Free Republic

<p>First, the recall of Gov. Gray Davis and the election of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger carried a message from voters: Fix the budget mess without tax increases.</p> <p>Second, the structural spending level of the state remains too high by about $10 billion annually. It's that structural deficit that has brought about the budget crisis, and it must be confronted before the crisis can end.</p>

IRVINE, Calif. (AP) -- It was planned as a way to bring young athletes together for a weekend of fun, but when participants in the Muslim Football tournament started naming their teams Intifada, Soldiers of Allah and Mujahideen, Jewish leaders took offense.Intifada means ``uprising'' in Arabic and is the term applied to suicide bombings and other attacks against Israelis in the Middle East. Mujahideen means holy warrior.Rabbi Bernie King, who lives in Irvine, said the teams' names undermined those who worked to have closer relations with Muslims.``Something like this ... tends to support those in the community who have suspicions...

Dornan Picks Fight on New Turf The fiery ex-lawmaker who lost his seat in 1996 will run against fellow conservative Republican Dana Rohrabacher. It's an echo of a 1991 threat. By Jean O. Pasco Times Staff Writer December 5, 2003 Arch-conservative Robert K. Dornan, whose trenchant rhetoric earned him the nickname "Mouth of the House" during his 18 years in Congress, filed papers this week to take on Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Huntington Beach) in the March primary. Dornan, who lost his central Orange County seat to Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Garden Grove) in 1996 and failed again in a 1998 rematch,...

Dan Rather Has Learned to Resist In the past 21/2 years my path has twice crossed that of Dan Rather, the CBS anchor who has long represented the best of professional journalism for me. Both times he was in Southern California to accept well-deserved awards. Both times a handful of pickets were nearby claiming Mr. Rather's reporting was biased. The first time, June 9, 2001, Mr. Rather received a lifetime achievement award from the Los Angeles Press Club, of which I was then executive director as well as producer of the dinner, and where the honor was graciously presented by...

What have you got when a bunch of right wing extremists are standing on a corner in North Beverly Hills, in front of the Beverly Hills Hotel, wearing crazy costumes and holding signs while a nearly endless stream of RICH, OLD, WHITE GUYS IN SUV's and luxury sedans pull up the driveway? Why it must be a GOP FUNDRAISER, RIGHT?!?!!?? After all, if it was a gathering of progressive, environmentally concerned, liberal people of conscience celebrating the achievements of DAN RATHER, they'd all be driving hybrid vehicles or riding their ten speed bikes up the driveway, RIGHT? Welcome to the...

Religious Message Prohibited in Senior Photo IRONIA VALLEY – To prepare for their class picture on the bleachers, 13 Ironia Valley High School seniors made T-shirts, arrived early and staked out the front row. But when Vice Principal Ted Reid saw the shirts spelling out "Allah is the way" and "Allah (heart) U" flanked by crescent, he asked the students to rearrange themselves or turn the shirts around. After five minutes of negotiations with Reid, 11 of the students walked out of the picture. "We weren't telling people to love Allah," senior Hammed Hussein, 17, said. "We weren't telling people,...

<p>FOUNTAIN VALLEY – To prepare for their class picture on the bleachers, 13 Fountain Valley High School seniors made T-shirts, arrived early and staked out the front row.</p> <p>But when Vice Principal Ted Reid saw the shirts spelling out "Jesus is the way" and "Jesus (heart) U" flanked by crosses, he asked the students to rearrange themselves or turn the shirts around.</p>

<p>Longtime Orange County Republican Party boss Tom Fuentes is fending off a growing cry for his resignation, with even some once-staunch defenders now saying he has alienated too many key Republicans and is no longer an effective leader.</p> <p>Fuentes, chairman of the county GOP for the past 19 years, has been at the center of building the organization into one of the country's Republican powerhouses, reliable both for its ability to raise money and to guarantee broad margins of victory for GOP candidates.</p>

Freedom Communications Inc., one of the nation's last family owned media companies, has agreed to a partnership with two private equity firms that will keep control of the company in family hands. The agreement satisfies the concerns of some family members who had sought to sell their shares of the privately held company, which operates The Orange County Register, 27 other daily newspapers, 37 weeklies and eight television stations. Other major media companies had offered bids for the company, including Gannett Co. Inc., publisher of USA Today, and Denver-based Media News Group Inc., which last week teamed up to offer...

