All Eyes on March
The California Target Book’s latest California political update, “All Eyes on March”, will be this Thursday, the 13th, from 1:30 until 5:00 in the CalChamber Conference Room, 1215 K Street, 14th floor. Secretary of State Alex Padilla headlines the event that features panel discussions on Ground Campaigns, Independent Expenditures and Ballot Measures, as well as […]
California Target Book Conference Will Dig Into State and Presidential Politics
This coming Monday afternoon, the 10th, the California Target Book hosts its March to 2020 Sacramento Conference with opening remarks by Attorney General Xavier Becerra, a panel discussion of legislative and Congressional races moderated by CALmatters’ Dan Morain and a panel on the Presidential campaign moderated by Politico’s Carla Marinucci. Panelists include Rose Kapolczynski, Matt […]
Ten Takeaways from California Target Book Post Primary Analysis in Sacramento
Democratic and Republican party leaders and their consultants need to get past the grieving stage and accept that the top-two primary is the law of the land. Instead of debating who benefits and who suffers, they need to figure out how to win under the new rules. In the open primary, running to finish […]
Top Two Brought Campaign Wackiness; Will it Provide Typical Results?
With less than a week to go before voting closes in California’s June primary, political insiders’ attention is riveted on the endless range of possible outcomes that are a function of the three-dimensional political chess game we call the Open Primary. Big Bang’s Sheldon Cooper, while likely considering all this child’s play, might be amused, if […]
Scoring the Primary Results
Political insiders, like stock market traders, love to ascribe great meaning to events even when often times none exists. Leading up to election day, it was being reported that California would experience an incredible increase in voter turnout, one of historic proportion, as young voters and voters of color surged to the polls in support […]
Americans Elect is not a Third Party, It’s a Second Nominating Process
As Americans Elect, which will provide ballot access to a third presidential candidate this November, opens it doors to candidates and draft movements for the AE nomination, it will be helpful for you to know what AE is and what it isn’t. Those political insiders currently obsessed with debating which major party benefits from Americans […]
The Sky is Not Falling in California Because of the Massachusetts Election Result
The sky over Massachusetts is reported to have fallen last night. But California isn’t Massachusetts, and it certainly isn’t Washington, D.C., where the reverberations are being felt.
If, at a superficial level, both the Bay State and the Golden State can be labeled reliably Blue, yesterday’s outcome may bolster the hopes of California Republicans who are fueling their 2010 campaigns with the hope that their party is not destined to chronic irrelevancy.
But if you look at the size and ethnic make up of both states’ electorates, it is immediately evident that the two places have little in common politically.
Barbara Boxer, Jerry Brown and every one of California’s Democratic leaders would be well served to scrutinize the data coming out of Massachusetts, and to overlay that information on what they already know about political attitudes and trends in California. But they need to be very thoughtful about the conclusions they draw.
Antonio Avoids Politicaholism
Kudos to Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villagraigosa for having the guts to enter political recovery.
Politicaholism is just another form of addiction. The need to be constantly in motion whether random or directed, the need for that never ending adrenaline rush, distracts politicaholics from fulfilling the commitments they made to the people who elected them to office and even prevents them from acting in their own self interest.
Resisting the siren song of the 2010 governor’s race means that Antonio can wake up every day focused on what’s best for the City of Los Angeles. He can tackle the genuinely horrific fiscal woes facing the city. He can nail down gains on the public safety front and work to create jobs, improve our schools, reduce traffic and the city’s carbon footprint.
In doing so, he will fulfill his promise to make Los Angeles a better city, the promise he made when he asked the voters to put their trust in him. And he will feel better for it.