Lots already has been written about Tuesday’s California primary. But here are a few of quick takeaways from the morning after… The Sad State of the GOP Got Even Sadder — Things have gotten so bad that Republicans are popping champagne corks simply because they have a live body in the governors race. But GOP voters won’t have anyone […]

Nancy McFadden, Gov. Jerry Brown’s Chief of Staff and former top advisor to President Bill Clinton, Vice President Al Gore, and Gov. Gray Davis—and most importantly my colleague and my friend, died Friday at her home in Sacramento. She was 59. Chiefs of staff to governors fulfill that role in different ways. Nancy’s way – as she […]

If you thought the California Democratic Party’s last convention dominated by a battle for party chair was wild, take that event and put it on steroids. Then you’d have last weekend’s jamboree in San Diego. The main event was the endorsement process, where party delegates get to vote to back candidates for major offices. The results (which […]

Governor Brown could walk out the door of the horseshoe today and feel good about his successes governor. He’s closed a $27 billion budget deficit and built up hefty reserves. Increased by tens of billions support for education. Reduced the nagging prison overcrowding problem. And, of course, cemented California’s leadership on tackling climate change on […]

Backers of the single-payer health care legislation, Senate Bill 562, have made it clear in trying to bully state lawmakers that if they don’t support their bill, they’ll run candidates against them in next June’s primaries. Assembly Democrats should call their bluff. Because the threat of knocking off incumbent lawmakers with single-payer as a litmus […]

Rack up another high-profile loss for the California Nurses Association/National Nurses United, as the union’s backed candidate for California Democratic Party chair, Kimberly Ellis, was defeated by party stalwart Eric Bauman on Saturday night. (Most of the state’s unions with electoral success, including the California Professional Firefighters, California Faculty Association and the Building Trades were […]

One of the marquee measures in the November election will be the last measure on the ballot: the referendum on Senate Bill 270, the law signed by Governor Jerry Brown to ban single-use plastic bags. Supporters of the ban will be seeking a “Yes” vote. To date, plastic bag manufacturers have spent $5.96 million toward […]

Last month’s decision by the California Public Utilities Commission to allow the state’s fast-growing solar industry to move forward without burdensome new fees and regulations was widely embraced by the state’s technology leaders and environmental groups. But there was one self-proclaimed consumer group — The Utility Reform Network, better known as TURN — that fought the solar […]

Thirty years ago, when I was campaigning for a seat in the 400-member New Hampshire House (yes, 400 members), I spent my weekends at the Sanbornton Town Landfill engaging voters. Since my Lakes Region town with its 2900 residents had no street garbage collection, it was the one place that everyone in town showed up […]

In their decision this week to abandon their 2016 ballot measures designed to slash retirement security for teachers, firefighters, police officers and other public workers, former San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed and former San Diego City Councilmember Carl DeMaio predicted that their chances would be better in 2018. Their thinking? It’s an off-year election, more […]