I’m always skeptical of public opinion polling data. Time after time I say that to really understand the full story behind surveys, you have to investigate the questions being asked of respondents.

I was immediately surprised by the results from the recent PPIC statewide survey as it related to voter sentiment on the Death Penalty. California has and will continue to be supportive of capital punishment for the worst of the worst murders. I’ve known from experience that a death sentence isn’t given often, but when it is, the criminal deserves it.

PPIC didn’t test the actual ballot label of Prop 34 and suggested that it merely tested voter sentiment about the death penalty as opposed to life without parole. The results, they subtly (well not so subtly) would project where voters are on Proposition 34, a measure sponsored by the ACLU and defense attorneys to get rid of the death penalty. The irony behind Prop 34 is that the ACLU is claiming that the death penalty is broken because nobody gets executed and taxpayers are paying… Read More

Foreign Policy: My parents, who have now passed away, were both born around the start of World War I. They were of the “greatest generation” that came to adulthood during the depression and World War II. They grew up in a world where it was us and other democracies against the fascists and imperialists across the oceans. We had the white hats. They wore the black hats. The white hats won. It was all pretty clear.

I was born in 1955, square in the middle of the “baby boom” generation. We came of age during the Cold War and the Vietnam War. It was still pretty clear. There were 3 worlds: us with the white hats, the communists with the black hats, and the “third world” that we and the communists fought over. The Vietnam War was America’s first experience with a conflict that arguably did not result in the defeat of the opposition, which spoiled our air of invincibility. But, our objective for the Cold War, as Ronald Reagan famously described, was, “We win. They lose”. And, that is what happened. Also pretty clear.

After the Cold War came the “peace dividend” and a hope, if not an… Read More

As Sacramento legislators continue to pass laws that make California increasingly less competitive, while ignoring needed reforms in the way state government taxes, spends, and regulates, San Diego stands as a bright spot for advocates of reform, fiscal sanity, and transparency. That bright spot is because of the efforts of City Councilman Carl DeMaio, candidate for mayor of California’s second largest city.

Charter reform, coupled with redistricting, have taken the San Diego City Council from eight seats to nine, having already changed the mayor into a “strong mayor” executive role, and separating the office from the council. Going into this election, left-leaning councilmembers outnumbered pro-business councilmembers 5-3. However, the outright victories of businessmen Mark Kersey and Scott Sherman in the June primary have created a 4-4 split with the deciding ninth seat a battle between businessman Ray Ellis and liberal incumbent Sherri Lightner. Ellis topped Lightner in the 4-way June primary and reformers are excited about Ellis’ chances in November.

But the best part about what is happening in San Diego is not the prospect of a pro-reform,… Read More

Yesterday I took a bit of a trip through the looking glass, as it were. Yesterday, as far as I could tell, I was one only two ideological conservatives who attended the inaugural symposium of the new Schwarzenegger Institute for State and Local Policy at the University of Southern California. I would say that there were about 750 people there, mostly invited guests as well as a large contingent of university students. Actually several hundred more students wanted to attend but were turned away due to lack of space. In his opening remarks, Arnold Schwarzenegger joked that they picked those students with the least amount… Read More

With all of the focus on the November ballot initiatives to raise taxes, Proposition 31 seems to have quietly avoided heavy scrutiny in the main stream media thus far. But this initiative is a wolf in sheep’s clothing, pretending to be much-needed reform.

There is growing confusion about ballot title and summaries on California’s ballot initiatives. It’s almost impossible to know how to vote on something. A “no” vote may mean “yes,” and visa versa, given the way the California Attorney General’s office plays fast and loose with writing the titles and summaries of ballot measures.

This is the case with Proposition 31 –what’s up is down, and what appears to be reform, is not. Equally disturbing is how so many of the state’s newspapers are jumping on board this phony “reform” measure. Even the California Republican Party officially endorsed Prop. 31.

However, most voters have grown suspicious of anything… Read More

Pundits routinely write off California as a helplessly blue state, but the fact remains that there are still many vitally important races in the state. The decennial redistricting that took place last year created several new and very competitive districts throughout the state, and the GOP has a great shot at picking up new legislative seats that were previously gerrymandered exclusively to Democrats, and of course the Mayor’s race in San Diego remains a focus of many throughout the state. The need to rebuild an ailing party in California starts with one thing: Money.

Democrats have had an advantage in California for decades due to the massive amounts of money… Read More

California Future Fund for Free Markets, a committee formed to communicate and advocate conservative and free market issues, today announced the release of a new TV ad that will all across the state of California in support of Proposition 32, the November ballot measure to restrict corporate and union political contributions to politicians.

CA Future Fund for Free Markets founder, Nick Ryan, issued the following statement:

“This ad exposes the ugly truth about what’s really behind California’s most powerful politicians – money…and a lot of it. Rather than serving the taxpayers who put them in office, California’s elected officials are serving the needs of the big corporations and government unions that are controlling them like puppets with millions and millions of dollars in contributions. This situation is not only untenable it’s killing California.”

“With 11 percent unemployment, high taxes, lavish pensions and billions in government waste, and, despite spending $50 billion per year on education, California is home to some of the worst performing schools in the country. These facts paint a sorry picture of a… Read More

Survey Results: You haven’t heard from me in a while. No need to check the obits, I’m still here. What with 2 national conventions, a busy month home in the district, and some vacation on my part, I thought I’d give us both a little break. Not that either of us could avoid the non-stop national campaigning.

When I last wrote you, I included a survey with various proposals on what to include and not include in a potential income tax reform bill next year. The results are detailed below. But, here is my “executive summary and analysis”:

• A majority of you agreed with all of my proposals.

• The most popular proposal with you all (76.9%) was to eliminate all deductions and credits except charitable contributions, home mortgage interest and non-elective medical expenses.

• The least popular proposal, albeit still over 50% at 56.3%, was to go to only 2 tax rates, one for incomes below $100,000 and one for incomes above that amount. 27.2% of you believe that we will need more rates than that, and 15.2% of you want only one rate.

• You may recall that I had a joke answer… Read More