Profile
mcginn94
- Politics:Democrat
- Location:San Francisco, California
Front-runner ducks in state Senate debate
Three of the four candidates running to replace Lt. Gov. Abel Maldonado in the state Senate squared off in a debate Monday night, trading views on oil-extraction taxes, the state budget and education spending, among other topics. Read More »
Schwarzenegger stops by Steinberg’s office
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger made a rare trip upstairs in the Capitol on Monday afternoon, meeting with Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento) three days before the new fiscal year begins. Read More »
Walters: California legislators again pulling election strings
It's not exactly news that from time to time, the Legislature attempts to manipulate the outcome of elections. Commonly, the Legislature, when approving bond issues and other ballot measures, writes official titles and summaries – and sometimes controls ballot arguments – in ways to make them more likely to pass, rather than leaving those chores to someone else. Read More »
Whitman's big win came at a price: $76 per vote
So that’s what a $114 million governor’s primary looks like. Meg Whitman, the former eBay CEO-turned-Republican-warhorse, spent an astonishing $76 per vote to wrest the nomination from state Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner, a California Watch analysis shows. Read More »
Pot initiative splits backers of legalization
Any assumption that all of the state's marijuana backers are in support of this fall's ballot initiative to legalize cannabis would be incorrect. "My position is that I am for legalization but against this particular bill," wrote Los Angeles attorney Jennifer Soares in an e-mail. Read More »
More illegal immigrants coming to California by sea
If controls on the U.S.-Mexico border are heightened further, as those who support the tough immigration law in Arizona are demanding, the obvious question is: Where else will illegal immigrants attempt to enter the United States? Read More »
Ruling does little to improve Calif budget outlook
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Tuesday won the right to raid local redevelopment funds to help close California's budget deficit, but it will likely do little to save the state from having to make deeper cuts to education, social services, and health care for children and the poor. Read More »
Oppo research group attacks Whitman for eBay’s failure to hire Latino managers
Speaking of campaign attacks, here’s one from the anti-Meg Whitman oppo research group, California Accountability Project, which takes on Whitman for eBay’s hiring practices. Drafting off of a San Jose Mercury News story, the ad hits Whitman, the ex-CEO of eBay, for failing to hire a single Latino for a managerial position from 2000-2005 while hiring 366 other managers. Read More »
Over 900 pink slips likely for S.F. schools
More than 900 San Francisco schoolteachers, administrators and other staff members - nearly twice that of last year - are in line to receive layoff notices in the next few weeks as district officials prepare to cover a worst-case budget scenario next year. Read More »
Recession takes toll on California schools
Broken families. Increased hunger. Homelessness. This isn't a blog about post-earthquake life in Haiti. This is the impact of the recession on scores of children attending California schools, according to a recent report from UCLA's Institute for Democracy, Education and Access. Read More »
Lost jobs, economy seen as top issue in Governor race
As tens of thousands of Californians lose their jobs every month, the high-stakes race for governor is becoming a referendum on how to stem the unemployment tide and get people back into the labor market. Read More »
Gov. Schwarzenegger plugs Abel Maldonado on brink of his California lieutenant governor confirmation
State Sen. Abel Maldonado, who is bidding to become California's lieutenant governor, got another blessing from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Thursday at a gathering of top Silicon Valley business leaders. Read More »
Tom Campbell, Jerry Brown take early leads in poll
Former congressman Tom Campbell has an early lead in the race for the Republican U.S. Senate nomination, having brushed past former HP executive Carly Fiorina almost as soon as he got in the race. That’s one highlight of a poll released today by the Public Policy Institute of California, a nonpartisan think tank. Read More »
Governor Schwarzenegger talking through his sombrero again, aide says
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's comments about building a prison in Mexico to house undocumented immigrants currently held in California prisons reflected only his "out-of-the-box" thinking rather than a serious policy proposal, his spokesman said Tuesday. Read More »
Brown expected to run a populist campaign
Jerry Brown appears to be gearing up for a populist campaign as he anticipates a run against a wealthy Republican. The state attorney general will have a sizable target whether it's Meg Whitman, the billionaire former CEO of eBay, or state Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner, who entered politics after making a fortune as a Silicon Valley entrepreneur. Read More »
Hidden Costs of State Furloughs in California
The present budget deficit faced by the State of California is around $26 billion and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is seeking a solution to bridge this deficit gap through three furlough days a mont Read More »
