Here’s one vote against the town hall format from Tuesday’s debate. It’s not the questions from the audience or the public at large that trouble me; I think they were good questions and reflected people’s serious concerns. But there was no chance to follow up, no give-and-take as we saw in the first debate. And there were times we needed it. I think John McCain made big news early in the debate when he said, “As … Read More »

Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:”Table Normal”; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:””; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:”Times New Roman”; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} The state Legislature adopted a budget less than a month ago, and it’s already may have turned upside down. If it hasn’t, there’s little doubt that it will soon. The budget was intended to push the mess into next year and onto the next Legislature. In that sense, it only … Read More »

Here’s the statement from Rep. Mike Thompson explaining why he voted for the bailout package today after rejecting it on Monday. Both he and Rep. Lynn Woolsey were among those who voted for the bill today. The bill passed on a House vote of 263 to 171. President Bush quickly signed it into law about an hour ago. Here’s what Thompson had to say: “In the last few days it’s … Read More »

9: 15 a.m. The tension this morning is high. It seems like the world is waiting to see what the U.S. House of Representatives decides to do today.Russia shut down one of its leading stock exchanges three times today to stem a free-fall in shares, a decline triggered by growing concerns about the global economy. But the news since then has been more encouraging. … Read More »

Closing thoughts: This was an energetic debate – more interesting than the first Obama-McCain debate. Both Sarah Palin and Joe Biden spoke in terms that connect with everyday Americans. Both used stories to connect with viewers. Palin did what she needed to do. She held her own and didn’t embarrass herself too much, although I believe she did mess up on the name of the NATO commander in Afghanistan. … Read More »

Opening: Both are gracious in welcoming each other. Gov. Sarah Palin starts off looking nervous. But she is doing a better job of looking into the camera and speaking directly to viewers. Ronald Reagan was a master at that. So was Bill Clinton. Neither John McCain or Barack Obama did that very much during their debate. Biden hasn’t looked at the camera yet. 6:15 p.m. Did Joe Biden … Read More »

Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:”Table Normal”; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:””; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:”Times New Roman”; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} Back in August, I wrote about legislation that would commit California to apportion its 55 electoral votes based on the national popular vote in presidential elections. Like 47 other states, California allocates its electoral votes on a winner-take-all basis. Similar proposals have been offered in about half the states. All of … Read More »

Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:”Table Normal”; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:””; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:”Times New Roman”; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} Every legislative session has its outrages, and many of them don’t surface until bills already are passed and signed into law. This year, we’ve got a late-breaking outrage involving a veto. Here’s the story, courtesy of Timm Herdt of the Ventura County Star: Fillmore, a small city in Ventura County, cut a … Read More »