Another update from Anthony York at CapWeekly… Things aren’t looking good for those hoping to qualify the term limits end-run promptly…

According to the Secretary of state’s office, Sacramento and Kings have reported! In all, 50 counties have reported their random sample numbers for a total of 518,233. So again, if we add that number to the projected 166,320 from Los Angeles (assuming the 63 percent estimate given by Conny McCormack), that gives us 684,553, with eight counties remaining. The remaining counties have about 102,000 votes out standing, 83,000 of which are in San Bernardino County. Soto avoid the count, they need 79,443 –or 78 percent from the remaining eight counties.

It’s all about San Berdoo. If San Bernardino comes in at less than 78 percent, we could be looking at a full count…… Read More

A third update on the saga of the poor ol’ Term Limits Weakening Initiative… Looks like the odds are getting pretty long that a manual count can be avoided… ’tis such a shame… (not) Just in from CapWeekly’s Anthony York, update #3:

I was talking to a state legislator yesterday, and he threw out to me a very disturbing thought. We’ve all read about the recent passage by Democrats of this bill to place a ‘straw poll’ vote on the February ballot on whether Californian’s support the war in Iraq. Well, it doesn’t take much thought to understand that this measure authored by Democrat Senate President Don Perata is a cynical plot to drive up liberal turnout for the election on which the Perata/Nunez Career Politician Term Limits Weakening Initiative will appear. Perata (and Nunez) are completely fixated on trying to blow a hole in the state’s term limits so that they can cling to their prestigious offices. This legislator to whom I spoke was expressing concern that perhaps the Governor would allow this Iraq-vote measure to be ‘in play’ in negotiations taking place over redistricting proposals. That he might actually be open to signing this terrible and politically-motivated bill. To this we say that our nation’s foreign policy, and the lives of American soldiers should not be chits in political maneuvers surrounding legislative… Read More

The lead consultants for the Speaker’s Term Limits Weakening Initiative, which apparently won’t make the February ballot, have to write a memo to their client. We decided to draft one for them…

URGENT MEMORANDUM To: Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez From: Gale Kaufman and Matthew Dowd RE: Failure to Save Your Career Dear Fabian, We are in the midst of a top-to-bottom review of our collective failure to place our carefully orchestrated end-run on term… Read More

Assembly Joint Resolution (AJR) 29 Congress urges Congress topass and the Presidentto signH.R. 1592–the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act (LLEHCPA).

The bill creates a new federal crime based on if it was committed is based on"the actual or perceived religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability of any person.”

In other words if some one is attacked at a restaurant because he was gay that can become a federal crime, but if he gets attacked for taking the piece of peach cobbler. That is not a federal crime it also allows the federal government to interfere in states to see if they are punishing "hate" crimes sufficiently. This bill is opposed by pro-family groups.

Ironically the Los Angeles Times Magazine did an article several years ago that pointed out that Blacks and Hispanics were more likely to be charged with hate crimes in … Read More

I’m in Sacramento today and rumors are swirling around the Capitol that several Assembly Republicans are getting ready to vote for the fake ban on eminent domain ACA 8 supported by the League of Cities. See Jon’s great post on it here. Republicans wanting to squish think that some amendments that would partially protect some churches (not all or the most vulnerable) will be introduced tomorrow and that gives them cover. Why would any Republican want to vote for this fake ban, when there is a nice protection being circulated by the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association? Shame on them. Sources tell me that there was a caucus meeting when at least three of them have decided to help the Democrats put the fake ban on the ballot. … Read More

**Update 830pm – Apparently the local county registrar offices until 9/28 to perform this manual count. That is a tall order, but right about now I am sure that Fabian Nunez is using every means at his disposal to "crack the whip" on county governments. The drive of Fabian Nunez to extend his career knows no bounds — Flash**

I am on an informative trip to Sacramento today, indeed.

Unknown to all of us in the real world, apparently all of those watching the signature verification for the Perata/Nunez measure have been noting the very low percentage of valid signatures.

Well, apparently Los Angeles County just came in with what I am told is a very low 59% rate.

Now, are the low qualification numbers enough to keep this measure off of the ballot? No. But it is very likely that this will keep it off of the all-important-for-termed-out-incumbents February ballot.

When the random-sample percentages are too low, then a longer manual count begins in the 58 Country Registrar offices. But this process would take too long for the measure to be on the February… Read More

I was talking to a state legislator yesterday, and he threw out to me a very disturbing thought. We’ve all read about the recent passage by Democrats of this bill to place a ‘straw poll’ vote on the February ballot on whether Californian’s support the war in Iraq. Well, it doesn’t take much thought to understand that this measure authored by Democrat Senate President Don Perata is a cynical plot to drive up liberal turnout for the election on which the Perata/Nunez Career Politician Term Limits Weakening Initiative will appear. Perata (and Nunez) are completely fixated on trying to blow a hole in the state’s term limits so that they can cling to their prestigious offices. This legislator to whom I spoke was expressing concern that perhaps the Governor would allow this Iraq-vote measure to be ‘in play’ in negotiations taking place over redistricting proposals. That he might actually be open to signing this terrible and politically-motivated bill. To this we say that our nation’s foreign policy, and the lives of American soldiers should not be chits in political maneuvers surrounding legislative… Read More