Clovis Republican tacks to governor's right -- When Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger unveiled his sweeping health care proposal two weeks ago, it didn't take Mike Villines long to register the first complaint. In fact, the Assembly Republican leader chimed in hours before the governor even released his plan to cover the state's 6.5 million uninsured residents. E.J. Schultz in the Sacramento Bee -- 1/21/07

GOP feeling blocked -- In one of Washington's rituals, Bakersfield Rep. Kevin McCarthy and his fellow House Republicans are seething about the shabby treatment they say they've received so far from the new Democratic majority. VIC POLLARD in the Bakersfield Californian -- 1/21/07

Remap reform is reborn -- With the media fixated -- with good cause -- on health care and other juicy aspects of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's second-term agenda, scant attention is being paid to his renewed call for reforming the way in which congressional and legislative districts are drawn. Dan Walters in the Sacramento Bee -- 1/21/07

A governor without a party is sign of new era -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger calls him "Acky" in public and private. And Sen. Dick Ackerman, the leader of a small but hardy band of Republicans in the state Senate, hosted the governor at his riverfront home one night last week for a surf and turf dinner and a chat with his fellow Republicans. On a personal level, the governor and the senator are getting along just fine. But when it comes to policy, Schwarzenegger is finding himself increasingly estranged from the Republicans who serve in the Legislature, including Ackerman. Daniel Weintraub in the Sacramento Bee -- 1/21/07

Governor's health proposals create concern, prompt praise -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's dramatic proposals to provide all Californians with health care and to fix the state's troubled health care system have already created a mixture of hope and fear among those who would be affected. GIG CONAUGHTON in the North County Times -- 1/21/07

Health proposal called 'jobs tax' -- When Gov. Schwarzenegger unveiled his sweeping health-care proposal two weeks ago, it didn't take Mike Villines long to register the first complaint. In fact, the Assembly Republican leader chimed in hours before the governor even released his plan to cover the state's 6.5 million uninsured residents. E.J. Schultz in the Fresno Bee -- 1/21/07

Illegal immigrant parents facing aid cut -- The low-income illegal-immigrant parents of an estimated 36,000 children in California would lose cash assistance on July 1 if Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's proposed budget is approved, a spokesman for the state Department of Social Services said Friday. WILLIAM FINN BENNETT in the North County Times -- 1/21/07

Military honor proposed -- New legislation would grant lifetime parking privileges to California veterans who were wounded, held as prisoners, awarded medals for heroism or survived the attack on Pearl Harbor. The honorees would constitute the first class of non-disabled motorists awarded free parking privileges by the state. Jim Sanders in the Sacramento Bee -- 1/21/07

Pelosi can strengthen governor's influence -- Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's trek to lead states toward greater influence over national policy might be more successful if he began closer to home -- with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Bay Area Democrat. Schwarzenegger and Pelosi, who acknowledged Friday they have no working relationship, both acted Thursday to cool global warming -- thousands of miles apart. Steve Geissinger, Frank Davies and Lisa Friedman in the Contra Costa Times -- 1/21/07

New House speaker showing who's boss -- The California Democrat rammed six major bills through the House at breakneck speed, stomped out smoking privileges near the House floor, partially sidelined a powerful Democratic committee chairman and decided she liked traditionally Republican office space so much she claimed it for herself. ERICA WERNER AP -- 1/21/07

No longer their House -- The tables have been turned on the majority of Orange County's federal lawmakers, who now find themselves in the House minority. And the county delegation's lone Democrat, Rep. Loretta Sanchez, is getting her first taste of majority status. She will lead a subcommittee of the homeland security panel. DENA BUNIS in the Orange County Register -- 1/21/07

Ailing state finances: Budget better off but not completely recovered -- The state budget appears to be narrowing the gap between what the government takes in and what it doles out, but analysts say there is no clear way out of projected deficits in the near future. EDWARD SIFUENTES in the North County Times -- 1/21/07

Reviving California — bond by bond -- It wasn't easy convincing voters to part with $42.3billion to upgrade and build the state's roads, schools, levees and affordable housing units. But when it comes to spending all that money, the heavy lifting is just beginning. Steven Harmon in the Oakland Tribune -- 1/21/07

California Focus: Optimism as an accounting tool -- Governor's budget could have California on brink of bankruptcy in 18 months. TOM McCLINTOCK in the Orange County Register -- 1/21/07

