Assemblyman Mark Leno’s bill, AB 43 was just debated on our floor, passing by a vote of 42-34. It is the latest incarnation of the effort to legalize marriage of same gender couples. The debate was a very calm one, over an hour, with many "mike’s up" as several members of both partiesspoke toboth sides of the highly controversial bill. Wetook uptheissue late in the day, perhaps to miss out on the press cycle today? I think everyone knew it would pass out of this chamber again, I was guessing 43 aye votes this time around.

It still astounds me that the vote of Californians in 2000, by a nearly 2-1 margin, for Prop. 22,is defied this way.Also, the contortions that proponents go through to find a legal argument, or a moral "civil rights" one is fascinating. Civil rights of voters and families seem to come in last a lot these days.… Read More

I’m pressed for time this morning.

So here are a few quick thoughts reflecting on some of the news today:

1) I wonder what the District Attorney up in Wine Country will do with the hot-potato thrown his or her way by the California Highway Patrol — their recommendation to file reckless driving charges stemming from her recent collision. There is a silver lining for Migden, however. San Francisco seems to like pro-criminal Democrats in office — so being charged with a crime may help her secure more support in her re-election, where she is facing the VERY pro-criminal Mark Leno.

2) Yesterday our Governor sent a letter to the President and Senate Leadership where he applauded their efforts on immigration reform, and then went on to register a complaint about some tertiary component of the plan. The opportunity missed in his letter, of course, was objecting to the granting of legal status (amnesty) to what is estimated to be over twelve MILLION criminal aliens. Talk about being so focused on the trees that you miss the forest… Sigh.

3) Yesterday Assembly Republican Leader Mike Villines, along with FR’s own Dan… Read More

I’m pressed for time this morning.

So here are a few quick thoughts reflecting on some of the news today:

1) I wonder what the District Attorney up in Wine Country will do with the hot-potato thrown his or her way by the California Highway Patrol — their recommendation to file reckless driving charges stemming from her recent collision. There is a silver lining for Migden, however. San Francisco seems to like pro-criminal Democrats in office — so being charged with a crime may help her secure more support in her re-election, where she is facing the VERY pro-criminal Mark Leno.

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FlashReport heard today from longtime FR friend, Orange County attorney and veteran presidential adviser, Ken Khachigian, confirming that he had signed aboard the Fred Thompson campaign as a national adviser.

Since I had a chance to ask a couple of question, I started with the obvious one, why Thompson?

I asked if his decision to back Thompson was a reflection on the other GOP candidates. Ken wouldn’t bite… … Read More

It was a slow news day on cablechannels today during my lunch break. My choices were Wolf Blitzer, or 3 other channels of what Savage calls "leg crossers." So, just to see what was new on the floor of the Assembly, I tuned into the California channel 75, and watched a litany of gasbags try to defend another attempt on the part of the State to trample local government. The bill being "discussed" would block a new dairy that the local government worked on for 8 years to ensure its environmental impact to the community was as minimal as possible with current technology, and that the community had more than ample time for input. And just when the community was in agreement, Democrats in the Assembly decided they knew better. Nicole Parra, the Assemblywoman representing the area in question, had 8 years to interject herself in the public process of the dairy’s placement, but waited until the 11th hour to circumvent local government with the help of her Orwellian buddies in Sacramento.

Democrats came at the issue in a two prong attack: first, that the dairy was bad for the environment (which Assemblyman LaMalfa debunked when he spoke knowledgeably… Read More

For the second time in two weeks, venerable Capitol insider and political columnist Bob Novak has penned something in his column about rumors that Congressman Jerry Lewis ("R"-California) is going to be retiring at the end of this term. We can only hope that the "King of Pork" will sail off into the sunset. That said, it is a source of supreme disappointment that he still continues to serve as the ranking Republican on the House Appropriations Committee, given that he used the Chairmanship of that Committee to lord (or is that "lard") over the doling out of so many thousands of horrible earmarks, including for the now-infamous multi-million dollar swimming pool in his own district. Minority Leader John Boehner needs to ask himself whether the GOP can really be expected to perform differently in the majority if even the more outstrageous Republican ‘spendaholics’ can’t be demoted after a loss like we suffered last year…

Need some reminders on Lewis? Check… Read More

For the second time in two weeks, venerable Capitol insider and political columnist Bob Novak has penned something in his column about rumors that Congressman Jerry Lewis ("R"-California) is going to be retiring at the end of this term. We can only hope that the "King of Pork" will sail off into the sunset. That said, it is a source of supreme disappointment that he still continues to serve as the ranking Republican on the House Appropriations Committee, given that he used the Chairmanship of that Committee to lord (or is that "lard") over the doling out of so many thousands of horrible earmarks, including for the now-infamous multi-million dollar swimming pool in his own district. Minority Leader John Boehner needs to ask himself whether the GOP can really be expected to perform differently in the majority if even the more outstrageous Republican ‘spendaholics’ can’t be demoted after a loss like we suffered last year…

Need some reminders on Lewis? Check… Read More

These bad Gwynn/Gwinn baseball metaphors or going to have to stop.

In response to yesterday’s Sunday San Diego, in which I referenced the rumours afloat of former San Diego City Attorney Casey Gwinn taking a shot at Congress, he weighed in directly, indicating such is not the case:

I hope you are well. I saw your piece in FlashReport. I too consider you a friend. I am not a candidate for the congressional seat and will not be.

My life is going a different direction and I am going to keep dedicating my time to my work in family violence. On Friday, I was honored to be interviewed on CBS – The Early Show by Harry Smith about our new National Family Justice Center Alliance –… Read More