Tag Archives: Senate

Environment

Legislative Scorecard

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It’s hard to keep up with all that’s happening on the floors of the Senate and Assembly in this crucial week, but let’s bullet point a sampling what we know has been done so far:

* The State Senate passed SB 494, which mandates that 50 of all vehicles sold in the state run on alternative fuels by 2020.  This is similar to the bill that the CA Air Resources Board overturned several years ago, leading to the dumping of the EV1 project (ever see “Who Killed The Electric Car?”).  It was a party-line vote, with the exception of Mod Squadders Correa and Machado.

* SB 936 is a very important bill which would bring Workers’ compensation back in line with reality in cases of permanent disability. The bill “increases the number of weeks of indemnity payments for the range of percentages of permanent disability ratings.”  It passed 22-13.  Too many people are falling through the cracks of worker’s comp “deform.”  This is a good step.

* SB 1036 and SB 210 were also environmental bills that strengthen the good start made in AB 36 to tackle the problem of global warming.  SB 1036 provides additional funding for renewable energy, and SB 210 gives legislative heft to the Governor’s executive order reducing the carbon content in all transportation fuels sold.  SB 1036 was unanimous; Correa joined all Republicans in voting against SB 210.

more…

* AB 48 and AB 514 outlaw the sale and use of toxic chemicals like diacetyl.  Both were party-line votes except for Democrat Nicole Parra voting against.

* Bills AB 527 and AB 292, promoting green building technology and solar energy, passed.

* AB 234, authorizing the use of have umbilical cord blood in stem cell research, passed unanimously and was brought to the floor by Republican freshman Assemblyman Anthony Portantino. (h/t Kalu))

* AB 1393 passed, Mark Leno’s “Public Records Act” that will make it easier to obtain government data electronically.

* Gil Cedillo’s “driver’s licenses for illegal immigrants” bill, which really isn’t that simple, passed through the Senate (SB 60)

* SB 63 from Carole Migden, requiring labeling on foods made from cloned animal products, passed.

* SB 943 would fund for a health center at San Quentin State Prison, paid through bonds.  Considering how broken the prison health care system is, this is probably a good step.  It passed easily.

Bigger bills on health care, clean money and more come up later in the week.

Uncategorized

Some progress in the Legislature

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A few points of good news from the Legislature. First, the homeless dumping bill, SB 275 passed out of the full Senate. Press release over the flip.

Also, Loni Hancock’s clean money bill, AB 583 was passed out of the Appropriations Committee. AB 583 is currently a focus of clean money that will use one open Assembly seat and one open Senate seat along with the 2010 Gov’s race to test the system.  It could be a really good way to test the system. You can write your Legislator via the CA Campaign for Clean Money’s letter program. They’ll actually fax the letter for you.

CEDILLO-DELGADILLO HOMELESS DUMPING BILL

ADVANCES TO ASSEMBLY

Two days after a decisive vote of support in Senate Appropriations, SB 275 passed with a majority vote of the Senate. The bill now advances to the Assembly.

Homeless dumping continues to be an acute issue. During the Appropriations hearing earlier this week, the Union Rescue Mission (URM) distributed advocacy kits to committee members. The kits contained a letter from URM director Rev. Andrew Bales describing another recent dumping incident at the shelter and a DVD of a 60 Minutes news segment on downtown Los Angeles skid row’s ongoing problems with local hospitals.

Although the bill places the threat of a misdemeanor crime on the horizon, it does not seem to be deterring the practice. The May 14th incident occurred even as SB 275 advances in the legislature, on the same day the bill was being considered in a committee hearing.

“From day one, our objective has been to make significant progress in the struggle to end the inhumane and illegal practice of homeless patient dumping,” remarked Los Angeles City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo.  “This legislation represents another vital tool in our battle, and I applaud its continued support in our legislature.” said Delgadillo.

