a running commentary by our trusted california contributors...

[For National Issues Blogging at theOneRepublic's Blog tOR Blog]

[3/30/05 Wednesday]

[Hugh Hewitt - senior columnist] 12:01 am [link]
LAT & Bloggers: The Los Angeles Times has a writer, David Shaw, who has long assumed that you knew about him, and  --even greater error alert-- that you cared about his conclusions.  A couple of days ago he wrote about bloggers, and included a pair of the most unintentionally funniest lines I can remember:

"I'm not saying that all bloggers are lazy, careless or inaccurate. I'm sure many take as much pride in their work — their professionalism — as I do."

ReferenceTone noted the big problems at the Times a few posts back.  Could it be as simple as the fact that David Shaw is the paper's big gun? 

[3/29/05 Tuesday]

[Ken Masugi - Local Liberty Blog - Claremont Institute] 12:07 am [link]
What May We Expect From the Governor? Commentator and attorney Carol Platt Liebau of California Republic led the pack of Sunday's LAT commentary on Governor Schwarzenegger. She argues that conservatives need direct democracy, at least for now, to govern effectively. Tony Quinn maintains that a deal the Governor might strike with legislators is more significant than the initiative itself, for it might produce an end to term limits. SF Mayor Gavin Newsome smells a fraud. The LAT's own editorial is closer to Newsome (though they support reapportionment). David Broder is impressed by the Governor's body-building career: ‘the most relaxed and least fretful man in the capital is the bodybuilder who tells himself, "I deserve to be the winner because I am the best."’ (His Washington Post colleague George Will got closer to the truth; see also this post.)

UPDATE: Post's Dan Balz: "The legislators have a spending "addiction," he said. The unions have won "sweetheart pension deals" from the state. Now, he said, their time is over. "There's always something wonderful about fighting for the right thing, when you know you're right and you know when you've got clear vision, as I always have about the end product," he said.

Citing sources as diverse as Thomas Aquinas, William James, and Conan the Barbarian, California historian Kevin Starr also probes the Governor’s mind. Among other themes, he finds “A paradoxical blend of free-market economics with a residual Euro-Catholic respect for government as social democracy and safety net.”

The governor came to view [Governor Hiram] Johnson, a reforming Progressive known for taking his case to the people, as all-time champion — the Mr. Universe of California government. And he was determined to emulate this champ's approach. But Johnson's progressive politics are not a natural fit with another keystone of the new governor's self-made intellect. As Schwarzenegger has noted in a PBS series, economist Milton Friedman's free-market theories helped spur his rise to wealth and Americanization. Friedman's recasting of Adam Smith dovetails with those parts the Austrian mind already embedded with the conservative theories of Ludwig von Mises, Friedrich Hayek and the other economists of the respected Austrian School. These thinkers produced some of the 20th century's most formidable theoretical resistance to socialist ideology, and set the stage for today's free marketeers.

For a penetrating analysis of Hiram Johnson see Scot Zentner’s essay in The California Republic. Conceding the eccentricity of his approach, Starr concludes “Still, it behooves us as Californians to think about the notions, however obliquely expressed, that guide the governor. Most of us, after all, seem to be thinking along similar lines.”

My argument for Schwarzenegger's significance was made here.

Most of this [State of the State address] is pleasing to conservatives, especially of the market-oriented type, and it certainly should be. If these proposals don't eliminate the administrative state in California, they go a long way toward putting it in the course of ultimate extinction. The key here is to demand much of his opponents, keep the Republicans unified, and make sure public attention is focused on the Democrats' enslavement to "special interests." If he gets his way, Governor Schwarzenegger will have done the cause of liberty boundless good.

Crucial to his success is what fills the Governor's soul. Is his speechwriter's phrase, "A time for choosing," a throw-away line for older conservatives, intended to recall Ronald Reagan's speech endorsing Barry Goldwater, or a recognition of a regime crisis, as it was for Reagan? [visit Local Liberty Blog]

[3/28/05 Monday]

[Mike Nevin - law enforcement officer, writer and columnist] 7:05 am [link]
Not In My Back Yard Sonoma County has a problem as illustrated by a recent article in the Press Democrat (Santa Rosa, CA). Thomas Earl Putney was recently paroled after Sonoma County prosecutors decided not to seek another commitment for him at Atascadero State Hospital, a place for sexually violent predators. According to the article

Thomas Earl Putney, 36, has been relocated twice [after a brief stint in Sonoma County and San Francisco] since he was released Feb. 28, most recently to Redwood City, and officials there want him moved again.Putney, who was convicted in 1991 of three counts of lewd and lascivious acts with minors, is one of several registered sex offenders who have been greeted by protests in Bay Area communities where they were released.

The state Department of Corrections typically returns parolees to the county in which the crimes were committed.

Sonoma County Assistant District Attorney Greg Jacobs said prosecutors would likely resist Putney's relocation to Sonoma County.

