Today is special election day, and I realized that I reached out to the five members of the Orange County Board of Supervisors to ask them their positions on the ballot propositions, but then didn’t tell you, our readers!

This is pretty simple: Pat Bates, John Campbell Janet Nguyen, John Moorlach and Chris Norby all unanimously oppose all of the Propositions. They will be voting (or have voted) no on 1A-1F!

They join Orange County’s two top law enforcement officials, District Attorney Tony Rackauckas and Sheriff Sandra Hutchens, in opposing the whole slate of ill-conceived measures.… Read More

I guess there are some general guidelines you can follow in the world of Sacramento. One of them is that behind liberals creating messes by increasing the size and scope of the state’s bureaucracy is a conservative cleaning up the mess.

Recently we brought you a column from Republican Assemblyman Jeff Miller, where he went into some detail about how gas station owners are being hit with a draconian regulation to update all of their pumps with some new technology that has a fractional effect on reducing greenhouse gas emissions from stations. The cost for this new equipment is high, and the ability to comply difficult. Read more about that here.

It would appear that Miller’s Republican colleague, Martin Garrick, rolled up his sleeves and has, in the absence of a repeal of this draconian regulation, at least negotiated a "settlement" over this matter. We asked the Assemblyman to share with FR readers what he has pulled together… … Read More

Today’s resounding defeat of the ballot measures is a victory for California taxpayers. As soon as the voting public started to learn that their passage would mean higher income taxes, sales taxes and car taxes – support for the whole package of "insider measures" was doomed.

Voters rejected, soundly, the kind of back room, behind closed doors political scheming that led to this group of measures that hikes taxes, expanded state gambling, diverted funding from one source to another, and undid billions of cuts. We saw an unprecedented alliance of politicians, public employee unions, and big business interests all trying to jam it to average taxpaying families – and they were rejected.

Going forward from here, there is an important message being sent to the Governor and to State Legislators of both parties – solve the problem that you have with the money we’re already giving you. We don’t want, and cannot afford to pay more in taxes and fees.

Hopefully the politicians get it, now that their unholy alliance of interest groups and vastly superior financial advantage has come up short. Maybe now they will… Read More

A liberal Democratic Governor failed the State of California. Then, sold as a savior, a "moderate" Republican Governor failed the State of California as well.

It appears that leaves only one option.

In the meantime, the state’s GOP legislators must fill the leadership void. All of them, unified. No excuses; no turning a blind eye to those who deal on their own or against the best interests of California.

Tonight, Republican legislators, you have a mandate from the citizens of California. Tomorrow, you have an opportunity to show leadership. Success will mean forging ahead with one voice.… Read More

According to the Governor’s calendar, tomorrow at 3:30pm the Governor will hold a meeting of the "Big 5" — himself and the four legislative leaders — to discuss budget options going forward.

That’s probably a good idea (although one of the items on their agenda should be discontinuing the back-room, exclusive format of the Big 5 to actually negotiate major policy items — that has proven to be a dismal failure — and expensive for taxpayers).

But it raises an interesting question. At the meeting will be the Governor, Senate President Darrell Steinberg, Senate Republican Leader Dennis Hollingsworth, Assembly Speaker Karen Bass and…?????

Who will represent the 29 member Assembly Republican Caucus in that Big 5 meeting?

From where we sit, this is a no-brainer — it definitely should and must be Assembly Republican Leader-Elect Sam Blakeslee. He clearly has been designated as the go-to person to deal with the aftermath of the terrible… Read More

Longtime FR friend and Reason Foundation Vice President Adrian Moore sent this over… Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is warning that the state’s budget deficit will reach $21.3 billion and the state will face a “cash crisis” if voters don’t approve the budget measures on next week’s ballot. So the massive $42 billion deficit hasn’t been a crisis all along?

The governor’s promotion of these ballot measures is just the latest example of his failure to live up to his promises. Wasn’t he going to blow up the boxes of government? And cut up the state’s credit cards?

The ballot measures are simply tax increases and accounting… Read More

This morning I had the opportunity debate State Senator Abel Maldonado on Proposition 1F on KSRO radio in the Bay Area. Play the audio clip (7 minutes) below. Who won? I think I did — but want don’t you decide?

Last week, Jon Coupal of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association took on Jeannine English of the AARP on KSRO over Proposition 1A. Check that out on KSRO’s website here. … Read More

A longtime FR reader brought to our attention that according to Politico.com, "sources say that" Governor Schwarzenegger is going to travel to Washington, D.C., tomorrow to be on hand as President Obama sticks it to American families during a recession by mandating new, expensive fuel standards on auto-makers. In fact, to the extent that the taxpayers are "invested" via bailout in U.S. automakers, we are getting smacked by these regulations twice!

I don’t know who will be more ashamed tomorrow, U.S. automaker executives who rightfully have been fighting these regulations but now have to attend this White House event as their companies are on the public tit, or Arnold Schwarzenegger who, as our reader put it, appears to be, "slithering out of town with his tail between his legs," as voters seem on a certain path to reject his ill-advised package of special election ballot measures (which include a massive tax increase).

I wonder if the Governor will have time to vote on his way to his private jet? I haven’t known him to vote by absentee ballot,… Read More