Today, Democrat Senate President Don Perata damaged his own (waning) credibility with the Capitol Press Corps by, frankly, saying something that simply was untrue. He held a press conference and told assembled reporters that Republican Senators want to rewrite California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) regulations. Senate Republican Leader Dick Ackerman was forced to respond and set the record straight…

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Fresh from his lengthy vacation in Greece, Fabian Nunez has sent a letter to Dick Ackerman where he apparently equates a call for his return to the Capitol to being "personally maligned" — nice.

Anyway, Nunez in an effort to extend the budget kabuki dance further throws out that if budget negotiations are reopened, he and his Democrat colleagues will bloat the budget further with even more deficit spending. Anyways, you can read Nunez’ letter which is attached. Below is a response that Senate Republican Leader sent back to the Speaker just now:

Look for more on this in the MSM tomorrow — but it appears that the League of Cities and the Redevelopment Industry is shifting strategies.

A coalition of organizations including the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, the California Farm Bureau Federation, and the California Alliance to Protect Private Property Rights has collected the necessary financial resources to gather signatures to really end the ability of governments to engage in eminent domain abuses, providing the real protections that ALL private property owners (individuals, businesses, places of worship, etc.) should have in place. Get more info on this important measure here.

The League of Cities and the redevelopment industry have been working overtime to try and get the state legislature to place on the ballot a faux (fake) reform measure that provides only a shadow of the protections provided by the measure now seeking qualification via signature.

So now we hear that the League of Cities is also going to go to the ballot with their vastly inferior measure. As a matter of fact, passing their measure would be worse than… Read More

You would have thought that Gov. Romney was in San Diego today when he made clear his position on illegal immigration–no front -of-the-line pass to for illegals! He was actually in Eastern Iowa.

ROMNEY: "And with regards to illegal immigration, I want to secure our border, I want to have an employment verification system to know who’s here legally and not, and sanction employers that hire people that are illegal once that system is in place, and finally for those that have come here illegally – welcome them to get in line for permanent residency or citizenship, but in line with everybody else. No special pathway for those who come here illegally." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gSrazudhdYE

Why is it so hard for other candidates to say these words?… Read More

Tom Hiltachk could not have been surprised with the shrieks coming from the California political ruling class,when he filed his Electoral College reform Initiative last week. The initiative would eliminate the "winner take all" rule that gives all 55 California electoral votes to the winner.

Republicans and democrats both eliminated the winner take all rule for Presidential Primaries. Reasoning that to have a powerful campaign in California you needed retail politics in each congressional district. Since 1992, California has not had a serious Presidential campaign. We were ignored. All that voters for both parties were supposed to do was to give money to influence Iowa and Ohio.

California for Equal Representations (CER) will blow upthe rules. Candidates who want California electoral votes will have to campaign in all 53 congressional districts. California will once again become the battleground state, as it has been since Lincoln was elected in 1860.

Hiltachk typically is closed mouth. He won’t divulge his donors or his strategies or who he is working for. Still, it is now public knowledge that the Governor’s chief… Read More

SENATE GOP BUDGET WEBSITE State Senate Republicans have launched a new website on the California State Budget which is a great resource for obtaining information on where Senate Republican are coming from in terms of what they feel need to be compents of a fiscally prudent budget. The site provides the latest media statements from Senate Republican leadership, compiles statements and opinion pieces from Senate Republicans, gives a clear perspective of what has happened to date, and, as I said, lays out policy objectives. We’ll continue on this site to provide comprehensive coverage of the budget debate, and will alert FR readers to new and interesting content over on the Senate Republicans’ Budget site — but you should definately check it out here. (h/t to Matt Ross in Senator Ackerman’s office) WHERE ARE OUR LEGISLATORS? Today marks yet another day that California does not have… Read More

Yesterday, Congressman John Campbell blogged (see a few posts below this one) about his questioning of an egregious earmark on the floor of Congress. The pork project was called the "Paint Shield for Protecting People from Microbial Threats."

This is such a "must watch" for FR readers that I have put the video right here (courtesy of our friends at Club for Growth). Take a few minutes now, or at some point, and watch this.

Congressman Campbell lays out a succinct 5 point criteria for a credible earmark. Every Member of Congress should ask these questions before submitting ANY earmark requests. Appropriations Committee Members should be asking these questions before approving any requests, and on the floor, all Members of Congress must insist on an affirmative answer to all 5 points.

If an earmark cannot pass these 5 criteria, it is EGREGIOUS and should be rejected.… Read More

SENATE GOP BUDGET WEBSITE State Senate Republicans have launched a new website on the California State Budget which is a great resource for obtaining information on where Senate Republican are coming from in terms of what they feel need to be compents of a fiscally prudent budget. The site provides the latest media statements from Senate Republican leadership, compiles statements and opinion pieces from Senate Republicans, gives a clear perspective of what has happened to date, and, as I said, lays out policy objectives. We’ll continue on this site to provide comprehensive coverage of the budget debate, and will alert FR readers to new and interesting content over on the Senate Republicans’ Budget site — but you should definately check it out here. (h/t to Matt Ross in Senator Ackerman’s office) WHERE ARE OUR LEGISLATORS? Today marks yet another day that California does not have… Read More