I misspent my adolescence in the 1970’s. In the first part of that time, I went to public schools that were the best in the nation. Ronald Reagan was Governor. 80% of the people could afford a median price home (about $25,000.00 at the time). Freeways took about 5 years to build. Gasoline was about 20 cents per gallon. California had just finished to California Water Project. It cost $300 a year to attend a UC school, and the total state budget was around $7 billion a year. There were no government employee unions, and CalPERS was the example to the nation of the right way to run a pension system

Interesting time. Recently my youngest daughter has hooked me on the television series "That ’70’s Show" which is rampant with sex, drugs, and rock and roll (which unfortunately the zeitgeist of the ’70’s), but really funny. I had friends who were like the characters in that show. I think that is what makes it so funny. The show is set in Wisconsin, which is unfortunate, because it is so applicable to the State Capitol of California in the 1970’s.

The Chamber just stopped its commercials on Jerry Brown,… Read More

There’s no shortage these days of informed opinion about how California is on the brink of economic disaster, no longer represents a place of creative innovation and may even become America’s first failed state. And those are the more optimistic ones. Kidding aside, these are dark days for the Golden State and they stand to be tough for a long while longer. But while midway through a critical election year and the middle of a severe recession seems like no time to review and evaluate the future direction of major public policy, that’s precisely what California needs to do. In every way, a shortfall of vision created many of our problems in the first place. Our budget deficits, pension crisis, record unemployment and unprecedented housing foreclosures are effects – not causes – of bad policy choices California has made over the past several years. I’ve been thinking quite a bit about the public institutions that traditionally represent the best of California and the role they will play… Read More

There’s no shortage these days of informed opinion about how California is on the brink of economic disaster, no longer represents a place of creative innovation and may even become America’s first failed state. And those are the more optimistic ones. Kidding aside, these are dark days for the Golden State and they stand to be tough for a long while longer. But while midway through a critical election year and the middle of a severe recession seems like no time to review and evaluate the future direction of major public policy, that’s precisely what California needs to do. In every way, a shortfall of vision created many of our problems in the first place. Our budget deficits, pension crisis, record unemployment and unprecedented housing foreclosures are effects – not causes – of bad policy choices California has made over the past several years. I’ve been thinking quite a bit about the public institutions that traditionally represent the best of California and the role they will play… Read More

I take a vacation out of town for a few days, and of course nothing conveniently "slows down" in my absence. Guess I’ll play catch-up on this whole CalChamber/Jerry Brown dust-up, but I didn’t want to miss posting up this latest commercial from Steve Poizner… This spot is real "hard ball" and it will be interesting to see if a couple thousand rating points behind it in a statewide buy has an impacts. It represents the first time statewide voters will be exposed to the issue of through tv advertising to Meg Whitman’s lackluster voting record (briefly, in this ad)… (Team Whitman blasts Poizner for this ad here, though they don’t seem to say that anything in it is inaccurate, they just assault Poizner’s own record.)

… Read More

The turning point for the Schwarzenegger for Governor campaign in 2006 was the day after the primary when Phil Angelides started being defined by the Governor as being out of step with California. It set the tone for the entire campaign and pushed the Governor into a commanding position for re-election.

This all might have turned out very differently had Steve Westley been the nominee as he had a plan for the day after the primary and was prepared to execute. Angelides was undefined still and the Governor did it for him.

Today we may have seen a similar turning point in the 2010 race for Governor. The Chamber of Commerce had a bold political move to define someone that is probably not even remembered by millions of California voters. When the ads got pulled today it ended the early definition process of the Democratic nominee.

If we do have a second "Governor Jerry Brown Show" the business community is the most likely target of his policies. They will complain to no end…. all because of Manat, Phelps & Phillips (sponsor of this site), Robert Simonds Company, Forest City Residential West, and Latham & Watkins. Thanks… Read More

If you’re a FlashReport reader with an iPhone, and think that the next Governor of California should be a Republican, than you need to step it up.

I was reading about a new group, CALInnovates, which is all about keeping government regulation of of technology and innovation. You should check out their website here. Anyway, these guys did a survey and found out that Blackberry users are more likely to support a Republican this November, while iPhone users are more likely to support a Democrat. There may be something to this because – well, I use a Blackberry…

Well, perhaps more useful is that CALiInnovates have developed a new app for Blackberry and Facebook to allow for tracking of political news that is worth checking out. If you are like me, you upload tons of apps, and delete the ones that don’t make the cut. I’ve uploaded this one – we’ll see if I keep it!

I’m not in Sacramento tomorrow – but if I were, I’d be heading over to Pyramid (1029 K Street) from 530pm – 730pm where CALInnovates is buying the beer. From our perspective, we think that CALInnovates should require a… Read More

As California families struggle to make ends meet and unemployment in some counties tops 20 percent, you would think the Legislature would get out of the way of the free market and the entrepreneurs who provide job growth.

But you would bewrong. Instead, liberal Senators passed a bill yesterday in the Senate Environmental Quality Committee that will make batteries more expense. (By the way, I am a member of this board and voted “no” on the bill).

Senate Bill 1100 (Corbett) will create new fees on batteries, which will be handed down to the consumer to the tune of about $15 million per year. And since the fee in this bill has not been determined, the price could go higher.

This bill will alsoopen aPandora’s Box to further implementation on other maligned items like fluorescent light bulbs, medical sharps and paints.

In a TV report last night, ABC’s Nannette Miranda exposes the costs of this bill.… Read More

The Roundup, Fresno Bee political notebook and other publications detailed today stories of Jim Costa "going to war" with Leftist Democrat George Miller over the water crisis in Central California.

Here’s an excerpt from the Roundup today: "

Reps. Jim Costa and George Miller are getting ready for a Delta smelt smackdown. Christine Bedell reports, "Costa declared political "war" against a fellow member of the California congressional delegation Monday over the ongoing fight to both protect fish in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and keep delivering desperately needed water to the San Joaquin Valley. "Costa, D-Fresno, offered to do battle with Rep. George Miller, D-Richmond, after Miller was quoted as promising at a political rally last week to push for tougher restrictions on water diversions to valley farms and cities. Northern California fisherman in large part blame the water pumping for declining salmon populations and, by extension, their livelihoods."

Well, George Miller has been attacking valley ag and water interests since… Read More