U.S. State Politics

The S.S. Sinaloa Sets Sail for OC's Ongoing Potpocalypse

Lawmakers OK Child Protective Services Audit Request Partly Sparked by OC Case: Update

See the update at the end of this post about a legislative panel approving a request to audit Child Protective Services agencies across the state, without specifying which ones.ORIGINAL POST, JUNE 5, 8:58 A.M.: The attorney and client who last month accused Orange County Social Services Agency's Chi ... More >>

OC & Riverside Democrats Struggle to Reverse California's Potpocalypse

When it comes to mainstream American politics, usually it's the Libertarian Party that one would associate with a pro-marijuana (medical or otherwise) agenda, but now you can add the Democratic Party to that very brief list. To wit: in Riverside, the very town whose fight over a local ban on marij ... More >>

Gabrielle Jane Nestande, Killer of Nanny Out for a Walk, the "Great White Defendant?"

Is Gabrielle Jane Nestande, a politically connected former Newport Beach debutante, the "Great White Defendant?"That's how a conservative online magazine is characterizing the 25-year-old convicted of criminally negligent homicide and recently sentenced to six months in jail for the hit-and-run slay ... More >>

Gabrielle Jane Nestande Whisked Off to Texas Jail for 180 Days for Hit-and-Run Homicide

Gabrielle Jane Nestande, the former Texas capital aide, one-time Newport Beach debutante and daughter of a California GOP power player, will do some jail time connected with her being convicted of criminally negligent homicide for a hit-and-run slaying of a pedestrian after a night of beers, vodka a ... More >>

The Selling of the Governator, 2013

Arnold returns—but do we still need him?

Ex-Orange County State Assemblyman Chuck DeVore Writes Book Celebrating Conservative Lone Star State Principles

Former Orange County Republican state Assemblyman Chuck DeVore has today published a new book--"The Texas Model: Prosperity in the Lone Star State and Lessons for America"--that compares Texas government policies with other large states.Spoiler alert: Texas has a superior climate because its politic ... More >>

Gabrielle Jane Nestande of Powerful OC GOP Family Indicted on Serious Felonies in Texas

Gabrielle Jane Nestande has been indicted on more serious felonies related to a hit-and-run that could send the daughter of a powerful Newport Beach Republican to a Texas prison for 20 years. The 25-year-old former Austin Capitol staffer and Gov. Rick Perry campaign worker, who had faced a single co ... More >>

UK's The Guardian Publishes Worst Story on Santa Ana's Political and Demographic Transformation EVER

I make it a point to read any articles about Orange County written by the national and international press, mostly for the shits and giggles that happen when they're woefully uninformed. So you can imagine the gut-laugh fest I had this morning when reading a piece about SanTana by the usually excell ... More >>

[Updated With Info On Upcoming Hearing] Long Beach Marijuana Dispensary Ban is Illegal, Court Rules

*See end of post for information about the next hearing in this case as well as the Long Beach City Attorney's response, denying that the city's pot ban has been invalidated.ORIGINAL POST, Sept. 8, 5:23 p.m.: A Los Angeles Superior Court ruling may have far reaching consequences for Long Beach's ban ... More >>

Bordering On Revolution

[Crossing the Line] A hostile Supreme Court. A feckless Obama administration. America's war on Mexicans has gone too far

Congressman Darrell Issa Launches Probe Into the California High Speed Rail Authority

San Diego County Congressman Darrell Issa, the Republican chairman of a powerful congressional committee, yesterday told California High Speed Rail Authority officials to preserve records in anticipation of an investigation into potential corruption.Among Issa's concerns about the Authority include ... More >>

Emma's Revolution: Protesting Against the Tea Party, Scott Walker and the 1% in Song

​Under the monicker emma's revolution, activist singer/poets Sandy O and Pat Humphries spend over 200 days a year sharing their music for various causes around the world. Last November, the duo released their third studio album Revolutions Per Minute, itself a journey through a multitude of genres ... More >>

Lady Gaga Finally Has Something in Common With Newt Gingrich and it is in Orange County!

​[UPDATED: At conclusion of the article.]Congressman Dana Rohrabacher and Mike Schroeder, his decades old travel companion and buddy, adamantly disagree on which 2012 Republican candidate would make the best U.S. president. Rohrabacher despises Newt Gingrich and is backing Mitt Romney. Schroeder d ... More >>

[UPDATED with I.D.'s, More Details:] John Kristopher Altamirano, OC Homicide No. 60: Found Dead in Truck

DMVJohn Kristopher Altamirano​UPDATE, DEC. 7, 5:10 P.M.: When sheriff's deputies found a dead John Kristopher Altamirano in his white pickup parked in front of his Laguna Niguel residence Monday afternoon, the 34-year-old had cuts and bruises on his face as if he'd been in a fight.However, the inj ... More >>

Are More Mexicans Becoming Conservative?

[¡Ask a Mexican!] And do teachers discriminate against students with Hispanic first names?