"I think we would urge the Department of Corrections not to release a sex offender here," Jacobs said. "Especially because this is where he committed the crimes."

Putney, like Ghilotti and Verse [other infamous parolees], was determined to be a sexually violent predator and kept in a state mental hospital after completing his prison term in 2003.
Detailed records about Putney's crimes weren't immediately available at Sonoma County Superior Court. But Redwood City police said Putney was arrested in Sonoma County in 1990 on charges of sodomy and oral copulation.
The victims were three children ages 2, 4 and 9 years old, the report said.

Does this mean that Sonoma County would be willing to accept future child-molesting parolees from other parts of the state? Not In My Back Yard isn't going to cut it. San Francisco and San Mateo Counties have children too. Are the children of other counties not as important as those fortunate enough to live in Sonoma County?

Believe me, I don't like the idea of a sexually violent predator ever seeing the light of day. I think this type of crime is so heinous that it meets the definition of a capital crime in my book. But this thinking is in direct contrast to the liberal-leaning ideology dominating this region of the Bay Area. Sorry folks, you can't have it both ways. When these guys get prosecuted they should get no deal, ever. We should fight for, at least, life without the possibility of parole when it comes to these vicious crimes. I hope the good people of Sonoma County would be willing to join the fight for tougher laws and stiffer sentences when it comes to protecting their kids. After all, it's their problem.

Important Info--California Megan's Law link: http://www.meganslaw.ca.gov/intro.htm

[3/25/05 Friday]

[Jon Fleischman proprietor of FLASHREPORT daily political email] 7:45 am [link]
Drug companies want payroll protection from unions: In the FLASHREPORT SPOTLIGHT today is an interesting SacBee articleabout the trial lawyers and the pharmaceutical industry folks trying to work out their differences before they both have a field day.  I am hoping nothing gets worked out, personally, because one of the measures that the drug folks are looking to qualify would be a 'paycheck protection' measure that would keep unions from using mandatory dues for political purposes without express permission from each employee.  I think it may also take away from unions the ability to use government payroll systems to collect dues - they would have to actually bill their own members...  [email to subscribe to FLASHREPORT]

[3/24/05 Thursday]

[Eric Hogue - radio talk show host KTKZ - Sacramento] 12:43 am [link]
Stem Cell Research? BTW, where are the supporters of Proposition 71? The members of the "Stem Cell Research Committee" here in Sacramento; committee members of the 'stem cell research' initiative that will cost the taxpayers of California $3 billion dollars in principal taxes, $6 billion in interest and pay-offs to venture capitalists, are you supporting the life of Terri Schiavo?

I thought stem cells was the current 'miracle cure all', and that we are so close to having this research found successful, that we are willing to toss billions of tax dollars toward this unaccountable, progressive medical future.

Why aren't they fighting to keep Terri alive for research?   [Hogue Blog - email: onair@ktkz.com]

[3/23/05 Wednesday]

[Ken Masugi - Local Liberty Blog - Claremont Institute] 12:02 am [link]
Berserk-ley Education: Rename Thomas Jefferson Elementary? “Parents, students and teachers at Berkeley's Thomas Jefferson Elementary School will soon vote on whether to rename their school because the nation's third president was a slave owner.” (Patrick Hoge, SFC) This tiresome exercise in Orwellian revisionism again undermines knowledge of America and the conditions of freedom. Abraham Lincoln had the best defense of the honor paid to Jefferson:

All honor to Jefferson—to the man who, in the concrete pressure of a struggle for national independence by a single people, had the coolness, forecast, and capacity to introduce into a merely revolutionary document, an abstract truth, applicable to all men and all times, and so to embalm it there, that to-day, and in all coming days, it shall be rebuke and stumbling-block to the very harbingers of re-appearing tyranny and oppression.” (Letter to Henry Pierce, April 6, 1859)

May we all have Jefferson's "coolness" and "forecast." Even worse for the children attending the school will be the sort of history they are taught.

Jefferson Elementary School is not the first to go through such a process. In 1999, Columbus Elementary School in West Berkeley was rebuilt after it was found to be seismically unsafe, and it was renamed Rosa Parks Elementary School - but only after intense debate about whether Cesar Chavez was a better alternative.

Also, James Garfield Middle School was renamed after Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968 and Abraham Lincoln Elementary School was renamed for Malcolm X in the 1970s.

The Washington Times reviewed the naming of schools after Confederate war heroes--a different case than that posed by Jefferson or George Washington. [visit Local Liberty Blog]

[3/22/05 Tuesday]

[Eric Hogue - radio talk show host KTKZ - Sacramento] 12:08 am [link]
Nurses Continue Attack on Arnold I thought the CNA (California Nurses Union), one of six statewide nurses unions in California, was protesting the governor surrounding his executive order to delay the implemention of the 5:1 nurese ratio. Now that the CNA found a judge to support their legislative cash cow, we are learning the CNA will fight the governor on ALL of his public employee reform initiatives.

