Plenty of Talk about Challengers to Brown
Less than a week after San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom exited the race, the chattering class is putting up the names of Democrats who could maybe/possibly/hopefully jump into the race to challenge Attorney General Jerry Brown, who some party leaders quietly worry might be a bit too old and shopworn to win in November.
Former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown suggested Southern California Rep. Jane Harman and California first lady Maria Shriver as possible candidates. Bill Whalen, a former aide to Republican Gov. Pete Wilson, threw the name of John Doerr, a Silicon Valley venture capitalist, into the mix. The Los Angeles Times is taking an unscientific poll about whether Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa should get back in the race. Veteran Democratic operative Steve Maviglio has put together his own list, adding in former Assembly Speaker Bob Hertzberg, state Treasurer Bill Lockyer, Orange County Rep. Loretta Sanchez, who already has a campaign committee established, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who hasn’t ruled out a run, and, what the hell, even Lt. Gov. John Garamendi, who was elected to Congress last night.
Change the Voters Want
Our friends over at the lively website, Calbuzz, lamented the fact that with the exit of Gavin Newsom from the gubernatorial race there is no candidate that stands for authentic change. The particulars of the change they highlighted from the Newsom campaign were supporting a constitutional convention, changing the budget process, and taking a hammer and wrench to Proposition 13.
Perhaps the reason for Newsom’s early exit from the campaign is because those are not the kind of changes the voters want.
Citizens are angry and disgusted because government doesn’t work. However, voters are smart enough to know that not all medicine will revive the patient and some remedies could make the patient sicker. Taxing business property would not jumpstart the economy. It would cost jobs. Lowering the two-thirds vote to raise taxes leads to increased tax rates, but will it result in the expected revenue? The tax increase of February is already coming up short by billions of dollars. California’s economy doesn’t need another punch in the gut.
Water Reform Has Not Dried Up
The California Legislature has the opportunity this week to quench the thirst of the public for leadership from Sacramento by passing the most significant water reform legislation in the past 50 years. Not only would this be landmark legislation for our state, it would demonstrate that bipartisan work can be done in our state capitol.
Late last night, the State Senate passed legislation that would create a new governance model for managing the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, increase water conversation goals for the state and fund major water-related infrastructure projects through a nearly $10 billion bond package. Two other bills that would increase penalties for illegally diverting water and require local agencies to monitor underground water levels fell short of passage, but are expected to come back up today.
Since the entire package of bills must pass in order for any of the individual bills to go into effect, legislative leaders are working furiously today to approve the remaining two bills on the Senate side and then secure passage in the Assembly. This is heavy lifting, but there is a unique level of resolve by both Republicans and Democrats to get this package approved. That’s a good sign for California.
When Jobs Were Plentiful in 1950s California
In
the current debates over joblessness in California, reference is made to California of previous decades when jobs
were plentiful. In particular, the 1950s California is singled out as a golden
age of employment, when jobs were available and workers in a wide range of blue collar and manufacturing jobs as
well as white collar jobs could make a decent living.
Is
this accurate? What does it mean for California employment strategies going forward?.
As
indicated in job data provided by Ms. Bonnie Graybill and Mr. Spencer Wong of
the Employment Development Department, 1950s California was a period in which
jobs sought workers. Unemployment
was consistently under 5% In January 1951, the state unemployment rate was 5%. Over the
next nearly seven years, through November 1957, the rate did not go over 5%,
and was under 4% for much of the time
Schwarzenegger Should Pick Tom Campbell to Replace John Garamendi
Last night, California’s Lieutenant Governor John Garamendi became the Member of Congress in CD-10. That means that Governor Schwarzenegger has the opportunity to name a replacement for Garamendi as Lt. Governor. He should pick Tom Campbell.
I say this not as someone who has chosen another candidate in the race for Governor – but as a Californian who would like to see the “right direction/wrong track” numbers reverse and our state get its fiscal house in order.
An overwhelming 75% of Californians say the state is on the wrong track. This, coupled with the legislature’s unsatisfactory approval ratings, shows that people want our elected leaders to work together to solve problems and provide a more welcoming environment for business.