GOV’S CHRISTMAS WISH LIST

Wishing You Good Health
The Governor is hoping for Healthcare Reform for the holidays…When I asked the Governor’s Office what Arnold Schwarzenegger wants most for Christmas, I received this reply:

“The holiday season is about joyous family gatherings, giving back and granting the wishes of those who are less fortunate. The holiday season should not find families in fear of paying their medical bills or having to choose between buying presents or taking their sick child to the doctor. Californians deserve better, they deserve peace of mind. Let’s grant that wish this holiday season and give the gift of a healthy future for all Californians.”

Well the Gov already got half his wish…when the State Assembly approved his healthcare reform plan. The Senate won’t take it up though until January…but if approved there, the real battle will be convincing California voters next November to give the green light to a $14 billion spending plan.

ADD ONE MORE

This Just In…

You can now add Assemblywoman Sally Lieber (D) Mountain View, to the list of state lawmakers turning down the pay hike. The State Controller’s Office has just released the latest names of those saying NO to the $3100 raise…and the list now includes Sally Lieber, the Speaker Pro Tempore of the State Assembly.

So now Lieber and SF Assemblyman Mark Leno are the only Bay Area lawmakers to turn down the pay jump voted to them by an independent commission. In all, a total of six State Senators and 16 members of the Assembly are rejecting the raise. Ninety-eight members of the Assembly and Senate are taking the extra money, even though the State is bleeding red ink.

LENO SAYS NO TO PAY HIKE

Only Bay Area Pol to Just Say No

California has a projected $14 billion deficit, but every Bay Area lawmaker is taking a pay hike for state legislators this month, except one. San Francisco Assemblyman Mark Leno is the only local politician to “just say no” to the $3100 raise, according to records released by the State Controller’s Office.

California legislators already make $116,000 a year – highest in the nation. They also get $34,000 in tax-free expenses, plus a state-issued car and free gasoline.

Campaign Issue
Mark Leno’s sacrifice of $3,100 is nothing compared to the political advantage he’s just created in his highly competitive race with Carole Migden of San Francisco for her Senate seat. Now Leno has a wedge issue he can use against her in the upcoming June primary race – he can campaign as someone who protected the taxpayers while Migden took the money and ran for re-election. The pay raise is small but highly symbolic and in the Leno-Migden battle, every little bit helps.

PAY HIKES

GETTING RAISES
California has a projected $14 billion deficit, but that won’t stop ALL Bay Area Lawmakers from getting a pay hike this Christmas. An independent commission voted to raise legislative salaries by $3,100 a year, so most lawmakers will now be taking home $116,000. That’s the highest legislative salary in the nation….plus lawmakers also get an extra $34,000 tax free in expenses, along with a state issued car.

Senate President Don Perata of Oakland is taking the raise (and he’ll make even more money because he’s a leader in the Senate). Senator Carole Migden of San Francisco is also accepting the pay hike, along with SF Assemblyman Mark Leno. Mountain View Assemblywoman Sally Lieber is also on the list, along with San Jose Assemblyman Jim Beall.

JUST SAY NO:

More than 100 members of the California Legislature are accepting the raise, so it’s easier to show who’s not taking the pay hike:

In the Senate:

Lou Correa (D) Santa Ana

Jeff Denham (R) Merced

Christine Kehoe (D) San Diego

Alan Lowenthal (D) Long Beach

Able Maldonado (R) Santa Maria

Mark Wyland (R) Escondido

In the Assembly:

John Benoit (R) Palm Desert

Hector De La Torre (D) South Gate

Mike Eng (D) Monterey Park

Jean Fuller(R) Bakersfield

Ted Gaines (R) Roseville

Martin Garrick (R) Carlsbad

Ed Hernandez (D) Baldwin Park

Ted Lieu (D) Torrance

Alan Nakanishi (R) Lodi

Roger Niello (R) Sacramento

Nicole Parra (D) Hanford

Anthony Portantino (D) Pasadena

Mimi Walters (R) Laguna Niguel

POT DREAMS

PUT THIS IN YOUR WATERPIPE AND SMOKE IT:
Some marijuana activists are trying to repeal criminal penalties for pot possession in California. They’ve been given the green light by the Secretary of State to start gathering signatures to put the measure on the ballot. The initiative would decriminalize “possession, cultivation, transportation, distribution, and use of marijuana or hemp.”

PIPE DREAM:
The measure also calls for the immediate release from prison of anyone currently serving time for non-violent offenses involving marijuana…and to have their convictions erased.
Yeah right….what are they smoking?

There’s little chance of such a measure passing, not to mention making the ballot in the first place. I tried reaching the promoters for comment, but they have no phone number listed. That’s usually not a good sign if you’re trying to mount a serious campaign. But maybe they’re on a political high with a little help from their friends.

PIGS, DOGS AND HUMANS: A couple of other measures now floating around out there looking for signatures include an initiative requiring that pregnant pigs and veal calves be allowed to “fully extend their limbs, lie down, stand up, and turn around” in their enclosures. Another initiative requires mandatory holding periods before any animal is killed in a shelter.

A third measure would prohibit anyone from placing an identification device under the skin of a human for any purpose. I don’t know anyone who’s got a tracking device under his or her skin, but it sounds like something out of the movie, “The Bourne Identity”.

WHAT’S THE FREQUENCY, KENNETH?: As a reporter, I have met several people who told me they frequently receive radio signals from outer space through their bodies. Perhaps they’re the ones behind this initiative, but we’re still waiting for them to “transmit” to us.