[UPDATE: According to sources this poll was actually conducted LAST SUMMER just days after Umberg’s affair was exposed in the press. Subsequent polling shows Umberg BEATING Correa by almost 2-to-1.]

Dick Rosengarten reports in the this weeks edition of his CALPEEK newsletter on CA politics that OC Supervisor Lou Correa is trouncing Assemblyman Tom Umberg in the race for the Democrat nomination in the 34th Senate District (Central Orange County including Santa Ana). According to Rosengarten, J. Moore Methods, Inc. (James Moore) a Dem pollster conducted the poll among 34th Senate District Democrats on behalf of State Senate President Don Perata.

I find it hard to believe that these are first run ballot test numbers. A sitting county supervisor (former legislator) vs. a member of the state assembly (present and past) should be a lot closer… Read More

WHALEN ON WESTLY Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has a lot of things going for him as he runs for re-election this year. But certainly one of the best things going is the poor quality of the two Democrats seeking the Democratic Party nomination – State Treasurer Phil Angelides, and State Controller Steve Westly. Last Monday, FR correspondent Dan Schnur wrote a great piece on Angelides, and today we feature a column penned by our own Bill Whalen on Steve Westly, who Whalen points out is ‘too cute by half’ – a definate ‘must read’ for today! WILL THOMAS RETIRE? WE HOPE SO! … Read More

It took the British publication “The Economist” to finally point out the fact that “The Daily Show” has replaced “Saturday Night Live” as the standard of American political satire. I was cooking dinner for Valerie, Ella and I when I read this in the column “Lexington” and sort of skimmed past this comment. But since the Simpsons were replaced by the dreary Oscars my mind kept sort of going back to this point. For most of us, for most of our ‘adult’ lives, Saturday Night Live has set the pace. In my memory, that usually revolved around Reagan, Bush I, and Clinton… after which I sort of dropped out of the club. Thinking about why I rarely watch SNL anymore tonight I first attributed it to age (“never trust anyone over 30”) but that didn’t really work the more I mulled it over.

I’m going to cross the Rubicon here: I don’t watch SNL very often any more because their skits drag. Particularly their political skits. They repeat the same joke over and over for like 10 minutes. They beat the point into your skull until you just want to throw a brick at the screen. Horatio and his… Read More

This weekend, a couple hundred delegates are gathered at the Doubletree Hotel in Bakersfield for the biennial endorsing convention of the California Republican Assembly. The CRA is California’s oldest and most conservative Republican volunteer organization, with traditions that go back to its founding in the 1930’s. The CRA has been a pivotal force in California politics, a key player because of its direct influence on politics as well as the training grounds it provides for many who go on to seek elective office or otherwise get involved in the process. Speaking in the first-person, I spent a decade of ‘intense’ involvement with the CRA starting from being a club member and rising through the ranks to an eventual two-year term as State President from 1995-1997. Being elected CRA President was one of the greatest honors of my life. The things I learned, the perspective gained, the challenges met and overcome continue to provide me with guidance in the things I do today. I am… Read More

This weekend, a couple hundred delegates are gathered at the Doubletree Hotel in Bakersfield for the biennial endorsing convention of the California Republican Assembly. The CRA is California’s oldest and most conservative Republican volunteer organization, with traditions that go back to its founding in the 1930’s. The CRA has been a pivotal force in California politics, a key player because of its direct influence on politics as well as the training grounds it provides for many who go on to seek elective office or otherwise get involved in the process. Speaking in the first-person, I spent a decade of ‘intense’ involvement with the CRA starting from being a club member and rising through the ranks to an eventual two-year term as State President from 1995-1997. Being elected CRA President was one of the greatest honors of my life. The things I learned, the perspective gained, the challenges met and overcome continue to provide me with guidance in the things I do today. I am… Read More

ENDORSED… Lt. Gov: McClintock SoS: McPherson Treas: Parrish AG: Poochigian Ins. Comm: Poizner Controller: Strickland SPI: Diane Lenning BOE 2: Leonard BOE 4: Forsch

NOT ENDORSED… The CRA did not endorse the Governor, nor did they endorse between Ray Haynes or Michelle Steel in BOE 3.

Word is that there was a move to co-endorse Arnold/Tom/Dick that fell just short of the 2/3.… Read More

The San Bernardino County Republican Party is encouraging the District Attorney’s Office and Registrar of Voters to aggressively investigate a recent rash of apparent voter-registration fraud the party alleges may have been committed by paid petition circulators in San Bernardino County. Similar allegations are also being investigated in the City of Rialto and the County of Orange.

Staff from the County Republican Party Central Committee were informed Thursday by the Registrar of Voters that registrations gathered by associates of the firm owned by the party’s recently retained voter-registration consultant, John Burkett of Riverside, may have included more than 3,000 instances of potential registration fraud over the past two months. A number of those alleged fraudulent registrations have been referred to the District Attorney’s Office.

County Republican Party Chairman Bill Postmus last week ordered a halt to the party’s paid voter registration program and ordered that no invoices for registrations submitted this year be paid until the County’s investigations are complete and all registrations to be paid for by the… Read More

A close political associate of mine contacted me and told me that Bill Thomas is retiring on Monday. He didn’t say “might be” retiring. The person is not a staff member, just a citizen and operative who is close to all the parties involved. I think the information is accurate. I might also add that I look forward to the announcement, and that Kevin McCarthy will be better than most conservatives expect as a member of Congress.… Read More