by JimmyThing [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

I'm a big fan of Larry Lessig's blog, which used to be called Lessigblog, and now Lessig 2.0. Howard Dean blogged there in 2003 and for the 2008 nomination he's supporting Barack Obama. His work at Stanford and legal/philosophical work is legendary. So it was with great excitement I found a diary at Daily Kos published earlier in the week, with a little bit of supporting evidence, suggesting that Lessig could announce he's running for congress. It might even be as soon as this week:

[courtesy of The California Majority Report]

Former State Senator Jackie Speier will jump into the race for the 12th District Congressional seat on Sunday at noon with an announcement at Leo J. Ryan Park in Foster City.
 
The location for the announcement will serve as an interesting backdrop for Speier's candidacy. Speier was with Congressman Ryan when he was murdered in Guyana by members of the People's Temple, sustaining five bullet wounds herself.
 
State Senator Leland Yee has also expressed interest in the seat.

by Brian Leubitz [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

The Capitol Alert AM Email raises an interesting point: 

If Speier does jump in, that may open the door for a third candidate -- Sen. Leland Yee, who replaced her in the Senate. All three represent San Francisco's South Bay and, unlike Lantos or Speier, it's the middle of the election cycle for Yee, who wouldn't have to risk his own seat to run.

But there is another issue lurking in the back here: Will Leland Yee run if Jackie runs. A three-way race would likely favor Lantos, but that's hardly clear.  Here's the thing for Yee, if he doesn't run and then Jackie wins, the seat is out of play for another 20 years.  If Lantos wins, then he can run in an open seat whenever Lantos retires. While it's not totally clear how he would affect the race, I think it's almost a no-brainer for Yee if Speier enters.

Yee has been something of an enigma in the City. On the Board of Supervisors, he represented a heavily Chinese district, which, for the City, is/was fairly conservative. In the Assembly he was known primarily for going after video games. He has come up with some interesting legislation, but isn't particularly loved by some of the major clubs in the City. However, the power of the Chinese vote would assure him a decent result if he ran.

This could be a wild ride folks.

by blogswarm [courtesy of Calitics: Soapblox California - Front Page]


CDP Chair Art Torres is welcoming the press. This is the first convention in San Diego -- which he makes a point to stress is now a blue city. Nancy Pelosi rocks. Torres is also proud of Feinstein and Boxer and Miller and Lantos. Charlie Brown is one of the best candidates Democrats have had in a long time. The early primary is great for the state. Eight video cameras and around 40 journalists. Good stuff.

UPDATE: I got to ask a question on the 58 state strategy, Torres gave huge props to Dean and said it is strategically imperative for us to increase our registrations everywhere, specifically mentioning McNerney and Brown.

Funny pic in the commments.