"The
flame flickered low on an infrastructure bond deal Tuesday, with Assembly Speaker
Fabian Núñez saying the package is likely headed for a vote on the November ballot, rather than the June 6 primary," reports Andy Furillo in the Bee.
"'We're back to square one,' Núñez said in a Los Angeles radio interview."
"Núñez, D-Los Angeles, sought clarification from Secretary of State
Bruce McPherson on the legislative deadline to submit a measure for a June vote."
"McPherson initially set the deadline for last Friday but has since suggested the March 10 date was flexible."
After several days in the spotlight, some Assembly leaders are willing to
hurl the hot potato back to the Senate, write Greg Lucas and Tom Chorneau in the Chron.
"'I think the ball is most likely in the Senate's court now,' said Assemblyman
John Laird, D-Santa Cruz."
"'People have fair concerns, and they are trying to work through them,' Schwarzenegger press secretary
Margita Thompson said. '
So you have to be heartened by the fact government is working. Hopefully it will be something that bears fruit for June, but
having it bear fruit in November won't be a setback,'" reports Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson in the Register.
The Roundup, for one, is heartened that government is working.
With hopes dimming for a California solution, Núñez is heading south. he will attend the Board of Regents meeting in Los Angeles, and meet with Baja California Governor
Eugenio Elorduy to discuss "cross-border infrastructure needs."
Matier and Ross report the FBI has
"jumpstarted" the probe against Don Perata.
"After months of relative quiet, the Justice Department has kicked its influence-peddling investigation of state Senate leader Don Perata into gear again, with
FBI agents interviewing members of the Oakland City Council over the past couple of days.
The interviews, conducted at council members' offices, appear to center on whether Perata, D-Oakland, was leaning on council members to vote in ways that would indirectly help his friends and relatives. 'Basically, they wanted to know what kind of influence Don had on votes,' said Councilman
Larry Reid, who was interviewed by the FBI on Monday.
"We've said all along that this investigation is a mile wide and a half an inch thick," Kinney said. "By the end,
I wouldn't be surprised if they dig up and interview Elvis."
We, however, would be shocked if that happened.
Since everybody's talking about November, Sen.
Alan Lowenthal is
set to reintroduce his redistricting measure, which may wind up on that November ballot. This, of course, will spur talks of a term limits extension of some kind.
We were slipped a copy of a March 8 poll that tried to demonstrate support for shortening terms from 14 years total to 12 in either legislative house, but allowing a member to serve all those years in one house. The poll also mentioned "support" for allowing current Senators to serve another term...
Rob Reiner addressed the Sacramento Press Club yesterday and addressed the criticisms of his joint role as First 5 Commission chairman and chief Prop. 82 proponent. Reiner
defended the commission's advertising campaign, which critics have charged was a use of public funds to support the qualification of his ballot measure.
Mark Martin writes in the Chron "Reiner said that a primary component of the commission's expenditures was on preschool programs, and he said promoting preschool fit with the commission's mandate."
"We spent a billion dollars on preschool, and we wanted people to know about that," he said, noting the commission paid for preschool commercials a few years ago as well.
"When the commission again considered spending money on commercials about 16 months ago, Reiner recused himself from the decision to avoid conflict-of-interest charges as he worked to develop the measure that has qualified for the June ballot. The commission ended up allotting $23 million for an ad campaign that ran between November and January. The ads did not mention the initiative, instead suggesting the overall benefits of preschool."
Meanwhile, "All 14 Republican state senators have
called on Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to replace Hollywood producer Rob Reiner on a commission the filmmaker helped found — and Reiner flatly rejected the suggestion Tuesday," reports Dan Morain in the Times.
"A letter to Schwarzenegger signed by the Republicans accused Reiner, a Democrat, of using his position as chairman of the First 5 California Children and Families Commission to further a political goal: winning passage of Proposition 82, an initiative on the June ballot that would create universal preschool."
"'We have a duty and responsibility to the people of California to ensure that taxpayer funds are used in the appropriate manner,' said the letter, written by Sen.
Dave Cox (R-Fair Oaks) and dated March 1. 'Mr. Reiner's activities, in our judgment, disqualify him from continuing to serve.'"
"Speaking to the Sacramento Press Club on Tuesday, Reiner said: '
Should I resign? Of course not. Everything I have done is completely legal.'"
Dan Walters writes that the governor
could offer some advice to Reiner. "Arnold Schwarzenegger has a lot of first-hand experience with the pluses and minuses of celebrity politics, and perhaps he should have a heart-to-heart talk with fellow actor Rob Reiner, who seems to be making some of the same mistakes that sent Schwarzenegger's popularity into a tailspin."
And he would do that because...?
The Oakland Tribune looks at
the case of card club owner Rene Medina." His card room is big business, and big tax revenue, for a tiny town of about 1,200 best known for its cemeteries; he is about to ask town voters to let him make more money by removing a betting limit. And
records show Medina since early 2000 has given state political campaigns almost $1 million — about the same amount federal prosecutors now say he dodged in taxes.Medina, 61, of Atherton was indicted last week and
arrested Monday on 10 felony counts. If convicted, he could face years in prison and hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines. Prosecutors say Medina from 1999 through 2001 caused Lucky Chances to deduct about $2.6 million in bogus business expenses from its income, including $245,161 he spent on home remodeling and furniture and other money he spent on a new Mercedes Benz.
Medina has given to both Democratic candidates for attorney general.
Rocky Delgadillo's campaign says they will return the contributions if the allegations against Medina are true, and
Jerry Brown's campaign says they will "take action."
In
a victory for bad staff work everywhere, the FPPC gave the OK for Senate candidate
Ellen Corbett to transfer $80,000 into her senate account from an old account, even though she had missed the actual deadline to do so.
"Fair Political Practices Commission Chairwoman Liane Randolph said in an interview that her agency hopes to make an exception for Corbett, without opening a Pandora's box of other politicians attempting to sidestep campaign finance laws by citing employees errors."
Yeah, good luck with that.
Quick quiz:
Who's on the $1 billion bill? If you said
Grover Cleveland, you're absolutely right! Well, sort of.
"U.S. Customs agents in California said on Tuesday they had found 250 bogus billion dollar bills while investigating a man charged with currency smuggling." Never mind for a moment that there is
no such thing as a billion dollar bill.
Tekle Zigetta, 45, pleaded guilty to three federal counts of trying to bring cash, phony bills and a fake $100,000 gold certificate into the United States in January.
