It would appear, according to the Fresno Bee, that Senate and Assembly Democrats need a reminder that in trying to come to a solution that solves the problem of people in California not having enough water for their personal and business needs, passing a solution through the legislature is only the first part of a two-step process. Any solution, because of the inevitable need to borrow large sums of money, will require voter approval.

So it is with a certain level of cynicism that I read today in the Fresno Bee that Assembly Republicans have identified a staggering $3 billion in what Assemblyman Tom Berryhill refers to as "environmental pork" in the package as proposed.

Or put another way, Democrats apparently (and shamefully) want to use the water crisis as a means to try and get voters to approve billions in borrowing that have nothing to do with actually delivering water to those people and business in need. Unbelievable.

I would remind the legislature that the last time a poorly-devised "plan" was hatched in the Capitol and sent to voters, the… Read More

Assemblyman Alberto Torrico’s (D- Newark) likes to talk tough, but he can’t even back up his own statements.

In a recent article by Capitol Weekly, Asm. Torrico referred to Governor Schwarzenegger and Senate Republican leader Dennis Hollingsworth as extortionists because they are holding firm for a comprehensive water solution. The legislative session ended on September 11, 2009 and nearly one month later the Democrats still haven’t delivered a plan to solve for our states water crisis; yet Asm. Torrico has the gall to criticize them?

It was Torrico who went on the Spanish language station of Univision on August 29, 2009 and declared that the Latino Caucus believed helping the Central Valley should take precedent over green concerns. He also called this a “necessity” and the “number one priority.”

It is difficult to call this issue a “necessity” and the “number one priority” when you are out chastising others for making it… Read More

Last week I had a chance to sit down with Gubernatorial hopeful Meg Whitman for the better part of an hour. Our interview covered a number of policy areas including global warming/AB32, eminent domain, gun control, abortion, and philosophy about government. Because we had the handy FlashReport digital recorder along, we’ll be able to bring you some direct excerpts from the interview.

THIS IS THE SECOND INSTALLMENT OF THIS INTERVIEW. YOU CAN READ PART ONE (ON THE ENVIRONMENT, GLOBAL WARMING, AND AB 32) CLICK HERE.

Because of the location at which we met in Menlo Park on the San Francisco Peninsula,… Read More

Last week I had a chance to sit down with Gubernatorial hopeful Meg Whitman for the better part of an hour. Our interview covered a number of policy areas including global warming/AB32, eminent domain, gun control, abortion, and philosophy about government. Because we had the handy FlashReport digital recorder along, we’ll be able to bring you some direct excerpts from the interview. THIS IS THE SECOND INSTALLMENT OF THIS INTERVIEW. YOU CAN READ PART ONE (ON THE ENVIRONMENT, GLOBAL WARMING, AND AB 32) CLICK HERE… Read More

Dan Walters, columnist for the Sacramento Bee,wrote on Monday about California’s crumbling roads, highways and streets. Anyone with a car and a driver’s license knows Walters is right; our roads are a mess! And when compared to other states (which Walters did, having just returned from a road trip in the Northwestern states) the condition of our roads is inexcusable.

But I disagree with Walters’ assertion that our transportation infrastructure is in shambles because drivers don’t pay enough gas taxes.

With heavy use, the system needs, but is not getting, an extremely high level of maintenance to stave off deterioration. The gasoline tax, levied on gallonage, hasn’t been changed for many years. And because of greater fuel efficiency, the amount of gas being consumed has increased very little even as travel has increased sharply. Moreover, this flat revenue is being eroded by inflation.

Also on Monday, the California Taxpayers’ Association reported that the Board of Equalization released a report showing… Read More

According to our friends over at Capitol Weekly, today’s "Big 5" meeting (The Governor and the four Legislative Leaders) "blew up" with tensions high. Republicans are unhappy because legislation they were promised would make it to the Governor’s desk did not. Democrats are unhappy because legislation they want on the Governor’s desk hasn’t gotten there (these particular bills require a 2/3 vote). In the balance is a potential deal on the state’s water crisis, among other things.

In the balance, so they say, are over 700 pieces of legislation that legislative Democrats have put onto the Governor’s desk. If the Governor does not act on these bills by Sunday, apparently they all become law. But the word is that without any legislation on his desk to resolve the water crisis, the Governor will be spending all of his time focused on this goal, without the necessary time to review all of those bills — and that he would, in theory, veto them all rather than allow these bills to become law… Read More

The Meg Whitman for Governor campaign, just moments ago, released a list of local grassroots leaders from all around the state. Congratulations to the great many FR friends on the list. A special shout out to my good friend Sara Catalan, who in addition to being Deputy Chief of Staff to Congressman Ed Royce, and head of the CWLA Orange County Chapter, is now the Orange County Regional Chair for Meg Whitman’s campaign. Sara is actually quoted in the Whitman release saying, "Meg Whitman is the only gubernatorial candidate who has what it takes to rescue California," said Sara Catalan, the Orange Region Chair. "She is a proven leader with strong values and a sensible plan to restore California’s economy and improve our state government."

Here’s the list…

County Chairs (By Region)

North • North Region Co-Chairs – Bill Brunetti / Cindi Sherrod • Sacramento County Co-Chairs – Roberta MacGlashan / Tom Scott • El Dorado County Chair – Myrlys… Read More

A FlashReport reader recently suggested that I simply let the Whitman and Poizner campaigns blog directly onto the website, and sit back and enjoy the fun. That’s actually a temping idea. What might be a better idea is for me to get into the video production business! Here’s the latest from Team Poizner:

… Read More