Random Bullet Points

by Brian Leubitz [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]


What's going on in California politics? Here's some things that I found:  

  • To the right, you see a video from WhyTuesday.org about an HBO promo event for the HBO movie Recount coming out this Sunday. They brought some of the Florida butterfly ballot machines and let people experience FL voting.  Hilarity ensues!
  • Prop 98 keeps picking up opponents. (I do work for No on 98.) Today, the Redding Record Searchlight opposed it and the Desert Sun went No, along with several others, yesterday.  The Nos are leading the Yes editorials something like 45-3. In SD-03, Joe Nation has announced his opposition, while Leno and Migden have long been outspoken critics.  Also, yesterday the campaign released it's "Fortune 500" List of Landlords who have donated to Yes on 98. Thomas Coates alone gave $500,000 in the hopes of getting a windfall from the end of rent control.
  • The Lottery Commission lowered their estimates for revenue by about $275 million.  Oops! That makes Arnold's projections of doubling revenue within ten years a bit sketchy, huh?
  • Speaking of the lottery, Peter Schrag has a great column on the lottery's past and future.  I was at a debate for my high school government class between then Gov. Ann Richards and GW Bush (then just a grade A doofus sans any real power), when Ann Richards brought the house down with a remark about the lottery. I can't do it justice with the pixelated word, but it was something like "I just think gambling is a cheesy way to make money." It was and is.  As Shrag points out, it's not been anything close to a panacea for our schools, and it creates other messes.  When it comes to funding, you can try all sorts of gimmicks, but there is no replacing the one guaranteed revenue source: taxes.

    • Posted May 21st, 2008 by Syndicated