M a c r o M a y h e M

Internal Committee refuses to release details about Cunningham

2007-07-22T19:41:00.000-07:00

[...]
An internal investigation that the House Intelligence Committee has refused to make public portrays the panel as embarrassingly entangled in the Randy "Duke" Cunningham bribery scandal.

The report, a declassified version of which was obtained by the Los Angeles Times, describes the committee as a dysfunctional entity that served as a crossroads for almost every major figure in the ongoing criminal probe by the Justice Department.
[...]

Tell us something we don't know.

[...]
When the committee's investigation was completed last year, the Republican-controlled panel would not release the results; now that the committee is controlled by Democrats, it still will not release the findings.
[...]

That is something we don't know. But you can find out more and let them know...

House Intelligence Website

Caught this with thanks to CrooksAndLiars

Marine Major John Ruocco: Camp Pendleton

2007-05-30T17:37:00.000-07:00

I read this, but I saw it pop up else where.... again and again and again.

Here at the NCtimes - http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/05/29/military/18_32_355_28_07.txt

Here at the UT - http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/health/20070528-1022-iraqwar-mentaldistress.html

The site the photo was nabbed from - http://www.flickr.com/photos/52961928@N00/519514109/

Big News - http://news.bostonherald.com/national/view.bg?articleid=1003504

Big News - http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/05/28/national/w135433D60.DTL&type=politics

A fellow blogger - http://namguardianangel.blogspot.com/2007/05/major-john-ruocco-marine-died-to-be.html

Relative Big News - http://www.venturacountystar.com/news/2007/may/29/militarys-mental-healthcare-faulted/

Here is a Google Search - http://www.google.com/search?q=Marine+Maj.+John+Ruocco&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a

So when does it end? When can our Marines become fathers, brothers, and husbands again? End the war. Stop the violence. Bring the troops home. Support the troops.

Carol Lam is mentioned in Gonzales and Rove missing e-mail

2007-04-26T23:22:00.000-07:00

Here is the quote.

[...]
Most of the e-mails on the list focused on media coverage of the firings.

One, dated Jan. 13, is described as "Notifying FBI of Union-Tribune (nyse: TRB - news - people ) article re: Lam's resignation and FBI SAC D. Dzwilewski." Carol Lam was the U.S. attorney in San Diego, where Dan Dzwilewski is heading the FBI's local office until he resigned April 30.

Sampson has acknowledged, under questioning by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., that he complained to FBI headquarters about Dzwilewski's contention that Lam's firing was politically motivated.

[...]

Dan Dzwilewski was forced to resign because he spoke out against the firing of Carol Lam, by Alberto Gonzalez's Justice Department. Carol Lam brought down Randy "Duke" Cunningham and exposed a part of the local Contracting lobby/bribe industry set up by Mitchell Wade, Brent Wilkes and their buddy Jack Abramhoff. Jack Abramoff was the one to bring in Dusty Foggo, the Number 3 at the CIA back into the mix for the Strippers and Drugs at the Watergate Hotel.

These e-mails will help prove that the firing was politically motivated as well as punishment for exposing how parts of the Southern California Military Contract lobby directly bribe and support the Southern California Republican Party.

True Heros: Troops NOT Military

2007-04-24T16:48:00.000-07:00

Reading stories like this make me sad. It's sad to hear that our military will go to great lengths, even lie, in order to support out an unjust war. It makes me happy to know, that people still tell the truth, even when power offers to loom over them for speaking out.

Bryan O'Neal spoke out when things went wrong...
[...]
The last soldier to see Army Ranger Pat Tillman alive, Spc. Bryan O'Neal, told lawmakers that he was warned by superiors not to divulge -- especially to the Tillman family -- that a fellow soldier killed Tillman.

O'Neal particularly wanted to tell fellow soldier Kevin Tillman, who was in the convoy traveling behind his brother at the time of the 2004 incident in Afghanistan.

"I wanted right off the bat to let the family know what had happened, especially Kevin, because I worked with him in a platoon and I knew that he and the family all needed to know what had happened," O'Neal testified. "I was quite appalled that when I was actually able to speak with Kevin, I was ordered not to tell him."
[...]

Jessica Lynch show us it takes real heroes to speak out when things go wrong.

[...]
Also Tuesday, former Pfc. Jessica Lynch told the House panel that the military lied about her capture.

Lynch testified that after her vehicle was attacked in Iraq in March 2003, she suffered a mangled spinal column, broken arm, crushed foot, shattered femur and even a sexual assault.

But it only added insult to injury, literally, when she returned to her parents' home in West Virginia, which "was under siege by media all repeating the story of the little girl 'Rambo' from the hills of West Virginia who went down fighting," Lynch said.
[...]

These soldiers have shown their moral obligation to tell the truth and keep the Military from lying.

A28

2007-04-19T18:30:00.000-07:00

A 28 is coming to San Diego...

Bilbray Speaks - you get to listen...

2007-04-16T18:00:00.000-07:00

Found this interview of Bilbray and how he sees the world. He gave this interview to the NC times Editorial Board.

http://www.nctimes.com/audio/bilbray0407/bilbray040701/radio.html
http://www.nctimes.com/audio/bilbray0407/bilbray040702/radio.html
http://www.nctimes.com/audio/bilbray0407/bilbray040703/radio.html
http://www.nctimes.com/audio/bilbray0407/bilbray040704/radio.html
http://www.nctimes.com/audio/bilbray0407/bilbray040705/radio.html
http://www.nctimes.com/audio/bilbray0407/bilbray040706/radio.html
http://www.nctimes.com/audio/bilbray0407/bilbray040707/radio.html

Scary!

Arnold slams Rush Limbaugh

2007-03-20T19:35:00.000-07:00

Saw this great story on how Arnold is fed up with people trying to pigeon hole him.

Limbaugh keeps calling him a "Closet Liberal", because he backed down after the Special Election, ditched his developer friends, and turned to looking at Universal Health care for all Californian's.

So far, all good ideas in my book.

[...]
And then came California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who frankly told "The Today Show" Tuesday that "Limbaugh is irrelevant."

"I'm not his servant," Schwarzenegger said. "I am the people's servant of California."

It was a shot aimed at Limbaugh's loaded term for Schwarzenegger -- "closet liberal."

"I don't know what happened to Arnold," the conservative talker said on his radio show. "He obviously didn't have the leadership skills to articulate conservative principles and win over the public as Reagan did."

Some political observers said Schwarzenegger's smackdown is a sign Limbaugh is not the dominant force he once was. Back in the day, his was the only conservative voice on the airways. Now he's one of many.

But others say Limbaugh's power has always been a myth.

"For all of his power and all of his fame, Rush Limbaugh, during his ascent in the '90s, bashing Bill Clinton on a daily basis, hours on the radio every day coast to coast, was not able to un-elect Bill Clinton," said Michael Harrison of Talkers Magazine, a trade magazine for talk radio.
[...]

Ann Coulter: Hateful Person of Note

2007-03-03T20:55:00.000-08:00

This is disgusting.

[...]
Speaking Friday at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference CPAC) in Washington, D.C., Coulter closed her remarks with: “I was going to have a few comments on the other Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards, but it turns out you have to go into rehab if you use the word ‘faggot,’ so I -- so kind of an impasse, can’t really talk about Edwards.”
[...]

She is a horrible person.

Three House committees will cooperate in Cunningham scandal

2007-02-28T06:13:00.000-08:00

I'm a little wary of the subpoenas being withdrawn - but at least the committees agree to cooperate. It could be a change in leadership that caused this?

*COUGH NOVEMBER 7th COUGH*

It looks like two staffers will be questioned as well as three committees - the big ones!

Appropriations, Armed Services and Intelligence.

Who was on Appropriations?! Duke Cunningham CA-50th
Who as on Armed Services?! Duncan Hunter CA -48th
Who as on Intelligence?! Darrell Issa CA-49th

Oooooooooooooh! Some shit is going down!

[...]
Three House committees subpoenaed in connection with the bribery investigation into imprisoned former Rep. Randy ``Duke'' Cunningham and his associates reached an agreement with prosecutors Tuesday allowing the subpoenas to be withdrawn.

Under the agreement, five outstanding subpoenas will be withdrawn and the committees will voluntarily hand over documents in addition to material already provided, according to a statement released by Brendan Daly, a spokesman for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Two committee staffers will appear March 1 before the federal grand jury in San Diego that has been considering evidence stemming from the Cunningham case, Daly said.

The subpoenas were sent in December and January to the Appropriations, Armed Services and Intelligence committees and the two staffers.

[...]

Norine Sigafoose steps down

2007-02-27T18:03:00.000-08:00

Let's hope/demand they have an election. Potential names anyone?

Thanks for the fun times Norine, best of luck!

[...]
The owner of a small waterfront hotel, Sigafoose set records for campaign spending when she was elected to the City Council in 2004. She didn't have a lot of name recognition when she started, and said that was why she had to pour money into her campaign.

She spent $52,000, mostly her own money ---- a figure that at the time was considered shocking, but was exceeded last year by the city's mayor.

During the 2004 campaign, some argued that if Sigafoose was elected, she would become part of a three-member voting bloc along with Councilmen Matt Hall and Packard. But that hasn't turned out to be the case. Instead, Sigafoose has been considered by some City Hall watchers to be a bit of a maverick.

In a community where city leaders have prided themselves on public displays of consensus, Sigafoose repeatedly expressed dissatisfaction with the way Carlsbad was handling last year's controversy over the future of the strawberry field region along Cannon Road.

She called for independent investigations into several issues related to the Cannon Road controversy, including asking for an outside attorney to assess whether the city had followed state and federal laws when city employees met privately multiple times with the company that was planning to develop the Cannon Road region. The developer later dropped its plans, and voters in November approved a city-sponsored ballot measure that declared that the area should remain as open space.

Sigafoose also was the lone council member voting against spending $30,000 on voter pamphlets that aimed to explain the differences between the city-sponsored Proposition D option and the citizens' group Proposition E. She argued that the city was crossing the line into advocacy by funding those brochures.

Before the Cannon Road controversy, Sigafoose was known for support of tourism and beach preservation issues and for her opposition to the $70 million municipal golf course construction project. She argued long before the project's price tag increased by $10 million that it was costing far too much money.
[...]

TIMZ 1, Chuck Norris 0

2007-01-30T18:36:00.000-08:00

This is amazing...

[...]

TIMZ said that he’s Chaldean, which is a Catholic group. “When Saddam Hussein was ruling, we were not persecuted in the way that Chaldeans are being persecuted now in Iraq. Nowadays we are getting kidnapped. It is a civil war between Sunnis and Shiites and there are Christians stuck in the middle.”

Norris tried to uncover evidence that TIMZ’ family was targeted by Saddam for their Christianity. But TIMZ didn't buy it. “At least when Saddam Hussein was there, he kept some of these extremists down. And again, I’m not promoting Saddam Hussein. I’m just saying it was a bit safer for people like me."

[...]

In the end, it sounds like Chuck Norris just accepts TIMZ and his perspective. Good for him.

I can not imagine that Hannity would have extended a similar fairness.

Local News Papers

2007-01-01T10:00:00.000-08:00

Here is a list of local papers you can write to to voice your opinion

Enjoy!

North County Times: http://nctimes.com/forms/letters/editor.html
San Diego Union-Tribune: letters@uniontrib.com (include address and phone number for verification)
The Coast News Group: http://www.thecoastnews.com/form/letter.php
La Jolla Light: karas@lajollanews.com

Escondido: Gives up on Rental Ban

2006-12-14T18:04:00.000-08:00

It is too hard! Legal challenges and the like! Ugh!

Take heart Escondido, passing bad laws is really hard for a reason.

[...]
Facing a potentially costly battle in federal court against the American Civil Liberties Union and other civil rights groups, the council said in a written statement that it would seek to make permanent the temporary restraining order against the ordinance issued by federal Judge John Houston at the end of November.

The council issued the statement after meeting in closed session Wednesday night. Council members were meeting on other city business at the time, and were not available to comment on the statement.

"The city does not believe that the current legal environment is the best or the most cost-effective manner to address the problem of illegal aliens in Escondido," the statement says.

It cites legal costs potentially exceeding $1 million and uncertainty about whether the city could ever adequately enforce the measure.
[...]

Here are some of the lovely comments from the peanut gallery...

Mike the Marine wrote on December 14, 2006 6:57 AM:"Anyone who does not think that the ACLU is an anti-American organization need look no further. With two illegal aliens as it's clients, the ACLU stopped U. S. law from being enforced. It may have been a reelection ploy by Waldren, but it does show the true mission of the ACLU, which is to destroy everything American, everything moral and everything Christian."
I am very disappointed. wrote on December 14, 2006 7:03 AM:"We STILL have a HUGE number of ILLEGAL aliens trashing our town and no one is willing to do anything about this plague."

illegals get out! wrote on December 14, 2006 8:08 AM:"We want the illegals and their supporter out of this country until they start to act like an American. We would'nt be here if the Indians had immigration laws!"

Legal American wrote on December 14, 2006 8:11 AM:"I'm so tired of inept people. Any person who thinks that this is a win for the United States is either a communist or an illegal. Are you people seriously blind to the fact that this entire country is being over run by illegals? Maybe the next time your son, daughter, wife or husband is stabbed or blown up you'll get a clue. This country is no longer governed by people or for the people. The ACLU needs to be burned to the ground and all these judges and lawyers who continue to rape the voice of the people should be prosecuted for treason.<---PERIOD"

Wow! Communists, Illegal immigrants, and anti-christians! OH MY!

In addtion to that we have this loathesome piece from Marie Waldron. Pardon her while she empties your tax dollars from the city treasury for the sake of bad legislation.

[...]

Waldron held out the possibility that federal legislation could clear the way for cities to have access to the program. She said she would push sympathetic members of Congress for such legislation as well as continue to work on local ways to combat residential overcrowding.

"What we did, basically, was stop the meter from running," said Councilman Ed Gallo, who voted fro the ordinance when it was passed in October.

With the city facing rapidly increasing legal bills, the council was obligated to take action "for the sake of the tax payers," he said.

He agreed with Waldron that a rental ban ordinance might be crafted to pass legal muster in the future, and that other ways to address residential overcrowding, such as vigorous parking and building code enforcement, would be necessary.

[...]

Busby deserves respect!!!

2006-12-13T16:58:00.000-08:00

I agree! Fellow 50th resident, Frances O'Neill Zimmerman, sounds off on this idiotic post.

[...]
Busby had the gumption to run against powerful GOP Congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham long before he was outed by the San Diego Union-Tribune (which had supported him editorially for years.) And after Cunningham was jailed for gross corruption in office, Busby faced the GOP machine's replacement candidate, carpetbagger Brian Bilbray.

