Today we remember those who have fallen in defense of our nation and for the cause of liberty and freedom.

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Where I live in Riverside County is between the two contested Assembly Races so I don’t get much in the way of political mail. However I did get two interesting pieces Saturday. First, I received my ballot, be it a little late for Vote-By-Mail ballots to arrive but at least I did finally receive mine. I guess ranting on the FlashReport about how behind the Riverside County ROV is works. Second I received at 16 page manifesto from 45th Congressional Republican write in campaign candidate John Baker. After reading all 16 pages of this compendium of all conspiracy theories from the internet and how George Bush and Rep. Mary Bono are behind most of them, I have concluded that John Baker is a NUT!! However, he must be a NUT of some financial means, because it appears he sent this campaign mailer deep into the voter file. My suggestion for candidate Baker, next time spend a little money to get your name printed on the ballot, then you could actually see how many votes you lose by.… Read More

Today we remember those who have fallen in defense of our nation and for the cause of liberty and freedom.

Care to read comments, or make your own about today’s Daily Commentary?

Just click here to go to the FR Weblog, where this Commentary has its own blog post, and where you can read and make comments.… Read More

Cash on hand. It’s king right now. And in partisan races, the 3rd house is looking to see who still has the dinero to play in the final few days of the campaign. So I would argue the market drives ‘flubbing’ real COH totals.

Here is a fun game. Find a slate mailer disclosure. Find a candidate who shows a payment. Go back to the candidate’s website and see if the payment is there, or if it is accrued. Hint: in the name of showing more cash on hand there are quite a few that just ‘slipped through the cracks."

Game number 2. Find a candidate. Go back in past records and see how much their political consultant is getting paid every month. Then see if that consultant shows up in the most recent candidate disclosure for April and May. How odd… are consultants suddenly working for free, or did some more bills ‘slip through the cracks."

Bonus game. This requires you be local. Collect each mailing a given candidate mails out before the disclosure due date and pin them to the wall. Look up postage and/or mail house and/or consulting firm payments and see if they match.

Hey, I’ll be the first to admit… Read More

To Build or not to build? That is the question. This June primaryalso features elections in Torrance. Development seems to be the issue as voters decide if a couple of hundred condos mean the end of the world as we know it. See a profile on all nine candidates for city council here.Personally I hope Rod Guyton, a former CRA VP is elected, but you have to love the guy who wants to build an auto tack in Torrance and annex neighboring Lomita.… Read More

As we close in on the final days of the Democratic primary for Governor, it is becoming quite the pro-tax fest as both Angelides and Westly seek to out-do each other on defining a larger, more expansive role for State Government that their opponent. There are a number of pieces in the news today that analyze the race — an L.A. Times poll now has Angelides and Westly in a dead heat. My take on the race is that Angelides has one thing going for him — I believe that voter turnout on both sides of the aisle will be low. If this is the case, then the core Democratic vote will be made up primary of true liberal believers and union-workers who turnout in all elections. These two groups will tend to favor Phil Angelides, who is a more traditional liberal candidates, and who sports the endorsement of the California Democratic Party. I’ve chosen to highlight the analysis today in the SDUT by veteran political reporter John Marelius — you may want to check it out. FR friend Dan Weintraub has an interesting column in the Sacramento Bee today that highlights one aspect of Governor Schwarzenegger’s budget about which he is unimpressed … Read More

As we close in on the final days of the Democratic primary for Governor, it is becoming quite the pro-tax fest as both Angelides and Westly seek to out-do each other on defining a larger, more expansive role for State Government that their opponent. There are a number of pieces in the news today that analyze the race — an L.A. Times poll now has Angelides and Westly in a dead heat. My take on the race is that Angelides has one thing going for him — I believe that voter turnout on both sides of the aisle will be low. If this is the case, then the core Democratic vote will be made up primary of true liberal believers and union-workers who turnout in all elections. These two groups will tend to favor Phil Angelides, who is a more traditional liberal candidates, and who sports the endorsement of the California Democratic Party. I’ve chosen to highlight the analysis today in the SDUT by veteran political reporter John Marelius — you may want to check it out. FR friend Dan Weintraub has an interesting column in the Sacramento Bee today that highlights one aspect of Governor Schwarzenegger’s budget about which he is unimpressed … Read More

Vargas’ Double-Edged Sword… Assemblyman Juan Vargas can’t gain a bit of traction in what is becoming a flailing attempt to unseat Congressman Bob Filner (Dem primary in CD 51). Vargas is running some inanely cartoonishTV ads trying to tie Filner to Duke Cunningham…some of the worst spots I’ve ever seen. Filner may be as liberal as they come, but no one in this strongly Democratic district is buying he’s a crook as well. Alternatively, Filner’s ads compellingly tie Vargas to the insurance industry, with victims of the Cedar Fire saying that Vargas sold them out for an ounce of silver. This all follows the early March Union-Trib expose on the Vargas-Insurance connection.

This past week, Matt Potter in the San Diego Reader nails Vargas’ perception problems in one blurb, writing that… Read More