Politics, Government and Business in Southern California's Inland Empire
Joe Nelson, Staff Writer
Posted: 05/18/2013 07:48:47 PM PDT
Updated: 05/18/2013 07:49:35 PM PDT
Two years after being indicted in a major San Bernardino County corruption case, Mark Kirk is back in the political arena.
Greg Cappis, Staff Writer
Posted: 05/17/2013 08:09:39 PM PDT
Eloise Gomez Reyes’ campaign is taking shape in the crowded race for the 31st Congressional District seat in 2014.
Emily’s List, the powerful political organization supporting pro-choice, female Democrats, officially added Gomez Reyes to “the list. ”
New election ahead to fill Assembly vacancy
By Canan Tasci
canan.tasci@ inlandnewspapers.com @ChinoValleyNow on Twitter
Posted: 05/15/2013 05:46:58 PM PDT
Updated: 05/15/2013 05:47:09 PM PDT
Now that Assemblywoman Norma Torres will take over as the state senator in the 32nd District, her 52nd Assembly District seat will be up for grabs.
By Michael A. Memoli
May 15, 2013, 9:15 a.m.
WASHINGTON — Republican congressional leaders, faced with an array of crises threatening to overwhelm the White House, appear to have singled out the targeting of conservative political groups by the IRS as the most fertile — and politically advantageous — to focus on.
Wednesday, May 15, 2013 – 09:00 a.m.
State Assembly Member Norma Torres (D-Pomona) handily defeated Mayor Paul Leon (R-Ontario) to fill the 32nd State Senate District seat vacated by now-U.S. Representative Gloria Negrete-McLeod on Tuesday night.
Shane Goldmacher
May 14 2013, 4:39 PM ET
As three separate scandals – the IRS targeting the tea party, the Justice Department’s phone-records grab from the AP, and Benghazi – erupt simultaneously, congressional Republicans are hoping to fold them into a single narrative of an unaccountable and overreaching White House that cannot be trusted.
As Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., put it colorfully during a Fox News appearance, “This sounds like a president somewhat drunk on power.”
May 10, 2013; 04:19 PM
A critical billboard targeting five San Bernardino city officials that had already generated controversy over its message has now led to accusations of censorship and political pressure.
To read column by Imran Ghori and Jim Miller in The Press Enterprise, click here.
May 10, 2013; 06:24 PM
SACRAMENTO — Money is pouring into candidates’ campaign committees. Legislative staffers are spending weekends walking precincts and calling voters in a race that seems to be a toss-up.
To read story by Jim Miller in The Press Enterprise, click here.
Greg Cappis, Staff Writer
Posted: 05/10/2013 11:55:26 PM PDT
Updated: 05/11/2013 12:01:54 AM PDT
Redlands Mayor Pete Aguilar’s campaign to represent California’s 31st Congressional District received a boost this week.
Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
May 10, 2013
One day after a civil rights leader accused him of using racially charged politics in his criticism of California’s prison realignment, former Lt. Gov. Abel Maldonado said this afternoon that Gov. Jerry Brown and “his buddies are trying to make it about race.”
May 10, 2013
Posted by Alex Koppelman
It’s a cliché, of course, but it really is true: in Washington, every scandal has a crime and a coverup. The ongoing debate about the attack on the United States facility in Benghazi where four Americans were killed, and the Obama Administration’s response to it, is no exception. For a long time, it seemed like the idea of a coverup was just a Republican obsession. But now there is something to it.
By Andrew Edwards
andrew.edwards@ inlandnewspapers.com @InlandGov on Twitter
Posted: 05/05/2013 09:45:08 PM PDT
Assemblywoman Norma Torres has continued to maintain her big fundraising lead in the race for an open state Senate seat, raising more than double the amount collected by her opponent, Ontario Mayor Paul Leon.
By JAMES HOHMANN | 5/4/13 5:54 PM EDT
HOUSTON — The National Rifle Association has become, more than ever, part and parcel of the Republican Party.
The officially nonpartisan group’s no-compromise strategy helped defeat the background check bill in the Senate last month and grow its membership ranks to 5 million.
Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
May 2, 2013
Former Assemblywoman Bonnie Garcia is looking to return to the Legislature.
Posted on | May 1, 2013
Former President George W. Bush will be paid $175,000 to speak at a regional government conference at Morongo Casino Resort & Spa in June, public records show.
