I have made a major part of my Congressional career so far to be one of the leaders [along with Jeff Flake (R-AZ)] in the fight against the wasteful and abusive pork spending known as earmarks. I would love to tell you that we have been successful in getting earmarks eliminated or substantially reformed. But no. Gosh, I wish I could tell you that at least they are all being disclosed or not dropped into bills in the dark of night with no hearing. But that hasn’t happened either. There has been a bipartisan addiction to these things which continues to this day.

But what we have been successful in doing is raising the issue with the press and the public. Just a couple of years ago, the public didn’t even know what was going on with earmarks and the press didn’t cover them. But that has all changed. The press now is all over the issue and polls show that the public overwhelmingly wants the practice to stop. Even in Alaska, in which the famed "bridge to nowhere" was to be built and where the earmarks per capita are by far the highest in the country, a majority of the voting public would now give up the pork to see all earmarks go away. Senator… Read More

Is there something special about the figure $9 billion, other than it is a huge amount of money?

Well, it has been a popular figure this week — and a potentially expensive one for Californians. Earlier in the week, the liberal Democrats who dominate the California legislature held a press conference and announced that in order for California to be a state worth living in (or words to that effect), we all need to embrace $9 billion in new taxes. Seriously. I was proud that the immediate and strong response from legislative Republicans was that this proposal was dead on arrival (fortunately for taxpayers, the State Constitution requires a two-thirds vote of each legislative chamber to raise taxes — how prescient). Actually, I mused to one legislator friend that Republicans should match the call by Democrats for billions in new taxes with a call for an equal amount in tax cuts. Somebody somewhere is going to start saying "let’s compromise" and I say the GOP position should be such that the "middle" represents no additional taxation on Californians. I thought to myself that one… Read More

Today we are pleased to offer this exclusive Guest Commentary from Republican Assemblyman Roger Niello. Assemblyman Niello is the Vice Chairman of the Assembly’s Budget Committee, and is the lead Republican in the Assembly on Budget issues…

Democrat Budget Increases Taxes and Spending! By Assemblyman Roger Niello

Democrats showed their true colors this week by passing a budget out of the conference committee that contains nearly $10 billion in tax increases and increases state spending by billions of dollars over last year.

**There is more – click the link**… Read More

Today we are pleased to offer this exclusive Guest Commentary from Republican Assemblyman Roger Niello. Assemblyman Niello is the Vice Chairman of the Assembly’s Budget Committee, and is the lead Republican in the Assembly on Budget issues… Democrat Budget Increases Taxes and Spending! By Assemblyman Roger Niello Democrats showed their true colors this week by passing a budget out of the conference committee that contains nearly $10 billion in tax increases and increases state spending by billions of dollars… Read More

FlashReport readers who haven’t joined the "social netoworking generation" should sign up at Facebook. When you do, join the FlashReport/California Politics group! And, as a bonus, I am willing to be your "friend" — so reach out.

Jon… Read More

I’ve dropped in on the Freedom Fest conference at Bally’s in Las Vegas. Looks to be about 500 members of the VRWC (vast right wing conspiracy), gathered in a large, dark room. Steve Forbes is on a panel of other libertarians (this is primarily a free minds, free market crowd). You can tell because some other guy on the panel is railing aOf course, the first thought that crossed my mind is that I would prefer a banana daqueri poolside… But since I am here, at what is billed as “The World’s Largest Gathering of Free Minds…”

It’s a positive sign that besides Forbes, I haven’t run into anyone I know. Perhaps that means there are more of us than I thought…

Actually, I came over to catch up with my friend Steve Moore, editorial writer and editorial board member of the Wall Street Journal. There he is…. That’s it for now…… Read More

At least one California liberalseems pretty sensitive to my use of Barrack Hussein Obama’s full given name in my posts. Dan Chmielewski, the guru of The Liberal OC Blog, recently said, "someone needs to tell Jim Lacy that “Hussein” means “handsome one” or “beautful one”; I’m only suprised that he didn’t call Senator Obama “Barrack Hussein Osama.”

Excuse me, but a birth certificate is a legal document, this is still a free country governed by a Constitution that ensures my right to Free Speech, I am a lawyer, and if the guy’s name is Barrack Hussein Obama, then I can say it, without incident, no matter what implication the liberals fear is drawn from it, "handsome" or otherwise.

But I do think it is a little fun to speculate about how the press corps will be handling Obama’s name should he be elected President. For example, there is afairly long history of the pressusing initials to refer to a president, the first, middle, and last initial, in communications, especially headlines. For example, Franklin Delano Roosevelt was "FDR," John F. Kennedy was… Read More

This week I’m staffing Capitol Resource Institute’s City on the Hill Youth Leadership Conference here in Sacramento. For 21 years now, City on the Hill has been teaching teenagers 14-18 about Sacramento’s legislative and political process by the best means possible: first-hand experience. During the week-long conference, these young conservative leaders become mock legislators, debating bills actually making their way through the legislature this year. They are divided into two parties and then must run for leadership. A Speaker of the Assembly is elected and then doles out committee chairmanships. If a student is able to get their bill through the committee process, they get to debate it on the floor of the legislature on Saturday. I’m a huge fan of this incredible program, not just because I staff it every year, but because I attended twice as a student. No other program taught me the legislative process (and the tough political environment it creates) like City on the Hill. In fact, Assemblywoman Audra Strickland is a graduate and former staffer. Today the students were at the state capitol where… Read More