“The Senate did the right thing today. We are excited by the bi-partisan support the bill received in committee, the bill has resonated with members from diverse districts across our state. While homeless dumping has recently become a heightened issue in Los Angeles, people connect with the inhumanity of the practice and want to help,” said Cedillo. “We look forward to this support carrying over to the Assembly.”

Orange County

California’s Escalation Res.: Why does Lou Correa support W?

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Eve before the House passed their resolution on the escalation in Iraq, the California Senate had already done so.  It passed overwhelmingly, with only Republicans opposing.  Vote info here

California’s Senate became the first state legislative body in the nation to oppose President Bush’s plan to send 21,500 additional troops to Iraq, passing a resolution Monday urging Congress and Bush not to escalate U.S. involvement in the war.

The nonbinding resolution, which will be sent to Congress if it clears the Assembly, was approved by the 40-member Senate on a largely party-line vote of 22-14. Voting “no” were 13 Republicans and one Southern California Democrat, Lou Correa of Orange County. (SF Chron 2/14)

The question of the day, as the Liberal OC has been asking, why the hell did Lou Correa vote against this measure? Does he really support the surge? Does he think that his district supports the surge?  The fact is that according to a new poll released today, only 35% of the country supports the escalation.  So, even behind the Orange Curtain, support for the failed policies of George W Bush is not mandatory.

So, I strongly, indeed very strongly, request that you call Sen. Correa’s office and ask him why he voted against the Senate Resolution.  He’s apparently in the district today, so try him at both offices.  In Sacto, call him at (916) 651-4034.  His OC office is (714) 558-4400.

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Mark Leno on Iraq Surge Resolution

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A couple of weeks ago, I wondered out loud whether we would get a chance to see where California legislators stand on the Bush’s Iraq escalation. The following press release just hit my inbox:

Assemblyman Mark Leno (D-San Francisco), who authored the first anti-Iraq war resolution in the country as a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in October of 2002, announced that he would author a resolution in the State Assembly that would support efforts at the Congressional level to hold the President accountable for the failed Iraq war policy and oppose his plan to send more troops into the war.

The release says a, “strong majority of Assembly Democrats” will be co-authoring the resolution. It will be good to see where Republicans stand, are they with Bush and Schwarzenegger or with the vast majority of Californians?

The rest of the release:

“Our Country, its citizens and our service men and women deserve better than an escalation of an already failed Iraq war policy,” said Assemblyman Mark Leno (D-San Francisco).  “Americans know that now is not the time to send even more troops into a war that has cost more than 3,000 American lives and hundreds of billions of dollars.”

While the President has claimed that his plan would add an additional 21,500 soldiers, a study by the Congressional Budget Office shows that the real troop increase associated with President Bush’s escalation policy could be double that amount or 48,000.  This is because the combat units would need to be backed up by support troops.

“While Americans have been calling for a new direction for some time now, San Franciscans have been doing so since the war began many years ago.  In 2002 I was proud to author the first anti-war resolution in the country when I served on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.  It was the right thing to do then and it’s the right thing to do now,” added Leno.

Leno’s resolution, brought to him by MoveOn.org and The Progressive States Network, compliments similar efforts in the State Senate to take a stand against the failed Iraq War. “Passage of such a resolution in both houses of the legislature will send a powerful statement to Washington, DC on our state’s view of the war.  A strong majority of Assembly Democrats will be joining me as co-authors and I look forward to working with colleagues of both houses to make sure our collective voices are heard against the escalation of this war,” he said.

Arnold Schwarzenegger, California

Where Do California Legislators Stand on Iraq Escalation?

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George Bush and Arnold Schwarzenegger look ridiculous supporting the “McCain Doctrine” escalation of the Iraq war. California Democrats have a huge opportunity to do the right thing (supported by the vast majority) and stand up against the Escalation of the war in Iraq that has already cost the lives of more than 300 Californians and is on track to cost Californians more than a half a trillion dollars.

