Free Republic

While state legislators pay lip service to local decision-making, they also claim a divine right to intervene in local conflicts by siding with one faction or the other, even when it means overturning ordinary governmental and legal processes. Sen. Juan Vargas, who made it back into the Legislature last year by the skin of his teeth, embraces that dubious, time-dishonored practice with measures that would intervene in two local development flaps. ... Meanwhile, another Vargas bill, SB 469, inserts the state into a long-running controversy in San Diego over development of "superstores" by Wal-Mart and other big retailers, taking the...

SAN FRANCISCO, Sept 29 (Reuters) - California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed a bill on Friday that would have required retailers such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT.N: Quote, Profile, Research) to prepare reports for local officials on the effect of proposed superstores on existing retailers in the same market. A number of local California officials have sought to block the expansion of the world's largest retailer in the state and some lawmakers have sought to help with state legislation aimed at the company. California's celebrity Republican governor said he vetoed the bill because it "effectively sends a message to retailers and...