James Freeman, a former staffer for then-Rep. Chris Cox (R-Newport Beach) is today an editorial writer for the Wall Street Journal. In a book review in the paper’s "bookshelf" column, he has managed to succinctly summarize the root cause of financial turmoil impacting the government sponsored enterprises (Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Ginnie Mae et al) and the financial institutions that bet on their investments. This summary comes in the form of a review of a new book, "The Sellout" by CNBC correspondent Charles Gasparino.

Here’s the gist, in terms of market turmoil triggers: "For another, the government had made a series of horrendous policy decisions that, as Mr. Gasparino shows, encouraged financial firms to go long on housing in ways that would have once been unimaginable.

"In 1995, Henry Cisneros, the secretary of housing and urban development, directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac…to buy and guarantee mortgages of low- and moderate-income borrowers amounting to 42% of their annual business volume. His successor,… Read More

In 1999, the first year of the beginning of the Davis debacle, I was re-appointed as the Republican member of the Health and Human Services Budget Subcommittee (I had been the one Republican member of the three member committee before, but had been removed because I was "too difficult" to deal with). When I returned, my consultant on that committee was Mike Genest. For at least one budget cycle (maybe two), we sat in the committee watching then Committee Chair (later Congresswoman, and now Labor Secretary) Hilda Solis spend the state into oblivion. During her time as the Committee Chair, Solis increased welfare spending by 42%, moving the state to its largest (by percentage) deficit in its history.

During that time, I learned more about the budget, how it works, and what works and what doesn’t than I had in my first stint on the committee. I had great consultants before and after that time, but I learned a lot from Genest, and learned how the budget worked. A better budget technician you will never find.

He is now leaving the state, and I think the Governor will be worse off for it. He is loyal, he is competent, he is smart, and he… Read More

Lest there be any doubt about whether the new Pelosi Health Care Bill is more costly, more controlling, and closer to socialism than the previous iteration, here is your fact of the day:

You may remember that the ‘original’ health care bill introduced before the August recess, H.R. 3200, would have created 53 separate bureaucracies, commissions, boards etc… The new Pelosi Bill, which the House may vote on as early as this week creates a whopping 111 new boards, bureaucracies, commissions, and programs….wow….if this isn’t a massive government intervention into our health care system, I don’t know what is.

Monday’sedition of the Wall Street Journal has a scathing editorial of the legislation introduced by Speaker Pelosi. It notes the creation of a new ‘Health Choices Commissioner’ that will decide “essential benefits” which all insurers will have to offer. This sounds like something straight out of Aldous… Read More

Last night the State Senate made a decision that the Assembly will mull over this morning — do you put a "solution" to the state’s water problems in front of voters that includes billions of dollars in unnecessary spending?

To talk to Republicans who are supporting this proposal, they would tell you that they support some of the non-essential spending in order to make the measure itself more appealing to liberal votes in parts of the state that aren’t suffering from water shortages. Talk to others and they would tell you that the water crisis is so bad that billions of non-essential borrowing and spending is simply the price paid to get a water-fix through a legislature dominated by liberal Democrats.

Either way, if the water bond proposal as passed by the State Senate last night is approved by the Assembly and scheduled to go before voters in November of next year, there is serious question about whether or not such a "Christmas Tree" measure (with boughs filled with ornaments of enviro-pork) will be passed or rejected by voters.

To be sure, there is a large chunk of this proposal that makes sense —… Read More

Last night the State Senate made a decision that the Assembly will mull over this morning — do you put a "solution" to the state’s water problems in front of voters that includes billions of dollars in unnecessary spending? To talk to Republicans who are supporting this proposal, they would tell you that they support some of the non-essential spending in order to make the measure itself more appealing to liberal votes in parts of the state that aren’t suffering from water shortages. Talk to others and they would tell you that the water crisis is so bad that billions of non-essential borrowing and spending is simply the price paid to get a water-fix through a legislature dominated by liberal Democrats.

Either way, if the water bond proposal as passed by the State Senate last night is approved by the Assembly and scheduled to go before voters in November of next year, there is serious question about whether or not such a "Christmas Tree" measure (with boughs filled with ornaments of enviro-pork) will be passed or rejected by voters.

To be sure, there is a large chunk of this proposal that makes sense — borrowing to… Read More

The media is making much of the perceived split between moderate or establishment Republicans and conservative, activist Republicans. And while it’s interesting to watch, it’s really nothing new to the Grand Old Party. Nor is it really such a bad thing, for either party. We see this push-pull today in the NY23 flap, and in the move, reported here in Politico, from conservatives to run primary challenges against moderate/establishment/incumbents with whom the former are displeased.

And while the media may focus on this as if it’s big news, the reality is that political parties are messy; representative democracy and a two-party system is messy business.

The internecine battle (in both political parties) is nothing new. I was reminded of a distantly similar example of this recently when I stumbled across a biographical listing for Peter Robinson, former Reagan speechwriter who hosts the excellent "Uncommon Knowledge" broadcast produced by the… Read More

Every legislator who has ever advocated for transparency who votes on this water package before it has been in print and distributed to the public (with an understandable summary) for at least 48 hours should consider themselves part of the problem. Policy considerations within this massive bill aside, the process is fatally flawed. And on 2/3rd vote bills, both parties are at fault.… Read More

There was smoke, but apparently no fire.

La Mesa Councilman Dave Allan, who on Friday filed initial paperwork to run for County Supervisor in 2012 (see prior breaking news story), called me today to say he changed his mind. Now apparently done with perhaps the briefest candidacy in recent memory, Allan had previously confirmed that he would run for the 2nd District seat, even if it meant taking on incumbent Dianne Jacob.

"I’m not going to run," said Allan. "It was a hasty decision made out of distrust and anger over my concerns about fire protection in the County of San Diego."

So there. As for his future plans, Allan said "I’m going to continue my mission to make fire protection the best that it can be."… Read More