Free Republic

Proposition 29, a nearly $1 billion tax hike slated for the June ballot, has already stumbled into an ethical gray area. Before voters even cast their first ballot, the San Francisco Chronicle exposed Don Perata, the career politician who wrote the measure, for paying out a long time political crony who he was also simultaneously lobbying [http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/03/28/BA3N1NR09G.DTL]. Yet, read the nearly 4,500 words that comprise Proposition 29, and one will find that the conflicts-of-interest seen on the campaign trail would pale to the insider dealing permitted by this flawed measure. Proposition 29’s sole safeguard against sweetheart deals is the nine...

With the dark cloud of a lingering federal probe behind him, there is nothing standing between former state Sen. Don Perata and the Oakland mayor's office but time, opportunity and blue skies. On Wednesday, the FBI closed the books on a five-year investigation into whether Perata's business dealings drove his legislative decisions. Perata announced his plans in March to run for mayor of Oakland in 2010. So far, his toughest competition, former City Manager Robert Bobb, is currently the state-appointed director of the Detroit public schools and lives in the Washington, D.C., area. The federal investigation was the darkest hour...

Federal prosecutors on Wednesday declined to file corruption charges against a former California lawmaker, clearing the way for his campaign for Oakland mayor next year. ... The announcement ends an investigation into former state Senate leader Don Perata that stretches back to 2004 and extended to his family and circle of political associates. ... Federal prosecutors released a statement saying only that they were declining to file criminal charges but did not say why. They said they could not "disclose our deliberative process."

SACRAMENTO -- Former state Senate leader Don Perata, who has been the target of a five year-long FBI corruption investigation, will not be charged with any crimes, sources told The Chronicle today. In declining to indict the 64-year-old Oakland Democrat, federal prosecutors in Sacramento put an end to a wide-ranging FBI probe into whether Perata had taken hundreds of thousands of dollars of kickbacks in return for actions he took as a legislator and as president pro tem of the Senate. Perata announced in March that he would run for mayor of Oakland in 2010. The government's decision not to...

SACRAMENTO—After an investigation that has spanned 4 1/2 years, federal prosecutors are racing the clock as they consider whether to bring corruption charges against a former lawmaker who was one of the state's most powerful political leaders. ... He also became one of the Capitol's most prolific fundraisers. The intersection of power, political fundraising and business connections is what attracted an FBI inquiry into the dealings of the 63-year-old Perata, his family, political allies and campaign contributors. Among the questions being pursued is whether Perata helped steer millions of dollars' worth of political consulting work to his family and friends,...

This week's exhaustively detailed indictment of Republican Sen. Ted Stevens for allegedly failing to disclose $250,000 in gifts from an oil magnate in his home state of Alaska is dismaying enough. But the stench is hardly limited to Stevens and San Diego's own convicted congressman – Randy “Duke” Cunningham, R-Rancho Santa Fe. There are abundant signs that corruption in Congress goes beyond just trading votes for contributions to actual bribery. Yet public outrage remains disturbingly muted. Unfortunately, this indifference is also the norm in California. Consider the case of Senate President Don Perata. The Oakland Democrat is the focus of...

The State Senate must approve the measure next, which isn't a sure thing. Senate President Don Perata, D-Oakland, wants to know first whether the gargantuan health care package would adversely affect the state's budget, which already is projected to be $14 billion in the red for fiscal 2008-09. Sen. Perata, on a Bay Area radio station Tuesday, said "I think [the plan is]DOA. I haven't found anybody yet … that can make any sense of it." He said he will not allow a vote until 2008. The saving grace is that the legislation amounts only to political grandstanding if voters...

in·cred·i·ble –adjective 1. so extraordinary as to seem impossible: incredible speed. 2. not credible; hard to believe; unbelievable: The plot of the book is incredible. —Synonyms: farfetched, astonishing, preposterous. "It's an incredible plan," said Assembly Speaker Fabian Nuñez (D-Los Angeles). The Speaker’s quote about the just-struck agreement on government healthcare with Governor Schwarzenegger unintentionally speaks volumes. Incredible, farfetched, preposterous, hard to believe – call it what you will, the plan will cost far more than advertised and will drive business out of state, reducing state tax revenue and throwing people out of work. Beginning with a low-balled $14 billion price...

Many strange things happen on the final night of a state legislative session - bills that mysteriously appear or disappear, verbal and physical confrontations between overtired and/or overstimulated politicians, floor debates that deteriorate into gibberish, to name but a few. It would be difficult, however, to top the odd melodrama that played itself out in the wee hours of Wednesday morning when the union that represents prison guards tried a power play and, to use a term common inside the prisons, was "punked" by legislative leaders. It all had to do with the monthslong impasse between the California Correctional Peace...

Ackerman, meanwhile, has maintained remarkable unity, despite the defection of one senator -- the proof being the growing frustration among Democrats and in the Governor's Office. Although Ackerman had been under fire for being too cozy with Schwarzenegger and Democrats and retained his leadership position by a single vote, his mild-mannered stubbornness has made him a force. Núñez and Perata may say they won't negotiate further, but they have almost no capacity to force Republicans to budge, given their safe districts and their lack of personal stakes in the budget's details. Perata's declaration that he won't take up other legislation...