Despite winning a court victory this week in its fight against Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to implementation a nurse staffing law, the Oakland-based California Nurses Association isn't letting up on its relentless campaign against the governor.

The 60,000-member union says it will expand its efforts and vigorously protest the governor's proposals to overhaul the state's pension system and change redistricting rules.

"We believe our new role is to work with other groups that are under attack, such as teachers," said Deborah Burger, president of the California Nurses Association. "It would be shortsighted for us to stop now.

So, Debra Burger - who stated on my show that she believe the governor was KILLING people in California with his nurses ratio delay - now says that it is the "nurses unions" ROLE to work with other 'other groups' to target the governor.

Nice to hear that the union dues nurses pay are being used to fight for the entire lot of public employee members.

This surely must be the Arnold Armageddon!  [Hogue Blog - email: onair@ktkz.com]

[3/21/05 Monday]

[Ken Masugi - Local Liberty Blog - Claremont Institute] 12:16 am [link]
Criticism From a Non-Blogger This one in the LAT laudable self-criticism series from David Abel (evidently not a blogger), the opposite of the plea to print more scandal news “The question is why the public is so uninvolved, so uninterested in the political life of our city. I believe the chief culprit is our dumbed-down local media.”

Abel notes the superficiality of Times’ reporting on local issues and then observes:

Things are even worse in Sunday Opinion, where cartoons about the mayor's race consumed two full pages that could have been devoted to considered opinion in the lead-up to the primary. These amused, but where was any shade of insight about the complex political culture of this city? Where was reference to the demographic and political evolution of South Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley, two distinct areas of our city that have elected state Assembly members with the support of constituents unaligned with the old political order? Absent, probably because the cartoonist is an itinerant scribbler parachuting in periodically from the East Coast.

It also doesn't help that The Times hired a new editorial and opinion editor without requiring that he live full time in Los Angeles

Abel may have struck paydirt with the following:

The consequence is a public deprived of the reportage and opinion essays it needs to overcome a collective indifference to the responsibilities of self-governance.

I wonder whether the LAT assumes it is a part of the elite that governs LA effectively and therefore encourages "collective indifference to the responsibilities of self-governance." It is one face of the Progressive attitude that combines public spiritedness with contempt for the public's ignorance.

Abel concludes that the Times has sacrificed reporting to its urge to entertain. By contrast, “A big-city newspaper achieves distinction as part of a region and a community's life by demonstrating the relevance of the place from which it hails to the larger national or global scene.” Note our criticisms (and occasional praise of the LAT) in Claremont's Media File. Ours track Abel's considerably. [visit Local Liberty Blog]

[3/18/05 Friday]

[Mike Nevin - law enforcement officer, writer and columnist] 12:05 am [link]
McCullough Update [see previous post here] Justice seems to have prevailed in Oakland. Hopefully his arrest record can be expunged, but more importantly, hopefully this brave man and his family stay safe.

A North Oakland man known for his crusade against neighborhood drug dealers won't face charges for shooting a 16-year-old neighbor, prosecutors said.

Patrick McCullough, 49, whom police had arrested on suspicion of felony assault after he shot Melvin McHenry in the arm and torso, appears to have acted in self-defense, said Alameda County Deputy District Attorney Jim Lee.

And because McCullough was standing in his yard when the shooting occurred, he cannot be charged with a weapons violation.

"This fact makes any possible weapons offense inapplicable," Lee said Wednesday.

McCullough, who has reported suspected drug dealers to police for 10 years and frequently tells the young men who gather on the sidewalk outside his home to beat it, said he fired in self-defense after Melvin and other youths surrounded him, yelled "there's the snitch" and hit him. He said he fired only because he heard Melvin call out for a pistol and then reach into a friend's waistband.

[Jon Fleischman proprietor of FLASHREPORT daily political email] 12:05 am [link]
Governor Chooses.. Poorly... For those who have not been following the issue, the Governor had weighed in on specific ballot measures in the areas of redistricting, education reform, and pension reform.  But he has been taking his time to study which of a two competing initiatives he would personally support in the area of budget reform. 

Well, yesterday, the Governor chose -- and with all due respect, I believe he chose poorly.  There were two different proposals, either of which would be a significant improvement over the status quo.  So let's make it clear - I am thrilled and excited that the Governor is backing either proposal -- the one he has chosen to back, among other things, restores the critical ability for the Chief Executive to make mid-year budget cuts in poor economic times. 

My disappointment comes from the fact that the measure he did not choose to support, backed by Jon Coupal of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association and my State Senator, John Campbell, would have really cut state spending much more substantially than the one that will move forward (Campbell announced that his measure will no longer move forward).  Also, the Coupal/Campbell measure would have tackled head-on the "Sinclair Paint" issue -- this is a current "break in the spending-restraint dam" that allows "fee increases" (ie...taxes) by majority vote of policy making bodies (legislatures, boards, city councils) if the money spent from the fee has a 'nexus' to the source of the fee (a good example would be the recent decision by the SF Board of Supes to throw a hefty 'fee' on every plastic shopping back in The City, and then use the money to pay for a recycling program -- all done on a majority vote of the Board). 

