Today I am pleased to feature in this space an introduction to the new Assembly Republican Caucus website on healthcare. Actually, rather than me telling you all about it, we have a short column from Assembly Republican Leader Mike Villines, inviting you to check it out (there is a great new video up on it)… I will say that it is a worthwhile site to check out because on it, Republicans outline over a dozen common-sense proposals to help increase access to and the affordability of healthcare in California…

[Don’t miss the video below…] Republican Health Care Website Shows Real Impact on Taxpayers and Economy

By Assembly Republican Leader Mike Villines… Read More

The Wal-Mart ban fails…see my prior post below:

Frye shifts vote, backs Walmart Supercenter by Matthew T. Hall UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER 3:14 p.m. July 10, 2007

Wal-Mart Supercenters may be in store for San Diego, after all.

The San Diego City Council essentially balked at its own ban of large retail developments with full-service groceries Tuesday afternoon after Councilwoman Donna Frye surprisingly announced she would switch her vote.

Link to the entire UT Story.… Read More

What is it with those in power, that have them totally unwilling to pass the baton so that others may have their opportunity to participate in the process? We’ve already written a lot (and I am sure will we see much more on this website) about the sham term limits "reform" measure being promoted by ‘termed out’ politicians Don Perata and Fabian Nunez (funny how this "reform" has the effect of allowing dozens of legislators currently forced to retire next your to instead serve in office for years longer).

Well, I just read over at Capitol Weekly (h/t to John Howard) that now the same Demcrats that are trying to short circuit meaningful term limits for State Capitol politicians are trying to nuke term limits for the Chairmanships of three important California regulatory agencies — the South Coast Air Quality Management District, the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District and the Mojave District Air Quality Management District.

Term limits are a good thing, and especially in the case of those obscure agencies where board members… Read More

The race for the 36th Assembly Race is getting active. Because of the Runners dominance in races for this seat, many believe that this is an Antelope Valley Seat. Not true as it reached over to take in Victorville and other parts of San Bernardino County. Palmdale City Councilman Steve Knight as announce that he has a majority of the Victorville City Council on board. His campaign announced that Victorville Mayor Terry Caldwell, and Council Members Bob Hunter and Mike Rothschild endorsed the campaign. Smart move reaching over to the SB County folks. See press release below. Right now the only announced candidate running against Knight is Steve Fox. But everybody expects Palmdale Mayor Jim Ledford to get into this race. He has some problem of his own. Controversy continues to swirl around his connections to the IBEW and their contributions to his failed assembly bid and his attepts to pay them off in Palmdale. You can read … Read More

OK, brace yourselves: Big Government Democrats don’t want substantive eminent domain reform! GASP! I know, this is probably flooring many reasoned citizens, but it’s true. Today in the Assembly Judiciary committee, Ultra-Liberal Chairman Dave Jones lead the charge to ensure that ACA 2 would not be given a full hearing before the entire Assembly. ACA 2 is a reasoned measure by Assemblywoman Mimi Walters designed to ensure that private property will not be confiscated by the government and handed over to other private parties. Chairman Jones decided that by attacking the military base exemption in ACA 2 he would be able to muster the intellectual honesty to vote down Ms. Walters’ bill. Here is why that assumption was misguided at best and a shameful ruse at worst.

Mr. Jones believes that blight is a sufficient reason to engage in the redistribution of private property from one private owner to another. The reasoning is founded in the belief that a blighted community has a detrimental impact on the entire community because of diminished property values, the potential harm, both physical and otherwise, crime has on residents of the community, and… Read More

asdfaf … Read More

If my sources are correct (and they usually are), the problem in this year’s budget is that the Governor is insisting on more spending than the Legislative Republicans want. Fabian Nunez has told Mike Villines that the Assembly Dems want a deal, so that the budget doesn’t foul up the terms limits initiative. He has asked Villines to prevail upon the Republican Governor to reduce his demands for more spending. Villines has declined the invitation, saying that the Dems have to convince the Governor (or perhaps his Democrat wife) that more spending is not in the state’s interest.

None of this is necessary. If the Legislative Democrats truly wish to pass a budget with less spending, they can do it without the Governor’s agreement. The only reason the big five has ever been necessary is to preserve Democrat spending in the budget from the Governor’s line item veto. If there is less spending in the budget, no Governor agreement is necessary. Sure., he could veto the budget, but then he would have to demand a budget with more spending. This Governor won’t do that. He won’t do it because he would then be solely responsible for… Read More

The Los Angeles Times reported on the 7th that Orange County prosecutors plan to file a civil case against former Capistrano Unified School District Superintendent James Fleming, and other officials alleging that trustees, including Crystal Kochendorfer and Marlene Draper, illegally conducted public business in secret, including approving millions of dollars in construction cost overruns for the new district headquarters. The report was based on recently unsealed grand jury transcripts.

I suspect the grand jury may not yet have completed all its work on this sad tale of political corruption at CUSD, and more witnesses may be called before a case is actually filed. Having served as counsel to the prior CUSD recall campaign, I can tell you there really is a lot of evidence of misdoing to collect. The Times reported the OC District Attorney’s "looming complaint " will allege that district officials, among other matters, violated the state open-meeting law, Brown Act.

I successfully brought a private-attorney general Brown Act case against the CUSD last year on similar charges for my client Ron… Read More