Free Republic

Shedding jobs that once reliably attracted new residents, California grew at a slower pace this year than all but two other years since 1900, according to state Department of Finance figures released Thursday. The number of new births dropped. The number of new immigrants dropped. And more residents left California for other states than came here. The end result: Statewide growth from July 2008 to July 2009 was 350,000 people, or less than 1 percent. During the rest of the decade, California averaged 525,000 new residents each year. The four-county Sacramento region posted even more striking numbers, adding just 21,000...

Over the past few days, Arnold Schwarzenegger has been in Copenhagen making the bizarre claim to anyone who will listen that his job destroying environmental regulations are somehow good for the economy. He also made the even more off the wall assertion that America's economy would be stronger if only the entire country followed California's lead in this area, and that Governor Palin's common sense skepticism to the man-made global warming religion was somehow wrong. All of these musings by the Governator were forthcoming despite the fact that foisting his regulations on California's economy have chased businesses and the jobs...

California: While Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger worries about rising seas, his state sinks below the waves. Don't mess with Texas, they say. But California and the nation could follow its lead. Last Wednesday, Gov. Schwarzenegger released a new report based on research compiled by the California Energy Commission claiming that by 2100 San Francisco Bay would be more bay than San Francisco, with Fisherman's Wharf and Treasure Island under the rising waters of climate change. His show-and-tell, which included a new Google Earth application the commission spent $150,000 to help develop, goes a long way toward explaining the once-Golden State's slide...

Leadership: Alaska's ex-governor asks a question we'd like answered: Why is California's current governor pushing the same policies in Copenhagen that helped drive his state into record deficits and unemployment? The movie series that made Arnold Schwarzenegger a household name involved cyborgs traveling through time to alternately try to destroy or save one John Connor, who would grow up to be the leader of the resistance against a race of machines that ruled the planet. Prominent in the series was his tough cookie of a mom, Sarah Connor. Another Sarah has taken the lead in another resistance against another group...

fter Arnold Schwarzenegger criticized Sarah Palin’s stance on global warming yesterday, few thought it would take long for Palin to respond. She launched a broadside on her Facebook page, and reminded California’s governor that the “grain of salt” the Governator recommended should be taken with economic advice from the leader of a state in free-fall and unable to budget its money properly. Even if the world is warming, it doesn’t mean that the warming is either anthropogenic or catastrophic — and conservation doesn’t mean killing the economy: Why is Governor Schwarzenegger pushing for the same sorts of policies in Copenhagen...

<p>"Why is Governor Schwarzenegger pushing for the same sorts of policies in Copenhagen that have helped drive his state into record deficits and unemployment?" Palin wrote on her Facebook page. "Perhaps he will recall that I live in our nation's only Arctic state and that I was among the first governors to create a sub-cabinet to deal specifically with climate change."</p>

Why is Governor Schwarzenegger pushing for the same sorts of policies in Copenhagen that have helped drive his state into record deficits and unemployment? Perhaps he will recall that I live in our nation’s only Arctic state and that I was among the first governors to create a sub-cabinet to deal specifically with climate change. While I and all Alaskans witness the impacts of changes in weather patterns firsthand, I have repeatedly said that we can’t primarily blame man’s activities for those changes. And while I did look for practical responses to those changes, what I didn’t do was hamstring...

I’m paraphrasing, albeit only slightly. Not that he has many fans left among grassroots conservatives, but in case there are still one or two, this ought to finish them off: The California governor has become an environmental standard bearer for the Republican party, which is split on the merits of curbing emissions. Sarah Palin, John McCain’s running mate in the 2008 presidential election, has attacked cap and trade and questioned any link between man-made emissions and global warming. “You have to ask: what was she trying to accomplish?” said Mr Schwarzenegger. “Is she really interested in this subject or is...