Progressive States is working with MoveOn to introduce Resolutions against the surge escalation in a 50 State Strategy manner. As of yet, I’m told that it has yet to be introduced in California. Who is going to step up and lead on this no-brainer and where do your legislators stand? You can contact your legislators and when they step up, all they need to do is cut and paste the draft resolution that is after the flip:

Edited from here:

RESOLUTION OPPOSING ESCALATION IN IRAQ

WHEREAS, The President has proposed an escalation in the number of US troops deployed in Iraq; and

WHEREAS, U.S. involvement in Iraq has resulted in the deaths of more than 3,000 U.S. soldiers and the wounding and disabling of more than 22,000 U.S. military personnel to date; and

WHEREAS, This proposed escalation will further extend National Guard tours in Iraq, that the costs to the states of the call-up of National Guard members for deployment in Iraq have been significant, as reckoned in lost lives, combat injuries and psychic trauma, disruption of family life, financial hardship for individuals, families and businesses, interruption of careers and damage to the fabric of civic life in our communities; and

WHEREAS, The American troops have valiantly upheld their duty in Iraq under dire circumstances; and

WHEREAS, More than $357 billion has been appropriated by Congress to fund military operations and reconstruction in Iraq to date, money that could fund desperately needed education, health care, housing, nutrition and other social services in our communities in the United States or humanitarian assistance abroad; and

WHEREAS, Previous budgets that have prioritized Iraq have led to cuts in critical block grants for states and have increased the federal debt, which compounded by interest payments, will likely lead to even larger cuts in funding for critical needs in the States; and

WHEREAS, Polls show that the vast majority of Americans do not support increasing the number of troops in Iraq; and

WHEREAS, Most military experts oppose escalation in Iraq and press reports indicate that even the Joint Chiefs of Staff have opposed such a strategy; and

WHEREAS, Legal experts on all sides have determined that Congress has not only broad authority, but a long tradition of limiting escalation or forcing redeployment of troops through the Constitutionally-designate power of the purse.

BE IT RESOLVED, That the state of California, on behalf of its citizens, urges that in a period when the Iraq Study Group, leading military and diplomatic officials and allies around the world are calling for a reduction in troops and withdrawal of the US from Iraq, the United States government should not escalate its involvement in Iraq or increase troop levels; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That, at a minimum, the President should obtain explicit approval from Congress if he wants to send more American troops to Iraq.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Congress should pass legislation prohibiting the President from spending taxpayer dollars on an escalation in Iraq unless he first seeks Congressional approval.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution shall be sent to George W. Bush, President of the United States, to the Congressional delegation of California state, and to the United States Congress.

Uncategorized

Sen-03: Mark Leno to Challenge Carole Migden?

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Every few years, San Francisco’s political class demands an epic battle. With Mayor Newsom getting a walk in 2007, the next title fight may end up being for Carole Midgen’s senate seat. SF Assemblymember Mark Leno put a poll in the field to test the viability of a 2008 primary challenge.

This would be somewhat unfortunate, because many north bay civilians will face forced involvement. But as Clemenza once said, “This thing’s gotta happen every five years or so — ten years — helps to get rid of the bad blood.”

The B.A.R.:

Last weekend Leno paid for a poll that was conducted to test the waters of waging a possible run against Migden. The poll, according to several people who took it and then blogged about it, portrayed Migden’s negatives as her being difficult and a rude lawmaker, and Leno’s as being soft on crime and myopically focused on gay issues. The positive aspect for the two politicians was said to be that they are both effective representatives for their constituents.

Leno just won re-election to his third and final two-year term in the Assembly and has been scouting around for his next office to run for in 2008. Leno said this week he has not made any decision as to whether he will enter the race for Migden’s seat. He is waiting to receive the poll results first, and if encouraging, intends to consult with LGBT political leaders and Democratic Party officials. A decision would not come until early 2007, he said.

“Given the persistency of questions I received from people both in Sacramento and San Francisco on whether I was running for Senate in 2008, it seemed appropriate to ask voters what they were thinking,” said Leno.

