Today’s California Blog Roundup is on the flip. Teasers: Phil Angelides, Arnold Schwarzenegger, CA-11, CA-04, Bill Durston, Charlie Brown, John Doolittle, Richard Pombo, Dan Lundgren, Republican corruption, Proposition 90, Proposition 89, Proposition 87, health care, global warming.

Bloggers on GovernorPhil.com

As I’m sure you know, a group of independent California bloggers (including our own sfbriancl) launched Governor Phil yesterday, to track the race and tell folks how they felt about Governor Phil (good, they feel good). Here are some bloggy reactions, in no particular order:

• Berkeley Bubble
• Left in SF (with some nice words for Calitics as well — thanks!)
• D-Day
• SoHum Parlance
• Alliance for a Better California
• DNC

Governor’s Race

• Manoj Mate reminds us of Schwarzenegger’s recent history — you know, Schwarzenegger’s attempted power grab in last year’s special election, the history that the Republicans are trying to stuff down the memory hole.
• In a post from earlier this week at Governor Phil, Dan Ancona takes on all the BS that the Republicans are spewing about taxes. Note in particular Dan’s explanation that Schwarzenegger has increased the structural deficit by relying on borrowing. Just one more way that Schwarzenegger is a true Bush Republican — looked at the national debt lately?
• For serious moves toward sustainable energy policy, you need Governor Phil.
• Frank Russo was at a press event where Phil explained his commitment to actual action to curb global warming.
• Look, Governor Phil in action.
• Some advice for Phil: Step up and start swinging — your opponent is a big ol’ pinata full of lies and failures.
• Schwarzenegger: endorses every extremist Republican running for statewide offices (except Dick Mountjoy), including rabid extremist Tom McClintock. Puts Schwarzenegger in good company, that does, right next to his fellow action star Mel Gibson.
• Schwarzenegger pretends to care about global warming, but fights any effort to actually do anything about it.
• Fleet of Hummers != concerned about the environment.
• Once again, it’s election time, so Schwarzenegger pretends to care.
• Women, remember, the Governor is only pretends to care.
• Schwarzenegger gets one more big ol’ Bush Republican corporate shill for his “leadership team”. Seriously, Schwarzenegger will say anything — you have to watch what he actually does.

Jerry McNerney / Paid-For Pombo / CA-11

• Paid-For Pombo: Use it up, wear it out, global warming can’t come soon enough.
• Seriously, Paid-For Pombo: Use it up, wear it out, global warming can’t come soon enough.

Charlie Brown / 15% Doolittle / CA-04

• Charlie Brown wants to know why 15% Doolittle drove your tax dollars and mine to a government that turned a blind eye to sex slavery and sweatshops. I’d like to know that too. (BTW, here’s a hint for 15% Doolittle’s campaign staff: it’s not a smear if it’s factually true, unlike most of your talking points.)
• Charlie Brown and Rob Haswell aren’t just running against 15% Doolittle, they’re running against his corrupt machine.
• Snakes of a, erm, feather, flock slither together.
• 15% Doolittle likes canyons better when they’re flooded, but pretends to care about the environment when some money may be on the table for him.
• Oh, and we’re reminded that 15% Doolittle supports the failed invasion and occupation of Iraq. No questioning his unfailing servility to George Bush.
• 15% Doolittle (and Dan Lundgren) want you and your relatives to suffer for lack of medical research.

Health Care

• Universal coverage under SB 840 is coming: let’s see if Schwarzenegger is serious about actually helping Californians with their health care. Nope, but he does have a secret plan he’ll roll out after he’s re-elected.
• And here’s something you can do to help with SB 840.

Propositions

• Think Progress rips into Big Oil’s lies about Prop 87.
• Remember Brian’s post about Howard Rich, the dark lord behind Prop 90? Well, this ultra-wealthy right-wing extremist from New York has his dirty fingers in a lot of pies out West. I thought one of the core values of Western Republicans was that they didn’t like a lot of interference from back east…
• D-Day on the impact of both Governor Phil’s endorsement of Prop 89 and the CDP’s neutral stance.

The Rest

• Randy Bayne hosts a piece on Bill Durston, the Democrat running against Dan Lundgren in CA-03.
• Dave Johnson from Seeing the Forest gets some broadcast media time.
• Leland Yee: Democrats continue to acknowledge reality and support those who come to the country hoping for a better life. Republicans continue to pander to their nativist base.
• Something happening on redistricting. Dunno what, though.
• Dan Gillmoor is not impressed with Diane Feinstein.
• Here’s the kind of thing that works not just in local politics, but generally.

Today’s California Blog Roundup is on the flip. Teasers: Phil Angelides, Arnold Schwarzenegger, CA-11, CA-04, John Doolittle, Republican corruption, Proposition 89, Proposition 85, Jerry Brown, health care.

