I receivedinfo from Secretary of State McPherson‘s office that the final report of the United States Election Assistance Commission (EAC) on disgraced former Secretary of State Kevin Shelley‘s abuse of power and misuse of funds has been delivered.The report marks the end of two years of state and federal audits to uncover the extent ofShelley’s transgressions. (The audits began with an investigation by the California Bureau of State Audits (BSA), which was conducted at the direction of the Joint Legislative Audit Committee (JLAC). Based on the results of the BSA audit, the U.S. Election Assistance Commission began its own federal audit in the summer of 2005.)

The EAC has ruled that California must repay $2,917,583 from the state’s General Fund to replace the funds that were misspent by… Read More

Over the weekend a late independent expenditure (IE) report (attached below) was released showing the Peace Officers Reseach Association of California (PORAC) union and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU, aka "The Purple Shirts") dropped $50,000 to conduct a poll on Democrat Controller candidate John Chiang’s behalf. Chiang is in a tight race against Republican tax fighter and former Assemblyman Tony Strickland. There’s no doubt the unions are poking around all the down ballot races, especially the closely contested races, to see where their millions might best be spent. Every election cycle in California is the same: the unions kick in big in the final weeks to install their sock puppet candidates and causes.

PORAC and SEIU’s contributions are a drop in the bucket of what they’re capable of delivering. At the end of September, PORAC’s candidate political action committee reported over half a… Read More

Over the weekend a late independent expenditure (IE) report (attached below) was released showing the Peace Officers Reseach Association of California (PORAC) union and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU, aka "The Purple Shirts") dropped $50,000 to conduct a poll on Democrat Controller candidate John Chiang’s behalf. Chiang is in a tight race against Republican tax fighter and former Assemblyman Tony Strickland. There’s no doubt the unions are poking around all the down ballot races, especially the closely contested races, to see where their millions might best be spent. Every election cycle in California is the same: the unions kick in big in the final weeks to install their sock puppet candidates and causes.

PORAC and SEIU’s contributions are a drop in the bucket of what they’re capable of delivering. At the end of September, PORAC’s candidate political action committee reported over half a… Read More

Sometimes you just can’t make this stuff up. Did I miss this in the FlashReport before, or did we all miss it?

I’ll let Riverside FR Correspondent Barry Nestande weigh in with an analysis of the impact, if any, on the AD 80 race, but we can’t ignore it in the meantime.The Desert Sun runs a piece today alleging that Assemblywoman Bonnie Garcia told a class of high schoolers that she wouldn’t kick the Governor out of bed.

Hey, I’m the first to hold off on something before I hear the other side, but it looks as if Bonnie isn’t denying the quote, just accusing those making hay out of it as trying to smear her (see follow-up article).

OK, I know that if she really said it she was only joking…with a group of underagers, but perhaps Arnold’s previous hot-blooded comments about her were on… Read More

Whatever your thoughts on "academic rankings" are, a big story on the main page today that seems apolitical is the Media News story about USC‘s rapid catch-up to UCLA in the U.S. News & World Report academic rankings. Ten years ago, USC was ranked 43 in the nation, UCLA was ranked 31. Four years ago, USC was 34, UCLA 26. Last year, USC 30, UCLA 25. Last month’s release of the USN&WR rankings has USC ranked 27, UCLA 26. While UCLA has changed little in it’s national standings (even falling back one place from last year to this year), USC has dynamically pursued an ascension in its national standings. It’s painful for me, an anti-Trojan fan, to admit.

I say this story "seems apolitical" because we’re all familiar with the often sophomoric banter back and forth between the crosstown rivals. There’s nothing political about that. It gets political when… Read More

Whatever your thoughts on "academic rankings" are, a big story on the main page today that seems apolitical is the Media News story about USC‘s rapid catch-up to UCLA in the U.S. News & World Report academic rankings. Ten years ago, USC was ranked 43 in the nation, UCLA was ranked 31. Four years ago, USC was 34, UCLA 26. Last year, USC 30, UCLA 25. Last month’s release of the USN&WR rankings has USC ranked 27, UCLA 26. While UCLA has changed little in it’s national standings (even falling back one place from last year to this year), USC has dynamically pursued an ascension in its national standings. It’s painful for me, an anti-Trojan fan, to admit.

I say this story "seems apolitical" because we’re all familiar with the often sophomoric banter back and forth between the crosstown rivals. There’s nothing political about that. It gets political when… Read More

First the California Republican Party hires Marty Wilson to do the State Party’s mail. Wilson denies Yes on Prop. 90 a space on the mail unless they pay big money, while at the same time is on the payroll of the No on 90 people (See here).

Now there is another outrage from the California Republican Party. At the last CRP convention, the CRP Initiatives Committee (I serve as the committee’s chairman) refused to endorse Proposition 1D. We, instead, took a neutral position. Prop. 1D is this November’s scheme to fork over billions more in bonds for schools. The entire California Republican Party State Central Committee then confirmed the Initiative Committee’s recommendation.

So what does the CRP do?

They send a mailer to Republican Permanent Absentee Votersendorsing Prop. 1D! That’s right. It doesn’t matter how the party’s delegates voted, the CRP consultants, along with the apparent acceptance of most of the CRP’s Board Members… Read More

This Sign Does Not Point to the Red Light District… One of the most intriguing, if not somewhat comical San Diego political stories in recent memory is the saga of the sign posted against Maggie Houlihan. Houlihan, a councilmember in Encinitas, is not even facing re-election this year, yet is dealing with an angry constituent who posted a very large sign on his property along the freeway claiming the lady is a…well…a whore.

Ouch.

The Union-Trib’s Logan Jenkins penned a great piece on the travails of Maggie and her sign nightmare in yesterday’s paper, even referencing P.J. O’Rourke’s 2003 “Parliament of Whores” as a primer on politics.Read Jenkins’ "Another Sign of Incivility in Encinitas" here.

It should be noted that I have met Maggie Houlihan.She is a nice lady, any philosophical leanings aside. There is nothing to suggest any ill-repute on… Read More