By Neil Nisperos, Staff Writer
Created: 02/02/2012 05:36:15 PM PST

Fundraising data for Rep. David Dreier, D-San Dimas, from the last quarter of last year suggests he’s likely to retire this year, according to local political experts.

The Federal Election Commission database reports Dreier collected only $10,160 in campaign contributions in the period from October to December. The figure is paltry compared with the $207,450 received in the same period in 2003, and the $137,600 in 2009.

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Looming retirements, especially of the Inland area’s Rep. Jerry Lewis, could leave the region without political heft for years

BY BEN GOAD
WASHINGTON BUREAU
bgoad@pe.com

Published: 22 January 2012 08:39 PM

WASHINGTON — When Inland Rep. Jerry Lewis leaves office at the end of the year, he’ll take with him one attribute that none of his potential successors can promise to replicate: seniority.

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U.S. Representative Jerry Lewis, (R) 41st District spoke during a Town Hall on Health Care Reform held at the IEHP Building in San Bernardino , Aug. 2009. (File photo)

Andrew Edwards, Staff Writer
Posted: 01/10/2012 10:25:35 AM PST

Two San Bernardino County lawmakers said Tuesday they are planning to seek the Republican nomination to run for Congress in one of two newly-drawn districts, although in at least one case, plans depend on whether longtime Rep. Jerry Lewis retires or seeks reelection.

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Rep. Jerry Lewis, R-Redlands

BY BEN GOAD
WASHINGTON BUREAU
bgoad@pe.com

Published: 09 January 2012 09:29 PM

WASHINGTON — The field of Democratic candidates for California’s new 31st Congressional District is quickly solidifying, but potential GOP candidates appear to be awaiting a decision from incumbent Rep. Jerry Lewis before entering what is certain to be a high-profile race for the seat.

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U.S. Rep. David Dreier

Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
January 9, 2012

With less than six months to go until the June primary, viable Republican challengers to Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein aren’t exactly rushing to file nomination papers.

Rep. Kevin McCarthy, the No. 3 ranking House Republican, suggested Monday that fellow House Republican David Dreier could be a formidable challenger.

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Redistricting and the state’s new primary system are shaking up Inland congressional election scenarios

BY BEN GOAD AND JIM MILLER
STAFF WRITERS
bgoad@pe.com | jmiller@pe.com

Published: 27 December 2011 09:10 PM

WASHINGTON — Days away from a pivotal election year, Inland Southern California’s congressional races are beginning to take shape.

The region is seen as a vital battleground between Republicans, who have long dominated traditionally conservative Riverside and San Bernardino counties, and Democrats, who want to pick up some of the 25seats they need to wrest control of the House from the GOP.

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Rep. Ken Calvert, R-Corona./The Press-Enterprise

The region’s politicians in Washington are split along partisan lines about how to extend tax cuts and jobless aid
BY BEN GOAD
WASHINGTON BUREAU

bgoad@pe.com

Published: 13 December 2011 08:28 PM

WASHINGTON — As the debate over extending a soon-to-expire payroll tax cut and benefits for the unemployed nears a crescendo in Congress, few corners of the nation have more at stake than does economically battered Inland Southern California.

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House Rules Committee Chairman David Dreier (R-San Dimas) has seen big changes in his district boundaries that tilt its registration toward Democrats. (Charles Dharapak, Associated Press / January 6, 2011)

By Jean Merl and Richard Simon, Los Angeles Times
December 11, 2011, 9:39 p.m.

Reporting from Los Angeles and Washington— It’s no secret that deep blue California has been a tough place for Republicans, with GOP registration falling to less than one-third of voters and Democrats holding all the statewide offices. Now, new political maps threaten to cost several of the party’s prominent congressmen their jobs.

That is especially true for some of the California Republican delegation’s long-serving members.

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Neil Nisperos and Benjamin Demers, Staff Writers
Posted: 11/26/2011 06:05:56 AM PST

Editor’s note: This is the first of a three-part series looking at the newly redrawn Inland Empire legislative districts. Today, the new-look congressional districts.

California’s redrawn lines for the House of Representatives may result in some longtime lawmakers from the region facing tough re-election campaigns.

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Dreier

Sunday, November 13, 2011 – 01:00 p.m.

All the wild speculation continues in regards to who will run to replace Congressman Jerry Lewis (R-Redlands), should he retire.

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Redistricting has placed Republican Rep. David Dreier’s home in a new Latino-majority district where Republican John McCain won just 33% in the 2008 presidential election. (Francine Orr, Los Angeles Times)

By Richard Simon, Los Angeles Times
August 28, 2011, 9:41 p.m.

Reporting from Washington— David Dreier, who chairs the House Rules Committee, has a seat at the GOP leadership table, helping set his party’s legislative and political agenda. He has hobnobbed with all kinds of figures, from Afghan President Hamid Karzai to Tommy Lasorda, in his spiffy Capitol office.

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10:00 PM PDT on Saturday, August 20, 2011

BY BEN GOAD
WASHINGTON BUREAU
bgoad@pe.com

Newly certified congressional lines place two of Inland Southern California’s political heavyweights in the same district, potentially setting the stage for a high-stakes brawl to decide who is top dog in San Bernardino County.

Call it the Battle for Berdoo, the Muscoy Melee, the Rumble in Rialto.

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Committee urges fixes to proposal
Neil Nisperos, Staff Writer
Created: 08/09/2011 09:32:13 PM PDT

An alternate redistricting map for a large portion of western San Bernardino County, proposed by the local Democratic Central Committee, envisions lines that supporters say would help maintain minority voter clout and retain significant influence on federal funds for the area.

