As FR readers know, we try not to "push out" too many Press Releases verbatim. But this is a good opportunity to praise the State GOP for the great releases that they have been putting out lately! Hector Barajas, the new Communications Director at the CRP, has been doing a create job…

Check out this example:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: HECTOR M. BARAJAS April 17, 2007 www.cagop.org

Democrats Continue To Undermine Working Poor and Middle Class Californians "In a move this past week that could only be described as shortsighted, Assemblyman Josè Solorio, Chairman of the Assembly Public Safety Committee, stated that the committee had rejected Assemblymember John Benoit’s bill, AB 39, ‘because in the past this type of proposal was unsuccessful in having the… Read More

Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez needs to decide whether or not he’s a Catholic, because he cannot sponsor and support legislation to legalize assisted suicide and be a Catholic at the same time.

That may sound harsh to secular ears, but it is true nonetheless.

Nunez isn’t unique. American politics is replete with politicians — usually, but not always. liberal Democrats — who like to call themselves Catholics while they publicly and unashamedely flout core Church teachings.

The Assembly Speaker is in the news because Cardinal Roger Mahoney called him out for sponsoring AB 374 to legalize assisted suicide.

I’ve never been a fan of Cardinal Mahoney, and his condemnation of Nunez rings a bit hollow considering his tolerance for heterodoxy within the Los Angeles Archdiocese and how he has chummed it up with pro-choice, pro-gay "marriage" "Catholic" politicians for years — not to mention allowing the molestation scandal to fester in his last… Read More

I was thinking about it, and the idea that realtor groups are asking the state government to bring in more regulation into the private transactions between a buyer and seller of a home could come back to haunt them.

Next year, maybe some Democrat will introduce legislation to lower home costs by requiring that realtor commissions be cut in half.

When the realtors look around for help, everyone will remember that this year, they think government mandates on home sales are okay.

Tsk. Tsk.… Read More

Republican Senator Roy Ashburn has been a ‘point person’ of sorts for Senate Republicans on redistricting reform, but a controversial proposal that he introduced yesterday, Senate Constitutional Amendment 9, on term-limits, redistricting reform, and bans on fundraising is not legislation that is supported by the Senate Republican Caucus — nor Assembly Republicans for that matter. Specifically, Ashburn’s bill seems to be seeking a ‘middle ground’ to try to achieve sort of compromise. But Ashburn gives away too much to try to move something forward… ALL THREE aspects of Senator Ashburn’s proposed constitutional amendment are flawed… First and foremost, and probably most egregious, is that Ashburn’s proposal includes virtually the same end-run on voter-approved term limits that Speaker Fabian Nunez has been championing himself. According to what I read, this proposal by the Bakersfield Senator would allow for "termed out" legislators to serve at least one more term in the… Read More

Republican Senator Roy Ashburn has been a ‘point person’ of sorts for Senate Republicans on redistricting reform, but a controversial proposal that he introduced yesterday, Senate Constitutional Amendment 9, on term-limits, redistricting reform, and bans on fundraising is not legislation that is supported by the Senate Republican Caucus — nor Assembly Republicans for that matter. Specifically, Ashburn’s bill seems to be seeking a ‘middle ground’ to try to achieve sort of compromise. But Ashburn gives away too much to try to move something forward… ALL THREE aspects of Senator Ashburn’s proposed constitutional amendment are flawed… First and foremost, and probably most egregious, is that Ashburn’s proposal includes virtually the same end-run on voter-approved term limits that Speaker Fabian Nunez has been championing himself. According to what I read, this proposal by the Bakersfield Senator would allow for "termed out" legislators to serve at least one more term in the… Read More

Anemic Numbers on FEC Finance Reports highlight freshman’s weakness in the 11th CD’s population base.

In the latest filings with the FEC, congressman Jerry McNerney raised a total of $347,192.52 and reported a cash on hand total of $296,893.16. The amazing part about this is the total raised from San Joaquin County. Less than $4000 in itemized contributions were received from San Joaquin County. Stockton, by far, is the largest community in the 11th district and turned in $3550 to the McNerney fundraising effort. With another $850 from the rural portion of San Joaquin, that brings his total haul for San Joaquin County to $4400. Other San Joaquin communities did not even appear on the report including Tracy, Manteca, Lodi and Ripon.

Meanwhile, Stockton was eclipsed by such notable 11th district communities as Kew Gardens, NY ($4600), Tucson, AZ ($4600), Belvedere, CA ($4000), as well as the typical McNerney influx from Berkeley, Palo Alto, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Meanwhile, Nancy Pelosi came in $1450 ahead of Stockton with $5000 from her PAC to the Future (Haven’t seen any Syrian donations… Read More

USA Today has a good report out today on salaries for the nation’s top companies — big bucks. I’m not alarmed by any of the compensation packages. If a CEO is going to deliver big returns for investors, pay them whatever they need to keep them on the job. If they aren’t delivering returns, they’ll be losing their jobs soon.

I wonder if this USA Today site gets as many hits from CEOs as Capitol Weekly gets from staffers when it releases its next legislative salary report in May.

Perhaps USA Today will retool next year, allowing us to know which CEO is the most searched — that would make it much more entertaining.… Read More

There are a lot of issues that come up in the State Capitol, and, where the significant legislation is concerned, you can usually see a breakdown occurring on partisan lines. This is because there are distinct differences between the philosophies of the parties, and when bills seek in increase the size and scope of the government, Democrats support them and Republicans oppose them. Similarly, when legislation shrinks government, it is often hard to get a Democrat to support it. There are some pieces of legislation, though that will divide Democrats or Republicans, and clearly Senate Bill 670 authored by State Senator Lou Correa (D-Santa Ana), and advocated by state realtors, is one of those bills. Senator Correa’s bill seek to ban a type of ‘transfer cost’ that is starting to become more prevalent in home sales. The very short version of what happens is this — a home builder places this transfer cost (or fee) on the original deed, requiring that some small percentage of the purchase price (typically one percent or less) be paid to the builder at the time of sale, and perhaps what is most unusual, and disturbing to most, is that… Read More