Fox and Hounds Daily Says Goodbye

With this article, we end publication of Fox and Hounds Daily. It has been a satisfying 12½ year run. When we opened in May 2008, our site was designed to offer an opportunity to those who wished to engage in public debate on many issues, especially in politics and business, but found it difficult to get placed in newspaper op-ed pages. 

Co-publishers Tom Ross, Bryan Merica and I have kept F&H going over this time investing our own time, funding, and staff help. Last year at this time we considered closing the site, however with an election on the horizon we decided to keep F&H going through the election year. With the election come and gone, and with no sense of additional resources, we have decided to close the site down. 

Fox and Hounds will live on, at least, with my articles collected in the California State Library.

On a personal note, I have spent over 40 years in California policy and politics. There have been some incredible high moments and some difficult low points. It pains me that politics too often is a blood sport, frequently demonizing the motives of opponents and using the legal system as a weapon in public discourse. At Fox & Hounds, we tried to adhere to the practice of giving all a voice in the debate, yet keep the commentaries civil and avoided personal attacks.

F&H offered the opportunity to publish different perspectives (even ones that criticized my writings!).  We had success as indicated by the Washington Post twice citing Fox and Hounds Daily one of the best California political websites and many other positive affirmations and comments received over the years.

Tom, Bryan and I want to thank our many readers and writers for being part of our journey.  The publishers of Fox and Hounds Daily believe that we added value to California and its people. We hope you agree.

Surplus Should Not Spur State Spending Binge

New Year’s Day always brings new hope and earnest resolutions. Maybe that’s why the first week of January seems the most crowded time of the year — at every local gym!

The state Legislature feels the same sense of excitement, only it’s not a newfound commitment to physical fitness. My colleagues in Sacramento are instead pumped up for a daily regimen of pet projects and favored programs long-denied by the fiscal belt-tightening of recent years.

One can practically hear “Happy Days Are Here Again” echoing in the state Capitol in anticipation of the spending spree to come.

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Will Sen. de León Face Challenge for Pro Tem?

As political dominoes fall, Sen. Kevin de León seems closer to grabbing the position of president pro tem of the state senate.

With the announcement yesterday that Congressman George Miller would retire, state senator Mark DeSaulnier said he would run for Miller’s seat taking him out of the competition for pro tem. DeSaulnier was considered de Leon’s chief rival for the pro tem post.

Rumor has it that de León is close to having the votes needed to become pro tem, perhaps one of the reasons DeSaulnier wasted no time in jumping at the congressional seat opening.

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Water Conservation Efforts Might Not Be Enough

After conducting the first snow survey of the season, the California Department of Water Resources recently reported, that the Sierra Nevada snowpack is only at 20 percent of average, and 10 percent of average in the northern mountains, home to some of the largest water storage reservoirs in the state.

To add insult to injury, the Department of Water Resources announced that it expects to only provide five percent of the water obligated to public water agencies for the 2014 calendar year. What they really meant to say is that we’re looking at a 95 percent cut to the public. How many of us could afford to sacrifice that level of reduction to our incomes, our air, our food? Water is as essential if not more so.

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Huff’s Bill To End Public Transit Strikes Killed By Union-Controlled Senators

Public employee unions own Sacramento.

To be more specific — public employee unions spent vast sums of money in political campaigns, almost exclusively for Democrats — and in doing so have succeeded in electing super-majorities in the State Senate and the State Assembly who will do their bidding.  Oh yes, they also are the biggest funders of statewide officeholders — most notably Governor Jerry Brown.

The iron-lock that the unions have on the legislature, from time to time, is highlighted when the unions issue a death sentence for legislation that is just common sense, but not in their world where they can order bills killed for no reason at all.  I think we saw the most glaring example of this last session with legislation that would have made it easier to get bad teachers out of the classroom (and by bad I mean teachers accused of truly heinous acts).  That bill was killed by the unions in committee.

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Stunning Verdict In Fullerton Case: Rodney King, The Sequel

I was as stunned by a verdict Monday afternoon as I have been my whole life. An Orange County jury cleared police officers of all charges in the beating death of homeless Fullerton resident Kelly Thomas. It’s impossible not to see the parallels with the Rodney King beating case, but this jury’s decision was far worse. Both men were unarmed. But King was high on PCP and physically imposing when police beat him — and he survived. Kelly Thomas was a frail, sad head case who was beaten so grotesquely he died.

I suppose it is remotely possible that an unbiased juror would look at this case and not see it as murder. But it is a stunning comment on the public’s sky-high tolerance for police misconduct that the officers weren’t even convicted of assault under the color of authority. The tape of Thomas, as he is being brutalized, pleading for his dad to magically appear from nowhere and help him is the most wrenching thing I’ve ever heard. CalWatchdog founder Steve Greenhut had a powerful summary of the deadly assault in 2012:

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Reduced Expectations and the California Budget

Shortly after Jerry Brown was first elected governor, nearly 40 years ago, he famously said, “This is an era of limits and we all had better get used to it.”

In keeping with this theme, it is now taxpayers who look at Governor Brown’s proposed 2014-15 budget with reduced expectations.

In fairness, there are aspects of the budget plan that taxpayers can endorse. The budget reflects at least some measure of fiscal restraint and austerity. Brown’s desire for no new taxes, continuing to pay down the ‘wall of debt’ and establishing a prudent reserve is commendable.

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