Democratic state Sen. Leland Yee of San Francisco was arrested yesterday on federal charges detailed in a 137-page unsealed indictment.
Marisa Lagos, Henry K. Lee and Bob Egelko report in the San Francisco Chronicle: “The charges, filed Monday and unsealed Wednesday, reverberated through circles of power in San Francisco and Sacramento, shaking up party politics and the secretary of state race. Leading Democratic senators, weary of recent scandals involving party legislators, called for Yee's resignation.”
“Yee did not comment after he was arraigned at the U.S. District Court in San Francisco on charges of conspiring to traffic in firearms and scheming to defraud citizens of honest services. He appeared somber in a casual jacket before being released on a $500,000 bond.”
Yee’s troubles are likely a shocking conclusion to what was a steady rise in California politics.
Aaron Kinney reports for Bay Area News Group: “He was the first Asian-American speaker pro tempore of the California Assembly and a source of pride to many in the Bay Area's thriving Chinese community. After rising to the highest ranks of the state Senate, he had a good shot at becoming California's next secretary of state.”
“But Sen. Leland Yee's political life effectively ended Wednesday when he was allegedly caught in a sordid web of murderous gangsters, gun runners and narcotics traffickers. And the breadth of the federal charges against him left his colleagues in the Legislature almost speechless.”
During his time in the Legislature, Yee welcomed few into his inner circle.
Jim Miller reports for the Sacramento Bee: “Yet Yee has been viewed as a somewhat isolated legislator during his nearly dozen years in the Assembly and Senate. A refrain Wednesday among people speaking privately was that Yee plays things close to the vest and regularly left his colleagues unsure of his true feelings. The first person of Chinese heritage elected to the Senate, Yee has had little involvement with the Legislature’s Asian Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus.”
Several years ago, Yee played a key role in a federal case against another San Francisco politician.
Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross report in the San Francisco Chronicle: “Seven years after tattling to the feds about onetime protégé Ed Jew extorting bubble tea shopkeepers, state Sen. Leland Yee finds himself in the middle of his own corruption case.”
Gun proponents are calling out Yee’s hypocrisy.
Carla Marinucci reports in the San Francisco Chronicle: “Gun rights groups are jumping on the federal corruption charges leveled at California Democratic State Senator Leland Yee of San Francisco, saying he represents a hypocritical gun safety advocate who appears to be have been involved in trafficking in firearms.”
“But they also rejoice that if he’s found guilty, he’ll be ending up in “one of the biggest gun-free zones” anywhere.”
In non-Yee related news….
A new poll released by the Public Policy Institute of California shows support growing for a water bond, but decreasing for the governor.
Josh Richman reports in the Mercury News: “As the Legislature debates a bevy of bond proposals for the November ballot, 60 percent of adults and 50 percent of likely voters say they would approve the most expensive proposal, which most lawmakers say is too laden with pork. Last March, 44 percent of adults and 42 percent of likely voters said they would vote yes.”
“Brown's approval rating now stands at 49 percent among all adults and 52 percent among likely voters. That's down from 58 percent of adults and 60 percent of likely voters in January, but roughly the same as his levels one year ago.”
That poll also shows Assemblyman Tim Donnelly as leading the Republican gubernatorial candidates.
David Siders reports for the Sacramento Bee: “Donnelly, with 10 percent support among likely voters, outpolls his closest GOP competitors by 8 percentage points, according to a Public Policy Institute of California poll released Wednesday.”
“Neel Kashkari, a former U.S. Treasury Department official and the best-funded Republican in the race, was supported by 2 percent of likely voters, as was Laguna Hills Mayor Andrew Blount.”
Cal State students are sounding-off on “success fees.”
Carla Rivera reports for the LA Times: “Dozens of students rallied at a meeting of the California State University governing board Wednesday, chanting and hoisting signs that urged the chancellor and trustees to rollback “success fees” that are raising costs on many campuses.”
Marijuana cultivators are really feeling the heat in the state drought.
Rob Hotakainen reports for McClatchy DC: “State officials say a pot plant sucks up an average of 6 gallons of water per day, worsening a shortage caused by one of the biggest droughts on record. They say the situation is particularly acute along California’s North Coast, where the growing pressure to irrigate pot threatens salmon and other fish.”
“This industry _ and it is an industry _ is completely unregulated,” said Scott Bauer, a fisheries biologist with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. “What I just hope is that the watersheds don’t go up in smoke before we get things regulated and protect our fish and wildlife.”