[UPDATED with Final Tally:] Students and Bank Bailout Foes Protest Tuition Hike Before Cal State University Trustees

​UPDATE, NOV. 17, 9:10 A.M.: The final tally, according to California State University police that responded to Wednesday's chaos at the Chancellor's office in Long Beach: 10 people were arrested, but it is unclear if they were students or activists and labor union members bused in to protest the ... More >>

Martha M. Escutia, Retired Legislator-Turned-Newport Beach Lawyer, Targets Tax-Exempt Status of Abuser Nonprofits in Wake of Penn State Scandal

​After East Los Angeles-born Martha M. Escutia served in both houses of the California Legislature from 1992 through 2006, she helped found the private law practice The Senators (Ret.) Firm in Newport Beach, where she specializes in representing abuse victims and their families.In the wake of th ... More >>

Dave Gilliard Defends Secret, Anti-Barbara Boxer Campaign

​This morning I posted a brief story linking to Sacramento Bee coverage of a secretive, 2010 campaign effort against Sen. Barbara Boxer, and my post has been protested by a participant as inaccurate.Here's the background: According to the Bee's Dan Morain, a group called Taxpayer Network raised an ... More >>

Was Gavin Newsom Booed During Orange County Trip?

Newsom: Bridging the nasty divide between NoCal and SoCal?​There are certain scenarios that, at least on the surface, don't make sense.For example, you wouldn't expect that retired Orange County Republican Party chairman Tom Fuentes--a rabid right-winger and determined anti-gay advocate close to C ... More >>

Hide Your Kids, Hide Your Values: Michele Bachmann is Coming to Costa Mesa This Friday

You can stare into those eyes on Friday morning.​The rumors are true: Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, the shiny faced and morally misguided Tea Party presidential candidate, will be sharing her wisdom and campaign rhetoric in Costa Mesa on Friday morning. Whether she will be incorrectly citin ... More >>

[UPDATED with Ruling:] A Ban on a Circumcision Ban in California?

UPDATE, JULY 28, 4:04 P.M.: ​Snip away. A Superior Court judge has ruled that the measure to criminalize circumcision in San Francisco violates both the U.S. Constitution's guarantee of religious freedom, and a California law that makes regulating medical procedures solely a state matter, not a fu ... More >>

Rick Perry, Texas Governor and GOP Presidential Possible, Shakes the Newport Beach Money Tree

​Will he or won't he?It's the question close watchers of the Republican Party's presidential prospects want Texas Gov. Rick Perry to answer.Before he can, however, Perry has to come to Newport Beach today to ask the moneymen a question of his own: Should I?

[UPDATED with Veto:] Looming Deadline For Gov. Jerry Brown in United Farm Worker's-Backed SB 104

UPDATE, JUNE 29, 2:55 P.M.: The last line in Gov. Jerry Brown's letter addressed to state senators reads: "I am returning Senate Bill 104 without my signature."​In the veto letter, Brown cites his past experience with farm labor legislation. He reminds the readers that in 1975 the nation's fi ... More >>

It's The Mildred Patty Baena Story of a Lifetime

​The story of former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's family maid-turned-baby mama will be the subject of a Lifetime movie.At least The Mildred Patty Baena Story is a go if comedian Kathy Griffin is to be believed.She shared the clip that follows after the jump on Jimmy Kimmel Live rece ... More >>

A Budget-Sparing Message to State Sen. Tom Harman ... Now Spit

​A group of Orange County seniors, physicians, mental health professionals and community service workers want to send a message to state Sen. Tom Harman (R-Huntington Beach) this morning about looming state budget cuts they believe imperil California's healthcare safety net.But the group's demonst ... More >>

[UPDATED with Booking Photo:] Memorial Day Weekend DUI Enforcement Countywide

​UPDATE, MAY 31, 6:39 P.M.: The Irvine Police Department this evening released the booking photo at right of Austin Jeffrey Farley, the alleged drunken driver with a past DUI conviction blamed for causing the crash that killed 14-year-old Ashton Sweet.The Northwood High School freshman cheerleader ... More >>

[UPDATED with John and Ken Counterprotest:] Pissed-Off Teachers, Parents, Principals, School Staffers and Trustees Protest

​UPDATE, MAY 12, 1:48 P.M.: Our original post previewing what became a large protest by Orange County parents, teachers, administrators, education professionals and school-board members at Assemblyman Chris Norby's Fullerton office Monday. That post also mentioned a rally at 4 p.m. today by North ... More >>

Tortillas Instead of Forks?

[¡Ask a Mexican!] Plus, praise for a town in Northern Arizona

FAIR-y Tales In the Immigration Debate

Anti-immigrant think tanks are aiming their dubious statistics at the 14th Amendment

Latino Voters Influence Felt Beyond Brown and Boxer in California, Claim Advocates

​Should we credit/blame Latino voters for Jerry Brown returning to the governor's office, Barbara Boxer remaining in the U.S. Senate and Democrats not only holding the nation's upper house but picking up a seat in the California Assembly? Latino advocacy groups think so.