Those hoping to ride the state's high-speed train next decade will have to dig much deeper into their wallets than officials originally thought, a harsh reality that will chase away millions of passengers, according to an updated business plan released Monday. The average ticket on the bullet train from San Francisco to Los Angeles is now estimated to cost about $105, or 83 percent of comparable airfare. Last year, the state said prices would be set at 50 percent of comparable airfare and predicted a ticket from San Francisco to Los Angeles would cost $55. As a result of the...

Well after an insightful discussion on The Capitol Hour this afternoon regarding the merits of continuing to use precious resources on the relatively meaningless position of Lieutenant Governor, Governor Schwarzenegger has made his appointment for the most important useless job in the state. The Governor’s choice for California’s next Lieutenant Governor is Former State Senator from Santa Maria Abel Maldonado. Sources say that it came down to Maldonado and Dave Cogdill, and we had Cogdill pinned as favorite here. But for the record Maldonado was my initial favorite months ago when it was first determined that Garamendi would be vacating...

So it might be the cynic in me or call me crazy for not trusting the government, but I cannot believe that there was not more attention paid to the state’s latest accounting gimmick to save the state’s budget. Starting Sunday you may notice a few less dollars in each paycheck, 10 percent less to be specific. While the state says that the money will be returned in April, something does not sit right with me when the government helps itself to even more of my paycheck especially when so many people are already living paycheck to paycheck. Read the...

Swarzeneggar spokesman says this is "just a coincidence,"..I don't think so..... I think the Terminator is boiling mad...

SACRAMENTO -- Did Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's office use a coded veto message to send the f-bomb to Tom Ammiano, soon after the San Francisco assemblyman made news by telling the governor to "kiss my gay ass"? Schwarzenegger's people say no. But the X-rated evidence is hard to miss in a message that Schwarzenegger sent to explain why he was vetoing an Ammiano bill dealing with financing for the Port of San Francisco. A straight reading of the guv's letter laments "the fact that major issues are overlooked while many unnecessary bills come to me for consideration," and concludes, "I believe...

MIDI - VIDEO KILLED THE RADIO STAR (musical intro) We were watching football on my brand new big screen A commercial came on that was ever so green It was nothing like we ever had before seen Ooh-a-ooh They want plasma that's too big eliminated It will be behind closed doors that it's debated Every day it seems were getting more frustrated Ooh-a-ooh...the left is crazy...ooh-a-ooh...they're freaking crazy Arnold will kill big plasma TV...Arnold will kill big plasma TV It's a hog for energy...so it must be going With the lefties now in charge, it's how they do it...

DeVore assails Schwarzenegger, Fiorina Republican U.S. Senate candidate Chuck DeVore said Monday night Republicans would repeat the mistake they made in supporting Arnold Schwarzenegger for governor if they back former Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina for the Senate. In a speech to the Republican Party of San Diego County, DeVore, a three-term Assembly member from Irvine who cannot run for re-election because of term limits, denounced Schwarzenegger for signing a gun control bill and one establishing a day of recognition for slain gay-rights leader Harvey Milk. "We were told in 2003 that it was important in this historic one-of-a-kind recall...

I just sent an email to John G. Matsuka, President of the Initiative & Referendum Institute at the University of Southern California asking him if anyone has started a petition to overturn Arnold's signing into law AB962 controlling ammo sales in California. See SF Gate article here!

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed a bill recognizing gay marriages sanctioned in other states during the nearly five months such unions were legal in California. Schwarzenegger says the action is consistent with a state Supreme Court ruling upholding the marriages of same-sex couples who tied the knot in California before voters approved Proposition 8. Proposition 8 is a constitutional amendment passed in November that limits marriage to a man and a woman. The bill signed by the governor late Sunday also says gay and lesbian couples who were married in other states after Proposition 8's passage have...

Sacramento, CA – Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed into law legislation that will help law enforcement officials track down and apprehend armed criminals and other prohibited persons. AB 962 by Assembly Member Kevin DeLeon (D-Los Angeles) had the support of law enforcement officials from across the state and was modeled after successful city ordinances, including the cities of Sacramento and Los Angeles. AB 962 was the Brady Campaign´s top priority bill in this year´s legislature. The law requires maintenance of purchaser records by handgun ammunition vendors. Local law enforcement can use these records to find illegal guns. "The purchase records will...