Bloggers take Tauscher to task -- The national spotlight is heating up for Rep. Ellen Tauscher, D-Alamo, chairwoman of the moderate New Democrat Coalition. Along with heady appearances on CNN, invitations to the White House and quotes in the New York Times, Tauscher has become a favorite target of liberal bloggers. Lisa Vorderbrueggen in the Contra Costa Times -- 1/21/07

New Mexico Governor Enters White House Race -- Gov. Bill Richardson, D-N.M., said Sunday he is taking the first step toward an expected White House run in 2008, offering extensive experience in Washington and the world stage as he seeks to become the first Hispanic president. AP -- 1/21/07

Clinton joins 2008 race for president -- Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton made her long-anticipated entrance Saturday into the 2008 presidential race, aiming to make history as the first woman elected to the White House after an audacious and turbulent political journey from first lady to a New York Senate seat. Stephen Braun and Janet Hook in the Los Angeles Times Carla Marinucci, John Wildermuth in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 1/21/07

Analysis: Clinton's in; now her real test begins -- She's in. But can she win? That's the question facing Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York -- not to mention her Democratic Party and the country -- as she settles the much easier question of whether she'd actually run for president. Steven Thomma in the Sacramento Bee -- 1/21/07

Analysis: Clinton’s Success in Presidential Race Is No Sure Thing -- Compared with the other Democrats who plan to run for president in 2008, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton is the most battle-tested, has the biggest fund-raising network and can walk into the job with a unique set of skills and perspectives gleaned from eight years in the White House as first lady. PATRICK HEALY in the New York Times -- 1/21/07

Far From a Hindrance, Gender Could Be Key for Clinton -- More women hold elected office than ever before, and 9 million more women than men voted in the last presidential election. The New York Democrat's candidacy will test whether she can turn excitement over gender into a powerful political advantage. Lois Romano in the Washington Post -- 1/21/07

Sen. Brownback joins presidential race -- Sen. Sam Brownback, the son of a rural Kansas farmer who has become a leader among religious conservatives in Congress, formally launched his 2008 bid for president at a rally in Topeka yesterday. Matthew Mosk in the Washington Post -- 1/21/07

Abortion foes march against Roe vs. Wade -- The national debate over abortion came to San Francisco's waterfront on Saturday, as thousands of abortion opponents marched peacefully along the Embarcadero while supporters of legal abortion staged a counterprotest alongside them. John King in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 1/21/07

Vietnam surfaces on both sides of Iraq debate -- Supporters and critics of Bush policies have invoked the conflict. But scholars say the two wars differ greatly. Noam N. Levey in the Los Angeles Times -- 1/21/07

2 Southland billionaires make case to buy Tribune -- After months of planning, two of Southern California's wealthiest men flew to Chicago on Saturday and made their case for buying a large and potentially controlling stake in Tribune Co., which owns the Los Angeles Times, KTLA-TV Channel 5, the Chicago Cubs and other newspapers and TV stations. James Rainey in the Los Angeles Times -- 1/21/07

Departures could slow option probe -- The abrupt resignations last week of U.S. Attorney Kevin Ryan, the Justice Department's top law enforcement official in Northern California, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Steskal, the lead prosecutor on the task force investigating stock-option backdating, raise questions about the fate of Bay Area technology companies under investigation. Jessica Guynn in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 1/21/07

Lam's legacy -- By the close of 2005, amid a series of San Diego scandals, U.S. Attorney Carol Lam had quietly become one of the most powerful people in the region. That summer, her office had secured the convictions of two City Council members on extortion, fraud and other charges in a bribery case involving a strip club. Greg Moran and Onell R. Soto in the San Diego Union-Trib -- 1/21/07

Farmers fear shortage of workers -- The handful of laborers harvesting leeks in Pescadero farmer Joe Muzzi's field are all that's left of the seasonal work force he depends on to tend to his crops every year. Twenty other men have gone home to Mexico, as usual, for the winter. This time, however, they left Muzzi wondering how many would return this spring. Julia Scott in the San Jose Mercury -- 1/21/07

Freeze impact to ripple through Valley economy -- The freeze that decimated the region's citrus industry and damaged other crops in the central San Joaquin Valley won't just cost growers. Jeff St. John in the Fresno Bee -- 1/21/07

Cal may fund new research facilities -- Even as Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger asks California lawmakers for more than $47 billion in new bond debt, the University of California itself is weighing "billions" in bond financing for new buildings, starting with more than $100 million in alternative energy and supercomputing facilities at Berkeley. Ian Hoffman in the Oakland Tribune -- 1/21/07

