California Politics

The Cottage Food Bill Clears First Hurdle in California

Phil Lempert | Posted 05.17.2012

Read More: Cottage Foods, Sustainable Economies Law Center, California Homemade Food Act, Christina Oatfield, California Law, Jerry Brown, California Politics, Food News

I believe that all food companies, large and tiny, have a food safety responsibility and every food processing facility should be inspected -- what do you think?

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Does Anyone in Congress Get Technology?

Joshua Lamel | Posted 05.01.2012

Read More: House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, House of Representatives, Congress, Technology, Issa, SOPA Bill, Darrell Issa, California Politics, Sopa, Technology News

It may seem odd that I, a loyal Democrat, am singing the praises of Congressman Issa. However, the technologist in me has fallen in love with how Issa is revolutionizing the relationship between Congress and technology.

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Independents to Minor Parties: Don't Fight Us; Join Us

Harry Kresky | Posted 04.04.2012

Read More: Independents, Proposition 14, Independent Voters, Minority Parties, Peace and Freedom, California Voters, Libertarian Party, California Politics, Rubin v Brown, Election 2012, Independent Parties, Green Party, Politics News

In the current situation, where the issue of the day is one of process, Americans understandably see minor parties as smaller versions of the major parties. They are declaring their independence from parties of all kinds.

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California Bill AB2109 Threatens Vaccine Freedom of Choice

Dr. Bob Sears | Posted 05.22.2012

Read More: Immunizations, Vaccine Laws, Vaccinations, Vaccines, California, ab2109, Unvaccinated, California Politics, San Francisco News

The California legislature is considering a bill that would require parents to obtain their doctor's signature prior to enrollment in public school if they wish to skip vaccines for their child. On the surface, this doesn't seem like a bad idea.

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Jerry Brown Makes Some Splashy Moves

William Bradley | Posted 05.01.2012

Some imagine that Brown is at last embracing the way of his father, the legendary late Governor Pat Brown, widely credited as the builder of modern California, in developing what might be called an Edifice Complex. But that's not quite it.

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First Graders and Food Trucks

Ross Resnick | Posted 04.28.2012

Read More: Los Angeles Food Trucks, Fast Food, Food Truck, LA Food Trucks, California Politics, Gourmet-Food-Trucks, Food Trucks, Food Truck Bill, Los Angeles News

I find it tough to swallow that banning food trucks proactively encourages our kids to eat healthier.

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Republicans Lose Big on Redistricting Gamble, Brown Moves Forward

William Bradley | Posted 03.31.2012

Read More: Political Reform, Open Primaries, Redistricting, 2012 Elections, California, Arnold Schwarzenegger, California Elections, Renewable Energy, High Speed Rail, Jerry Brown, California Politics, Jerry Brown Taxes, California Taxes, California Citizens Redistricting Commission, Los Angeles News

The California Republican Party put most of its remaining marbles on a desperate bid to derail the Citizens Redistricting Commission. That effort ended in abject failure on Friday.

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California Dreaming

Al Checchi | Posted 02.04.2012

Read More: Fiscal Crisis, Politics News, Politics, California, The Change Maker, California Politics, Al Checchi, Politics News

As presently structured, California may be insolvent. There is no foreseeable means to conduct business as usual while balancing its annual budgets, investing in needed infrastructure and meeting its long term state employee pension and health care obligations.

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Governor Veto

David Boaz | Posted 11.08.2011

Read More: Veto, Libertarian, Jerry Brown, Sacramento, California, California Politics, Politics News

During his two terms as governor of New Mexico, Gary Johnson got the nickname "Governor Veto" as he vetoed 750 bills sent to him by the legislature. Now California's Jerry Brown is bucking for that title.

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The Farm Workers and Jerry Brown Make Up, For Now

William Bradley | Posted 11.07.2011

Read More: Darrell Steinberg, Cesar Chavez, California, Arturo Rodriguez, United Farm Workers, Jerry Brown, Farm Workers, Farm Workers Union, Ufw, California Politics, Unions, Workers Rights, Los Angeles News

The canny Brown negotiated new legislation that allows the UFW some progress without granting its card check goal, thus turning a rally that would otherwise have been a protest of his policies into a muted celebration.

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For Progressives, Debt Ceiling "Deal" Was a Real Downer

Joseph A. Palermo | Posted 10.04.2011

What U.S. president in recent history has lifted the rhetoric of progressivism to such lofty heights only to throw a wet blanket over the grassroots energy that responded to his vision and got him elected?

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Jerry Brown, Democratic Leaders Announce Budget Deal

blogs.sacbee.com | Posted 08.27.2011

Read More: California Budget, California Budget Crisis, California Legislature, California Politics, Jerry Brown, Los Angeles News

Gov. Jerry Brown and Democratic legislative leaders announced today that they have reached an agreement on a new majority-vote budget plan. "We've ...