Since the Leno/Britt race (where Migden ended up on the losing end), Leno has gone a long way towards earning the respect of progressives. And as the incoming Chair of Appropriations, he would have the resources necessary to compete.

One thing is for certain, if this happens it will be a hell of a battle.

—–
Migden’s third district is (roughly) the eastern half of San Francisco, Marin County, and a decent chunk of Sonoma.


Image from Migden’s website, better one at CalVoter (PDF)

Uncategorized

2008 Assembly and Senate Outlook

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(With Republicans’ budget tantrum swinging legislative approval to such a degree — and with the GOP tanking nationally — I wanted to bump this as races that might have felt out of reach a year ago are now potentially competitive. – promoted by Bob Brigham)

The 2006 California Legislative election have come and gone with no change in the composition of either the Assembly or Senate.  In the Senate,.we kept the 25-15 lead thanks to Lou Correa’s narrow win in SD-24.  The only near miss was Democratic challenger Wiley Nickel narrowly losing to Republican incumbent Jeff Denham in SD-12.  In the Assembly, things are still 48-32, just as they were before the election.  So, onward to 2008.

For the most part, I’m going to be focusing on open seats since that’s where most of the action is.  In 2008, the odd-numbered Senate seats are up.

(More after the flip)

23 Assemblymen are term-limited in 2008, 12 Republicans and 11 Democrats.  Here are the districts which will be open, the term-limited incumbent (for reference) and the registration statistics.

Republicans-Held Seats (12):

AD-02 (Doug La Malfa)

Democratic: 31.93%
Republican: 47.82%

Gap: R+15.89

AD-03 (Rick Keene)

Democratic: 33.33%
Republican: 42.27%

Gap: R+8.94

AD-10 (Alan Nakanishi)

Democratic: 37.77%
Republican: 42.07%

Gap: R+4.30

AD-15 (Guy Houston)

Democratic: 38.02%
Republican: 40.19%

Gap: R+2.17

AD-26 (Greg Aghazarian)

Democratic: 40.92%
Republican: 42.20%

Gap: R+1.28

AD-34 (Bill Maze)

Democratic: 32.87%
Republican: 47.22%

Gap: R+14.35

AD-36 (Sharon Runner)

Democratic: 35.53%
Republican: 43.94%

Gap: R+8.41

AD-64 (John Benoit)

Democratic: 33.50%
Republican: 46.04%

Gap: R+12.54

AD-71 (Todd Spitzer)

Democratic: 26.50%
Republican: 52.68%

Gap: R+26.18

AD-75 (George Plescia)

Democratic: 28.70%
Republican: 43.57%

Gap: R+14.87

AD-78 (Shirley Horton)

Democratic: 40.89%
Republican: 34.75%

Gap: D+6.14

AD-80 (Bonnie Garcia)

Democratic: 45.59%
Republican: 37.37%

Gap: D+8.22

We can classify these as such

Non-competitive:

AD-71: R+26.18
AD-02: R+15.89
AD-75: R+14.87
AD-34: R+14.35
AD-64: R+12.54

Potentially Competitive:

AD-03: R+8.94
AD-36: R+8.41
AD-10: R+4.30
AD-15: R+2.17
AD-26: R+1.28

Lean Democratic:

AD-78: D+6.14
AD-80: D+8.22

Democratic-Held Seats (11):

AD-01 (Patty Berg)

Democratic: 44.54%
Republican: 28.45%

Gap: D+16.09

AD-08 (Lois Wolk)

Democratic: 45.53%
Republican: 30.06%

Gap: D+15.47

AD-13 (Mark Leno)

Democratic: 56.21%
Republican: 9.66%

Gap: D+46.55

AD-14 (Loni Hancock)

Democratic: 58.48%
Republican: 15.50%

Gap: D+42.98

AD-19 (Gene Mullin)

Democratic: 50.10%
Republican: 23.04%

Gap: D+27.06

AD-22 (Sally Lieber)

