John Fund in today’s Wall Street Journal Political Diary…

Merv and Ronnie

Ronald Reagan didn’t have many buddies in liberal Hollywood after he became president. Merv Griffin, who died yesterday at age 82, was perhaps his closest friend there. The former bandleader, talk show host and TV producer understood television as well as anyone in the medium’s history. He also knew that Ronald Reagan was an historic figure and worked hard to make sure he was remembered through his chairmanship of the board of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. In 2004, he was one of the honorary pallbearers at Reagan’s funeral.

But perhaps his greatest service to his… Read More

Last Wednesday, Mike Zapler, a reporter with the San Jose Mercury News in their Sacramento Bureau came down to Orange County to spend a day with me, which was fun. He’s a cool guy, and he wrote a pretty lengthy profile on the website and its influence, that actually appears in today’s Contra Costa Times. It will run in the Mercury News soon, I’m sure, since that is Zapler’s "home paper" — but the Mercury News, the Times and about fifty other papers are all under the umbrulla of Media News Corporation.

I would like to give a shout-out to United States Congressman John Campbell, who came over and shared an iced tea with us on Wednesday. Somehow he ended up on the cutting-room floor of this piece, though the Congressman did a great job of talking about the important role that our website plays "Inside the Beltway" and on what happens out that way.

I’d also like to thank Senator Dick Ackerman and Dan Schnur for their kind words. I’ll definitely give a shout-out to our vital FR advertisers, without whom this site would not be a reality. And last, but most significantly, thanks go to YOU, the FR… Read More

I am at a wedding reception and one of the other guests is State Senator Bob Margett (one of his staff members is the bride!). Anyways, I just took the opprtunity to commend Senator Margett for, along with his colleagues, voting against a bloated state budget in need of cuts and programmatic reforms.

Senator Margett pointed out that people need to be looking beyond just this year’s budget and the need to make changes now to cut projected major defecits for future budgets.

If you come across a Senate Republican, I urge you to praise them as well. Well, I guess every Senate Republican Abel Maldonado, who rather infamously voted with all of the Democrats for the bad budget. If you run into Abel, urge him to reconsider his vote, and stress the importance of standing tall with his fellow Republicans, for fiscal prudence.… Read More

Last Wednesday, Mike Zapler, a reporter with the San Jose Mercury News in their Sacramento Bureau came down to Orange County to spend a day with me, which was fun. He’s a cool guy, and he wrote a pretty lengthy profile on the website and its influence, that actually appears in today’s Contra Costa Times. It will run in the Mercury News soon, I’m sure, since that is Zapler’s "home paper" — but the Mercury News, the Times and about fifty other papers are all under the umbrulla of Media News Corporation.

I would like to give a shout-out to United States Congressman John Campbell, who came over and shared an iced tea with us on Wednesday. Somehow he ended up on the cutting-room floor of this piece, though the Congressman did a great job of talking about the important role that our website plays "Inside the Beltway" and on what happens out that way.

I’d also like to thank Senator Dick Ackerman and Dan Schnur for their kind words. I’ll definitely give a shout-out to our vital FR advertisers, without whom this site would not be a reality. And last, but most significantly, thanks go to YOU, the FR… Read More

That was the subject line of an email I received from Newt Gingrich’s American Solutions announcing his his speech at the National Press Club.

The 30 minute speech is classic Gingrich — I guarantee if you start it, you’ll watch the whole thing.

Gingrich makes the case that our country hasn’t been at such a major crossroads since the 1850s and that their is no national dialog taking place between presidential candidates. Everything is being digested into 30 second sound bites.

In his speech Gingrich challenges the presidential candidates of both parties to commit to dialog debates, that he calls the "Nine Nineties in Nine" debates. You can read more about the "Nine Nineties in Nine" debates by clicking here. Basically he wants each party’s nominee to agree to 9 90-minute debates over 9 weeks. He believes that their shouldn’t be a moderator, just a time keeper… Read More

There has been much (deserved) heralding of Jon’s major MSM hit today, but one youngster, who has been well-trained by his mother to question the validity of what he finds in print, has doubts about the article’s mention of Jon’s Xbox prowess.

My son, age 10 (and a half), the welter weight Xbox champion of the NorCal Buck League, is willing to publish his high scores for his five favorite Xbox games, in a proverbial glove across the face challenge to our Editor in Chief.

(Naturally, these are all rated “E”, because Mommy said so): 1. Sponge Bob Squarepants, Battle for Bikini Bottom: 83 spatulas, no cheats 2. Sponge Bob Squarepants, the Movie: 25 Goofy Goober nickels, no cheats 3. Spiderman the original: beat the game, with cheats 4. NHL Hitz 2003: 7th round 5. And if “Flash” is into Xbox 360…Disney Pixar Cars, the movie: beat the game, no cheats

How do your scores compare, Chief?

… Read More

I posted this over at Red County/OC Blog: the State Building and Construction Trades Council paid for what appears to be a district-wide mailer that his yesterday, alleging that Assemblywoman Mimi Walters is somehow weak on illegal immigration because she didn’t vote on a bill they back — a bill that vanished after passing a single Assembly committee.

Check it out here.… Read More

Lots to do on this quiet Summer Saturday, so our commentary today will be short and sweet. I thought that I would take a few minutes to clue FR readers into a fun way to "listen" to California politics once a week. One of the ‘veteran’ journalists that covers the goings-on in the State Capitol is KQED Public Radio’s John Myers (pictured). Not too long ago, however, John started publishing a once-a-weed audio podcast where he along with Anthony York from Capitol Weekly and Kate Folmar (formerly of the San Jose Mercury news) would do a political roundtable. Kate’s been out and about a lot, so John keeps brining in others to sit in the third chair. Now, as with anytime that I guide FR readers to MSM publications for getting news, I don’t agree with all of their analysis, and I suspect you won’t either. But I find it to be interesting and engaging, and worth a listen. Myers has his "Capitol Notes"… Read More