A Victory for Non Citizens
I do not understand the reaction to Gov. Jerry Brown’s veto of a measure to permit non-citizens to serve on juries. For that matter, I do not understand the purpose of the legislation. The legislature determined that non-citizens should have the right to serve on juries, as though that were some great privilege of citizenship. […]
Hotel California
“I hate the [expletive] Eagles,” declares Jeff Bridges as the stoner-turned-detective hero of The Big Lebowski, the classic Coen brothers film study of Los Angeles. But even if you aren’t a fan of the bestselling band of the ’70s, you’ve gotta give the Eagles this: Their most famous song was so dead-on that it now […]
The Boyfriend’s Back, And Infrastructure Is In Trouble
As I’ve explained here previously, the California electorate is in reality very much like the worst boyfriend or girlfriend you’ve ever had. He gets easily angry or frustrated about everything. But he can’t tell you what he wants you to do to make him happy. That’s the sort of thing you’re not supposed to say […]
My Top 5 Recall Memories
Ten years later, the recall of Gov. Gray Davis hasn’t had the impact that its backers (a revolution! We’re saving California!) or its detractors (a Republican takeover of California! A fascist attack on representative government!) predicted at the time. But it lives on as a singular moment in the life of California. And in my […]
The Athletics Party and the Dodgers Party
Convention wisdom is that California politics is divided between Democrats and Republicans, with a growing number of unaffiliated voters. But does that explain the reality of California’s political divides. The Republicans are shrinking into irrelevance. The Democrats have less than a majority, but so many of the supposedly unaffiliated voters cast their ballots with the […]
Recall? What Recall?
Do you even recall the recall? Ten years ago this week, it was big news. California’s voters approved the yanking of Governor Gray Davis by big majorities. We made history. No statewide elected official had ever been recalled in California before, and none has since. Indeed, Davis was only the second governor in U.S. history […]
Damn The Evidence! The Top-Two Primary Is a Moderating Force Because Consultants and Media Say So!
This column is brought to you by the Department of I Can’t Believe We’re Still Having This Argument. As you know, the state’s political-media-good-government elite has long argued that the top-two primary was going to have a moderating effect. Indeed, this has become more than argument, it has become an article of faith. I speak […]
Abstain on Initiatives in 2014
Californians of means, and their interest group, have a problem. They are addicted to initiatives. They think ballot initiatives will solve the state’s problems. They have thought this for more than 100 years. Most of the time, their initiatives lose and cost people time and money. Their initiatives that win typically only make solving those […]
As the Water Debate Continues, Remembering JFK in Whiskeytown
It’s a little-known event in a little-known part of California’s far north. But at dawn this Saturday, people from Redding and nearby places will gather at Whiskeytown Lake and stand where the president of the United States stood 50 years ago. I wish the rest of California were up there with them. As we approach […]
Raise Their Pay and Keep Them Working
Here’s a terribly unpopular idea that we should act upon anyway. Pay California legislators more. OK, feel free to cover your ears and scream at the top of your lungs and ask what the heck I’m thinking. But please keep reading. I’m thinking four things.