Author: Brendan Huffman

Considering that Sen. McCain had not officially decided on whether to attend the first presidential debate until the night before, I guess he expected Sen. Obama and others to commend him for his courage in leaving a Congressional debate on the Wall Street bailout that he had no role in, and probably not much knowledge about either.

Again and again, Sen. McCain labeled his rival as naïve and inexperienced. Each time he suggested Sen. Obama didn’t understand how the political world works, I could not help but think of his own naive and inexperienced running mate.

Just last week, conservative columnist David Brooks wrote that Gov. Palin "has not been engaged in national issues, does not have a repertoire of historic patterns and, like President Bush, seems to compensate for her lack of experience with brashness and excessive decisiveness.”

Within 48 hours of the fatal Metrolink crash Friday afternoon in Chatsworth, the transit agency’s board of directors dumped its top spokesperson, Denise Tyrrel, over a dispute on how information was shared with the media.

That’s a shame because I found her candor and visibly emotional distress over the tragedy refreshingly human while she quickly provided information that was painfully obvious—a Metrolink engineer screwed up.

Like many other Angelenos, I spent several hours over the weekend looking for news updates on the Metrolink crash in Chatsworth. Unlike other fatal accidents that occur in Los Angeles regularly, this crash seemed different to me, and with Denise Tyrrel, I felt the pain she was experiencing and a sense of guilt that a colleague at her agency had not done his job. Her honesty and human emotions moved me and I am sure thousands of other Angelinos whose hearts went out to the victims’ families.

There are so many qualified and experienced Republicans out there, many of whom would have complimented Sen. John McCain’s perceived lack of domestic policy expertise such as Charlie Crist, Linda Lingle and Tim Pawlenty. Each of these governors is politically battle tested in states that are not all that red, and each of them has shown tendencies to be consensus builders. Mitt Romney and Fred Thompson would have been solid picks to be McCain’s running mate, too, and don’t forget Meg Whitman.

I am sure that Sen. McCain thought he was making a wise move by selecting Gov. Sarah Palin to shore up his conservative base and to show undecided women voters that they could count on him to further “crack the glass ceiling” in a direct appeal to Sen. Clinton’s supporters.

Yet, for probably every dissatisfied Hillary Clinton supporter, I suspect that their decisions on Election Day will come down to one issue—the Supreme Court. I don’t believe for a minute that any of Sen. Clinton’s supporters are willing to support McCain knowing that the next president will most likely determine whether Roe v. Wade is overturned or not.

Once again, it’s August and state lawmakers haven’t adopted a new budget yet. It’s time to talk about outsourcing.

Like many of the redistricting reforms floated over the years, I propose that, if the budget has not been adopted by the July 1 constitutional deadline, a panel of financial experts be appointed by the CA Supreme Court to draft the state’s spending plan for the next fiscal year and let the voters text their votes in like millions do on “American Idol” until a majority have approved the budget. (OK, maybe not text messaging).

Although there is plenty of blame to go around (including we voters who have committed the sins of ballot box budgeting), I am not pointing fingers at anybody. Term limits are not the culprit as budget approval deadlines were regularly missed before Prop. 140 passed. I don’t blame anyone in particular either.

It seems like there is a bond for everything this year except for addressing California’s most pressing need—water.

The Sacramento Delta, which serves 25 million Californians, is one sizeable earthquake or storm from disaster. New Orleans suffered extensive levee failures during Hurricane Katrina, but levee failures in the Delta area could be more devastating because of the higher numbers of people served by and dependent on this single source of water.

According to the governor’s Delta Vision Blue Ribbon Task Force, $12-$24 billion is needed over the next 10-15 years just to restore the environment and strengthen the region’s physical infrastructure. It could take more to improve the water delivery system throughout the state. And, yes, there should be a peripheral canal to ensure that all Californians have access to a safe supply of water and so that the natural environment can be restored.

Michelle Steele’s response to my post yesterday asking why Speaker Bass has placed Prop. 13 off limits for discussion about fiscal reforms reinforces two common perceptions among folks in my age group:

• Republicans love gag orders
• Baby boomers, now that they’re the status quo, don’t like being challenged by younger generations

Yesterday, I asked why Prop. 13 is off limits for discussion in Speaker Bass’s task force. Ms Steel responded “because it works.”

I am fully aware and appreciative that Prop. 13 protects homeowners from escalating property taxes. My question is why my generation of home buyers has to pay so much more in property taxes for homes that are typically smaller than the homes we grew up in. That question was not addressed and since we’re not allowed to discuss Prop. 13, I suppose it will go left unanswered.

California does not need another study on tax reform. Nonetheless, with term limits having reduced lawmakers’ institutional memories in Sacramento I’ll go along with Assembly Speaker Karen Bass’s call for a blue ribbon task force on this topic.

At the risk of being permanently blacklisted from Fox & Hounds, I am disappointed that Speaker Bass told the Los Angeles Times’ George Skelton that Prop. 13 is off the table because it’s “too divisive.”

I was in second grade in LAUSD when Prop. 13 passed and remember the quality of the schools I attended somehow eroding after that (obviously due to a lot more than just Prop. 13). At the same time, I appreciate that many members of my family have been able to retire in the homes they purchased before Prop. 13 due to affordable property taxes. I also appreciate that Prop. 13 has helped commercial property owners stay in business. For me, however, Prop. 13 means that my generation is paying far more in property taxes for homes smaller than older property owners (and usually empty nesters) living in larger houses.

Despite working next door to Burger King and being tempted daily with the smell of charbroiled burgers, I only eat there about twice a year. I have a soft spot for Taco Bell, but I hardly ever go there either—unless there are no other options, and I’m desperately in a hurry and hungry. I was raised not to eat fast food, so I normally avoid it.

But a renewed effort at L.A. City Hall to permanently ban any more fast food outlets into South L.A. strikes me to be about as effective as banning chocolate or beer. Neither is particularly good for you when consumed in mass quantities, but many of us will find a way to buy them no matter how expensive or readily available they are.

The effort is being made in the name of fighting obesity, a noble cause. However, I think it is more effective when parents show their kids healthy foods to eat, how to prepare them, and where to buy them. It’s also on the heals of other proposals to ban trans-fats in L.A., but not lard.

In a Forest Gump moment, I happened to be in Mayor Villaraigosa’s office waiting for a meeting with his staff yesterday when I noticed a gaggle of reporters in his press room and champagne glasses near the podium.

As it turned out, I was about to witness the mayor preside over his first same-sex marriage when I was escorted to a conference room for my meeting. Apparently, I missed the rude wedding crasher who calmly stepped up to the podium after the ceremony and announced her opposition to gay marriage and added some inappropriate comments about the mayor.

This self-described “angel of the Trinity” later informed reporters that California would soon be punished for our Supreme Court’s ruling on same-sex marriages through a series of earthquakes and floods. (Thankfully, my homeowners’ insurance covers both).

Unlike some of the “bridezillas” you see on TV these days, this happy couple laughed it off. Good for them in not letting this uninvited guest ruin their wedding day. Like anyone, I am sure that they were annoyed with the intolerant tone of the interruption, but they handled it with class.