Just over a week ago, I penned a commentary that included some analysis of FR friend Jim Brulte’s endorsement of Proposition 93, authored by Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, which if passed would loosen California’s current term-limit restrictions for state legislators. Today I am pleased to offer this perspective from Senator Brulte about his support for 93.

People try to personalize initiatives rather than looking at the whole picture. I am not supporting the initiative simply to keep Fabian Nunez or Don Perata in power anymore than my fellow conservatives are opposing it to keep Senator… Read More

John Zeigler, who until recently hosted a talk show on KFI Radio (his website is here) sent over this piece he penned. It is notable for his support for Fred Thompson. It is readable because John’s gift of communicating comes through loud and clear. A great conservative, it’s a pleasure to feature some thoughts from him for our readers…

Why Not Fred? The most mysterious reality of an utterly baffling race for the Republican Presidential nomination (Mike Huckabee is a frontrunner??!) is undoubtedly the failure of Fred Thompson’s campaign to gain any traction. … Read More

Actually, there are a thousand things you need to know about this budget crisis, but let’s do three, real quick:

1. We haven’t even sold the "infrustructure" bonds passed last November, and now we really can’t due to our budget situation. This is why the Lincoln Club of Fresno County opposed the bonds in the first place. Most journalist don’t know what a bond is, so this isn’t being mentioned in budget crisis coverage.

2. Working on a "health care deal" during this crisis isn’t even stupid – its just plain political malpractice. The resulting ballot initiative in November, 2008, aimed at raising our taxes, will be a defining issue for the GOP and actually give the State GOP something to do this year. Yes!

3. Assembly Leader Mike Villines yesterday to me: "tax increases are dead on arrival in the State Assembly, there isn’t a revenue problem." The Governor better get his meat cleaver out. Villines told me yesterday that even termed out Republicans won’t support new taxes.

Even the most elemental analysis of the state budget over the past several… Read More

As this year winds down, it is only appropriate that we have the ultimate wasteful story to help us go out with a bang. Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner deserves many thanks for providing this story. If it weren’t for his direction of the Department of Insurance, hundreds of millions of dollars may have been squandered without notice. Fear not, “the Ghost of State Fund Past” has now come to haunt former Insurance Commissioner and current Lieutenant Governor John Garamendi in the form of the biggest audit released this year.

According to the Los Angeles Times (December 11, 2007), a hard-hitting state audit reveals that "California’s scandal-plagued government-run workers’ compensation insurance company spent more than half a billion dollars over the last decade for outside marketing help that often provided ‘minimal services’….[T]he report paints a picture of an obscure rogue operation with more than $22 billion in assets, little oversight, minimal public checks and balances, and indiscriminate spending with little attention until… Read More

This may sound unbelievable, especially in light of what may be as high as a $15 billion shortfall in needed revenues to cover budgeted state expenditures, but this Monday liberal Democrat Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez is hauling 80 members of the State Assembly to Sacramento to vote on a plan that purports to somehow improve access to health care in California by expanding the size and scope of state government’s involvement in this sector. There is no doubt that Nunez will get support from this proposal from his caucus, as raising taxes (did I mention this proposal includes MASSIVE tax increases?) and hoisting mandates and requirements on businesses and on people are what liberals love to do the most. There is not enough room in this whole website to go over all of the inherent problems with this plan, going beyond the obvious abandonment of key American traditions — the notions of individual responsibility and freedom. Once again, "big brother" is coming in to suck… Read More

This may sound unbelievable, especially in light of what may be as high as a $15 billion shortfall in needed revenues to cover budgeted state expenditures, but this Monday liberal Democrat Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez is hauling 80 members of the State Assembly to Sacramento to vote on a plan that purports to somehow improve access to health care in California by expanding the size and scope of state government’s involvement in this sector. There is no doubt that Nunez will get support from this proposal from his caucus, as raising taxes (did I mention this proposal includes MASSIVE tax increases?) and hoisting mandates and requirements on businesses and on people are what liberals love to do the most. There is not enough room in this whole website to go over all of the inherent problems with this plan, going beyond the obvious abandonment of key American traditions — the notions of individual responsibility and freedom. Once again, "big brother" is coming in to suck… Read More

Now that I am not making a living at politics, I think I understand why people get so frustrated by what they see going on in politics. These guys must think we are stupid.

Nunez says yesterday he wants to raise the car tax. John Laird, chairman of the Assembly Budget Committee, says "this problem cannot be resolved by cuts alone. It will take a combination of tax increases and spending cuts."

Raising the car tax was in the talking points of Steve Peace, chairman of the Senate Budget Committee in the Gray Davis years. He actually put in a bill to allow the Governor to raise the car tax unilaterally, without a vote of the Legislature. When the Governor tried to do that, he got recalled. Of course, the people that counseled the Governor to raise that tax didn’t lose their jobs, they just went to work for the next Governor.

Tax increases and budget cuts were in the talking points of John Vasconcellos, Chairman of the Assembly Budget Committee in the 1991-92 budget crisis. Then Governor Pete Wilson bought into that line, and in a $14 billion deficit (on a $41 billion budget as opposed to today’s $111 budget), supposedly cut… Read More

Today we are pleased to feature this guest commentary from Jon Coupal, President of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association…

Shades of Gray Davis

The State Capitol is hemorrhaging red ink. The non-partisan legislative analyst’s office (LAO) has released a report showing that the revenue shortfall from the budget just passed in August could exceed $10 billion. Fortunately, the governor and the Legislature established a modest $4 billion reserve or the deficit would be much higher. How did we get into this mess? If this seems like déjà vu all over again, you’re right. It’s been just seven years since then Governor Gray Davis, who inherited a budget surplus, began to run up massive state deficits… Read More