Jerry Brown apologized to Bill Clinton Monday for a joke he made alluding to the Monica Lewinsky
scandal.
Seema Mehta reports, "Bill Clinton was an excellent president," Brown said
in Oakland. "It
was certainly wrong for me to joke about an incident
from many, many
years ago, and I'm sorry for that."
Brown apologized to a senior Clinton aide but has not
spoken directly
with the former president and demurred when asked if
he expected Clinton
to endorse him. Attempts to reach a Clinton spokesperson
were
unsuccessful.
Brown and Clinton have a tense history because of the
1992 presidential
primaries, during which they tangled as they vied for
the nomination.
Their contest was at times ugly and personal: Brown called Clinton the
"prince of sleaze," and they got into a finger-pointing dispute in a
debate when Brown accused Clinton of funneling state
money to Hillary
Clinton's law practice, and Clinton mocked Brown's
expensive suits and
family wealth.
After Clinton racked up enough delegates to win the
nomination, Brown
declined to endorse him at the party's convention.
The antipathy
continued through Clinton's presidency, with Brown
saying in 1998 that
Clinton's policy failings were "overwhelming," and
that Brown voted for Ralph Nader in 1996.
Last year, Clinton was seen as extending the enmity
when he endorsed Gavin Newsom
in the Democratic gubernatorial primary. Newsom quickly
dropped out
because he couldn't raise enough money to compete against
Brown."
Barbara Boxer unveiled her first television spot of the 2010 campaign.
"Democratic incumbent Barbara Boxer dipped into her
formidable war chest Monday to air the first ad of
the general election campaign for U.S. Senate,
one that reintroduces her to California voters by
highlighting her
efforts to secure federal funds for clean energy jobs,
day care centers
and a San Diego-based care center for wounded soldiers," reports Maeve
Reston.
"The Boxer
campaign is spending more than $2 million to air the 30-second ad on
broadcast and cable stations this week in the Los Angeles,
San
Francisco, Sacramento and San Diego areas, according
to two sources
familiar with the ad purchase. A buy that significant
for a positive
spot seven weeks before the election underscores Boxer's
precarious
position in a year when incumbents have fallen out
of favor with voters."
Meanwhile, acting Gov. Abel Maldonado was at Bell city
hall Monday, where he signed a bill issuing a $2.9 million property tax refund to Bell residents.
"The owner of a property assessed at $275,000 should expect a refund of
$577.50, according to the office of state Controller John
Chiang, whose
auditors discovered the illegal levy.
Until it was rescinded, Bell's property tax was the
second-highest among Los Angeles County's 88 cities.
Maldonado, serving as acting governor while Arnold Schwarzenegger is in Asia, took the bill signing as an opportunity
to bash the leadership of the predominantly working-class city.
The money was being refunded "because it was taken
illegally by the City
Council, who thought they were above the law," he
said. "We're here to
say, 'No, you're not.'"
Hey Abel, Andy Warhol called. He said you've only got three minutes left...
A state fraud lawsuit against a former CalPERS director is on hold while he is in bankruptcy proceedings.
Marc Lifsher reports, "A state fraud lawsuit against
Alfred J.R. Villalobos, a key player in
an investigation into alleged influence-peddling in California's
largest public pension fund, has been put on hold indefinitely
by a
federal Bankruptcy Court judge in Reno.
"Judge John Peterson denied a petition from California Atty. Gen. Jerry Brown
to allow the lawsuit filed in May to proceed. The
suit seeks $95
million in restitution to the California Public Employees'
Retirement
System and civil penalties."
Ben Goad looks at new online campaign rules set to be adopted by the FPPC.
"The
commission's Subcommittee on Internet Political Activity
last month
issued a report with recommendations calling for
disclosure
statements to appear on internet-based advertisements in the same
way it does on print or broadcast ads. The
statements would
include information on who pays for ads, official
campaign
Facebook pages and other online political endeavors.
"The goal: "Making certain that the electorate has the most
accurate and usable data possible relative to
who is financing
campaigns," said Ramon Porter, the commission's
executive
director.
"The new regulations would apply only to
those who spend more than $1,000 to get their message out, and,
thus wouldn't apply to uncompensated political
activity like
blogging. In the cases when political bloggers
are compensated,
those paying for the service would disclose it in
regular
expenditure reports. Violators would face fines. The
regulations
would not take effect until after November's elections."
And finally, from our This is How we Should Settle The Budget Files, "Two Thai senators fought it out Monday in front of
Parliament, but
this was no political grudge match — they wanted to promote traditional
Thai kickboxing.
"It's good that I can still stand," 59-year-old Payap
Tongchuen joked after donning gloves and trunks and
going two rounds
with Direk Tungfang in a boxing ring set up for the
occasion in front of
the parliament building in Bangkok.
"The referee declared the fighters — both former professional boxers — joint victors.
"Spectators thought Direk, 64, from Nonthaburi
province just north of Bangkok, outclassed his opponent
from the eastern
province of Sa Kaeo, knocking him down once. Both
men sit in the upper
house where lawmakers have no party affiliation."
