We’ve been having productive meetings with Eric Roach on The Hill. It really resonated with Congressman Buck McKeon when we talked about how a Roach candidacy that is driving UP Republican turnout for the election day can only HELP the party keep the 50th in GOP hands. The opportunity of a Roach candidacy is a conservative Congressman long-term for the 50th. The danger if Roach doesn’t run is a suppresed GOP turnout and a real danger of a Busby win in June.

After all, there was a lot of pressure on Tom McClintock to stand down his campaign for Governor in the special election. But in reality, it was likely the increased conservative turnout is what put the first question, the recall of Davis, over the top. Had McClintock not driven conservative turnout, we might still have Gray Davis in office.

For those tired of this string, cut me some slack. I’ve never “live-blogged a trip to DC and I’m having fun!… Read More

Eric Roach and I were walking by the Judiciary Committee meeting room in the Rayburn House Office Buidlng, and noticed a lot of people going in. Eric asked the young lady at the door what was going on…and she told us a, “hearing on the National Security Agency syping on Americans.”

Eric and I walked up the hallway, looked at each other, and speaking about the young lady, we simultaneously said, “Democrat.”… Read More

San Francisco is such a cutting-edge city. Not cutting-edge when it comes to reducing crime or successfully dealing with homelessness, but cutting edge when it comes to “cool” ideas like a free wireless network and, now, text messaging teens on their cell phones about safe sex.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the city is spending $2,500 a month to run the program which is targeted at youth ages 12-24. Kids can text message the city’s public health department and get a quick response about how to have safer sex or deal with the ramifications of unsafe sex. City officials are concerned about the rising rates of sexually-contracted diseases. For example, last year there was a 100 percent increase in gonorrhea in African American youth.

At the same time, a… Read More

The meeting with the Weyrich group was outstanding. It underscored two important points – social conservatives are disheartened with the idea of a long-term stint for Brian Bilbray in Congress (again, we all think that he is better than Busby, but altogether unremarkable). There was tremendous excitement for Eric from many leaders of important conservative groups.

As an aside, I had a great talk with former Congressman Pat Toomey, who heads up the Club for Growth. He is very concerned about Congress assaulting the first amendment rights of 527 advocacy groups.

Now we are headed to Capitol Hill to meet with various conservative leaders in Congress!

Yes, this is a rush! Let me add, by the way, that the more time I spend ith Eric, the more I really come to realize what a great person he is – truly dedicated to our Republican principles!… Read More

Long Beach 2nd district councilman Dan Baker resigned beause of some ethics problems. As a result a special election is scheduled. All 11 candidates in the race endorsed legalizing homosexual marriage at a forum heldat A CHURCH. One candidate led with the "I’ve be gay longer than any of you." It’s a gay old time in Long Beach that at one time was oncerepresenetd by Dan Lungren& George Deukmejian. See article here.… Read More

The Americans for Taxpayers Reform meeting (aka…the “Secret Squirrel” meeting) went very well. Because of the rules of the meeting, I can’t go into details. But I will risk excommunication by saying two things – Eric Roach was well received, and also a TY to Grover Norquist for letting me say a few words about the FlashReport!

The ATR meeting is a group of primarily fiscally oriented folks. We are now off to another conservative meeting coordinated by movement leader Paul Weyrich, and this meeting is much more oriented towards social conservatives. I’m sure Eric will be well received at this meeting, too.

We’re being accompanied to these meetings by Steve Baldwin, who heads up the Council for National Policy, a premiere coordinating group of conservative leaders from around the nation. Baldwin for years was an Assemblyman in San Diego County. He is enthusiastic about Eric, but I am sure he is also motivated by the memory of Brian Bilbray endorsing his Democratic opponent in his first, unsuccessful run for the Assembly.

It is amazing how many people Roach has spoken with who are anxious to have a strong… Read More

Today has been a productive day thus far for Eric Roach – and most FR readers in California are up!

I’m having a great time, and am glad I was asked to come along…

We’re over at the offices of Americans for Tax Reform now in the heart of Washington, D.C., where conservative political guru Grover Norquist presides over what I would call a “conservative coordinating meeting” – that is very well attended.

Unfortunately, I can’t go into any details having been admonished that the meeting content and its attendees are “off the record” – though I assume that I can share that Eric Roach will address the group.… Read More

Howard Kaloogian, one of the candidates in the 50th who is along on this trip, made this interesting point: “There may be more candidates from the race on this ‘conservative unity’ trip to DC than attended a recent unity event for Bilbray.”

Oh, everyone here acknowledges that Bilbray is a “lesser evil” than Democrat Francine Busby, but that it would be extremely “underwhelming” to see Bilbray in the House. There is ZERO expectation that Bilbray would seriously confront the spending problem here. Especially when he campaigned on bringing San Diego “its fair share” (a big part of our problem is that most Members of Congress are “bringing home the bacon” – hence the fact that spending is going up, up, up.… Read More