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California politics are taking on a surreal tint -- As campaign spots touch upon the bizarre, average people's real concerns fade into the background. Cathleen Decker in the Los Angeles Times -- 2/7/10 Jerry Brown sounds like a candidate -- California Attorney General Jerry Brown swung by a gathering of young Democrats in San Francisco Saturday, where he preached the importance of environmental protections and building the state's green industry, touted his record as the state's top cop, stressed the importance of overhauling the state's criminal justice system, and took a couple swipes at Meg Whitman, the race's Republican front-runner. Marisa Lagos in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 2/7/10 Chuck DeVore faces steep climb for California Senate seat -- Despite a lack of funds and name recognition, the Orange County Republican says he's best qualified to carry the party banner this fall against Barbara Boxer. Seema Mehta in the Los Angeles Times -- 2/7/10 100 gun advocates appear armed at Bay Area restaurant -- Gray skies and a spattering of rain didn't dampen the enthusiasm of about 100 members of the Open Carry movement, who showed up Saturday morning displaying unloaded guns at a restaurant in downtown Walnut Creek. Janis Mara in the Contra Costa Times -- 2/7/10 Bay Area is ground zero for California effort to legalize pot -- It's almost a cliché these days that this city and its sister to the east, Oakland, stand as the primary incubators of some of California's infamously wacky but later transformational social and political ideas. Jeff Mitchell in the Sacramento Bee -- 2/7/10 Morain: Realty tycoon sacks Capitol in quest for L.A. football -- Ed Roski Jr. and his entourage will watch the Super Bowl from a club box on the 40-yard line at Sun Life Stadium in Miami, while millions of the rest of us gather in front of television sets with our chips and beer. Dan Morain in the Sacramento Bee -- 2/7/10 Walters: Pro sports don't merit public funds -- Super Bowl Sunday is the perfect moment to ponder the myth and reality of professional sports in 21st century America. Dan Walters in the Sacramento Bee -- 2/7/10 Prop. 14 holds promise to change primaries -- California voters will have the opportunity in June to replace partisan primaries with a system in which candidates of all parties will be listed on the same ballot and the top two vote-getters would advance to the general election, regardless of party. John Marelius in the San Diego Union-Trib -- 2/7/10 California law to free inmates early draws protests -- A law that took effect last month that was intended to reduce inmate overcrowding by allowing early releases at state prisons and county jails is sowing confusion throughout California. DON THOMPSON AP -- 2/7/10 California's outsize problems won't be easy for Schwarzenegger to solve -- People in the nation's largest state are in a sour mood. They are unhappy with the economy, unhappy with what has happened to their state, unhappy with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) and unhappy with the Democratic-controlled legislature. Dan Balz in the Washington Post -- 2/7/10 Lopez: City official gives up his Hummer in a race to City Hall -- L.A.'s deputy mayor for transportation, Jaime de la Vega, was waiting for me at the top of the escalator at the Universal City train station Friday morning. When I arrived, he handed me his keys, and the race to City Hall began. De la Vega was taking the Red Line. Steve Lopez in the Los Angeles Times -- 2/7/10 Bullet train ridership numbers don't add up, watchdog says -- California officials' rosy ridership forecasts for the state's planned $45 billion high-speed rail system have been based on previously undisclosed statistical assumptions that differ from those published for peer and public review, newly released documents obtained by The Daily News show. Will Oremus in the San Jose Mercury -- 2/7/10 Supporters of same-sex marriage find mix of opinions in petition drive -- Lisa Dewey eagerly grasped a pen at Riverside Plaza on Saturday to sign a petition for a November referendum to restore same-sex marriage in California. DAVID OLSON in the Riverside Press -- 2/7/10
'Cash-in' refis growing in popularity -- Instead of tapping into equity, Americans are preferring to put in cash to cut debt. Kenneth R. Harney in the Los Angeles Times -- 2/7/10