To read post by Jeff Horseman in The Press Enterprise Watchdog Blog, click here.
By BEN WHITE and TARINI PARTI | 4/28/13 2:29 PM EDT
Call them the debt crisis dissenters.
The two parties are miles apart on how to cut the deficit and national debt: Republicans want to slash spending even more. Democrats want to raise revenue.
Jim Steinberg, Staff Writer
Posted: 04/27/2013 05:20:37 PM PDT
Updated: 04/27/2013 06:24:37 PM PDT
FONTANA — A recall campaign for two school board members is heating up even though the election is more than two months away.
Mayor Acquanetta Warren has been busy posting on her Facebook page – and others – posters made by proponents of recalling Fontana Unified school board members Leticia Garcia and Sophia Green. The election is July 16.
Andrew Edwards, Staff Writer
Posted: 04/27/2013 06:58:39 PM PDT
Updated: 04/27/2013 10:48:21 PM PDT
A chance to pick up a vacant state Senate seat and demonstrate the California Republican Party and their allies are serious about backing Latino candidates may seem like a golden opportunity for the state’s GOP, but the party seems to be setting its sights elsewhere than the 32nd state Senate District.
By Lori Montgomery
April 27, 2013
With another fight over the national debt brewing this summer, congressional Republicans are de-emphasizing their demand for politically painful cuts to retirement programs and focusing on a more popular prize: a thorough rewrite of the U.S. tax code.
Greg Cappis, Staff Writer
Posted: 04/26/2013 09:05:14 PM PDT
Updated: 04/26/2013 09:54:17 PM PDT
Last year, voters in the 31st Congressional District chose between two Republicans in the general election.
Next year, their choice could be between two Democrats.
Posted by Ezra Klein
April 26, 2013 at 2:12 pm
The Democrats have lost on sequestration.
That’s the simple reality of Friday’s vote to ease the pain for the Federal Aviation Administration. By assenting to it, Democrats have agreed to sequestration for the foreseeable future.
By Michael Catalini
Updated: April 26, 2013 | 1:30 p.m.
April 26, 2013 | 11:27 a.m.
The influential conservative website Red State does not score key-vote legislation.
But Majority Leader Eric Cantor’s Helping Sick Americans Now Act nearly changed that. The bill would have insured thousands of Americans with pre-existing conditions who would be dropped because of a provision in the Affordable Care Act, Cantor argued. The bill was supposed to be a savvy way to make the GOP seem softer and score political points by tweaking Obamacare.
Aguilar, Baca make accusations each other
By Greg Cappis
gregory.cappis@ inlandnewspapers.com @TheFactsGreg on Twitter
Posted: 04/24/2013 06:00:25 PM PDT
Updated: 04/24/2013 06:00:37 PM PDT
Two high-profile Democrats vying for the 31st Congressional District seat in 2014 – Redlands Mayor Pete Aguilar and former Rep. Joe Baca – are concentrating on each other, not the man they want to challenge.
By Nathan Hurst
Roll Call Staff
April 22, 2013, 3:44 p.m.
“Why is President Obama unnecessarily delaying your flight?” House Majority Leader Eric Cantor tweeted as part of GOP lawmakers’ social media offensive. “FAA can reprioritize.”
Posted by Aaron Blake on April 22, 2013 at 8:09 am
House Republicans on Monday will name 11 members to a program designed to protect their most vulnerable incumbents, Post Politics has confirmed.
By KENNETH P. VOGEL and MAGGIE HABERMAN | 4/22/13 5:04 AM EDT
The GOP didn’t have an answer for Big Democratic Data in 2012, costing them in close races from Congress to the White House.
Now, they’ve got lots of answers — possibly too many — and a feisty rivalry is brewing between tea party upstarts, nonpartisan data geeks, operatives linked to the Koch brothers and insiders like Karl Rove.
April 18, 2013; 06:14 PM
Former Rep. Joe Baca said he is the only Democrat who can defeat Rep. Gary Miller next year and criticized a Democratic rival who has hit Baca for his past support of Miller.
To read story by Jim Miller in The Press Enterprise, click here.
Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
April 18, 2013
A day after Congress rejected a package of bills aimed at tightening restrictions on gun ownership, California lawmakers moved in the opposite direction, increasing funds for a program that confiscates weapons from people who are prohibited from owning them because of mental illness or violent criminal pasts.
