California Congresswoman Jackie Speier is no stranger to gun violence. In 1978 she was shot five times in the People’s Temple ambush attack that killed Congressman Leo Ryan and four others in Jonestown, Guyana. Yesterday, Speier decried congress’ political inaction in the wake of a mounting number of mass shootings, saying that she will boycott the chamber’s moment of silence for shooting victims. Sarah Wire, Los Angeles Times:
“’I’m not going to stand up for a moment of silence again and then watch us do nothing. It’s hypocritical and it speaks to our impotence that we think that it’s good enough to just take out one minute and pray for the lives,’ the Hillsborough Democrat said. ‘The families of those who have died don’t want our one minute of silence. They want some assurance that this kind of conduct is not going to be sanctioned in this country moving forward.
“’I’ve had it. I have had it with inaction. I’ve had it with the sense that it’s OK that we not act,’ Speier said, pounding her hand against her leg as she spoke. Speier was shot five times while on a congressional fact-finding mission into the People's Temple in Jonestown in 1978.”
Governor Brown delayed his trip to Paris, where he is to take part in international talks on climate change, in order to travel to San Bernardino in the wake of Wednesday’s mass shooting. David Siders, Sacramento Bee:
“Dan Schnur, director of the Jesse M. Unruh Institute of Politics at the University of Southern California, said Brown, the 77-year-old, fourth-term governor, is most accustomed to appearing in public in the role of a ‘stern leader,’ not ‘comforter in chief.’
“But he said it is ‘clearly the right decision to delay the trip in order to go to San Bernardino.’
“’The governor of a state isn’t just the head of a government, isn’t simply the state’s chief policymaker,’ he said. ‘A governor is a symbolic leader as well, and when the state is suffering through this kind of trauma, it’s the right thing for him to do to show that type of leadership to his constituents.’”
Speaking of the guv’s climate agenda, his office Thursday announced a goal that all new cars sold in California be zero-emission vehicles by 2050.
The California Fair Political Practices Commission, the state’s political ethics watchdog, put forward new plans Thursday to expand disclosure requirements for interest groups. Critics say the proposal doesn’t go far enough. Christopher Cadelago, Sacramento Bee:
“Lobbyist employers would have to itemize expenditures that exceed $2,500. And they would have to disclose the recipients of the payments. That would provide the public a detailed look at how much political firms in Sacramento’s vast influence industry are making.
“But on Thursday, when the ethics agency aired the plan, discussion was dominated by concerns that the guidelines may not be far-reaching enough. Representatives for the Secretary of State’s Office and the good-government organization Common Cause urged commissioners to rewrite the section on advertising so that lobbyist employers would have to disclose at which legislation specific spending was aimed.
“’For many of these lobbyist employers, you’re going to have organizations that take positions on potentially hundreds of bills,’ said Nicolas Heidorn, Common Cause’s policy and legislation counsel at the Capitol. ‘So, simply knowing that they had an advertising budget is less useful than what exactly that advertising budget was spent on if it was intended to influence particular legislation.’”
A recent Public Policy Institute of California poll underscores the divide between differing political persuasions on climate change. John Howard, Capitol Weekly:
“The partisan gap has been steadily widening for years, but the latest survey reflects the depth of the split.
“’In fact, a plurality of Republicans say it is not a problem (35%),’ the PPIC reported. ‘A majority of independents (55%) view climate change as a very serious problem. While at least half of residents across regions view it as a very serious problem, this perception is higher in the San Francisco Bay Area (63%), Los Angeles (61%), and Orange/San Diego (61%) than in the Central Valley (55%) and the Inland Empire (50%). Blacks (71%), Asians (66%), and Latinos (63%) are more likely than whites (51%) to view climate change as a very serious problem.’”
For you California Politics Podcast junkies, the long dark wait is over. John Myers, Marisa Lagos and Anthony Myers are back with a new podcast. Soundcloud only, this time.
And, today is Friday, the day we usually toss some snark at the California politico who had the #WorstWeekinCA. Well, this week there are far too many candidates for the nod, and all of them represent San Bernardino. They’ve had a horrible week and our hearts are with them all. Let’s hope it’s a very long time before we have another week like this.
