Acclaimed nationally syndicated columnist and GOP political expert Bob Novak had this to say about Congressional District Four (CA) in his latest e-newsletter, as he now rated the district LEANING DEMOCRATIC TAKEOVER

House 2008

California-4: The power vacuum in the House GOP showed itself last week in the announcement by Rep. John Doolittle (R-Calif.) that he will seek re-election while under federal investigation in connection with the Jack Abramoff probe.

Republican leaders had wanted Doolittle, whose home was raided by the FBI and whose staff has been subpoenaed by a federal grand jury (apparently connected to his wife’s work with Abramoff), to step down even though he has not been indicted. When asked recently on the record… Read More

This ran today in the Riverside Press Enterprise – – –

No Budget StandoffsLegislators should stop their empty chatter and adopt real fiscal reform

By SEN. JIM BATTIN

This year’s protracted budget negotiations finally concluded with the signing of a $145 billion spending plan on Aug. 24.

The deliberations were marked by unusually personal attacks. Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez and Senate Pro Tem Don Perata freely branded Republican senators "terrorists" and "vandals" for demanding a balanced budget. The state Democratic Party went so far as to fund a recall effort against Sen. Jeff Denham for refusing to cave to pressure, which included Perata booting Denham from the Governmental Organization Committee.

Despite the name calling that permeated negotiations as they dragged beyond July and into August, virtually every lawmaker in Sacramento agrees that the government’s chronic failure to deliver an on-time budget cannot be laid at the feet of… Read More

Just in over the transom, FR friend Brian Nestande (pictured below with Congresswoman Mary Bono) has decided to throw his had into the ring for the GOP nomination in the 64th District. Things are really busy in FlashHQ today, so hopefully you’ll excuse our simply reprinting Nestande’s release. Look for a lot on this race from his brother, Barry, who writes for us. We’d expect nothing less… Brian Nestande announced his campaign for the State Assembly today. He was joined by Congresswoman Mary Bono, who stated, “I wholeheartedly endorse Brian Nestande in his race for the State Assembly. Brian has the knowledge and experience needed to make a real difference for the voters of this District and I look forward to working with him in his new role”. … Read More

SB 924 was vetoed tonight by the Governor. Appropriately, in his veto message, he leaves it to the President and military experts to determine military deployment.… Read More

Here is a somber, two minute reminder of 9/11 from Young Americas Foundation… … Read More

We’re committed to presenting a spectrum of views (within reason) on the healthcare debate taking place in Sacramento. With the Governor’s promised veto of AB 8, we’re very pleased to share with you this column from long-time FR friend Ruben Barrales, who is President of the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce… A couple of weeks ago, I met at a local Chinese restaurant with many fellow San Diego-area colleagues, including the North San Diego Chamber, Scripps Health System, Sharp Health Care and Bumble Bee Foods. We were not there to eat (although the place does have great food), but rather we were gathered to show our support for the Governor’s approach to health care reform. … Read More

A longand passionate discussion preceded a vote on the Assembly floor on ACA 8, with the vote going 45-30, a 2/3 vote of 54 required to place it on the ballot. The argument that it’s hard to define what property should be protected, when it’s OK to use your land for a given purpose, etc, is an arrogant view by land grabbers that trample a cornerstone issue for our Founders.

The Jarvis-Farm Bureau-CA Alliance initiative is the solution to restore that safety from wrongful takings. Signature gatherers, full speed ahead! And watch out for the phonyinitiative that will now be pushed by the losers of ACA 8.… Read More

IS PHIL ANGELES CRYING? I’m sure Phil Angelides is crying somewhere right now, depressed that he is not in Sacramento to sign the outrageous shift towards socialized medicine that has been passed by legislative Democrats and placed on the Governor’s desk. Much time has been spent on this page criticizing Governor Schwarzenegger for his own proposal to significantly increase the size of government and state government’s role in health care. That said, today is a good time to take a pause, and appreciate that the extreme agenda of Don Perata and Fabian Nunez is too far to the left, even for the port-side shift of Schwarzenegger. The Governor has vowed to veto AB 8 and he should be applauded for doing so. Perhaps if Mr. Angeles is bored, he can print out a copy of AB 8 on his computer, and sign the bottom of it. That’s about all of the relevance that he will have in this process — thank goodness! THE LINE IN THE SAND ON REDISTRICTING REFORM Lost… Read More