The Politico is reporting that Antonio Villaraigosa will announce on CNN this afternoon whether or not he’s going to run for governor next year. Since politicians announcing that they are running for office tend to do news conferences and rallies with balloons and banners (oh, and supporters), the cable television option suggests that Antonio sees the poll numbers on the wall and is going to sit this one out.

That’s good news for Jerry Brown, as Villaraigosa’s base of labor and Latinos is more likely to head toward Brown than Gavin Newsom. But it opens the door even further for another Democratic candidate (Loretta Sanchez is probably already on the phone to her pollster.

And if Brown is the nominee, here’s hoping that Whitman/Poizner/Campbell realizes that running against Governor Moonbeam, Rose Bird, and the 1970’s is a dated playbook that could use some refreshing. Hint: anyone been to Oakland recently?… Read More

The New America Foundation sponsored a program and a lunch (thanks for food) regarding the topic "California v 2.0: The Roads to Fundamental Reform." Everybody there knew this was a promo for the idea of a constitutional convention. Panelists from the Bay Area Council, California Forward and the New America Foundation all are in favor of a convention. Other than some general assumptions about gridlock, partisanship, governance failure, and political malaise, they did not present any specifics on what the problems are, nor any proof that the Constitution has to be rewritten in order to solve these non-specific problems. In fact, one of the panelists, Dr. Thad Kousser of UCSD, spoiled the party by offering proof that California government was neither in gridlock nor overly partisan, but merely reflecting the expectations of the voters. He did offer that the years of the worst gridlock occur when the state has a governor of one party and a legislative majority held by the other party. Of course, the only way to eliminate that possibility is to switch to a parliamentary system of government that combines the legislative and executive branches, but… Read More

Apparently while on the stump in Fresno late last week, talking about the state’s fiscal crisis, a frustrated Fresnan lambasted the Governor for the lack of water — and calling for dams and canals to be built.

This unnamed man in the Sacramento Bee story linked above is justified in venting his frustration about the problems of water delivery in the Central Valley — that having been said, his aim is a bit off. If I am a Californian who is frustrated about the water-availability challenges facing the Golden-But-Thirsty state, I would look at these three primary causes, all of which place the blame for our current man-made crisis at the feet of Sacramento Democrats:

1) Federal laws prioritize critters and plant-life over people. The federal government primarily has passed too many laws that deprioritize the needs of people — and rather places a higher priority in the protection of critters and plants. We all understand the need for some balance to ensure that resources are available for this and future generations, but many of these laws… Read More

FlashReport’s official Twitter Feed is here, or you can sign up on Twitter by looking for "FlashReport" — follow us today! (If you are one of the hundreds to have signed up to follow "JonFlash" – my personal Twitter feed — even though I don’t Tweet there, you’ll want to change that.)… Read More

Apparently while on the stump in Fresno late last week=, talking about the state’s fiscal crisis, a frustrated Fresnan lambasted the Governor for the lack of water — and calling for dams and canals to be built.

This unnamed man in the Sacramento Bee story linked above is justified in venting his frustration about the problems of water delivery in the Central Valley — that having been said, his aim is a bit off. If I am a Californian who is frustrated about the water-availability challenges facing the Golden-But-Thirsty state, I would look at these three primary causes, all of which place the blame for our current man-made crisis at the feet of Sacramento Democrats:

1) Federal laws prioritize critters and plant-life over people. The federal government primarily has passed too many laws that deprioritize the needs of people — and rather places a higher priority in the protection of critters and plants. We all understand the need for some balance to ensure that resources are available for this and future generations, but many of these… Read More

It’s late on a Friday afternoon, and I just got a press release in from the Poizner for Governor campaign, announcing some new hires. I’ll pull the relevant paragraphs from their release and put them below. Have a great weekend! Deputy Campaign Manager – Audrey Perry Audrey Perry has joined the campaign as Deputy Campaign Manager. Audrey most recently worked as Campaign Finance Counsel for McCain-Palin 2008 and as Deputy General Counsel for the Romney for President campaign. She previously served as legal counsel to the Committee on House Administration of the U.S. House of Representatives, where she advised on campaign finance, lobby disclosure, and election administration issues. She has also worked at the Federal Election Commission, where she was a law clerk to Commissioner Michael E. Toner, and at the Campaign Legal… Read More

MEMO TO LIBERAL IDEOLOGUES: PUBLIC EMPLOYEE UNIONS ARE NOT YOUR FRIENDS True liberal ideologues in the state legislature, you are agonizing over the needed cuts in state government programs because you believe in a healthy "social contract" between the people and their government. You believe to your core that in America, everyone is entitled to a standard of living that, for some, must be provided in total or in part by the government. You believe that it is right and good for those who have benefited financially from America’s free market system to "bring up" those in this country who really never have or will have the ability to pull themselves up. Victims of society, as you refer to them, need protection and assistance from those who can afford to provide it. I don’t agree with this philosophy, but I "get it" and understand that it is a valid, if flawed, point of view.

If you are one of these ideologues, then you really need to step back and look at the out of control state public employee unions. If… Read More

MEMO TO LIBERAL IDEOLOGUES: PUBLIC EMPLOYEE UNIONS ARE NOT YOUR FRIENDS True liberal ideologues in the state legislature, you are agonizing over the needed cuts in state government programs because you believe in a healthy "social contract" between the people and their government. You believe to your core that in America, everyone is entitled to a standard of living that, for some, must be provided in total or in part by the government. You believe that it is right and good for those who have benefited financially from America’s free market system to "bring up" those in this country who really never have or will have the ability to pull themselves up. Victims of society, as you refer to them, need protection and assistance from those who can afford to provide it. I don’t agree with this philosophy, but I "get it" and understand that it is a valid, if flawed, point of view.

If you are one of these ideologues, then you really need to step back and look at the out of control state public employee unions. If… Read More