Disney, union workers clash over healthcare
Jean Bustamante views the nation's raging healthcare debate in very personal terms. Her 8-year-old son, Ethan, is confined to a wheelchair with cerebral palsy, she says, and his medications alone would cost her $1,000 a month if she were uninsured. Read More »
Border agents limit confiscation of laptops
Travelers will no longer be subject to indefinite confiscation of laptops and mobile devices by U.S. border agents, and will be allowed to be present when officials are reviewing stored information, under policies revised recently by the Department of Homeland Security. Read More »
Bill could restart pollution crediting program
State lawmakers approved legislation late last week that would let the region's air-quality regulator issue emission-reduction credits that had been tied up by a court fight with environmentalists. Read More »
Southland home prices move north for fourth consecutive month
The median rose 2.6% last month to $275,000, according to real estate research firm MDA DataQuick. But the number of homes sold, although up 11% from August 2008, was down 10.8% from July. Read More »
Schwarzenegger asks attorney general to examine ACORN
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger apparently has been captivated by recent news stories about a conservative filmmaker who exposed misdeeds at ACORN, the national organization that serves low-income residents and has been involved in controversial efforts to register Democratic voters. Read More »
Oakland's Marijuana Business Tax
Oakland voters recently approved the nation’s first ever business tax on retail marijuana sales, Measure F, on the July 21, 2009 ballot. The overwhelmingly majority of voters (80% to 20%) Read More »
Oakland City Council rethinks parking changes
In an effort to stem a growing revolt, the Oakland City Council is expected to roll back evening hours for metered parking when it meets Tuesday - the question is how far. "I don't know if it will be 6 p.m. or 7 p.m.," said council President Jane Brunner. "It depends on how much money we can find or cut elsewhere." Read More »
Census: Recession had sweeping impact on U.S. life
The recession is profoundly disrupting American life: More people are delaying marriage and home-buying, turning to carpools yet getting stuck in ever-worse traffic, staying put rather than moving to new cities. Read More »
Sonoma County retirees sue over health benefits
An association of retired Sonoma County government employees filed suit Tuesday claiming that the county reneged on promised health benefits last year when it began forcing about 2,500 retirees to pay an increasing share of premium costs. Read More »
Borrowers rush in as mortgage rates slip below 5%
Loan applications jumped 13% last week and are up 50% from late June, a mortgage bankers group says, as borrowers have been taking advantage of rates that now average 4.97% on a 30-year loan. Read More »
UC Berkeley to pay consultant to find cost cuts
UC Berkeley has agreed to pay a consultant $3 million to help the school find new ways to save money - an agreement that has irritated some faculty members whose pay is being cut this year. Read More »
EPA chooses capping for DDT off coast
Nearly 40 years after pesticide dumping stopped off the Palos Verdes Peninsula, federal environmental regulators have selected a long-delayed cleanup strategy to address the toxic mess left behind. Read More »
On-location ad filming in L.A. sees an uptick
Commercial filming on the streets of Los Angles may be moving out of the doldrums, a possible early sign that there is a thaw in the nationwide economy as advertisers show more willingness to spend money. Read More »
Lawmakers Scrap Plan for 300 More Miles of Fencing on Mexican Border
Members of Congress have stripped a provision requiring 300 more miles of fencing along the U.S.-Mexico border from a Department of Homeland Security appropriation bill, saying that the money needed would be better spent on alternative security measures. Read More »
Is Prop. 8 to Blame for Newsom Being Behind in the Polls?
According to a recent poll conducted by the DailyKos, Attorney General Jerry Brown, leads 29% to 20% over his closest Democratic competitor, Gavin Newsom, the Mayor of San Francisco. Although this wil Read More »
Is Prop. 8 to Blame for Newsom Being Behind in the Polls?
Gavin Newsom has done a lot for the city of San Francisco including supporting gay rights. I think he would make a great governor for the state, but I do agree that he is very unpopular in the southern part of the state where the Democratic base is much more socially conservative than what you find in Northern California.
Impact of Obama's Healthcare Reform in California
Is the Obama plan going to help at all with the recent cut backs in low cost health insurance programs for poor kids?
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California State Furloughs Are Adversely Affecting College Students
Being that higher education is one of the major competitive advantages of the Unites States it is sad to see that todays college students are being short changed due to gross mismanagement by the legislature. California has always prided itself in its outstanding higher education system. Keeping and maintaining a properly educated workforce in CA should be a major priority for the state.