Busby lost these elections. She was a suburban school board marm, a Democratic neophyte running in an overwhelmingly Republican district against a Republican retread -- who, incredibly, appeared in a TV ad astride a horse at the Border Fence.

I think Francine Busby was a good person and a brave candidate. She deserves our respect and thanks for her-culean effort.

[...]

Make them homeless, jobless, and resentful - You'll feel safer.

2006-12-12T20:24:00.000-08:00

A wonderful article on NCtimes points out the Brian Bilbray and the Minutemen are doing nothing to benefit North County. Having rallies, trying to enforce poor laws, and threating latino groups aren't going to make immigrants happy - or you.

[...]
It's no secret that day laborers live in shantytowns in many of North County's canyons. They trek out during the day to find work at one of the many area farms, at construction sites or in yards of nearby homes.

The camps in McGonigle Canyon have been there for at least 20 years, and we have to wonder why there's a sudden push to evict those workers now. Could it be because it generates publicity? The city was already working with landowners to clear the canyon, and efforts to find the workers shelter ---- though continually stalled ---- are ongoing.

That folks are living in squalid conditions in canyons is a problem, but the eviction rally didn't solve it. The evicted workers aren't going to suddenly have viable shelter because the Minutemen pushed them out of the canyon. No doubt many simply moved to a different canyon ---- and some have already returned to McGonigle.
[...]

It's worrisome that this is where the illegal immigration debate is heading. Even more worrisome are the elected leaders who align themselves with such actions. Assemblyman and state Sen.-elect Mark Wyland of Vista was at the rally, saying he supports "every single one of these people who came out here." Congressman Brian Bilbray, who keeps an office in Escondido, has headlined other Minutemen rallies.

[...]

Bilbray is pushing to take away places to live, jobs, and institute poor laws to scare them away.

So when they have no home, no job, and no food - they wouldn't rob anyone then, right? They wouldn't be resentful then, right? They wouldn't have a reason to riot, right?

Is this the way we make everyone safer?

Abortion is cheaper to oppose than hunger.

2006-12-01T15:30:00.000-08:00

In this article, the Christian Coalition ousts their new president-elect. He didn't even start his term, because Abortion is the cause - not poverty or hunger.

[...]
Also upsetting a lot of people is the Rev. Joel Hunter of the Northland Church outside Orlando, Fla.

Hunter was named president-elect of the Christian Coalition of America but resigned this week even before his term could begin, saying the board disagreed with his desire to expand the group's agenda beyond opposition to abortion and gay marriage.

"I wanted for us to do in the political realm, in the political advocacy realm, what we do in the church," Hunter said. " We pay attention to poor people, we pay attention to injustice, we pay attention to those who are sick, we pay attention to the environment, because it's God's gift of creation, and so on and so forth. So I wanted to expand the issue base … because Christ was not just about morality, Christ was about compassion."

Hunter said he would also have "stuck by" the traditional moral issues while tackling the other issues. But this week, he announced that he and the board had parted ways.
[...]

I can imagine the members of the Christian Coalition stepping over homeless veterans who are starving and saying, "We can't give you money or food. We are too busy trying to save potential babies, in the future! Because the Bible wants us to be compassionate to them. Homeless and poverty stricken people - meh! Not so much."

Who are these people trying to fool, by attempting to legislate morality and behavior? If you answered "Themselves!" give yourself a point!

Also they talk about how Barack "ROCK STAR" Obama is running for president and courting the evangelical population. He is trying to find a way to bring them into the debate, rather than leave them out. I hope they respect that, instead of pulling a "You are either with us, or against us". There is a middle ground. We all just have to agreed to look for it, together.

Remember to Vote Tomorrow.

2006-11-06T16:28:00.000-08:00

Remember to vote!

Any funny stuff?

Call 1-866-OUR-VOTE

Just in case you missed it.

2006-11-06T16:27:00.001-08:00

--AZ-Sen: Jon Kyl
--AZ-01: Rick Renzi
--AZ-05: J.D. Hayworth
--CA-04: John Doolittle
--CA-11: Richard Pombo
--CA-50: Brian Bilbray
--CO-04: Marilyn Musgrave
--CO-05: Doug Lamborn
--CO-07: Rick O'Donnell
--CT-04: Christopher Shays
--FL-13: Vernon Buchanan
--FL-16: Joe Negron
--FL-22: Clay Shaw
--ID-01: Bill Sali
--IL-06: Peter Roskam
--IL-10: Mark Kirk
--IL-14: Dennis Hastert
--IN-02: Chris Chocola
--IN-08: John Hostettler
--IA-01: Mike Whalen
--KS-02: Jim Ryun
--KY-03: Anne Northup
--KY-04: Geoff Davis
--MD-Sen: Michael Steele
--MN-01: Gil Gutknecht
--MN-06: Michele Bachmann
--MO-Sen: Jim Talent
--MT-Sen: Conrad Burns
--NV-03: Jon Porter
--NH-02: Charlie Bass
--NJ-07: Mike Ferguson
--NM-01: Heather Wilson
--NY-03: Peter King
--NY-20: John Sweeney
--NY-26: Tom Reynolds
--NY-29: Randy Kuhl
--NC-08: Robin Hayes
--NC-11: Charles Taylor
--OH-01: Steve Chabot
--OH-02: Jean Schmidt
--OH-15: Deborah Pryce
--OH-18: Joy Padgett
--PA-04: Melissa Hart
--PA-07: Curt Weldon
--PA-08: Mike Fitzpatrick
--PA-10: Don Sherwood
--RI-Sen: Lincoln Chafee
--TN-Sen: Bob Corker
--VA-Sen: George Allen
--VA-10: Frank Wolf
--WA-Sen: Mike McGavick
--WA-08: Dave Reichert

Read about some horrible candidates here

2006-10-24T18:52:00.000-07:00

Craig Schelske: People Bilbray knows...

2006-10-24T18:13:00.000-07:00

We know how much of a sleazebag Bilbray is... Here is a person he knows, in fact, Craig Scheksle gave him money!

[...]
The contributor in question is Craig T. Schelske, the latest sanctimonious Christian Republican ... husband and former manager to Nashville singer and Dancing With the Stars contestant Sara Evans.
[...]

Wow, that sounds wonderful! I'm so happy ...Oh wait...

[...]
Last week, Evans filed a bombshell divorce complaint [PDF] against Schelske in Tennessee, accusing her husband of being, well, a porn-loving, adulterous, abusive drunk who likes to advertise on Craig's List for three-ways and anal sex and takes naked pictures of himself standing at attention. In addition to cheating on her with their nanny, Evans said, Schelske "frequently watches pornography on each of [the family's] three computers," has "at least 100 photographs of [himself] posing with his erect penis" and "several photographs showing [himself] having sex with other women." He was once confronted, the complaint says, by one of his children while watching pornography on the family television. But don't think any of this means Schelske is okay with so-called "alternative lifestyles": He once refused to let Evans' Dancing With the Stars costume designer enter their Los Angeles home because he was a "Sodomite."
[...]

Oh dear... that is just.. Oh dear...

[...]
CRAIGPAC gave $1,800 to the Friends of George Allen in February, and another $1,000 in May. The Allen campaign did not respond to an inquiry as to whether it intends to return the donations. Other recipients of Schelske's largesse include Rep. Brian Bilbray, the California congressman who replaced disgraced Republican Randy "Duke" Cunningham earlier this year in a special election...
[...]

*Gulp* It makes you wonder what kind of relationship these two guys have. Maybe they met on Craigslist! Or, maybe its the fact that Craig Schelske lives in Alexandria, Virgina - In Bilbray's hometown of Virginia!

Google if yea doubt me?

Bilbray worried - NRCC agrees.

2006-10-13T06:16:00.000-07:00

When I said Republicans were nervous.. I meant it.

[...]
When Rep. Brian Bilbray won a special election last summer in place of a jailed former lawmaker, Randy (Duke) Cunningham, relieved Republicans said it was a sign that Democrats had been hyping their prospects for the fall.

Now it looks like the GOP is getting nervous again.

The party's campaign committee, which focuses its efforts on races that are competitive or may become so, recently commissioned a poll of the San Diego-area district and spent money for mass mailings. Bilbray's opponent on Nov. 7 is Francine Busby, the woman he defeated in June.

Republicans also show signs of concern over several other districts that have not generally been on either party's lists of competitive seats.
[...]

Bilbray claims residency in Carlsbad, amid scandal.

2006-10-12T15:30:00.000-07:00

Here is what the Democrats have to say...

[...]
The letter, signed by the party's county chairman, Jess Durfee, urges recipients to contact the San Diego County district attorney's office and demand that "more information be made public about this investigation."

But Durfee acknowledged Wednesday that he has no proof an investigation is under way. He said he based the letter to the party faithful on several anonymous phone calls received from people who live in the Carlsbad neighborhood where Bilbray lives with his mother.

"They are people who are either neighbors or friends of neighbors who were called as witnesses," Durfee said.

On Bilbray's signed voter registration forms and his statement of candidacy, he lists his official residence as Carlsbad.
[...]

What does Bilbray say?

Bilbray said Carlsbad is his official residence.

[...]
"That is where I lay my head and that is where my surfboard and wet suit is," he said. "I have day care people (for mom) who will testify to it," he said
[...]

Will Bilbray have a moment like this in the near future?

Bilbray will be investigated by Grand Jury.

2006-10-11T22:30:00.000-07:00

Oh man, oh man!

Looks like Bilbray will be investigated by a San Diego Grand Jury for his residency issues.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2006/10/11/225811/09

http://www.mydd.com/story/2006/10/11/231126/29

Timeline break down.

6/21/05 - Bilbray registers to vote in San Diego County, naming Carlsbad address (his mother's home).

8/25/05 - Bilbray signs deed for a home in Alexandria, Virgina - declares it as principal residence.

12/12/05 - Bilbray's children affirm under oath, they live in Virgina with their Father, and wish to attend school in California without paying out of state tuition.

2/23/05 - Signs declaration of candidacy to run for Congress, citing Carlsbad as his primary residence.

What a carpetbagger crook!

Tom Reynolds and his issues with abused minors...

2006-10-10T17:41:00.000-07:00

I found this great story over at http://whpsocal.blogspot.com

RJB points out that Tom Reynolds (NY-26), Chair for the NRCC, claims he talked to Dennis Hastert about Rep. Mark Foley's sexual instant messaging issues. He claims he should have done more to stop the incident and protect the paiges.

Just recently, he has been running ads against Francine Busby. He has been making claims that she "praised" a teacher who was caught in a "Foley-esque" situation. Busby sets the facts straight in this ad.

http://www.busbyforcongress.com/multimedia/video/here-are-the-facts.wmv

Yet, to this day Tom Reynolds signs the checks on those hit pieces that Busby had nothing to do with. Just another sign of how shameful this Republican party has become!

NRCC spends $8 Million in One Day on Tight Races...

2006-10-09T07:14:00.000-07:00

They are running scared, trying to keep their lobbyists in office!

[...]
"The expenditures, which were disclosed in a filing to the Federal Election Commission (FEC), were spread out over 30 House districts, all but three presently held by Republicans. The outlays were mainly for television advertisements, but also included mail pieces and telephone calls to voters.

The overwhelmingly majority (97.6 percent) of the $7.8 million was coded on the FEC report as spending in opposition of the Democratic candidates. Just $184,375 of the NRCC’s Friday outlays, or 2.4 percent of the total, were identified on the report as money spent in support of GOP candidates.

Below is an itemized list of the $7.8 million the NRCC reported spending Friday. For districts that incumbents left open to retire or seek other office, the candidate of the defending party is listed first."
[...]
California’s 50th (Republican Rep. Brian P. Bilbray vs. Democratic educator Francine Busby, a rematch of a June 6 special election won by Bilbray): $18,630 on mailings.
[...]

Bilbray doesn't want to help War Veterans

2006-09-25T07:13:00.000-07:00

Its so nice to hear that Bilbray will be carrying on the wonderful Neo-conservative legacy of cutting benefits to our veterans.

With a past record like this...

[...]
the House rejected a motion, by a vote of 198-219, to provide an additional $213 million for veterans medical care.

Bilbray voted No on this motion. [H.R. 2099, December 7, 1995]
[...]

Who needs friends like Bilbray in the Committee for Veterans Affairs?

Busby Calls for Debates

2006-09-18T17:52:00.000-07:00

Looks like Busby is taking Bilbray seriously...

[...]
Apparently alluding to their differences on immigration, Bilbray on Thursday said sarcastically that he would do his best to see that Busby gets "face time with me, as long as she agrees the debates can be done in English."

Busby, who has never insisted that any debates be done in any language other than English, said Friday through her campaign manager that she took Bilbray's statements as an acceptance of her challenge.

"I'm sorry he has already resorted to negative attacks," Busby, who was busy at a campaign event in San Marcos, said in a written statement read by campaign manager Ray Drew.
[...]

Too bad that Bilbray doesn't take issues in the 50th as a big deal...

[...]
"The campaign is not my No.1 priority right now," Bilbray said.
[...]

Its true! Bilbray has been hard at work voting for a payraise for himself...his first day in office.

He gets a pay raise for sitting in office for 6 months.

Nice.

Busby on Hardball

2006-09-06T15:06:00.000-07:00

Can't wait to hear the topic....

A good old face off will do the 50th good!

Islamism Trumps Arabism, are we next?

2006-08-19T22:48:00.000-07:00

Here is what I mean...

Arabic countries have seen the rise and fall of dictators and and kings - the Pan-Arabic movement has not had widespread success, due to the political nature of their tribes, cultures, and geography. Islam at this point pervasive - Sunni or Shia they are banding together and finding that Islam is what unites them, rather than nationalism, kingdoms, or democracy (short lived if you ask me...). This is scary for us, but exciting for them. Who knows if they will have a Theocracy to rival our own Democracy, and unite their states much like ours. Joyous for them, but scary for us. Will they be tolerant, peaceful, and willing to compromise?

[...]
"Hezbollah’s perceived triumph has propelled, and been propelled by, a wave already washing over the region. Political Islam was widely seen as the antidote to the failures of Arab nationalism, Communism, socialism and, most recently, what is seen as the false promise of American-style democracy. It was that wave that helped the banned but tolerated Muslim Brotherhood win 88 seats in Egypt’s Parliament last December despite the government’s violent efforts to stop voters from getting to the polls. It was that wave that swept Hamas into power in the Palestinian government in January, shocking Hamas itself."
[...]

What is more scary is our situation at home. We have a 19% approval rating of Dick Cheney. We have a 20% approval rating of our Republican Congress. We have a 33% approval rating of our President. People have lost faith in our Democracy and its ability to handle our problems. Voter turnout is low and corruption is high. Now more than ever, I've witnessed two changes. A change in our our politics work, and a change in religion. Our politics are now more partisan. Republicans have always been proponents of small, power checked, and underfunded government.