Governor’s Race

• Frank Russo on Phil’s “Restoring the Public Trust“. The more I learn about Phil, the happier I am.
• Julia Rosen at ABC points us to a recent election piece by Dan Walters, who is always a reliable source for conventional wisdom.
• Schwarzenegger’s team of Bush Republicans tries to attack Phil’s reform stance, but it, ah, kinda backfires.
• Ah, perks given to the Schwarzenegger administration team by corporations. And I bet that the seats next to the Schwarzenegger people were corporate lobbyists. That’s, wossname? Bribery, innit? Well, that’s a strong word, but seriously, goodies given to people in government always come with strings.
• Schwarzenegger pal managing Schwarzenegger personal finances also appointed by Schwarzenegger to help manage UC’s finances. No conflict there, no cronyism, no sirreebob.

Jerry McNerney / Paid-For Pombo / CA-11

• Voter Registration Drive, August 12.
• Interesting piece from PomboWatch on the slice of Santa Clara County in CA-11.
• Similarly, this piece on voter registration in San Joaquin County.

Charlie Brown / 15% Doolittle / CA-04

• Dump Doolittle has a couple great LTEs from disappointed 15% Doolittle constituents.
• Is 15% Doolittle a “Devoted Friend of Sex Slavery“?
• A friend of sex slavery, sure, but “devoted”? I suspect it all depends on his campaign contributors.
• I guess you really can judge a man by the friends he chooses.

Propositions

• Frank Russo: Exhibit 1 in the Case for Prop 89.
• California Labor Federation opposes Prop 85’s anti-choice agenda.
• Here comes the flood of initiative advertising: big business vs. everyone else.

The Rest

• Daraka at Hoverbike has a nice piece up on the need for (and right kind of) party unity.
• Here’s what Fabian Nunez says he’s thinking.
• Looks like Jerry Brown is well on his way to crushing Chuck Poochigian.
• Summer health care issues roundup.
• RIP, Esther Snyder. Thanks for everything.
• OC Mayor shows his stripes — the species seems to be “nativist skunk”.

Today’s California Blog Roundup is on the flip. Teasers: Phil Angelides, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jerry McNerney, Charlie Brown, John Doolittle, Brent Wilkes, Republican corruption, Proposition 89, minimum wage, prisons, environment, redistricting reform.

Governor’s Race

• Phil comes out in favor of the redistricting reform embodied in SCA 3 [Warning, PDF]. Combine that with his support for Prop 89, and we’re looking at a real reform candidate.
• Phil steps up to support working Californians — backs a hike in the minimum wage and periodic increases to keep up with inflation. Schwarzenegger, on the other hand… tried to slide the question through the Industrial Welfare Commission he controls, but even that dodge didn’t really work.
• Berkeley Bubble likes Phil’s energy plan.
• Schwarzenegger’s campaign manager, Steve Schmidt, tries to pull the same thing he did as a part of Bush/Cheney ’04, and dump facts down the memory hole. Steve Maviglio steps up to refute Schmidt’s lies.
• Maybe not everyone likes Schwarzenegger as much as he thinks they do.

Jerry McNerney / Paid-For Pombo / CA-11

Randy Bayne attended the opening of Jerry McNerney’s Stockton office and reports back.

Charlie Brown / 15% Doolittle / CA-04

• firedoglake has a great post up by Howie Klein making the case for Charlie Brown (honestly, it’s not that hard, but Howie really sells it), and CB answers questions in the comments.
• 15% Doolittle apparently senses an opportunity to funnel government cash to his cronies and pick up his 15% of the campaign contribution kickbacks — concrete pays, canyons don’t.
• Here’s another view of this 15% Doolittle photo-op, with some background on the Auburn Dam. Also, video.
• If anyone is curious about what kind of world 15% Doolittle wants, it’s a world where poor women are exploited and abused, and the rich pay off politicians like Doolittle to keep it that way.
• The Left Coaster points us to a SacBee Page One article on 15% Doolittle’s corruption.

Other Republican Paragons (Brent Wilkes Edition)

• California Republican taught Brent Wilkes how to bribe. Awwww… isn’t that sweet?
• Ah, the top tier of Wilkes “transactional lobbying” recipients (purty euphemism for “bribery”, ain’t it — lots of California Republicans. Makes one proud.
• Down With Tyranny: You simply can’t walk away from the [article] without wondering why Randy “Duke” Cunningham is the only Republican in prison for the widespread corruption that virtually defines the GOP political culture of the last half dozen years in Washington, from lowlife slimeball congressmen to a lowlife slimeball president and vice president (yes, Wilkes gave BushCheney hundreds of thousands of dollars in quasi-legal bribes too).
• Apparently, corruption is what you get when you put Republicans in positions of power. Of course, since they don’t believe in government, they probably don’t think they did anything wrong.

Propositions

• The CDP Executive Board votes to remain neutral on Prop 89, defying its rank and file.
• Why this is a bad decision.

Prisons

• Politics in the Zeros: Take control of the prisons away from the Schwarzeneggers and prison guards, and force reform.
• Don Perata: what we’re doing with the prisons isn’t working. Time to try some actual rehabilitation.
• Schwarzenegger’s last-minute election year stunt, calling a special session to deal with the prison crisis he’s known about for years, is pretty much guaranteed to fail. No matter what the Bush Republicans say, you don’t just whip up a solution to problems of this size, just in time for an election.

