Links:

• CW Nevius calls Newsom’s exit from the race a healthy wake-up call, because he didn’t properly deal with people in small groups and with the press.

• This is a very sad story in the Chronicle about an East Bay group that helped rehab Michael Vick’s dogs. He did some really disgusting things to those dogs. That is one depraved dude.

• The CalBuzz crew has a piece in the LA Times calling the current crop of candidates for the governor gig unininspiring.

• Republicans boycotted a hearing with Sen. Boxer’s committee to look into climate change legislation. How very 8th grade of them.

• What exactly did this character do for $53 million in CalPERS money?

Links:

• Scott Gerber, the AG’s press frontman, has been put on administrative leave for secretly taping calls with reporters. Last week, CalBuzz called for him to be fired, and the Union-Trib compared this to the ACORN hidden camera incident. Now, as far as ACORN goes, it’s quite a different thing to record an on-the-record call between a press flack and a reporter than secretly taping somebody who has no idea that the conversation will ever be heard from again. UPDATE: Gerber has resigned today.

• For some reason, the media still seems intent on finding some sort of race in CA-10, where there really isn’t one. Today, Joe Garofoli talks turnout. The GOP will get a favorable turnout model as it is a boring special election. Nonetheless, Garamendi will win this one by double digits.

• Joel Fox takes a look at Asm. Anderson’s sketchy money transfers.  He hates Prop 34, which limits contributions, sort of. It isn’t hard to dislike, but the fact is that there isn’t a wall that money can’t find a way to flow around. Only a real clean money system with government funded campaigns will stem this tide.

• The lobbyist at the center of the media storm with the former Asm. Duvall story is not pleased about the whole situation. She claims that it was just Duvall making everything up. Hmm…Republicans lying…who’d of thunk?

• Looks like CoCo County Supervisors are getting ready to approve a casino on the Richmond waterfront. It is still many years away, as there is a lot of regulatory hoops to jump through, but think, soon you too will be able to sit in a smoky casino and have your quarters slowly extracted from your pocketbook to the tune of oxygen ventilators and wheel of fortune sounds.

To the right you will see the Brians’ attempt to carve a “pugkin” Let’s just say Better Homes and Gardens makes carving a dog-kin look a lot easier than it actually is. Now, to some links, some scary, some not:

• You want something scary, huh? Well how does the AG’s office secretly taping phone calls with reporters sound? CalBuzz thinks Brown needs to fire Scott Gerber, the press person who did the recording. Of course, Gerber should have told everybody he was recording. But there is an argument the other way, principally that it was an on-the-record call for publication the next day. Either way, Gerber is in the wrong, but the consequences are still up to Jerry Brown.

• Dan Walters has a story on the Edvoice vs CTA skirmishes. EdVoice is a pro-charter school group founded by a bunch of rich dudes, while CTA advocates a return to real investment in our public schools.  Under the dome, Edvoice tends to go for somewhat moderate Dems. In the Supt. of Public Instruction race, it looks like CTA will be supporting Torlakson, and Edvoice Sen. Romero.  Walters, a victim of Sacramento bubble syndrome, kind of ignores Supt. Larry Aceves, who has been getting some pretty good fundraising numbers. If the fight gets nasty between the two Legislators, Aceves may be the beneficiary.

• Garry South is showering some love on Tom Campbell. The cynic would say that South just doesn’t want to face Campbell in a general if Newsom gets that far, but that would be, oh, right, very Garry South.

• John Garamendi holds a ten point lead in the CA-10 race, according to a SUSA poll. The third party seems a bit higher than you’d expect. My guess is that Garamendi pulls in about 55% or so, Harmer 40%, and then the rest scattered about. The LA Times takes a look back at Garamendi’s career.

• Monday is World Pneumonia Day. It’s a huge problem in the developing world, but can be cheaply and effectively treated. It is simply a matter of resources.

• California is among the top tier in testing requirements as compared to other states.

• The Los Angeles County Democratic Party is hosting an Activist Summit on Sunday, November 8, at Cal State LA.  Click for details.  The summit will focus on communications strategies and building club infrastructure.  I (Dante) will be joining my brother David in presenting on new media and social networking.

To the links:

• Lots, and lots, and lots of stories about the stalling of water legislation.

• I (Brian) am quite proud to be doing some work for SF District Attorney Kamala Harris. She recently wrote a book about her approach to law enforcement, Smart on Crime. And today, she chatted with Matt Lauer about it. It’s actually a pretty interesting read, not that tough to get through.  Anyway, check the video of her appearance to the right –>

• Awww…poor birthers, lose another case in federal court. Apparently they think this is a fun past time, because it isn’t getting them anywhere.

• Capitol Weekly finds some fun facts in the Registration #s. Even the most Republican seat is about ten points less partisan than the tenth most Democratic seat. There is not a single seat in the Assembly with 50% Republican registration. Interesting, the Republican brand stinks, huh?

