It’s the weekend, so go enjoy the state parks. They’re going to stay open. But before you do, links!

• Good News/Bad News for former Assembly Member Mike Duvall. The Assembly dropped its investigation. The bad news, it was because they don’t have jurisdiction and the FBI is looking into the matter.

• The LA Times will no longer share a joint news service with the Washington Post, ending a long partnership.  Now Sam Zell might actually have to hire a reporter to write stories.

• Former LA Times scribe Jordan Rau penned an article for Kaiser Health News about the similarities between the national health care reform debate and California’s failed effort in 2007.  I’m not seeing the similarities, actually.  What killed that bill was that it didn’t offer affordable coverage. Period. Schwarzenegger offered such meager subsidies that Senate Democrats wouldn’t go along with it. There was no element of Republican fearmongering or middle-of-the-road centrist Dems succumbing to protecting the insurance companies, as has characterized the national debate. What’s more, even if it passed the Legislature none of the funding could have, because of the little minority rule setup we have here. So that would have gone to the ballot. It’s a completely different dynamic and I don’t think many lessons can or should be learned from it.

• eMeg Whitman strenuously endorsed Sen. Boxer back in 2003 for her 2004 election. I’m sure the wingers will love that!

• We mentioned yesterday that John Boehner slandered the glory that is the garlic milkshake, drawing a harsh response from the Gilroy Garlic Festival.  Now, the representative of Gilroy in Congress, public option supporter Mike Honda, delivered a basket of garlic to Boehner’s office and recited a limerick for the Republican Minority Leader:

Two things make for a strong healthy heart.

Gilroy garlic, for one, a good start.

Public option? Also high,

In the American eye,

65 percent n’er want it to part.

Ahh, parochial pride.