The Rest

• Alicia of last left turn before Hooterville explains how she became politicized, and what she wants to do with that energy.
• We at Calitics are not huge fans of Diane Feinstein, but we recommend you give her a call and thank her for this:
  

  Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-Calif.) called the [Republican] proposal [to legalize Bush’s domestic spying] “worse than no bill at all,” arguing that it would weaken current surveillance law and would “allow the president to exercise unchecked authority.”

  Her office #’s are here.

• Classic Republican move: pull money out of public schools, complain about their failings, respond by pulling more money out with vouchers for religious schools.
• Debra Bowen presses onward, trying to make sure Californians’ votes matter. We are huge fans.
• Howard Smith of the Ojai Post gets involved locally, and his side makes some progress.
• The feedback spiral of rising foreclosures and falling housing prices may have started in CA.
• Politics in the Zeros has links to the LAT’s five part series on our oceans. It’s not cheerful reading, so be warned.

Just in time for the weekend, today’s California Blog Roundup is on the flip. Teasers: Phil Angelides, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jerry McNerney, Paid-For Pombo, 15% Doolittle, Dan Lungren, Republican corruption, Proposition 89, Proposition 90, minimum wage, infrastructure bonds, prisons, global warming.

Governor’s Race

• A lot of people are writing about Phil Angelides’ support of Prop 89:
• Frank Russo from California Progress Report: once, and twice
• Randy Bayne (with bonus summary of Prop 89)
• Jack Ryan of Berkeley Bubble
• D-Day (who is now on someone’s “On Notice Board” — welcome to the club)
• Down With Tyranny

• Julia Rosen reminds us once again: Schwarzenegger can try to pretend he’s not a Bush Republican, but his campaign staff tells us different.
• The tension between who Schwarzenegger really is and who he pretends to be is catching up with him. Schwarzenegger is flip-floppy on steroids.
• It’s election time, so Schwarzenegger pretends to care about working people and the minimum wage. But even his pretending is half-hearted. He couldn’t be bothered to even shoot off one of his strongly worded protest letters to Congress when Schwarzenegger’s fellow Republicans tried to lower the wages of working Californians. (For someone who actually gives a damn about working people, see Fabian Nunez.)
• You would think that a man with ties to Enron could have done something about the California energy situation… Sorry, no.

Jerry McNerney / Paid-For Pombo / CA-11

• Progressive 11th’s CA-11 News Roundup.
• PomboWatch raises a good point: paying off Paid-For Pombo may seem like a half-decent short-term strategy for everyone except Big Oil, but it’s a bad call in the long term.
• Wes Clark has endorsed Jerry McNerney + a great LTE (click all the way through — it’s worth it).
• A group of Paid-For Pombo’s constituents-in-theory (actual people who live in CA-11) would like to get a meeting with him when he’s in town for the August recess. I suspect they’ll have far less luck than Paid-For’s industry backers real constituents.

Charlie Brown / 15% Doolittle / CA-04

• The spokesman for 15% Doolittle has got one of the highest Republican-buzzword to sentence ratios I think I’ve ever seen. But calling Charlie Brown what he thinks is names is no substitute for actual policy positions (or actual thought, for that matter).
• dengre at Daily Kos is making predictions about 15% Doolittle’s immediate future — dengre thinks it starts with “indict” and ends in “ment”. dengre also has some things to say about Paid-For Pombo.

Other Republican Paragons

• Carpetbagger Dan Lungren (CA-03) is dodging Bill Thurston (and the Bee’s coverage is pathetic).
• Bill Cavala on Richard Mountjoy: It is possible to be personally pleasant and a rabid extremist — don’t confuse the two things.

Propositions

• Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata challenges the recent Field Poll resulds on the Infrastructure Bonds.
• Tom Adams of the California League of Conservation Voters on Prop 90, the bait-and-switch proposition.

The Rest

• Jack Ryan at Berkeley Bubble is not yet divorcing his car, but is seeing a bicycle.
• Hard: Putting up enough canopies and having enough water for your field labor. Not hard: letting them die of heat exhaustion.
• What is one of the hallmarks of a Republican administration? Enriching private contractors at the expense of the citizens, who don’t get what they pay for. This time, it’s Schwarzenegger’s Department of Corrections medical services contracts.
• Divesting California assets from companies who do business in Sudan.
• Dunner makes a good point: California has 1 in 9 Americans living here, a population bigger than most countries, and the fake federalist Republicans are constantly trying to prevent us from doing the right thing by our people.
• Assembly Member Fran Pavley on the case for state action on global warming.

Today’s California Blog Roundup is on the flip. Teasers: Phil Angelides, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Richard Pombo, Buck McKeon, CA-50, voting, Republican corruption, Proposition 88, prisons, immigration, global warming.

