"
Half of likely California voters support Proposition 93, the ballot measure to adjust the Legislature's term limits, but nearly as many appear poised to reject it, according to a new poll," reports Nancy Vogel in the Times.
Proposition 93
Yes: 50%
No: 40%
Undecided: 4%"A week before election day, with most respondents saying they have made up their minds, the initiative shows no strong lead, according to a Times/CNN/Politico poll conducted by Opinion Research Corp.
"Republicans are evenly split on the measure. Democrats and independents show more inclination to vote for it, but initiatives generally need stronger support before election day to overcome the tendency of uncertain voters to say no.
"Historically, you do need to be over 50% during the last couple of weeks," said
Tony Quinn, co-editor of the Target Book, which tracks legislative and congressional races."
"Despite the failure of their $14.9 billion package in the state Senate on Monday, the governor and the speaker said Tuesday
they would find out what went wrong with their proposal and promised to subject any rival plan to the same tough scrutiny that ultimately ravaged their Assembly Bill AB X1 1," reports Andy Furillo in the Bee.
"'
I wish I could be standing here in front of you today with the Senate having passed our health care reform,' Schwarzenegger said at the Sacramento Press Club luncheon. '
But just because the Senate has missed this golden opportunity and did not pass our health care reform doesn't mean that we should walk away from reforming our broken health care system."
"Schwarzenegger was later joined by Núñez, D-Los Angeles, at a Capitol news conference where the Republican governor pledged to "regroup" with the speaker and more than two dozen representatives from labor, consumer, hospital and insurance groups to keep pushing a comprehensive plan that would provide universal coverage to the bulk of California's 5.1 million uninsured residents."
The Chron's Elizabeth Fernandez writes about
the difficulties in passing health care reform.
"'What happened in California will certainly become part of the discussion and could push candidates to be more specific,' said
Patrick Murphy, a professor of politics at the University of San Francisco and director of the McCarthy Center for Public Service and the Common Good. "No matter who wins, the California experience is very much an example of what a future president could face in trying to reform health care."
As if Hillary Clinton didn't know that...
Meanwhile, the presidential race comes to California today, with a GOP debate at the Reagan library. And the race is expected to become a four-person affair with
John Edwards and Rudy Giuliani poised to drop out.
The Chron's Carla Marinucci reports the governor had
good things to say about McCain and Obama at the Press Club yesterday.
"Schwarzenegger declined to formally endorse a GOP presidential candidate. But the California governor didn't rule it out - and came closest when he said that McCain should be congratulated for working across party lines to get things done, despite being hammered by conservative pundits around the country as being too friendly with Democrats."
Speaking of being too friendly, the Bee's Aurelio Rojas writes that, while
John Burton wasn't known as the most polite legislator, the
sexual harassment claim comes as a surprise to many.
"Indeed, while friends laud Burton's 'great heart,' as Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger did Tuesday, foes say he can erupt with anger and be verbally abusive with women and men alike.
"Yet even people who were put off by his behavior in the Legislature say they do not know of any instances in which he sexually harassed women.
"'He could be verbally abusive with men and women, and physically affectionate with women, but I never saw anyone tell him to stop,' said
Sandy Harrison, who worked for nearly a year as a press aide to Burton after he became Senate president in 1998.
"There is no record of a complaint filed by any employee of the Legislature against Burton with the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing, a precursor to filing a lawsuit.
"Driscoll's attorney,
Kelly Armstrong, said that may be because Burton was so powerful in the Capitol that legislative aides feared he would damage their careers if they complained."
"The former head of the California Highway Patrol and other top agency officials
retaliated against a chief who had sought the top job and reported unfair practices in the agency, a state panel has concluded," reports the LAT's Patrick McGreevy.
"The California State Personnel Board found that former CHP Commissioner
Dwight 'Spike' Helmick and four other command officers improperly acted against former CHP Chief
Hubert Acevedo. In a decision earlier this month, the panel ordered Helmick, the agency and the others to pay $40,000 in damages to Acevedo for emotional distress.
"'I have steadfastly maintained that I was the target of illegal retaliation, and this is vindication,' Acevedo said Tuesday.
"The former second-in-command of CHP operations in the Los Angeles area, Acevedo left the CHP last year after 22 years to become chief of police in Austin, Texas. Helmick was replaced as the head of the CHP in 2004 by
Michael Brown."
"Unable to overcome auto-industry opposition, a state lawmaker
shelved an ambitious proposal yesterday that would have charged car buyers a fee for purchasing high-polluting vehicles," reports the AP's Samantha Young.
"Redwood City Democrat
Ira Ruskin said he withdrew his bill because he didn't have the votes to get it passed. The plan would have imposed a $2,500 surcharge on vehicles that spew the highest levels of greenhouse gases. Ruskin and environmental groups had tried for more than a year to create a program giving incentives to Californians who buy cleaner cars, sport utility vehicles and pickups.
"The plan would have provided a rebate of up to $2,500 for fuel-efficient vehicles such as the Toyota Prius and Honda Civic, while imposing a similar fee for vehicles with higher emissions such as Hummers and Chevrolet Tahoes."
And you thought the bike police in Davis were bad. "A Glenn County sheriff's deputy
shot a man with a Taser gun for allegedly riding his bike at night without proper lighting."
Those new AB 32 police are tough.
