Apparently the Governor’s brother-in-law is working very hard to make his jet-commute to and from Santa Monica quite difficult. Bloomberg has the news.

"If I can’t be on your Parks Commission, then you can’t land your jet at my airport."

Neener, neener.… Read More

This YouTube clip was sent to me by someone who only calls themselves "Prison Guard" and identifies his or her self as a member of the California Correction Peace Officers Association on their YouTube page. The short piece pokes at the Governor and his Chief of Staff, Susan Kennedy. Kennedy, FR readers will recall, is the former Executive Director of the California Democratic Party (hired, ironically, by then CDP Chairman Phil Angelides). It is the feeling of some (including "Prison Guard") that she is the real boss, not Arnold… … Read More

"Come and listen to a story about a man named Mike A poor pachyderm, trying to stop a tax hike, Then one day he was in a budget feud, And down from the Guv comes a comment so rude. Elitist that is, against small towns, average folk."

Yesterday, Governor Schwarzenegger speaking to the nonprofit Milken Institute portrayed small-town lawmakers as uncultured yokels by explaining that they needed special interest junkets in order to see “an airport” or “highway” for the first time. I realize term limits have cleared the Capitol of legislative veterans, but since when did Jed Clampett, Ellie Mae, Jethro and Granny get elected to the Assembly?

Read the exact quote for yourself.

"Some of them come from those little towns, you know what I am saying, they come from those little towns and they don’t have that vision yet of an airport or of a highway that… Read More

Besides Assembly candidate Brian Nestande in the 64th A.D., who commented in my original post further down, and "rejected" the endorsement of the Log Cabin Republicans, check out this note I got from conservative GOP Assembly candidate Paul Hegyi in A.D. 10… Jon, Fighting for traditional values has been an important part of my campaign. My focus on those issues is clear on my website, “And let’s not mince words about what ‘strong values’ means. Strong values mean a commitment to keeping families whole, to protecting the institution of marriage as between a man and a woman, to defending the sanctity and culture of life, and making sure our 2nd Amendment rights are not encroached upon.” … Read More

With all the excitement aboutmoonbat Rev. Jeremiah Wright it’s easy to forget other aspects of Obama’s controversial past life.

He’s a youthful candidate with a lot of history.

John Fund’s April 29th Wall Street Journal piece onVoter Fraud, Fund noted that Obama represented the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now [ACORN] on a voting rights case in 1995.

That caught my attention. Does anyone know about ACORN?

I sued ACORN on behalf of the California Republican Party in 1998 when a mob of 50 plus people were brought to the CRP offices in a bus. ACORN invaded our Headquarters, intimidated staff and conducted a sit down strike for several hours. The party was given no notice. Someof their membersdestroyed a $5000.00 Ronald Reagan portrait. I sued for the portrait damage. . ACORN retained several high powered attorneys from major downtown law firms [ pro bono] and we duked it out. They argued we interfered with their rights to free expression! How Stalinist. We argued they were… Read More

Not satisfied with controlling how citizens light our homes or care for our animals, Assemblyman Lloyd Levine now wants to increase the taxes—excuse me, “fees”—on our cars. Amended yesterday, AB 837 will increase registration fees on all cars 10,000 pounds or less and based on the carbon dioxide emissions of the car. Based on the car’s weight, the fees will increase from $5 to $25. Based on the carbon dioxide emissions, the rate will increase $10 to $25.

This bill will have a particular impact on families. After all, it’s the gas-guzzling, CO2- emitting SUVs and minivans used to cart kids around town that will be targeted by this tax increase.

Once again government will be taking more valuable dollars from families to then be spent by the irresponsible, spendthrift politicians in Sacramento. Families are already being pinched by the skyrocketing gas prices. Instead of raising the taxes on our cars, legislators should decrease (or abolish) gas taxes to help out families and stimulate our state’s economy.

And how about the safety of… Read More

To put it mildly, the last year has been very kind to San Bernardino County Supervisor (and former FR blogger) Brad Mitzelfelt.

He went from appointed from a cast of dozens to gaining the endorsement of almost every single official in his district including many former opponents. In addition, he put together a formidable team of consultants and local politicos, only partially drawn from his former boss, current Assessor Bill Postmus. On the policy front, he’s garnered for his infrastructure-deprived district a laundry list of roads and key projects, including expansion of the Inland Port at the former George Air Force Base, bringing jobs to the region, all while not using the feel good pork barrel so-often used by those in government positions.

Oh, and did I mention he raised over $800,000 for his June election?

Alas, Brad’s cruise to a full term was thwarted by local developer and Hesperia Councilwoman Rita Vogler, who as many of the self funders before her, decried the influence of money in politics and announced her late bid against Brad on the nearly lone basis that he’s had to raise money to campaign for his seat.

But then an… Read More

If terms limits has any downside, it is that the current crop of legislators (at least in the Assembly) have little experience in dealing with budget crises. Every member of the Assembly today got elected after the budget debacle of 2001-02, and the recovery that followed. That morass, where the budget deficit grew to $48 billion (when you include the actual deficit between revenue and spending in the 2001-02 budget and the projected spending deficit in 02-03) in a $79 billion general fund budget, was solved without a tax increase. Today, legislators talk as if a $20 billion deficit on a $110 billion budget can only be solved with a tax increase (to use their cute expression the balanced approach with a ‘mix" of cuts and tax increases). The public relations effort has begun to convince the Governor of this fact and then have the Governor persuade enough legislators to get the tax increase.

That is an old strategy that worked in Pete Wilson’s first term. It failed miserably. The tax increase deepened a pending recession, causing the deficit to deepen. What is more the proposed "cuts" never occurred. Spending went up, taxes went… Read More