To throw some balance out there, I understand that there were some concerns by some that the Coupal/Campbell measure might have trouble passing California's "Single Subject" rule for initiatives.  Apparently some felt that "budget/spending reform" was too broad??  I dunno.  We may hear a little more about this -- but, frankly, it is time to move forward.  With decisions having been made, the proposal the Governor HAS decided to back contains some essential reforms, and is definitely worthy of all of our support.  Read more about this whole decision in Jim Hinch's OC Register story... [email to subscribe to FLASHREPORT]

[3/17/05 Thursday]

[Ken Masugi - Local Liberty Blog - Claremont Institute] 12:16 am [link]
LA County Survey: Explaining the Racial Divide A poll by the Public Policy Institute of California of Los Angeles County residents reveals markedly different attitudes by blacks versus white, Asian, and Latinos toward a number of local government functions, such as parks, police, public schools, and streets (Michael Finnegan, LAT).

While Asians and Latinos tracked closely together, having few differences with whites, only 15% of blacks rated public schools or streets and roads as good or excellent. This is less than half the confidence the other groups found. Obviously, this reflects the different neighborhoods groups tend to live in. If credible non-governmental solutions come forward, they might unite, for example, the many white and black critics of public education. One finding the LAT report does not mention: One-third of all County residents hope to move out within the next five years. How many hope their neighbors move out was a question they evidently did not ask. See PPIC’s website for the complete poll. [visit Local Liberty Blog]

[3/16/05 Wednesday]

[Eric Hogue - radio talk show host KTKZ - Sacramento] 12:01 am [link]
Those Who Hate Arnold For all of the Anti-Arnold knuckle-draggers out there, a reminder from the New York Times...

Two years ago, before Arnold Schwarzenegger became governor in an unprecedented recall, Democrats in California were meeting for their state convention. Four months earlier, the party had swept every statewide office for the first time since 1882, beginning at the top of the ticket with the re-election of Gov. Gray Davis.

On Tuesday, Ms. Allan was among the dozens of people who crowded into the auditorium of an elementary school near the Nob Hill neighborhood in San Francisco where Phil Angelides, the Democratic state treasurer, became the first major candidate to announce his bid for governor in 2006.

It was a decidedly more humble event than the state convention two years ago, with Ms. Allan characterizing Democrats as "in recovery" from the shock of recent events. Mr. Davis was recalled in October 2003, the Democratic secretary of state resigned this month and a Republican - Mr. Schwarzenegger - has come to dominate California politics like no single elected official since Ronald Reagan was governor.

To those who have an Arnold Vendetta, take heed...your attitude matches the Democrats. [Hogue Blog - email: onair@ktkz.com]

[3/15/05 Tuesday]

[Ken Masugi - Local Liberty Blog - Claremont Institute] 12:11 am [link]
Skelton: Protect the Status Quo Columnist George Skelton’s nauseating plea for the status quo in Sacramento makes this argument: “The initiative has become an instrument for special interests to protect themselves against the people's elected representatives.” Skelton complains that the process costs too much, and then he complains about attempts to control costs. It's all whining in service of his beloved status quo ante Schwarzenegger. Skelton's profile of a fabled Sacramento restaurant reflects this prejudice.

Skelton would instead reform the initiative and make it useless against “the people’s elected representatives,” who are precisely the source of the problem in this state. The Skelton solution for Sacramento is what liberals have preached for our national defense: unilateral surrender. See Edward Erler’s lengthy analysis of the politics of the initiative in The California Republic. Erler notes how it became transformed from a basically liberal tool to a basically conservative one, as power became centralized in Sacramento and served liberal interests, not the common good. [visit Local Liberty Blog]

[Eric Hogue - radio talk show host KTKZ - Sacramento] 12:11 am [link]
Democrats Start to Squirm As "News Talk 1380 KTKZ" and "Citizens to Save California" prepare to organize our first "Drive-by Signing" this Friday, there seems to be some movement inside of the state Capitol.

The Chronicle reported Sunday...

Democratic and Republican lawmakers said in interviews this week that they are willing to cut deals. That sentiment was echoed Friday by an optimistic-sounding Schwarzenegger, who said in a public appearance in Long Beach that he was seeing "positive movement'' toward negotiations.

"The dance has started,'' said Bill Leonard, a former Republican assemblyman who is now on the state Board of Equalization.

A little more than a week ago, Assembly Speaker Fabian Núñez met with Schwarzenegger and his wife, Maria Shriver, for more than an hour in the Capitol to talk about the governor's proposals, which include revamping the state pension system, stripping lawmakers of their authority to draw voting districts, enacting new budget controls and changing the way teachers are paid. The speaker and governor agreed to further talks.

