by David Dayen [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Peter Schrag

The bet placed by the political camps of John McCain and Hillary Clinton that the voters will hungrily bite into their proposal to suspend the federal gas tax doesn't seem to be paying off. Most voters appear to know it's a sucker pitch in which Clinton is both sucker – for taking up the McCain plan – and panderer for pushing it as a major campaign plank.

But the proposal, first dropped by McCain into a soup of other dubious economic ideas, among them his support for making permanent the 2001 Bush tax cuts he first opposed, is an accurate reflection of a national political culture that's poisoned our public life for the better part of three decades.

One of its anniversaries – or the nearest thing to it – is just a month off: June 6, the date in 1978 when Californians passed Proposition 13. It triggered the national tax revolt and marked the first major triumph of latter-day me-first individualism and market theology over the communitarian ideals and civic concern that moved the country to its greatest achievements during the Depression and the years of World War II.

The list of consequences of the neglect of high purpose is almost endless, both for California and for the nation.

by paulhogarth [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

I wrote this for today's Beyond Chron.

To learn about Proposition 98's agenda, look no further than Dan Faller, President and Founder of the American Owner's Association (AOA) - the largest landlord group in California.  In a nine-page essay published in the association's magazine, Faller complains heatedly about rent control, calls pro-tenant elected officials "terrorists" and "suicide bombers," compares the effort to pass Prop 98 with World War II, says that renters "choose not to provide for themselves," and - with rhetoric that channels George Bush - tells landlords: "you are either for us or against us in this fight for your freedom and property rights."  We cannot dismiss Faller as just another right-wing kook, for his organization has already contributed $325,000 to the "Yes on 98" cause - and the AOA has plans to raise even more money in the coming weeks.  And with voter turnout in June expected to be very low, Faller's fringe beliefs might actually become public policy in California - if we don't act now.

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

Major Supporter Insults Tenants; Calls Elected Officials “Terrorists”

By Paul Hogarth

To learn about Proposition 98’s agenda, look no further than Dan Faller, President and Founder of the American Owner’s Association (AOA) – the largest landlord group in California. In a nine-page essay published in the association’s magazine, Faller complains heatedly about rent control, calls pro-tenant elected officials “terrorists” and “suicide bombers,” compares the effort to pass Prop 98 with World War II, says that renters “choose not to provide for themselves,” and – with rhetoric that channels George Bush – tells landlords: “you are either for us or against us in this fight for your freedom and property rights.”

We cannot dismiss Faller as just another right-wing kook, for his organization has already contributed $325,000 to the “Yes on 98” cause – and the AOA has plans to raise even more money in the coming weeks. And with voter turnout in June expected to be very low, Faller's fringe beliefs might actually become public policy in California – if we don't act now.

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Kenneth C. Burt

The current interest in the Latino vote, and the emergence of high-profile leaders such as Antonio Villaraigosa, might lead one to ask: How did it all begin? Who were the early leaders? Part of the answer can be found in Armando Rodriguez’s From the Barrio to Washington: An Educator’s Journey, which fulfills the stated goal — “to inspire” — while teaching us about a bygone era.

The trajectory of Rodriguez’s life is awe-inspiring. Born into a large family in Mexico where his mother neither spoke English nor wrote Spanish, he became the second Latino college president and an advisor to four U.S. presidents.

Rodriguez is the most prominent San Diegan of the Mexican American generation, the cohort shaped by the Depression and World War II. He was among the first large wave of Latinos to come to California’s state capitol during Governor Pat Brown’s tenure, reaching national influence in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s.

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By David Dayen
d-day

Every so often, you go to one of these events and see something special. I'm not talking about Maria Shriver, yet.

One of the first speakers was a woman named Susan, a 93 year-old Korean-American and veteran of the Navy in World War II. She talked about going to basic training in the deep South and seeing segregation up close for the first time. "We've come a long way," she said, and in an auditorium filled with people of all races and ethnicities, uniting around one candidate, it rang true.

by David Dayen [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

Every so often, you go to one of these events and see something special.  I'm not talking about Maria Shriver, yet.

One of the first speakers was a woman named Susan, a 93 year-old Korean-American and veteran of the Navy in World War II.  She talked about going to basic training in the deep South and seeing segregation up close for the first time.  "We've come a long way," she said, and in an auditorium filled with people of all races and ethnicities, uniting around one candidate, it rang true.

Oh yeah, there was this too:

more on the flip...