CalWatchdog Morning Read – September 23

23 Sep, 2016 by CalWatchdog Staff

Is another NFL team joining the Rams in Los Angeles?
Los Angeles City Council to battle high-speed rail?
CA doing little to keep guns from felons and others disqualified
Pot legalization political funding is difficult to track
Ballot measures explained in haiku
Sanchez Senate campaign playbook for Latino candidates

Good morning. TGIF. Just because we rarely get the opportunity, today we’ll start with sports.

The St. Louis Rams may have once again become the Los Angeles Rams, capping off the biggest suspense story in the National Football League, but the controversy over the city’s final lineup of teams has flared up yet again.

In San Diego, where the Chargers have gone down to the wire with city officials on a possible move that once looked like a done deal, the next twist depends on voters.

Although analysts and fans have cautioned that one NFL team may be plenty for Los Angeles, especially so soon on the heels of the Rams’ return, the stadium deal holding the Chargers’ future in the balance has failed to rally popular support.

CalWatchdog has more.

In other news:

“Los Angeles may be the latest opponent of a proposed bullet train route through San Fernando Valley horse country. Councilman Paul Krekorian has filed a motion to oppose an above-ground high-speed rail route fought by residents from Lake View Terrace to Shadow Hills, who say the foothills train would destroy the environment, kill horse-related businesses and put an end to an equestrian way of life. The Los Angeles Daily News has more.
“A national gun control group that helped write California’s Proposition 63 released a study Thursday indicating that thousands of felons disqualified from owning guns are keeping their firearms in this state and most others because of the lack of an effective enforcement mechanism,” reports the Los Angeles Times.
“One published media report this month said the campaign to legalize marijuana in California had raised $18 million. Within days, other major news outlets pegged the total at just one-third that amount, while a nonprofit campaign watchdog group said the figure was $11 million. Why the conflicting numbers?” The Orange County Register has more. (We can tell you part of the problem is the Secretary of State’s confusing and redundant website.)
LA Weekly explains every ballot measure in haiku. Our favorite is for Prop. 66:

“If you want the state

To execute more people

This one is for you”
And The Weekly Standard writes that U.S. Senate candidate Loretta Sanchez’s strategy to unite Latinos and Republicans could be the playbook for future campaigns.