Newly empowered House Republicans are sharpening their knives and looking at California, and up first on the chopping block is the state's high-speed rail program. The Mercury News' Mike Rosenberg tells the tale.
"Wasting no time after a victorious midterm election, GOP congressional leaders who promised to slash spending are looking to make an example of the nation's priciest public works project: California's $43 billion high-speed railroad."
"A coalition of 27 House Republicans, led by the ranking member of the committee that controls spending, wants to yank $2 billion in stimulus funds promised to California to kick-start the massive project. Rep. Jerry Lewis, R-Redlands, last week introduced the American Recovery and Reinvestment Rescission Act, which would return the final $12 billion in unspent...."
Speaking of dough -- and who doesn't? -- two of the Capitol's most respected budget experts are departing the building to join a private firm headed by Mike Genest, Schwarzenegger's former Finance Department chief.
From the LAT's Shane Goldmacher: "The departures continue an ongoing recent trend in
which
the state's most senior budget staff have either retired
or left for the
private sector. They are leaving amid dire times for
the state: California
faces an estimated $25.4-billion deficit over the next year and a half."
"Peter Schaafsma has been a top budget advisor for Assembly Republicans for years and has worked in and around the Capitol since Jerry Brown's first stint as governor in the 1970s. Brad Williams is currently a top aide to the Assembly Appropriations Committee. Williams had previously served as the chief economic and budget forecaster for the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst's Office."
Gavin Newsom's departure for the lieutenant governor's office has left San Francisco's political landscape in turmoil, as the jockeying is under way in earnest to find a new mayor.
From the Chronicle's Rachel Gordon: "Not since the election of Art Agnos in 1987 has a progressive served as mayor, and his tenure ended four years later when he lost his re-election bid to Frank Jordan, the more conservative former police chief. The only progressive mayor before Agnos, George Moscone, was assassinated in 1978, three years into his first term."
"Now, with Mayor Gavin Newsom, a San Francisco-style moderate, set to leave office in early January to become lieutenant governor, the Board of Supervisors can appoint his replacement to finish his last year."
Meanwhile, Gov. Schwarzenegger has raised the stakes: He's appointed a new gambling control commissioner, a key post with authority over card rooms and tribal gaming, reports Jim Miller of the Press Enterprise.
"Since 2002, Tiffany Conklin has been chief of staff to state Sen. Tom Harman, R-Huntington Beach. She also has been an adjunct professor at Golden Gate University."
"Conklin, a Republican, will earn $128,109, an increase of $42,000 from her Senate salary. The appointment requires Senate confirmation. Harman is the top Republican on the Senate committee that has jurisdiction over gambling issues."
Blame it on La Nina: State water officials say they will be able to deliver only a fourth of the water promised to those who tap the California Aqueduct. The figure could change -- and often does -- but nobody is happy.
From Kelly Zito in the Chronicle: "By definition the estimate is preliminary and certain to change as the rainy season wears on. But experts at the Department of Water Resources say that "strong" La Niña conditions are likely to offset this fall's deluges."
"We're off to a good start for this year's precipitation ... but La Niña could mean dry conditions later in the (water) year ... especially in Southern California," Department of Water Resources Director Mark Cowin said in a conference call with reporters."
Finally, we look into our "Lost and Found" file to study the case of "The Goatman," who was rescued after being stranded for days in the boonies. Oh, yes -- he had a cellphone.
"What appeared to be a harrowing story of survival emerged from Suisun Bay on Monday - that of a wayward rafter who spent five days stranded on a deserted island nibbling on vitamins and native plants and fashioning a crude "SOS" sign until the U.S. Coast Guard rescued him."
But after returning to shore, Brian "Goat Man" Hopper added a twist to the tale. He admitted that he failed to make use of a key piece of equipment during his stay on Roe Island north of Concord: a cellular telephone. "I was embarrassed to be stranded on an island," Hopper, a 54-year-old artist from Encino (Los Angeles County), told The Chronicle. "I thought I could fix my boat and make it to land. ... I didn't want to spend the taxpayers' money to have the Coast Guard come rescue some stupid guy."
"But on Monday morning, the Coast Guard did collect Hopper on a 25-foot boat after receiving a call from one of his friends - a man Hopper had telephoned directly."