Governor’s Race

• From My Left Wing, occam’s hatchet systematically sets up and knocks down pretty much every Schwarzenegger move so far. o.h. says this is part 1 of 2, though I’m not sure what’s left for part 2.
• Schwarzenegger needs to make a call: either pander to his nativist base or do the right thing and reject their bigotry.
• Pandering to extremist Republican base, Schwarzenegger rewards extremist Republican with judgeship. Not all that surprising, except that this particular extremist Republican was one who used to make Arnold ashamed to be a Republican. Bet Arnold hoped this one would slide under the radar.
• Shorter Frank Russo: Schwarzenegger’s a greenhouse gasbag. That photo-op with Tony Blair generated yet another promise for Schwarzenegger to judiciously study a problem after he’s re-elected. If Schwarzenegger were serious, he’d throw his support behind AB 32 [Warning, PDF].
• PowerPAC points us to a profile of the Real Phil Angelides — not the straw man that the Republicans have been putting up. (Also from PowerPAC, a web ad from Phil.)
• Julia Rosen has some more detail on the money race. Schwarzenegger’s Bush/Cheney campaign team seem to be big spenders.
• Really big spenders: $16 Million in the first 6 months of the year, without a primary opponent.

Jerry McNerney / Paid-For Pombo / CA-11

• Advisor to Paid-For Pombo suggests death for Connecticut residents who oppose drilling in ANWR. No, seriously.
• Paid-For Pombo is just another extremist Bush Republican, one of the Mayberry Machiavellis, with no policy, only politics.
• I don’t know how many times I can say this: Paid-For Pombo just flat out hates the planet. Where does he think his kids will live when he’s helped destroy their world?

CA-50

• Lots of people posting on the lawsuit demanding a hand recount in CA-50, but I’m going with Words Have Power for this topic WHP asks a good question: “Interestingly, since he has already been sworn into office, Brian Bilbray can not be removed from his position, even if a recount shows that he actually had fewer votes than Francine Busby. How would the Republican congress handle that little issue?” This way, I’m betting.
• In related news, Courage Campaign and Chris Bowers did an interesting post-mortem poll in CA-50.

Other Republican Paragons

• Wow. Great point-by-point indictment of Buck McKeon, selling out his district for campaign contributions.
• Ah, the Republicans… always willing to screw over working people (and their theoretical “principles”) just a little more than you thought they would. And don’t forget, they’re screwing the poor while helping poor little rich girl Paris Hilton.

Propositions

Educational Justice has an interesting take on Proposition 88. And please, EJ bloggers, for the love of all that’s holy, stop with the giant colored fonts.

The Rest

• Cubanos, si! Mexicanos, no! Whaaa?
• Clearly, this is a failure in perception that needs to be fixed.
• Uneasy Rhetoric continues to thrash out ideas for renewing Downtown Sacramento.
• Despite knowing the need, the Schwarzenegger Administration did not even seek funding for mental health workers for the prisons in the budget process. So the Federal Judge overseeing the CDP has ordered them to do so. I can hear the howls of “activist judges” rising from the Republicans. If the Republicans don’t like judges stepping in, maybe they could do what’s right for a change.
• SF blogger/journalist jailed by Feds for refusal to turn over unedited tape.
• Housing bubble ending. Bad news for a lot of Californians.
• WiFi on CalTrain — sweet!
• Also sweet — Devil’s Slide to reopen early. The mess created by that closure was simply unreal.
• The Disgruntled Chemist returns to beer blogging. May I suggest he try an Anderson Valley Cerveza Crema or Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout?

Today’s California Blog Roundup is on the flip. Teasers: Phil Angelides, Arnold Schwarzenegger, CA-04, CA-11, Jerry McNerney, Richard Pombo, John Doolittle, Republican corruption, Proposition 90, Proposition 89, Proposition 87, voting, prisons, health care, immigration.

Governor’s Race

• Schwarzenegger really is a Bush Republican — just like Bush, he’s used citizen money to require official web pages to harmonize with his campaign.
• Joe Scott on politics and power (of both sorts).
• Angelides stumping in the Central Valley late last week.
• Angelides’ challenge: move from great retail politicking to mass media.
• Phil is hanging tough in the money race.

Jerry McNerney / Paid-For Pombo / CA-11

• McCloskey on today’s Republicans, especially Paid-For Pombo and 15% Doolittle.
• The Progressive Alamedan is hosting a big ol’ house party for Jerry McNerney in September.
• Paid-For Pombo: stripmining the planet.
• PomboWatch: What will Paid-For tell his grandchildren about his efforts to help global warming along?

15% Doolittle / CA-04

• I knew something was bothering me about the concept of a “Leadership PAC”. It’s a fancy name for “slush fund“.
• Bribery and betrayal of the citizens is a moral issue, something that 15% Doolittle forgets, or rather, ignores.
• 15% Doolittle abuses his franking privilege, pimps anti-immigrant talking point for his campaign using official House email.
• 15% Doolittle makes late night Paris Hilton booty call. (Get your minds out of the gutter.)

Other Republican Paragons

• A bit more on Jerry Loot Lewis, from Down With Tyranny.
• Brian Bilbray hearts Paris Hilton too.