Senate Democrats are preparing to roll out counteroffers to Schwarzenegger's pension and education proposals as soon as this week.

Here's how compromise on the governor's proposals might take shape:

Redistricting: Some Democrats have praised Schwarzenegger's idea to give retired judges the right to create voting districts. An agreement will center on whether new districts are drawn for next year's elections or after the next census in 2010.

Education: The proposal to pay teachers based on evaluations and student test scores instead of seniority has lots of opposition, but many lawmakers may be amenable to lengthening the time it takes to obtain tenure.

Pensions: The governor wants to cap the amount the state pays into employee pensions and has suggested switching workers to a 401(k)-style system. Democrats' counterproposal is to average state pension obligations over several years so that stock market swings don't affect the budget as dramatically.

Budget control: Schwarzenegger has proposed that the governor be allowed to enact across-the-board spending cuts when the budget is out of balance. There is no ballot initiative that mirrors the governor's proposal, and the issue could be folded into the debate over this year's budget plan.

The Democrats have until the middle of April to negotiate, or the governor will go to the ballot. They have considered their position, it is not favorable. Governor Schwarzenegger has a HUGE advantage over the Dems - and they know it.

They spent early money on uncontested TV/radio ads to attempt to bring him down to size and they couldn't move the numbers below 55%. The Democrats must negotiate...and they are starting to squirm as we gather signatures by the thousands! [Hogue Blog - email: onair@ktkz.com]

[3/14/05 Monday]

[Eric Hogue - radio talk show host KTKZ - Sacramento] 12:11 am [link]
Arnold is Killing People I took the nurses issue national on the Hugh Hewitt Show Friday, here is an example of the emails that I've received on the topic of "Arnold killing people in California by refusing the 5-to-1 nurses ratio."

Eric,

I caught part of your show in Southern California today (you were standing in for Hugh Hewitt). I was especially interested in your views on the nurse staffing mandate.

My wife has been a nurse in Southern California for over 33 years, and as such, has credible insight into the staffing fiasco. I have written to several columnists and to Governor Schwarzenegger on her behalf and related to each of them the facts as she sees them.....from the "inside".

She considers herself honored to have received favorable responses from each of them. We thought you also might find her comments interesting, but first my wife felt obligated to respond to one of the California Nurses Association RN's that called your show today.

The RN (it was actually the President of the CNA, Debra Burger) claimed that a patient load of 6:1 was causing patients to die, ostensibly because of the burden it puts on the nurses. What nonsense!

Fatal illnesses notwithstanding, what kills most of the patients in our acute care hospitals is lazy, incompetent nurses and, sadly to say, incompetent doctors.

One of the hospitals in which my wife works (she works at three) is not an acute care hospital, and as such does not fall under the purview of the staffing mandate. At this hospital just last weekend her floor had 42 psychiatric patients being cared for by only my wife and three CNA's (Certified Nurses Aides).

As with any Psych unit, the shift wasn't without incidents, but nothing the nurses couldn't handle, and they didn't feel overburdened. Don't get her wrong. It wasn't easy. It required 8 hours of rigorous, intensive, and diligent nursing administered by highly competent nurses...something most union nurses my wife has worked with don't want any part of. [Hogue Blog - email: onair@ktkz.com]

[3/11/05 Friday]

[Eric Hogue - radio talk show host KTKZ - Sacramento] 12:02 am [link]
BREAKING NEWS: Drive-by Signings... I was entertained at lunch today by the 'great' folks at "Citizens to Save California". This is the independent committee that has endorsed Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's 'reform proposals and initiatives'. CSC is currently gathering signatures for four initiatives to be placed on a special election ballot come November.

Our BIG announcement..."News Talk 1380 KTKZ" and the "Hogue Show" will be organizing four-to-five FRIDAY "Drive-by Signings", starting with March 18th, from 5-9AM at a location to be announced.

The "Home of the Recall", 1380 KTKZ has decided to continue the drive to complete the task that we started on February 4th, 2003. We created the concept of the "Drive-by Signings" and we'll be starting the machine back up to full power on March 18th.

Keep it tuned for "News Talk 1380 KTKZ" for breaking news on the governor's proposals, appearances and ballot initiatives. Future dates of the "Drive-by Signings" are April 1st, the 15th and the 22nd.

Make plans to visit the first "Drive-by Signing" from 5-9AM on Friday, March 18th. We will have numerous interviews and ALL of the petitions to be signed - just like the RECALL in 2003

Spread the news, "News Talk 1380 KTKZ" - The Home of the Recall is now "The Home of Arnold's Revolution for California". [Hogue Blog - email: onair@ktkz.com]

[3/10/05 Thursday]

[Eric Hogue - radio talk show host KTKZ - Sacramento] 12:08 am [link]
Speaker "Sparky's" Red Herring At first Fabian Nunez attacked Arnold's 'name calling'. Then they decided that they would direct their attack toward his 'State of the State Address' proposals. Fine.