So Arnold just had to get involved in the Obamacare issue. Says it's pretty much a good thing. This from the guy who has run the state into the ground economically. Under his watch they even considered establishing a "Leaving California" tax, it's gotten so bad. Yes, the idea was to tax you for moving out of the state. It is funny how all the RINOs in favor of this are almost all from states that are having tremendous economic problems, largely government created. For the whole series of Zero dollar bills, go here: "Flickr Archive of Zero Bills"

FRESNO, Calif. – Top Obama administration officials are taking California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to task for blaming the state's water crisis on federal environmental restrictions. The governor sent a letter to Washington Wednesday demanding a response to "catastrophic impacts" he said were caused by environmental rules that have slashed water deliveries.

SAN FRANCISCO --- California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court a federal court's order that the state reduce its prison population by 40,000 inmates, a spokesman said on Tuesday. The appeal will be a dramatic escalation in the long-running legal battle over the state of California's overcrowded prisons and their often criticized medical care for inmates. Schwarzenegger spokesman Aaron McLear said the appeal will be filed later this week, adding that cutting the state's inmate population of about 170,000 must be done methodically and by state officials. "We don't believe it's right," McLear said, referring to...

Most politicos don't usually socialize with terror apologists. Generally, they are cautious to a fault. Which is why a political event today in Sacramento raises serious questions of what were they thinking. The extremist group CAIR (Committee for American-Islamic Relations) recently issued a press release announcing its 6th Annual Ramadan Iftar inside the Capitol Rotunda (see the release with a full list of legislative co-hosts attached to the bottom of this post). The Iftar is co-hosted by most of the legislative Democrats including Senate President Darrell Steinberg. Speaker Karen Bass, plus the Governor. Tragically, Steinberg, Bass and the Governor are...

(snip) Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-UtahSen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass. Sen. Susan Collins, R-MaineSen. Olympia Snowe, R-MaineSen. Harry Reid, D-Nev. Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H.(snip) Former acting Gov. Jane Swift, R-Mass.Former Gov. Mitt Romney, R-Mass.Former Gov. Michael Dukakis, D-Mass. Gov. Jon Corzine, D-N.J. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, R-Calif.(snip)

In case anyone happens to forget the man he used to be, Arnold Schwarzenegger has put his massive, legendary Conan sword on display in the Governor's Office. The Governator -- and star of the 1982 film -- posted a pic of the weapon on his Twitter page yesterday, with the message "I do still have the Conan sword ... and I keep it in my office."

Throughout the course of American history people have prospered when government expansion and regulatory polices have been kept in check. On the national level during the 20th century this was evident during the administrations of Calvin Coolidge (1923-1929) and Ronald Reagan (1981-1989) — both drastically cut taxes, defended the private sector, curtailed the size and scope of government, and witnessed unprecedented economic booms. Conversely, people have suffered during administrations like Jimmy Carter’s (1977-1981) where taxes and regulations were rampant. In other words, freedom is profitable but progressivism, or “liberalism” as it is known today, is not. And this appears to...

... [R]elative to other places, [California] has historically been a pretty good bargain, with a low-cost, enviable higher education system, subsidized energy and an abundance of services for those down on their luck. But three decades of staggering population growth — combined with three high-impact recessions, budgeting by ballot box, federal mandates, an unusual tax structure and the rising cost of social services — have finally combined for disastrous results, and the ramifications are now reaching across every aspect of life in this state. The California dream is, for now, on hold, as demonstrated by the state budget that lawmakers...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California officials hope to reach a deal Sunday on how to erase a $26.3 billion budget deficit that has forced the state to issue IOUs for the first time in nearly 20 years. Legislative leaders said they made "huge progress" Friday night in talks in the governor's office and plan to meet again Sunday night in hopes of finalizing an agreement. A deal would clear the way for votes later in the week in the state Legislature.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced that his state will not participate in the year 2010, and instead “will skip directly to 2011.” California faces a projected $26.3 billion budget deficit, and the state’s controller began handing out IOUs last week....

