Inland Empire Progressive

It is well known that off year elections and primaries are do not bode well for Dems. This has to be changed. Instilling a sense of duty to vote in Progressives is very important. Progressive voters must be constantly reminded why thier vote matters. Currently, I use a sports metaphor when talking with voters about why they should vote in Congressional Elections. I say: "The President of the United States is like Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers, he can score a lot of points and make key plays. However, without a solid team (Congress) around him sometimes all that effort expended will be for nothing if they still lose. So if health care, education, or jobs is your priority it is important to vote for somebody who care about your values up and down the ticket. That way other player can make key assists in both offense and defense." When talking to voters, we have to remind them why it is important to them and what is in it for them. We as activists have to make it not...

View Larger Map ESRI put together this very smooth map to look at the results of the 2008 election. I know it's a little dated but the turnout areas are great indicators of possible votes in future elections. I wonder if they will publish a 2012 version.

Measure N has passed by an overwhelming majority. I voted no on the measure because I think that the San Bernardino Unified School District is taking on too much bond debt that will push total outstanding bond to about $1 Billion Dollars of principle and interest payments. However, the voters have spoken and the school board has a mandate to disburse this bond money on capital projects that will upgrade schools with saftey improvements, equipment replacement, and other materials and projects. It must be restated and the school board held to account that NONE of this bond money is to be used for salary or other operational costs. But this is just one area where voters have to keep an eye out for. The following are other areas in which I will be keeping an eye on in the coming months. OVERSIGHT BOARD A citizens oversight committee is to be established in accordance with Education Code Section 15272. The board consists of a bonafide taxpayer association, a business organi...

I am elated at the prospects for 31st Congressional District in 2014. In the 2012 election, the Democratic Party both state and nationally focused purely on Riverside County. I think this was because there was much…giddiness, of San Bernardino County Democrats of the possible pickups we possessed. In the end, it was a total meltdown of epic proportions. We gained only the safest of Congressional and Legislative seats. However, in 2014 I know its going to be us this time! The primary focus will be the governors race but with limited and lackluster challengers from the Republican Party, we have a great opportunity expand on majorities in all legislative houses. I also think we can afford some risk taking in more traditionally conservative areas. The 31st Congressional District will be a prime target and so will the 40th AD. As of today, Russ Warner has 49% of the vote and ballots are still being counted! I need to get my canvassing shoes ready, cause this 2014 is shaping to be a good ...

  I don’t know how Rep. Gary Miller will handle poverty in the 31st Congressional District, but the outlook doesn’t bode well for folks in my city of San Bernardino. The standard approach is to cut taxes and loosen regulations to generate economic growth. But, San Bernardino has some of the lowest income folks in the Inland Empire.  I don’t see how cutting taxes and slashing social programs will do anything but create more violence for an already violent city. In addition, most of San Bernardino residents lack the job skills necessary to attract job creators. Cutting taxes and loosening regulations sounds good for well to do folks in Rancho Cucamonga and Redlands, but it is a disastrous policy for San Bernardino. My sense is that government needs to play a more active role in balancing the scales of equity when it comes to tax policy. Folks aren’t looking for a handout, they are looking for a hand up. Conservatives are looking to cut the hand off. Rep. Gary Miller’s stand...

The Baca Dynasty is now in ruins and I am glad. No more hubris or taking advantage of minority voters from the Baca Clan. I am hoping that this time in the political wilderness will teach them valuable lessons on power and the responsibility that it entails. I do think, Sen. Gloria McLeod owes a debt of gratitude for Mayor Michael Bloomberg's timely assist. Without his help I think the results of this race would have been very different. However, disconcerting money in politics is, it does produce results...sometimes. I still believe a popular, disciplined, and policy driven politician can overcome monetary challanges and win. Now we get to see what is more important for the voters of the 35th Congressional District and that is how Congresswoman Elect Gloria McLeod will govern. These are some challenging times in American politics and I wish her well.

With both houses in the state legislature at a 2/3rd majority, my hope is that state Dems can get their priorities straight to govern California effectively and over the long term. State polling giving the legisature all time low approval ratings, this hold on power is tenuous at best. If the Dems can't effectively govern, then I wouldn't be surprised that this mandate will be short lived. Most of the prioritzation comes in balancing the state budget. Californian's deserve a state budget that is both stable and prioritized effectively. A balanced approach would be to cut underperforming policies while increasing revenue for most income brackets. Hopefully, Prop. 13 reforms will be included in the policy discussion. Another issue is our school system which performs inadequately for the needs of low income and minority students. Education equality is the next civil rights movement of our time. Our poor performing schools will not be able to...

Nate Silver a former baseball statistician turn political prognosticator at www.fivethirtyeight.com has aggrigated the polling data and is predicting a President Obama win of 315 electoral college votes. He says the president has a 92% chance of winning picking up most of what he won in 2008, with the exception of North Carolina and Indiana. I for one, hope that Mr. Silver is right.

Reminds me of Mike Tyson's Punch Out for Nintendo.

A Progressive Critical-Thinkers guide to Props and Measures: Prop. 30 - Yes Avoids cuts from K thru 16 and allows breathing room to stabilize the budget. Prop 31 - No Poison Pill. Lots of Progressive Reforms but brings state government instability at a time when state is trying to balance budget. Prop 32 - No Limits political speech of working class families. Prop 33 - No Penalizes poor and working class families who are less like to have continuous insurance coverage. Prop 34 - Yes Saves state $100M annually by eliminating death penalty. Prop 35 - No Hampers law enforcement in dealing with sex trafficking. Prop 36 - Yes Reduces costs. Reduces 2nd Strike Dementia, where minor offenders will escalate small violations because they have nothing to lose. Prop 37-  Yes We have a right to know what is being done to our food. Prop 38- No Funds only K-12. Cuts to education still happen because Prop. 30 failed. Prop 39- Yes Creates jobs inside Califo...