Fox and Hounds Daily Says Goodbye
With this article, we end publication of Fox and Hounds Daily. It has been a satisfying 12½ year run. When we opened in May 2008, our site was designed to offer an opportunity to those who wished to engage in public debate on many issues, especially in politics and business, but found it difficult to get placed in newspaper op-ed pages.
Co-publishers Tom Ross, Bryan Merica and I have kept F&H going over this time investing our own time, funding, and staff help. Last year at this time we considered closing the site, however with an election on the horizon we decided to keep F&H going through the election year. With the election come and gone, and with no sense of additional resources, we have decided to close the site down.
Fox and Hounds will live on, at least, with my articles collected in the California State Library.
On a personal note, I have spent over 40 years in California policy and politics. There have been some incredible high moments and some difficult low points. It pains me that politics too often is a blood sport, frequently demonizing the motives of opponents and using the legal system as a weapon in public discourse. At Fox & Hounds, we tried to adhere to the practice of giving all a voice in the debate, yet keep the commentaries civil and avoided personal attacks.
F&H offered the opportunity to publish different perspectives (even ones that criticized my writings!). We had success as indicated by the Washington Post twice citing Fox and Hounds Daily one of the best California political websites and many other positive affirmations and comments received over the years.
Tom, Bryan and I want to thank our many readers and writers for being part of our journey. The publishers of Fox and Hounds Daily believe that we added value to California and its people. We hope you agree.
New Era for Initiatives?
California’s exceptional nature was on display again last Tuesday, as Democratic candidates swept the statewide races while Republicans scored big victories in the national midterm elections. An analysis by my PPIC colleagues Eric McGhee and Daniel Krimm shows that the state’s legislative races were closer this time around and a few competitive seats switched parties. In the end, though, the California Legislature and U.S. House delegation remain firmly in the Democratic column.
The exit polls confirmed what we reported in 2014 PPIC pre-election surveys and analyses of likely voters’ profiles. The 15 point voter registration gap between Democrats and Republicans (43% to 28%) narrowed somewhat in this midterm election but not by enough to challenge the deep-blue nature of California politics. The final voter tally is still weeks away, but this election year will likely stand out in California history for record-low turnouts in both the June primary and the November general election. (more…)
Why Can’t Older Californians Act Like Grown-Ups?
At a moment like this, younger Californians should read Mona Simpson.
The novelist, who is also a UCLA English professor, may be best known these days as Steve Jobs’ biological sister; it was Simpson who told the world that the Apple chief’s final words were, “Oh wow. Oh wow. Oh wow,” before he departed for the big iCloud in the sky. But she first made her reputation with the novel Anywhere But Here, originally published in 1986 but still awfully current.
It’s a classic California tale—and a horror story about being young and being the responsibility of older people who are themselves irresponsible.
In the novel, a mother, Adele August, funded by an ex-husband’s Mobil credit card, relocates with her young daughter, Ann, from Wisconsin to L.A. The mother has dreams of wealth and glamour for herself, and Hollywood ambitions for her daughter. As the book goes on, the mother is revealed first as desperate, then as delusional. She breaks virtually every promise she makes to her daughter. Adele’s age may make her a grown-up, but she is pure adolescent. So her daughter, just a teenager for much of the book, is forced to play the role of adult, governing her mother. (more…)
Buzz is Back for Brown 2016
In just a handful of weeks, speculation has returned, and hype has built, around the idea of a Jerry Brown candidacy for president.
From one perspective, he has succeeded so much in California politics that he has disqualified himself. As the soon-to-be four-time governor of one of the most indelibly blue states, Brown has developed a reputation as a politician unpalatable to Republicans but controversial among Democrats.
On the other hand, Democrats have become queasy over Hillary Clinton’s alleged inevitability as their party’s next nominee. Yet Democrats also remain concerned about how well others drawn from a thin national bench — like New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo or even Vice President Joe Biden — might fare. (more…)
Latinos Lose In Senate Redistricting
After three years and a full complement of State Senate races, it is clear that in 2011 the Citizens Redistricting Commission adopted a plan that actually reduces Latino representation in the State Senate, this at a time when Latino population and political influence was mushrooming.
When the Commission unveiled its final maps in September 2011, Latino activists were horrified; they looked at the maps and saw a decline in the number of Latino State Senators.
Arturo Vargas, executive director of the National Association of Latino Elected Officials, wrote at the time: “The Latino populations of the San Fernando Valley and Orange County have grown significantly over the last decade. Many Latinos in these areas are currently in State Senate districts where they have been gaining political power. The Commission’s draft maps will make it more difficult for their voices to be heard in the electoral process.” (more…)
Why Our Economic Dissatisfaction Will Not End Soon
The economic dissatisfaction expressed in exit polls throughout the nation last Tuesday is not likely to end soon, despite happy-face federal government reports. As we look ahead to 2015 and beyond here in California, we should take note of some of the reasons, especially two lesser-discussed reasons.
Last Friday, the Labor Department announced that the national unemployment rate had fallen to 5.8%, as shown on the chart below from the Wall Street Journal (via Taegan Goddard). Further, 214,000 payroll jobs had been added by employers, on pace to post the largest yearly payroll job gain since 1999.
At the same time, exit polls from the election a few days earlier found that seventy percent of Americans described the national economy as performing poorly and seventy-eight percent said they were worried about the economy’s direction in the year ahead. Only twenty-eight percent described their personal situation as improved over the past two years. (more…)
UC Exposes the Governor and the Legislature
Janet Napolitano finally has the UC in the right position: on offense.
For years, the University of California has been on defense when it comes to the budget discussion. The state’s university systems don’t have the kind of special initiative and constitutional protections, so politicians cut their budgets fairly easily. And when UC tries to compensate with tuition fee increases or by recruiting more out-of-state students paying full freight, the same politicians attack the U.C.
So the oped co-authored by Napolitano and the Board of Regents chair Bruce Varner was a smart move to change this dynamic. By declaring early in the post-election haze that the legislature and governor had to come up with more money for the universities or force tuition fee hikes, they put the pressure on the legislature, and launched what should be an attempt to stop political bullying of the UC? Either pay up, was the message to the legislature and governor, or make the kids pay. (more…)