So on Saturday I ventured up to Redding for the first public input hearing of the California Redistricting Commission.

The Redding Searchlight reported 80 people attended the meeting. That is probably right if you include staff and the commission. By my count 26 took the time to address the commission.

You can read the Redding Searchlight article here. It was far easier to find the article about the motorcycle accident I saw on the freeway than the commission hearing at Shasta College.

Here is the issue. Clearly a group was there that was organized requesting that the commission draw a Senate, Assembly, and Congressional district described in the article. The attempt would be to lump the more liberal coastal areas in with the conservative inland areas.

For most of the commission members it seemed pretty clear that this was their first time in the area and it may be their last. So the one of the few things that they will think of when they consider drawing districts in the north state is the configuration mentioned in the article.… Read More

HJTA, Tea Party Patriots, Republicans, and AFP Crash the Party in Riverside

Governor Jerry Brown’s dog and pony show to Riverside County got muzzled yesterday, after protesters took to the streets to oppose the Governor’s massive tax increases.

As Jerry met with educators and a select group of hand-picked community leaders, a gaggle of protesters lined the curb outside to demand that he start telling the truth about the budget crisis. Grassroots activists from the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, the Tea Party Patriots, and the California Republican Party all joined together to put a leash on the idea that any hardworking Californians are in the mood for a tax increase.

No doubt Jerry continued his same song and dance about how schools will be impacted unless legislators or voters agree to the largest state tax increase in state and U.S. history. But we wouldn’t know – the event was not open to the public, and not even open to the press – in fact, only one pool camera was allowed.

Good thing we had folks on the ground to bring you – the people… Read More

A few random thoughts on the California political scene… (The hashtag version…)

Governor Brown’s so-called “pension reform” plan does virtually nothing to make public employee pensions affordable, and does not address the massive unfunded liability to state and local governments. #WHATSTHE POINT This week State Senator Doug LaMalfa introduced legislation on a state income tax form a box for a Californian to donate funds to their state government. Are Democrats willing to let those who want to do so to voluntarily "chip in" to solve the budget shortfall? #GIVEITATRY Local Redevelopment Agencies need to be abolished. Many conservative Assemblymembers held off providing the final needed vote because of the politics of staying unified against a June special election. Well, the June ballot is off the table… #NOTHINGSTOPPINGYOUNOW A recent story in the San Francisco Chronicle thought it newsworthy that after the election the State GOP Finance Chairman stepped down. The inconvenient truth is that after every election the State GOP Finance Chairman steps down. … Read More

Longtime FlashReport contributor Matt Rexroad is a pretty accomplished guy. If you ask him, he’ll tell you he is most humbled by his experiences as a husband and a father — and serving our nation’s military. But beyond that he serves in elected office as a Yolo County Supervisor, and is one of California’s most accomplished political consultants. He might choose to blah blah blah about the University of Southern California — but FR readers know that doesn’t impress me (it’s a negative, actually). Oh yeah, Matt’s an attorney, and he has dived head-first into redistricting issues — both at the partisan level (BOE, Congress, State Senate, State Assembly) and also in many localities.

We’ve benefited from Matt’s delving into what new lines might bring as he has posted up some theoretical seats for us that have caused people to really understand how some legislative districts might drastically change.

Earlier Matt sent over a Matt to me… Read More

Longtime FlashReport contributor Matt Rexroad is a pretty accomplished guy. If you ask him, he’ll tell you he is most humbled by his experiences as a husband and a father — and serving our nation’s military. But beyond that he serves in elected office as a Yolo County Supervisor, and is one of California’s most accomplished political consultants. He might choose to blah blah blah about the University of Southern California — but FR readers know that doesn’t impress me (it’s a negative, actually). Oh yeah, Matt’s an attorney, and he has dived head-first into redistricting issues — both at the partisan level (BOE, Congress, State Senate, State Assembly) and also in many localities.

We’ve benefited from Matt’s delving into what new lines might bring as he has posted up some theoretical seats for us that have caused people to really understand how some legislative districts might drastically change.

Earlier Matt sent over a Matt to me… Read More

Longtime FR friends Conan Nolan of KNBC television in Los Angeles and State Senator Bob Huff (R-Diamond Bar) spent just over ten minutes chatting about the state budget situation on the KNBC LA Public Affairs Program “NewsConference with Warren Olney."

It’s worth a few minutes of your time to watch. And a shout-out to Conan, for managing to work the FlashReport into the interview!

The interview…

… Read More

Longtime FR friends Conan Nolan of KNBC television in Los Angeles and State Senator Bob Huff (R-Diamond Bar) spent just over ten minutes chatting about the state budget situation on the KNBC LA Public Affairs Program “NewsConference with Warren Olney."

It’s worth a few minutes of your time to watch. And a shout-out to Conan, for managing to work the FlashReport into the interview!

The interview…

… Read More

From today’s Wall Street Journal Political Diary E-mail… Two California Items..

Facing Fiscal Reality Two well-off communities in the San Francisco Bay area have come up with an imaginative way of cutting spending to cope with the increasing burden of public employee health and pension costs. They are dissolving their police forces and contracting their responsibilities out to the local sheriff’s department. San Carlos, a city of 28,000 in San Mateo County, was the first to try the unorthodox approach last year. It’s been rated a success. The city’s police officers shifted over to become sheriff’s deputies, and felony arrests went up 92 percent in the first three months. Greg Rothaus, the former San Carlos police chief who is now a sheriff’s captain, says the response to emergency calls has been comparable to what they… Read More