After a few weeks of delay and obstruction, "Speaker Sparky" (Nunez) decided that Arnold's 'money machine' was concerning - how dare he raise money from corporations and the evil business community to bring about reform and government accountability.

Not long after, Sparky when after the governor's pension reform proposals. The Democrats called their 'money machine' (also known as our tax dollars at work) and created radio and TV ads by the teacher's union, fire unions and any other union that has a single cent; to run commercials eating at the governor HUGE approval ratings.

After a few weeks, they paid for a Pew Poll that revealed that Governor Schwarzenegger no longer walked on water, his ratings fell from 67% to a shallow 56% - an approval rating that most governors would die for! (This after thousands of dollars of negative radio/TV ads to bring his image down.)

Now the unions are chasing him during public appearances. I say the union, because the teachers, firefighters and the nurses are all hard at work, not in New York or Washington DC running for the cameras and the governor's next appearance - right?

Desperate Democrats do and say desperate things, as they obstruct!

Today, the Democrats and the Speaker stooped to a new low...

The Assembly's Democratic leadership Tuesday called for hearings into the fact that the group backing Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's "reform " initiatives is allowing data entry of voter information to occur in India.

Mere hours after news broke that the firms collecting signatures for the business-backed Citizens to Save California have contracts with an Oregon company that employs Indian workers, Democrats denounced the "outrageous outsourcing" of voter information and jobs.

Flanked by signs depicting wooden crates emblazoned with the words "Exported California Jobs" in red block letters, Assembly Speaker Fabian Núñez said the Assembly Judiciary Committee is planning hearings into the legality of the practice.

"Most voters would be very, very surprised - and gravely disappointed - that their information is being shared in this way," said Assemblyman Dave Jones of Sacramento, chair of the Judiciary Committee. He said he wanted a "quick and full and comprehensive determination as to what is going on and whether, in fact, it is legal and what protections are there for this voter information.'' A hearing is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday.

Nothing illegal has been committed by the Oregon Company's 'outsourcing' of research. This is NOT a question of privacy...you can verify these names and addresses on the Internet. It is a question of cost, and the outsourcing saves the folks at Citizens to Save California thousands - more for the signature gatherers!

The Democrats are trying to 'create' a legal precedent (there is nothing illegal here) to tarnish the campaign to take these initiatives to the ballot and to the vote and voice of the people.

What was a political debate, has now become tax dollars spent in a "kangaroo-kourt hearing" to fabricate for the media a political 'red herring' to keep the people from the ballot.

BTW "Speaker Sparky", why are you 'investigating' anything in Sacramento when this is the job of the state's attorney general?

Why are you spending time and money organizing hearings, whe we had a secretary of state that was shielded and protected from testimony after pilfering millions of HAVA Funds for his personal and partisan gain?

The Republican Party should be outraged and the people should revolt! [Hogue Blog - email: onair@ktkz.com]

[3/9/05 Wednesday]

[Ken Masugi - Local Liberty Blog - Claremont Institute] 12:04 am [link]
"The Cellblock Voting Bloc" NRO Editor at Large Jonah Goldberg notes the partisanship of Democrats’ call for felon voting rights—former DC Mayor Marion Barry joined by Hillary Clinton (“The Cellblock Voting Bloc,” LAT). As Goldberg notes, the “problem” of preventing lawbreakers from being lawmakers is not widespread.

In California, imprisoned persons may not vote, but upon completion of their sentences and parole they may. The Clinton proposal would not affect California, but with the expansion of rights those serving might also come to vote as well. Question: Might they register in the county where they are serving time?

Jonah opposes cellblock voting on the general grounds that "voting should be harder, not easier — for everybody." I approve of the sentiment behind his notion, but would one really want to have only a couple polling places in a county, each open for only a few hours? The point is to allow an electorate to make choices of a better quality--something the electoral college does on the presidential level, by forcing candidates to draw votes from diverse states. [visit Local Liberty Blog]

[3/8/05 Tuesday]

[Ken Masugi - Local Liberty Blog - Claremont Institute] 12:04 am [link]
Might the "Sideshow" Stop Jerry Brown? See the fascinating video and read the story by the LAT’s
on reckless break-dancing with autos in Oakland., known as the "sideshow."

Mayor Jerry Brown of Oakland on his neighborhood’s sideshows:

Brown, who has led the effort to revive this once-struggling city, has called for tougher laws to combat sideshows, which occasionally erupt under his bedroom window.

"They're about spinning cars, girls, booze and drugs — with a lot of yelling and loud music," Brown said. "It has a certain ritual quality and obviously is stimulating and attractive to hundreds, if not thousands, of people.

"They are totally unacceptable," he added, "and an unfortunate drain on Oakland resources."