But Republicans have changed. Now they control the Congress and the Executive branch. It's natural to expect that dissatisfaction with our government is now at an all time high (short of civil war). The Neo-conservative meme being pushed is that our government is bad and doesn't work - but they are in control! How can this be? This segues us into my other perception that religion has changed.

Christianity branding has gone wild. In the media and politics religion is being brought to bear some kind of part in all this mayhem. Not as an instigator, but as a solution. This is what frightens me. The new Conservative movement is almost pushing failure in our government, and providing religion as an solution. Are Republicans pushing us to accept religion as a solution to Democracy's partisan problems?

Is not the same thing happening in the Middle East? Do the people of Iraq, Iran, and Lebanon (Israel for that matter...) perceive that government has failed them as well? Are we (both nations) giving up on government in place of religion willingly? Is this not the penalty for playing politics as a contact sport, rather than fair competition? Both nations are being pushed to accept demogoguery as a solution, rather than participate in their own governance.

If that is the case... God help me.

Mel Gibson says horrble things...

2006-08-12T13:31:00.000-07:00

This re-enactment is brought to you for your viewing pleasure...

Nealo: Freedom Concert

2006-08-10T06:36:00.000-07:00

Cartoons by Neal Obermeyer

Transactional Lobbying AKA I buy your vote, 20 dolla?

2006-08-09T16:58:00.000-07:00

Found this NYT article over at Crooks and Liars and Words Have Power. I guess I'm in good company when I say this kind of stuff BLOWS.

[...]
"Mr. Wilkes had set up separate meetings with the lawmakers hoping to win a government contract, and he planned to punctuate each pitch with a campaign donation. But his hometown congressman, Representative Bill Lowery of San Diego, a Republican, told him that presenting the checks during the sessions was not how things were done, Mr. Wilkes recalled.

Instead, Mr. Wilkes said, Mr. Lowery taught him the right way to do it: hand over the envelope in the hallway outside the suite, at least a few feet away.

That was the beginning of a career built on what Mr. Wilkes calls 'transactional lobbying,' which made him a rich man but also landed him in the middle of a criminal investigation."
[...]

WHP also notes that Abramoff and Doolittle did bad stuff. It is REALLY bad. More news on Dump Dolittle and TPM.

Lehto to oversee Busby/Bilbray Recount Effort in 50th.

2006-08-08T06:24:00.000-07:00

Recount is going ahead... What else will happen?

[...]
"No sooner had the votes been counted than a massive irregularity was uncovered. Election workers in the 50th had taken voting machines home with them overnight, days and weeks prior to the election. The Registrar of Voters sent the machines home for these “overnights” on nothing more than a signature. This was uncovered by local election reform advocates and investigated in depth by election reform advocate and information provider Brad Friedman of BradBlog.Com. Friedman's in depth reporting has been a key element in keeping the 50th district election problems in public focus..."
[...]

Nealo: Voting Issues

2006-08-05T18:36:00.000-07:00

Cartoons by Neal Obermeyer

Dawgs Eat Dogs...

2006-07-31T07:28:00.000-07:00

The Reader does it again...

Matt Potter explains...

[...]
"Among the expenses of the Brian Bilbray congressional campaign is a payment of $1137.75 to Dogs R Us of Richmond, Virginia, for 'food for fundraising event' on June 30. But don't worry, the Washington lobbyists who attended the fund-raiser weren't forced to eat canine food. The caterer specializes in hamburgers and hot dogs. ... Jerry Lewis, the embattled Republican congressman from San Bernardino who has been under scrutiny for his ties to lobbyist and ex-congressman Bill Lowery, has paid $200,000 from his campaign committee to retain Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, the big L.A.-based law firm that defended Randy 'Duke' Cunningham, another tight Lowery pal."
[...]

It just shows you how Bilbray is one of the guys that hangs with bad people. Bilbray, Lowery, and Lewis - all chillin' in Virgina, raising money to keep themselves in power. Why to keep crooked lobbyists and corporate lawyers in power. What is so important about Virgina anyway? I noticed that Duke had a lot of companies do work for him out in Virgina.

CA-04: The Doolittle racket

2006-07-11T17:01:00.000-07:00

saw this post on DailyKos.....linked from the WAPO Made me think of the good ole days in CA-50.

[...]
In the past two years, campaign and political action committees controlled by Rep. John T. Doolittle (R-Calif.) paid ever-larger commissions to his wife's one-person company and spent tens of thousands of dollars on gifts at stores such as Saks Fifth Avenue and Tiffany & Co. and a Ritz-Carlton day spa.

The use of such committees, especially "leadership" PACs, for purposes other than electing politicians to Congress is a common and growing phenomenon, but campaign finance watchdogs say Doolittle has taken it to new heights.

Doolittle's wife, Julie, a professional fundraiser, has collected 15 percent of all contributions to Doolittle's leadership PAC and additional commissions on contributions to his campaign committee -- a total of nearly $140,000 since 2003, according to Federal Election Commission records
[...]

It's no Military Idustrial Complex scam - but it is pretty nasty to say the least.

Guerin joins Bilbray staff - Bossypants just grew a few sizes.

2006-07-09T12:39:00.000-07:00

If there was any doubt about how messed up things in the 50th are... I thought this was a good clue.

[...]

"Encinitas Mayor Christy Guerin has taken the job of district director for Republican U.S. Rep. Brian Bilbray, who took office last month after a hard-fought election to replace imprisoned former U.S. Rep. Randy 'Duke' Cunningham.

Guerin, who supported Bilbray's candidacy with letters to her Encinitas constituents, said Friday that Bilbray called her shortly after his victory to offer her the directorship of his office in Escondido. Her first day was July 1.

'I was extremely flattered and surprised and intrigued,' Guerin said, referring to Bilbray's job offer.

She said she plans to complete her second term on the Encinitas City Council, which expires in December, but does not know whether she will seek a third, even though she's already collected $6,500 for the campaign."

[...]

I guess that is good news to those over in funky Leucadia - but its bad news for ever

MPAA vs World.

2006-06-24T10:53:00.000-07:00

You know that, "Don't steal movies, cuz it hurts real people" trailer you must now watch prior to your movie of choice? Yeah, the one that is sandwiched into the 20 mins of trailers and commericals, that you are paying to see. Oh yeah, and the movie ticket that you paide for, like 10 bucks?

I read this story and laughed.

[...]
Movie critic Paul Sherman was arrested and charged with selling over 100 "screeners"—preview copies of movies on DVD handed out to reviewers—to various pirate and warez groups over the last few years.

Sherman, no relation to the animated Jay Sherman of FOX's short-lived The Critic, did not exactly get rich from his piratical dealings. He received a mere US$4,714 for the use of his screeners. If convicted, he could face a maximum penalty of US$250,000 and a three-year prison term.
[...]

I guess the MPAA and the RIAA need to look at their own industry and clean their own house up first. The public is not a bunch of dark, shadowy, malconents - we just like movies.

I found this on the MPAA website, near the bottom.

[...]
Movie pirates are thieves, plain and simple. Piracy is the unauthorized taking, copying or use of copyrighted materials without permission. It is no different from stealing another person's shoes or stereo, except sometimes it can be a lot more damaging. Piracy is committed in many ways, including Internet piracy, copying and distribution of discs, broadcasts, and even public performances. Downloading movies without the authorization of copyright holders is a growing international phenomenon, and it has serious consequences.

People often steal movies on the Internet because they believe they are anonymous and will not be held responsible for their actions. They are wrong. Illegal distribution of digital movie files on the Internet is a serious crime, and individuals who engage in piracy via the Internet can easily be tracked. The movie industry has and is taking a firm stance against Internet thieves who steal millions of dollars in copyrighted material with complete disregard for the law.
[...]

Looks like they prescribe to the "dark, shadowy, malconent" fiction. Me? I just like movies. Sorry.

Bilbray PAR-TAY!

2006-06-19T17:10:00.000-07:00

Found this link over at Wonkette...

Move over Jenna and Barbara! There are some new sloppy drunks in town!

Oh look! Is that Corona? Mexican beer!?! Shocka!

I'm not sure how Bilbray expects to keep and eye on the border, when this is going on in his own backyard. I don't think a fence will help this one.

I'm sure they are of legal age...I'm not sure how conservative dad will take his daughters' liberal drinking.

http://www.myspace.com/casurfer1234
http://www.myspace.com/itsbrianayo
http://s7.photobucket.com/albums/y253/ditzblondey/

Beware - I hear the sites are now password protected. They must be closet liberals!

You gotta....

2006-06-05T17:50:00.000-07:00

VOTE

Roach meets with GOP groups in Washington North County Times - North San Diego and Southwest Riverside County News - NCTimes.com - Californian.com

2006-05-01T11:55:00.000-07:00

Republican party - still fighting for their soul...

[...]
"On Tuesday, Roach arrived in Washington for two days of meetings with national conservative groups to measure their views on his possible candidacy for the Republican nomination in the June primary, a Roach spokesman said Tuesday.

'He's getting a pulse,' spokesman Stan Devereux said in a Tuesday phone interview from the nation's capital. 'Eric is in the process of evaluating whether he will continue to campaign for the June primary. We believe it's very important to have input from key conservatives.'

In a Tuesday phone interview, top Republican vote-getter Brian Bilbray said that as long as Roach is in Washington, he would encourage him to sit down for a talk with U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter, 'the premier conservative congressman from this region.' Hunter, R-El Cajon, recently endorsed Bilbray for the job.

In the April 11 special election, Roach got about 1,000 votes less than Bilbray. As a result, Bilbray will face Democrat Francine Busby in the June 6 runoff for the temporary assignment of representing the 50th District.

But on that day, voters will also cast ballots in the primary to choose candidates for the November general election, when a representative will be chosen for the two-year term..."
[...]

Do you pull out the win with a weak immigration ticket, via Bilbray, or split the vote and risk losing - because Roach isn't a lobbyist?

tough call.. tough call!

The Conservative Soul: Roach vs Bilbray

2006-04-27T17:17:00.000-07:00

The conservatives need to find their soul...

[...]
Democrat Francine Busby, 55, a women's studies lecturer who in 2004 won 36 percent running against Cunningham, finished first, but with only 43.7 percent, about what Bill Clinton, Al Gore and John Kerry won in the 50th in 1996, 2000 and 2004 – 45, 43 and 44, respectively. So Republicans heaved sighs of relief, thinking the seat is safe. They sighed prematurely.
[...]

Point to be made - small margin of error.

[...]
On June 6, Busby faces Brian Bilbray, 55, who led all Republicans on April 11. The 14 Republicans won 53.5 percent of the vote, but Bilbray – who from 1995-2001 represented the neighboring 49th District – won just 15.3 percent. And Eric Roach, 43, a wealthy self-financing candidate, won 14.5 percent.
[...]

The two people that have a chance are squabbling. But Roach is squawking - he believe Bilbray is wrong.

[...]
...Darrell Issa, the Republican who now represents the 49th District, threatened to “bury” Roach if he did not quit campaigning. Roach, unamused by such pressure to disappear, says 45,000 of the 73,000 votes cast for Republicans April 11 were for conservatives. He is one (pro-life and aghast at spending by the Republican-controlled Congress), and he says Bilbray is not because Bilbray is pro-choice and “has voted for many tax increases.”
[...]
And Bilbray, since losing the 49th District in 2000, has been a Washington lobbyist, with a home in Northern Virginia, where his children attended school.
[...]

This makes the issue for me..

[...]
As for Roach, Bilbray says “the male ego is a fragile thing – as any woman can tell you.” He expects Roach to recede, once the sting of the April 11 loss subsides. Roach is visiting Washington this week, measuring conservatives' support for continuing his campaign.
[...]

Roach intends to push Bilbray out. Bilbray can't stop him. This is the fight soul of the local Republican district.

Roach is a conservative and Bilbray is a neo-conservative. The 50th is unsure of what they want. When I look at the election results, I see that Republicans voted MORE for a non-big money candidate. Where as minority support is strong for a neo-conservative like Bilbray.

Find your soul Republicans - Democrats know theirs and have the plan!

US Appeals: Schools can ban hurtful shirts.

2006-04-21T17:31:00.000-07:00

You may remember the news story about the student that decided to display his belief that "Homosexuality is Shameful". He believed that his Christian faith compeled him to to "protest" his schools acceptance of LBGT groups on campus.

You might be happy to read the US Appeals Court ruling...

[...]
Public schools can bar clothing with slogans that are hurtful, a U.S. appeals court ruled Thursday in the case of a student who wore a T-shirt saying "Homosexuality is shameful."

The 2-1 decision by a three-judge panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals backed a San Diego-area high school's argument that it was entitled to tell a student to remove a T-shirt with that message.
[...]

Keep your shirt on.. or take it off... it all depends - read on for more.

[...]
"Perhaps our dissenting colleague believes that one can condemn homosexuality without condemning homosexuals. If so, he is wrong. To say that homosexuality is shameful is to say, necessarily, that gays and lesbians are shameful," Reinhardt.

"There are numerous locations and opportunities available to those who wish to advance such an argument. It is not necessary to do so by directly condemning, to their faces, young students trying to obtain a fair and full education in our public schools," Reinhardt added.
[...]

Salute the elephant, instead of the flag.

2006-04-18T17:18:00.000-07:00

I'm sure this the kind of thing that happens all the time at RNC HQ...

[...]
As someone stood up to lead the Pledge of Allegiance at a GOP dinner here Thursday, it was suddenly realized there was no flag in the room.

“Pledge to the elephant!” shouted Bob Watkins of the county Board of Education.

So the audience, which included Rep. Darrell Issa, state Senate Minority Leader Dick Ackerman, Assembly Republican Leader-Elect George Plescia and Mayor Jerry Sanders, turned toward the GOP banner and recited the pledge while facing the party's symbolic pachyderm.

Fortunately, it was a patriotic red, white and blue – with stars.
[...]

I'm sure it was a simple understanding, they don't have a flag because Duke Cunningham was too busy wrapping himself in it before he was indicted...

They just never got around to getting it back from him. Not to worry, they are sending it back really soon... Duke has a different set of stripes to cover himself in...

http://jail.ytmnsfw.com/

Republican Unity...

2006-04-13T17:40:00.000-07:00

Is there such a thing in CA-50? Were Republicans ever really united for something or against something? Or was it just easy to sleepwalk to the polls?

Duke Cunningham rode this district for 14 years. The last year was hell in a handbasket at his own doing. Republicans in our district have a strong party allegiance, which is admirable. But what good is party loyalty when it flies in the face of your values?

Dishonesty. Bribery. Lies. Poltics over People. Corporate Interest before Public Interest.

If this is what the Republican party stands for you've got to change it.

Taking money from lobbyists, bribes, and corporate interests doesn't help America. It won't help Americans in the least, when it comes to the morgage payment, paying for college, or healthcare.

