a career prosecutor and District Attorney of Los Angeles County I have the experience and drive to be California’s top law enforcement… Read More

(Courtesy of ProtectMarriage.com) Just minutes ago, U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy stayed the order of Judge Vaughn Walker that would have allowed for streaming video in the case challenging Proposition 8, Perry v Schwarzenegger. Walker previously had agreed to provide a video stream of the trial on a daily basis through YouTube. The Perry case would have been the first trial ever in the Ninth Circuit where cameras had been allowed in the courtroom. ProtectMarriage.com vigorously fought Walker’s order by appealing to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and then filing an emergency appeal with Justice Kennedy.

The stay order is in effect until Wednesday, January 13th at 4:00pm eastern time to permit the Supreme Court time for further consideration.

Andy Pugno, General Counsel for ProtectMarriage.com said, "The temporary stay of Judge Walker’s ruling to allow broadcast of the Perry v Schwarzenegger trial is a good sign that the full United States Supreme Court will… Read More