The Governor Wants Rent Caps
Calling for a rent cap bill for all California, Governor Gavin Newsom said such a measure is long overdue. While Newsom sees this as a temporary solution to the state’s housing crisis, his advocacy for a new law will renew the debate over rent control and set into motion some interesting political machinations. Legislators have […]
In Fighting Trump’s Monster, Is California Creating Its Own?
As California builds its capacity to fight the Leviathan that is the Trump administration, does it risk turning our state government into a Leviathan of our own? This unhappy question—about whether regular Californians and their communities may get swallowed up by the state monster we’re creating to fight the federal monster—occurred to me while I […]
Can We Stop the Violence
The national death toll from gun violence keeps mounting with 33 more killings now on the books. Once again angry, frustrated and frightened citizens everywhere are expressing moral outrage and ask one question: what are we going to do about it? And once again our president utters sanctimonious expressions of sympathy for the victims’ relatives […]
Is the California Legislature a Bill Factory?
During California’s last legislative session, the 2018 legislative session, the Legislature and Governor enacted 1,016 new laws – most of which took effect on January 1, 2019. This particular statistic raises the age old question – Is the California Legislature too much of a bill factory? I will leave the answer to that question, and […]