Demonstrating support from across the California GOP spectrum, today the Presidential campaign of Governor Mitt Romney announced two prominent California endorsers, that we’ll call the "book-ends" of the party. On the right end of the shelf, Romney has been endorsed by popular, conservative Congressman Wally Herger (pictured right), who makes his home up in the northern end of the state. On the "other" end of the GOP bookshelf, Romney has earned the endorsement of moderate former Republican Assemblyman Brooks Firestone… Read More

Governor Schwarzenegger is framing California’s budget crisis ($15 BILLION and growing) as a spending problem. In conjunction with the release of his draft budget on January 10, he is calling a special session of the legislature (under the auspices of a “state of fiscal emergency”) where he will introduce cuts to deal with the growing funding gap problem for the current fiscal year.

If you go back to before Gray Davis was recalled, and Arnold Schwarzenegger rose from his ashes (hiring much of Davis’ staff in the process), Republican legislators have been decrying the steady and rapid increase in state spending that has occured in budget after budget after budget. As such, GOP legislators are resolute that California taxpayers not pay the price for the Democrat-led fiscal insanity.

That said, you watch the liberal Democrats scramble and scream at any proposed cuts in spending. As for me, it may sound simplistic, but why don’t we just adopt the budget of five years ago, and acknowledge that our spending increases since then were, in retrospect, unaffordable and unsustainable!

In the meantime, I guess… Read More

Yesterday’s announcement from the California Chamber of Commerce that their Board of Directors voted to place their organization in opposition to Proposition 93, the naked power grab being orchestrated by Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez to extend his own political career, is a major setback for the measure. But I can’t say that the Chamber’s position was unexpected — Nunez has to have been expecting it — because, frankly, he caused it.

You see, the leadership of the California Chamber was involved in an intense period of negotiations with legislative leaders to broker a compromise where some form of term-limits reform would be coupled with redistricting reform. Nunez abruptly ended these negotiations, turning his back not only on the Chamber, but also on the Governor and fellow legislative leaders, and filed his own ballot initiative. The Nunez measure, now Proposition 93, of course has no redistricting reform in it at all.… Read More

Have you ever qualified a referendum without huge amounts of money? CRFI is on their way. Having been involved in referendums before I know how hard this is. The time is short and unless you have a big special interest money it is very hard. Today is the last day to request petitions. You have to get plenty out there and the campaign has almost 400,000 petitions out there. That is huge. If only 15% come back full it qualifies. That is part one Then they have to get them back. To date they have over 161,000 signatures. That number doesn’t include the over 100 people or churches that promised 1000 signatures and … Read More

(If this post seems familiar, we’ve used the "Disneyland" analogy below before, as this isn’t the first time that the liberals in the media have "lept" onto a poorly worded survey to assert public opinion.) As FR contributor and public opinion pollster Adam Probolsky likes to say, a poll is only as good as what you ask, and to whom you ask it. So I was quite amused to see so much enthusiasm erupt from the liberal media and left-wing Democrats when the Field Poll released their latest survey response. The source of their glee?

Their question asks a sampling of random Californians if they support the current health care proposal before the legislature.

The response to this question: 38% Favor Strongly, 34% Favor Somewhat, 12% Oppose Somewhat, 11% Oppose Strongly and 13% No Opinion.

Here is the problem — the question is a "feel good" rosy one… Read More

Yesterday’s announcement from the California Chamber of Commerce that their Board of Directors voted to place their organization in opposition to Proposition 93, the naked power grab being orchestrated by Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez to extend his own political career, is a major setback for the measure. But I can’t say that the Chamber’s position was unexpected — Nunez has to have been expecting it — because, frankly, he caused it.

You see, the leadership of the California Chamber was involved in an intense period of negotiations with legislative leaders to broker a compromise where some form of term-limits reform would be coupled with redistricting reform. Nunez abruptly ended these negotiations, turning his back not only on the Chamber, but also on the Governor and fellow legislative leaders, and filed his own ballot initiative. The Nunez measure, now Proposition 93, of course has no redistricting reform in it at all.… Read More

In 1866, Mark Twain said that "no man’s life, liberty or property is safe when the legislature is in session." Congress is now out of session so your life, liberty and property are safe until mid-January.

We engage in some pretty hard discourse on very weighty topics in this regular missive. Now, as the holidays approach, it’s time to talk about something even more important than taxes, spending, war, and energy policy.

By that I mean, of course, college football.

Now I follow college football, along with NASCAR and Formula One racing. And, like politics, I am not without my opinions. In the interests of full disclosure, my two sons are both undergraduates at USC and the captivating Mrs. Campbell (my wife) did her undergraduate work there as I did my graduate work there. I’m also a USC football season ticket holder and will be going to the Rose Bowl.

OK, disclosures complete. Here are my predictions for the 5 BCS bowls ahead of us over the next few weeks:

Jan. 1, 2008 – Rose Bowl – USC vs. Illinois: USC is going to run over Illinois like Democrats over a proposal to cut a John Murtha… Read More

‘Twas the week before the non-denominational winter break (we call it Christmas), and all through California’s house not a Lobbyist was stirring, not even a Democrat Louse; As the campaign stockings hung by the chimney, the state’s cupboards were bare, In hopes that a Christmas miracle soon would be there; The Democrats were nestled snuggly in their beds, While visions of relaxed terms limits danced in their heads; … Read More