[courtesy of The California Majority Report]

In the highlight reel this morning is this story from the Contra Costa Times, which picks up on several of my recent posts here on the California Majority Report exposing the heavy Republican donations to the so-called "bipartisan" redistricting effort being put forward by Governor Schwarzenegger and other big Republican donors.

The fact that the mainstream media is picking up on the story is significant in itself. Redistricting has gotten more positive press than Obama in the early days; this is the first article that goes beyond the concept of redistricting and focuses on the flawed nature and motivations of the "Voters First" initiative.

The article notes the heavy contributions by Schwarzenegger contributions and big name Republicans.

If they don't fix that, they're in trouble," Barbara O'Connor, director of the Institute for the Study of Politics and the Media at Sacramento State University who has served on the Voices of Reform board advocating redistricting reform, said in the article. "If Democrats don't start contributing, people will say who's this helping, and whose ox is being gored?"

There's more...