I’m in a rush this morning — so I will just draw attention to a few important items on today’s main page: The lead story today is right out of the Wall Street Journal. You’ve all heard me go on (and on) about the spending problems that we have in Congress. Since the GOP majority was elected in 1994 in the House, federal spending is UP over 33%. Conservative Republicans in the House, understanding that our majority is at stake, have become more aggressive in trying to curb our spending. The leadership of the Republican Study Committee (the conservatives in the House) started some very real negotiations with GOP leaders about spending cuts. As these negotiations have become more ‘real’ — there is squeeling coming out of the House Appropriations Committee (one of the "pork" committees of Congress) where apparently Representative Jerry Lewis, a California Congressman who chairs the committee, has a problem with House Republicans negotiating cuts in spending without going through…HIS committee. In no uncertain terms, Jerry Lewis should applaud any effort to cut spending, whether these… Read More

I’m in a rush this morning — so I will just draw attention to a few important items on today’s main page: The lead story today is right out of the Wall Street Journal. You’ve all heard me go on (and on) about the spending problems that we have in Congress. Since the GOP majority was elected in 1994 in the House, federal spending is UP over 33%. Conservative Republicans in the House, understanding that our majority is at stake, have become more aggressive in trying to curb our spending. The leadership of the Republican Study Committee (the conservatives in the House) started some very real negotiations with GOP leaders about spending cuts. As these negotiations have become more ‘real’ — there is squeeling coming out of the House Appropriations Committee (one of the "pork" committees of Congress) where apparently Representative Jerry Lewis, a California Congressman who chairs the committee, has a problem with House Republicans negotiating cuts in spending without going through…HIS committee. In no uncertain terms, Jerry Lewis should applaud any effort to cut spending, whether these… Read More

[Sorry if the formatting is off – this was posted via Blackberry.]

FR friend Karen Hanretty sent this along, which makes it worthy of sharing:

"Today’s LA Times article about Gov. Schwarzenegger reappointing Joe Nunez to the Board of Education deeply troubles me. Joe Nunez is the chairman of Alliance for a Better California, the union effort that spent $100 million to defeat the governor’s special election initiatives last year. More troubling to me is the fact that Barbara Kerr, President of California Teachers Association, personally lobbied the governor last December to have him reappoint Nunez and the governor took her advice just one month after she celebrated his defeat.

California’s public education system is in desperate need of reform, and Joe Nunez is a huge roadblock to improving our schools. But that’s not all. We know the current state of education in… Read More

Some random thoughts to start off the weekend:

There was an article in Capitol Weekly this week in which Lt. Governor Cruz Bustamante was whining about something the Governor did or didn’t do. I so don’t care about what he says that I didn’t even link to it. There is a Supervisor in San Bernardino County named Jim Harnsberger. He is always in trouble for the lamest things. He reminds me of the character Pig Pen in the Peanuts comic strips. I was genuinely surprised this week that Senator John Kerry, after making a campaign appearance for Francine Busby in San Diego, didn’t swing by the Stockton area and make an appearance for another big supporter of his, “Republican” Pete McCloskey who is challenging conservative Rep. Richard Pombo. Apparently, in California you can get the death penalty if you rape a girl, and then kill her. … Read More

The fact that the Democrats are even contemplating a competitive November election season is more a statement about Republican leadership than anything. We KNOW the Democrats have zero agenda. Yet, they might win some seats in the House and Senate this fall. Why? Representatives likeJerry Lewis, who evidently doesn’t get back home much to listen to the people, don’t understand the conservative malaise they have caused. In my column for the Lincoln Club almost 15 months ago I outline exactly what issues threaten the Republican Majority. Congressmen Lewis’ response to the Wall Street Journal editorial is not an encouraging sign.

The federal budget is now over $2.7 trillion – from just over $1.2 trillion when the "revolution" started in 1995 under Newt Gingrich. Any Republican Member of Congress defending that record doesn’t deserve reelection.… Read More

The books are almost closed on the Special Election in SD 35. Almost 300 votes stand between conservative Diane Harkey and a seat in the California legislature. Assemblyman Tom Harman is sitting in an enviable position – especially when you consider that only 600 or so provisional ballot stand left to counted.

Nevertheless, if you took a vote here on the public side of the counter at the Registrar, Harkey would win overwhelmingly. There are about 30 Harkey volunteers here led by Scott Hart, Jimmy Camp, Adam Probolsky and former FEC member/elections attorney extraordinairre Daryll Wold.

The Harman folks, all five of them, are led up by Duane Dichiara, Jen Jacobs and former FPPC commissioner/legal beagle Ben Davidian.

Of course, the outcome is more or less assured today. I’ve been doing this stuff for too long.

But my counsel to Team Harkey will be to look into a recount. Recounts are never bad because they just provide a microscope to the process. Will it change the outcome? Probably not. But it will give peace of mind to thousands of Harkey supports who will want to know that every avenue was persued in ensuring that… Read More

LIVE from the OC Registrar of Voters…

There are no votes left to count. So the unofficial final count in SD 35 is 37,840 (38.76%) for Harman, 37,604 (38.52%) for Harkey and 22,176 (22.72%) for the Democrat, Caballero.

So, while there are no more votes to count, there are almost a hundred thousand votes to be RE-counted. Which is what I think will happen now.

A .24% difference (236 votes) seems like a small number of votes to pick up, but as someone who has worked a lot of recounts, it would be impressive if Diane Harkey could make this up. that said, improbable is not impossible.

Acting Registrar Neal Kelley will certify this election soon, and then it will be Team Harkey’s call, on whether to finance a hand-count of the ballots…

Stay tuned!… Read More

Today’s Bee profiles the Valley Taxpayer’s Coalition and three of its leaders. Former Fresno City Council members Chris Mathys and Ken Steitz form the nucleus of this group, with the assistance of former City Manager and current Lincoln Club of Fresno County officer Jeff Reid. Reid is the policy guy, and no one read more and understands better the quagmire of government information than he.

Actually, this is my favorite "thing" about the taxpayer groups. They actually read legislation and fine print and when they point out the details it makes people crazy.

That having been said, I don’t support all of their viewpoints. But they are a critical counterweight to those in local and county government that would tax and spend without a thought, and an even better counterweight to business men and women that get a little wild on the spending side as well, with government money, of course.

So, let’s not be afraid of or hold taxpayer groups in contempt. We… Read More