Slatemailer CONTINUING THE REPUBLICAN REVOLUTION. Features Cooley for Attorney General, Villines for Insurance Commissioner.… Read More

Republican voters will have no doubt who the former Alaska Governor and 2008 GOP Veep nominee is supporting for U.S. Senate…… Read More

You may recall that Alan Autry was the Mayor of Fresno for two terms, succeeding Jim Patterson, a current candidate for the 19th Congressional District. Autry is supporting State Senator Jeff Denham, and has been taking major shots at Patterson while hosting a radio program on KYNO 940 am. Now, this station has less than a 1% share, so there aren’t many listeners, but I am really, really saddened by Autry’s attacks. He’s been my friend for many years, but as a Patterson supporter, I feel compelled to respond.

The latest Denham attackshowed up in my mail today, with Autry claiming that Patterson left him in a fiscal mess when he took over for Patterson in 2001.

If this claim weren’t so ridiculous, it would be laughable, and it makes fair game the Autry record while in Fresno City Hall.

Let’s set the record straight: Jim Patterson was elected Mayor of Fresno in 1993. The city was gang infested and had the worst auto theft rates in the nation. Over the next eight years, with some federal help, Fresno hired 384 police officers, cut the crime rate 75%, and balanced eight straight budgets. Pension obligations were… Read More

The SacBee’s Capitol Alert blog is reporting that Democrats are busy rejecting the Governor’s proposed cuts in the budget. Of course they are. Because the Democrats believe that when the economy is in bad shape, that’s the time you want to raise taxes. Actually, to be more accurate, the liberals in the legislature pretty much want to raise taxes any time.

At some point, the Democrats in Sacramento have to understand that when the economy is humming along, then the private sector grows, and the GDP goes up, and also the money available to government at every level increases. But the opposite is also true — and when the economy restricts, it is not just the private sector that has to go through proverbial belt-tightening, it is also government that must do this. Adding more taxes is problematic for many reasons, but a great pragmatic reason is that doing so will damage economic recovery efforts.

Fortunately the State of California, unlike the Feds, cannot print money. And since the resolve of the Governor and legislative Republicans… Read More

Hopefully it did fall through the cracks for California political observers that last week liberal Democrat Congresswoman Grace Napolitano of Los Angeles County was very blunt in comments to the San Gabriel News Tribune that she thinks that the $11 billion water bond currently slated to appear on this November’s ballot is going to be defeated by voters.”

According to the News Tribune, Napolitano said, “They should support it, but I don’t think they will… People are very upset with legislators. And since it’s (legislators’) idea, I don’t think (voters) are ready to put out any more money.”

Napolitano’s comments are very significant because she is a supporter of the bond, and she also has some gravitas on the water issue, serving as the Chairman of the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water and Power.

I suspect that you will see more and more “realistic assessments” of the lack of political viability of this massive, bloated, so-called water bond as we get past the June election.

In talking to many… Read More

Hopefully it did fall through the cracks for California political observers that last week liberal Democrat Congresswoman Grace Napolitano of Los Angeles County was very blunt in comments to the San Gabriel News Tribune that she thinks that the $11 billion water bond currently slated to appear on this November’s ballot is going to be defeated by voters.”

According to the News Tribune, Napolitano said, “They should support it, but I don’t think they will… People are very upset with legislators. And since it’s (legislators’) idea, I don’t think (voters) are ready to put out any more money.”

Napolitano’s comments are very significant because she is a supporter of the bond, and she also has some gravitas on the water issue, serving as the Chairman of the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water and Power.

**There is more – click the link**… Read More

This appears in today’s online Wall Street Journal… (An entirely separate question, after reading this, is how Crane could be a major donor to the Gubernatorial campaign of Jerry Brown… But that is for another day…) Dow 28,000,000: The Unbelievable Expectations of California’s Pension System Because Calpers failed to disclose pension costs and liabilities 10 years ago, taxpayers will be on the hook for hundreds of billions. By DAVID CRANE In 1999 then California Governor Gray Davis signed into law a bill that represented the largest issuance of non-voter-approved debt… Read More

Who is on my mid-week flight to Sacramento? I'm hanging with 20 year FR friend and Assemblyman Van Tran. Also on the flight are Jonathan Choi of Dart Enterprises (need a LOT of plates or cups? He's your man – also Judy Legan is off to advocate for Apartment Owners, and my buddy former Orange County Assistant Sheriff Charlie Walters is on his way to a state criminal justice commission meeting. That's a wrap!… Read More