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August 21, 2007 7:00 AM
Non-Random Notes: What's Next For California, Brown's Greenhouse Gas Deal, Arnold And DiFi On Water, Iraqi Government Collapse, Cali Budget Deal Close, Rudy Backer Survives Scandal, Sorensen Says Obama Like JFK, Woz's Speedy Prius, And More
The deal was as outlined below, except for the conservatives getting more money for suburban schools. It’s the same deal that was available a month ago. The conservative Senate holdouts ended up with nothing extra. I’m told that the core group, several right-wing senators, celebrated last night at a Capitol eatery called Chops their momentary defeat of the budget proposal. Cigars and all. I don’t frequently miss hanging around the state Capitol scene late at night, but it would have been amusing for me to have been around for that. I’ll have a lot more on this.
“San Bernardino now sets the pace for how local government can adopt powerful measures to combat oil dependency and climate disruption. This landmark agreement establishes one of the first greenhouse gas reduction plans in California. It is a model that I encourage other cities and counties to adopt,” Brown said in a press conference in downtown LA. Under today’s agreement, the county will embark upon a 30-month public process aimed at cutting greenhouse gas emissions attributable to land use decisions and county government operations. The plan mandates the following: • An inventory of all known, or reasonably discoverable, sources of greenhouse gases in the county. San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors Vice Chairman Gary Ovitt noted: “Only a handful of California counties and cities have formally addressed climate change issues, and San Bernardino County will lead the way in the implementation of strategies and steps to enhance our future and serve as a model for others.” Under California law, Brown observed, the state is committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020 and then reducing 80% below 1990 levels by 2050. Currently, he said, California generates approximately 500 million metric tons of CO2 equivalent, significantly above 1990 levels. To achieve the 2020 target, California must reduce current emissions by at least 25%. “Local government action to combat global warming is absolutely essential to meet the goals which Governor Schwarzenegger and the California Legislature set forth in AB 32,” Brown asserted. To date, the Attorney General has submitted formal comments, under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), to San Bernardino, San Diego, Sacramento, Orange County, Merced, Kern, Fresno, San Joaquin, Contra Costa, and Yuba counties, along with the cities of Richmond and San Jose. On their own, the attorney general noted, a number of communities in California are already initiating measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. They are Los Angeles, San Francisco, Sonoma, Santa Monica, Berkeley, Marin, Palo Alto, Chula Vista, Modesto and Healdsburg. Feasible mitigations, according to the attorney general’s office, include the following: • High-density developments that reduce vehicle trips and utilize public transit.
But the Bush Administration is struggling to keep him in power. Above you see Maliki trying to explain his precipitous decision to execute Saddam Hussein just before the New Year, in an event — shown on NWN — which turned into an impromptu demonstration for the forces of pro-Iranian leader Moqtada al-Sadr, whose militia was then killing American soldiers.
Their previous big hangup — an attempt to stop former Governor-turned-Attorney General Jerry Brown from using lawsuits and the threat of lawsuits to make sure local governments address greenhouse gas emissions in their planning processes — had turned into something else. Namely, a brief moratorium on lawsuits to halt projects from the big transportation bond measure passed just last November. Passed, incidentally, with the strong support of Brown himself, who campaigned with Schwarzenegger for the measure. Brown has filed or threatened no lawsuits to block the transportation bonds. Last night, it appeared that some right-wing Republicans wanted the deal to include lawsuits against the flood control bonds also passed last November as part of Schwarzenegger’s Big Bang Bonds infrastructure package. Also an area in which Brown has filed or threatened no lawsuits. Brown crushed former state Senate Republican Caucus chairman Chuck Poochigian by nearly 20 points last November, the biggest landslide of any contested statewide election in California. Meanwhile, as all this intrigue played out yesterday, the hyperpartisan right-wing blogs hyped in a few daily newspapers as spearheading a “movement” against the budget deal — the Flash Report and state Senator Tom McClintock’s California Republic — garnered only two comments from readers between them.
The new Field Poll shows a very marginal level of support for the concept, notwithstanding its touting by a few conservative pundits and bloggers. It starts out with only 47% support. History shows that initiatives need to begin in the high 50s to have a realistic chance of victory.
Writes Sorensen: “Obama is not the first young senator running for president to discomfort the Washington foreign-policy establishment by speaking frankly on a subject displeasing to an American ally. Fifty years ago this summer, a 40-year-old first-term senator, John F. Kennedy, called on the Senate floor for the U.S. government to pressure its French ally into halting its war against Algerian independence.” “The response from all quarters — both French and American, both Republican and Democratic — was swift and overwhelmingly negative. Kennedy’s critics used words such as ‘juvenile’ (former Truman Secretary of State Dean Acheson), ‘brashly political and damaging’ (Vice President Richard Nixon), an ‘oversimplification’ (President Eisenhower), and ‘immature’ (a senior congressional ally of Senate Majority Leader Lyndon B. Johnson). A New York Times columnist called Kennedy a ‘well-intentioned but amateur statesman.’”
