News Archives
Don’t Sugarcoat it, Bill. Go Ahead Say What You Really Think
This is a statement issued January 21 by State Treasuer Bill Lockyer about Congress considering allowing states to declare bankruptcy:
“To the folks in Congress cooking this baloney: Don’t bother. States didn’t ask for it. We don’t want it. We don’t need it.
“Bankruptcy would devastate states’ ability to recover from the recession and make the infrastructure investments that create good jobs. Read more »
Syntactically Odd, Tortuously Phrased Fundraising Solicitation
(Editor’s Note: Norma Torres, a Pomona Democrat, was elected in 2008. In the offending sentence, the simple edit of striking “for the” and inserting ” after my” before “re-election” then striking “of my” and replacing it with “to a” would resolve much of the ambiguity. The inclusion of “2010” somewhere near “re-election” would also increase clarity. Read more »
It Takes A Lot of Money to Run for Senate, Ask Fiona Ma
(This is Assemblywoman Ma’s final term. Under the terms of Propositon 34, California’s campaign finance law, she must declare for another office to continue raising money. She may or may not run for the Senate depending on how the current occupant, Leland Yee, does in his expected 2011 quest for San Francisco mayor. Read more »
Looking for Something Really Special To Do Valentine’s Day?
Why not consider lunch with Sen. Elaine Alquist, a Santa Clara Democrat, in the Governor’s Room at the Sutter Club?
Tres romantique.
The invitation says she is running for Secretary of State in 2014, which might be true.
Under the state’s campaign finance laws, a termed-out lawmaker can only raise money in their final term if they are running for higher office. Read more »
Probing Queries from Little Hoover Commissioners? Just Wait
Virginia Ellis, the former Sacramento bureau chief of the Los Angeles Times from 2001 through 2008, was appointed January 14 by Senate President Pro Tempore Darrell Steinberg, a Sacramento Democrat, to the Milton Marks “Little Hoover” Commission on California State Government Organization and Economy.
A gifted and tenacious investigative reporter, Ellis, now retired, is best known for her dogged coverage of former state Insurance Commissioner Chuck Quackenbush. Read more »
To Quote the Solons of the Roman Empire: “Carpe Per Diem”
Normally, the Assembly and the Senate hold their second and final session of each week on Thursday mornings and lawmakers disperse to their districts.
An exception was January 14, a Friday, when both houses scheduled 9:00 am floor sessions.
It was not because of a heavy workload of legislation that required swift action. Read more »
Here’s an Archaic Word That Could See Use at the Capitol
Mockingstock — “A butt for merriment” Read more »It’s Budget Time For Lawmakers Too, Except Only Different
On January 10, Gov. Jerry Brown introduced his $119.4 billion spending plan for the fiscal year beginning July 1.
On January 10, several dozen lawmakers took the first step in creating the budgets for their fiscal year, which begins immediately.
In what is almost the first act of any consequence in the new year, those legislators sent 40 missives urging lobbyists and interest groups to “save the date” for fundraisers they have scheduled from as early as January 19 to December 1 when Assemblyman Marty Block, a San Diego Democrat, is hosting a “spa event” at Arden Hills Country Club in Sacramento. Read more »
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