When the political dirt flies back and forth you find there was not Republican Party Unity in CA-50.

[...]
Even before Brian Bilbray appeared to clinch a narrow victory Tuesday over 13 other Republican rivals ...supporters called on the field to "unite" behind Bilbray's candidacy. But a day later, it appeared that unity could be slow in coming.
[...]

No unity.

[...]
Eric Roach, Bilbray's nearest Republican rival, said Wednesday through campaign managers that he might ask for a recount of votes cast in the sprawling 50th District ---- a move that would delay Republican solidarity in the weeks of campaigning left before June 6.
"Right now, our focus is to wait for the 10,000 or so provisional and absentee ballots left to be counted, and determine if a recount is necessary," Roach spokesman Stan Devereux said.
[...]

No unity.

[...]
On Wednesday morning, with nearly 100 percent of the votes counted, Bilbray had apparently eked out a narrow victory over Roach, with 15.15 percent of the vote, to Roach's 14.46 percent.
[...]
She said Wednesday that she welcomes the upcoming fight against Bilbray, a Washington lobbyist.Bilbray said the fight against Busby would be easier if Republicans stick together.
[...]

More on the recount process itself...

[...]
However, a hand recount of more than 130,000 votes ---- which would have to be counted precinct by precinct from the 445 precincts ---- could take a long time, Haas said. Haas said that anyone could ask the county to conduct a recount of any election, and the county would do it. But, Haas said, the person or group requesting the recount would have to pay for the work. He said that could amount to "thousands of dollars a day," depending upon how many county election workers were hired to handle the recount, and how long it took.
[...]

No Unity... From Roach.

[...]
A review of the tally suggests that, if the current numbers from Tuesday's election hold up, and if Bilbray needs a united Republican front, losing Roach's support could undo his candidacy.Add Roach's votes and those of the other 13 Republican candidates to Bilbray's, and the GOP percentage of the vote would come to 56.08 percent ---- enough to comfortably defeat Busby's 43.92 percent.Subtract Roach's 14.46 percent, and Bilbray's support would drop to 41.62 percent, a slice that would lose to Busby's current percentage.
[...]

No Unity... from Kaloogian

[...]
Former Assemblyman Howard Kaloogian, who finished a distant fourth with 7.4 percent of Tuesday's vote, declined to return repeated calls Wednesday to determine if he would throw his support to Bilbray.
[...]

No Unity... from anyone...

[...]
And Republican leaders and supporters tried unsuccessfully several times at Tuesday night's celebration to get all 14 candidates to join each another on stage.
[...]

Keywords: Immigration - Amnesty, Security, Illegal.

2006-04-13T06:37:00.000-07:00

Talking point keywords are going to be thrown around - Amnesty (bad), Security (good), etc... - These things will rally the Republican base...

In keeping with the terms, Adopt the terms. Use them on Bilbray. Busby's campaign will need to attach those themes to Bilbray's lack of integrity to drop his support.

Ex:
Electing Bilbray is giving amnesty to the flood of Lobbyists, by giving letting them invade Congress.

Cool huh?

GOP touts tough ethics against Busby, but not Morrow's Mess.

2006-03-16T16:58:00.000-08:00

SDpolitics, finds how the Republicans attack Bubsy on ethics...

But are they going to scowl at Morrow at well for his anti-immigrant rally in Carlsbad?

[...]
"Republicans are obviously determined to battle Busby on the ethics issue (which is the cornerstone of her campaign). They are obviously also concerned with her standing in the polls and strength in fundraising, given the flurry of anti-Busby press releases issued the past several days. This just in from the San Diego County Republican Party:"
[...]

I’m not sure what the GOP are getting at. Did Republicans complain of an ethics violation towards Bill Morrow, when he sued for the right to use Carlsbad Unified School District, Cultral Arts Center for his anti-immigrant rally/candidacy for the 50th?

That is school property and he was using his political office to promote a rally and candidicy for the 50th, and his anti-immigration platform. Republicans are going to make a stink about spending tax-payer money on a visit to a college, but not when it cost the tax-payers of Carlsbad $64,000!?

Talk about the $64,000 dollar question.

It seems that Republican Party is turning a blind eye to there own members once AGAIN... and we all know how it ended up last time.

Morrow and Kaloogian: FLIP FLOP on immigration.

2006-03-15T18:36:00.000-08:00

I just love how things are so black and white for Bill Morrow and Howard Kaloogian. Everything must look like zebras and penguins to them. Illegal immigration is bad! Oh, workers for farms and landscaping - good!

Make up your mind!!!

[...]
"At a recent Republican women's forum in Escondido, former state Assemblyman Howard Kaloogian touted his endorsements from the San Diego Minutemen and Chris Simcox, the founder of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps. State Sen. Bill Morrow quickly pointed out he's been endorsed by the California Minutemen and had stood at the border with them.

But when Kaloogian and Morrow spoke before the San Diego County Farm Bureau, an organization whose members depend on the labor of immigrants, they abandoned the fierce rhetoric and extolled the economic benefits of immigrant labor. Kaloogian suggested that border crossings should be like airports where people can come and go freely with security checks. Morrow said there's no reason agricultural employers shouldn't be able to call an office at the border and get the workers they need."
[...]

The devil is in the details and the Republicans don't have a clue.

[...]
Democrats Busby and Young said they support a need-based guest-worker program that would allow immigrants into the country when businesses can't fill their jobs with U.S. workers.
[...]

What a simply nuanced answer that just fits nicely. But, Morrow, Bilbray and Kaloogian are too busy spitting out rhetoric to face the issue as Americans understand it. They are too busy portraying our border as a warzone, immigrants as criminals, and cuts tightly near racism. Nationalism will only take you so far... until you start misrepresenting the issue and hurting people.

Roach's former business partner linked to pedophilia...

2006-03-14T19:08:00.000-08:00

SDpolitics finds that Eric Roach's former business partner is a convicted pedophile...

and which brings the following questions to the forefront.

[...]
There are obviously a number of questions to ask of Eric Roach.

1) Did you know that your business partner was engaged in this behavior? If so, did you confront him about this and explain that it was not OK to engage in sex with individuals under the age of 18?

2) Why is there a discrepancy about who started and funded the brokerage firm that you made your personal fortune from? Were you the principal founder or was White? Was it your money that started the firm or WhiteÂs? Or did the two of you go into the project together?

3) Since published reports about WhiteÂs activities have come out have you spoken to White? What kind of relationship have you had with him since Lombard was sold in 1997?

[...]

Don't judge - just be aware.

Busby VS Republicans @ CSUSM

2006-03-13T06:52:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure of thes status of this event, but it should provide entertainment.

[...]
"Cal State San Marcos will provide a platform for candidates vying for the 50th Congressional seat, to tell people why they should be chosen to replace former Congressman Randy 'Duke' Cunningham.

The opportunity will come during a debate hosted by the university's Alumni Association on March 23, which will see candidates field questions submitted by the public as well as the campus community. The free event is scheduled from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Clarke Fieldhouse/ University Student Union on campus.

Cunningham resigned from the seat in late November after admitting to having received cash bribes and illicit gifts in exchange for helping two defense contractors obtain government defense contracts valued in the millions of dollars over the last five years.

Last week, Charles Guthrie, the executive director of the university's Alumni Association, said the debate will give district residents insight into each candidate and what they stand for. He added that the university often acts as the center of political issues and education for the public.

'We are hoping the community comes out,' Guthrie said. 'I think it's very important that local people are in tune with politics and things that could impact their daily lives.'"
[...]

C&R mentions Busby... help out if you can!

2006-03-09T17:40:00.000-08:00

http://www.crooksandliars.com/2006/03/04.html#a7389

If you've got a moment...

KLSD 1360 - You'll lose your day job...but it's worth it.

2006-03-09T16:30:00.000-08:00

This is one of those sad little numbers you read about. It's sad because some employers don't know the rules. They have to learn them the hard war

The California labor code prohibits employers from controlling or directing the political activities of employees.

[...]
The suit also alleges that, after seeing the sticker, the employer commented that the woman could be a member of al-Qaida.

In a civil suit filed at the county courthouse in Vista, Linda Laroca is targeting both her former manager, Beverly Fath, and the company she briefly worked for last year, Advantage Sales and Marketing, Inc.

Neither Laroca nor the defendants could be reached for comment Wednesday. Laroca's attorney declined comment.
[...]
According to Laroca's suit, the bumper sticker in question read only: "1360 Air America Progressive Talk Radio."
[...]

Get your bumper sticker and get a free lawsuit - www.klsd1360.com

Words Have Power: Mitchell Wade Pleads Guilty

2006-03-09T06:19:00.000-08:00

Hooray!!!

[...]
"Cunningham co-conspirator, Mitchell Wade, plead out before a federal judge today. Here are the charges. The San Diego Union Tribune has the summary. Wade's plea suggests that an additional member of congress was involved in the bribery deal and that the conspiracy extended into the Department of Defense."
[...]

Yes Virginia, there is a Justice Department!!

Notice how it doesn't look like a bribe menu, rather more like a bill of charges. That is a good thing!

Busby rings true on Dubia and W's Deal

2006-03-08T18:29:00.000-08:00

Looks like Busby is in good company and standing by opposing the Dubai Port Deal that Bush has threatened to veto. Even the Coast Guard agree, this is dangerous.

[...]
"Congressional candidate Francine Busby, a Cardiff school board member, will deliver the Democratic response to President Bush's weekly radio address tomorrow.

Busby will emphasize the importance of protecting America's ports from terrorism. The president's address, followed by Busby's rebuttal, is expected to be broadcast in the San Diego area at noon on KOGO Radio 600 AM, according to Busby's campaign."
[...]

Too bad. I haven't seen anything form Morrow, Bilbray, or Kaloogian... I'm not sure where the others stand either.

Enviroment != Richard Pombo = Bill Morrow

2006-02-26T20:21:00.000-08:00

I love this commentary on our local policital race which involves Francine Busby - but Bill Morrow shines like a lump of coal in a forest fire... oh dear...
[...]
"Meanwhile, today's NORTH COUNTY TIMES, the local newspaper for the 50th Congressional District, has a pathetic report on the environmental records of the Republicans in the area. Conservationists in California are particularly unhappy with the extreme right-wing state senator from Oceanside, Bill Morrow, who is running against Busby. He had a grade of just 4 out of 100-- even worse than Pombo's!!! According to Rico Mastrodonato of the California League of Conservation Voters, 'from an environmental perspective, we get very little support from representatives in that area.'

There are a lot of reasons it is crucial for citizens of the 50th CD, for Californians and for Americans to elect Francine Busby in April. The contrast between her environmental stands and those of Morrow and the other Republicans running to replace Cunningham is just another in a long list."
[...]

Amen!

Of Brian Bilbray, Tom DeLay, Jack Abramoff, and Mariana Islands

2006-02-20T18:19:00.000-08:00

More points about the obvious connections, but is still worth mentioning from Logan Jenkins...

[...]
"I'd be scouring Washington archives for a palling-around photograph of Bilbray and, say, corrupt lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

Or how about a warm Kodak moment with Brent Wilkes, a defense contractor who allegedly bribed former Rep. Randall Harold Cunningham?

You know the old saying: A picture is worth a thousands slurs.

As it is, the Internet is already abuzz with reports that Abramoff arranged for Bilbray to take a trip to the Mariana Islands. (Bilbray says it was a legitimate trip to discuss naturalization issues that dovetailed with his legislative work on immigration.)"
[...]

The Mariana Islands, are the place that Tom DeLay and Jack Abramoff had worked with The Mariana Island textile industry to keep female Chinese and Korean sweatshop workers from retaining citizenship, in a US Territory. This also lead to forced abortions for the female employees, or else be fired from the company and become a penniless destitute.

[...]
Maybe so, but you have to wonder whether Bilbray, the only former congressman in the field, will be tarred by what the chops-licking Democrats are calling the "Culture of Corruption."

In the current climate, you'd rather be a bookie in scuffed Florsheims than a Washington lobbyist in Italian loafers.

To add to the potential misery, Bilbray, who made his mark in South Bay, will have to absorb the carpetbagger charge in North County.
[...]

Amen to that! Bilbray will be looking for a way to distance myself from his lobbist past and present. Yet, Bilbray holds dear that his "insider" status will somehow pay off for the 50th.

Talking Points Memo: by Joshua Micah Marshall: February 12, 2006 - February 18, 2006 Archives

2006-02-20T07:42:00.000-08:00

Talking Points Memo... Josh Micha Marshall trys to keep up with the littany of ill-gotten goods reads more like a laundry list...

It also shows how he was unwilling to change his ways when caught by staffers...

[...]
Duke's staffer catches Duke buying a Suburban at under market value from Mitchell Wade. Duke tells staffer to "Stay the f--- out of my personal business." "In an attempt to right, and conceal, this obviously corrupt transaction" Duke's staffers falisfy his DMV application and try to get him to pay up to make up the difference. Duke passes on the opportunity.
[...]

Sick and sad...

Read the whole list here...

Bud Lewis - Taking it Back...

2006-02-14T06:01:00.000-08:00

Bud Lewis sticks it to Duke Cunningham.

[...]
One extra bit of cash ---- $1,000 --- was a returned check. Lewis said he asked for the money back from former 50th District Congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham's campaign after allegations surfaced that Cunningham was taking bribes. Cunningham pleaded guilty to tax and bribery charges in November.
[...]

Nice move!

Carlsbad Council Secret Meetings with Lennar?

2006-02-13T17:44:00.000-08:00

Wow, secret meetings at City Council?!

[...]
Following allegations that the city has been improperly holding secret meetings with a developer, the City Council voted 4-1 Jan. 17 to consider having the city manager and attorney investigate laws and policies regarding staff meetings.

Members of a local political group called the Concerned Citizens of Carlsbad have claimed meetings city planners have had with developer Lennar Corp. were not made public and represented an end-run around open government.
[...]

Apparently the old meetings are now "public" and disclosed on this website...

http://sterlinginsights.com/events/si_171/carlsbad.html
emmerson
blue

More is over at the UT

[...]
Concerned Citizens for Carlsbad is seeking to place an initiative on the November ballot to preserve the strawberry fields south of Agua Hedionda Lagoon, two large tracts near Legoland, and the Flower Fields near Palomar Airport Road for agriculture.

Peter Lind, the group's attorney, said yesterday he uncovered agendas on the meetings through a Public Records Act request.
[...]

What is odd, is that I was called by a consulting/marketing firm regarding this area as a civic center or new town center. CCI Marketing did the dirty work of making the calls. But Fairbank, Maslin, Maullin & Associates. These guys are heavy hitters. They have been used by numerous cities and special interests in order to push perspective and ideas into the minds of the public.

It is all about image at this point. Yikes!

