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It ended soon after it began, this revolution. Not with a bang, or even a whimper. The soldiers, unsure of their cause, simply left the battlefield. As the sun set on the retreating army, the sun also set on the vision of a shining city on a hill, which remains darkened to this day.

The revolution’s first salvo came not from the barrel of a gun, but by the stroke of a pen. President Ronald Reagan’s vision that government was the problem, not the solution, sought outlets to reduce government’s role in the life of the nation. Believing that a robust economy would provide private charities the resources to step in and provide welfare services as the federal government slowed its welfare spending, President Reagan signed Executive Order Number 12329 on October 14, 1982 creating the President’s Task Force on Private Sector Initiatives. Finished by New Year’s Eve 1982, midway through Reagan’s first term, the Task Force reported back to the president the disappointing news. Richard C. Cornuelle, a libertarian and once a member of the intimate circle around the émigré Russian novelist Ayn Rand, and author of Reclaiming the American Dream,… Read More

What do leisure suits and gun shows have in common? More than you might think. It turns out that some members of the California Senate don’t particularly like either. But I’ll bet in this Legislature, gun shows are despised more.

But this is about constitutional rights, and not the right to wear ugly, pastel, stinky polyester clothing with the knees permanently stretched out.

At issue is whether the California Legislature can dictate who rents the Cow Palace. After taking a vote Thursday on SB 475 by Sen. Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, the majority of senators think they should be able to decide.

Leno said the community surrounding the Cow Palace in South San Francisco does not want gun shows at the entertainment and exposition center. According to Leno,… Read More

Republicans must be sensitive about falling into traps set by our opponents designed to make our party look like we’re being unfair to particular groups. Yet, there are times when we must stand on the side of sound public policy because at the end of the day, someone has to.

The Democrats who run the California State Assembly have passed a bill that would take the radical step of opening jury service to citizens of other countries who legally reside in the United States. If passed by the Senate and signed by Governor Brown, AB 1401 would make jury duty open to any legal resident.

This is bad public policy and should be opposed.

My parents emigrated from Germany in 1961. For seven years they went through the naturalization process, learning English and about our system of government. Ultimately they both needed to pass English and Civics tests to earn their citizenship, which they did in 1968.

This process takes time because acclimating to America’s language, culture, and government cannot be accomplished overnight, especially when it comes to… Read More

It’s the first day of May. If you haven’t noticed, the California Democratic Supermajority is killing all reform efforts. And the targets are not just Republican bills.

Just yesterday, the Senate Committee on Environmental Quality killed a bill which would have stopped the California Air Resources Board from assessing a very expensive administrative fee on California colleges for implementation of AB 32, the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006.

SB 497, by Sen. Mimi Walters, R-Irvine, said the committee’s failure to approve the bill will likely result in fewer students being able to attend California’s higher education institutions, and higher tuition costs for those who do.

The Senate Education Committee killed SB 441, by Sen. Ron Calderon, D-Montebello, which would merely have suggested school districts around the state to assess the performance of teachers and school administrators.

This week SB 453, by Senate Republican Leader Bob Huff, R-Diamond Bar, was also killed. SB 453 would have allowed school districts to make staffing decisions based on performance evaluations and factors other than a teacher’s simple date of… Read More

If you have never heard of the roughly 2,000 member North Fork Rancheria of Mono Indians, than I can assure you that you are not a member of the State Legislature. Last year Governor Brown signed a gaming compact with this tribe, which is up for ratification by the legislature in short order.

In March of 2000, voters by nearly a two-thirds margin approved Prop. 1A. In doing so voters passed an initiative which, according to the Attorney General’s summary: “Modifies existing gambling prohibitions to authorize Governor to negotiate compacts with federally recognized Indian tribes, subject to legislative ratification, for operation of slot machines, lottery games, and banking and percentage card games on Indian lands.”

Nearly 60 tribes were immediate beneficiaries of Prop. 1A, and more tribes have benefitted from it since then. Indian casinos proliferate California, from the… Read More

A study released earlier today by the California Public Policy Center entitled “Calculating California’s Total State and Local Government Debt” has estimated that state and local government debt is somewhere between $848 billion and $1.12 trillion. This is the first attempt we’ve ever seen by anyone to provide an estimate.

Small wonder. If Californians understood that their local city councils, school districts, redevelopment agencies, special districts, county supervisors, and state legislators had managed to put them on the hook for over $80,000 of debt per household, they might vote down the next new taxation or bond measure that appears on the ballot. Imagine how much debt this equates to pertaxpayinghousehold.

Quoting from the study’s summary, here are the categories of government debt confronting Californians:

When, along with the $27.8 billion “Wall of Debt,” long-term debt incurred by California’s state, county, and city governments, along with school districts, redevelopment agencies and special… Read More

Given California’s chronic problems, it’s hard to imagine anyone sees our state as a model. But it’s clear the Obama administration does. And to make matters worse, President Obama is now using schemes from California’s playbook in his bid to impose our failures on the rest of the nation.

Much like Sacramento, Washington is mired in gridlock. The budget never really gets done and politicians seem to stumble from one crisis to the next. Like California Governor Jerry Brown, President Obama lacks the ability to forge true bipartisan consensus to solve problems.

Of… Read More

Tomorrow afternoon, Assembly Constitutional Amendment 4, is up for a hearing in an Assembly Budget Subcommittee. For who do not recall ACA 4, this is bipartisan legislation that has been proposed by Senator Lois Wolk (D) and Assemblywoman Kristin Olsen (R) that requires that before the Senate or the Assembly can vote on a bill, it must be in print (and available on the internet) for 72 hours in its final form. It also provides for an exception for urgency bills (2/3 vote) related to declared emergencies, and allows bills to be heard by committees after the contents of the bill have been available online for 15 days.

As I wrote in a column in support of ACA 4 that appeared in the Sacramento Bee, “There are three key reasons why this is a needed reform. The first is to make sure legislators are able to read, analyze and seek input on legislation before they vote on it. The second reason is the public deserves to be able to know what is being voted on by their elected officials in time to be able to express their views on legislation prior to a vote. Finally,… Read More