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California Controller John Chiang's Unlikely Turn In The Spotlight

latimes.com | Shane Goldmacher and Evan Halper, Los Angeles Times | Posted 08.24.2011

Read More: John Chiang, California State Budget, California Controller, California Politics, Los Angeles News

Reporting from Sacramento -- As a high school kid in Illinois, John Chiang ran for student council on a populist platform: ridding the lunchroom jukeb...

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Inside 30 Years Of California's Disastrous Punitive Prison Legislation

HuffingtonPost.com | Laura Gottesdiener | Posted 07.27.2011

Read More: Prisoner Reentry, Caliornia Prison Legislation, California Prison System, California, Prison, California Prisons, California Politics, California Inmates, Cruel and Unusual Punishment, Los Angeles News

NEW YORK -- Since 1977, California’s prison system, one of the most punitive in the country, has been built on the belief that a man like Shawn Vasq...

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In California the Battle To Save Higher Education Continues

Joseph A. Palermo | Posted 06.12.2011

Read More: For-Profits, California State University, Governor Jerry Brown, Budget Cuts, Public Higher Education, Univeristy of Phoenix, Budget Crisis, California Democrats, Democrats, California Politics, State Senator Ted Gaines, Wall Street, GOP 5, Kaplan, California Faculty Association, Republicans, California Political News, College News

The budget constraints have led the CSU administration to put into overdrive its business model for higher education, to treat education like a "business," like a "product" that is "delivered" to a "customer."

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California's Party of No Takes Center Stage, Or Does It?

William Bradley | Posted 05.26.2011

Read More: Republican Party, Haley Barbour, California, Arnold Schwarzenegger, John Bolton, Barack Obama, California Budget Crisis, Jerry Brown, California Budget, California Gop, California Politics, California Republican Party, Grover Norquist, Los Angeles News

Between its strange state convention last weekend and the ongoing state budget impasse, California's party of no has seemingly taken center stage in the not so Golden State. But is that really so? And is it a good thing for Republicans if it is?

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California: Where Elections Don't Matter

Joseph A. Palermo | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Public Employees, Wisonsin Republicans, Meg Whitman, Michael Genest, Wall Street, Scott Walker, Republicans, California Fiscal Crisis, California Budget, California, California Politics, gop5, Los Angeles News

Five members of the Republican state Senate minority once again are in the driver's seat and they're determined to run the state right over the cliff.

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Notes From Governor Jerry Brown's Inauguration

Georgia Kelly | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Politics, California, Inauguration, California Politics, Jerry Brown, California Governor's Race, Governor of California, Governor, Politics News

Focusing on the challenges that face us but assuring us that we have what it takes to meet these difficulties, Governor Brown articulated a clear, honest and mature message.

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A National Right-Wing Attack on California

Richard H. Smith | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Bill Lockyer, California Politics, Conservatives, California Budget Crisis, Curt Gentry, Stephen Levy, Ronald Reagan California, Politics News

If all those liberal Democrats were actually to solve California's very real political, economic and social problems, it would endanger the right's dearly-beloved dream of a Palin-esque future.

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California Mayor Was Set To Receive $500,000 'Finders Fee' Upon Sale Of Public Buildings

Los Angeles Times | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Bill Lockyer, Miguel Pulido, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mayor Finders Fee, Santa Ana, California Politics, Los Angeles News

The mayor of Santa Ana would receive a $500,000 "finder's fee" if the controversial sale of 24 state buildings goes through, according to interviews a...

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The Top Vote-Getter in America? Lockyer of California

Richard H. Smith | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Bill Lockyer, California Politics, Jerry Brown California, Jerry Brown, Politics News

On election night last month, a small crowd of political enthusiasts gathered at a golf clubhouse in Hayward, California to cheer their winning candid...

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David Brooks Weighs In On California's Dysfunction

nytimes.com | DAVID BROOKS | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: David Brooks, California Budget Crisis, California Politics, Los Angeles News

Sometimes it's hard to remember what good government looks like: government that disciplines itself but looks to the long term; government that inspir...

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Could a California Budget Fix Threaten National Security?

Richard H. Smith | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Attorney General Jerry Brown, California Budget, California Politics, Narcotics, Terrorism, Politics News

"Hey, wait a minute", you say. "Is this a put on? What does the latest patchwork California budget, slapped together a hundred days late, have to do ...

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Newsom's Win Keeps California Political Future Afloat

AP | JUDY LIN | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Gavin Newsom, California Politics, Gavin Newsom Future, Gavin Newsom Plans, Gavin Newsom Update, Gavin Newsom Governor, Gavin Newsom Senator, Los Angeles News

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — He's best-known for opening San Francisco's City Hall to same-sex weddings and was once thought to be too liberal even for ...

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Dispatches From Incredible 1934 Campaign: Irving Thalberg's Final 'Attack Ad' Sparks Riots

Greg Mitchell | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Elections, Campaigns, Dirty Tricks, Hollywood Politics, Grassroots, Liberal Hollywood, Mass Movements, Mgm, Upton Sinclair, Socialism, California Politics, California, Books News

As Election Day neared, Hollywood's crusade against Upton Sinclair, the Democratic nominee for governor, hit a new low.

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