I about hit the floor ten minutes ago. Assemblyman Michael Villines (R – Tax Collector) has a facebook post touting his new "Profiles in Courage" Award for raising taxes last year in the worst economy in 60 years. Here was the quote from Caroline Kennedy:

"Faced with the most difficult choices and a budget crisis of unprecedented magnitude, these legislative leaders had the courage to negotiate a compromise that they felt was in the public’s best interest,” said Caroline Kennedy, President of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation. “They did so knowing they would suffer the wrath of their constituents, powerful interest groups, and their own party members. The members of the Profile in Courage Award Committee chose to herald this story of political courage and bi-partisan compromise with the hope that it will inspire other elected officials facing similar challenges to stand up with courage, to cross party lines, and to do whatever is necessary to better serve the public interest.”

Yes, according to… Read More

Quote of the week: “I fear all we have done is awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a great resolve” – Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto after the attack on Pearl Harbor, as attributed from the movie “Tora, Tora, Tora”.

There is no evidence that the real Admiral Yamamoto actually uttered these words his character says in the movie, although he apparently thought the attack was a mistake. But perhaps President Obama or Speaker Pelosi should be saying this about their socialized medicine bill.

I was in Northern Florida over the weekend at a classic car show that draws about 20,000 attendees. Most people were from the Southeast although there were plenty of people from all over the country. Car racing legends Richard Petty, “Big Daddy” Don Garlits, and Carroll Shelby were there and held a seminar on their racing experiences and on winning. Most of the discussion was, naturally, about racing. But about one third of the discussion was about politics. The biggest cheer of the day was not about racing but when Garlits made a comment at how bad “that crowd in Washington today” was. The second biggest was when a… Read More

This morning Southern California was awakened by a 4.4 magnitude earthquake. In light of the recent Haitian and Chilean earthquakes, even a minor earth rumble causes jittery nerves. Experts keep warning that it’s only a matter of time before California has another major earthquake. One of the articles I read about this morning’s earthquake mentioned California’s last destructive earthquake, the 1994 Northridge quake, a 6.7 magnitude quake that killed 72 people. The Northridge quake caused $20 billion in damage.

As I read that number, I couldn’t help but think of the current $20 billion budget deficit California is facing. Emergency preparedness is yet another reason it’s so important for the state’s government to balance its books and have emergency funds set aside. We know it’s just a matter of time before another big quake strikes, or we have another devastating fire season. Legislators are violating their fiduciary duty to their constituents by spending and wasting taxpayer money. The state’s deficit isn’t just about wasteful spending—it also means that when we need funds to deal with a disaster, the money won’t be there to help victims and… Read More

Before Insurance Commissioner and Gubernatorial candidate Steve Poizner addressed State GOP Convention attendees last Saturday night, his campaign ran a two minute video from popular conservative California Congressman Tom McClintock. I reached out to Team Poizner and asked them if they could make that video available to FR readers (or watchers in this case)…

… Read More

At the GOP Convention, Meg Whitman held a "townhall style" program featuring herself and former Massachusetts Governor and 2008 GOP Presidential contender Mitt Romney. The session was moderated by FR friend and radio talk show host Eric Hogue…

… Read More

Late this afternoon Steve Poizner and Meg Wihitman will have their first debate, moderated by network news reporter Conan Nolan. A big thank you to event hosts The New Majority for streaming this event and providing us the embedding code so you can watch it below… The event is at 530pm… I will be attending the event in person — should be fun!

… Read More

Unlike other events where I typically mix in with attendees, and occasionally look off at whatever sequestered area the media has been forced to squeeze into, this time I am IN that area — covering the first Gubernatorial GOP of the season as a "member of the press corps" — yikes.

With the help of my friend and fellow blogger Matt Cunningham (holding the FlashCam), I filmed this little five minute video… Check it out! Be patient if it isn’t up right away – You Tube takes a few minutes to process.

Check out my "live tweeting" of the debate at www.twitter.com/flashreport. I’m also live blogging on Red County’s live feed here.

… Read More

Enjoy…

… Read More