Your posts are welcome in the Forum. Comments (116)Jonas Blane :Ann :How many new budget demands do the righty wingnuts come up with to disguise their stupidty? Wilbur :Ackerman had another epiphany in which new demands he should make, if only for his ego's and leadership's security's sake, were revealed to him. If he keeps having these Revelations we'll have to start calling him Saint Dick. Capitol Boy :Hillary Clinton is programmed by too many focus groups. Capitol Boy :Now the right-wingers want to spend MORE money to solve the California budget. For their districts. Why am I not surprised? Bill Bradley :I'm not sure of the current status of another late-breaking demand, that traffic congestion funding for LA go to more rural areas. Bill Bradley :The irony is -- absent a change in term limits -- which the far right opposes, Ackerman's leadership is on its last legs in any event. >Wilbur : Ann :Jonathan Hemlock :The California situation is simply absurd. Small wonder the Republicans can't win an election without a moderate movie star. Jonathan Hemlock :The California situation is simply absurd. Small wonder the Republicans can't win an election without a moderate movie star. Jonathan Hemlock :And what on earth is Mrs. Clinton going on about in that video? Brasky :School districts? Holy cow. Look, stop the negotiations. Have the Republicans PUT ON PAPER everything they want. How long has this football field gotten - 300 yards? Are we still in the stadium? Hap Hazard :I don't see how Walters is a shill for the right wing simply by reporting on the electoral vote allocation. This is a republican-sponsored deal, but I remember when the democrats seriously contemplated changing the allocation of electoral votes from what the law requires after the election of Bush. Maybe it is a good idea to divide up the spoils in a manner that more accurately represents the voter preferences in the state. To be fair, this should probably be a nationwide electoral vote reform. Jonas Blane :What new war? carole w :"Green House Gas" settlement in San Bernardino county... I would like to see a U Tube or press release from Ag Brown or the board of SB supervisors, if and when it is made public. Also, can Hap or someone explain how this change in electoral votes would have changed the outcome of the Gore election? Or who it would favor in the next election? Ann :Dan Walters is a shill because he's been around for 50 years and knows what the Field Poll means. Bill Bradley :Hap, I don't have to tell YOU that an initiative that starts out under 50% is generally DOA. This one would do what 48 other states don't. You know this stuff. >Hap Hazard : Bill Bradley :As I wrote on the front page, Carole, I'm traveling today. But when I get around to it, I'll write about the settlement. Who would the electoral college change favor? The Republicans, as I think I mentioned. >carole w : Bill Bradley :I don't know. She left that pretty unclear. >Jonas Blane : Len :Why do I think there is a tiny group of extreme right politicians reading the idiot Flash Report and chortling as if it means something? carole w :Thank You Brasky :Len, sounds like you suffer from a case of reality. If you are a member of the California Republican Party, turn in your membership card. Bill Bradley :Brasky :Wozniak...caught speeding...in a Prius...on a 350 mile road trip...to a Bob’s Big Boy. I love California. Bill Bradley :You gotta have met the guy to really how appreciate how California it really is. Brasky :I used to follow Woz. He's a pretty amazing "Home Brewed" Californian. Bill Bradley :Ah, don't get me started. Juan Cortina :re: Vitter He's from Louisiana. People there never flinch when it comes to their politicians. He could have a personal confederate army of prostitutes with the slogan of “we make the South rise again and again” and never get voted out of office. Brasky :Should Northern Californians be concerned that the "Delta Summit" is being held in LA? Bill Bradley :Well, there were those governors, the Long boys. Great movie about Governor Earl Long and his stripper mistress, starring Paul Newman and Lorita Davidovitch. What's the name of that movie? Bill Bradley :Maybe people will have a less parochial view about all that water flowing into the Pacific in the greenhouse era. >Brasky : Anonymous :re: "Last night, it appeared that some right-wing Republicans wanted the deal to include..." Like sands through the hourglass, so are the days of our lives. Juan Cortina :re: "Last night, it appeared that some right-wing Republicans wanted the deal to include..." Like sands through the hourglass, so are the days of our lives. Vladimir Bierko :Are the Senate Republicans holding up the budget because Janeane Garofalo just joined the cast of "24"? That's the only way their stance makes sense to me. Bill Bradley :You're kidding, right, Gospodin Bierko? Vladimir Bierko :No joke. It was in today's Hollywood Reporter, "Garofalo will play a government agent who is part of the team investigating the crisis befalling Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) and