[Cross-posted from RedCounty.com]

The California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) is the largest public pension fund in the United States. It manages $190 billion in assets, and it’s chief actuary stated in August that it pension costs are "unsustainable."

So, when someone calls for a "sustainable" CalPERS, you’d think they were calling for reining in the state’s swollen public pension benefit system.

Well, that would all depend on what you mean by "sustainable." Muriel Strand, a candidate for one of two member-at-large spots on the… Read More

Last week Sean Hannity came to California to help shed light on the increasingly dire water situation impacting California’s agricultural industry. Congressmen Devin Nunes just sent out an email informing recipients that Senator Jim DeMint has moved to try and relieve the suffering here in California. Shamefully, our own Senator Diane Feinstein stopped Senator DeMint’s efforts.

Congressman Tom McClintock also just posted avideo where he challenges Interior Secretary Ken Salazar on the government-made drought.

Just yesterday I was talking to my mother about Sean Hannity’s program here in California. She was outraged by what she saw on his program and I think she captured the emotions of every American who saw the show: “I never thought I’d see the day when my fellow Americans would be forced to beg for water from our government. Why are we begging for anything from the government?!” Amen.

The following is the text of the email and a link to a video of Feinstein’s… Read More

Today GOP Gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman has launched a statewide media ad that FR sources have confirmed is an extensive and deep reaching buy throughout California. It is interesting to note that Whitman’s first media spot does not feature her own voice, but that of an announcer — well, except at the very end where you can hear her say, "Paid By Meg Whitman For Governor 2010…"

Below is a transcript of the piece, and then you can click on the video below that to hear the audio (courtesy of the Whitman campaign). This buy represents the first media buy of what promises to be a long, entertaining and expensive primary season… Announcer: California needs new leadership. … Read More

[Cross-posted from RedCounty.com]

Former eBay CEO Meg Whitman officially announced her candidacy today in the courtyard of the El Sol office complex in downtown Fullerton.

For this conservative OC native, it was satisfying to see a Republican candidate for governor launching her campaign from the heartland of California Republicanism: Orange County.

Anaheim Mayor Curt Pringle was an able and funny emcee, as always — shuffling a series of warm-up speakers on-and-off stage in the hot mid-day sun. Finally, former Gov. Pete Wilson came on stage with Whitman to introduce the candidate. Wilson was the last good governor this state had — and if you knew me in my bomb-throwing days back in the early 1990s, you’d know what a striking thing that is for me to say. Wilson talked about how quickly California state finances fell apart — and how easily — after he left office in 1998 before turning the mike over to Whitman.

Whitman delivered a good speech replete with paeans to… Read More

On September 1, I penned a commentary on this page that highlighted that Speaker Bass and Senate President Pro-Tem Darrel Steinberg were listed as "co-hosting" with CAIR [Council on American Islamic Relations] a Ramadan Iftar in the Capitol Rotunda.

Celebrating the end of Ramadan is not, in… Read More

It was announced last week that UC is increasing student fees by 32%.This is from an institution that makes the bogus claim that it does not charge tuition.As private colleges often point out, when the sum of all school fees are compared to tuition at private colleges they are much more equal than advertised. So if I am a UC student and I somehow manage to pay 32% more will I be getting smaller class sizes, more library books, or better computer access?No, around a third of the student fee money, including the increase, will subsidize the fees of poorer students.Here we see the classic effect of distributive schemes: Raise costs on one group so that money can be given to others.The higher costs result in greater numbers who cannot afford to pay. Eventually the enterprise runs out of other peoples’ money.Lost is the simple notion that if the fees were … Read More

It took just shy of 15 hours between the time lurid recordings of now former Assemblyman Mike Duvall were played on network television and his abrupt resignation from office. Now the voters of the 72nd Assembly District will be facing an imminent special election to fill the vacancy in this seat, and as with most special elections, this race promises to be quote a donnybrook.

Let’s first “set the table” by making sure that FlashReport readers around California understand that the 72nd District may be one of the most conservative districts in the state. It’s heavily Republican and despite a decent showing by Barack Obama last year (where didn’t he have a good showing in California?), the voters of this inland, North Orange County seat are overwhelmingly conservative. A great many of the Democrats in this district are “Reagan Democrats” – so look for most of the action in this race to be on the GOP side of the isle. This despite the fact that in a special election like this, all of the candidates appear on the special primary ballot (probably to take place in November), with the top vote getters of each party going on to a special general election… Read More

According to a recent PPIC (Public Policy Institute of California) poll, almost half of Californians are worried that they, or someone in their family, will lose their job in the next year. With the unemployment rate topping 12 percent and given the fact that most of California’s job losses – 760,200 of the 952,800 attributed to the current economic recession – occurred only in the last year, those concerns are unfortunately well founded.

All told, more than two million Californians are unemployed, with thousands more joining their ranks every month. In July, eight industry sectors lost jobs, including 15,900 in the trade, transportation, and utilities fields, 10,700 construction jobs, and 3,300 manufacturing jobs.

The only sector to enjoy job gains over the year was educational and health with 17,900, but 3,300 jobs were lost there in July. Between July 2008 and July 2009 the trade, transportation and utilities sector lost a staggering 196,600 jobs. 144,500 construction jobs, 132,000 professional and business services jobs, 124,400 manufacturing jobs, 62,100 jobs in the leisure and hospitality industries and tens of thousands of other positions… Read More