Wyland names AB1218 after William J. 'Pete' Knight, the guy that tried to ban gay marriage.

2006-02-12T17:35:00.000-08:00

What is up with Wyland? Naming a bill after the man who attempted to ban gay marriage in California?

[...]
"A wide range of community groups stood in opposition to AB1218, for different reasons. The bill, titled 'The William J. 'Pete' Knight Memorial Act', by Assemblyman Mark Wyland (R-Vista), would require that the Pledge of Allegiance be recited daily at elementary and secondary schools.

Without addressing the constitutional and separation of church and state issues often brought up by opponents of a mandatory Pledge of Allegiance, Equality California took an immediate position against the bill because of its namesake. Knight, the late homophobic senator who authored Proposition 22, California's gay marriage ban, should not be honored with this legislation, said EQCA Executive Director Geoffrey Kors.

'Pete Knight opposed the tenets of the pledge, which are liberty and justice for all,' said Kors. 'We strongly oppose this bill being named in honor of someone who was responsible for keeping a significant part of the population of California from having liberty and justice.'"
[...]

I think its better to name a bill after Duke Cunningham. In fact John Kerry just did so...

The Duke Cunningham Act

[...]
Kerry's bill – nicknamed the “Duke Cunningham Act” after the Rancho Santa Fe Republican who resigned last year after pleading guilty to accepting $2.4 million in bribes – would halt pensions for senators and House members found guilty of bribery, perjury or conspiracy to defraud the government.

Cunningham is entitled to a pension of about $40,000 a year under current law, which excludes only former lawmakers who are convicted of crimes against the United States, such as treason and espionage.

“It's disgusting that hard-working taxpayers fund the retirement of criminals like Duke Cunningham,” said Kerry, D-Mass. “We have to restore the public trust in the country.”
[...]

Amen! I think we pay enough in sending him to jail for ten years... if that!

Dig this dirt... on Bilray's Abramoff Connection and Bill Morrow's Stem Cell-out.

2006-02-07T16:34:00.000-08:00

It sounds like Morrow and Bilbray are attacking each other...

What is worse they sound pathetic in their attempt to out "conservative" each other.

The real truth is that neither are conservative - they are just crooks.

[...]
"For the last few months, Republican political consultants, campaign managers and others have been predicting the 50th Congressional District race to replace former U.S. Rep. Randy 'Duke' Cunningham would turn into a mudslinging free-for-all.

In the wake of Cunningham's resignation in November after pleading guilty to taking millions in bribes, the number of candidates grew to 14 as of late last week. And the more the competition increased, the more likely it became that dirty politics would come into play, those political observers predicted.

It appears the pundits may have been right.

In recent days, two so-called hit pieces ---- campaign fliers or e-mails that portray a candidate in the worst possible light and often contain half-truths ---- have surfaced. One was an e-mail containing a memorandum that cast former Congressman and Republican candidate Brian Bilbray as a liberal with questionable ethics."
[...]

Its starting to get deep.. that FILTHY Liberal...

.. here we go with Morrow.

[...]
Anti-abortion activist James Hartline sent the e-mail to the North County Times on Jan. 30 in which he not only excoriated (this is a bad thing for...) Morrow but also the senator's wife, for her work as vice president and general counsel for a nonprofit organization that advocates for California's biomedical industry and embryonic stem cell research and other cutting-edge technologies and life sciences. The California Healthcare Institute's Web site is http://chi.org./

Reached by phone Friday, Hartline said that he "may have" sent the report to the North County Times and confirmed that he is the author of the piece.

The inflammatory report, titled "The secret embryonic stem cell death agenda of Senator Bill Morrow," calls its revelation of Barbara Morrow's job "one of the biggest bombshells dropped in the history of California's conservative movement."
[...]

Not true, people are entitled to their opinion... Things get bizzare with Bilbray...

[...]
An anonymous source from an operation that calls itself the "Bilbray File" recently sent an e-mail to the North County Times that included a copy of a memorandum listing information and articles published over the years on former U.S. Rep. Bilbray. The e-mail attributes the memorandum to "Concerned Republicans in California's 50th Congressional District." The organization does not show up on databases of either the California secretary of state's office or the Federal Election Commission.

The articles cover everything from Bilbray's 1996 trip to the Northern Mariana Islands and his lobbying activities, to his voting record on gun-related issues. (The organization Gun Owners of America gave him an "F" rating in 1998; see www.gunowners.org.)

There was also a reference to the support he received from a Republican group that advocates for the rights of gays and lesbians. FEC records show that Bilbray has received campaign contributions from the Log Cabin Club.

The articles and other information in the "Bilbray File" all appeared to be an effort to cast him in a negative light or to imply that he is a liberal.

"This is a calculated dirty-tricks campaign against me," Bilbray said last week.

Bilbray, who served in Congress from 1996 to 2000, said he believes the anonymous e-mail was sent to the newspaper by a Republican, not a Democrat.

"The one way to attack without being blamed for it is to do it anonymously through the Internet. I am used to the Democratic machine doing so, but it's sad to see Republicans doing the same stuff," he said.
[...]

more....

[...]
One of the articles mentioned in the "Bilbray File" was a 1998 New York Times story that talked about a possible connection between Bilbray and former Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Abramoff recently pleaded guilty to fraud, corruption and tax-evasion charges.

In his pleas, Abramoff admitted to taking millions of dollars in kickbacks and failing to pay millions in taxes on his ill-gotten gains connected with his lobbying activities for several American Indian tribes. In addition to Abramoff's role with the tribes, in the mid- to late 1990s, he also worked as a lobbyist for the government of the U.S. protectorate of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, as it fought to prevent U.S. legislation from being passed that would have removed the islands' exemption from having to pay U.S.-level minimum wages.

The New York Times article said that the government of the Mariana Islands had invited "nearly all members of Congress and their aides" to visit the islands and paid for the trips of those who accepted the invitation. The article also said that Abramoff "arranged" for the trips. The same article said those guests included Bilbray and his wife. An April 29, 2005, story by The Associated Press reported that Abramoff later reimbursed the Mariana Islands' government for many of the trips to the islands by members of Congress.

Asked about the reports, Bilbray said last week that he and his wife made the trip to the Marianas in late December 1996. However, he stressed that the government of the Northern Mariana Islands paid for the trip, not Abramoff. Bilbray said he did not know whether Abramoff was involved in that invitation nor whether the lobbyist repaid the government for the trips.

The trip had nothing to do with the legislation to increase the minimum wage that Abramoff was trying to get defeated in Congress, Bilbray said.

He received the invitation from the governor of the islands, because the islands were struggling to come to grips with foreign guest workers who were giving birth to children while staying there and then claiming birthright citizenship for their children, Bilbray said. Before he went on the trip, he also requested that the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct give its approval for the trip, he said.

In a Dec. 13, 1996, letter to Bilbray, the committee approved his request ---- with qualifications.

"Assuming the Committee's understanding regarding payment of the costs of the trip is correct, you may participate in the trip under this provision," the letter stated.

Bilbray said he doesn't remember ever having met Abramoff. However, "I assume I have run into him, but I never received any contributions from him," Bilbray said, adding that none of his staff members at the time remembered having met Abramoff.
[...]

Sounds like President Bush and Bilbray have two things in common. 1) Meeting Abramoff. 2) Failing to remember the occasion. We can only hope Bilbray didn't take any of "Black" Jack Abramoff's casino/lobby money - but only time will tell. It would be best to avoid trading the CunningScam scandal for a "3 Dollar Bill-bray" scandal. Yikes!

When you vote, you have to ask yourself... Do you want to condone the mudslinging that Bilbray and Morrow have engaged in? Or would your rather keep your Congress clean?

The article is a good read. No wonder RJB is working it too.

Morrow Jumps ship...

2006-01-28T11:54:00.000-08:00

I just love these kinds of kinds of stories...There are quite a few on WHP

There is more at Words Have Power

It shows you how hollow the attempt on this was. A lone UCLA Alumni, Andrew Jones - hooks up with Bill Morrow in an effort to create a coalition and it ends up being ...pitiful.

Two peas in a pod...

[...]
Wade Teasdale, Morrow's chief of staff, said that the Senator agreed to become a member of the advisory board several months ago when contacted by Jones. However, he said, Jones "never asked for advice on anything." He added that the Morrow was "out of the loop" on the offer to pay students. The Senator's name disappeared from the Bruin Alumni Association website
midday Wednesday.
[...]

Sounds like Morrow is out of the loop in general. Alas, it is no longer conveinent for Bill Morrow...

Great story!

Mark Wyland - DeLay? OK!

2006-01-27T18:54:00.000-08:00

This is newsworthy, if only for the reason that Mark Wyland voted against cleaning up corruption. Now he is on record for siding with big money politics like Cunningham, DeLay, and Abramoff.

[...]
"'Enactment of AB 583 would be a significant step forward to lifting the stain on our democracy and political system so evident nationally in the Abramoff and DeLay scandals,' said Rose Ann DeMoro, executive director of the California Nurses Association, a key sponsor of the bill. Some two dozen registered nurses attended Tuesday's session in support of the bill, and nurses have been contacting legislators prior to the vote. 'In California, this vote, and the grassroots movement that has been building for the bill, symbolizes the growing voter revolt against two consecutive governors and the legislature for the embarrassment of cash register politics in Sacramento,' DeMoro said. Introduced by Assembly member Loni Hancock (D-Berkeley), the bill next heads to the Assembly Appropriations Committee. As legislation carried over from last year, the bill must clear the full Assembly by the end of January. In addition to CNA, other supporters include the League of Women Voters, Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, Gray Panthers, Sierra Club, and the California Clean Money Campaign. Voting for the bill today were Assembly members Johan Klehs (D-Hayward), Betty Karnette (D-Long Beach), Mark Leno (D-SF), and Lloyd Levine (D-Van Nuys). Voting no were... ... Mark Wyland (R-Vista),...
[...]

Its good to see that Francine Busby is down for this kind clean up in the House. The name just fits - nicely.

Clean House Act

Busby's Odds Improve

2006-01-22T01:34:00.000-08:00

Kansas City Star | 01/01/2006 | The buzz: "Upscaling the walls?

Could the downfall of former Republican congressman Duke Cunningham in a bribery scandal mean a Democratic pickup of his upscale San Diego district?

Francine Busby faces an uphill battle, thanks to California’s congressional map, drawn to protect incumbents of both parties. But the district was narrowly won by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, another Democrat.

“If Mars is aligned with the moon just right, yes, a Democrat, on paper, could win this seat,” said Allan Hoffenblum, who puts out a nonpartisan election guide. “Everything would have to go right for Busby, and everything … wrong for the Republican.”"

Issa endorses Bilbray in 50th district race

2006-01-20T18:07:00.000-08:00

Issa endorses Bilbray? Poor Alan Uke, I thought they were friends!

[...]
"Rep. Darrell Issa endorsed former Republican congressman Brian Bilbray on Wednesday in the race to fill the seat vacated by Randy 'Duke' Cunningham.

Issa, a Republican who district borders on the 50th Congressional District formerly represented by Cunningham, also said he will serve as Bilbray's campaign chairman. Bilbray represented Imperial Beach in Congress from 1994-2000.

'When you are looking for someone who is trusted and proven and who has been in the arena and has been bloodied a bit you could not find a better person than Brian Bilbray,' Issa said.
[...]

If he is trusted and proven, then why is he out of office to begin with? Bilbray is coming back to politics after loosing his office in election cycle to Susan Davis in the 49th-CA. Oh wait, maybe its because he never left politics - I hear he was a lobbyist for anti-immigration reform for the past 3 years. Working with who? Abramoff. Even Fox news has this one - near the bottom.

[...]
Cunningham, a Republican, resigned in November after pleading guilty to accepting $2.4 million in bribes stemming from his dealings with defense contractors and others. He is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 27.

Democrat Francine Busby, who lost to Cunningham in 2004 by 22 percentage points, is also running again. Busby said Wednesday that if she's elected, she would limit her contacts with lobbyists by eliminating secret meetings, refusing gifts and other steps.

'The current lax laws have allowed a system where lobbyists write legislation and taxpayer dollars are given away in backroom, secret meetings,' Busby said."
[...]

I think it just a good idea keep our elected officials away from lobbyists. Better yet - Don't elect a lobbyist to begin with.

Bye Bye Bilbray.

NCtimes chronicals Republican mischaracterizations of Immigration Debate

2006-01-13T18:43:00.000-08:00

I love how the NC points this out. How Republicans have failed to enact and border protections or stop the flow of immigrants - yet they use this issue to rally hate and votes. It's a joke.

[...]
In a March speech, County Supervisor Bill Horn stumped for completion of a border fence to fight illegal immigration. In September, Department of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff waived legal requirements to the completion of 14-mile border fence south of San Ysidro.

And in November, U.S. Rep Duncan Hunter, R-El Cajon, whose district includes Poway, Ramona and other portions of northeast San Diego County, called for building a double border fence from the Pacific Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico. (FAILED)

In the weeks following now-former Congressman Randy 'Duke' Cunningham's July announcement that he would not be seeking re-election to his 50th District seat, several Republican aspirants for that job vied to position themselves as stauncher-than-thou supporters of increased enforcement of immigration laws. (FAILED)

In May, state Assemblyman Ray Haynes, R-Murrieta, kicked off a signature-gathering campaign to get an initiative on the ballot to create a state border police that would patrol the U.S. /Mexican border and conduct work-site enforcement to arrest suspected illegal immigrants. Later in the year, that initiative failed when proponents failed to obtain enough signatures to qualify it for the ballot. (FAILED)

In August, state Assemblyman Mark Wyland, R-Escondido, wrote an opinion column for the North County Times in which he endorsed the initiative. At the time, Wyland was considering a run for Congress to replace Cunningham. While still not confirming whether he is in or out of that race, he has publicly stated that he will run for the state Senate seat now held by Morrow, who is leaving office due to term limits. (FAILED)

Besides Morrow's July participation in the border watch vigil, he organized a townhall meeting on illegal immigration in August that drew hundreds of anti-illegal immigration activists and featured as speakers a cast of nationally known anti-illegal immigration figures, including U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo. (FAILED)
[...]

Why would Republicans actually vote to change immigration, when it fails at the ballot box - yet garners the electoral votes?!

Because the people of California understand the right way to fix the border. These Republicans are not mainstream and are out-of-step with their districts. This is merely a fundraiser for Republicans.

NCTimes learning "Lessons from the Cunningham case"??

2006-01-11T06:49:00.000-08:00

This is a nice piece on how things did, or in this case, didn't evolve.

[...]
"It was a Copley News Service report in June that started the unraveling of Randy Cunningham's web of deceit.

