5 Questions From Gubernatorial Campaign Ad Season
What exactly is Gavin Newsom’s bear screaming? If you look at the frontrunner Newsom’s campaign logo, which appears prominently in his TV ads, the California bear is not just standing there. He’s looking up with his mouth open, appearing to yell something. The campaign has not provided a transcript so my best guess is: “How […]
Dealing With Tell-All Memoirs: Lessons From The Reagan Playbook
One of my duties as a young aide in the Reagan White House was to prepare responses whenever a former appointee penned a memoir in which the Gipper was portrayed in an unflattering light. In April 1986, former OMB director David Stockman released The Triumph of Politics: Why the Reagan Revolution Failed, for which he had […]
The Fatally Flawed Centerpiece of California’s Transportation Future
California’s transportation future is bright. In every area of transportation innovation, California-based companies are leading the way. Consortiums of major global companies have offices throughout the San Francisco Bay area, pioneering self-driving cars that consolidate technologies from not just automakers, but cell phone manufacturers, chip designers, PC makers, telecoms, and software companies. In Southern California […]
Giving Common Sense a Chance in California
In California, where Governor Jerry Brown celebrates “the coercive power of the state” and advocates “brainwashing” for the unanointed, victories against Leviathan are rare. Yet last week brought just such a triumph, as a legislative committee rejected an attempt by San Francisco state senator Scott Wiener to take zoning power away from localities in areas within a half-mile of a bus […]