I thought it representative of some hard work that the Assembly Republicans put out individual statements from 27 of their members in reaction to the Governor’s State of the State Address. I thought you might want to see what everyone had to say…. At least with what I am sure were some tight length restrictions…

Assembly Republican Leader Mike Villines, Clovis “With a strong vision for California’s future, Governor Schwarzenegger tonight proposed bold solutions to the serious problems facing our state. Assembly Republicans are especially pleased by the governor’s renewed commitment to paying down our state’s long-term debt and fixing our broken redistricting system once and for all. Those are the centrist views of California’s hardworking families.

“True bipartisanship is not when one party compromises their principles to another for the sake of public relations, it’s when we put the people of California first. Californians want us to work together, and we must do it responsibly as adults. We look forward to… Read More

The Orange County Board of Supervisors is solidly in the hands of a conservative majority and there is a vacancy that will be filled by Special Election on Feb. 6. But regardless of that outcome the next two years should be filled with votes that broadly shrink the size of county government and put the county’s future financial health back on track by reforming pension and health care benefits for county employees.

Each of the present supervisors has conservative credentials:

Chairman Chris Norby is a nationally known leader on the issue of redevelopment reform; vice chairman Moorlach not only predicted the county’s bankruptcy but more importantly lead the county’s investments as Treasurer and conservative Tax Collector for over a decade; Pat Bates had a solid voting record in the State Assembly and never wavered on her principles in face of a massive assault by her campaign opponent who seemingly sold out to every special interest there is; and Bill Campbell built a remarkably successful business before serving in the State Assembly and now on the Board and knows the meaning of paying wages and how harmful the actions of government can be on… Read More

I feel like a chump. This entire past year, Arnold Schwarzenegger had as a central theme to his campaign for re-election the fact that he would oppose any increase in taxes. I think it would be fair to say that this was a central theme to his campaign. As a matter of fact, in a candidacy that often times stressed issues that were not very appealing to core Republican voters, it was his focused contrasting of Phil Angelides’ "The Tax Man" against his own rhetoric of opposing new taxes that helped to mollify, and excite the GOP base to support his candidacy. Yet, the very first business day following his inauguration to a second term, the Governor rolls out a new massive government incursion that is straight from the playbooks of the Democrat Party, with a centerpiece being tax increases. I don’t get it. This Governor understands that what makes this country great is the idea of individual liberty and individual responsibility. Yet, he has thrown out the notion of individual responsibility, trading it in for this new "shared responsibility" rhetoric which is no more than a justification for a massive… Read More

I feel like a chump. This entire past year, Arnold Schwarzenegger had as a central theme to his campaign for re-election the fact that he would oppose any increase in taxes. I think it would be fair to say that this was a central theme to his campaign. As a matter of fact, in a candidacy that often times stressed issues that were not very appealing to core Republican voters, it was his focused contrasting of Phil Angelides’ "The Tax Man" against his own rhetoric of opposing new taxes that helped to mollify, and excite the GOP base to support his candidacy. Yet, the very first business day following his inauguration to a second term, the Governor rolls out a new massive government incursion that is straight from the playbooks of the Democrat Party, with a centerpiece being tax increases. I don’t get it. This Governor understands that what makes this country great is the idea of individual liberty and individual responsibility. Yet, he has thrown out the notion of individual responsibility, trading it in for this new "shared responsibility" rhetoric which is no more than a justification for a massive… Read More

Unfortunately, one can’t access the full online articles from The San Diego Daily Transcript without a paid subscription, but today retired State Senator Larry Stirling weighs in on its pages with a gem on how the San Diego City Council is addressing a growing crime problem.

After relating a littany of recent crimes as just an example of that faced by the city, Larry wraps up with this:

The government’s No. 1 priority is protecting the lives and property of its citizens. This moral imperative is even higher, given the fact that our government has chosen to abridge our fundamental right to protect ourselves by prohibiting us from carrying firearms in self-defense.

The government is in an absurd and indefensible posture when it neglects to protect us and then will not let us protect ourselves. That is unacceptable.

So, what exactly has the City Council done to address this fundamental moral imperative?

Well, on Dec. 6, the San Diego City Council’s committee on Natural Resources and Culture held a hearing to address and then rip out the root cause of both… Read More

Prior to the Recall, then-Senate Republican Leader Jim Brulte made a public pronouncement that should any Republican legislator vote for a tax increase, he’d personally lead the effort to find (and fund) a Primary challenge against them.

Given all of today’s brouhaha, and the fact that he still sits on close to a million dollars in his political account despite having been out of office for a few years, I wonder if the Senator’s challenge still stands?

And, might we see anything similar from Ackerman or Villines?

I really hope our opposition to tax increases still unites us.It’d sure be nice for Republicans to start acting like Republicans again.… Read More

All the commentators have commented on the Governor’s inauguration speech. Most focused on the "dynamic centrism" of which the Governor spoke. The key line was:

"Some said that the Democratic legislature, by working with me to increase the minimum wage or reform prescription drug costs, abandoned the Democratic nominee for governor. This is the kind of partisan thinking that frustrates the voters and diminishes our democracy. The people are disgusted with a mindset that would rather get nothing done than accomplish something through compromise."

The Governor missed the key problem of politics in both his premise and his conclusion. People did not vote for him because he enacted the Democrats’ agenda, they voted for him because he was not Phil Angelides. People, in addition, are not disgusted with a government that does nothing, they are disgusted with rulers who promise to make their lives better if people would just entrust them with power, and then those rulers use that power to line the pockets of their political supporters. People would be happy if they believed that the status quo was… Read More

The Wall Street Journal’s Political Diary e-mail is subscribed to by political and policy leaders all around the country – and the world. The lead item in the e-mail today is on Governor Schwarzenegger and his healthcare proposal:

Schwarzenegger’s Bolivarian Revolution

The reaction of leaders of California’s political parties neatly sums up the ideological direction of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s new plan to provide health insurance to all Californians by mandating that employers provide it or pay a fee of 4% of their payroll into a government pool.

Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunes was thrilled that a GOP governor had moved so far in his direction: "This is a plan Assembly Democrats could… Read More