Marcus Stern, in the news service's Washington office, detailed how Mitchell Wade, founder of the defense firm MZM Inc., paid $700,000 more for Cunningham's Del Mar Heights home that he would sell it for less than a year later. That purchase provided the cash for Cunningham to buy the gated mansion in exclusive Rancho Santa Fe.

Until then, rarely was there a negative word about Cunningham, who had won regular endorsement for re-election from this newspaper.

At the Poynter Institute, a Florida-based journalism think tank and center for continuing education, vice president and senior scholar Dr. Roy Peter Clark suggested that until Stern's report, the media may have lost sight of its role as a government watchdog.

Newsroom budget cuts over the years that have reporters covering multiple beats and lack of money to fund bureaus in Washington are one part of the problem, Clark said.

'Communities should hold their news organizations accountable,' he said last week. 'Not necessarily for some sort of ideological bias, but in terms of performance and level of public service.'

But the greater failing may have been in forgetting"

"Every news organization has to walk the line between skepticism and cynicism, and it appears there may not have been enough skepticism directed at this individual ---- anyone who looks at politics through rose-colored glasses is just a fool."

The adage "follow the money" wasn't done until Stern's report, something Roberta Baskin at the Center for Public Integrity said may have been the media's biggest sin.

"It's always about following the money," said Baskin, executive director of the nonprofit and nonpartisan center in Washington, which conducts investigative research and reports on public policy issues.

"You always need to look beyond what people say and what they do to see where the money is coming from and where it's going," she said.

Stern's story did just that. Until then, no media outlet in San Diego or in Washington had really taken a hard look at Cunningham and where he was getting his money and where it was being spent.

North County Times editor Kent Davy said that when Cunningham was running for re-election in 2004, the newspaper failed to look below the surface.

"If we had been much more aggressive about trying to understand his finances and his lifestyle, we might have stumbled onto the key to the story," Davy said. "The recommendations about following the money are dead-on, and that implies that we need to be doing routine record checks of people in the news so that things like the house transaction don't surprise us."

While not first with the initial story about the home sale, Davy said the newspaper "responded in a very credible manner which has significantly pushed the story along."
[...]

It seems more and more that Newspapers are waiting for the watchdog groups to do the footwork for them. This article points out that news organizations are falling out of the "watchdog" role because it is expensive and easier for them to wait for news to happen then report it. Unfortunately, it doesn't make a newspaper credible, trustworthy or unique. It makes them a tool of the advertisers and the groups that routinely hand out press releases in news format. What you end up with is local contrived propaganda. Hopefully, this segment outlines what NCtimes and the Union-Tribune should start doing, rather than what they don't do.

Bill Morrow veto happy...

2006-01-08T19:51:00.000-08:00

I'm glad to know that Bill Morrow is happy about certain vetos...

[...]
"Despite some of the good things the Legislature accomplished in 2005, 'I am more happy that certain bills weren't passed,' state Sen. Bill Morrow, R-Oceanside said last week.

'I don't believe illegal immigrants should be rewarded by the state and given drivers licenses or anything else,' said Morrow, who is running for the 50th Congressional District seat formerly held by Randy 'Duke' Cunningham.
[...]

He also voted against increasing the minimun wage after this report was available.

This is the time...[Beware the woodwork]...

2006-01-06T06:51:00.000-08:00

I agree with the following statements... This is the time.

[...]
The way I see it, a Republican could earn a spot in the June runoff with 16 percent to 20 percent of the vote. With such small slices of the pie, anyone – excluding the What-the-Hellers – could earn the showdown with Busby.

Given this hysterical fight to the finish, high-propensity voters in the 50th – and you know who you are, as do the campaigns – are destined to feel as adored as New Hampshire voters in a presidential primary.

Never before will so much money ($10 million is my low estimate) be spent to woo the willing in the predominantly North County district.

Think about it. This could be the year when the Republicans, reeling from one corruption scandal after another, lose control of Congress. A Busby victory would be a harbinger of a GOP collapse.

In Washington, the Democrats are licking their lips over a conquest as desirable as Helen of Troy. On the other side, Republicans will fight like Spartans to keep her.

Voters in the 50th might as well slip into something comfortable because they are about to be loved as they've never been loved before.
[...]

This is the time to create awareness... this is the time to back your leader... this is THE time in the 50th District.

more good news for Busby...

2006-01-05T19:32:00.000-08:00

More good news....

[...]
"'Republicans will rightly become very nervous if she wins,' said Jacobson, a University of California, San Diego, political science professor.

Even if she loses, a strong showing by Busby could still spell trouble for Republicans nationally as the 2006 midterm elections approach. The Iraq war, President Bush's unpopularity, the indictment of top Republicans and other factors have soured the national outlook for the party. Republicans lost the New Jersey and Virginia gubernatorial races last month, and California voters rejected the ballot measures pushed by GOP Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

In Cunningham's upscale district, history offers Democrats a glint of hope: U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein narrowly carried it, as currently drawn, in her 2000 re-election. Another Democrat, U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer, finished just 312 votes behind her Republican rival there last year. 'If Mars is aligned with the moon just right, yes, a Democrat, on paper, could win this seat,' said Allan Hoffenblum, publisher of the California Target Book, a nonpartisan election guide. But, he added, 'Everything would have to go right for Busby, and everything would have to go wrong for the Republican.'
[...]

Logan Jenkins -- Memorable jabs, uppercuts, wild swings

2005-12-27T01:19:00.000-08:00

Great article that sums up the local races... Duke and Packard... thick as thieves...

[...]
"Requiem for a Nitwit: Randall Harold Cunningham's dive to the canvas shocked fans of the sweet-and-sour science. Two days after Copley News Service reporter Marcus Stern's scoop hit the porch, I started a column with a two-word prediction: 'Duke's done.' A lucky punch line.
[...]
Self-Inflicted Cuts: Former Rep. Ron Packard of Carlsbad sprang to the defense of his old House colleague, saying of Cunningham's house deal with a defense contractor, "I don't know of any person or public official who hasn't probably done something that would raise eyebrows." . . . North County Supervisor Bill Horn, God's gift to ringside wise guys, presented a diamond-encrusted quote – "We're not Franciscans" – while arguing for a controversial raise for well-fed supervisors. Bada bling! . . . Former Councilman Ralph Inzunza scolded an attorney for Fairbanks Ranch Country Club, which had enjoyed a sweetheart deal from the city while maintaining an illegal all-male lounge: "You should not be representing these kinds of clients who are out there doing the wrong thing. It's shameful and embarrassing." (Convicted of corruption, Inzunza is appealing a prison term. His brother Nick, mayor of National City, has richly embroidered the working definition of "slumlord.")
[...]

But I especially like this outlook...

[...]
Million-Dollar Baby: This remake stars Francine Busby, the distaff Dem who's eyeing a once-in-a-lifetime title shot that could turn into a national bellwether contest in the 50th Congressional District, a traditional Republican stronghold. Suddenly the Buzz-by of the minority party in Washington, D.C., Busby has a chance at knocking out a gang of Republican congressional contenders who might, as a whole, remind voters of the Dirty Duke, a figure so detestable pro wrestling wouldn't even let him into the ring.

However, if Busby's arm is raised – in April, if she wins 50 percent, or in a June runoff against the top GOP finisher – she'll have to turn right around and defend her title in the November general election. Up to three bouts in seven months! Where's Clint Eastwood?"
[...]

This special election speeds up the plans doesn't it? We'll see if Francine Busby's campaign can turn it up and out.

Logan Jenkins -- Gift list for truly deserving news makers

2005-12-25T11:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays!

If you are looking for gifts to give... here are some ideas for our locals from the UT.

[...]
"RANDALL HAROLD CUNNINGHAM: A toy Rolls-Royce (up to $50) and a Jane Fonda video ($7.95). The Rolls to remind the congressman of flusher times and the workout tape to keep Duke in fighting trim as the Navy hero serves a prison term for taking bribes and, in the view of many, betraying his country during wartime.

FRANCINE BUSBY: Nothing ($O). Duke already gave this lone Democratic congressional candidate from Cardiff everything she could ever want in her stocking."
[...]

Personally, I would take the 50 bucks for Duke's Rolls-Royce and hand it over to Francine Busby's campaign. Just my two cents!

Suburban Guerrilla » A Finger In Every Pie : Brent Wilkes

2005-12-16T22:35:00.000-08:00

Go for a bit of a trip on this one... Follow the links... starting with Susie...

This Brent Wilkes character sure does get his fingers in a lot of pies.

[...]
At Schwarzenegger’s behest, Brent Wilkes, founder of the government contractor ADCS Inc., resigned Nov. 29 from the Del Mar Fair Board and from another panel that oversees the leasing of state land for racetracks, said Margita Thompson, the governor’s press secretary. ...more
[...]

We'd like to believe the connections between Tom DeLay and Randy Cunningham are modest. BUT, when Cunningham also knows Brent Wilkes, who also donates $70,000 to Schwarzenegger's Campaign to Reform/Deform California. We find that things run deeper.

From the American Prospect...by Laura Rozen
[...]
According to the Center for Responsive Politics, an organization that tracks political donations, Combs himself has, like Wilkes, given a sizeable amount of money over the years to politicians. (In 2004, he gave more than $12,000 to Cunningham, Representative Duncan Hunter, George W. Bush, ADCS's PAC, and the PAC of Representative John Doolittle, of the House Appropriations committee. A San Diego Reader article from 2000 estimates that Combs had given $25,000 to various politicians by the year 2000.)

What does it all mean? This investigation sheds light on another of the rabbit holes through which Wilkes may have improperly received US government contracts. Yet the issue also speaks to the layers of companies and multiple channels by which Wilkes penetrated deep into the secret contracting world of the US government –- and the many avenues by which he did so -– not only through the help of Cunningham. Yet questions remain: what is the status of the four individuals described as co-conspirators in the Cunningham indictment? Are any of them cooperating with the investigation? Is Wilkes cooperating? (In an interview a couple of weeks ago, his lawyer Michael Lipman wouldn't comment on whether Wilkes was cooperating or not.) If so, to whom else might Wilkes lead investigators? Many signs indicate that Cunningham may not be the big fish in this case at all.
[...]

I felt sick to my stomache to hear about the corruption... Now, I'm just ill knowing how deep it runs and how far we have yet to go...

USAToday explains...
[...]
Wilkes' ties to Hunter and Cunningham go beyond campaign contributions. In 2003, the businessman's foundation hosted a "Salute to Heroes" gala to give Hunter an award, just as it did for Cunningham a year earlier. The Wilkes Foundation gave $1,000 in 2003 to a charity run by two of Hunter's staffers, records show.

Wilkes also provided a jet that Cunningham and other Republicans used for more than a dozen flights to campaign fundraising events since 2001, records show.

Providing flights gives donors a chance for hours of one-on-one contact with the lawmaker they want to influence, said Keith Ashdown of the watchdog group Taxpayers for Common Sense.

"Most other lobbyists would give up their second lung to get that kind of access," Ashdown said. "It's not always illegal, but it's definitely a strategy of influence that's unparalleled."
[...]

Busby likely to win CA-50

2005-12-15T07:04:00.000-08:00

I don't know how I missed this...

[...]
Democrats (and Republicans) say seat can be won

On Friday, DCCC spokesman Bill Burton said that Busby's race is considered among the top tier of winnable races by national Democratic party officials. Committee officials recently sent e-mails to the committee's national network of campaign contributors asking for campaign donations to support Busby's candidacy.

Burton said he strongly believes that Busby can win the 50th district race."I think the (Republican) political scandals have fundamentally altered the political environment in San Diego County and conditions are about as good as they can get," he said.

Republican political consultant Orr said that the special election format stands to benefit Busby more than other candidates."You have one solid Democrat in the race who would garner all the liberal votes, whereas the Republican vote is split," he said. "Because their votes are split ---- and with a low turnout ---- Busby could ... win the special election." Orr said that if he were working for the national arm of the Democratic party, "I would be telling my best (talent), 'Get your bags packed and let's go to California ---- we are going to steal a congressional seat.' "
[...]

There you have it. Democratic Leaders and Republican consultants agree... Busby can win.

DirecTV to Pay for Do-Not-Call Violations - Hooray for the Justice Department!!!

2005-12-14T17:07:00.000-08:00

This is just a good story to link to show how the Federal government is working for us working people...

[...]
DirecTV Inc. will pay $5.35 million to settle charges that its telemarketers called households listed on the national do-not-call registry to pitch satellite TV programming, Federal Trade Commission officials said Tuesday.

The proposed settlement, if approved by a federal judge in Los Angeles, would be the FTC's largest civil penalty in a consumer protection case.
[...]

Right on!!!

Bill Morrow: No guest worker programs, no hike in wages..

2005-12-13T18:15:00.000-08:00

It appears that Bill Morrow doesn't want to solve the problem. It appears that he just wants to create them. In this article entitled "Local farmers fret over rising cost of wages" from the NCTimes - it seems Bill Morrow doesn't want to do anything.

[...]
A growing labor shortage in California's agricultural industry has local farmers bracing for a tough ---- and expensive ---- winter harvest, farm industry officials and local growers said Wednesday. Several factors are fueling the problem, they said, including: increased border enforcement that is reducing the number of illegal immigrants entering the county; growing competition from other industries, such as construction and hospitality; and the lack of a guest-worker program to allow undocumented immigrants to work legally.
[...]

What is he willing to do?

[...]
Reached by phone Wednesday, Vartan Djihanian, district director for state Sen. Bill Morrow, R-Oceanside, said that Morrow does not support the idea of a guest-worker program until all existing immigration laws are enforced.
[...]

What?! No guest worker program and farmers should not pay higher wages. What does that fix... Morrow's contention has been that immigration policy is broken. What is he willing to fix?! The guest worker programs are monitored to curb illegal immigration and the hunt for jobs and it contracts cheap labor from Mexico. What is Morrow in favor of "fixing"?

I'm starting to get the feeling he is trying to "fix" his campaign, rather than the border.

The border is policed. You must stop businesses from hiring illegal immigrants and use guest-worker programs to stem the flow of illegal immigrants. But, we must understand that there are legal migrant workers from South America and their rights should be respected as well as our own.

Over here... no more Hollywood opposition...yet.

2005-12-12T17:50:00.000-08:00

Over at Calatics, Brian has found that Rob Riener isn't going to run...

Now we are waiting for Warren "Bulworth" Beatty to run... or not.

Cunningham: Who is Brent Wilkes??

2005-12-11T18:57:00.000-08:00

Wow, This guy gets around...

[...]
"Poway military contractor Brent Wilkes – whom Justice Department officials identify as the co-conspirator – has long been active in local political circles, serving as the San Diego County finance co-chairman of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's campaign and the state finance co-chairman for President Bush.
[...]

I'm sure this guy has no idea who Tom DeLay is.

Riiiiight!

Who is NOT running for the 50th...