Republican Party of Orange County Vote Yes on the Recall Election Night Party, 8:30 p.m. to Midnight at the Hilton Costa Mesa 3050 Bristol Street. For information call (714) 556-8555 Please forgive me if this has already been posted.

Three weeks before the Oct. 7 gubernatorial recall election, state Senator Tom McClintock stood outside the Irvine Transportation Center and told reporters why he should replace Governor Gray Davis. Standing at a makeshift podium, his demeanor seemed, if possible, simultaneously nonchalant and stiff. He looked—there’s no other way to put it—comfortable being uncomfortable. He makes bargain-shoe salesmen look charismatic. His words, though passionate, weren’t memorable, which isn’t really a problem: if you’ve watched any five-minute McClintock interview in the past year, you’ve likely heard everything he has to say. Yes, you were probably startled by his intense, cockeyed stare; encyclopedic...

Just came back from Arnold's Anti-Car Tax Rally at the OC Fairgrounds. I'm not good at estimating crowd sizes but there had to be a couple of thousand people there. People of all ethnic backgrounds including an older man from the former Soviet Union who told us that in recent years California had come to resemble his former homeland.Hugh Hewitt, John Campbell, and Congressman Dreier(sp?) were there as well. Arnold was wonderful and gave a rousing speech. Best of all, he shook my hand! Here's a photo of Arnold:

Orange County, California—According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, California is one of 39 state governments facing budget deficits in fiscal year 2004. Of the 39, 11 have constitutions that let voters recall their governors. Of these, three have budget deficits about as bad as California's. Two more, Alaska's and Arizona's, are far worse. California is the only one on the verge of recalling its governor. Before I got here I thought I knew why: I belittled the recall in the Voice as a right-wing coup. Then I arrived at Santa Ana's John Wayne Airport and picked up a...

The Lincoln Club is the largest and most active political club in the United States. Its has shaped California and national politics for almost forty years. Many of southern California's most successful business leaders are among its members. Like many good stories, The Lincoln Club of Orange County's begins with bloodshed. In 1962, Richard Nixon returned to California to run for Governor. He was considered a heavy favorite to beat Governor Pat Brown, but he had to get by the primary challenge of Orange County native Joe Shell in order to win the nomination. The primary campaign was nasty. Many...

It was 6 p.m. when the call arrived, an hour after actor Arnold Schwarzenegger had stunned California's political establishment by announcing on "The Tonight Show" that he would run to replace Gov. Gray Davis in the Oct. 7 recall election. Schwarzenegger was on the line, calling potential supporters at the New Majority, the Orange County-based group of more than 100 wealthy, moderate Republicans who'd backed Richard Riordan for governor last year and encouraged the actor to take a stab at public office. Schwarzenegger, the star attraction at a New Majority gala last year, arranged for a speaker phone to be...

<p>SACRAMENTO (AP) - A Republican political action committee voted Friday to give $100,000 to Rescue California, one of several groups working on a recall campaign of Gov. Gray Davis.</p> <p>The donation from the Lincoln Club of Orange County matches a contribution made last week by U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Vista, who is interested in replacing Davis should the recall effort succeed.</p>

LOS ANGELES (AP) - A group of wealthy Republicans in Orange County has created the state's largest GOP political action committee in an attempt to broaden the party's appeal. The New Majority was formed in early 2000 in Orange County, the historic center of the state's Republican Party. Membership has more than doubled since its inception, from 44 to 110, and 14 members have joined Team 100, which requires a donation of $100,000 or more to the national Republican party. The group has riled some established Republicans who contend that its wealthy members are out of touch with working-class Republicans. ...