For principled conservatives out there who is scratching their heads, wondering why Republicans en masse in the State Assembly (Chuck DeVore’s opposing vote noted) provided votes to put someone as terrible as Abel Maldonado in the Lt. Governor’s office (his confirmation will now be taken up in the State Senate where it is very likely to pass), I want to share an e-mail I received to provide some perspective.

Let me preface the reprinting of this e-mail by first saying that the "political" argument of approving Maldonado so that Republicans could have the best possible chance of holding the seat as economically as possible in a smaller-turnout special election is no longer viable. While it is, of course, possible for the special election to be held on its own, the timing of this confirmation permits Governor Schwarzenegger to consolidate it with the November General election, saving big bucks for taxpayers. But that means that for the GOP to retain that seat, it will be very, very costly. And in a world of limited resources, the money to fight for that seat comes at the expense of resources to battle… Read More

We all knowJon is not one to toot his own horn, I thought I would take a moment as a member of the FlashReport team to congratulate him on his being named by Capitol Weekly as the 49th most influential person in the State Capitol (elected officials were excluded from the list). Few people made the list who are actually committed to shrinking the size and scope of state government. And even fewer managed to make the list who live and work over 500 miles from Sacramento!

Capitol Weekly annually puts out their list of the 100 power-brokers in Capitol policy and politics. If I recall, last year Jon was somewhere in the bottom 50, so he’s actually moving up in influence, according to CapWeekly. I might question their judgment, but Anthony York didn’t call me.

Congratulations, Jon, on well deserved recognition. I am sure you realize that this would not have been possible without your fellow FlashReport contributors, and as such we’ll all be expecting a piece of that cash prize (assuming the FPPC doesn’t ban bloggers from receiving… Read More

The American Future Fund is in the midst of a massive statewide independent expenditure in the Republican primary for United States Senate. Their efforts, for now, seem entirely devoted to "voter education" on the background of candidate Tom Campbell. Their efforts include a television spot (which is at the bottom of this post) and also includes a direct mail campaign. The mail piece immediately below was received in my mailbox yesterday. It features longtime FR friend Jon Coupal, President of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association. They also have launched a website — TomISTheTaxMan.com.

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This just out from the Meg Whitman for Governor campaign… We’ll be looking with interest to tomorrow’s Capitol Weekly/Probolsky Research survey results, which is the next survey taking place that isn’t sponsored by a candidate…

April 21, 2010 To: Meg Whitman for Governor From: John McLaughlin Re: Survey Analysis Date: April 21, 2010 … Read More

It is being reported that today the Assembly Rules Committee will consider the re-nomination of Abel "taxes and legislative blackmail" Maldonado, and that his confirmation vote will be held in the State Assembly tomorrow.

If a conservative/Republican legislator needs any reason to oppose this confirmation vote, you can either read my commentary from the last go around, or you can just use this site’s search function and type in Maldo’s name. It will come back with example after example of how Maldonado regularly aids and abets those who seek to grow the size and scope of government.

So, on behalf of all of those of us "out here" we urge Republicans to withhold their vote from Maldonado (an absention is fine with us) — we don’t need to "reward" his deplorable behavior. We also don’t need to give him what amounts to a huge boost in his campaign for the GOP nomination for Lt. Governor against Senator Sam Aanestad (a mainstream Republican). If the Democrats want Maldo, they can just let the clock run without a vote — and he’ll get the job. But he won’t be in it because of any… Read More

This is a "must read" from Steve Moore in today’s Wall Street Journal Political Diary E-mail…… Read More

Ask 1000 random Californians of all political stripes to list what they believe should be the state’s spending priorities, and you’ll probably see education, public safety and transportation at the top of almost every list. After that, priorities will vary depending on the individual’s point of view.

What you won’t see on anyone’s list is taxpayer financing of political campaigns, yet that’s just what Prop 15 on the June ballot would do. With a mammoth budget deficit, taxes going up, a crumbling infrastructure, and a host of assorted problems facing California, it’s not surprising that voters can think of plenty of things to spend their money on besides junk mail and negative TV ads.

Four years ago, 74 percent of voters said NO to Prop 89, a plan to tax businesses to finance political campaigns. In 2000, when the state was flush with tax revenue from the dot-com boom, two-thirds of voters rejected another public campaign financing scheme, Proposition 25.

Here we go again with Proposition 15. The California Nurses Association and other members of the spending lobby will ask voters for the third time in ten years to repeal the same… Read More

Ask 1000 random Californians of all political stripes to list what they believe should be the state’s spending priorities, and you’ll probably see education, public safety and transportation at the top of almost every list. After that, priorities will vary depending on the individual’s point of view.

What you won’t see on anyone’s list is taxpayer financing of political campaigns, yet that’s just what Prop 15 on the June ballot would do. With a mammoth budget deficit, taxes going up, a crumbling infrastructure, and a host of assorted problems facing California, it’s not surprising that voters can think of plenty of things to spend their money on besides junk mail and negative TV ads.

Four years ago, 74 percent of voters said NO to Prop 89, a plan to tax businesses to finance political campaigns. In 2000, when the state was flush with tax revenue from the dot-com boom, two-thirds of voters rejected another public campaign financing scheme, Proposition 25.

**There is more – click the link**… Read More