2005-12-06T07:13:00.000-08:00

Here are a few articles discussing Mark Wylands, choice to drop out of the 50th and head for the old seat that Bill Morrow is vacating.

@ Captiol Weekly
Assemblyman Mark Wyland announced Tuesday he will run for the Senate seat currently held by Bill Morrow, foregoing a chance to run against Morrow for Congress. Morrow is one of four Republican candidates running in the seat being vacated by Randy "Duke" Cunningham.
[...]

@ Captiol Weekly again...
[...]
On the Democratic side, Cardiff school board member Francine Busby appears to be unquestioned front-runner. She's locked up a host of high-profile endorsements, including state treasurer Phil Angelides and insurance commissioner John Garamendi. Busby's communications director, Brennan Bilberry, said she had raised $248,000 so far.

Last week, Assemblyman Mark Wyland, R-Del Mar, said that he would not be running for Cunningham's seat, and was focusing instead on Morrow's state Senate seat. This touched off a scramble in several coming legislative races.
[...]

@ NCTimes
[...]
State Assemblyman Mark Wyland will probably announce Monday whether he will run for the 50th Congressional District seat or opt for a bid for the state Senate seat held by Oceanside Republican Bill Morrow, a Wyland adviser said Tuesday.

Wyland, R-Escondido, has been considering a run for the U.S. House of Representatives seat being given up by Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, R-Escondido.

The 50th Congressional District runs along the coast from Carlsbad to Clairemont Mesa. It stretches east to Escondido, and south to Rancho Penasquitos and Mira Mesa.
[...]

@ The Union Tribune
[...]
It's a free country, of course, and Wyland, who had floated his name as a congressional candidate, is welcome to the stress-free road of least resistance. And the state Senate isn't exactly chopped liver, even if conservative Republican legislators are treated as if they have BO in Sacramento.
[...]
And we will notice that Howard Kaloogian of astro-turf fame, is now the "favorite" running for the 50th.

http://www.humaneventsonline.com/blog-detail.php?id=10547

Please note that this article comes from Human Events online. Its a right-wing rag that Ann Coulter is a "Legal Affairs Correspondent". I'm sure that carries weight because she is most likely getting the web-zine for conservatives sued on a semi-regular basis.

Ugh!

Cunningham: How deep is deep???

2005-12-05T18:46:00.000-08:00

From the UT:

[...]
"Between the year 2000 and June of 2005 in our district, you conspired to accept bribes in exchange for performance of official duties. Did you do that?" Judge Burns asked Cunningham.

"Yes, your honor," Cunningham replied.

"Did you take both cash payments and payments in kind?"

"Yes, your honor," the congressman said.

"Did you follow up by trying to influence the Defense Department?"

"Yes, your honor."
[...]

He admitted it. Most of the radio jockeys ( who are deeply conservative ) appear to be giving him a pass and asking everyone to lighten up. People like Mark Larson, Roger Hedgecock, Rick Roberts... etc. They are claiming (in unison...hmmm odd.) that he had confessed so we should let him be. Excuse me? This is a guy that took 4 million dollars in bribes, in the forms of boats, rugs, jewlery, cars, and homes. The conservative shows on 600, 640 and 760 keep commenting on how he "only" stole 4 million, but they admit that he should be punished. They keep forgetting -He also gave away government money to corrupt corporations - 400 million dollars in defense dollars that should have been supporting our troops. 400 dollars that could have been going to legitimate companies that would have helped America in its time of need. Wealthy rackateers took the money of the people, your money, my money, and were seeking to profit at our expense.

[...]
U.S. Attorney Carol Lam, whose office is prosecuting the case, said in a news conference that the facts Cunningham admitted in his plea agreement show "this was a crime of unprecedented magnitude and extraordinary audacity."
[...]
Lam said the bribes from defense contractors totalled $2.4 million and included:

Buying the Del Mar-area home at an inflated price;
Paying for the capital gains tax on that sale;
Buying and maintaining the yacht in Washington D.C. on which Cunningham lived;
Paying for a graduation party for Cunningham's daughter
Buying a Rolls Royce, antique furniture and jewelry, and picking up travel and hotel expenses for Cunningham and his wife;
Making a $500,000 mortgage payoff for the house in Rancho Santa Fe.

"It is abundantly clear that Mr. Cunningham let greed take priority over his duty to serve the best interests of his constituents and his country," Lam said.
[...]

Lastly,

[...]
Under the agreement, MZM became an exclusive contractor for the Defense Information Systems Agency, enabling the agency to order services from MZM. Its five-year contract with the Department of Defense was structured as an open-ended blanket-purchase agreement, with a $250 million spending limit.

Since 2002, MZM received $163 million in federal contracts, primarily for Pentagon programs. Much of MZM's services under the agreement involved classified work on intelligence programs for the U.S. Army.

Wade, the founder of MZM, resigned as president in late June.

In a move officials said was unrelated to the Cunningham flap, the government announced in late June it no longer would allow federal agencies to buy from MZM under the sole contractor program.
[...]

Disgusting.

Bring their buddies home... alive.

2005-11-29T22:58:00.000-08:00

Just an amazing display of what 2000 human beings looks like.

http://www.bringtheirbuddieshome.com/

These people happen to be representing soldiers. But the soldiers happen to represent more to our community, other than "troops" to be supported.

Soldiers are fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins, employees, employers, surfers, golfers, auto mechanics, rocket scientists, librarians, and musicians. They are hugs to be had, and kisses to be given. They are Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and most of all Americans.

When you read about a lay-off of workers... think of this.
When you hear about deaths due to disease... think of this.
When you see a member of the Navy, Air Force, Army, or Marines... think of this.

It's just amazing.

Cunningham pleads guilty!

2005-11-28T10:47:00.000-08:00

OMG! OMG! OMG! OMG! OMG! OMG! OMG! OMG! OMG! OMG! OMG! OMG! OMG! OMG!

Christmas comes early for Democrats inthe 50th District.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/politics/cunningham/20051128-1033-bn29duke5.html

Alan Uke: What are you getting yourself into?

2005-11-20T12:35:00.000-08:00

Alan Uke appears to be jumping into the fray. Why? Here are some stances on the political issues that he holds dear to his heart.

[...]
If elected, Uke said, he would push for the opening of Chinese markets and construction of more nuclear-power plants. He said he wants the government to stop “hindering” private charities, and he opposes drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
On immigration, one of voters’ top concerns in a district that is, at its southern flank, a half-hour drive from the Mexican border, Uke said the United States should build a wall between the two countries.
[...]

Wow. Notice nothing about cleaning up corruption or national security.

[...]
Also running for the seat are former state Assemblyman Howard Kaloogian, state Sen. Bill Morrow, businessman George Schwartzman and state Assemblyman Mark Wyland — all Republicans. Francine Busby, a college professor, is the only Democrat in the race.
[...]

These people have a year to figure out what they are doing... aside from stepping on each others toes. Oh yeah, Alan Uke is somewhat aligned and friendly with Issa. Ewwwwww!

Arnold says, "MY BAD!"

2005-11-12T16:02:00.000-08:00

Told you! Now lets see if he gets re-elected.

[...]
"Two days after suffering a stinging election defeat, a conciliatory Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger took responsibility for the failure of his ballot initiatives and said he learned that he needs more patience in seeking government reform.

'The buck stops with me,' he told reporters Thursday during a Capitol news conference, referring to the clean sweep against his proposals in Tuesday's special election. 'I take full responsibility for this election. I take full responsibility for its failure.'

Voters rejected each of the initiatives Schwarzenegger was pushing on the ballot. He sought to implement a state spending cap and give the governor authority to make midyear budget cuts, change the way legislative districts are drawn, lengthen the probationary period for teachers and restrict the ability of public employee unions to raise money for political campaigns."
[...]

Veterans Day... no more Gettysburgs.

2005-11-11T14:53:00.000-08:00

Sometimes we forget that the Gettysburg Address was done to remember the sacrifice of our Soldiers. The Air Force, Army, Navy, and Marines earn that respect everyday.

Lincoln knew it and respected that.

[...]
Gettysburg is the battlefield to which Lincoln came on Nov. 19, 1863, to dedicate a portion as a cemetery for the troops killed there. It was a sacred moment in American history. Two men spoke. Edward Everett, one of the greatest orators of the age, a former U.S. senator and former president of Harvard College, spoke for more than two hours. We still have his written speech. Then Lincoln spoke -- for a mere two minutes. His speech was little noted at that moment. It is, however, long remembered. Everett, recognizing the greatness of Lincoln's speech, wrote him the next day, praising the speech, saying, "I should be glad if I could flatter myself that I came as near to the central idea of the occasion in two hours as you did in two minutes."
[...]

Mark Wyland: Bills of a termed out Assembly Member...

2005-11-10T07:37:00.000-08:00

He's so termed out he can't help but resort to legislative fodder such as this. So it's bad enough that he has to resort to something we already do in this state. When you register to vote, you have to have the last four numbers of your social security number on the form. So how else would we prove our citizenship when we register? Blood sample? RFID implants? 10 year Geneology reports?

Talk about adding another layer of red tape. I thought Republicans were against this kind of thing?

[...]
"Assemblyman Mark Wyland, R-Escondido, introduced a bill in the past legislative session to require voters to provide proof of citizenship when registering to vote. Assembly Bill 934 failed to pass in the 2005 Legislative session but is expected to come up again in the upcoming session."
[...]

Swing State Project: CA-50: Indictments Coming Soon for the Dukestir?

2005-11-08T20:21:00.000-08:00

Swingstate Project mentions that Cunningham may recieve indictments. I could win a t-shirt too!

[...]
Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham (R) - embroiled in so many scandals to the point that Tom DeLay is starting to get jealous - has already said he won't run for re-election next fall. But the man is worse than damaged goods, and it looks like he may be just the next Republican to get indicted, joining The Bugman, Scooter Libby, practically everyone who works for Ernie Fletcher, Jack Abramoff, Tom Noe... man, I'm running out of breath here
[...]

Wow! Hurry up already!

Just a quick note: polls closed just 20 minutes ago... can't wait to see how things turn out!

De-regulation - how it messed up California.

2005-11-07T20:18:00.000-08:00

Here is a nice llittle story about how de-regulation screwed Californians' out of cash and caused many small stores to go out of business. And somehow, Gray Davis got blamed for it.

Prop 80 claims to set things right again.

[...]
"California's 1996 deregulation law was supposed to lower electricity rates, which were among the highest in the nation. The state-regulated utilities were allowed to sell most of their power plants, and an independent agency was created to manage the transmission grid. Retail rates were frozen until the utilities paid off the debts incurred over decades of building power plants and transmission systems.

The plan was built around the assumption that getting rid of the utilities' monopoly would lead to competition, driving down the price of electricity.

But while private energy companies bought the utilities' power plants, they didn't build new plants to keep up with California's growing demand for electricity.

That energy deficit was compounded by a drop in the amount of hydroelectric power available from the Northwest in 2000 and an increase in the price of natural gas, which fuels most of California's power plants. Instead of having a more competitive power market that drove down wholesale prices, the energy shortage drove prices sky-high.

That left California vulnerable to market manipulation.

In 2001, the state suffered rolling blackouts and its three largest utilities teetered on the brink of bankruptcy after months of buying expensive wholesale electricity and selling it at the cap"
[...]

other things Bush has backed down on....

2005-11-04T18:37:00.000-08:00

Over at jim hancock's blog, he points out that Bush had reinstated the Davis Bacon act in September. Way to look for the sunshine Jim!

It looks like Social Security and Harriet Miers keep good company with Davis Bacon act. Bush had supended the Davis Bacon act, once Halliburton got the contract to rebuild most of Louisiana amidst Hurricane Katrina. Low wages for workers... BOO!

Davis Bacon Act:

requires that each contract over $2,000 to which the United States or the District of Columbia is a party for the construction, alteration, or repair of public buildings or public works shall contain a clause setting forth the minimum wages to be paid to various classes of laborers and mechanics employed under the contract. Under the provisions of the Act, contractors or their subcontractors are to pay workers employed directly upon the site of the work no less than the locally prevailing wages and fringe benefits paid on projects of a similar character. The Davis-Bacon Act directs the Secretary of Labor to determine such local prevailing wage rates.

In addition to the Davis-Bacon Act itself, Congress has added prevailing wage provisions to approximately 60 statutes which assist construction projects through grants, loans, loan guarantees, and insurance. These "related Acts" involve construction in such areas as transportation, housing, air and water pollution reduction, and health. If a construction project is funded or assisted under more than one Federal statute, the Davis-Bacon prevailing wage provisions may apply to the project if any of the applicable statutes requires payment of Davis-Bacon wage rates.

Partisan Quarrel Forces Senators to Bar the Doors - New York Times

2005-11-02T19:45:00.000-08:00

Harry Reid has BAWLS!! There is a heapin' helpin' of SPINE! This on the heels of an indictment against "Scooter" Libby. Causing him to resign from his post as aide to Vice President Cheney. Notice Libby resigned, rather than fired by Bush or Cheney. Not a good P.R. move.

I understand that this caught the Republicans and Bill Frist, off guard and forced them to agree to an oversight committee on the pre-Iraq war intellegence committee. Which previously had no oversight at all. Like most of the committees that Republicans have chaired regarding national security and ware intelligence. Ugh!

[...]
"But Democrats said last week's indictment of Mr. Libby, the chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney, highlighted anew the need for the Senate to examine the administration's handling of intelligence. They said the unusual demand for a closed session was made out of frustration with the refusal of the chairman of the Intelligence Committee, Senator Pat Roberts, Republican of Kansas, to make good on his February 2004 pledge to pursue such an investigation.

'We see the lengths they've gone to,' said Senator Richard J. Durbin of Illinois, the No. 2 Democrat, referring to the disclosure of a C.I.A. officer's identity. 'And now the question is, Will this Senate meet its responsibility under the Constitution to hold this administration, as every administration should be held, accountable?'

After Mr. Reid invoked Senate Rule 21 allowing senators to request a closed session, the galleries were cleared, C-Span coverage was terminated and the chamber's doors were closed for about two hours. In the end, lawmakers agreed to name three members from each party to assess the state of the Intelligence Committee's inquiry into prewar intelligence and report back by Nov. 14."
[...]

This is what you call, stealing back the news cycle.

Governor Schwarzenegger pulls ads off the air

2005-11-01T06:05:00.000-08:00

Here is an older story (Nctimes)that counts out how Governor Schwarzenegger's name is work against him.

I've seen polls that I will post, about how when people hear his name is behind a proposition that they oppose it more than normal. This may just go to show that, any publicity isn't always publicity.

[...]
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's campaign said Saturday it was withdrawing a TV ad that featured the governor appealing to voters to support his slate of ballot initiatives.

The move to drop Schwarzenegger from the airwaves comes at a critical time -- just 17 days before the Nov. 8 election.

