Free Republic

Assuming he can hold Democrats in the Legislature in line, Brown needs four Republican votes--two from each chamber of the Legislature--to place a measure before voters in June that would extend income, sales and vehicles tax increases for five more years. So who are the three Republicans who haven't signed either pledge? Senators Anthony Cannella and Sam Blakeslee and Assemblyman Bill Berryhill. Last Friday, Brown acknowledged ... that Cannella and Blakeslee are key Republicans for getting the tax measure on the ballot. “But there are other ones,” he said.

Conservative(s)... are keeping the heat on Republicans who may be considering taxes. They're relying on a well-worn axiom: that the wrath of GOP voters will fall on any Republican who breaks from the party ranks. But the experience of the six California Republicans who voted to hike taxes in 2009 suggests that the accepted wisdom is more like an urban legend.