The Governor's Balls

Investigating Eliot Spitzer's own worst enemies

California's 5 Worst Ballot Initiatives

​Happy Election Day! Could you even sleep last night? Do you view your local polling place like a 5-year-old views a Christmas tree on Christmas morning? Can you not wait one more minute to vote the bastards out?Well, before you go get your teabag on, take a gander at bad initiatives that have gon ... More >>

OC's Scariest People

Crypt from the headlines, here are our annual 31 flavors of fiendishness

Bill Clinton: OC Needs Loretta Sanchez in Congress

Photo by R. Scott MoxleyBill Clinton visited OC today​Accompanied by a decent-sized Secret Service detail, Bill Clinton came to Orange County this afternoon to offer advice.The 42nd president of the United States told several hundred people (and at least 60 reporters) gathered under a cloudy sky a ... More >>

Gay Rights Groups Again Link Carly Fiorina to Latino Outreach Bus That Breezed Through OC

​We began Monday morning by noting the "Vota Tus Valores" ("Vote your values") bus filled with conservative Hispanics and marriage inequality proponents was in Santa Ana, following up with the news that a demonstrator against the Latino outreach effort there claimed he had been roughed up by someo ... More >>

Sunday News Notes

​Highlights include:The Latest Grocery Store Scam KCBS Channel 2 in LA is promoting its Monday investigative look into an area grocery store that pretends to honor product coupons but actually credits the shopper $0.00. No word on the identity of the alleged offender. The report is scheduled to ... More >>

Can Somebody Wake Up Van Tran?

Saying "no" is exhausting​I'd been wondering when my favorite Van Tran photo would appear in a campaign ad and this morning Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez obliged. No, it's not the one of Tran hugging Mike Carona in a photograph that recorded the Republican assemblyman happily accepting a real sher ... More >>

Much-Awaited Appellate Decision on Medical Marijuana Dispensary Bans is a Non-Decision

​Orange County cities and medical-marijuana dispensaries had been eagerly awaiting a decision from the California 4th District Court of Appeal on the constitutionality of municipal bans on cannabis clinics.That decision is now in . . . . . . and it's pretty much a non-decision.

Sunday News Notes

News highlights include:Relax, sir. It's only .000034 percent of your wealth.​Is OC's Biggest Billionaire Stingy?Two of Donald L. Bren's children are expected to take their father to court this week in Los Angeles in hopes of winning $800,000 in retroactive monthly child support payments because, ... More >>

Deal or No Deal: OC Fairgrounds Edition

​"Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in."Al Pacino's famous Godfather III line comes to mind when observing the Marx Brothersesque process to sell the state-owned Orange County Fairgrounds in Costa Mesa to someone . . . anyone.The only difference is those who seemed to be out are the ... More >>

[UPDATED] Primary Election 2010: Media Forces Unite, and the GOP Senate Parties

The blurry end.​12:56 Downstairs, in the lobby bar, there is still a decent sized crowd of very well dressed people clutching cold drinks. The general idea is that government as business is back, and it's riding on the backs of women. Though I don't hear much political banter and as far as I can t ... More >>

Growing Pains at Otherside Farms

Chadd McKeen helps medical-pot patients grow their own, while openly bashing some weed dispensaries

John and Ken-Style Mexi-Bashing Spreading to Little Saigon Airwaves?

​The airwaves of Little Saigon's radio stations are legendary outposts of slander, lies, innuendo, political water-carrying, intimidation, Red-baiting--in short, no-holds-barred banter, the kind State Assemblymember and Congressional hopeful Van Tran loves unless the criticism is against him. Most ... More >>

Dana Rohrabacher's Latest Jewel

Drill Dana Drill​Reducing oil company offshore drilling will increase the number of offshore oil drill spills.--Congressman Dana Rohrabacher (R-Huntington Beach) expressing his logic this week to The Orange County Register's Dena Bunis in an article outlining efforts by California Democrat senator ... More >>

UPDATE: Palin Endorses Fiorina, Adding to Chuck DeVore's Endorsement Blues

Therealbs2002 / Wikimedia / Creative CommonsBackstab DeVore? You betcha.Originally posted May 6, 12:41 p.m. Updated May 7, 8:22 a.m.: DeVore really is sad! See bottom of post.​Half-term Alaska governor Sarah Palin has endorsed ex-HP CEO Carly Fiorina's run to dethrone Barbara Boxer in the U.S. Sen ... More >>

Carly Fiorina and Chuck DeVore Elbow Each Other To Face Sen. Barbara Boxer

Fiorina: I'm on the DeVore diet.​A conspiracy theorist might suspect that the boys running the California Republican Assembly (CRA) state convention in Buena Park this weekend wanted to slight U.S. Senate candidates Carly Fiorina and Tom Campbell. Irvine's ultra-conservative Chuck DeVore, who also ... More >>

Loretta-Lite

Claudia Alvarez battles Latino establishment, Umberg for Assembly seat

Repatriate Act

Joe Dunn fights for Mexicans, gets an ass

Republicans Who Smear Republicans

Who's behind the campaign to get Pat Bates?