His campaign dismissed the notion the ad -- the only one featuring the governor -- was pulled because of Schwarzenegger's falling approval ratings. Instead, they said TV ads are being rotated as part of a plan to educate voters about specific ballot measures.

Still, some observers said Schwarzenegger's ability to sell his ballot agenda might be limited because polls show he has the approval of only about 35 percent of voters.

"An overwhelming majority of voters think this special election is unnecessary and an overwhelming number of voters say they will not vote for Schwarzenegger again. Let's face it, he's unpopular," said Larry Gerston, a political scientist from San Jose State University.

Todd Harris, spokesman for Schwarzenegger's California Recovery Team, said there is no effort to hide the governor and pointed to his Saturday campaign stops in Southern California and a live TV forum planned for Monday.
[...]

Notice how the claim is "focus" on the initatives rather than, the Governor supporting the initiatves. What is more important in this election? Well nothing but the initiatives themselves. But, why does Governor Schwarzenegger not want to be associated with the initatives directly, if he believes they will "reform" the state of California politics?

Wax this for a moment, the Republicans don't control the state senate or the house, they are currently out of power in the legislative branch. The only thing that most Republicans have for themselves is the Governor. It's too bad they are sacrificing Governor Schwarzenegger and his credibility for the ability to cripple teachers, nurses, police and firefighters ability to voice their concerns as citizens in the political arena, as a wedge toward the Democrats. It a political gamble, and Schwarzenegger is willing to play dirty.

Swing State Project: CA-Ballot: SUSA Poll is Bad News for Arnie Opponents

2005-10-20T17:53:00.000-07:00

By the look of these polls, Governor Schwarzenegger isn't doing to well with his initiatives.

The synopsis that I've gathered is that most of these proposition will be defeated easily, unless a large turn out of voters fails to show up.

Most of the iniatives will bring anti-abortion, anti-union, and hard core Republicans to the polls. But, they are in the state minority. Whereas, Democrats have Engergy Regulation, and healthcare reform. All Democratic voters will turn out to oppose rather then vote in favor of most propositions.

If the Democrats fail to get out the vote. This could make some changes.

Randy's civil sue to block... failed.

2005-10-19T21:24:00.000-07:00

It looks like Randy's attempt to block his federal investigation has failed for the time being. This actually may have been a bit of a plan. Sell the house we just got, claim the government investigation is preventing the home from selling, allow our attorneys to question government witnesses. This means Randy gets a better idea of who said what before the trial begins.

Sneaky stuff....

[...]
A judge has ordered a temporary halt in the federal government's civil suit against U.S. Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, ruling that allowing the case to continue could jeopardize an ongoing criminal investigation of the congressman.

U.S. District Court Judge Dana M. Sabraw ruled that the U.S. attorney's office has shown that allowing Cunningham's attorneys to question government witnesses could "compromise the ongoing criminal investigation."

The suit seeks to stop the congressman and his wife, Nancy, from selling their gated, five-bedroom Rancho Santa Fe estate and using the proceeds as they wish.
[...]

Also here is sneak peak about what is or is NOT happening.

[...]
At the congressman's Capitol Hill offices, spokesman Mark Olson wrote in an e-mail Tuesday that Cunningham will soon sit as co-chairman of a joint subcommittee meeting discussing homeland security and the role of the chief intelligence officer.

Cunningham also will be involved in ironing out the differences in House and Senate defense appropriations bills, and will probably participate in addressing differences between the chambers' measures on labor, health and human services and education spending, according to Olson.

Federal authorities have consistently refused comment on the grand jury's criminal investigation or when it is likely to conclude.

Last week, Assistant U.S. Attorney Phillip Halpern spoke with a reporter about the civil suit. But when asked about the grand jury's work, Halpern quipped, "What grand jury investigation?"
[...]

Phillip Halpern - (619) 557-5165... Ask this dude.. What is up?!!?

Bill Morrow's Mess...

2005-10-18T06:26:00.000-07:00

I arrived around 7:00 as the flyers and radio ads had announced. Unknown to me, local right wing radio host - Roger Hedgecock - had urged his audience to arrive early and pack the seats. As not to allow other groups to sit in the arena and voice other opinions. Again, this event was extremely well coordinated. Bill Morrow was to set the stage for a "community forum". Hedgecock gathered the audience, and Tom Tancredo as well as Jim Gilchrist were the big names. They also, brought the short attention span media peddlers, The MinuteMan Project, as well as the Center for Immigration Studies. CIS is a right leaning anti-immigration group that provides stats for local wing-nuts. Not to be confused with CIS, Citizenship and Immigration Services. http://uscis.gov/graphics/index.htm Odd how that name matches up, huh?

When I arrived, Carlsbad police - in conjunction with several other police departments from around North County - had cornered off Lancer Way from Chestnut Ave. Most of the parking lots were full, forcing many local residents to park far away from there homes. I myself had to park a block away from Magnolia Ave, totalling a good quarter mile away from the High School.

There were bullhorns, chanting, clapping and booing. Insults were slung from both sides, which made the event ugly. From what I could tell, most people on both sides of the picket line outside the packed Cultural Arts Center were not locals to Carlsbad. I saw some unaffiliated shaved-head individuals that roamed about the crowd of anti-immigration supporters. I believe them to be skinheads of some nature. Some of the pro-immigration groups that follow the MinuteMan Project appearances, his is fairly common. Some people came from Vista, which just recently had a local shooting spree due to gang violence. I believe they came to support a resolution for our Tri-county area, but they didn't find any. They found a pep rally for hate.

I was not able to get inside due to the packing of the event, and police presence was EXTREMELY strong. I hear it was fairly represented in the audience at the event, the stage on the other hand was heavy handed conservatism and race-baiting.

From what I can tell, this was a coalition of hate and vitriolic political hatred. Formed by Bill Morrow, in order to take the seat of the disgraced and dishonored Randy "DUKE" Cunningham. Bill Morrow has put forth big bucks in order to beat out any other Republican candidates. Hoping that Jim Gilchrist and his fanatical freaks will push Bill Morrow into the spotlight and sweep a new anti-immigration candidate into office.

Now that some of the flack has blown over from California Senator Bill Morrow's Anti- Immigration Forum, I have some photos to post. I'll try and get some of the video, once I get a spot to host it. Too bad Bill Morrow still refuses to pay for it. This is his $62,072.41 dollar pep-rally for hate. He should at least pay for his fair share.

Lancer Way and Chestnut under police protection.

the scene is set...

The crowd have galvanized and is cornered off...

Plenty of protesters and advocate on both sides...

That is serious business...

These are some of the anti-illegal immigrant proponents...

It's local Carlsbad HS Film Crew to record the mayhem for posterity. Award winning material, no doubt!

The mayhem unfolds where culture and art collide.

The police motorcade winding things up.

The event winds down...with flashing lights and shouting.

A touching moment of peaceful sentiment as human rights advocates pray for Tom Tancredo.

Three North County Republicans eye 74th District Assembly seat North County Times - North San Diego and Southwest Riverside County News

2005-10-16T17:51:00.000-07:00

This is why it is critical, that the local Democratic party start building up canididates and working to support people at the local level. We have the 74th assembly and the 38th district seats UNopposed by Democrats in any public fashion. These seats become Republican hand me downs and effectively "Give up" the fight - before it has had a chance to begin. Howard Dean's message is extremely clear on this - build a party, start locally.

[...]
Three North County Republicans eye 74th District Assembly seat North County Times - North San Diego and Southwest Riverside County News: "With the 2006 primary elections more than eight months away, three North County residents are making preparations to run for the 74th District seat held by state Assemblyman Mark Wyland, an Escondido Republican whose six-year tenure will end next year because of term limits.

In recent months, Encinitas City Councilman Jerome Stocks, Escondido City Councilwoman Marie Waldron and former Reagan campaign official Martin Garrick have all filed paperwork with the San Diego County Registrar of Voters to establish fund-raising committees for the race. All are Republicans.

The 74th District covers much of North County, including the cities of Escondido, San Marcos, Vista, Carlsbad, Solana Beach, Encinitas and Del Mar.

With 101,822 registered Republicans and 63,781 registered Democrats, the district has long been considered a safe seat for the GOP. Republicans have held the seat for more than two decades.

Thus far, no Democrats have filed paperwork with the registrar's office to set up campaign finance committees ---- a move that generally leads to formal declarations of candidacy."

[...]

North County Times - North San Diego and Southwest Riverside County columnists

2005-10-03T17:21:00.000-07:00

North County Times - North San Diego and Southwest Riverside County columnists: "Even politics made an appearance. Francine Busby, a educator and Democrat from Cardiff running to fill Randy Cunningham's 50th Congressional district seat, introduced herself to passersby, shaking hands and smiling warmly.

'I'm here to meet the voters and let them know that I'm here to bring honesty and integrity back to representation of the district and the congress,' Busby said."

[...]
It's good to see some coverage of the candidates - not just the scandal once in a while!

Local Mayhem...

2005-10-01T07:09:00.000-07:00

Found this nugget....

About Marie Waldron, she maybe running for Mark Wyland's spot in the 74th Assembly District. Of course, he's just as bad... and incumbent. She popped up at La Tapatia Restaurant & Cantina, in Escondido. She held a a fundraiser - oddly enough she was asking the Latino community to support her campaign.

But this is what is not funny...

I care about illegal immigration. I do. I don't want illegal immigration. But, I know what the facts are I know what the difference is. Most people do not. But, this website upsets me. Lots of numbers? yes! References to where the numbers come from and how they arrive at that information? NO! The references to news articles, from what group? The Center for Immigration Studies. Who are the Center for Immigration Studies and what do they do?

They are currently located here, on K Street in Washington, D.C. known for its influence peddling and partisan think tanks. Notice how similar its acronym is to the government agency,Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS) and the right-wing think-tank, Center for Immigration Studies (CIS). Odd!

They have been the talking points for Fox News, Roger Hedgecock, and Rick Roberts in our local area. The Republican groups can not get enough of this outfit and the great statistics they cook up.

But what they really do is cover up the facts, and position with rhetoric. Let me explain more.

People that cross the border fall into a few catagories that the INS/CIS keep track of.

Naturalized Citizen (From a foriegn country, years of service, testing, and naturalized)
Legal Permanent Resident (From a foriegn country, years of service, no testing - limited rights)
Migrant Worker (From a foriegn country, years of service, VISA work program - limited rights)
Temporary Admission (From a foriegn country, years of service, limited stay or naturalized)
Refugee/Asylee (From a foriegn country, no years of service, threatened with death by homeland)
Illegal Immigrant (From a foriegn country, years of service, no testing - not legal to be in US)

As you can see, there is quite a bit of strata to dig through. We have the big problem to deal with. How do you count legal or illegal immigration when you can't see it? It would be great to stamp people on the head and know if they are legal or illegal, but that is not going to happen. Cards can be faked, people lie on applications. We must accept there is a certain amount of unknown to deal with. Just like business know that they will lose money to incomptence and theft - it's built into the equation.

This is why scare-mongering works with illegal immigration. It's based on a visable race difference, coupled with a language and culture barrier. As well as a physical focal point... The border. The line in the sand is what matters as far as citizenship and rights. Unfortunately, its a easy issue to confuse due to the fact statistics are easy to make up, when you don't have something to count. It's like asking "How many cookies were eaten from the cookie jar?" - when you aren't even sure how many you started with. It's called a Universal Negative.

What are we supposed to do, take our California census and find the difference from our population and the population of Mexico? Then kick out that many brown people?

We are the 3rd largest state in the United States of America, directly next to the largest City in the World... MEXICO D.F.

Chances are we will inherit some people from that region. But, baseless accusations with out facts, figures, and points of reference are quite the draw when it comes to this issue.

Why do Californians distrust politicians? Ask Randy "Duke" Cunningham!

2005-09-27T19:27:00.000-07:00

Some people get it, thoes that don't get supeonas...

[...]
"The 'Still in the Dark' award - A raspberry to U.S. Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, R-Escondido, for reneging on a promise he made to his constituents to release financial records relating to his rent-free stay aboard a defense contractor's boat for more than a year.

Duke promised June 23 to compile and release information about the more than $13,000 in dock fees, service and maintenance that he says he paid in lieu of rent to live aboard Mitchell Wade's wonderfully named "Duke-Stir" boat. But Cunningham's lawyers are advising him against releasing the records, in light of a grand jury investigation and a federal probe into charges that Wade bribed the congressman to win Pentagon contracts.
That's sound legal advice. But Duke knew he was under investigation in June, and he had lawyers advising him then. That promise to come clean about his time in the "Duke-Stir" looks increasingly like unsupported spin designed to reassure his constituents that he was living in Wade's boat, not his pocket. The jury's still out, of course, but North County's eyebrows are raising ever higher.
[...]

Seven Weeks of Governator SPIN

2005-09-22T07:02:00.000-07:00

Are you ready? The mailers, the television ads, the articles, the news radio narrow-casts...

Are you ready?

[...]
Not surprisingly, the governor was cheered wildly at the GOP convention when he announced he was supporting Prop. 75. Polls show it is the only one of the four "reform" initiatives currently enjoying majority support.

But by adopting the measure as one of his own, Schwarzenegger faces a steep challenge. He must spend the next seven weeks convincing voters ---- especially Democrats and Independents, who have abandoned him in droves ---- that public employee union "bosses" are the real obstacles to meaningful reform. And he must somehow do this without stigmatizing rank-and-file workers.
[...]
The problem with that strategy is that the campaign isn't starting now. It started months ago, after Schwarzenegger announced his "year of reform" measures and a coalition of labor unions took to the airwaves, undermining his message before he had the chance to deliver it.
[...]

This is California politics. Republican Governors (Schwarzenegger, Wilson, Regan, etc...) have used the initiative process to circumvent how California makes laws. The current Governor is being co-oped by big business, coporate interest, and extreme Republican idealoges. To push an anti-union agenda that is unacceptable in the state legislature. The Governor is not supposed to create law as a king or monarch would. It is the responsibility of the Governor to enforce and promote the rule of law. To oversee that law and it's requirements have been satisfied.

This is what is wrong with our initiative process. Currently, Republicans are using the initiative process to bypass our elected body and push poorly worded, groundless, and unproven ideas and create law.

Get ready. You have been warned.

Admission of failure...

2005-09-21T16:32:00.000-07:00

I'll right. I admit it. I have failed you. I haven't been updating... I'm sorry.

I'd like to take this opportunity to promise, proper updates on a regular basis.

...Look at it this way. I admitted it.

Can George W. Bush admitt his failures?

Hurricane Katrina

The War in Iraq

The Lies of Weapons of Mass Destruction

Failure to Capture Osama Bin Laden

The 911 Comission

September 11th, 2001

He has failed to admit that he has failed at anything of the above. I, on the other hand, did.