Jean Freelove, R.I.P.

Erica HollowayErica Holloway 4 Comments

I walked in on John McCain in the bathroom. He was standing at the basin washing his hands, casually he glances over his shoulder to see my horrified face. I couldn’t move, my knees locked. Inside I’m screaming, “Run, a$$hole, run.” Yet, I stood frozen in my most embarrassing moment in life. Wait, let’s back up. That story really began …

Fiorina and the Cruz Hindenburg

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Carly Fiorina stood on the airship platform contemplating her political future. Standing just inside the cabin, Ted Cruz extended a clammy palm to yank her aboard for the last hurrah of his crashing presidential campaign. “There’s enough fuel to get us both some more air time,” he wagered, his hands trembling. “We can even call it a ‘ticket’ and you can …

Cruz Trumps The Donald in Republican Iowa Caucus

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We’ve all heard it. The worn-out political proverb: “As Iowa goes, so goes the nation.” Were that true of the Iowa Caucus, we’d have Republican Presidential nominees Bob Dole, Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum in the annals of history. So while Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas did prove he could overcome the graceless, uncouth stylings of one businessman and reality …

Dave Roberts Cannot Be Forced Out

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Dave Roberts cannot be forced out of office, not easily anyway. A San Diego County supervisor must vacate a seat one of three ways: willingly or due to untimely demise, for which a replacement process exists, take their chances come election time, or possibly face a recall effort. Alarm bells sounded from District 3 as eight staffers fled his office just …

Larry Himmel, RIP (VIDEO)

Erica HollowayErica Holloway

Reposted, from a 2012 Erica Holloway entry… DSDP 2012 Installation Dinner – Larry on the Street from FortyOneTwenty on Vimeo. What do San Diegans Really Think About the 2012 Mayoral Race? It’s not too often that we get to hear from the average San Diegan about politics. In our world, the high-propensity voting public tends to consume our daylight (and …

Ferret Lovers Covet Maienschein’s Backing

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As originally posted on Flash Report. Ferret lovers coveting Assemblyman-elect Brian Maienschein’s backing might be in for disappointment. Evidently, LeagalizeFerrets.org founder Pat Wright fell to despair when two supportive candidates lost in the general election on November 6. Yet, he wrote in his recent newsletter this fuzzy note of love: “There was one person elected who had some ferret knowledge. …

Election Hangover? A Polling Postmortem Cures What Ails Ya’

Erica HollowayErica Holloway 6 Comments

Hungover? Well, depending on your horse(s), you were either drinking victory punch (Go Walker!) or suicide smoothies well into the night. I joined in the Golden Hall festivities via the scrappy San Diego CityBeat live election night blog hosted by our very own San Diego Rostra and our lefty friends at OBRag. If you didn’t follow along with our 100 …

EDUCATION: What’s the mayor got to do with it?

Erica HollowayErica Holloway 9 Comments

Little doubt that education is one of today’s hottest political topics. Candidates for mayor of America’s Finest City even managed to weave the buzz-worthy issue into their platforms. Tomorrow, a forum promises to delve head-first into the matter and answer the one question which seems to come up time and again: What’s the mayor got to do with education? For …

San Diego Republican Primary Voters Could Overcome Registration Gap

Erica HollowayErica Holloway 2 Comments

Is it the solar flare? Nope, but could be the makings of the perfect storm for San Diego Republicans come June. Recent polling from Competitive Edge Research & Communication** shows registered Republicans more enthusiastic to vote in June than Democrats. Well, big whoop. We all expected that, right? But according to the survey, the enthusiasm factor might be enough to …

Tipping Point: DeMaio Signs Top Pollster Nienstedt

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As originally posted on Flash Report. Camp Carl DeMaio must be doing a jig. Earlier this week, the councilman signed highly-respected pollster John Nienstedt of Competitive Edge Research & Communication. So far, the polling for the San Diego mayoral race ain’t been what most of us race watchers would consider legit. This move signifies a tipping point in the race …

Naked? There’s An App for That

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Just four days remain before Mayor Jerry Sanders and team closes the AT&T San Diego Apps Challenge. So far, a total of 43 app ideas posted propose everything from wanting a nuts-and-bolts explainer on the enrollment process in “good public schools” to a full list of all the contact information for local elected officials, from email addresses to Twitter handles. …

Papa Publisher Mixes Jesus and Journalism

Erica HollowayErica Holloway 19 Comments

Today’s Twittersphere got a tad wound up about the Christmas Day publisher’s note from the San Diego Union-Tribune’s new fearless (and Jesus-loving) leader Doug Manchester. The open letter, “A day to count blessings and share happiness,” began as such: Dear fellow San Diegans, Christmas is ever spiritual because it celebrates the birth of a child more than 2,000 years ago …

Our Christmas Gift List from SD Rostra’s Jolly Victory Bear … Happy Holidays to our Readers!

Jim SillsBarry Jantz, Erica Holloway, Jim Sills 7 Comments

Here are the Rostra Victory Bear’s special presents for Rostrafarians, as expressed to the Bear’s three assistants (Erica Holloway, Barry Jantz and Jim Sills).  Feel free to add YOUR gifts under the Tree, but please remember this is the Season of Goodwill, so be nice and tasteful, to fit this special time. For Capitol-bound Marie Waldron: An unabridged copy of  …

Merry Christmas, George Bailey! The Richest Man in Town

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WATCH | Its a Wonderful Life Final Scenes Nothing, I mean nothing, brings a tear faster to my eye than the hapless, deeply conflicted and vastly complicated George Bailey played by the affable James Stewart in “It’s a Wonderful Life.” Each year, hubs holds my Christmas movie obsession at bay as long as possible. It’s not that he doesn’t love …

How Much Will Prop. S Cost Taxpayers in the End?

Erica HollowayErica Holloway 8 Comments

A little news item crossed my desk today from the Associated General Contractors regarding a financial report on the status of Proposition S. As you’ll recall, that $2.1 billion bond measure became a major battle between labor and merit shop interests over proposed construction projects in the San Diego Unified School District. According to the release, the school district plans …

Jackson’s Out! Who’s In for San Diego Unified School Board?

Erica HollowayErica Holloway 18 Comments

Blood hit the water. Seems San Diego Unified School District board member Shelia Jackson will not seek re-election. So far, a handful of candidates popped up on the radar screen as potential candidates for her seat. According to Voice of San Diego’s Emily Alpert, as many as four candidates could be in the race though I’m sure the picture will …

San Diego Schools Going Bust?

Erica HollowayErica Holloway 7 Comments

We’ve been following, some with great puzzlement, at the seeming collapse of the San Diego Unified School District. School district officials and board members say that without a serious, life-saving infusion of state revenue or drastic cuts, such as closing schools, the state could take over the district due to fiscal insolvency, or bankruptcy. Here’s just a couple samplings of …