Late last week, four legislative Republicans were quoted in two major newspapers with quotes, indicating in varying degrees that they were open to voting for tax increases as part of a solution to California’s overspending-created fiscal crisis.

Let me make this very clear – there is NO POINT AND NO “DEAL” WHERE IT MAKES ANY SENSE WHATSOEVER TO RAISE TAXES ON CALIFORNIANS. The San Diego Union Tribune has an excellent editorial today driving home this point. It is an objective reality that Californians are amongst the most taxed citizens in the entire country.

State Senator Abel Maldonado, and Assemblymen Mike Duvall, Roger Niello, and Anthony Adams were all quoted thusly:

ASSEMBLYMAN ADAMS (in the Bee): "The reforms have to be there," said Assemblyman Anthony Adams, R-Hesperia.… Read More

Senator George Runner today was quoted as having uttered the most spot-on rhetorical question of the year:

“How do you make a tax increase when you’re still giving in-state tuition to illegal aliens?”

Yet despite such end-of-argument logic being stated by some of California’s legislators, the debate goes on about how to fix state government. Senator Runner’s quote appears in the Sunday Press Dispatch’s report about my good friend Assemblyman Anthony Adams’ surprising statements that he’s willing to consider tax increases in exchange for state budget cuts and reforms. Read more here: http://www.vvdailypress.com/news/adams_10563___article.html/tax_phone.html.

The news of this from the Sacramento Bee led to an hour-long war of words Thursday between Adams and Los Angeles talk radio hosts John… Read More

There are a few election law cases of interest to Californians going on nowthat deserve some mention in this blog spot.

The first is a lawsuit filed late last year in federal court in Washington, D.C. by the California Republican Party and the Republican Party of San Diego County, along with the Republican National Committee, the goal of which is to challenge the constitutionality of the "soft money" restrictions of the McCain-Feingold law, also known as "BCRA" (Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act). The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, alleges therestrictions of Federal law are overly broad and unconstitutional under the First Amendment. Expedited review has been requested by the Plaintiffs. The case number is: 1:08CV01953.

Under McCain-Feingold, national parties are restricted from collecting contributions other than those subject to the rigorous Federal disclosure and contribution limits. National parties may not collect corporate contributions, even if the activity is intended to build up a state party, because corporate money is banned for Federal… Read More

Let’s not say that the rumors of local San Diego political talk radio’s demise have been greatly exaggerated. Let’s just say that the patient is not nearly as healthy as in the past. Let’s also note that there is some hope for the future.

A quick rundown of some recent changes…

Conservative friend-of-all Mark Larson is off the air. Liberal Stacy Taylor, gone. Longtime local powerhouse Roger Hedgecock, although still broadcasting from KOGO, now has a national show, with no focus on San Diego politics. Jimmy Valentine, Hedgecock’s producer since the mid-1990s, was dismissed in the transition.

Oh, and in case anyone forgot – or never cared – KLSD 1360’s Air America died in 2007. KLSD actually stood for K-Liberal San Diego…no joke.

Media watchers blame the “death" of local talk radio on the economy and high cost of staffing local programs, as compared to the efficiency of nationally syndicated shows. The significantly… Read More

For some weekend reading, I am pleased to present this commentary from freshman Republican Assemblyman Dan Logue…

AB 32 – Kills Jobs, Harmful to the Environment

As a new Member of the California State Assembly I have introduce my first bill to suspend AB 32 the so-called California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006. In 2006, on a party-line vote, Legislative Democrats passed AB 32 over the objections of the Republicans. Authored by then Assembly Speaker Fabien Núñez, ostensibly to combat the effects of global warming, AB 32 forces businesses to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by the year 2020. Appealing to the politically correct crowd of 2006, AB 32 was hailed far and wide by left leaning political elites. They could not have envisioned our economic downturn or the… Read More

For some weekend reading, I am pleased to present this commentary from freshman Republican Assemblyman Dan Logue…

AB 32 – Kills Jobs, Harmful to the Environment As a new Member of the California State Assembly I have introduce my first bill to suspend AB 32 the so-called California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006. In 2006, on a party-line vote, Legislative Democrats passed AB 32 over the objections of the Republicans. Authored by then Assembly Speaker Fabien Núñez, ostensibly to combat the effects of global warming, AB 32 forces businesses to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by the year 2020. Appealing to the politically correct crowd of 2006, AB 32 was hailed far and wide by left leaning political elites. They could not have envisioned our economic downturn or the devastating effects of AB 32 on… Read More

There is a saying popular among Republicans "There is an evil party and a stupid party, and it isn’t hard to tell which is which."

Recent comments by Republican legislators prove this saying. Some Republican legislators have indicated they would be willing to vote for taxes. The fight is over, the left has won.

Of course, these Legislators will say "I have conditions. I will not vote for a tax increase until I receive (insert Democrat concession here)." Democrats will not concede, and in about two weeks, those legislators will vote for the tax increase demanded by the Democrats, without program cuts, without a spending cap, without whatever concession they demanded as a concession for their vote because "I got the best deal I could get, and I have to be responsible."

Democrats know this. It happens every time. This is 1991 and 2001 all over again. Of course, except for Maldonado, who desperately wanted to be a Senator and vote for the 2001 tax increase, but knew that the two were incompatible, the other Legislators who made this week’s "reasonable" pronouncements were not there in those two… Read More

In case you missed it, there was another reminder of what our state’s top priority should be – putting people back to work.

Today, the California Employment Development Department made a startling announcement—California has lost 166,000 jobs in the last month. That is the equivalent of the entire population of the City of Escondido losing their jobs in one month. It brings our state unemployment rate to 9.3%–one of the highest in the nation.

This is real and is affecting people we all know. My neighbor recently lost his job and last week asked when things are going to get better. One of my best friends from college is looking for a second job because of cut backs at his current employer. They want to know what we are going to do to put people back to work. What are we going to do to help create jobs?

This is why job creation has to be our top priority in California.

It’s no secret that California’s budget crisis is severe—but a key to helping solve the budget problem is to create private sector jobs, bring employers back to our state and… Read More