It is clear that the debate that is taking place in Washington D.C. on the illegal immigration issue is going to be a major issue for the 2006 elections at every level. This means that every candidate for office, whether running for U.S. Senate or Congress, Governor or State Schools Superintendent, Supervisor or Sheriff, state legislature or school board is going to have to figure out how to address this issue.

The biggest challenge, of course, is on federal officeholders and candidates for U.S. Senate and Congress, as this is primarily seen as a national issue that should be dealt with by the federal government. To a certain extent, that is right. But the ‘trickle-down’ effect to every level of government of the impact of the United States’ failure to protect/control its borders, and the physical presence of well over ten-million people that have come into this country without permission has an impact for everyone, and for every political jurisdiction.

The lead story in today’s FlashReport is a piece penned by Timm Herdt in today’s Ventura County Star that really starts to look at the impact of this issue on California races.… Read More

It is clear that the debate that is taking place in Washington D.C. on the illegal immigration issue is going to be a major issue for the 2006 elections at every level. This means that every candidate for office, whether running for U.S. Senate or Congress, Governor or State Schools Superintendent, Supervisor or Sheriff, state legislature or school board is going to have to figure out how to address this issue.

The biggest challenge, of course, is on federal officeholders and candidates for U.S. Senate and Congress, as this is primarily seen as a national issue that should be dealt with by the federal government. To a certain extent, that is right. But the ‘trickle-down’ effect to every level of government of the impact of the United States’ failure to protect/control its borders, and the physical presence of well over ten-million people that have come into this country without permission has an impact for everyone, and for every political jurisdiction.

The lead story in today’s FlashReport is a piece penned by Timm Herdt in today’s Ventura County Star that really starts to look at the impact of this issue on California races.… Read More

On April 17th, Assemblyman George Plescia will assume the leadership of a unified Assembly Republican Caucus. Since his unanimous selection by his colleagues over a month ago, there has been a lot of ‘inside the building’ wondering about his leadership team. With Kevin McCarthy stepping down as leader to focus his attention on his race for Congress, also stepping aside is his Lieutenant, Assemblyman Russ Bogh, who has served as Chairman of the Assembly Republican Caucus.

In just a little while, the office of Assembly Republican Leader-elect George Plescia will name conservative San Juaquin Valley Republican Assemblyman Greg Aghazarian to to key post of Caucus Chairman. In this role, Aghazarian will become Plescia’s #1 "go to" guy for all matters dealing with his fellow GOP Assemblymembers.

Aghazarian, who is well liked among his colleagues, was early-on looked at as a possible candidate for Assembly Leader himself. Aghazarian was first election in 2002, and has long been a… Read More

Any experienced participants or observers of politics know that watching the last-minute mail pieces that come out in the final days of a campaign is kinda like watching the commercials during the Superbowl – they are the most amazing and outrageous pieces of all. Especially right towards the end when candidates who are attacked don’t have time to respond.

The attached mail piece is a stinking attack on conservative businessman Eric Roach who is one of the leading candidates in the GOP donnybrook to replace the disgraced and imprisoned Duke Cunningham. Roach is making a big splash, spending millons of dollars to run a targeted campaign in a crowded field. You can read my take on Roach here.

That said, the mail piece that is attached below is a great reminder to anyone thinking about running for office – don’t forget to vote! You never know when it will come back at you — in this case, in full color!

Bilbray roasts Roach on missing a couple of elections, as well as trying to make him out to be a carpetbagger from San Francisco and more.… Read More

My commentary is very abbreviated today. There is a great profile on the FlashReport today in the San Diego Union Tribune. It is a main feature in an article penned by ace U-T political reporter John Marelius on the rising influence of political websites and blogs on politics. I’ve already gotten a dozen phone calls and even more e-mails this morning ‘letting me know’ about the piece. Needless to say, I have taken the liberty of making it the ‘top story’ today on the main page.

The article starts out:

Web sites’ influence on the rise statewide By John Marelius San Diego Union Tribube… Read More

Congratulations to the overseer of this prosperous blog plantation on the fine profile in the San Diego Union-Tribune.

A quote from my fellow FR blogger Dan Schnur, caught my eye:

Republican strategist Dan Schnur, a regular contributor to FlashReport, said attribution is the fundamental threshold of whether something in the blogosphere deserves to be taken seriously.

“Someone who posts to a blog anonymously is essentially a high-tech graffiti artist,” Schnur said. “If there is a user’s guide to blogs, rule No. 1 is if the blogger isn’t sharing his name, his opinions aren’t worth your attention.”

Gee, Dan — that’s a pretty severe indictment, don’t you think?

Let’s take Dan’s assessment and time-travel back to the late 1780s when citizens of the newly independent United States debated the merits of the proposed Constitution. Let’s imagine a quote from an analogous story in the New-York Packet on the influential series of pro-Constitution essays being… Read More

Only a straight-laced, buttoned-down Republican…would be up at 5:45 a.m putting together the FlashReport, hair nicely coiffed, attired in a freshly-pressed white shirt and conservative necktie.

Congratulations to Jon Fleischman and the FlashReport for the terrific spread in the SDUT this morning, which Jon obviously has already hi-lited.

I couldn’t help noticing, however, a discrepancy between perception and reality, heightened by the photo of Jon, caption reading: "Jon Fleischman begins compiling his FlashReport blog at his Irvine condo every morning at about 5:45 before heading to his job…"

OK, I know the photo wasn’t actually taken at 5:45 a.m., but the average reader is left with the stereotypical view of the GOP. Come on, Jon, didn’t you see… Read More

Slate meister Brian Park has launched a new slate: National Guard Association of California PAC Voter Guide.

It’s a good idea and that is saying a lot from me. I have opined in the past that slates are a form of legalized extortion–if you don’t buy from them, they will just sell the spot to your opponent, maybe even for less just to mess with you.

There are some stand-up slate makers like Tim Carey, Scott Hart and Tom Kaptain. But some others are pretty shady characters. The utility of slates are big in countywide races and they are pretty much the only play for Board of Equalization campaigns. However, down ticket candidates like city council candidates often get lost in the mix.

This new National Guard slate is a good idea and will stand out in the slate world that relies heavily on old-school campaign style mail that often amounts to nothing more substantive than a picture of an American flag or a red white and blue donkey.

Fellow FR… Read More