Before you think California didn't play a role in this historic presidential election,
Dan Morain and Maloy Moore remind us that "California, the ATM for politicians nationwide, has spit out cash for Barack Obama at an extraordinary
clip. One of every five dollars he has raised in itemized
contributions to his campaign has come from the Golden
State.
"At last count, in mid-October, the Democratic presidential nominee had withdrawn
$84 million from California, or 20% of his contributions of more than $200 -- the threshold at which campaigns must disclose detailed
information about donors.
"The $84 million was two-thirds more than Obama collected from the next most
generous state, New York. It also exceeds the $83.7 million raised in California for all federal races
a decade ago, when the state emerged as the richest
source of campaign money.
"John McCain got far less from California, a state that
is expected today to vote heavily for Obama. The Republican
nominee raised $25 million."
Speaking of dough, the AP reports:
"Spending for and against a ballot initiative that would
outlaw same-sex marriage in California has surpassed $73 million, almost twice the total that was spent in the 24 states where similar measures were put to voters since
2004, campaign finance records show.
"Opponents of Proposition 8 had a slight lead in contributions as of yesterday,
with $37.6 million. Supporters of the ban had raised $35.8 million.
"A little less than $33 million was spent on campaigns to pass or defeat same-sex marriage bans in the 24 states where they appeared on ballots in 2004, 2005 and 2006, according to the National Organization on Money in
State Politics."
"From the politically explosive issues of same-sex marriage and abortion to the pleas to taxpayers
to open their wallets for more spending on police,
hospitals and trains, voters will be making important
decisions today on measures and candidates on Bay Area
and statewide ballots," writes Rachel Gordon in the Chron.
"The big election-day draw may be the presidential race, but "there's a lot at stake locally and at the state level," said University of San Francisco political scientist
Corey Cook."
Gordon runs down the hottest state and Bay Area ballot
measures.
"A handful of other ballot measures have an only-in-San-Francisco twist,
including Prop. K, which calls for the decriminalization
of
prostitution, Prop. R, a proposal to rename a sewage
treatment plant
after President Bush, and Prop. V, which asks the Board
of Education to
reverse its ban on JROTC in the schools."
"For the first time in 24 years, there are more Democrats than Republicans among registered
voters in San Diego County," writes Craig Gustafson on the U-T's Newsblog.
"The change appeared increasingly inevitable in the
final weeks before Tuesday's election as Democrats increased their ranks at a
2-to-1 rate over Republicans.
"The Democrats have 547,148 registered voters, or 36.3 percent, to top Republicans with 543,856, or 36.1 percent, according to the final registration numbers
from the county Registrar of Voters. The final tally
wasn't completed until late Sunday because of a backlog
in inputting new voters.
"The 3,292-voter edge for Democrats is the first since 1984, when Republicans wrested control away from them.
Before that, Democrats had led in voter registration
for 34 of the previous 37 years."
Capitol Weekly takes a quick look at how the state's changing voter registration numbers may impact today's Assembly races.
"Here in California, people are actually talking about
what had once seemed unthinkable – the prospect of Democrats taking a two-thirds majority in the state Assembly.
"Sure, it’s a long shot, but in this election year, Democrats
believe anything is possible. If Democrats are to get
to that magic 54 number in the Assembly, they would have to sweep seven
races which are now seen as competitive. Below is a
scoresheet for those of you who want to follow along
on Election Night in some races that are sure to provide
some drama long after the presidential election is
settled."
And then of course, there's turn-out.
The Chron's John Wildermuth reports, "A record 13.6 million California voters are expected to cast ballots
in
today's election, a 78.9 percent turnout that would be the largest in
more than three decades, a new Field Poll predicted.
"'That's over a million more voters than we had in 2004, which was the
previous record,' said Mark DiCamillo, the poll's director. 'This is
representative democracy in action.'"
...only to be followed tomorrow by legislative inaction.
With all eyes on the trifecta of Florida, Pennsylvania
and Virginia, Dan Walters asks whether an early apparent Obama win will depress
turnout in California, having unpredictable results on close ballot measure
and legislative races.
"Based on its last pre-election survey of voters, Field predicts that 13.6 million Californians, nearly 79 percent of those registered to vote, will have cast
ballots by 8 p.m., the highest percentage in more than three decades.
And, Field says, mail voters will almost equal those
who show up at the polls today.
"A turnout that high would help Democrats and the liberal
side of ballot measures, especially Proposition 8, the same-sex marriage initiative. But if [Art] Torres' fears [of an early call for Obama] become reality, an Obama victory could mean an unexpected,
ironic win for California conservatives."
"The right-hand man to former Assembly Speaker Fabian Núñez was appointed Monday to the California Medical Assistance
Commission, the latest boon to the veteran staffer," reports Jim Sanders in the Bee.
