The alternative title for this post could be, “What is going on that the Deputy’s Union doesn’t want made public?”

I think we all can agree that transparency in government is a critical component of the public being able to exercise our rights to interact in an informed way with their elected officials, and of course cast informed votes at the ballot box. It was an unfortunate blow to transparency when the COIN ordinance at the County of Orange was shelved due to legal reasons — that was the measure specifically designed to make sure that the public would be informed about the details of labor negotiations in an ongoing manner, so that… Read More

California was once the State that everyone looked up to. With the best weather and natural resources, we were full of hope and innovation. We had the best public schools, a world class system of higher education, the best freeways, infrastructure to provide fresh water to our growing population, which also doubled as a source of clean energy through hydro-electric power, a business-friendly environment where entire industries grew in entertainment, aerospace, and technology, making our economy virtually recession-proof.

Then in 1978, then-governor Jerry Brown signed an executive order that imposed union-shop collective bargaining on public agencies in California, and the rise of public sector union power began.

Today, public sector unions are the most powerful political force in our State. They control a majority of our State Legislature and might control a supermajority in November if a few swing districts fall their way. No politician, Democrat, Republican or Independent, acts without considering how it will affect the union agenda.

These government unions press 100% for a progressive agenda, and they consistently agitate for increased spending. In two… Read More

By Megan Barth and Katy Grimes

Betrayal is the only truth that sticks

Arthur Miller

The rise of Donald Trump and Ted Cruz are a direct reflection of the anger and pain of the electorate and the capitulation of conservative principles by the GOP. The electorate and conservatives are demanding change, and the GOP, for the sake of saving the grand old party, must change.It is necessary for therestoration of the party, conservatism,… Read More

In a provocative and electrifying legal move, Gerawan Farming Company employee Silvia Lopez filed a legal brief to disqualify ALRB Board Member Genevieve Shiroma from the Agricultural Labor Relations Board, for bias and conflicts of interest.

Lopez cites evidence of Shiroma’s close political ties with the United Farm Workers union, and long time Democrat political operative Richie Ross. Silvia Lopez, a San Joaquin Valley farm worker, filed legal documents detailing payments over $120,000 from Shiroma to United Farm Workers’ Lobbyist Richie Ross, and documented Shiroma’s financial support of the author of a bill designed to help the UFW force itself on workers. UFW is the same union trying to force itself on the employees where Lopez works, as Lopez has fought for two years for her co-workers right to vote. Shiroma made the payments to the UFW’s lobbyist while she sat in judgment of issues directly involving that union, and while the workers ballots remain uncounted in a government vault

In 2013, I did an investigation of Shiroma and found some startling conflicts.

“In 1998, voters… Read More

Congressmen Dana Rohrabacher and Tom McClintock, Assemblymembers Matthew Harper and Shannon Grove, former California Republican Chairman Michael Schroeder, former legislator Ray Haynes and legal scholar John Eastman join in backing Cruz

HOUSTON, Texas – Presidential candidate Ted Cruz today named 118 members of his California Leadership Team.

“We have assembled a powerful team in California from the Oregon border to San Diego, and from the Pacific to the Sierra Nevada and I’m thankful for Ron Nehring’s leadership of these courageous conservatives,” said Cruz. “They have the commitment, experience, and insight to win and I look forward to working with them towards victory.”

Former California Republican Party Chairman Michael Schroeder and former California legislator Ray Haynes will serve as California Co-Chairs of the Ted Cruz for President campaign. The campaign additionally announced the endorsements of Assemblymembers Shannon Grove of Bakersfield and Matthew Harper of Orange County together with former Chapman University Law… Read More

There’s more good news for Gerawan Farming! Superior CourtJudge Timothy Frawley finds that the Agricultural Labor Relations Board IS subject to the California Public Records Act.

For several yearsI’ve been writing about Gerawan Farming in Fresno, and the company’s gutsy refusal to cave under the pressure of the California Agricultural Labor Relations Board’s denial of farmworkers’ rights to vote for or against unionization.

Gerawan recently was granted a significant win by Sacramento Superior Court Judge Timothy Frawley, who agreed to the Gerawan’s request for documents in an unfair labor practice… Read More

Notwithstanding California’s leftward drift, Prop 13 remains remarkably popular. Indeed, polling suggests that if Prop 13 were on the ballot today, it would pass by about the same two-thirds margin that it did in 1978. But the enduring embrace of this landmark measure by California homeowners is a huge irritant to those who want ever more taxpayer dollars.

For 37 years, detractors have made a parlor game of criticizing Prop 13. Our favorite is blaming Prop 13 for the acquittal of O.J. Simpson. The latest salvo is that Prop 13 is to blame, at least in part, for California’s housing crisis.

A recent study by Chris Thornberg, head of Beacon Economics, reviews the depth of the crisis and attempts to identify its causes. There is a lot of compelling data in the study which amply demonstrates how severe the crisis is. He points out that 53 percent of households earning between $35,000 and $75,000 per year spend more than 30 percent of their income on rent, while nationally, only 31 percent find themselves in this predicament. For homeowners, the figure is even worse, with more than two-thirds spending more than 30 percent of their income on mortgage… Read More

I share the governor’s optimism when it comes to California’s future. Our state has a diverse economy, a strong commitment to education and more than enough revenue to fully fund roads, schools and water storage without raising taxes.

As the governor himself warns, we must continue to exercise fiscal prudence. The true test of his leadership will be whether he can hold the line on spending against the tax-and-spend liberal legislators of his own party.

Instead of raising taxes, our focus should be on providing greater value for Californians by improving quality of life and by seeking solutions that make this state a more affordable place to live and work.… Read More