Jaycee Dugard’s tormentor, Phil Garrido, is a perfect example of the type of monster Jessica’s Law is supposed to keep off the streets for as long as possible.

If Jessica’s Law had been in place in Nevada all those years ago, Garrido would have served his full sentence and, after serving his prison sentence, might have spent time in a mental health care facility when you factor in these California Jessica’s Law provisions:

* California’s Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation can now evaluate incarcerated sex offenders who fit the profile of a sexually violent predator after only one felony sex offense has been committed. Prior to Jessica’s Law, the agency had to wait for a sex offender to claim a second victim. What this means is the SVP could be committed to a state mental hospital for further evaluation and treatment – after serving prison time.

* District attorneys now have the ability to file new petitions every two years to demonstrate that the offender still poses a danger to society.

* Sexually violent predators are now required to serve their full parole in the event they are released from a mental facility.… Read More

Most politicos don’t usually socialize with terror apologists. Generally, theyare cautious to a fault. Which is whya politicalevent today in Sacramento raisesserious questions of what were they thinking. The extremist group CAIR (Committee for American-Islamic Relations)recently issued a press releaseannouncing its6th Annual Ramadan Iftar inside the Capitol Rotunda (see the release with a full list of legislative co-hosts attached to the bottom of this post).… Read More

I am not quite sure how to react to the information, given to me by Aaron McLear (the Governor's Press Secretary) that his boss flat out opposes taxing grocery bags — but that he would support a complete ban on plastic shopping bags.

I guess I am half-pleased and half-not. That the Governor is maintaining his anti-tax stance is awesome.

But… Banning plastic bags? That seems to me to be a big over-reach by state government. There is no doubt that limiting the selection of available options to stores for choice of bag options will end up being costly for consumers.… Read More

Most politicos don’t usually socialize with terror apologists. Generally, theyare cautious to a fault. Which is whya politicalevent today in Sacramento raisesserious questions of what were they thinking. The extremist group CAIR (Committee for American-Islamic Relations)recently issued a press releaseannouncing its6th Annual Ramadan Iftar inside the Capitol Rotunda (see the release with a full list of legislative co-hosts attached to the bottom of this post).… Read More

Yesterday a furor erupted over a pretty extensive blog post by former MSM reporter turned blogger Greg Lucas, on his California’s Capitol site entitled, Schwarzenegger Administration Floats 25-cent Fee on Single-Use Plastic and Paper Bags. Lucas is viewed as being a pretty credible writer on the goings-on of California politics.

Well, if there was a trial balloon being floated, consider it popped. We just got off of the phone with the Gov’s peeps — who confirm that the Governor has not, does not, and will not sign into law a tax on plastic grocery bags.… Read More

On Friday I joined thousands of Californians in a Tea Party protest on the west steps of the state capitol.

We came together to protest high taxation imposed by Liberal Democrats, and government’s burdensome regulations on water and energy. The bottom line is California taxpayers and business owners are sick to death of government intrusion. It’s ruining their livelihoods and quality of life, and they’re not going to take it anymore.

I spoke at the event, along with Republican Congressmen Tom McClintock, Northern California radio jocks Jack Armstrong and Joe Getty; Jon Coupal, president of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers’ Association and Peter Foy, Ventura County Supervisor and the California chairman of Americans for Prosperity. Sacramento radio host Eric Hogue served as emcee.

Of the thousands of protesters, many were farmers and small business owners who have been particularly hit hard by the devastation of Central Valley farmlands in environmentalists’ effort to protect a 2-inch long minnow. The rally also attracted many… Read More

The Tea Party held in Sacramento last Friday served as an inspiration and a warning. I personally am very gratified that many Californians are speaking out for protecting their incomes from runaway Government spending and appetite for more taxation, as well as the emphasis on the usage of our state’s resources for people’s needs. Speaking as a farmer as well as a previous legislator, it is so helpful to have regular Californians stop what they are doing to come to where decisions are made and be seen and heard about these key issues.

Water usage, rights and water allocation is critical to so many jobs and the rural economy as we witness the devastationof an entire economy and 50% unemploymentin San Joaquin Valley counties. These Tea Party Patriots get that, that it means our state suffers with the jobs loss, the economic loss and the pressure to then raise taxes in a misguided attempt to replace that revenuewith higher taxation.

As we watch California burn once again [thank goodness so far it isn’t like last year when the statewide fire season started in June and went all summer, with brown, smoky skies for weeks even in… Read More

While Congressional Republicans are busy stopping ObamaCare and the dramatic expansion of government into our health care system, I am surprised to see so many Senate Republicans going along with just the opposite right now. Speaker Bass and the Administration are pushing hard to restore funding for Healthy Families that was vetoed by the Governor last month through the standard big government approach: they’ve decided to raise taxes to do it. AB 1422 would extend a 2.35% Gross Premiums Tax to Medi-Cal Managed Care Health Plans, raising $157 million. This tax increase is supported by health care plans because the state will use the new revenue to draw down a 2 dollars for 1 dollar match from the federal government. This “free money” will then be used to pay the Plans back for the tax and the leftover goes to Healthy Families. A classic political shell game. What do taxpayers get out of this? Under the bill, premiums and copays will be increased which means it will be more expensive for children enrolled in the program. How is that program working? Using the state’s own numbers, on average one in three children do not receive the timely… Read More