Written by Bob Siegel and originally published by Washington Times Communities. Used by permission December 12, 2011 – One would expect a Top Ten Best Holiday Movies list to be followed by a Top Ten Worst list. But what kind of Scrooge would I be if I made sport of something near and dear to somebody else’s heart? And yet, …
The Jitney Potential: Transportation for the Poor
Last month I did what amounted to a 3-on-1 public debate concerning public transit, sponsored by the San Diego County Taxpayers Association. Naturally, I was the “1.” Actually it went well. My core thesis was that passenger rail is terribly expensive, inefficient and inconvenient for the people who most need public transit. Indeed 3/4 of rail transit riders formally were …
Fletcher Gets Failing Grade
For someone who has spent so much time talking about improving performance at schools, Nathan Fletcher should really be looking at improving his own grades. Yesterday, the California Republican Assembly released a scorecard for legislators on a variety of conservative issues. For the second year in a row, Fletcher received the lowest mark amongst all Republicans statewide. His 56% is …
One GOP presidential candidate departs to run as the LP option. No, not Ron Paul.
GOP presidential candidate (and two term Governor of New Mexico) Gary Johnson is leaving the GOP to run for President as a Libertarian. His frustration and being omitted from the debates and the polls finally drove him out of the Republican Party. Frankly I doubt it will have an effect on the outcome in November 2012, as few vote for …
California exports booming! And that’s a BAD thing.
Today I spoke for a few minutes on a conference call to state tax experts, lobbyists and activists across the nation — one of several speakers on a call sponsored by the Tax Foundation. It was an awesome audience. And I DO mean awesome — I was thoroughly intimidated. Let me tell you one thing — they LOVE California! Especially …
Special 2 Day event to aid SD’s Military Families — Brittany Catton reports SD Foundation helps Armed Services YMCA’s Toy Drive
Good morning ASY Supporters! The San Diego Armed Services YMCA is excited to announce the kick off of the first-ever GiveBIG San Diego online giving event with the San Diego Foundation! Starting now (December 14th) through tomorrow at 7pm, you can donate securely online to the San Diego Armed Services YMCA. The San Diego Foundation will match donations made during …
DeMaio Requests to Hear Water Department Billing & Customer Service Problems
I released the following memo yesterday requesting the NR&C committee to hear about customer service problems at the water department. As elected leaders, it is our responsibility to ensure that taxpayers and ratepayers receive the level of customer service that they deserve, and we are currently not measuring up. MEMORANDUM DATE: December 13, 2011 TO: Councilmember David Alvarez — Chair, Natural Resources …
Rostrafarians can’t agree on PPIC survey
It’s a sad day when the bloggers here can’t agree on something as basic as a tax increase. Three different blog posts today on the PPIC survey, which shows support for Gov. Brown’s tax proposal, yet our bloggers disagree on what to call the poll’s methodology. Check out the three headlines here. Dubious? Dishonest? Incompetent? Which is it? We’d better …
Incompetent Polling on Brown’s Tax Hikes
Lest you get depressed over the stupidity in the headline in today’ U-T that a big majority approves of Jerry Brown’s proposed tax hikes, let me return you to reality, and a much better outlook. Here is the main quote. Nearly two-thirds of Californians favor Brown’s tax hike, but fewer than half of them think he’s doing a good job …
Dishonest PPIC poll on CA tax increases omits adverse effects
Below is a link to an op-ed/press release I wrote and posted on the FlashReport GOP website concerning the bogus PPIC tax increase survey. I posted a similar item on my Facebook page earlier, but this piece fleshes out the topic and, more importantly, is now on a website for sharing. I also emailed it to media up and down …
Chairman Fletcher Convenes Second Meeting of Select Committee on Job Creation for the New Economy
Chairman Nathan Fletcher and members of the Select Committee on Job Creation for the New Economy today were joined by experts and entrepreneurs as they probed the barriers to job creation in the new economy. Members heard testimony from representatives of UCSD, CONNECT, BIOCOM, Terra Verde Solar, investors and others who provided their first-hand experience creating jobs and insight to …
Fleischman on the Dubious PPIC Tax Survey
Regarding the news that a “big majority supports Brown’s tax increase plan” (UT headline), the FlashReport’s Jon Fleischman provides some insight… The results of a public opinion survey are totally dependent on the questions you ask. You can ask a question that you know will has a very positive answer, such as “Would you like prices to be lower to …
DeMaio to Campaign Against Gov. Brown’s Tax Increase in 2012
Says Sacramento Should Focus on Fiscal and Pension Reform Instead “Even as I campaign for Mayor, I intend to fight Governor Brown’s tax increase because it will only hurt working families and further damage our local economy. Instead of tax increases, Governor Brown should adopt the reforms I’m proposing here in San Diego such as pension reform, cutting wasteful spending, …
Lungren, Feinstein spar over Hetch Hetchy Valley restoration
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-tuolumne-20111213,0,7382453.story I’ve been a supporter of the proposed restoration of Hetch Hetchy in Yosemite Valley for years. I have to laugh that whenever this subject is brought up in politics, it’s the liberal enclave of San Francisco, the home of the Sierra Club, which fights the proposal because it is where a lot of their water is stored. It doesn’t …
Huge day for SD Unified, Maas sets his sights on DeMaio, Newt’s promise and more
There is a lot going on. Too much to wait for a weekend roundup. So here is your weekday news aggregator: The San Diego Unified School District is expected to find out at noon today whether deep cuts and a takeover are around the corner for the state’s second largest school district. Follow @kyamamura @MaureenMagee and @voiceofsandiego on Twitter for the …
Business Roundtable Helps Connect Job Seekers with Job Creators
Business Roundtable Helps Connect Job Seekers with Job Creators SACRAMENTO – Demonstrating his commitment to make job creation a top priority in his East County district, Assemblyman Brian Jones (R-Santee) recently hosted a business roundtable in Santee that resulted in successful networking opportunities for job seekers and businesses. “With San Diego County’s 9.7% unemployment rate above the national average of …
Zapf Announces New Committee Appointments
Today the City Council voted to approve the Committee appointments for 2012. I am honored to serve on the following committees next year: Land Use & Housing – Chair Economic Development & Strategies – Vice Chair Public Safety & Neighborhood Services – Vice Chair Rules, Open Government & Intergovernmental Relations Natural Resources & Culture I am particularly excited to be …
Vaus Announces for Poway City Council
From Steve Vaus via Facebook… I have just announced I’m running for Poway City Council in the November 2012 election. Councilmember Merrilee Boyack is stepping down at the end of her term and I am honored to have gained her endorsement. I invite you to visit my new web site http://www.VoteVaus.com/ Needless to say I would appreciate your support. # …
Neighborhood Market Association Endorses Nathan Fletcher
Nathan Fletcher today announced that the Neighborhood Market Association (NMA) has endorsed his campaign for mayor. NMA is the fourth business group to endorse Fletcher’s campaign for mayor. “We are endorsing Nathan Fletcher because he will be a strong advocate for small businesses as mayor,” said Mark Arabo, President & CEO of the Neighborhood Market Association. “Nathan understands that excessive …
39th Senate there for the Taking — Which Republican Woman or Man will Seek, and Win this Open Seat in 2012?
The 39th state senate is a pick-up chance for Republicans in 2012 since (A) incumbent Chris Kehoe is term-limited and (B) the new state district Map adds Republican territory in Rancho Bernardo, San Carlos, Del Cerro, Mira Mesa and Coronado. All that is lacking is a Republican candidate to face probable Demo nominee Marty Block. If You, a Friend, Family member or colleague …
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