company in the upcoming season." Maybe Janeane and Chloe could have a personality disorder dance-off. Bill Buchanan would judge in active code. "Chloe, we're in active code. We don't have time for your Ann :Is this a week of comments on Flush Report? lol Ann :The Flush Report political movement is a bowel movement. Barbara :Carl Levin may get his wish ...NO WAY will Bush Admin continue supporting Maliki if a set of oil laws do not come into place before that Sept meeting in Dubai There are serious reports out there that a political deal has been struck between Maliki and Sheikh Sattar al Rishawi, chief of the Sunni Al Anbar Salvation Council, he has stature and is pro US anti Al Qaeda moderate Sunni group....but unless they find away to pacify the Iraqi Accordance Front ...this new deal may not make that much of a difference... Both Maliki and his Oil Minister were in Syria yesterday making oil deals ...something is going on....maybe Syria for the right price could be persuaded to be helpful?.. Meanwhile more reports today than just VOA (Voice of America) that Iran and Kurds are rummbling in the mountains on the Iraqi border side....The Brits are pulling back, we are tied up in the South and a group of Georgia soldiers are tasked up North...who in no way could deal with the Iranians ...if this turns into more than just shelling and the Iranians hit the ground... Bill Bradley :Be nice, Ann. Of course, the Flash Report is actually very nasty, in the infamous hyperpartisan blog style. Bill Bradley :Gospodin Bierko, I know why Janeane Garofalo was cast on West Wing. 24, however, seems like a much bigger stretch. Maybe she works for the first woman president ... Brasky :"Maybe people will have a less parochial view about all that water flowing into the Pacific in the greenhouse era." Maybe we can have a peaceful resolution to the water crisis...I mean we haven't had one in several hundred years, so maybe we're due. Bill Bradley :With the challenges ahead, it's time to get serious. The Flash Report, much reviled as it is, is not the only narrow-minded element in California. Not by a long shot. Hap Hazard :Bill - I think that it is a good idea to divide up electoral votes by something other than a statewide winner take all, but only would support such a move if it would apply nationwide. This particular initiative is a cynical ploy by the republicans in this state to tilt the odds in their favor. Instead, they should be supporting or generating a candidate that can be the winner, and take all the electoral votes. Of course to do so, they would have to act decidedly differently than the examples they give us in the state legislature. Bill Bradley :Hap, adopted on a national basis, that would be quite fair. Barbara :Before I take off, as I can see this is not a day to be here... Bill Bradley :Well, Barbara, we have Hillary's open-ended statement about a future war, and we have the collapse of the Maliki government. Sorry it's so narrow for you today ... :) Bill Bradley :... We also have me rushing to a meeting with Gary Hart. Barbara :It's has nothing to do with you...you know what exactly I am referencing ...sorry to disappoint you Mr. Bradley just not into rudeness or crudeness...Toodles Bill Bradley :I have no idea what you're talking about, but it's obviously a high-activity day here with plenty to discuss. carole w :Bravo for the Board of Supervisors in San Bernadino county! Dana :No. We also have a huge stake in resolving the Delta situation. A workable deal will involve compromises and a recognition some levees cannot be saved. There is a reason why dealing with this has dragged out for 30+ years with minimal progress. >Brasky : wilbur :The San Berdoo settlement is quiet temperate. THIS is the boogeyman Ackerman and Fleishman portray as the end of civilization as we know it? Brasky :Dana - I'm not disagreeing. My semi-facetious comment was meant to highlight that water is the closest thing California has to Middle East politics. I guarantee that some people will make a stink about the first meeting being in LA. Maybe I’m wrong and we’ll see peace in our time... richard locicero :When Ackerman had his "revelation" on the budget did it come to him in the form of golden tablets? Maybe he and Mitt Romney should get together. On the Electoral Vote initiative. I don't think the GOP thinks it pass but they want the Dems to have to spend money on it that would otherwise go to electing a few more Reps to Congress. ModerateDem :Good old Woz...anyone remember the US Festivals? I went to the second one and saw my personal heroes: The Clash. Dana :Indeed, you describe just the sort of suspicion/paranoia that I was alluding to in my post as part of why progress has been so slow. >Brasky : Maybe I’m wrong and we’ll see peace in our time... James :Two thoughts - Amazing the budget is close to passage once the Denham recall effort starts to gather steam - Hillary's new war: isn't that what Obama is proposing? Shut down Iraq, send a sortie to Pakistan to get Osama? Dana :Word is the state Senate is finally in the midst