In the video Brown condemns the practice as “anarchism.”

How will this play in Brown’s run for attorney general (Steve Schmidt, SDUT)? See Brown's blog. [visit Local Liberty Blog]

[3/7/05 Monday]

[Mike Nevin - law enforcement officer, writer and columnist] 5:05 am [link]
McCullough—Oakland’s Hero The gun grabbers must hate this recent story from the San Francisco Chronicle. An Oakland man defending himself with a firearm is not the kind of anecdotal evidence that helps gun control advocates.

Prosecutors have not decided whether to file charges against Patrick McCullough, the 49-year-old man who shot the teen -- or Melvin McHenry and a group of friends who allegedly attacked McCullough in his front yard before the shooting.

In a sign of continuing tensions in the 500 block of 59th Street, police responded Monday [2/28] to a report that two men were threatening McCullough as he stood in his living room. The two men saw McCullough through his window about 4:30 p.m. and made a hand gesture of firing a handgun at him, police and McCullough said.

McCullough wounded Melvin during a Feb 18 confrontation in front of the man's home near a well-known drug-dealing spot at 59th Street and Shattuck Avenue.

McCullough, who has reported suspected drug dealers to police for 10 years, said he fired in self-defense while standing in his front yard after Melvin and his friends surrounded him, yelled "there's the snitch," and hit him. He said he fired only because he heard Melvin call out for a pistol and then reach into a friend's waistband to pull out a gun.

Prosecutors have not decided whether to file charges against McCullough? I have a better idea: McCullough should receive a medal of valor. Here is a man who represents the law-abiding folks who must live with urban terror. He's doesn't represent the latte-swilling gun abolitionists living in gated communities with armed guards, but he represents many inner-city citizens who would suffer from infringements on their 2nd Amendment rights. If this man can’t defend himself or his family on his property then he’s not living in the land of liberty—and neither are we.

McCullough spent Monday trying to obtain a restraining order against Melvin and Hegler [Melvin’s mother] and applied for a concealed weapons permit. He also dismissed Hegler's criticism of him. "I'm trying my best to ignore her," said McCullough, who works as a radio technician. "She is just saying my poor baby is being persecuted. They say I'm harassing him. Where did this take place? It took place in my yard in front of my house. There are a lot of enablers and folks in denial out there."

Other links to the story:
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/02/26/MNGKVBHHQ11.DTL

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/03/04/BAGSDBKDLV1.DTL

[3/5/05 Saturday]

[Nick Winter-Found in the ebag] 8:11 am [link]
California refugees in Georgia. [found in the ebag from reader David Stephens] I am sure that all those people, crusing around Atlanta with California license plates and Kerry/Edwards bumper stickers, must be in a state of shock when they leave the perimeter. I can imagine their horror at seeing a Big block powered, gas swallowing Ford F-350, big duelly pickup being driven by a 16 with a 30-06 hanging in a gun rack. Even more shocking to my fellow California Refugees is the fact that those "Evil Republicans" have taken over not just the Governors Mansion but also the State House of Representative and the State Congress, for the first time since the reconstruction. Outside of the liberal bastion of Atlanta, the state is "RED" right down to the very bottom of its "Redneck roots." Even the Hispanic's boast "Viva Bush!" bumper stickers. Our taxes are not so high that corporations are fleeing in panic from the state. The beloved mayor of Atlanta got shot down in flames, when she tried to impose fines on the private Druid Hills Country Club, because it "discriminated" against a Lesbian Couple.

Will I return to California, perhaps someday, I miss summers spent at the family cabin in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. I miss the summer weather and the mild winters. I miss the green hills molted with California Golden Poppies and Mustard Flower. I miss not seeing my familiy on a regular basis. For now however, Georgia deep in the heart of "Jesus Land" is my home.

In closing this poorly worded E-mail, I would like to invite all potential new Liberal thinking California refugee to visit Georgia in the height of our summer or winter seasons. Nothing like the a 98 degree, 100% humidity July day or a crisp Janurary day with a high of 5 degrees and 1 inch of ice coating the roads, to really give you a feel for the south. As always Conservative California Refugees are welcome and will be greeted with true Southern Hospitality, just remember that Spring and Fall only happen once a year. Southerners will be understanding if you don't eat the grits but do try the fried green tomatoes. [Mr. Stevens is formerly of Walnut Creek, Ca.]

[3/4/05 Friday]

[Ken Masugi - Local Liberty Blog - Claremont Institute] 7:44 am [link]
Illegal Alien Immigration Survey Obviously the results are not "scientific," but some useful information can be gleaned from the Pew poll (Dena Bunis, OCR). The Bush administration could take these findings, contrary to the supposition of his Democratic opponents, to support some government relationship with illegals:

Four-to-one, Mexicans waiting in line for a matrícula consular, or ID card, at consulates from Los Angeles to New York said they would accept a temporary program. Yet at the same time, 59 percent of those who responded to a 12-page Pew Hispanic Center questionnaire said they want to stay in the United States as long as they can or for the rest of their lives

Those who see this as "amnesty" can also find support for their views. Dana Rohrbacher had this riposte:

"What this means is that these people will do anything in the short run that gives them a legal status, then they'll thumb their nose at the law just like they did when they came across the first time," said Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R-Huntington Beach.