Propositions

• Proposition 90: One of many run from New York by a wealthy developer. As if he has anyone else’s best interests at heart.
• Proposition 89: Power brokers line up to stop clean money. Russo says hooey.
• Proposition 89: A glance at Arizona shows the effect this system has on democracy. The number of minority candidates tripled. The number of women candidates has increased every year since 1998. Voter turn out is UP 20%.
• Proposition 87: it’s a very good thing. Oh, and this helps to explain exactly why.
• Infrastructure bond propositions not as popular as they could be. Frank Russo has more, especially noting Schwarzenegger’s opportunistic abandonment of the housing bond.

The Rest

• Whaddya know! Undocumented immigrants not responsible for overloading health care system.
• Randy Bayne (and California Progress Report) point us to single payer healthcare, explained.
• Today’s minimum wage is worth almost 12% less than it was 4 years ago. We index income tax brackets against inflation. Why not the minimum wage?
• Concrete proposals for fixing our broken prisons.
• One of the very few areas in which libertarians are even close to right is on civil liberties issues like drug usage and imprisonment (pity most of them hate taxes more than they love actual freedoms).
• DRE voting machines: irreparably broken. Seriously, completely, totally broken.
• Jane Harman: responding to her constituents, or “The Power of a Primary”.
• Surveillance of Californians, from CA Progress Report.
• Q2 California foreclosure rates more than doubled compared to the same period last year.
• Lloyd Levine (D-Van Nuys) on energy policy.

Today’s California Blog Roundup is on the flip. Teasers: Phil Angelides, Arnold Schwarzenegger, CA-04, CA-11, Richard Pombo, John Doolittle, Proposition 89, Proposition 87, health care, telecom.

Governor’s Race — Poll Stuff

• Bill Cavala’s take on the Field Poll.
• Julia Rosen’s take on the Field Poll.
• Randy Bayne on the Field Poll.
• PowerPAC on the Field Poll.
• Julia Rosen on the PPIC Pool.

Governor’s Race

• Riffing off of the PPIC Poll, Frank Russo has a great post on the popularity of the solutions proposed by AB 32, the Global Warming Solutions Act, and the perils of Schwarzenegger’s proposed end-run around it.
• Angelides on Energy.
• Does anyone seriously think that Schwarzenegger will do anything that actually addresses the public’s need for affordable and universal health care? Me neither.
• D-Day is a bit off in his interpretation of this Angelides statement, but he’s right that Schwarzenegger is a tool of big oil.
• Even better from D-Day, a history of Schwarzenegger’s involvement with Ken Lay during the 2001 Enron fleecing of California.
• From ABC, looks like it might be tough for Schwarzenegger on immigration. Can’t get Latinos and please the nativist base. More here, from PowerPAC.
• Fudgsicles for the little people, Arctic AC for Schwarzenegger. Leading by example is so passé.
• Why Latinos are electorally important, and why Schwarzenegger fails them. For more, see Bill Cavala with some context on the California Republican history with Latinos.
• This is a good question. What are Schwarzenegger’s core values?
• It’s hard to say, because he keeps changing his positions, depending on whether it’s an election year or not.
• What we do know is that it’s an election year, so it’s time for Schwarzenegger to pretend to care. More pretending to care.
• P.S. This is what actual caring looks like.

Jerry McNerney / Paid-For Pombo / CA-11

In a nutshell, it appears that Paid-For Pombo’s killing of a buffalo was worth about $5K, which he didn’t repay or document. Mmmm… buffalo meat, seasoned with bribery.

15% Doolittle / CA-04

• Time to rewrite the civics textbooks. Local governments hire lobbyists who give money to 15% Doolittle as campaign contributions (with the 15% kickback), junkets and fancy dinners, then local governments get earmarks. That’s how it works.
• 15% Doolittle: I would save the freezer. Real people with real illness don’t matter to me.
• Do Republicans like 15% Doolittle seriously believe that morality is only a below-the-waist as defined-by-them issue? Never mind, stupid question. Of course they do.

Propositions

• Common Cause and the League of Women Voters say Yes on Prop 89.
• mathature at Daily Kos says Yes on Prop 89.
• s9 at MojoWire says Yes on Prop 87.

The Rest

• Update on AB 2987, the statewide video & internet franchise bill. Some progress has been made.
• This is a really interesting piece on increasing investment and stability in the grid over the long term.
• Ferial Masry (Dem Candidate, AD-37) is opening up a campaign HQ in Thousand Oaks.
• Assembly Member Dave Jones on why Sacramento should not impose a regressive sales tax to subsidize the billionaire who will benefit most from a new Kings stadium.
• Sheila Kuehl on prisons and transportation in the most recent budget.
• Bob Brigham is not all that happy with Barbara Boxer.
• Shorter Dianne Feinstein: I don’t have a clue about why people are concerned about the integrity of their vote.
• One more convert to the popular presidential vote plan.
• Dan Gillmoor thinks the Hearst involvement in the Merc takeover smells fishy.
• Not California, but I have a soft spot for Alaskan politics.