By Ed O’Keefe and Philip Rucker
Published: April 17, 2013
President Obama’s ambitious effort to overhaul the nation’s gun laws in response to December’s school massacre in Connecticut suffered a resounding defeat Wednesday, when every major proposal he championed fell apart on the Senate floor.
By Dan Balz
Published: April 17, 2013
If there was ever a moment that symbolized the difference between the power of public opinion and the strength of a concerted minority, it came Wednesday when the Senate defeated a bipartisan measure to expand background checks on gun purchases.
Wednesday, April 17, 2013 – 09:00 a.m.
Are democrats already shooting themselves in the head in next year’s race to represent California’s highly-coveted 31st Congressional District?
It sure looks that way.
April 16, 2013; 05:26 PM
In an opening salvo of a looming primary fight in one of Democrats’ top House targets next year, Redlands Mayor Pete Aguilar criticized former Rep. Joe Baca for his support of Rep. Gary Miller last summer.
To read story by Jim Miller in The Press Enterprise, click here.
Andrew Edwards, Staff Writer
Posted: 04/15/2013 06:23:18 PM PDT
Rep. Paul Cook, now in his fourth month as a freshman member of Congress, seems to share many Americans’ frustration with the gridlock that seems to be increasingly seizing lawmakers’ ability or willingness to attempt longterm solutions to the country’s problems.
April 15, 2013; 05:11 PM
Riverside County Supervisor Jeff Stone ended months of speculation by announcing Monday, April 15, that he will not run for Congress against Rep. Ken Calvert in 2014.
To read story by Jeff Horseman in The Press Enterprise, click here.
Greg Cappis and Andrew Edwards, Staff Writers
Posted: 04/15/2013 10:12:08 AM PDT
Updated: 04/15/2013 11:59:03 PM PDT
The race to represent the 31st Congressional District in 2014 is getting crowded.
Danny Tillman, a San Bernardino City Unified School District board member, confirmed Monday he will campaign as a Democrat in the district that stretches from Rancho Cucamonga to Redlands, including parts of the 49-year-old’s hometown, San Bernardino.
By David Nakamura, Published: April 15
Millions of immigrants living illegally in the United States could earn a chance at citizenship under a sweeping Senate proposal to be released Tuesday that would represent the most ambitious overhaul of the nation’s immigration system in three decades.
Posted on | April 13, 2013
A recurring rumor in recent weeks has been that Rep. Gary Miller, R-Rancho Cucamonga, would call it quits at the end of his current term rather than risk defeat in a seat Democrats have made a top target in 2014.
To read post by Jim Miller on The Press Enterprise Political Empire Blog, click here.
April 13, 2013; 03:33 PM
Rep. Gary Miller, R-Rancho Cucamonga, met with officials of Loma Linda University Health on April 2 to hear about developments on campus and the challenges of an academic medical center to remain a global leader in clinical care, education and research.
To read contributed content in The Press Enterprise, click here.
April 10, 2013; 05:55 PM
SACRAMENTO — A committee hearing Thursday, April 11, will offer an early indication of whether an Assembly Republican plan touted as a way to increase transparency inside the Capitol has any chance at success.
To read story by Jim Miller in The Press Enterprise, click here.
Andrew Edwards, Staff Writer
Posted: 04/09/2013 09:39:11 PM PDT
Updated: 04/09/2013 09:39:30 PM PDT
Former Rep. Joe Baca has already promised that he will try to make his way back to Congress next year, but the new question is whether he will seek a rematch with Democrat Gloria Negrete-McLeod or challenge Republican Gary Miller.
Andrew Edwards
Posted: 04/03/2013 05:37:26 PM PDT
Rep. Gary Miller, R-Rancho Cucamonga, is scheduled to be the guest of honor during the San Bernardino Area Chamber of Commerce’s Legislative Breakfast.
Wednesday, April 3, 2013 – 09:30 a.m.
Mayor Pete Aguilar (D-Redlands) is set to take another run at Congressman Gary Miller (R-Rancho Cucamonga) in June 2014.
House Majority PAC names Rep. Gary Miller most vulnerable incumbent
Greg Cappis, Staff Writer
Posted: 04/02/2013 12:01:00 AM PDT
Mayor Pete Aguilar has officially announced he will again run for the House of Representatives in the 31st Congressional District, in a 2014 race that will likely draw national attention.
