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

Today I had the pleasure of chatting with Northern California radio jocks Armstrong & Getty. The topic: California’s prison issues – specifically, the early release of 27,000 prisoners.

The conversation went well and we even took calls from listeners. My favorite call was from the wife of an incarcerated 62-year-old man who is serving 22 months for trademark infringement. The caller was not specific about her husband’s crime, but she was livid that he was serving time arguing that he is no threat to society at his age.

Joe Getty pointed out that he was a threat to society a year ago when he was 61 years old and broke the law, so therefore why wouldn’t he be a threat now, or next year?

Here’s another point: He is in prison because he did something bad and deserves to face the consequences. Furthermore, the company, the employees and the investors he violated deserve justice. We have to remember that crimes have consequences. That’s how our justice system works.… 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

Padres? No one cares, at least not today. In fact, just for one day, let’s also put aside the Angels, Dodgers, As and Giants. As well, the Yankees, Sox, Cubs and Rockies while we’re at it.

Who can possibly care about multi-million dollar salaries, questions about drug use, and coddling of giant egos, when real baseball can be watched?

A group of real players, the Park View Chula Vista Little Leaguers, have made it to the Big Show. Winning the U.S. title game 12-2 in Williamsport, PA yesterday, the Blue Bombin’ kidswill play for the Little League Championship of the World today (noon PST) against the veritable Yankees of the sport, Chinese Taipei.

Over the last several days, this group of boys has transitioned from a Chula Vista team to Team USA. San Diegans are enthralled by the title run, many Californians have taken notice and, today, all will stop as our eyes are on them.

Hope for our youth — and the purity of the game we once knew — springs eternal.

There is joy in… Read More

August 31, 2009 edition of the New Yorker – “The Rubber Room – The battle over New York City’s worst teachers” by Steven Brill. Makes a pretty strong argument against teacher’s unions, or at least their current behavior.

Also the May edition of The Atlantic, which I just got to, has by far the simplest graphic of spending by the Federal Reserve during the economic crisis that I’ve seen. It demonstrates quite clearly, btw, that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is peanuts compared to other lending, bailouts, and asset purchases. This ‘map’ on pages 58 and 59, is a must.… Read More

I’m handling a couple of political cases at the moment. One of them is a case with the Fair Political Practices Commission. The other is a case with the Federal Election Commission.

These two regulatory bodies, the FEC and the FPPC, try to impose campaign finance rules in Federal and California state election campaigns, respectively.

I know a little bit about these agencies. My wife worked as a lawyer at the FEC for four years during the Reagan/Bush administrations. And I actually handled my first FPPC case for a client, former Republican State Senator Dan O’Keefe, way back in 1979.

Well, I have learned that the current FPPC is not only diligent, but a lot easier to deal with than the FEC. In my FPPC case, the staff has been tough, accessible, and willing to negotiate a fair solution to the problem. They are going to get a fine paid from my client and we are happy to close the file.

On the other hand, the FEC is really annoying. They are attempting to impose a $6,000 fine on the client, because a name of a vendor was "too long" to be processed by the… Read More

Yesterday Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner announced that he was filing a lawsuit against Governor Schwarzenegger’s Administration over a provision enacted in the July budget deal that would stop an illegal state raid of $1 billion in assets in the State Compensation Insurance Fund. Sound a bit confusing? I reached out to Poizner for some Q&A to walk FR readers through what the Commish is up to…

FlashReport: Can you explain the lawsuit you’re filing against the Schwarzenegger administration? Poizner I am filing a lawsuit today to stop the state’s planned $1 billion of State Compensation Insurance Fund (SCIF) assets. The $1 billion transaction was authorized in the July state budget revision passed by the legislature and signed by the Governor. FR: What is SCIF? … Read More

As 2010 approaches, I’ve be taking some time to handicap next year’s gubernatorial race. I will continue to comment on the Republican race as it develops but want to focus on the General Election next year and why Gavin Newsom’s nomination presents serious issues for Democrats in California.

As mayor of San Francisco, Newsom has consistently fallen into line with his city’s liberal political wing, most notably his support of same-sex marriage. Last year the voters showed they weren’t ready for that idea of Newsom’s.

But those in the know (as I am finding out) are aware of an issue that will be much tougher for Newsom to shake than gay marriage in a general election next year. Newsom has been a vocal supporter of San Francisco’s illegal “Sanctuary City” policy in which city officials are directed to NOT inform Federal immigration authorities when they detain or arrest an undocumented immigrant.

This policy, and Newsom’s steadfast backing of it, had real and deadly… Read More