The financial sector has just delivered a message to California, roughly translated as, “Quit working on cow tails and apologies to long-dead people.” A group of the largest banks in the US has announced that it will stop accepting California IOUs by Friday. The state will run out of cash by the end of the month if it cannot issue IOUs, as long as its $24 billion budget gap remains unresolved: A group of the biggest U.S. banks said they would stop accepting California’s IOUs on Friday, adding pressure on the state to close its $26.3 billion annual budget gap....

In San Luis Obispo County, a 20-year-old drug abuser who was the sole caretaker for his seriously disabled father provided such poor care that, according to the grand jury in that county, the father frequently had bedsores, he was not properly cleaned, adult protective services had to be called in and, ultimately, he died before he was 60 years old. Incredibly, the son was being paid by the state, through the In-Home Supportive Services Program, for this substandard care. Though this kind of abuse of taxpayer dollars is not rampant, we know it exists. So how could the Legislature in...

Associated Press article. Go to link to read.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has been taking a beating from the public for recent comments intended to force Californians to stop blaming illegal immigrants for the state's budget crisis. Schwarzenegger is not backing down. In fact, he's ratcheting up the rhetoric. In the process, he's comforting the afflicted and afflicting the comfortable. There's more of that on the way. During a recent meeting with the San Diego Union-Tribune editorial board, Schwarzenegger compared the tendency of Californians to treat Latino immigrants as scapegoats for the state's economic crisis to how Jews were blamed by the Nazis for Germany's economic difficulties following World...

As many as 25 state parks within an hour of San Francisco, including redwood forests, beaches, coastal woodlands and historical sites, could be closed in a desperate attempt to reduce the state's giant budget deficit. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's latest proposal to tackle the state's $24.3 billion shortfall includes the elimination of all general fund contributions to California's 279 parks within two years.

The subject of Arnold Schwarzenegger bores me. I wrote ceaseless columns on this site warning Republicans and conservatives that he would govern as a liberal and operate as a Trojan Horse for the Dems. During an appearance on the now-defunct CNN show Inside Politics, I said that he could become "the Jim Jeffords of the West Coast." For my troubles, I was dismissed as an out-of-touch, maniacal, abortion-obsessed pinhead. Now to hear the same country-club Republican jackasses who sabotaged Tom McClintock and parachuted Arnie into office whine about his liberal legacy is just boring. You made this slipshod bed; lie...

Listen to John and Ken savor victory over those who have been destroying California with runaway spending. Props 1A through 1E were trounced big time. We have had enough. The state needs to do a Chapter 9 and gets its house in order. LISTEN ONLINE TO JOHN AND KEN ON KFI They played a clip of a previous Arnold statement in which he was celebrating with peppermint Schnaps. They celebrated and drank it on the air last night. Ken drank some more this morning.

ON MAY 19th Californians will go to the polls to vote on six ballot measures that are as important as they are confusing. If these measures fail, America’s biggest state will enter a full-blown financial crisis that will require excruciating cuts in public services. If the measures succeed, the crisis will be only a little less acute. Recent polls suggest that voters are planning to vote most of them down.

Saying it is time for new leadership, Assemblyman Mike Villines announced his resignation Thursday as head of the house's GOP caucus, effective June 1. Villines' replacement, expected to be Sam Blakeslee of San Luis Obispo Asked about Blakeslee, Villines called him "one of my best friends" and described him as "thoughtful, pragmatic but also very focused on conservative economic issues."

How I Can Save the Republican PartyBy Meghan McCain. . . . . Lately I’ve been working on helping the Republican party (which I totally love) back on track with my columns, and my blogging and twitter. And also going on CNN and morning shows to denounce everyone in the party who sucks. Which is basically everyone except my dad. The Republican party is stuck. It has a dumb name and no one likes us. Which sucks because we could totally rock if they gave us the chance. But we need to make some major changes around here. . ....