Rohrabacher said he knows that members of his own party whose immigration views are opposite his could use this survey to further their cause.

"There are members of the Republican Party who are watching out for the interests of big business and not the American people and will use any excuse to blur the issue."

The Pew report can be read here. A few of the Claremont Institute's writings on immigration and citizenship can be found here. [visit Local Liberty Blog]

[3/3/05 Thursday]

[Eric Hogue - radio talk show host KTKZ - Sacramento] 12:09 am [link]
A National Election, Told You! I told you, this IS a national election - again - in California...from the 'odd year' of 2003 to the the complettion of 2005.

The New York Times leads with Schwarzenegger and California!

Declaring that state lawmakers "have not done their job," Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger began collecting signatures on Tuesday for a series of statewide ballot measures that he said would "create true reform" in California.

Before his first campaign stop at a Sacramento restaurant, where he circulated petitions for two of the proposals that would change the way legislative districts are drawn and public pensions are paid, Mr. Schwarzenegger said at a news conference that he preferred to work with the Legislature in enacting the changes.

But Mr. Schwarzenegger, a Republican, said that he had decided to pursue the ballot measures as backup.

"If the legislators don't do their job, the people of California will," he said. [Hogue Blog - email: onair@ktkz.com]

[3/2/05 Wednesday]

[Eric Hogue - radio talk show host KTKZ - Sacramento] 8:08 am [link]
Mole Inside of Governor's Office? The Governor drove to an Applebee's in Natomas to kick-off his initiative drive at lunch...

From "Capitol Notes" by John Myers:

"The governor's news conference at the Capitol was only the beginning. Most "photo-worthy", however, was his decision to drive himself and some young volunteers in a convertible military-style Humvee down I-80 to the Sacramento suburb of Natomas. With a CHP escort, the dark sunglasses-wearing governor cruised down the road under sunny skies, pulling up at an Applebee's restaurant to shake hands and gather signatures. By the way, there were no license plates on that Humvee... and the governor was wearing his seatbelt."

But, there was a small snafu at the location...

"Opponents of Schwarzenegger's policies also got wind of where he was headed. Greeting him outside were both cheers and jeers - and enough jeers that one of the governor's aides could be seen running towards the door and screaming to security officers, 'Move him! Move him!'

And inside, the advance team may have not recognized one table of diners, who were all from the California Correctional Peace Officers Association (CCPOA). Several reporters interviewed CCPOA President Mike Jimenez, who was is no fan of Schwarzenegger's attempts at state employee pension reform."

Just coincidental folks?

I don't think this was coincidental - who is the LEAK inside of the governor's office? You may have the President (and a group of members) of the CCPOA at an Applebee's in Natomas for lunch, but on the same day - at the same time - that the governor DRIVES to the the same location for a promotional kick-off of his initiative drive?

Who is the mole in the governer's office? [Hogue Blog - email: onair@ktkz.com]

[3/1/05 Tuesday]

[Ken Masugi - Local Liberty Blog - Claremont Institute] 12:04am [link]
Redistricting Update In its editorial series attacking the current state legislature district boundaries, the LAT notes Senator Chuck Poochigian's 14th district, sculpted to cram Republican voters and exclude Democrats, and, even more notoriously, Dana Rohrbacher's 46th congressional district ("two lumps and a string") connecting Palos Verdes Estates, Seal Beach, and Huntington Beach. The LAT's previous editorial was noted here. - I'll have more to say about other California districts later in the week. [visit Local Liberty Blog]

[Ken Masugi - Local Liberty Blog - Claremont Institute] 12:03am [link]
Slavery: A Cost of Illegal Immigration Stories about forced labor or slavery pop up in the press from time to time. In California the practice typically involves Asian immigrants—especially illegals. But try finding the term “illegal” or even “undocumented” immigrant in this Sacbee story by Herbert A Sample recounting a recently UC Berkeley Human Rights Center study. It’s at the very beginning of the shorter article in the Oakland Tribune by Josh Richman. Sample’s article is full of interesting detail, but the omission, whether due to his ideology, the assumption that such immigrants are illegal, or a simple oversight, distorts our understanding of how to deal with a horror that corrodes the character of both master and slave. The problem stems from the UC Berkeley report, which raises the illegal question, but fails to deal forthrightly with it. It is nonetheless clear that slavery is yet another cost illegal immigration imposes on us. -- Here's the text of the UC Berkeley study, Freedom Denied. [visit Local Liberty Blog]

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