of voting on a compromise budget, w/Ackerman and Maldonado providing the Rep votes to pass it. So perhaps the end of the impasse is in sight at last... Brasky :The Assembly will have to approve any budget deal too... The Reeps have cried wolf once too often. I'll believe it's a deal when Arnold signs it. Sacramento Solon :The budget passed the Senate...and it's the budget that was sent to them from the Assembly so it 'taint going back. That's all from this end of town, back to you Brasky... four waters :am i the only one who thinks Ackerman is simply the face in front of McClintock? who's really pulling the strings there? i don't think its Ackerman -- hence his hum, "confusion" yesterday. four waters :and given that is the vote that finally allowed the budget to pass... this whole thing is simply surreal. Elroy El :If Ackerman believes he had a good budget couldn't he be the one more vote needed to approve it? Brasky :"The budget passed the Senate...and it's the budget that was sent to them from the Assembly so it 'taint going back." Well, it was all worth it then... Dana :Elrpy, this was all about the Caucus and Ackerman holding his leadership position against their displeasure/unreasonable expectations. Dana :And how many minutes pass before McClintock issues a press release denouncing the deal? four waters :and i have to say, having just read the FR, i can't tell what they think they gained... there are several words like, "important" attached to nothing substantive at all. the reep caucus vote to pass the budget was 8 to 7, so half of them wanted to hang on longer. for what i wonder? Sacramento Solon :Here's the link to the Sac Bee artilce on the budget: [www.sacbee.com/749/story/337058....] It's now time for old, feeble, folks to take a short nap and do some reading. Hope all you folks play nice this afternoon. And, as Mr. Bradley would say, keep it clean! Brasky :"...half of them wanted to hang on longer. for what i wonder? " There was talk of a pony... four waters :well.... i want a damned pony (sorry for my language SS) four waters :besides they don't have the money in their coffers to feed one anyway. Bill Bradley :I'm on the road at a private luncheon, incidentally. The state budget, prdictably, is passed after a large waste of time. The deal has been available right along. NickM :Bill, the movie is Blaze. Oh, and it's 47 other states, not 48 other (NE and ME both allocate by Congressional district). four waters :Perata's PC was very good... it doesn't seem to be up anywhere yet, but i will post the link once it is. Brasky :I'm hearing good things about Obama's trip to the VFW. Four waters: I'd like to see the press conference. Was the pony there? four waters :sadly... no pony; only a very diplomatically heated pro Tem... four waters :no link yet. Auros :Is comparing Obama to Kennedy, and bringing up foreign policy, really the greatest idea? I mean, sure, Kennedy did some great things for our alliances with Europe, our support for isolated Berlin, the developing world, etc. And clearly he was right on Algeria, when everyone else was wrong (just like Obama was right on Iraq back in '02). But Kennedy also staged the Bay of Pigs invasion... And Sorenson's comments on Vietnam notwithstanding, he played a role in getting us into the war that spawned the term "quagmire". I think he was a great president, and a great human being, but his foreign policy was a rather mixed bag... Re: Vitter... I guess William "frozen Benjamins" Jefferson now stands in good company. (OK, maybe "good" is the wrong adjective.) What is up with Louisianans supporting politicians who have been revealed to be hypocritical and corrupt? Hap, do you support the "National Popular Vote" concept? (See NationalPopularVote dot com.) I'm proud to note that my own native state, Maryland, is the first to sign NPV into law. I would not support a by-congressional-district law/amendment, unless it was paired with a real de-gerrymandering Constitutional amendment. (One that included actual mathematical measures of gerrymandering; none of these mushy "non-partisan commissions", which would take at most one ten-year cycle for the parties to game.) Brasky :Audio of Perata press conference is up: http://tinyurl.com/3adlng larry :Auros, Louisianans are realists, and have chosen to look upon politicians primarily as sources of entertainment. While in recent times Texas has supplanted Louisiana as a corruption paradise, Texans haven't yet learned the Louisiana knack of valuing politicians for their entertainment value. A great book illustrating this is The Earl of Louisiana, an acount of the life and times of Earl Long, by AJ Liebling. Highly recommended. richard locicero :Loisiana politcs was fun to watch and Louisiana polticians were quite entertaining. But then came Katrina and I bet thet don't see it quite aq much fun anymore. Brasky :Illinois and Rhode Island are home to some pretty famous corrupt politicos too who were continually re-elected. Jonathan Hemlock :John F. Kennedy is a huge negative electorally. For the huge ultra-left intellectual