Today’s California Blog Roundup is on the flip. Teasers: Arnold Schwarzenegger, CA-04, CA-11, CA-50, Richard Pombo, John Doolittle, Republican corruption, voting, health care, immigration.

Governor’s Race

• A while back, I saw a local band that opened with the song “Pretend To Like Us!” I am reminded that for Arnold Schwarzenegger, the theme song is “Pretend to Care!“
• It’s Election Year, Pretend to Care!
• It’s Election Year, Pretend to Care!
• It’s Election Year, never mind anything Schwarzenegger ever said before.
• It’s Election Year, Pretend to Care and never mind anything Schwarzenegger ever said before!
• Schwarzenegger: Bush League. Compassionate Conservatism means Pretending to Care.

Jerry McNerney / Paid-For Pombo / CA-11

• Paid-For Pombo tries to make nice at the San Joaquin Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. I can just picture it now: “No, it’s not your relatives I wanted to jail. It’s those other people and their relatives.”
• I wonder if these Indians got anything from Paid-For Pombo for letting him kill a buffalo? I think the answer to that is only “yes” if they were represented by Jack Abramoff. And even then, they probably got screwed.
• This may be the longest indictment I’ve read charging Paid-For Pombo with crimes against the planet.

15% Doolittle / CA-04

Almost all of the links below are from Dump Doolittle, who went on a serious roll over the weekend. So, to read these in situ, just go to Dump Doolittle and start scrolling.

• 15% Doolittle: A History
• Who are 15% Doolittle’s real constituents?
• 15% Doolittle is a big spender, but a lot of it is just paid to himself.
• Dump Doolittle on the hard work of being a patriot instead of just a jingo, and why a patriot can’t vote for 15% Doolittle.
• Hypothetical conversation: Thomas Jefferson v. 15% Doolittle. I really don’t think they would even speak the same language, Doolittle is so far from Jefferson on almost every issue.
• 15% Doolittle isn’t just institutionally corrupt, like the rest of the Republican Party. He’s personally corrupt, and that makes him vulnerable.

Other Republican Paragons

• Shocking news: Republicans use black budget to hide earmarked favors for bribers contributors.
• Forced prostitution and values for sale: Today’s Republican Party.

The Rest

• The math has been done. California could save roughly $22 billion a year in bureaucracy and excess costs by pooling everyone from the thousands of health insurers and government programs now covering Californians. That’s enough to give every state resident first-class coverage, including: doctors of your choice, hospital care, prescription drugs, vision, dental, mental health, and substance abuse treatment, even hospice and skilled nursing care.
• Terry of terrysfaceplace reprints a speech by Judy Hess of the CA-50 Action Committee detailing the problems in the June special election. Words Have Power, who has been pretty consistent in resisting the recount, seems to be a bit more receptive than in the past. I think the tactical question to be answered is when does one spend the time and money to force the issue of DRE voting machine security and reliability? At a strategic level, the question is quite simple: why aren’t we just using paper ballots?
• Interesting. Francine Busby says she’s going to run hard and real against Bilbray and blow off the DC consultant crew. of course, they won’t be spending as much time in CA-50 with so many other races run at the same time, which may turn out to be a blessing.
• I guess if you keep increasing the fatality rate for border crossing, you might eventually reduce the immigration rate, though that’s been tried in a number of places before. That hardly seems reasonable, though, if you actually believe that the people crossing the border are, well, people.
• janinsanfran on the possible core of a progressive movement.

Today’s California Blog Roundup is on the flip. Teasers: Arnold Schwarzenegger, CA-04, CA-11, CA-41, Jerry Lewis, John Doolittle, Republican corruption, clean money, voting, lots of other stuff.

Governor’s Race

• Look, Schwarzenegger’s occasional mild, inconsequential letters of mild protest are hardly “distancing himself” from George Bush. Maybe Schwarzenegger could put his money where his pen is.
• Schwarzenegger: Minutemen are terrific. So is George Bush.
• If Schwarzenegger really wanted to distance himself from George Bush, maybe he shouldn’t rely on the Bush family connections to fill the Schwarzenegger campaign coffers.
• Will some enterprising soul ask Schwarzenegger if he still thinks the Minutemen are doing a “terrific” job?
• Schwarzenegger is opposed to universal healthcare, might be OK with half of the current uninsured population getting some kind of insurance, but has opposed efforts consistent with even the anemic goal he’ll cop to. Schwarzenegger is a “compassionate conservative” in the George Bush model.
• You judge a man by his actions, not by his words. Schwarzenegger has consistently refused to support the moderates in his party, letting the Republican extremists dominate. Draw your own conclusions.
• BTW, here’s Frank Russo’s take on Schwarzenegger’s running mate, Tom McClintock. There could have been a moderate in that slot, but Schwarzenegger didn’t really have any interest in helping out with that.
• Once more, you judge a man by his actions, not his words. Schwarzenegger talks a good “moderate” game, but either does nothing or plays extremist hardball, depending on whether it’s an election year or not.
• We need clean campaigns. You know it, I know it, and the American people know it. Arnold Schwarzenegger doesn’t know it, though.