"Danny Eaton, longtime chief of staff to Núñez, D-Los Angeles, had seen his salary jump by $42,000 since 2006 before Monday's appointment to a board that meets twice per month
and pays $56,095 per year."
Damn, we always miss those application deadlines.
"The coveted appointment enhances Eaton's options as Núñez's term expires this month.
"Paul Cerles, the commission's deputy director, said he was notified of the appointment
Monday by a call from the office of current Assembly
Speaker Karen Bass, D-Los Angeles.
"Eaton could not be reached for comment. He is not expected
to attend commission meetings until December, Bass
spokesman Dave Sebeck said in an e-mail."
"Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's draft economic stimulus package proposes to skip preparing time-consuming environmental impact reports for transportation projects, a move the administration
believes would speed up the creation of new jobs," reports Michael Gardner in the U-T.
"Every project still would have to comply with standard
environmental protections, even though the advance
reports would not be required, according to people
familiar with the proposal who were not authorized
to speak publicly.
"Some lawmakers may balk, given the history of disputes
over environmental and economic issues during budget
negotiations. Schwarzenegger is convinced that immediate
investment in public works is necessary to create jobs,
and environmental reviews could slow construction by
months."
In other sitimulating news, "Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger wants millions of dollars in tax breaks for film and
television companies that shoot productions in California, according to
a copy of the proposal obtained by The Times.
"The proposal, part of his plan to stimulate the state
economy, is similar to Schwarzenegger's previous bids for such a tax break. The Legislature
has rejected those efforts in the past. Some lawmakers
and tax experts call the idea a giveaway for companies
that were unlikely to move out of state.
"Film industry officials say the tax credits are essential
to keep California competitive, especially as the value
of the dollar rises and Canada once again becomes an
economical place for production companies to locate.
California is one of only 10 states that do not offer financial incentives to movie
and television companies.
"The governor is expected to unveil the proposal this
week, after the Legislature opens a special session
to address the state's fiscal crisis.
"The tax concessions would probably cost the state at
least $100 million a year. They are being proposed at a time
when the state budget is $10 billion in the red, less than halfway into the fiscal
year. The tax cut could be overshadowed by billions
of dollars in sales tax hikes the governor has told
education officials he wants lawmakers to approve."
"San Francisco's budget shortfall is much worse than originally projected, making this year's financial outlook comparable to the city's fiscal condition after the 2000 dot-com bust and the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Controller Ben Rosenfield said Monday," reports Heather Knight in the Chron.
"Rosenfield's office projects a shortfall in this year's budget of $90 million to $125 million, up significantly from the $70 million it had projected weeks ago. Just months ago,
the Board of Supervisors approved this year's $6.6 billion budget, which already included $350 million in cuts to jobs and services.
"The situation is so dire that city workers almost certainly
will face layoffs, health programs are likely to be
downsized even more and parking meters could be erected
in city parks."
There has been a lot of money spent in this campaign,
and a lot of folks have gotten wealthy off of it. Chalk
it up as another missed opportunity for us.
Anyway, here are the top 10 contributors this cycle after some number crunching
on ElectionTrack.
Clean Energy: Yes On Prop 10 -- $33,949,000
Edison International/Southern California Edison: No On 7 -- $24,217,714
PG&E Corporation: No On 7 -- $19,452,214
Equality California: No On 8-- $18,287,671
Peter Sperling: Yes On Proposition 7 -- $16,800,000
Human Rights Campaign California Marriage Pac: No On 8 -- $7,065,844
Bob Wilson: Yes On 5 -- $6,300,000
The Humane Society Of The United States: Yes On Prop. 2 -- $5,361,357
Sempra Energy: No on Prop 7 -- $4,343,000
Chesapeake Energy: Yes On Prop 10 -- $4,000,000
Just for fun, here are the top 1,000 to ballot measures this cycle. (Note:
due to slight name variations in reporting, some contributors
may be listed more than once.)
And in yet another good sign for Obama's election prospects, the Pittsburgh Steelers beat
the Washington Redskins on Monday Night Football last
night. Allow us to explain...
"The only thing as big as politics in the D.C. beltway
is Redskins
football. Political pundits and football fans noticed
a trend between
Presidential elections and the Redskins results from
their last game
before voters make their decision.
"From 1940 to 2000 if the Redskins won in the week before the
election so did the incumbent party. If they lost so
did the incumbents.
"In 1980 the Vikings played the Redskins with Jimmy Carter
looking
for a second term in the White House. The Redskins
lost to the Vikings
and days later Carter lost to Ronald Reagan.
"The trend continued up to 2004 when the Packers beat the Redskins.
However President Bush went on to win a second term
in the White House.
Still the predictor has been correct 94.4% of the time."
