[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Frank D. Russo

The Dump Denham recall campaign issued the following statement after voters successfully qualified the petition for the ballot, setting the stage for a probable June recall election:

"The voters have caught on to Jeff Denham - they're recalling him for the same reasons people take unsafe toys off the shelf and tainted meat out of supermarkets - because they're no good, and because we deserve better.

“Voters thought they were electing the kind of straight-talking independent the region is known for - but they got just the opposite.

“Denham hasn't been honest about supporting schools, about giving his vote away to special interests or even about his own paycheck.

“Denham keeps pointing fingers at other politicians, but it's voters who put this recall on the ballot, and it's voters who will have the last word. We call that democracy."

The recall effort began after Denham - breaking his pledge to voters - gave his vote on the state's budget to the Senate's Orange County Republican leadership, jeopardizing funding for schools, healthcare and other local services over the objection of Governor Schwarzenegger.

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

In the Democratic weekly radio address Assemblymember Fiona Ma and Assemblymember Anna Caballero talk about the importance of toy safety when buying holiday gifts for your children.

Assemblymember Ma authored Assembly Bill 1108, one of the most significant toy safety measures now on the books. AB 1108 banned the use of some toxic chemicals in the manufacturing of toys.

In the radio address Assemblymembers Ma and Caballero say toxic chemicals are not the only toy danger, “Millions of toys – including some Thomas the Toy Engine and Barbie products – have been recalled, usually due to unsafe toxicity levels or choking hazards.”