So here we are, in record-setting late-budget territory. The good news is — we have a budget deal, right? Or do we?

Last Friday it was announced that there was a budget deal. It’s now Monday, and I am looking for word on what is in that budget deal? Of course, there is no public document on what is in thebudget deal because — well — because of the dysfunctional system.

Presumably last Friday the "Big 5" (Governor, Democrat and GOP leaders of each chamber) got together, with their key budget staff members, and hammered out something they all felt comfortable (on the part of the legislative leaders) bringing back to their caucus. (I should add that there is no doubt in my mind that the union bosses are so integrated on the Dem side that they will have been heavily consulted during the Big 5 talks, and thus were participants to that process).

So now we are in this "window period" where the budget deal is being taken to all of the legislators, and it is also being discussed with key constituency group leaders and I’m sure details are getting out now to those lobbyists and… Read More

Do you have a campaign budget? How much more do you have to raise to get there? Divide that number by 28. That’s how much you need to raise today, and tomorrow, and every day from here until election day. Commit yourself to getting on the phones and meeting that goal. Every day.

My guess is you’re already behind. You’d better get going.

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All of Barry’s enlightening advice…and other posts.… Read More

News Flash: You’re not going to win every vote.

Instead of telling people what you think they want to hear, why don’t you start telling them what you believe? Tell them why you and your ideas are the best for the job, even if they may disagree with you on some issues.

Obfuscation and speaking out of both sides of your mouth is likely to eventually come back to bite you. Honesty seldom does.

Reminder: You’re not going to win every vote.

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All of Barry’s enlightening advice…and other posts.… Read More

If I owned the Los Angeles Times and could even the score with the Brown campaign’s and that newspaper’s terrible treatment and lies about Meg Whitman, I’d get one of my reporters to ask Jerry Brown this question: “Are you addicted to cocaine?” When Brown refused to answer the question because it is stupid question to ask, I’d publish a big headline in the Times “Brown refuses to Answer Question about cocaine addiction”. Then when Brown eventually would say he was not addicted to cocaine, I would write another headline, “Brown admits not addicted to cocaine”. The deceptive headlines over baloney stories such as the housekeeper story simply show how far Brown and his media flunkies are willing to go to avoid what really needs to be discussed in this campaign: the government employee union stranglehold on policy in Sacramento. These powerful unions are bankrupting not only the state with their huge pensions, they are also bankrupting the future of our state by producing the poorest performing generation of students in California history. While Brown and the SF Chronicle and LA Times wallow in a message about one… Read More

You candidates who proudly commit to not raising any money (and that you will be running a purely grassroots campaign), because you don’t want to be beholden to anyone once elected…watch closely, it will be over for you when the clock strikes 8:01 p.m. on November 2.

Actually, it’s probably over for you now.… Read More

A classic veto from the Guv…

To the Members of the California State Assembly:

I am returning Assembly Bill 1759 without my signature. This bill is one more attempt to solve an extremely complex problem through over-regulation, micromanagement and the placement of unnecessary requirements in the contracting process – all without actually solving the underlying issue. Health coverage is expensive. It’s getting more expensive every day. Requiring sophisticated buyers, brokers and health plans to statutorily notify each other that costs may increase throughout the … Read More

Candidates, when you get a letter from the Feds calling into question the credentials of the hired help, it’s probably best not to ask the hired help to handle it.

(This is also your 32 months out — or 32 years, for that matter — campaign advice.)… Read More

Once again, the Democrats have gone dirty rather than try to win on the issues.Meg Whitman’s housekeeper “scandal” breaks days after she receives an endorsement from comedian and actor Paul Rodriguez, the day after a solid debate performance and the week before Whitman and Brown are due to participate in a debate that will be televised in Spanish around the state. What’s her big sin?Her husband forgot to mention a letter to her that notified them that their "legal" housekeeper might have an issue with her Social Security number.Her critics say that from that day on, Whitman knew that her housekeeper was illegal.From everything I know about these letters, they explicitly tell employers that they cannot take any action against an employee because of the letter.They are simply to give the letter to the employee—which is what Whitman’s husband did. Should Whitman’s husband have told her?Maybe, … Read More