Senate Democrats enlisted environmentalists Wednesday to chastise Republicans for holding up the state budget, arguing that the GOP is seeking a rollback of a Ronald Reagan-approved environmental law at the behest of business interests. Despite a pledge by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to veto spending in the Assembly-approved plan, Republicans also are demanding a provision to prevent cities and counties, as well as developers and businesses, from being sued on climate change for the next three years. Republicans cite concerns about Attorney General Jerry Brown's use of the California Environmental Quality Act to stall local development projects. They worry that Brown...

Check this Perata comment to reporters after a July 12 negotiating session with GOP leaders: "They want us to cut in places that Democrats just didn't get elected to come up here and cut. So for any program that involves the elderly, people who are disabled, people who are mentally ill, our mantra is kind of, we're here to protect those who can't protect themselves." ADVERTISEMENT Click here to find out more! Nuñez was even more adamant: "We're not going to take the canes away from the blind. We're not going to kick people out of their wheelchairs … kick...

State Senate boss Don Perata throws impressive parties, and this one was a doozy. The guests, some of Perata's best donors among them, feasted on buttery Dungeness crab and sipped California Chardonnay. Then they settled into their plush luxury box seats to watch the Oakland Raiders play the New York Jets in a game with playoff implications. It was mid-December 2000, and the state senator had just dropped $43,600 on an oversize luxury suite at the Oakland Coliseum for a single afternoon of festivities. At the time he said he was trying to convince East Bay business leaders to buy...

Núñez proposal follows similar move by Perata to expand coverage. Assembly Speaker Fabian Núñez on Thursday outlined a proposal to provide health insurance to all children in the state and to ask employers and employees to pay their "fair share" of coverage."We're going to enact the children's coverage and the reforms of the shared employee-employer responsibility by 2008," Núñez, D-Los Angeles, said at a news conference at UC Davis Medical Center. "That is a clear-cut objective of this proposal."Núñez's broad plan to insure all Californians comes on the heels of a similar proposal from Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata,...

Among certain radio talk show hosts, bloggers and their followers, being called a cracker was a high compliment yesterday. They seized upon a comment made Thursday by state Senate leader Don Perata, D-Oakland, who talked about “all these crackers down in . . . San Diego, taking on the governor” over immigration issues. Perata, who made the comment during a news conference, was referring to a forum in La Mesa with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger last week where some accused him of being soft on illegal immigration. Schwarzenegger later said he was surprised at the “intensity of the prejudice” of some...

SACRAMENTO – Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata Thursday discussed the difficult political climate surrounding illegal immigration and as an example said “You've got all these crackers down in San Diego.” At a briefing with reporters, the Oakland Democrat was asked about the prospects of pending legislation to grant driver's licenses to illegal immigrants. Though a similar bill has passed the Legislature before – only to be vetoed – Perata said he was cautious about moving the current bill to the governor's desk in an election year. “Immigration is a red meat issue,” he said. “You've got all these crackers...

SACRAMENTO—State Sen. Gloria Romero of Los Angeles was summoned Wednesday to appear before a grand jury in the FBI probe of Senate chief Don Perata's business dealings. Romero, a member of Perata's Democratic leadership team and one of his closest allies, said an FBI agent delivered a subpoena to her Capitol office requiring her to appear in July in Oakland, Perata's hometown. Romero said in an interview that she is being called to testify as a witness. She said she declined to be interviewed by FBI agents and asked that they issue the subpoena. "All along, I've thought this has...

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and a bipartisan delegation of legislative leaders flew around the state yesterday to promote the $37.3 billion public works bond package approved last week for the November ballot. “When I ran for governor, people always said it would be impossible to bring Democrats and Republicans together,” the Republican governor told an airport news conference in San Diego. “But we've proven again that we can come together.” Schwarzenegger highlighted school construction money that would go to San Diego if the education component of the package is approved in the November election. “For San Diego, this means that for...

Sacramento—In a bold, yet unexpected move, California has decided to dissolve all ties with the United States of America. It is reported, that on Tuesday, November 15, 2005, the California legislature will vote to secede from the Union. The vote comes in an answer to the agonizing defeat of Governor Schwarzenegger’s propositions at the voting booths. The voters have made it clear that they don’t want any change in California. They have demonstrated to Governor Schwarzenegger that they want to leave things alone, keep the status quo. “I’m glad the propositions went down,” stated Autumn Keely, a registered Democrat. “I’m...

Over the past decade, state Senator Don Perata has come to be known as "The Teflon Don," based upon his ability to weather criticism of questionable financial transactions without anything sticking to him. Time after time, Perata has emerged from controversy stronger than ever. He is the unquestioned leader of Oakland's Democratic political machine, and is weeks away from taking over as president of the California Senate. But now, sources say, the Teflon may be starting to show some deep scratches. The FBI is reportedly targeting Perata in a federal grand jury investigation that focuses on an influential Oakland lobbyist...