by Bob Brigham [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

Boy, lameduck CDP Chair Art Torres sure looks like shit. All that smoke he blew up the asses of the E-Board about how DiFi listens to him and so she shouldn't be censured -- well it was all crap. He stuck his neck out to vouch for DiFi on an issue as simple as upholding her oath of office and by doing so made an ass of himself and made himself look irrelevant at the same time. Didn't think it could get any worse than the scandal over the $4 million payola to Fabian Nunez, but Torres sure out did himself on this one.

Also not surprising, Senator Barbara Boxer fought to defend the Constitution against domestic enemies like Senator Dianne Feinstein. And fortunately for her, she's putting together a strong re-election campaign that won't rely upon the worthless CDP during the time we are recovering from the Torres dynasty.

Way to go Art! P.S. We were right about DiFi.

[courtesy of The California Majority Report]

In a blow to efforts at getting more workers into unions, the U.S. Supreme Court this week voided a California lawthat barred employers from actively speaking out against union drives,the San Francisco Chronicle reports. We'll watch this to see how itreverberates.

The high court did give a break to older workers, however,ruling that if sued, companies must show that their hiring andtreatment policies do not constitute age bias, the Los Angeles Timesreports.

We can't let the minority party hold up this year's budget over a narrow agendaagain, writes Assembly Speaker Emeritus Fabian Nunez writes in today'sCalifornia Progress Report. The stakes are too high, especially forsmall community health clinics where a couple months of cut-off fundscould mean closing the doors to needed care.

There's more... 

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Fabian Nunez
Speaker Emeritus of the California Assembly

by Bob Brigham [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

In his latest look at California's 2010 Democratic Gubernatorial primary, Steve Maviglio writes about Dianne Feinstein:

Why she's not being touted as a possible Veep choice I don't know; she'd be the perfect fit.

Don't worry SacGuy, she's touting herself, but if her husband's sketchy financial dealings were enough to sink her as the VP nominee in 1984, all the war profiting from a war DiFi supported means this will never happen. Plus there's the whole problem with all of her support for Bush, specifically on the Judiciary Committee. And with news that the losers in our Party are trying to cave to the President on retroactive immunity, DiFi should be worried about another push to censure the senator. And there is the whole problem with her not just being a liability, but bringing nothing to the ticket. In short, this would be a perfect fit just like the $4 million refund from the CDP to Fabian Nunez was a perfect move (Maviglio cites, "several million dollars in his campaign account" as why the "Speaker Emeritus" may be a contender for governor).

by Bob Brigham [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

Beats Assemblymember Lloyd Levine by Two-to-One

By Frank D. Russo

Fran Pavley, (pictured at right) served three terms in the California State Assembly before having to leave because of term limits, has decisively won the Democratic primary and will be returning to the State Senate to succeed Sheila Kuehl in representing the parts of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties, including the San Fernando Valley and Beverly Hills, West Hollywood and the Westside of Los Angeles.

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

Her politics are personal and rooted in her work as a community organizer

By Frank D. Russo

You had to be there. In fact, you can be there by watching the standing ovations and laudatory remarks by Democrats and Republicans—and a wonderful heartfelt speech by Karen Bass as she assumed the role of the second highest office in the state of California—the Speakership of the California State Assembly. This was a day that history was made as the first African-American woman to lead a state legislative body in the United States took over the helm.

Karen Bass has a lot of new friends as a result of being Speaker. Governor Schwarzenegger was on hand to witness the ceremony and sat on the dais along with five former Speakers of the Assembly, state constitutional officers, and even the President pro Tem of the Oregon Senate. After saying he would miss Fabian Nunez, who had just joined a “fraternity” of former speakers—one day to expand to be a sorority also--said wonderful things about her. So did Mike Villines, the Assembly Republican leader—who thanked Nunez for the collegial style in which the house had been run and then spoke of the Assembly and Bass in terms of friendships.