Democratic: 43.25%
Republican: 24.56%

Gap: D+18.69

AD-27 (John Laird)

Democratic: 47.98%
Republican: 26.61%

Gap: D+21.37

AD-30 (Nicole Parra)

Democratic: 47.38%
Republican: 38.16%

Gap: D+9.22

AD-40 (Lloyd Levine)

Democratic: 47.84%
Republican: 28.65%

Gap: D+19.19

AD-46 (Fabian Nunez)

Democratic: 63.01%
Republican: 13.69%

Gap: D+49.32

AD-52 (Mervyn Dymally)

Democratic: 67.24%
Republican: 14.19%

Gap: D+53.05

So, these can be classified as

Not competitive:

AD-52: D+53.05
AD-46: D+49.32
AD-13: D+46.55
AD-14: D+42.98
AD-19: D+27.06
AD-27: D+21.37
AD-40: D+19.19
AD-22: D+18.69
AD-01: D+16.09
AD-08: D+15.47

Potentially competitive:

AD-30: D+9.22

Senate:

10 Senators are term-limited in 2008, 6 Democrats and 4 Republicans.  I’m also going to include one-term Senator Abel Maldonado on the list because his increasingly Democratic district could be a pickup with the right candidate (John Laird?).

Democratic-Held Seats:

SD-05 (Michael Machado)

Democratic: 45.82%
Republican: 33.26%

Gap: D+12.56

SD-07 (Tom Torlakson)

Democratic: 46.66%
Republican: 31.06%

Gap: D+15.60

SD-09 (Don Perata)

Democratic: 59.07%
Republican: 13.78%

Gap: D+45.29

SD-21 (Jack Scott)

Democratic: 45.69%
Republican: 29.13%

Gap: D+16.56

SD-23 (Sheila Kuehl)

Democratic: 50.01%
Republican: 25.83%

Gap: D+24.18

SD-25 (Edward Vincent)

Democratic: 58.64%
Republican: 21.72%

Gap: D+36.92


Not competitive:

SD-09: D+45.29
SD-25: D+36.92
SD-23: D+24.18
SD-21: D+16.56
SD-07: D+15.60
SD-05: D+12.56

Republican-Held Seats:

SD-15 (Abel Maldonado) (not term-limited but I wanted to include because it is a Democratic-favoring seat)

Democratic: 39.56%
Republican: 37.32%

Gap: D+2.24

SD-19 (Tom McClintock)

Democratic: 36.04%
Republican: 40.99%

Gap: R+4.95

SD-29 (Bob Margett)

Democratic: 32.18%
Republican: 45.16%

Gap: R+12.98

SD-33 (Dick Ackerman)

Democratic: 26.90%
Republican: 51.39%

Gap: R+24.49

SD-37 (Jim Battin)

Democratic: 34.42%
Republican: 45.98%

Gap: R+11.56

Not competitive:

SD-33: R+24.49
SD-29: R+12.98

SD-37: R+11.56

Potentially competitive:

SD-19: R+4.95
SD-15: D+2.24

So, in conclusion, some key races to target and defend are:

Republican-Held Seats:

AD-03: R+8.94
AD-36: R+8.41
AD-10: R+4.30
AD-15: R+2.17
AD-26: R+1.28
AD-78: D+6.14
AD-80: D+8.22
SD-19: R+4.95
SD-15: D+2.24

Democratic-Held Seats:

AD-30: D+9.22

Uncategorized

GOP Senate candidate Mountjoy caught in lie (surprise)

(Ah, missed this when I wrote mine. I’ll add the pictures to the flip of this diary. – promoted by SFBrianCL)

The LA Times has found out that Richard Mountjoy is a liar:

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Richard Mountjoy has claimed in his campaign biography that he served aboard the battleship Missouri during the Korean War, but his military record shows no assignment on the famous vessel, The Times has found.

