Steve Poizner, whom I have endorsed for Governor,traveled to the Central Valley yesterday and presented his water policy plan that calls for bold and immediate action to be taken in an effort to bring water to the Central Valley. In his call for increased recognition of this crisis, Steve sent a letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi and demanded that she introduce legislation before Congress to help resolve this issue. If you live in the Central Valley, as I do, then you’re all too familiar with the current water problem. Congress refuses to make the needs of Californians a priority and has allowed out of control regulations to hurt our farmers, businesses, and citizens. Steve Poizner understands that the bureaucrats in Washington, D.C. don’t know what’s best for the people of the Central Valley. It’s the local residents and farmers who know what’s best for their land and their livelihoods. That’s why Steve presented a plan that includes bold solutions for the immediate future and … Read More

Steve Danon, the longtime San Diego politico and chief of staff to Congressman Brian Bilbray, has taken the first official step to run for the third district County Supervisorial seat, held the last 16-plus years by Pam Slater-Price.

Danon filed a Candidate Intention Form 501 with the Registrar of Voters on July 10, giving him the ability to raise campaign funds. A voice mail has also been established, with Steve’s friendly voice greeting callers (I may be among the first) with, "Thanks for calling Steve Danon for County Supervisor" and directing folks to www.stevedanon.com. The crisp-looking website includes links to his Facebook and Twitter pages.

Danon, a self-described moderate, has been a force in the area political scene and GOP circles for over two decades. He previously served as chief of staff to County Supervisor Ron Roberts, and ran for San Diego City Council in 2001, a barn-burner won by Donna Frye.

Although there has been "talk" of Danon running for Supervisor, this concrete early action — given Slater-Price’s current fifth term doesn’t end until 2012… Read More

While a formal announcement has yet to be made, we here at the FlashReport would like to congratulate freshman State Senator Bob Huff on his new position as Chairman of the Senate Republican Caucus. FR broke the news just days ago that George Runner had announced his departure from this position. The conch shell will officially be passed from Runner to Huff at the end of the month…… Read More

Last week I wrote about the shameful lack of debate on bills in the state legislature. With 3,000 bills introduced every year, lawmakers don’t have time to consider truly important issues (like a balanced budget) because they’re preoccupied with ridiculous issues like banning novelty lighters. Average citizens who come to the capitol to participate in their governmentare allotted seconds to express their input on laws that will impact their lives. Well, yesterday Democrats in the Senate Judiciary Committee got a taste of their own medicine when Chairman Ellen Corbett wouldn’t allow debate on a bill authored by Assemblyman Tony Mendoza. Check out the exchange between Corbett, Senator Dean Florez and Mendoza:… Read More

Today I was on Inga Barks’ radio program on KERN radio in Bakersfield. Topics we discussed included the state budget crisis, Assemblyman Danny Gilmore’s quixotic support of Proposition 1A ($16 billion in higher taxes) on the June ballot, the California Energy Commission’s efforts to ban big screen televisions, and the attempt by the legislature to create a brand new California Blueberry Commission. To listen — click on the link below. For those in the Fresno area, I will be on again with Inga this afternoon in the 5pm hour on KMJ radio.… Read More

California Good editorial piece in today’s Union Tribune.

In recent weeks and months we have seen story after story about fraud and overpayments in… Read More

The Small Business Action Committee has just engaged in a statewide media buy for a new television spot "Hold The Line" that highlights the precarious state of the California economy, and the need for California government to live within its means — balancing the state budget without raising more taxes. It’s appropriate that this ad is coming from the SBAC as small businesses around California are particularly vulnerable to our recession.

We reached out FR friend Joel Fox, the President of the SBAC, for comment. As always, Fox was quite direct: "We want the state to live within its means and are calling on legislators to pass a balanced budget with no new taxes. California has its highest unemployment rate since the Great Depression, there’s no doubt that we cannot afford to pay any more in taxes."

You can see the spot below… … Read More

Assemblywoman Diane Harkey just sent this over…

Unbeknownst to most Californians, yesterday was the Special Election run-off for Congressional District 32, a traditionally Democrat-controlled seat due to the infamous gerrymandered districts we have here on the left coast. Not surprisingly, Judy Chu, Democrat from the San Gabriel Valley and current Member of the Board of Equalization, District 4 – another seat traditionally held by Democrats – won by a margin nearly parallel to the RE v. DEM voter registration gap (against Republican Betty Chu). This leaves us with a vacancy on the State Board of Equalization upon Judy Chu’s resignation. The important question: Who will Governor Schwarzenegger appoint to replace her on the Board of Equalization?

Rumors have it that the Governor is “worried” about his legacy. So far, many of us have been impressed with his recent “about face” towards fighting on behalf of the taxpayers and promising to veto any budget that even hints of raising taxes or fees. Fighting for taxpayers on a responsible budget deal is a great place to start. However, it doesn’t end there. He has the opportunity to… Read More