Waste, Fraud, and Abuse

Robert Gates scorns the RINOs who don't get ripped enough

One of the wonderful things about the rise of Ron and Rand Paul and the increasingly libertarian tone of some of the young Republicans elected to Congress is that they are shunning the mindless embrace of military spending that has

‘Arena derangement syndrome’ afflicts Sacramento

Katy Grimes January 7, 2014

Call it “arena derangement syndrome,” or ADS. It afflicts cities trying to use taxpayer money for new sports arenas or stadiums. It’s now threatening the validation of 35,000 ballot initiative petition signatures that would halt the proposed subsidy of a new

Brown seeks to prop up doomed bullet train with AB 32 $

Chris Reed January 6, 2014

As warned in this spot, Gov. Jerry Brown is conflating two of the state’s worst programs: “Brown plans to propose spending millions of dollars in fees paid by carbon producers to aid the state’s controversial high-speed rail project. “The proposal

As with fracking, Obama shuns green cultists on GMO foods

Chris Reed January 5, 2014

One of the most puzzling phenomena I’ve seen in years of watching the California media is how they simply won’t report that the Obama administration considers fracking to be just another heavy industry that can be made safe with routine

As consultant, bullet-train boss helped write doomed business plan

Chris Reed January 4, 2014

A lengthy Comstock’s profile of Jeff Morales, the former Washington D.C. and Chicago political operative brought in to save the bullet train by Gov. Jerry Brown, gets some little details about the high-speed rail project wrong and has some dubious

Maryland’s poor hammered by energy price spike — CA’s next

Chris Reed January 3, 2014

A point that can never be made enough about the policies of California Democrats is how much they actually hurt poor people. Their top priority is pleasing the richest part of their base — unions, trial lawyers and the urban

LAT’s Vartabedian, Skelton leave LAT editorial board looking silly

Chris Reed December 31, 2013

When it comes to the bullet train, The Los Angeles Times’ editorial page has been left to look foolish — by its own reporter and columnist. Nexis shows no L.A. Times’ editorials on the topic for more than two years.

San Diego’s law-driven stench problem: Dickens was right

Chris Reed December 30, 2013

In fall 2012, The New York Times shared a pathetic San Diego story with the nation. The piece was headlined “California Cove Blessed With Nature’s Beauty Reels From Its Stench.” Sample: “In beautiful La Jolla Cove, art galleries and coffee

Will Kamala Harris monkey-wrench CA pension reform — again?

Chris Reed December 29, 2013

I’ve been following California politics obsessively since 1990, and I simply have never seen an editorial like the Los Angeles Times’ piece Friday exhorting Attorney General Kamala Harris to do an ethical and honest job in preparing a ballot statement for

Sacramento arena lawsuit dribbles forward

Katy Grimes December 26, 2013

There was no fast break at a recent court date concerning a suit by Sacramento activists opposed to tax subsidies for a new arena. The activists are Issac Gonzalez, James Cathcart and Julian Camacho. CalWatchdog.com attended the Dec. 19 hearing before