By Marc Lifsher, Los Angeles Times
April 1, 2013
SACRAMENTO — California businesses and other special interests quickly learn that playing politics in the ornate chambers of California’s Capitol building is more like a barroom brawl than a civics lesson about how bills become laws.
March 29, 2013; 05:01 PM
Former President George W. Bush will be the keynote speaker at a regional conference scheduled for this summer at Morongo Casino Resort & Spa.
To read story by Jeff Horseman in The Press Enterprise, click here.
By Alex Lazar – 03/30/13 02:45 PM ET
There is new momentum to revamp Washington’s Groundhog Day-like budget process.
The Senate’s recent vote to embrace a biennial budget, coupled with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s (D-Nev.) endorsement, has significantly boosted the chances it could pass in this Congress.
By Billy House
Updated: March 28, 2013 | 7:51 p.m.
March 28, 2013 | 7:30 p.m.
A strategy by House Republican leaders to bottle up revenue bills until a comprehensive overhaul of the tax code is finished is being sold to GOP lawmakers as a tactical way to hobble Senate Democrats.
Thursday, March 28, 2013 – 09:30 a.m.
Here’s some news flowing across the transom Thursday morning.
Barstow Court to remain open
The state has coughed-up funds to temporarily keep one courtroom open at the Barstow Court facility through early summer.
Andrew Edwards
Posted: 03/27/2013 09:41:45 PM PDT
Updated: 03/27/2013 09:42:14 PM PDT
RANCHO CUCAMONGA – The California Republican Party’s new chairman, former Inland Valley legislator Jim Brulte, restated his call for the state’s Republicans to leave their comfort zones and reach out to voters in communities that tend to vote Democratic.
Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
March 27, 2013
At least two groups of lawmakers are spending their spring recess from the Capitol on overseas trips underwritten by outside groups.
Posted by Scott Clement
March 27, 2013 at 4:27 pm
A growing number of Americans are not just dissatisfied, but angry at Washington after repeated standoffs over taxes and the deficit have pockmarked the start of President Obama’s second term.
“I’m mad as hell….”
March 26, 2013 9:30 PM
Jim E. Winburn, Staff Writer
VICTORVILLE • Rep. Paul Cook spoke to local leaders Tuesday about the impact of federal budget cuts to High Desert communities and the prospects of living with the Affordable Care Act.
Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
March 25, 2013
The proportion of Californians eschewing party politics continued to gradually increase over the past two years, with nearly 21 percent of the electorate now registered to vote with no party preference, according to a report today by the California secretary of state.
March 23, 2013; 11:49 PM
Former congresswoman Mary Bono Mack has a new job.
As former Press-Enterprise D.C. bureau chief Ben Goad first reported last week, the longtime Inland politician has signed on as a senior vice president in the Washington office of FaegreBD Consulting, a lobbying firm.
To read entire column in The Press Enterprise, click here.
March 22, 2013; 05:10 PM
The San Bernardino County Republican Party committee member who made anti-Muslim and anti-Sikh remarks will receive a letter of reprimand from the county GOP but will not be asked to step down from her post.
To read story by David Olson in The Press Enterprise, click here.
PolitiCal
On politics in the Golden State
By Chris Megerian
March 22, 2013, 2:00 p.m.
SACRAMENTO — For most politicians, earning the support of one in three voters would be a red flag. But for the California Legislature, it’s a sign of improvement.
By Torey Van Oot
tvanoot@sacbee.com
Published: Friday, Mar. 22, 2013 – 12:00 am
Freshman Rep. Ami Bera’s packed schedule Tuesday included hearings on Afghanistan and asteroids, floor votes and an evening meet-and-greet with a group of California business leaders.
By Aaron Blake and Philip Rucker
Published: March 18, 2013
The Republican Party ended months of self-criticism Monday with a wide-ranging plan to transform itself into a modern, welcoming home for a rapidly diversifying American electorate.
March 17, 2013; 06:35 PM
Turnout in last Tuesday’s special election in Inland Southern California’s 32nd Senate District stands at a whopping 9.6 percent.
To read the Political Empire column in The Press Enterprise, click here.
Andrew Edwards, Staff Writer
Posted: 03/17/2013 05:51:58 PM PDT
The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association has formally served three state agencies with a class-action lawsuit intended to overturn a controversial “fire tax” levied on Californians who live in some the state’s forested areas.
By Beth Reinhard
Updated: March 16, 2013 | 9:32 a.m.
