by California Democratic Party [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

Sen. John McCain will be appearing tomorrow morning with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger at an "environmental roundtable" in Santa Barbara.  Yes, that would be the same Santa Barbara where a 1969 ecological disaster shocked the nation, leading to the birth of the environmental movement.

That's right.  Sen. McCain is either so tone-deaf or just astonishingly arrogant that he thinks he can come to the scene of the 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill, demand an end to the federal moratorium on offshore drilling, and simultaneously paint himself as a champion of the environment.

Of course, all he'll really succeed in doing is painting himself into a corner.  You see, McCain has to try to defend a position that creates virtually no relief from escalating gas prices (up 273% during the Bush Administration), lines the pockets of oil companies and speculators, and subjects the nation's coastlines to incredible environmental peril. And, to top things off, he has to explain why he's suddenly in favor of ending the drilling moratorium despite his long-held position in favor of the drilling moratorium.

Tickets to this feat of derring-do are apparently still available at McCain's website (one per email address), should you be in the area and wish to bear witness to McCain's pandering. Please see the end of the post for details of planned protests.

[courtesy of The California Majority Report]

Senator Barack Obama holds a commanding 53-41 percent lead over Sen. John McCain in the presidential race in California, according to a Survey USA poll released today.
 
Democrats have flocked solidly behind Obama; he is favored by 78-16 percent (so much for Hillary supporters holding out). Obama also handily is leading among Independents, 57-33 percent.
 
But where Obama really shines is among female voters. He clobbers McCain 62-29 percent. Among males, McCain leads 52-43 percent.

by Brian Leubitz [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

[courtesy of The California Majority Report]

You gotta love the sense of humor of the PR folks at the California Republican Party. Last night they circulated an interview expert of Sen. John McCain in USA Today saying "I intend to compete everywhere."  From that they extrapolated that he intends to "complete" in California too.
 
To that, I say bring it on.
 
The last Field Poll shows McCain trailing by 17 points. He's just come out for the ban on marriage equality that most Californians oppose. And his #1 cheerleader in the state, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, has approval ratings that are sinking fast.
 
So c'mon out, Sen. McCain. We know you have precious financial resources. And we'd love to have you waste them here. Our economy could use the lift.

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Anthony Wright
Executive Director of Health Access California

Those interested in health policy should be subscribed to the news summary that the Kaiser Family Foundation puts out on a daily basis. Now, those summaries will often include a health policy blog roundup, which will be another way to keep up-to-date. Here are several gold nuggets they found from panning the blogosphere about McCain's health plan:

[courtesy of The California Majority Report]

So where was Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner today? Word is that he was chewing on chicken wings (and probably some caviar) in former eBay head honcho's Meg Whitman's Atherton backyard at a fundraiser she hosted for Sen. John McCain.
 
Whitman is said to have raised $2.5 million for McCain today -- which must have made her fellow bizillionaire a bit jealous. Because while he was at the fundraiser, one of Poizner's state employees was trying to plant stories with reporters that Whitman had raised money for (gasp) Democrats in the past.
 
Outrageous you say? Well, turns out that Mr. Poizner was pretty adept at doing that too before he figured out he'd have a better chance buying his way to the governship via the Republican route (not that I can blame him, since the GOP has no bench except for fellow Polo Club members Jerry Parsky, Rick Caruso, and Whitman).
 
In 2000, Poizner gave $10,000 to the Democratic National Committee. He also donated $1,000 in February 2000 to Al Gore and $2,000 to John Kerry in February 2001.
 

[courtesy of The California Majority Report]

The "lame answer of the week" award has to go to Jeff Denham, whose spinners scrambled to come up with a reason why the soon-to-be-recalled Denham spent campaign funds on trips to Las Vegas casinos and Sedona spas while the Senate was in session.<> <>No word yet on what legitimate legislative or political business compelled Denham to check into the MGM Grand on the Vegas strip. But Denham has come up with an explanation for the campaign dollars he paid to "Enchantment Mii Amo" Enchantment Mii Amo which bills itself as the world’s number one destination spa.<> <>The answer? Denham was spending his spa day with Sen. John McCain, we’re told. We’ve yet to hear which of the many spa services Denham enjoyed. A Tarot Card reading? A stones massage? <> <>Let’s hope he checked out something from Mii Amo’s "Connect with Spirit" menu, which the resort’s website boasts "helps restore energy flow, clear the mind and open your heart."<> <>There's more...