Now remember this is the man who is running around CA talking about sins and sinners, a man who has invoked, over and over, Christianity in his campaign.

More from the Times:

In an interview Thursday, Mountjoy acknowledged that he did not serve on the Missouri. Last week, when first asked about his record, he said his Missouri stint had been “very brief” and that he otherwise served on the U.S. heavy cruiser Bremerton, which has a less celebrated history.

However:

The statement about the Missouri was on Mountjoy’s campaign website, alongside a photo of him as a young sailor. It read:

“After graduating from Monrovia-Arcadia-Duarte High School, Dick joined the Navy and served during the Korean War aboard the Battleship Missouri.”

Mountjoy claims that he didn’t know that the statement was on his website, and as of yesterday his website has finally removed the statement.

Editor’s note: I added images from his site after the flip

Before:

With Missouri

After:
With Bremerton

California

The Modern Campaign

cross-posted from my local blog Turn Tahoe Blue

Many people, especially in the media, think that modern campaigns means modern technology. And nothing more. I believe that is not the case and there are two campaigns in the Tahoe area that prove my point.

In Nevada Jack Carter sure uses modern technology, he uses the internet extensively, especially through the blogging activities of his daughter Sarah. This way the campaign got a lot of attention on the big blogs like Daily Kos and MyDD. She also writes daily for the Carter Blog on the Carter for Nevada campaign website. Furthermore the Carter campaign also employs YouTube and MySpace to connect to a wider audience.

All that said the Carter campaign is aware of the fact that if you wanna reach voters you have to go to where they live and engage with them face to face. Jack Carter is constantly traveling to meet voters. He has recently been on a tour through 11 towns throughout Nevada. He has realized that you have got to go to the rurals if you want the people living outside of the major cities and towns to vote for you. His rural strategy is an integral part of this.

A good example of modern campaigning in California is the candidate in the 4th Assembly district, Rob Haswell. He’s got a good campaign website which includes a campaign journal which keeps those interested in his campaign up to date.

Yet, Rob Haswell also realizes that if you wanna win you better get out and travel the district. So, he has recently announced that he will travel to every town in the district on his “Whistle Stop Bus Tour” saying in a press release:

I’m excited to begin our Whistle Stop Bus Tour because it will enable us to share ideas directly with voters in their own communities.

What both candidates have in common is that conventional wisdom and their party’s establishment don’t believe that these campaigns can win. Therefore both Jack Carter and Rob Haswell had to get creative. They both had to move beyond these perceptions and engage directly with as many voters as possible.

A combination of using modern technology, mostly the internet, and meeting face to face with voters is what a good modern campaign should look like. Jack Carter and Rob Haswell show how it’s done.

California

What is Barbara Boxer doing in CT?

Apparently, Barbara Boxer doesn’t mind the dupilicity of Joe Lieberman. 

Sens. Joe Biden of Delaware, Barbara Boxer of California and Ken Salazar of Colorado plan to campaign in Connecticut for Lieberman between now and the Aug. 8 primary. Their goal is to reassure the party faithful of the three-term senator’s loyalty to Democratic causes, including women’s issues, labor and the environment.(WaPo 7/5/06)

Well, we here in the netroots don’t really dig on Joe Lieberman’s Bush-Loving ways. Big Orange and DWT have been paying far more attention to the Lieberman race than I have.  What I do know is that Joe Lieberman rarely passes up an opportunity to appear on FoxNews to bash his fellow Democrats and has vowed to thwart the will of the Democratic electorate in Connecticut if he loses the primary.  We don’t need that kind of Democrat in such a safe Democratic seat.

So, here’s Barbara Boxer’s Phone Details:

DC office: (202) 224-3553
Sacramento office: (916) 448-2787
San Francisco office: (415) 403-0100
Los Angeles office: (213) 894-5000
Fresno office: (559) 497-5109
San Diego office: (619) 239-3884
Inland Empire office: (909) 888-8525

Call her and let her know your feelings about good ol’ Joe-Mentum.