March 15, 2013 | 9:59 p.m.
For those who saw Jeb Bush’s clumsy rollout of his new immigration book as a tipoff that he had forfeited his political instincts, not to mention his principles: not so fast.
March 14, 2013 5:31 PM
RENE DE LA CRUZ, Staff Writer
A local politician will soon take his conservative thoughts and discussions to the radio airwaves.
Assemblyman Tim Donnelly will host a weekly “Radio Free California” show on Victorville’s TALK 960AM beginning at 9 a.m. March 30.
Wednesday, March 13, 2013 – 09:15 a.m.
It’s State Assembly Member Norma Torres (D-Pomona) facing Mayor Paul Leon (R-Ontario) in the May runoff to decide who will fill the 32nd Senate District vacated by now-U.S. Representative Gloria Negrete-McLeod.
Tuesday, March 12, 2013 – 09:00 a.m.
It’s Election day in the Inland Empire.
The 32nd State Senate District seat vacated by now U.S. Representative Gloria Negrete-McLeod is under consideration today.
March 11th, 2013, 3:38 pm
Posted by MARTIN WISCKOL
Orange County is known as an ATM for political fundraisers – Mitt Romney came for the dough four times in 2012 – but the sums brought in by the county’s own Congress members are relatively middling.
March 10, 2013; 06:18 PM
As Mark Takano waged an ultimately winning campaign for Riverside’s congressional seat, an independent film crew was there.
Now the crew is putting the finishing touches on “How to Get Elected in America,” a documentary on Takano’s fight to become the first openly gay member of an ethnic minority to be elected to Congress.
To read column in The Press Enterprise, click here.
By Patrick McGreevy, Los Angeles Times
March 10, 2013, 7:27 p.m.
SACRAMENTO — State Assemblyman Robert Blumenfield’s election to the Los Angeles City Council last week won’t keep him from helping to push a state budget through by June 15. But it could complicate things later for his fellow Democrats in the lower house.
Andrew Edwards, Staff Writer
Posted: 03/08/2013 07:45:48 PM PST
Updated: 03/08/2013 10:07:17 PM PST
Assemblywoman Norma Torres is – by far – the leading fundraiser in the special election to succeed Gloria Negrete-McLeod in the state Senate.
By Maeve Reston
March 8, 2013, 4:30 p.m.
As speculation swirled around his potential run for president in 2016, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush made a plea Friday for greater bipartisanship, hailing President Obama’s dinner invitation to a dozen Republican senators this week as a promising development.
By Josh Kraushaar
Updated: March 8, 2013 | 8:10 a.m.
March 8, 2013 | 5:46 a.m.
President Obama’s advisers have telegraphed their goal to win control of the House in 2014, which would give the president unfettered control to advance his favored policies. But the bigger concern for the White House should be the more realistic possibility that they could lose the Senate in 2014 – an outcome that’s only enhanced by the president’s second-term strategy focusing on rallying the base over centrist governance.
March 06, 2013; 03:55 PM
SACRAMENTO – Inland Southern California lawmakers received more than $50,000 in gifts and travel from businesses, unions, and other groups in 2012, according to recently filed economic disclosure documents.
To read story by Jim Miller in The Press Enterprise, click here.
Liset.Marquez, Staff Writer
Posted: 03/06/2013 07:50:18 PM PST
Updated: 03/06/2013 09:19:54 PM PST
ONTARIO – A city councilman is calling for some civility after Councilman Paul Vincent Avila made some critical remarks about an opponent for the 32nd state Senate District seat at Tuesday night’s meeting.
Andrew Edwards, Staff Writer
Posted: 03/04/2013 07:31:10 PM PST
The California Republican Party has turned to the Inland Empire’s Jim Brulte in its effort to rebound from the 2012 elections.
Andrew Edwards, Staff Writer
Posted: 03/04/2013 05:25:44 PM PST
Updated: 03/04/2013 10:51:33 PM PST
An Inland Republican who posted a religious insult against a leading GOP figure on Facebook may face discipline from her own party.
Andrew Edwards, Staff Writer
Posted: 03/03/2013 04:08:51 PM PST
Updated: 03/03/2013 06:10:39 PM PST
Ontario Councilman Paul Vincent Avila’s unorthodox decision to endorse an opponent in the race for a vacant state Senate seat has led to his expulsion from the San Bernardino County Democratic Central Committee.
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