On Monday, September 19 the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands will hold a field hearing on “Restoring Public Access to the Public’s Lands: Issues Impacting Multiple-use on Our National Forests.” I requested this hearing because a growing number of citizen complaints protesting policies of the federal government that appear designed to radically limit the public’s use of our public lands.

The original mission of the U.S. Forest Service as defined by its creator, the legendary Gifford Pinchot, is to manage the forests “to provide for the greatest amount of good for the greatest number in the long run.” That has always meant welcoming recreation, hunting, fishing, camping, and riding in the forests, as well as the responsible and sustainable use of the public lands for the prosperity of the nation, including ranching, logging, energy development and other job-creating economic activities.

Nearly twenty percent of California’s lands and much of my District are managed by the U.S. Forest Service. These lands are the economic lifeblood for surrounding communities, supporting local jobs and… Read More

I was talking to renowned slate mail provider Tom Kaptain about the Kinde Durkee scandal(s). Durkee was arrested by the FBI and has looted money from clients she served as campaign treasurer for. Kaptain, a Democrat and We were amazed at the kind of money involved with on a few clients and many more to go. Over a million bucks and counting.

I am sure there have been lots of requests from candidates for bank statements the last week.

I pointed out something odd about her clients. And I don’t mean the Democrat ones. There was actually one Republican and one Independent Expenditure Committee for a Republican she had as clients.

Durke was campaign treasurer for Claude Parrish for Treasurer and his Orange County Assessor bid. I have known Claude for some thirty years and was elected to the Board of Equalization twice. Was he ripped off?

The IE was done by the association for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs for Attorney General Candidate an Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley. He was the only statewide GOP candidate they endorsed, but can you image… Read More

The Merriam Webster dictionary defines a platform as a declaration of principles and policies adopted by a political party or a candidate. Once every four years the members of the California Republican Party Central Committee have an opportunity adopt our state party platform. Our Republican candidates, of course, each get to set out their own individual campaign platforms.

Different state parties have platforms that vary in length and specificity, to suit the desires of each of their state committees. The California Republican Party’s currently platform is relatively short at eight pages (in larger font), as opposed to say the platform of the Republican Party of Texas which weighs in at a strapping 32 pages (in pretty small font). The Platform adopted by the last Republican National Convention is more like a book, being 55 pages in length (link).

Generally a party platform is an expository document that allows someone to read it and understand… Read More

The latest Field poll news is a shocker. California voters actually have relatively low approval for President Obama. This to me is stunning news, because our State legislative majority, former Governor, and current Governor are so bad at their jobs, and yet, continue to get re-elected.

There are pain thresholds in politics, and every so often, California voters have a tantrum. The 2003 recall election, the rare but exciting moments when bonds are actually voted down, and the punishing defeat of Arnold clone Meg Whitman would all be recent examples.

Now, we’ve got low approval for President Obama. This proves that we need to have a horrendous economy and depression for Californians to get angry. Will this translate into votes for Democrat alternatives? Probably not. Not unless Republicans quit pussy footing around and campaign stridently – bold lines and colors, against Democrat incompetence, both in Sacramento and Washington DC.… Read More

As has been written about on this page, the current State Senate lines that were approved by the California Redistricting Commission amount to an “extinction event” for Republicans in the legislature’s upper house. Right now Republicans, with 15 seats, barely can muster the votes to stop the tax and fee increases proposed by Democrats that require a 2/3rds vote. Without a redo on lines for the Senate, former Senate and Assembly Republican Leader Jim Brulte says that the GOP will be in a super-minority after the 2012 elections.

Consequently a major effort is underway to raise the two million dollars needed to gather 505,000 valid signatures and cause the courts to draw another set of Senate lines to be used in 2012 (and set into motion a vote of the public on whether to use the Commission lines, or those drawn by the courts, for the remainder of the decade).

The California Republican Party has just dropped hundreds of thousands of pieces of mail to Republican voters, signed by party chairman Tom Del Beccaro and Senators Mimi Walters and Tony Strickland, with more to come. Below are copies of the mailing, so you can see what they have… Read More

This past year our GOP legislators have stood strong with no defectors — the toughest in recent memory. Indeed, this toughness was one reason I switched this year from the Libertarian Party to the GOP.

But with the coming “top two” system of elections, it’s probable a few RINO’s will slip into the CA legislature, replacing some GOP tough guys and gals. And, at this point, it takes only two in each CA legislative body to make the GOP TOTALLY irrelevant in the legislative process. One RINO (Brian Maienschein) is already a frontrunner in north San Diego to replace Nathan Fletcher, who is running for mayor of San Diego. This district is a strong GOP bastion — even after redistricting. Sadly, GOP legislators Joel Anderson and Brian Jones have for unknown reasons just endorsed Maienschein’s candidacy. Maienschein likely will be quietly backed by one or more of the public employee labor unions, thanks to his sterling service to same while screwing up San Diego as our city council critter. To but it bluntly, in fiscal matters, he was simply awful — a tool of the labor … Read More

Across the state, California community college officials and student activists have held coordinated protests. With the usual claimed victim status, they demand higher taxes to subsidize their academic fantasyland.

But these bureaucrats fail to tell the full story. It’s the CA community college STUDENTS (who benefit the most from the education) who should be paying more for their education — they’ve been over-subsidized long enough.

According to a March2010 national tuition survey sponsored by Washington state, California has the lowest community college tuition and fees in the country. Even with the increase in per credit tuition from $26 to $36, CA community colleges STILL charge students the lowest tuition — students are paying about a third of the national community college tuition average.

Based on a 15 credit (five course) semester, 2009-10 CA community college tuition and fees equaled $780. Next lowest was New Mexico at $1,125. Third lowest was North Carolina at $1,684. National average was $3,029. The highest state is New Hampshire which charges $6,262.

Adjusting for the new increased $36 per credit CA community… Read More

Liberals in CA vehemently dislike the CA initiative process. Indeed, they just tried to enact an effective ban on the process, but the bill was vetoed by Gov. Brown.

These mislabeled “progressives” dislike citizen-signed propositions, as such measures bypass the institution the Big Government advocates control throughout most of the state — elected officials. I doubt we’d be hearing the anti-proposition bleating from them if such were not the case.

Moreover, the feigned concern about improprieties in signature gathering ignores the benefits of a full vetting of the prop once it is on the ballot — especially compared to our chaotic state legislative procedures.

I recommend an informative, humorous out-of-print book (available at Amazon) by the late State Senator H.L. Richardson — “What Makes You Think We Read the Bills?” http://www.amazon.com/What-Makes-Think-Read-Bills/dp/0916054780

Most of us know that in the closing days of each legislative session, our intrepid CA elected leaders vote on literally hundreds of ever-changing bills — some even… Read More