Antonio’s Big Gamble is On

Schwarzenegger has signed Villaraigosa’s LAUSD control bill, and thus, Antonio’s Big GambleTM is on.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger handed Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa a much-anticipated prize Monday, signing a law that will give the mayor substantial control over the Los Angeles public schools.

Appearing together for a bill-signing ceremony at the Los Angeles Central Library, the officials said the change would bring new accountability to a system that fails students, teachers and parents.
{snip}
“I’m asking for people to hold me personally accountable for leading improvement in the schools,” the mayor said. He urged school board members to drop their challenge. “Accept the will of the people,” he said. (LA Times 9/19/06)

You know, this is really a huge gamble on Villaraigosa’s part.  The weakened bill that ultimately passed gives him only moderate power over the schools.  He has some authority, but it’s quite tempered by other mayors outside of the 3 high schools he will control. What can he accomplish? Schools can take a long time for improvement. Will he really be able to get results in time for his next election?  Additionally, it’s possible that the state courts might invalidate this whole deal.

But on the other hand, it appears the weakening could provide him with an escape route. If schools don’t improve, he can point out that he wasn’t given all the power he requested.

This is all quite uncharted territory.  It really is his Big GambleTM.

Yes on 87: Call on Chevron to Support Clean Energy

(Edited for space and appearence. – promoted by SFBrianCL)

Right now, we have a great chance to take a huge step toward cleaner air and cheaper energy for California.  Proposition 87, on the ballot for November 7th, will:

  • Reduce gasoline and diesel usage by 25% over the next 10 years;
  • Create thousands of new clean energy jobs and grow our economy;
  • Reduce air pollution that causes asthma attacks, lung disease and cancer;
  • Make oil companies pay their fair share for oil drilling in California, just like they already pay in every other oil-producing state — even Texas;
  • Make it illegal for oil companies to raise gas prices to pass the cost along to consumers.

Proposition 87 is a great initiative, and we urge you to support it.  Sign the Yes on 87 campaign’s petition now, at:

  The Yes on 87 Website

There’s more in the extended.

Not surprisingly, the oil companies are trying to kill Prop. 87, with a massive TV and radio ad blitz designed to scare and mislead California’s voters.  The race has barely started and already ABC News has called the oil companies’ ads “misleading” and “not accurate”.[1]  The oil companies’ warchest is currently more than $30 million, and they could spend millions more.  Prop. 87 needs our help to overcome all this money.

The single biggest funder of the campaign to kill Prop. 87 is Chevron, at $12.8 million and counting.  Ironically, at the very same time, Chevron’s also running a PR campaign trying to paint itself green, asking everyone to join them in moving toward alternative energy sources:

  “At Chevron, we believe that innovation, collaboration and conservation are the cornerstones on which to build this new world.  We cannot do this alone.  Corporations, governments, and every citizen of this planet must be part of the solution as surely as they are part of the problem.”  [1]

We couldn’t agree more. 

Join us and our friends at Yes on 87 in calling on Chevron to walk their talk and support Prop. 87, instead of bankrolling the campaign to kill it:

  The Yes on 87 Website

Chevron and the other oil companies can easily afford the cost of Prop. 87.  They posted record-setting profits in the past year: $78 billion in 2005, and $20 billion in the first quarter of 2006 alone.  And they just discovered a giant new oil field in the Gulf of Mexico.

California is a major oil-producing state (America’s 3rd biggest), but we’re the only one where the oil companies don’t pay their fair share to drill for oil, like they do in Alaska, Louisiana, and Texas.  Meanwhile, the oil companies are charging Californians the highest pump prices in the nation for gas.

It’s time for a change, and Chevron knows it.  Here’s more of what their own PR ads are saying:

  “Technological improvements are needed so that wind, solar and hydrogen can be more viable parts of the energy equation.  Governments need to create energy policies that promote economically and environmentally sound development.”  [2]  And…

  “How do we accelerate our conservation efforts?  Whatever actions we take, we must look not just to next year, but to the next 50 years.” [3]

It’s time for Prop. 87. 

We’re calling Chevron out, and calling on them to join us in supporting Prop 87, instead of trying to kill it. 

The Yes on 87 campaign will deliver this petition, including your signature and comments, in person, to Chevron later this week.

Sign on now, at:

  The Yes on 87 Website

  “Now more than ever we need to work together.”  – Chevron [4]

Please sign on today.  Your help will really make a difference in this fight.

Thank you.

– Peter

Citations:

The sources quoted above and details on how much Chevron and other oil companies are spending on their campaign to kill Prop. 87 are available at the Yes on 87 website, linked above.

CA-InsComm: An Opening for Poizner, and that’s not a good thing

UPDATE: Oops! I got the District right, but the candidate wrong.  It was the 21stAD, but that’s Ira Ruskin’s seat, not Sally Lieber, who is in the 22nd AD. Ruskin beat Poizner in 2004.  Also, apparently Cruz has recently launched a new site: joincruz.com

Cruz Bustamante! Start With Cruz! Are you excited yet?  No? Well, that’s a problem.  Why? Because Steve Poizner is an up-and-comer in the world of California politics.  When he lost his race for the 21st AD, it was just the beginning.  He was willing to invest a boatload of money to be competitive in that heavily Democratic District.  Ira Ruskin won that race, but she had to really work for it.  That’s something of a surprise in that seat.

You see, Cruz Bustamante isn’t running much of a campaign.  It’s not that he’s been mired in scandal or something like that. No, he’s just literally not running a campaign.  Have you seen him campaign? It’s like seeing Loch Nessie. Grab a picture, it’s sure to be worth something. Have you seen his website? Well, yes, I guess I do mean Start With Cruz.  Yup, that’s his only presence on the web.  And cruzbustamante.com? Well, that links to Political Asylum, a liberal blog.  So, no real-world campaigning, no online campaigning…Sheesh.  That’s a doozy of a campaign, huh?

Well, my concern here isn’t really over the IC position itself.  Not that I don’t care about that position.  It’s just that Poizner doesn’t really need a platform to launch himself. He’s essentially the GOP answer to Steve Westly.  He’s a Silicon Valley businessman with loads of cash to spend on his campaigns and a seemingly moderate.  He’d be the strongest GOP candidate for the governor in 2010 if he won this race.  Now, it would be difficult for him to win the statewide primary against somebody like McClintock, but an unchallenged Poizner would be a formidable challenge, even for a powerhouse like Villaraigosa.

However, we don’t really want this job landing in Poizner’s hands for reasons of the job itself.  As numerous people have commented here, it’d be a little like the fox guarding the hen house? How can we trust a corporate-leaning conservative to protect the interests of ordinary Californians in relation to Big Insurance?  This job is meant to protect us, not the insurance companies.

So, Cruz…let’s start already.