From reading MSM reports this morning while putting together the website, it sure sounds like there is a budget deal, although details have yet to be presented by the "Big 4" to their respective caucuses. It sounds like this deal can best be summed up as "No new taxes, mostly, and not enough cuts."

On the new taxes side of things, NOT in this plan based on what I have read are the outrageous proposals by Democrats for a massive income tax hike, or the disappointing proposal by the Governor for a massive sales tax increase. Still present, however, and quite disturbing is a de facto tax increase on California businesses (an estimated $300 million++ bit) reducing their ability to write off losses.

According to reports, it would appear that while the best interests of California would be to have more cuts in state government, such as proposed by legislative Republicans, this budget comes up with a myriad of various one-time accounting gimmicks and other "creative ideas" to close the budget gap — so there will be a game of "kick the can" to the upcoming state budget (which will… Read More

I am pleased to announce that today we the FlashReport Website on California Politics is launching FRMobile, a version of this website that is optimized for use with your Personal Digital Assistant (PDA). Whether you are using a Blackbery, iPhone, Treo, Palm, Q or other mobile platform, you will now be able to enjoy some of the main feature of the FlashReport with ease! For the thousands (and we have heard from many, many of you) who have tried or who have struggled with trying to read the FR on a PDA these past nearly three years, we commend you for your patience, but we dedicate this new easy-to-download, easy-to-read FRMobile platform to you…

While not every aspect of the FlashReport is optimized on FR Mobile, we have placed FR’s most popular features there. When you go to the site with your PDA, you will get the FR main news page.… Read More

**Steve Poizner Files Papers – Launches Gubernatorial Exploratory Committee** **Announces Impressive Array of Early Endorsements; Taps Key Campaign Team Members**

Last evening my phone rang — it was State Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner calling to let me know that he has formally decided to run for the Republican nomination for California Governor, and that tomorrow (now today) his campaign would be going down to the California Secretary of State’s Office to formally file papers for an Exploratory Committee for Governor. I just received a call confirming that this has taken place!

I told Commissioner Poizner that while this news was hardly unexpected, that it was certainly exciting, and of… Read More

So I have been told that a framework of agreement on a budget has been agreed to by the four legislative leaders. There are apparently no new taxes in this agreed-upon framework. We here at the FR are anxious to see the details.… Read More

Energy: As I have told you before, I do not expect much action on anything in Washington prior to the election unless it is something with a looming deadline. Well, the big looming deadline on the energy front is the Sept. 30th expiration of the Congressional ban on offshore oil and gas drilling. The President has already removed his executive order ban so if the Congressional one expires, offshore drilling will be allowed nationwide on October 1st.

The way things work back here is that the majority party, whichever one that happens to be, does not like to let the minority party decide the fate of major issues. After all, the benefit of having the majority is that you get to decide those things and not the other guys. But sometimes, the majority is split on an issue and the minority is united. When that happens, the majority is in trouble because a floor vote will mean that the minority party breaks the tie amongst the majority and the "losers" within the majority will be very mad that their leadership let the other side push this issue away from their desire. This happened when Republicans were in charge and it is happening now with Democrats… Read More

Years of wasteful spending finally caught up with the Sacramento Library Director—. So, what does she do? She hires a high profile public relations firm with $11,000 taxpayer dollars in order to put a positive spin on a very scandalous situation. According to the Sacramento Bee, August 14, 2008, “[w]hen reporters and grand jury members began scrutinizing Sacramento Public Library last year, it became clear that [the director’s] job could be in trouble. This was underscored when, “The Bee revealed an apparent library maintenance over-billing and kickback scheme that operated under [the director’s] watch.” “The grand jury got involved, issuing…a scathing report citing [the director’s]… Read More

A bit of buzz resulted last week from the news that Republican members of the Assembly wore name tags in a caucus budget discussion with the Governor. It may have been off-handedly amusing to those who devised the idea, knowing full well the Governor himself would find it as such, especially after his apparent recent admission that he has little contact with GOP legislators.

Yet, the name tag idea wouldn’t have been conceived at all, had the reality of the matter not existed. It’s likely the Governor doesn’t know all of the GOP legislators by name or by face. Or, at least, not their interests and concerns.

The episode is ironic, given this Governor’s start.

**There is more – click the link**

View Full Commentary… Read More

A bit of buzz resulted last week from the news that Republican members of the Assembly wore name tags in a caucus budget discussion with the Governor. It may have been off-handedly amusing to those who devised the idea, knowing full well the Governor himself would find it as such, especially after his apparent recent admission that he has little contact with GOP legislators.

Yet, the name tag idea wouldn’t have been conceived at all, had the reality of the matter not existed. It’s likely the Governor doesn’t know all of the GOP legislators by name or by face. Or, at least, not their interests and concerns.

The episode is ironic, given this Governor’s start.

Hark back to mid-November 2003, a couple of days after Arnold Schwarzenegger was sworn in as the 38th Governor of California. A Republican legislator stopped in with a request for the chief executive’s receptionist. The lawmaker explained that when some of his Sacramento guests… Read More