Campus rewarded with state's funding -- When the doors opened at CSU Channel Islands in 2002, students streamed through the doors. And each year since, more and more students have showed up for classes at the state's newest CSU campus, with enrollment in the fall hitting an all-time high of 3,123 students. Michelle L. Klampe in the Ventura Star -- 1/21/07

The school as brainchild -- The idea for Vistamar School, a private college-prep academy in El Segundo, began five years ago with an innocuous question posed by a Manhattan Beach mother to a friend over lunch: Where will your daughter go to high school when she grows up? Carla Rivera in the Los Angeles Times -- 1/21/07

Nursing school students decry planned lottery -- With more demand for classes than colleges have room for, some have started determining who gets in with a random drawing. Using a lottery over a ranking system is meant to increase the diversity of nursing students, but some students feel that puts patient health at risk when top students are denied. MICHELLE HATFIELD in the Modesto Bee -- 1/21/07

To expand health coverage, Bush pitches tax code change -- President Bush on Saturday entered the growing debate about providing healthcare coverage for uninsured Americans, calling for a major change in the tax system to help those whose employers don't offer a plan. Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar in the Los Angeles Times SHERYL GAY STOLBERG and ROBERT PEAR in the New York Times -- 1/21/07

Redwood protections expected to stand -- Even though Pacific Lumber filed for bankruptcy this week, it will have a tough time invalidating environmental protections required under a landmark deal with the government in 1999 for 200,000 acres of redwood forests it owns. Paul Rogers in the San Jose Mercury -- 1/21/07

Relief en route to the 405 -- State transportation officials allocating billion of dollars in bond revenues to ease California's legendary gridlock have snubbed a key project on Interstate 5, where thousands of motorists travel daily through the East San Fernando Valley. HARRISON SHEPPARD in the Los Angeles Daily News -- 1/21/07

Blueprint to beautify, restore Yosemite tangled up in court -- When the Merced River overran its banks and scoured Yosemite National Park a decade ago, many saw an unprecedented opportunity to restore the iconic park and cede more of the Yosemite Valley to nature. Chuck Squatriglia in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 1/21/07

Endangered beauty -- A rare wildflower has gained a loyal following among gardeners. But in their enthusiasm to propagate the plant, they could help drive it into extinction. Laura Casey in the Oakland Tribune -- 1/21/07

Nobel laureates say sustainability needs more than science -- The United States has the technology -- or at least the brains to build it -- to make significant progress in the fight against global warming. However, without widespread public and government support of energy conservation, technology can only go so far, say some of the brightest minds in Berkeley. Erin Allday in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 1/21/07

Marina del Rey residents assail growth plans -- Marina del Rey residents are up in arms over county approval of high-rise projects that they say will ruin the area and block views. Robert. J. Lopez in the Los Angeles Times -- 1/21/07

Transit boss' SUV is too big to ignore -- Questions about the Hummer would be off-limits. That's what the mayor's press secretary told me as we headed to a City Hall meeting with transportation chief Jaime de la Vega, whose vehicle of choice seems odd for a man in his position. Steve Lopez in the Los Angeles Times -- 1/21/07

Housing market shows signs of stabilizing in 2007, forecasters say -- Segments of last year's real estate market resembled thrill rides at Magic Mountain: Scream, Freefall and Psyclone. Translation: "bubble" fears, tumbling home sales and weaker price gains. Diane Wedner in the Los Angeles Times -- 1/21/07

Double front yard for 'mini-mansions' -- The newest rage in home building this isn't. Instead, a distinct architectural sleight of hand visible at model homes rising at Pocket Road and West Shore Drive is testament to one of the most significant challenges in the practice of infill development: making newer houses blend into an older desirable neighborhood. Jim Wasserman in the Sacramento Bee -- 1/21/07

Smaller malls gaining greater cachet -- By shopping center standards, Palo Alto's Town & Country Village, rooted at a busy intersection in sight of Stanford University, is ancient. Built in the postwar boom, like hundreds of other complexes nationwide -- and dozens in the Bay Area -- Town & Country offered, all in one location, a well-balanced menu of retail and service options. And its stylish, old-world tile roofs and trailing ivy accents bucked the brisk modern look more typical of shopping centers of the era. S.L. Wykes in the San Jose Mercury -- 1/21/07

Residents raise the roof in older neighborhoods -- When Jamil Weatherbee decided to build a new home from scratch on his Pleasant Hill lot, the only way to go was up. He chose to demolish the roughly 1,000-square-foot ranch house already there and replace it with a lavish, 3,400-square-foot, five-bedroom, four-and-a-half-bath, two-story home with a two-car garage. Danielle Samaniego in the Contra Costa Times -- 1/21/07

