Free Republic

GOV. Arnold Schwarzenegger finally answered the question of what he has been doing with his time. Sort of. Schwarzenegger this week made good on a promise to make public his official calendars, releasing his schedule for his first 379 days in office. It is believed to be the first time in California history that a governor has unveiled his appointment logs. Still, there are limits to this governor's candor. There were considerable gaps of time in those schedules as well as an abundance of "private meetings." Not surprisingly, the governor -- who campaigned on a pledge to improve the state's...

SACRAMENTO (AP) - An open records measure approved by voters this month will get an early test in a reporter's lawsuit against the California Department of Corrections. Stephen James, who writes for the alternative weekly Sacramento News and Review newspaper, sued under Proposition 59 after the department denied his request for data about parolees. The suit was filed last month in Alameda County Superior Court by attorney James Chadwick, who helped draft Proposition 59. A hearing is set for Dec. 15. The suit alleges the department violated the California Public Records Act, which was strengthened when 83 percent of voters...

Tokyo -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said in an interview today that he will make public his daily schedule, a move that open government advocates say will provide an unprecedented look at how his administration determines public policy. The governor said he will release a complete calendar of his first year in office, including whom he met with. His comments came just days after voters approved Proposition 59, which seeks to strengthen open records laws and follows a formal request by a media law group to make his calendar public. Schwarzenegger said the decision was in keeping with a campaign pledge...

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Only days after California voters overwhelmingly approved Proposition 59 to increase the public's ability to inspect government records, a media-backed group is asking Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to release all his appointment calendars, schedules and meeting logs since taking office last Nov. 17. The California First Amendment Coalition, a group of journalists and civic activists formed in 1988, mailed the request to Schwarzenegger on Wednesday, the day Proposition 59 took effect in the state's constitution. The move represents an opening salvo among Proposition 59 supporters, who are urging aggressive requests statewide for government records from the state, schools,...

Last year, I and many others on this floor believed it was a bad idea to borrow $13 billion to paper over the state’s deficit. And today, I believe it is still a bad idea to borrow $15 billion to paper over that same deficit. I am not going to get into the debate over whether it is better to borrow that money over 13-years or 30-years. The only distinction in that debate is between bad public policy and really bad public policy. There are only three ways to remedy a deficit. You can raise taxes – in a state...