Wouldn’t it be nice to give yourself a huge pay raise, take as many vacation days as you want, and eat at fancy restaurants on someone else’s dime? Well, that is precisely what is happening at the Southeastern Economic Development Corporation (SEDC)–a non-profit city agency that is supposed to be helping redevelop the east part of downtown San Diego. The agency is charged with transforming the area into a successful and flourishing economy. But instead, taxpayers are paying for a public servant to flourish and flaunt her own success while misusing public funds. The San Diego Tribune (August 7, 2008) reported,“Staffers at the nonprofit city agency enjoyed fine meals and multilevel bonuses at taxpayer expense, according to documents the city released yesterday. The documents show that [the] SEDC President … used… [her] authority to… Read More

UPDATE: 5:06pm — CONFIRMATION — The Senate Rules Committee has confirmed to a source that the Senator’s office has been closed because of the Senator actions concerning a staff member. Nice. The doors to the office of the Senator are locked. Papers laying about outside are dated for yesterday. This is at least partial confirmation of a story that I’ve heard several times in the last hour. In fact, we’re bringing out the trusty "FlashReport Rule of Five" (if we hear something from five reasonably good sources, we’ll throw it into the public marketplace of thought)…

We’ve heard that there was some sort of personnel-related blow out between the Senator and her staff — and while the details I have been given are varied enough to not want to throw them out (they conflict so obviously someone’s got it wrong) — the… Read More

While the central budget debate is focused on how high the Legislature will raise your taxes, Democrats are attempting to sneak in numerous dangerous public safety measures under the radar.

As part of Democratic leaderships’ budget solution, inmates will receive one day’s early release credit for every day served in state prison – just for being alive. The plan would repeal the existing statute, which allows inmates to earn up to a day’s credit for each day served but only if they participate in work or education programs.

As proposed by the Democrats, no work or classroom participation would be required. An inmate sentenced to four years could be back on the street in two years without working or earning educational credits.

Under this “welfare-program-for-prison-inmate” plan, the concept of working to earn credits under existing laws will be repealed. Credits will simply become an entitlement granted to anyone simply for committing one or more felonies that result in a prison sentence. For most high school students who have passed an exit exam, this would appear to be a 50 percent… Read More

Jerry Brown vs. Chuck Shumer.

Gentlemen, to your corners!… Read More

From today’s Wall Street Journal Political Diary E-mail…

Hasta La Vista, Arnold

Some things never change in the Golden State. Seven weeks into the fiscal year, California still has no budget and faces a Pacific Ocean-sized $15 billion deficit. On Wednesday, Governor Arnold Schwarzennegger offered a "compromise" plan that kicks the legs out from his own party with a big new sales tax increase. "It’s time to put ideology aside," he insisted.

Now he faces a revolt from Republicans in the legislature who think this is precisely the time to be ideological. "Any tax increase plan won’t pass with Republican votes — absolutely not," a… Read More

"I’ll oppose higher taxes…" proclaimed then Assemblyman Lou Correa in a letter (see it here) he mailed to Central Orange County voters as he made his case for why he, and not his opponent, should be elected to the State Senate. If his promise, emphased in boldfaced text, in a personally signed letter to voters wasn’t emphatic enough, in terms of where Correa promised he would be on tax increases, then there was the glossy full-color mailing, with the words emblazed on the front: "Where I stand on… Taxes." Open up the mailing (see it here… Read More

"I’ll oppose higher taxes…" proclaimed then Assemblyman Lou Correa in a letter (see it here) he mailed to Central Orange County voters as he made his case for why he, and not his opponent, should be elected to the State Senate. If his promise, emphased in boldfaced text, in a personally signed letter to voters wasn’t emphatic enough, in terms of where Correa promised he would be on tax increases, then there was the glossy full-color mailing, with the words emblazed on the front: "Where I stand on… Taxes." Open up the mailing (see it here… Read More

As the state budget continues to unfold I am struck at how the only ways that we have to deal with the problem is to take power away from our elected leaders.

Speaker Nunez previously argued (Prop 93) that we don’t allow Legislators enough time in Sacramento to be able to figure things out. Many of us often talk about how elected leaders need more discretion. Despite this, when they are given discretion it is abused.

In an ideal world I would oppose spending limits because I want to allow elected leaders to make good choices. Yet time and time again that has not happened.

Revenues to the state have rocketed up over the past eight years or so. If we were looking for a cushion to be able to set the ship straight that opportunity has passed.

The spending limits being advocated in this budget solution move us to "State Budgeting for Dummies". In this case it will not even be taken by the voters through… Read More