I attended the annual Grossmont Hospital Foundation gala last night while Congressional voting was taking place on healthcare. Some say it wasn’t a good night for hospitals to celebrate, but the Grossmont event was scheduled long ago and Nancy Pelosi didn’t ask about any scheduling conflicts.

Any night that the community comes together and significant funds are raised for a local hospital from hundreds of generous donors — the Feds not included — it’s a good time to celebrate.

It remains to be seen how difficult such private efforts may become in the future. In the meantime, some area GOP voices on the healthcare vote:

California Republican Chairman Ron Nehring…California’s 19 Republican Members of Congress tonight stood together on the side of the American people and against a giant, costly new health care bureaucracy that will transfer decisions about Americans’ health out of the hands of patients and doctors and into thousands of bureaucrats’ little cubicles in Washington D.C. … Tonight’s vote demonstrates Democrats have no interest in… Read More

There are a group of Democrat Members of Congress who like to refer to themselves as Blue Dogs. Supposedly this group of 50 or so Democrats are more "moderate" and style themselves after the Democrats of old, like back in the days of John F. Kennedy. They most decidedly do not consider themselves "Pelosi" Democrats.

I just wanted to make it very clear to anyone who will listen — there are NO BLUE DOGS in California. Just few hours ago the House of Representatives passed a TRILLION DOLLAR ++ socialized healthcare plan for the United States. Guess how many California Democrats voted against this travesty? ZERO. Every Democrat Member of Congress from California voted for the plan.

This includes some Central Valley Democrats who like to say that they are Blue Dogs — but tonight’s vote proves otherwise…

Rep. Jim Costa — VOTED YES — NOT a Blue… Read More

Factoid of the Day: The Pelosi government run health care plan creates a new 2.5% tax on all medical devices not sold through a retail establishment. That means a new 2.5% tax on everything from wheelchairs and hospital gowns, to artificial organs. And that lowers health care costs how?

Tea Party: Yesterdayon Capitol Hill, we Republicans held a press conference on the west front of the Capitol to oppose the Pelosi Health Plan. The “Tea Party” people seized on this as an opportunity to express the grass roots opposition to what the Wall Street Journal has called the worst bill since World War II. They started sending their e-mails just a few days ago.

And boy did they deliver. I would estimate that there were 25,000 people in the crowd all chanting “kill the bill; kill the bill.” There are those on the left who would dismiss this movement as a bunch of kooks and fringe players. They do so at their peril. I talked to corporate CEOs, Doctors, an investment banker with an MBA, and many other educated… Read More

The ink is hardly dry on the proclamation signed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger appointing John J. Benoit to the Riverside County Board of Supervisors. Benoit was tapped to fill a vacancy created when the incumbent Supervisor vacated his seat due to an illness that shortly thereafter claimed his life. While I could devote an entire column to why a newly elected member of the California State Senate would seek to be appointed to county office instead, let’s just say for our purposes that this is exactly what happened.

Very soon, Governor Schwarzenegger will be signing yet another proclamation – this one calling for a special election to fill the vacancy created in the 37th Senate seat – open due to the departure of Senator Benoit. While trying to map out the date of the special election isn’t a precise science, in all likelihood there would be special primary election in mid-January, and if no one gets more than 50% of the vote, then a runoff general election a few weeks later. Senate District 37 is the 10th… Read More

The ink is hardly dry on the proclamation signed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger appointing John J. Benoit to the Riverside County Board of Supervisors. Benoit was tapped to fill a vacancy created when the incumbent Supervisor vacated his seat due to an illness that shortly thereafter claimed his life. While I could devote an entire column to why a newly elected member of the California State Senate would seek to be appointed to county office instead, let’s just say for our purposes that this is exactly what happened.

Very soon, Governor Schwarzenegger will be signing yet another proclamation – this one calling for a special election to fill the vacancy created in the 37th Senate seat – open due to the departure of Senator Benoit. While trying to map out the date of the special election isn’t a precise science, in all likelihood there would be special primary election in mid-January, and if no one gets more than 50% of the vote, then a runoff general election a few weeks later. Senate District 37 is the 10th… Read More

FR friend Senate Republican Caucus Chairman Bob Huff is one legislator who makes effective use of the medium of video to regularly communicate with his constituents and interested parties. Below you can see his "Huff Capitol Weekly Comment" where he talks about some education reform he is has helped pass off the Senate floor, and he also shares his perspective on the positive outcome on achieving a comprehensive water solution (a shout-out to the video editors for the great overlays of the scenic delta…).

Huff mentions that he taped this video right after the all-night marathon session on water. Given massive sleep deprivation, the Senator manages to pull of his commentary AOK!

Check it out:

… Read More

Just in off of Kevin Jeffries’ twitter feed:

"Congratulations to Supervisor Benoit! And yes, I’m still NOT running in the special election for his vacant Senate seat."

So far it would appear that Assemblymembers Emmerson, Miller and Nestande are actively gearing up for runs (making calls to supporters and potential donors, etcetra). We’ll see how this all develops.… Read More

Excerpts from LA Times today by Christi Parsons:

Reporting from Madison, Wis. – Declaring there should be “no excuse for mediocrity” in public schools, President Obama on Wednesday pledged to push for recruitment of better teachers, better pay for those who succeed and dismissal of those who let their students down.

When principals are trying to determine which teachers are doing well, he said, they should be able to consider student performance as part of the evaluation.

And when schools are failing, “they should be shut down,” Obama said. “But when innovative public schools are succeeding, they shouldn’t be stifled, they should be supported.”

The president’s tough words came as Obama spoke to students and teachers at a charter middle school in Wisconsin’s capital, Madison. But as he announced the criteria by which states can win grants from the Department of Education’s $4.35-billion “Race to the Top” fund, Obama spelled out standards that depart from conventional Democratic dogma.

Obama called for the abolition of “firewall” rules, which prevent many… Read More