Politics and Elections
Back to homepageIs high speed rail unstoppable?
Mar. 12, 2010 Sometimes, being a legislator can be a very lonely job. Just ask Assembly member Diane Harkey, R-Dana Point. She’s taking on the proposed California High Speed Rail project, and she doesn’t have a lot of help or
Read MoreCalifornia Forward or Backward?
In a press conference yesterday for the new “reform” group California Forward, Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento), Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez (D-Los Angeles), and representatives of California Forward announced a package of reforms to “improve government effectiveness in California,
Read MoreWhy Kathleen Brown lost
With Jerry Brown running for governor — again — I might as well tell my Kathleen Brown Story. Because of Wilson’s tax increases in 1991 and 1993, California was not enjoying the economic recovery that the rest of the nation
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Census pushing Dems to 2/3 majority
March 11, 2010 By JOHN SEILER The most important political event in California this year might not be the races for governor or U.S. Senator, or the ballot initiatives in June and November. It might be the envelope that drops
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Who’s running the Delta Stewardship Council?
By KATY GRIMES With the five major component bills of the 2009 water package representing a massive undertaking for the State of California, it appears that the Delta Stewardship Council — which will oversee the whole deal — has become operational
Read MoreCalifornian Utopia turns into Dante’s Inferno
Mar. 10, 2010 Inferno, the first part of the famous 14th century epic poem Divina Commedia (Divine Comedy) by Dante Alighieri, tells of a man’s journey through Hell toward faith. Along the way, Dante sees the uncommitted souls of the people
Read MoreLegislators Allow Another Enviro "Ransom"
When the word “mitigate” is used repeatedly in a legislative hearing, and written extensively into the summary of the proposed bill, special interest must be wrangling money from business, claiming to try to “limit damages.” Specifically, environmentalists win another big
Read MoreVoyeurism bill shut down
March 9, 2010 By KATY GRIMES Fulfilling a request by the Riverside County District Attorney, Assembly member Kevin Jeffries, R-Lake Elsinore, introduced legislation last month requiring any person convicted of inappropriate sexual filming offenses to register as a sex offender.
Read MoreTragedy of Arnold Schwarzenegger
Maybe we should look at Arnold Schwarzenegger’s ill-fated term as governor as a Shakespearean tragedy. A “fatal flaw” brings down an heroic character. For Hamlet, the “fatal flaw” was hesitation; for King Lear, a desire to retire and carouse with
Read MoreWide interest in redistricting
This just in: 30,275 people applied to serve on the Citizen’s Redistricting Commission. That’s right — the one with 14 spots. (Almost like applying to college!) The February 16 deadline will give way to Prop. 11’s redistricting effort in 2011.
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