voting bloc. Jonathan Hemlock :John F. Kennedy is a huge negative electorally. For the huge ultra-left intellectual voting bloc. Brasky :four waters - thank you. The Perata comments were very interesting. He called the Reep Senators celebrating their stalling of the budget at Chops the low point of his political career. Other good stuff too. Ann :You're back! What a waste of time those righty wingnuts are. Bill Bradley :Yep, I'm back. Bill Bradley :Sorry, a sex scandal is nothing like taking gigantic pay-offs. Keep some perspective, even though one is a Republican and one is a Democrat. One is private, one is public. And so on ... >Re: Vitter... I guess William "frozen Benjamins" Jefferson now stands in good company. (OK, maybe "good" is the wrong adjective.) What is up with Louisianans supporting politicians who have been revealed to be hypocritical and corrupt? Bill Bradley :Yes, it is a great idea for a Democratic presidential candidate to be compared favorably to John F. Kennedy by his closest living political associate. For obvious reasons. And on foreign policy, people admire his toughness in the Cold War, which was very real, his victory in the Cuban Missile Crisis, and his public apology for the fiasco of the Bay of Pigs. He abjectly apologized, and his popularity went up! >Auros : Bill Bradley :Like Ronald Reagan said: "There must be a pony in there somewhere." >four waters : Bill Bradley :Thanks, that's it! Incidentally, Maine and Nebraska have less than 10 electoral votes between them. No one cares that they do that. >NickM : Bill Bradley :What have you heard? >Brasky : Bill Bradley :I don't what they imagined they were going to accomplish. >Brasky : Bill Bradley :Yes. I'll be getting back to that story. >four waters : Bill Bradley :As he ended up being. And he may be out in fairly short order as Leader. Quite predictably, one way or the other. >Elroy El : Bill Bradley :Who's the alternative? You can't replace somebody with nobody. Allawi might be good, as I've said he holds dual British citizenship. They're not going to have a Brit as premier of Iraq. And Ahmed Chalabi is out of the question. >Barbara : carole w : The audio conference provided by Brasky is the first time I have actually sat down and listened to Perata speak. Bill, Capitol Boy :What an embarrassing little group of little people. The Republican Party in this state's a joke. Bill Bradley :Thanks, Carole. The luncheon actually was quite intellectually challenging. carole w :By the way I want everyone in Sacramento to know this...I just called the husband/firefighter on the cell, in the background I can hear fire loudly crackling and whooshing...it scared me. Remember this when you are out partying and smoking your cigars. There are people in this world that actually earn their paychecks and pensions. Jonas Blane :You got some dumb Republicans out there, all's I can say. Brasky :Bill -- I just heard third hand and from press reports that VFW members appreciated that Obama didn't pander to them. Bill Bradley :I'll check it out now that I have time. So he didn't say that we should get out while we're winning so we can get ready to fight the next war somewhere? Paul Burton :Re: San Berdino: May Jerry Brown spend the rest of his life there! ... Maybe because I saw Dweezil Zappa last night in Berkeley on his Zappa Plays Zappa tour, featuring singer Ray White on that classic ditty! Dweezil did his father's legacy proud with incredible musicianship and a fantastic band. Highly recommended for anyone not named Tipper. Bill Bradley :Drinking or smoking, Paul? Wilbur :FZ was a San Berdoo kid, you know, Paul. there's a harmonic convergence in there somewhere. Drinkin' here, boss. Auros :It's worth noting that Nebraska and Maine are both so homogenous that they have never actually split their electoral votes -- they have always voted exactly as if they had the winner-take-all system. Also, this is a pretty good take on the by-congressional-district idea. By way of Kaus. Auros :If we're taking a "what's your poison" poll -- I'm just losing the buzz from my lojito. (Like a mojito, except instead of mint syrup and lime, it has lavendar syrup and lemon, both harvested from the back yard. And Flor de Caña Gold.) Wilbur :Just got introduced to the mojito at a private party we were playing a couple of weeks ago. Sneaky little bastids. Had to rename the last tune "Revenge of the Mojito" because half the band got lost in time and space.... Sacramento Solon :Bill Bradley :Very interesting. >Auros : Bill Bradley :Incidentally, it is not the purpose of NWN to promote the consumption of alcohol or other mind-altering substances. :) Capitol Boy :That's too bad. Jonathan Hemlock :Viewing some comments elsewhere, it would appear that mind-altering substances are widely in use amongst the far right fringe. Bill Bradley :Incidentally, NWN passed 38,000 comments sometime in the last week. Comments have been archived for this page. |
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Hillary - prepare to fight the new war - what new war?!
Aug 21, 2007 07:23 AM