Jerry McNerney / Paid-For Pombo / CA-11

SNTP has a rumination on the McNerney / Filson fundraising dead heat. Filson was the Democratic institutional “moderate” candidate who was supposed to be able to really get funded, but McNerney picked up the grassroots support and ran even with Filson. Now if only McNerney could get a little institutional help, maybe we could narrow the gap with Paid-For Pombo. You’d think there’d be a lesson here for the institutional committees.

15% Doolittle / CA-04

• 15% Doolittle cuts through red tape for folks, if (purely by coincidence) they’re paying his wife a lot of money for services she didn’t actually provide.
• California is a community property state. That means that half of every dollar that someone pays 15% Doolittle’s wife actually belongs to 15% Doolittle. So in Q2 2006, 15% Doolittle personally took in more than $17,500 from campaign contributors.
• One MIL-yon Dollars! That’s what 15% Doolittle spent on his primary bid alone. If you can’t dazzle them with brilliance… Seriously, think about this. There are fewer than 650,000 people in CA-04, and the most expensive media market is Sacramento. And 15% Doolittle spent a cool million to defend himself against a Republican challenger.

Other Republican Paragons

Jerry “Loot” Lewis: earmarks for political supporters seem to turn into business opportunities…

The Rest

• Dear Republicans, we really like the immigrant-bashing. Please continue.
• Paper ballots. It’s just that simple, and it works.
• Oy. Every time you look at the Department of Corrections, it just gets worse.
• I wonder if the anti-tax crowd will rally round to protest spending money on a new arena for the Sacramento Kings. I have never seen a cost-benefit analysis of goverment sponsorship of professional sports that showed the investment was anything but a money pit for the government.
• Good for the California Young Dems — voters are where you find them.
• Sheila Kuehl on social services in the most recent budget.
• Let’s be perfectly clear. The insurance industry is behind the push to demonize plaintiff’s lawyers (folks who represent individuals). And yet, they’re perfectly happy to use their own lawyers to sue to block the will of the people from regulating them. What’s the word for that again? Greed? Politics? Hypocrisy? Yes.
• Poor Abel Maldonado — caught between his leader and his constituency. Leader wins, Abel loses!
• Housing bubble updates from Calculated Risk: Inland Empire, Los Angeles, SF Bay Area.
• No, there’s no bias on Fox.
• Cab Drollery points us to “Cows With Guns“.

Section 1. STATEMENT OF FINDINGS

  (a) The California Constitution provides that no person shall be deprived of property without due process of law and allows government to take or damage private property only for a public use and only after payment to the property owner of just compensation.
  (b) Despite these constitutional protections, state and local governments have undermined private property rights through an excessive use of eminent domain power and the regulation of private property for purposes unrelated to public health and safety.
  (c) Neither the federal nor the California courts have protected the full scope of private property rights found in the state constitution. The courts have allowed local governments to exercise eminent domain powers to advance private economic interests in the face of protests from affected homeowners and neighborhood groups. The courts have not required government to pay compensation to property owners when enacting statutes, charter provisions, ordinances, resolutions, laws, rules or regulations not related to public health and safety that reduce the value of private property.
  (d) As currently structured, the judicial process in California available to property owners to pursue property rights claims is cumbersome and costly.

Section 2. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

  (a) The power of eminent domain available to government in California shall be limited to projects of public use. Examples of public use projects include, but are not limited to, road construction, the creation of public parks, the creation of public facilities, land-use planning, property zoning, and actions to preserve the public health and safety.
  (b) Public use projects that the government assigns, contracts or otherwise arranges for private entities to perform shall retain the power of eminent domain. Examples of public use projects that private entities perform include, but are not limited to, the construction and operation of private toll roads and privately-owned prison facilities.
  (c) Whenever government takes or damages private property for a public use, the owner of any affected property shall receive just compensation for the property taken or damaged. Just compensation shall be set at fair market value for property taken and diminution of fair market value for property damaged. Whenever a property owner and the government can not agree on fair compensation, the California courts shall provide through a jury trial a fair and timely process for the settlement of disputes.
  (d) This constitutional amendment shall apply prospectively. Its terms shall apply to any eminent domain proceeding brought by a public agency not yet subject to a final adjudication. No statute, charter provision, ordinance, resolution, law, rule or regulation in effect on the date of enactment that results or has resulted in a substantial loss to the value of private property shall be subject to the new provisions of Section 19 of Article 1.
  (e) Therefore, the people of the state of California hereby enact “The Protect Our Homes Act.”

