Reading Ballot Initiatives—Fixing Errors
Perhaps the worst of the many bad things about the California method of direct democracy is that inflexibility is the default. We’re the only place in the known universe where a law passed by the voters can’t be altered or fixed without another vote of the people. The good news is that some initiative sponsors […]
Is The Tobacco Business Now the General Fund’s Only Friend?
The general fund is responsible for its core government functions – education, healthcare, prisons. It’s the financial heart of our state. Naturally, everyone hates it. Much of California budget politics – and many of our initiatives – consists of making war on the general fund. Indeed, warmaking against the general fund is a bipartisan passion. […]
The Carpinteriazation of Banned Bags
Next month, California might almost catch up with Carpinteria. The small beach town in Santa Barbara County, population 13,500, is rarely cited as a leader in anything. But when it comes to the California cause of eliminating single-use bags—a cause responsible for two different state measures on the November ballot—Carpinteria is our model city. Carpinteria […]
Make Sure Your Supermajority Wears a Condom
Californians love sex. They also love supermajorities. Prop 60 makes history by bringing these two state passions together in one ballot initiative. Prop 60 requires that performers in pornographic films must wear condoms or take other protective measures. I had previously avoided writing about this initiative because I wondered if it was in good taste, […]
If Only Jerry Brown Took His Own Advice on Keeping Voting Simple
In vetoing Senate Bill 1288, which would have permitted Ranked Choice Voting in local governments, Gov. Jerry Brown issued a message arguing that elections need to be simpler. If only he’d take his own advice. Brown’s veto message was: “In a time we want to encourage more voter participation, we need to keep voting simple. […]
California’s Never Trumpers Are the State’s Only Viable Republicans
Maybe someone like Jim Brulte, the California Republican Party chairman, could save his little remaining credibility with a resignation combined with an abject groveling public apology for accommodating himself to Trump. But probably not. The legions of California Republicans who went along with Trump simply shouldn’t be able to get a hearing from Californians – […]
California’s New Education Architecture Is Already Failing
Is California abandoning its poorest students? That question would be dismissed as absurd by our state’s education leaders, especially Gov. Jerry Brown and the State Board of Education. For years, they have been building a new educational architecture they say will do more for the poorest kids in the poorest schools. But as the many […]
A Very Dark U.S. Senate Debate
In saying the one and only scheduled debate of our Democrat-on-Democrat U.S Senate contest was dark, I’m not talking about the rhetoric or the visions of the future. I’m literally talking about TV picture. The debate took place on the lovely hillside campus of Cal State Los Angeles, a place with many beautiful event spaces. […]
Reading Ballot Initiatives –You, Too, Can Be Attorney General
No need to bother with appointing an attorney general to replace Kamala Harris once she’s elected to the U.S. Senate. There’s already big money behind several campaigns to give me the job. And it’s not just me. Rich Californians and interest groups want to give you the power of the attorney general, too. This desire […]
Reading the Ballot Initiatives, Part 1
It’s not just the ballot that’s long—with all sorts of federal, state and local offices, and those 17 statewide ballot measures. It’s the ballot measures ourselves. We get quite angry when we hear about elected officials who don’t read the proposed laws they vote on. But California voters don’t read the laws they vote on […]