Money from the ill-concieved $1 trillion stimulus bill is still pouring out. Remember that since we were already in deficit before the stimulus, 100% of these funds are being borrowed. So, just what are they being spent on? Well, Vice President Biden is kind enough to send each member of Congress a periodic statement of what stimulus money has been spent on in that member’s congressional district. Last year, the VP’s list to me included $2.6 million to install a "green roof" on a nearly vacant building which was being considered for demolition. The list he sent me this year had a total of 15 items totaling $24,878,506. By far, the biggest single award was to UCI for $14,090,736 for "pell grants" which are tuition subsidies for low income students. The remainder included $3.8 million to 4 local governments for "energy efficiency" in government buildings and "community development". There’s $1.7 million to CalTrans for "pavement upgrades”, $99,986 to a private company named Metrolaser, Inc. for an Army research contract, and$4.5 million for 3 colleges for "energy efficiency" or further tuition… Read More

Assemblyman Chuck DeVore penned this response to a column that ran Monday on this site, in support of Prop. 22.

The King of Green, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, is requesting CEQA exemptions for his City by the Bay to attract a major regatta race. Hey Mr. Mayor, why not just comply with the act? After all, living “green” is the centerpiece of your campaign for Lieutenant Governor, and you expect all the little people to live by your example. Oh, that’s right; CEQA is arduous, complicated and often leads to litigation not to mention being a leading job killer. But get rid of CEQA and San Francisco stands to gain $1 billion in economic stimulus and the creation of 9,000 jobs.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m in favor of true economic stimulus and job creation (and I love a good regatta and San Francisco). But I am opposed to elected leaders who exempt themselves or the communities they represent from state laws. If an official is going to ask for exemption from CEQA, they should go a step further and work with conservatives to simplify the law and make it more amenable to economic growth, giving every city, county and small business person a fair chance to attract business. This “do as I say, not as I do” mentality is obnoxious and… Read More

Yesterday Republican Assemblyman Roger Niello officially jumped into the State Senate Special Election in District One, the Republican-dominated district in the greater Sacramento Area that had been represented for many years by the late Dave Cox, who recently passed away after a long bout with cancer.

Niello has been serving as a member of the State Assembly since 2004, and served for some time as Vice Chairman of the Assembly’s key Budget Committee. Neillo talks about his campaign priorities in the video at the bottom of this blog post.

It is clear that a major theme of Niello’s will be carrying on the work of Dave Cox. Cox, just before he passed away, endorsed Niello and made major contributions to Niello’s campaign committee — and the press release announcing Niello’s candidacy contained a quote from Cox’s widow, Maggie:

“Dave knew that Roger would be the only choice to continue on his legacy of public service – of ensuring that every person that lived in his district would be listened to, cared for, and represented. This feels very personal to me, and Dave and I endorsed Roger… Read More

Yesterday we broke the news here on the FlashReport that longtime GOP activist and leader Steve Baric was running for Vice Chairman of the California Republican Party. Baric’s decision to run came right on the heels of the announcement that CRP Treasurer Keith Carlson, who had been seeking the party’s #2 post, had instead decided to look at a run for the State Assembly in 2012.

Steve Baric is well respected in the California GOP for being both a thoughtful leader, but also a strong conservative voice. Baric is currently the President of the California Republican Lawyers Association, and is the elected Secretary of the CRP.

Today Steve will formally announce his candidacy, and in doing so, will release a list of Republican Assemblymembers who have endorsed him (look for a rollout of Senators, County Chairmen… Read More

I am happy to support Meg Whitman for CRP Chair. I know many maybe confused because Whitman has been running ads touting her candidacy for Governor. But perception is not always reality. The Governor’s campaign could just be a way to build name identification and contacts for the coveted CRP Post!

Of course I’m kidding, but recent actions by Meg Whitman’s campaign staff are very puzzling. Whitman’s people have joined some others in the usual intra-party squabbles that no one cares about except those of us that attend conventions. I’ve seen the emails with the Meg Whitman campaign on it asking and organizing proxies for this weekends CRP Convention in San Diego .

Why would any candidate for Governor divert resources from a closely contested campaign to gather proxies for rules changes and resolutions?

I have two theories both troubling.

1. Meg Whitman doesn’t know her resources have been diverted. In October 2001 I got a phone call asking me if I was supporting the “Parsky reforms” that would bring prestige, power and wealth untold to the State Party. (Results may have varied). I told the person,… Read More

The State of California has landed a starring role in a new TV ad—but it’s not a particularly flattering one. Americans for Prosperity launched an ad campaign in 11 states and 27 media markets this week exposing the outrageous expenditure of taxpayer money in the $862 billion stimulus plan. One of the projects used to “stimulate the economy” was $1.1 million to resurface Hollywood’s Sunset Strip. In light of the 2.7 million jobs lost in America, spending $1 million to repave a road in a wealthy, glamorous locale shows a shocking disconnect with the priorities of average citizens.

… Read More

Today is a big day for breaking news for California Republican Party politics. Today CRPTreasurer Keith Carlson announced the formation of an exploratory committee looking at a run for the State Assembly – for a run in 2012. He is looking at the coastal Orange County seat currently occupied by Assemblyman Jim Silva, who is running for his third and final term this year. Carlson’s efforts start strong out of the gate with support from Silva, as well as popular local Congressmaen Dana Rohrabacher and Ed Royce, District Attorney Tony Rackauckas, Assemblyman Van Tran, along with a host of others. Carlson is a well-respected conservative. His new exploratory bid website can be found here.

Carlson’s announcement has significant impacts in the world of California Republican Party Central Committee politics. Carlson was the leading (and only) announced candidate for the CRP Vice Chairmanship – and in… Read More