Section 3. AMENDMENT TO THE CALIFORNIA CONSTITUTION

  Section 19 of Article I of the state constitution is amended to read:

SEC. 19. (a)(1) Private property may be taken or damaged only for a stated public use and only when just compensation, ascertained by a jury unless waived, has first been paid to, or into court for, the owner. Private property may not be taken or damaged for private use.
  (2) Property taken by eminent domain shall be owned and occupied by the condemnor, or another governmental agency utilizing the property for the stated public use by agreement with the condemnor, or may be leased to entities that are regulated by the Public Utilities Commission or any other entity that the government assigns, contracts or arranges with to perform a public use project. All property that is taken by eminent domain shall be used only for the stated public use.
  (3) If any property taken through eminent domain after the effective date of this subdivision ceases to be used for the stated public use, the former owner of the property or a beneficiary or an heir, if a beneficiary or heir has been designated for this purpose, shall have the right to reacquire the property for the fair market value of the property before the property may be otherwise sold or transferred. Notwithstanding subdivision (a) of Section 2 of Article XIIIA, upon reacquisition the property shall be appraised by the assessor for purposes of property taxation at its base year value, with any authorized adjustments, as had been last determined in accordance with Article XI11 A at the time the property was acquired by the condemnor.
  (4) The Legislature may provide for possession by the condemnor following commencement of eminent domain proceedings upon deposit in court and prompt release to the owner of money determined by the court to be the probable amount of just compensation.

(b) For purposes of applying this section:
  (1)  “Public use” shall have a distinct and more narrow meaning than the term “public purpose;” its limiting effect prohibits takings expected to result in transfers to non-governmental owners on economic development or tax revenue enhancement grounds, or for any other actual uses that are not public in fact, even though these uses may serve otherwise legitimate public purposes.
  (2)  Public use shall not include the direct or indirect transfer of any possessory interest in property taken in an eminent domain proceeding from one private party to another private party unless that transfer proceeds pursuant to a government assignment, contract or arrangement with a private entity whereby the private entity performs a public use project. In all eminent domain actions, the government shall have the burden to prove public use.
  (3)  Unpublished eminent domain judicial opinions or orders shall be null and void.
  (4)  In all eminent domain actions, prior to the government’s occupancy, a property owner shall be given copies of all appraisals by the government and shall be entitled, at the property owner’s election, to a separate and distinct determination by a superior court jury, as to whether the taking is actually for a public use.
  (5)  If a public use is determined, the taken or damaged property shall be valued at its highest and best use without considering any future dedication requirements imposed by the government. If private property is taken for any proprietary governmental purpose, then the property shall be valued at the use to which the government intends to put the property, if such use results in a higher value for the land taken.
  (6)  In all eminent domain actions, just compensation shall be defined as that sum of money necessary to place the property owner in the same position monetarily, without any governmental offsets, as if the property had never been taken. Just compensation shall include, but is not limited to, compounded interest and all reasonable costs and expenses actually incurred.
  (7)  In all eminent domain actions, fair market value shall be defined as the highest price the property would bring on the open market.
  (8)  Except when taken to protect public health and safety, “damage” to private property includes government actions that result in substantial economic loss to private property. Examples of substantial economic loss include, but are not limited to, the down zoning of private property, the elimination of any access to private property, and limitations on the use of private air space. “Government action” shall mean any statute, charter provision, ordinance, resolution, law, rule or regulation.
  (9)  A property owner shall not be liable to the government for attorney fees or costs in any eminent domain action.
  (10)  For all provisions contained in this section, government shall be defined as the State of California, its political subdivisions, agencies, any public or private agent acting on their behalf, and any public or private entity that has the power of eminent domain.

(c) Nothing in this section shall prohibit the California Public Utilities Commission from regulating public utility rates.
(d) nothing in this section shall restrict administrative powers to take or damage private property under a declared state of emergency.
(e) Nothing in this section shall prohibit the use of condemnation powers to abate nuisances such as blight, obscenity, pornography, hazardous substances or environmental conditions provided those condemnations are limited to abatement of specific conditions on specific parcels.

Section 4. IMPLEMENTATION AND AMENDMENT

  This section shall be self-executing. The Legislature may adopt laws to further the purposes of this section and aid in its implementation. No amendment to this section may be made except by a vote of the people pursuant to Article I1 or Article XVIII.

Section 5. SEVERABILITY

  The provisions of this section are severable. If any provision of this section or its application is held invalid, that finding shall not affect other provisions or applications that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application.

Section 6. EFFECTIVE DATE

  This section shall become effective on the day following the election pursuant to section 10(a) of Article 11.
  The provisions of this section shall apply immediately to any eminent domain proceeding by a public agency in which there has been no final adjudication.
  Other than eminent domain powers, the provisions added to this section shall not apply to any statute, charter provision, ordinance, resolution, law, rule or regulation in effect on the date of enactment that results in substantial economic loss to private property. Any statute, charter provision, ordinance, resolution, law, rule or regulation in effect on the date of enactment that is amended after the date of enactment shall continue to be exempt from the provisions added to this section provided that the amendment both serves to promote the original policy of the statute, charter provision, ordinance, resolution, law, rule or regulation and does not significantly broaden the scope of application of the statute, charter provision, ordinance, resolution, law, rule or regulation being amended. The governmental entity making the amendment shall make a declaration contemporaneously with enactment of the amendment that the amendment promotes the original policy of the statute, charter provision, ordinance, resolution, law, rule or regulation and does not significantly broaden its scope of application. The question of whether an amendment significantly broadens the scope of application is subject to judicial review.