Results in L.A. school-reform elections could be withheld until Friday -- Ballot counting began Saturday afternoon in Los Angeles for an election over school-reform plans; results will be available by Monday but might not be released until Friday, officials said. Howard Blume in the Los Angeles Times -- 2/7/10 In cash-strapped state, how will we pay for public higher education? -- On a mild, overcast day in October 2007, a University of California graduate lobbed a rhetorical bomb at his alma mater: What if the public university went private? Steve Wiegand in the Sacramento Bee -- 2/7/10 Stanford finds cheating — especially among computer science students — on the rise -- Allegations of cheating at Stanford University have more than doubled in the past decade, with the largest number of violations involving computer science students. Lisa M. Krieger in the San Jose Mercury -- 2/7/10 Economy slows plans to protect athletes -- For the second straight year, doctors, educators, administrators and parents gathered Saturday to talk about something they already know: that portable defibrillators can save the life of a young athlete stricken by sudden cardiac arrest. LANDON HALL in the Orange County Register -- 2/7/10 UC Davis aims to turn more of its tech into business -- From biofuels to pharmaceuticals, Sacramento-area inventors have created scores of promising scientific breakthroughs, many of them in the well-funded laboratories of UC Davis. Dale Kasler in the Sacramento Bee -- 2/7/10
Earth, wind and wire: Going beyond solar panels -- Here's a look at three technologies that California residents are using to cut their energy bills and turn their homes into clean mini-power plants. Chip Jacobs in the Los Angeles Times -- 2/7/10 Maritime Administration knew of Mothball Fleet paint pollution in 1997 -- The U.S. Maritime Administration knew in 1997 that paint falling off its obsolete ships anchored in Suisun Bay could cause toxic pollution, yet took no action for more than a decade while denying a problem existed, according to federal documents. Thomas Peele and Mike Taugher in the Contra Costa Times -- 2/7/10
Beverage industry douses tax on soft drinks -- The idea had been floated as a way to finance a healthcare overhaul while combating obesity. But the industry has lobbied key lawmakers and financed scientific studies favorable to its position. Tom Hamburger and Kim Geiger in the Los Angeles Times -- 2/7/10
Internet gambling again in play -- Poker lobbyists are ramping up an aggressive push backed by millions of dollars to legalize Internet gambling in the United States this year, hoping to overcome passionate objections from social conservatives, sports leagues and other longtime opponents. Dan Eggen in the Washington Post -- 2/7/10 Borenstein: Stop blaming and fix Contra Costa County's pension rules -- When the going gets tough, it's always easier to blame the other guy. Thus, the finger-pointing over Contra Costa public employee pensions has reached a feverish pitch. Daniel Borenstein in the Contra Costa Times -- 2/7/10
In fighting visa fraud, nothing beats the personal touch -- U.S. is using new technology and better cooperation between agencies to detect false applications, but face-to-face visits are the best way to catch a fraudulent claim. Teresa Watanabe in the Los Angeles Times -- 2/7/10
Obama tells nervous Democrats: We'll lead party through storm -- President Barack Obama sought to reassure nervous Democrats Saturday, pledging to push against the political headwinds facing the party in this year’s midterm elections. JONATHAN MARTIN & ALEX ISENSTADT Politico -- 2/7/10
Sarah Palin to Tea Party Convention: 'This is about the people' -- The former Alaska governor calls on the grass-roots movement to remain decentralized, saying it's 'bigger than any king or queen of the tea party.' Kathleen Hennessey in the Los Angeles Times Dena Bunis in the Orange County Register KENNETH P. VOGEL Politico Philip Rucker and Ann Gerhart in the Washington Post -- 2/7/10 Enthusiastic Republicans crowding many primary races -- Weakened Democrats and strife between the GOP's old guard and newcomers contribute to the surplus of candidates in contests around the country. It's not clear who will benefit. Kathleen Hennessey in the Los Angeles Times -- 2/7/10 Tea partiers attack convention -- Four Tennessee tea party activists who said they couldn’t afford the $550 tickets to the National Tea Party Convention staged a guerilla news conference just outside of the event to challenge its representation of the movement. KENNETH P. VOGEL Politico -- 2/7/10 McManus: Healthcare reform -- a plan in search of a strategy -- If Democrats want to succeed, they'll need to retool -- and get help from President Obama. Doyle McManus in the Los Angeles Times -- 2/7/10 |