• Sen. Kehoe (D-SD) may have had a bunch of money stolen from her campaign account in 2006.

• Despite being strapped for cash, the OC Water District handed out a raise to its head honcho.

Links:

• eMeg doesn’t like debates. This is certainly interesting, as she said she’d like to do three wide-ranging debates in the fall just a few months ago.  December 21 is coming up soon, Ms. Whitman, but you still have time to fit those debates in.

• Looks like Meg Whitman won’t be on the Technology Execs for Boxer list this year, but some big names, including Google’s Eric Schmidt and Netflix founder Reed Hastings, are on the list.

• Even San Diegans favor medical marijuana dispensaries. Meanwhile, the outstanding question on marijuana prosecutions is will the feds drop the pending cases based upon medical marijuana?

• Joe Garofoli of the SF Chron has been contributing some great reporting on the Maine marriage measure, especially in relation to last year’s Prop 8. Today he’s focusing on the No on 1 team’s grassroots strategy.

• There’s going to be a “cash for appliances” program to improve appliance effeciency funded by the federal stimulus.

Links:

• The Bay Bridge is closed, after a rod snapped.

• Not that it really matters all that much, but Dem candidates have more twitter followers in the governor’s race.

• Danny Gilmore may be ditching the Assembly after one term. His friend Pete Parra, father of former Assembly member Nicole, is running for the 30th district seat.

• Fabian Nunez was cleared of wrongdoing in the campaign finance issues last year.

Links:

• Ooh, the Dick Armey TeaPartyExpress is coming to LA. Yay, photos of right-wingers doing crazy things plastered over every newspaper. Now if the media would care to investigate their real numbers in proportion to people who want real health care reform, a strong economy with robust and serious regulation, well, that’d be nice.

• In the Prop 8 litigation in federal court, the marriage equality folks were able to get discovery of some Prop 8 campaign material. Much of it will be marked confidential, but we might get some interesting information from what’s made available.

• Fisker Automotive, an LA area electric car manufacturer-to-be, plans on making their cars in America, perhaps at an old GM plant in Deleware.

• San Jose is in a tough financial state, like many other cities. The city is now looking for labor concessions.

Let’s get straight to the links:

• Carly Fiorina is expected to make some sort of announcement in Pleasanton on Nov. 6. Carlyfornia Dreamin?

• Asm. Anthony Adams is now pretty much officially facing a recall election for voting in favor of the budget deal.

• Sen. Steinberg was in San Diego Chargers owner Alex Spanos’s luxury box on Monday. Incidentally, Spanos is a big Republican donor, and might be looking to move his team, possibly to a new stadium in LA?

• An interview with Jack O’Connell.

• Greg Lucas wonders why Lockyer isn’t running for Governor. Might be something to do with the fact that the base has some serious qualms with the guy.

Hey, is that a spine that Harry Reid is growing? Apparently, the buzz on the street is that he’s going to include an (opt-out) public option in the bill he brings to the floor. We’ll see if it happens. Now, to the links:

• Tim Redmond of the Bay Guardian responds to the latest charges against Jerry Brown about his 90s liberalness.

• There are way too many initiatives being filed for the Nov 2010 ballot, some of them will even get on the ballot. This one about banning politicians from telling lies doesn’t seem too likely to succeed.

• There’s quite the back and forth between Carly Fiorina and Chuck DeVore regarding NRSC support. Chuck DeVore has basically launched an all-out attack against the DC Republicans.  How very tea-party of him.

• Medical Marijuana patient? Flying to/from SFO, no worries, bring your pot. The SFO airport police will allow card-carrying patients to have up to 8 ounces.

• Oh ya, the City of Industry Stadium legislation went through. Great, we can spend money on luring some NFL team. As a European soccer fan, I (Brian) am a big supporter of the idea of relegation and promotion of teams, an idea again proposed in last month’s Wired magazine.

Links:

• An eMeg Win! She did register to vote as a Republican in San Francisco in the 80s]! She registered in 1982, and swears she voted for Reagan in 1984 and Bush in 1988.  While there is now evidence of the registration, there isn’t any verification on actually voting though. I guess we’ll just have to trust her on that awesome record.

• Jack O’Connell announced he wasn’t going to run for anything else after his term as State Sup. of Public Instruction was up. Timm Herdt has an anecdote about the longtime public servent.

• In theory, local governments are supposed to get some money to mitigate the damages that come from tribal casinos in their area.  Unfortunately, that money is rapidly drying up despite the Governor’s recent signing of a bill to continue the program.

• San Bernardino County has been hit hard by the recession. All the stats that you’d like to see low are high, and all the stats you’d like to see high are low. From Aug. 2008 to Aug. 2009, unemployment is up 57%, and food stamps are up 54.2%.

• Over at The Crooked Dope and in the upper right, Mike Stark has an interesting conversation with Rep. David Dreier.