Former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich has a new favorite governor. "You know when I was governor of Illinois my second-favorite governor in American was Arnold Schwarzenegger," Blagojevich said at a promotional event Friday in Pasadena. "Now that I'm not governor, he's my favorite governor."

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s regrettable reign as governor of California has made the road rockier for Meg Whitman, the Republican who hopes to succeed him. In other circumstances, the Republican party would be thanking its lucky stars for sending them a candidate like Whitman, the former CEO of eBay. Twice declared the most powerful woman in business by Fortune magazine, she’s nearly universally praised as smart, successful, and relentlessly hardworking. She’s on the cover of this month’s Fortune, smiling serenely while holding a horse on a seaside ranch at Half Moon Bay — an image that can only be described as Reaganesque....

This just in from friends on the scene... California Republican Party (CRP) opposes Prop 1A-1F Mike Villines & Tom Campbell had spoken in favor of 1A and Steve Poizner against.

Fifteen years after Congress promised that Washington would help states pick up the tab for imprisoning illegal immigrants convicted of crimes, California is receiving but a fraction -- less than 12 cents on the dollar -- of its nearly $1-billion annual cost. The unfulfilled promise is perhaps the most glaring example of the federal government shortchanging California. Officials from states greatly affected by illegal immigration long have argued that their taxpayers should not have to bear the burden for Washington's failure to control the border.

Arguing that the short-term pain of increased taxes is worth the long-term gain of permanent budget reform, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger picked up some major Los Angeles endorsements for a raft of ballot propositions designed to rescue state finances. "One of the most important things on issues is to get local political leaders, law enforcement leaders and business leaders to support us," Schwarzenegger said at a news conference staged at the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Sheriff Lee Baca and Chamber President Gary Toebben announced their support for the six measures on the May 19 special election...

SAN JOSE—In yet another sign of his pivoting toward the general election, Senator John McCain said at a roundtable with business leaders here today that comprehensive immigration reform should be a top priority for the next president. . . . . . He found a friendly audience, however, here today at a business roundtable held at a Silicon Valley technology firm that included Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger of California, Meg Whitman, the former chief executive officer of eBay who was a leading supporter of Mitt Romney’s but has since begun raising money for Mr. McCain, and a host of executives from...

Captain Ed Morrissey points out that, according to her Twitter feed, Meghan McCain has found the comedic Holy Grail: (Tweet #1 and #2) To the people at current that created this, I am flattered beyond words. I can officially die a happy woman. Officially the funniest thing I have ever seen in my entire life (and I have seen my fair share). Thanks for correctly animating my bootylicious body :-) LOVE IT!!!

Is Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger - the former bodybuilder and action hero - getting ready for the next big starring role in his larger-than-life political career? For Californians who read political tea leaves, some signs are starting to emerge: A few months ago, the Republican was on the campaign trail for presidential candidate John McCain, lambasting Barack Obama as a guy with "skinny legs," "scrawny little arms" and socialist ideas. On Thursday, there he was standing next to President Obama - hugging him and praising him as the nation's economic savior and reformer. The governor regularly dismisses talk of another political...

Sacramento, CA (AP) -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger intends to join President Barack Obama when he visits California this week. Schwarzenegger spokesman Aaron McLear says the Republican governor will appear with the president during his two-day visit to Southern California.

Schwarzenegger says along with his job as governor, he's also tasked with feeding his dogs. He says if he put out a week's worth of food the dogs would eat it it all at once, leaving nothing for the ensuing days. Schwarzenegger says some legislators behave in much the same way when it comes to money, but he's not comparing those lawmakers to dogs, because he doesn't want to insult his own Labradors.

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, right, congratulates Kai Greene on his victory in the 2009 Arnold Classic body building competition during the Arnold Sports Festival Saturday, March 7, 2009, in Columbus, Ohio. California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger congratulates Jen Henderschott after she won the Fitness International competition during the Arnold Sports Festival Friday, March 6, 2009, in Columbus, Ohio