Here’s the most recent figures on home ownership, by state. Not surprisingly, 47 states have higher homeownership rates than California. We are 48th. Hawaii — where everything but sun and surf has to be imported by boat or plane — is 49th. CA is essentially tied with Hawaii — or they are essentially tied with us (take your pick).

50th is NY. California politicians LOVE NY — the state that often keeps CA from being the worst at whatever.

I suppose some will be surprised that the Golden State is “only” 48th. Revel in our success.

http://www.businessinsider.com/homeownership-rate-state-map-2017-7

One point must be made — it’s not the high demand in CA that keeps houses out of reach of many families. It’s government-imposed housing scarcity, combined with high CA building costs — especially huge building fees,

How scarce is CA housing? Consider: The housing is fare cheaper in Texas than CA for a reason. In Texas, government is friendly to home builders — rather… Read More

The excellent analysis below from the CALIFORNIA POLICY CENTER (and my write-up) is a “must read” — especially for Californians. Unions rule. More specifically, GOVERNMENT unions rule.

Our CA state and local public employee labor unions collect about $900 million in dues annually. How does that spending affect politics? Consider:

Most projections of public employee labor union political power are limited to FEDERAL and sometimes STATE government REPORTED union spending. While it’s a huge factor (especially at the state level), it is DWARFED By government union political spending at the local level.

How much of the $900 million in annual CA public labor union dues is spent on politics? Nobody (outside of the union bosses) knows.

It’s carefully concealed by the unions — with government complicity. There is no… Read More

Food or Fish, Liberty or Oppression, Victim or Fighter? We Californians have many decisions to make about our future, thanks to ourmaniacal third-World wanna-be dictator-Governor Jerry Brown –a childless Marxist, who cares only about himself. Brown has never lived a life that calls upon one to sacrifice for the benefit of one’s own… Read More

Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz and FBI Director Christopher Wray testified before the Senate Intelligence Committee June 18 on Horowitz’s review of the Hillary Clinton email investigation during the 2016 presidential race. However, thereis one explosive piece of information that isn’t getting much attention, and that’s the connection between Clinton campaign Political Director Amanda Renteria and Obama Attorney General Loretta Lynch. If Amanda Renteria’s name rings a bell it’s because she also recently ran for California Governor in the primary election.

That the Clinton emails… Read More

I did not support Donald Trump in the primaries. I am now a full throated supporter and Donald Trump enthusiast. This last week in the Supreme Court has overcome any reservations I might have had. In the year and a half that he has been President, Trump has done more to advance the conservative cause than anyone else in recent memory. He is actually reaching (at least in my mind) Ronald Reagan territory.

Admittedly, he entered a different world than Reagan did. When Reagan began, conservatism and love of liberty was isolated to a few places in this country (and, by the way, the Republican Party was NOT one of those places). Reagan transformed the party and made conservatism and love of liberty rational and respectable. His sunny personality and calm demeanor moved conservatism into the mainstream and began a transformation in this country that is still ongoing. He also persuaded a young lawyer in Riverside that the Democrat party he had been a part of in his youth was not the way to make this country better. That young lawyer re-registered as a Republican and got himself elected in Riverside.

In my first term as a legislator, I introduced legislation to… Read More

California Democrats author numerous ‘Fake News’ bills

Democrat California lawmakers are pushing legislation to create jack-boot agents of government through a “Fake News Advisory Council” – an Orwellian ‘Ministry of Truth’ for the news they don’t like.

After having my Capitol Press Credential revoked in 2015 and only reissued after an Open Records Act request of 10-years of press… Read More

Democrats’ Plan: Tear Down America and Eradicate the Country of Conservatives

In a collective national temper tantrum, leftist-Democrats across the country continue to openly reject the election of President Donald Trump in 2016.

I used to just write about the “Two Californias,” a phrase coined by Victor Davis Hanson to describe the urban elite, out-of-touch coastal communities, and the rural inland agricultural areas. “We may speak of the richness of… Read More

The secret to a prosperous economy actually isn’t a secret at all.

Around the world, we can see that countries with laws, regulations and cultures that respect the principles of property rights, a fair judicial system, low and predictable taxes and regulations, among a few, prosper. Countries that fail to be governed by these principles are less prosperous.

The Index of Economic Freedom, developed by our friends at The Heritage Foundation, provides a single number to understand to extent to which any country is positions its people for success through sound policy. The higher a country’s score and ranking in the Index, the more, over time, its people will prosper.

Not surprisingly, the economic basketcases of the world can be found at the low end of the index, with scores under 50. North Korea, Cuba and Venezuela round out the bottom three.

For policymakers in the United States and abroad, creating the conditions for prosperity is, literally, a matter of raising one’s score and ranking in the Index of Economic Freedom. Reduce taxes and make regulations lower and more predictable? The score goes up. Try to placate the country’s labor unions by… Read More