Dire consequences hit close to home -- Data expose state's numerous vulnerabilities. Betsy Mason and Mike Taugher in the Contra Costa Times -- 1/21/07

How Earth breathes key to climate change -- Scientists studying how plant cycles and soils absorb and release carbon in the course of a year. Betsy Mason in the Contra Costa Times -- 1/21/07

Lawsuit over I-580 bike crash promised -- An attorney for the victims of a fatal bicycle accident on Interstate 580 has notified several agencies that the victims intend to sue for more than $25 million. In the September accident, a driver swerved into a designated freeway bicycle lane at 65 mph and collided head on with bicyclists Dan Weinstein, 42, and Dan Doellstedt, 40. Weinstein died of a massive head injury, and Doellstedt lost the use of his legs because of a severe spine injury. John Geluardi in the Contra Costa Times -- 1/21/07

Plutonium transit uproar -- Baking soda, bunk beds, fire extinguishers - and a drum with plutonium-238. The truck that crashed Tuesday near Needles with a load of radioactive waste was a plain old commercial truck carrying plain old products. Andrew Silva in the San Bernardino Sun -- 1/21/07

Delta collapse also may hurt East Bay -- The foretold collapse of the Delta could prove damaging not only for Southern Californians who rely on water pumped to their homes but also for the majority of the East Bay, a new study says. Eighty-seven percent of the water used by East Bay residents is either taken from the Delta or shipped through it, according to the study, released this month by Saint Mary's College in Moraga. Levee breaches during an earthquake or flood could draw salty water from the Bay to the Delta, tainting water that is sent to cities in Contra Costa and Alameda counties. Alex Breitler in the Stockton Record -- 1/21/07

Racial attacks by gangs rising, L.A. officials fear -- Statistics give only a partial picture, because determining motivation can be difficult. Megan Garvey and Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times -- 1/21/07

Deputies lament limits on foot chases -- Many say restrictions adopted in 2004 hamper their work. A Sheriff's Department monitor cites the dangers of running after suspects. Stuart Pfeifer in the Los Angeles Times -- 1/21/07

L.A. County judges lack diversity of community -- Although the percentage of Latinos, African Americans and Asian Americans serving as judges in Los Angeles County dramatically exceeds their number in the legal community as a whole, true diversity on the bench remains a long way off, local bar leaders said at a downtown conference Saturday. Henry Weinstein in the Los Angeles Times -- 1/21/07

There ought not to be a law on spanking -- Assemblywoman Sally Lieber, D-Mountain View, has announced that she will introduce a bill this week to make it a crime to spank children who are 3 years old or younger, punishable by up to a year in jail or a $1,000 fine. If this zany idea were to become law, California could be the place where the nanny state meets the authoritarian state. Debra J. Saunders in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 1/21/07

The spirit keeps moving them -- Interim pastors step in to fix churches that are in transition or having trouble with finances or governance. 'We're surgeons,' says one. K. Connie Kang in the Los Angeles Times -- 1/21/07

New wave of women -- Baby on board. It's supposed to be the emblem of minivan-driving soccer moms, not big-wave-charging surfers. Yet there was Naomi Gerhardt, tucked beneath four millimeters of neoprene, in the belly of mother Sarah last February at the infamous break Mavericks near Half Moon Bay. Elliott Almond in the San Jose Mercury -- 1/21/07

Back in the kid business -- More and more older people, forced to put retirement aside, care for their youngest relatives. Several kinship support groups offer these elderly caregivers special advice and assistance. Steve Schmidt in the San Diego Union-Trib -- 1/21/07

Sore feet bring Orange County charity runner's quest to an end -- An 18-year-old Orange County man who vowed to run 200 miles in 48 hours to raise money for a children's hospital cut short his effort Saturday because, he said, his feet hurt. Yvonne Villarreal in the Los Angeles Times VIK JOLLY and ERIKA I. RITCHIE in the Orange County Register -- 1/21/07

Oceanside can't shake gang gunfire -- Tired of sentencing young men to grow old in prison for gang-related shootings, Superior Court Judge Joan Weber last month called on Oceanside residents – particularly those in Mesa Margarita – to stop the violence that can ruin a community. Jose Luis Jiménez and Kristina Davis in the San Diego Union-Trib -- 1/21/07

Doing More Time -- Even though Inland county jailers specially trained to enforce federal immigration laws have sent more than 2,000 inmates into deportation proceedings in the past year, the program has not met other goals, such as saving money and clearing jail space, county sheriffs said. SHARON McNARY in the Riverside Press -- 1/21/07