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Upland’s dividing line
Some would be moved into Baca’s district
Sandra Emerson, Staff Writer
Created: 07/27/2011 07:52:08 PM PDT

UPLAND – Residents in the 1400 block of Ukiah Way and Victoria Avenue may soon find themselves divided along party lines.

The block running north and south between 14th Street and 15th Street will join citizens living below 14th Street in the district of Rep. Joe Baca, D-San Bernardino, according to a preliminary draft of Congressional, Assembly and state Senate districts released last week by the Citizens Redistricting Commission.

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By James Rufus Koren Staff Writer
Posted: 06/10/2011 09:42:17 PM PDT

After months of meetings and public input, the California Citizens Redistricting Commission on Friday released a first draft of what California’s new Assembly, Senate and Congressional districts could look like.

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In time of spending cuts, some House staffers cash in
James Rufus Koren, Staff Writer
Posted: 06/05/2011 09:26:39 PM PDT

Late last year, while many members of Congress were promising to cut federal spending, some House members were handing out large bonuses to their staffs.

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By PE Politics
June 1, 2011 12:40 PM

Inland Southern California’s five-member House delegation voted last night against a measure to lift the nation’s national debt ceiling.

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By Richard Simon, Los Angeles Times
February 20, 2011

Reporting from Washington —

University of California students would take a nearly $55-million hit from reductions in Pell grants. A $20-million check promised for bringing a rail line closer to the L.A. airport would be taken back. Head Start cuts would eliminate about 14,000 slots for low-income children in California.

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By Michael Doyle
mdoyle@mcclatchydc.com
Published: Sunday, Feb. 13, 2011 – 12:00 am | Page 3A

WASHINGTON – Rep. Kevin McCarthy is a youthful-looking, silver-haired gent still finding his way as California’s highest-ranking GOP lawmaker.

Following some embarrassing new smudges on his Capitol Hill won-loss record, the Republican representing Bakersfield, in California’s southern Central Valley, must demonstrate anew the vote-wrangling skills demanded of him as House majority whip.

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Staff and Wire Reports
Created: 01/24/2011 04:28:16 PM PST

With calls for more civility in Congress and less partisanship after the shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, two Inland Valley lawmakers will join some of their peers in pledging to break with a tradition during President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address tonight.

Democrats and Republicans usually sit with fellow members of their parties during the annual speech in the House chamber.

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Dreier

By JONATHAN ALLEN | 1/21/11 8:13 PM EST

A high-ranking House Republican acknowledged Friday that next week’s spending-cut vote is a message to the president, Senate Democrats and the public about where the GOP stands but not an indelible line in the sand.

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Rep. David Dreier

By James Rufus Koren Staff Writer
Created: 01/13/2011 07:24:52 PM PST

Rep. David Dreier, R-San Dimas, has proposed a bill that would expand two wilderness areas in the San Gabriel Mountains.

Dreier’s bill, cosponsored by Rep. Judy Chu, D-El Monte, would add 18,000 acres to the Sheep Mountain and Cucamonga wilderness areas, increasing the combined size of those areas by more than 30 percent.

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Sandra Emerson and Monica Rodriguez, Staff Writers
Posted: 01/01/2011 07:06:22 AM PST

The approach to addressing illegal immigration is expected to shift as Republicans take control of the House of Representatives in the new year.

In a matter of weeks, Congress will switch from working on legislation geared toward legalization to stricter enforcement of immigration laws.

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Dreier

Next chairman to focus on transparency, growth
James Rufus Koren, Staff Writer
Created: 12/08/2010 03:29:14 PM PST

Two area lawmakers will take over influential congressional committees in January.

Rep. David Dreier, R-San Dimas, was selected Wednesday as chairman of the House Rules Committee and Rep. Howard P. “Buck” McKeon, R-Santa Clarita, was selected as chairman of the House Armed Services Committee.

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Group asks for help passing act
Bethania Palma Markus, Staff Writer
Created: 12/06/2010 05:12:08 AM PST

SAN DIMAS – About 25 people crowded into the field office of Rep. David Dreier, R-San Dimas, on Friday afternoon, seeking his support for the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act.

Dreier was in Washington, D.C. but the group handed petitions to his office staff. They complained the Republican congressman backpedaled on support of the bill, which would provide immigrants who came to the U.S. illegally as children with a path to citizenship if they go to college or join the military.

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James Rufus Koren, Staff Writer
Posted: 12/03/2010 05:29:45 PM PST

Omar Heinemann of San Bernardino has four kids, two master’s degrees and 20 years of experience in the aerospace industry.

But he’s been out of work for nearly a year and has run out of unemployment benefits. He won’t get any more checks in the mail unless Congress votes to let him and millions more Americans apply for extended federal unemployment benefits.

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James Rufus Koren, Staff Writer
Created: 11/16/2010 05:06:15 PM PST

If allegations that millions of mortgages have shoddy paper trails prove true, the resulting fallout could grind the housing market to a halt, endanger many financial institutions and destabilize financial markets, according to a congressional report released Tuesday.

Problems with mortgage – and foreclosure – related documents could call into question the ownership of millions of mortgages and ultimately cost banks billions, according to the report.

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Trio eyes plum posts

James Rufus Koren, Staff Writer
Posted: 11/06/2010 07:12:01 AM PDT

Republicans regained control of the House of Representatives this week, which will likely mean a big increase in clout for the Inland Empire’s congressional delegation.

Of the four Republicans who represent parts of San Bernardino County, three could be chairmen of powerful congressional committees when the 112th Congress takes power in January.

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Candidate gets no campaign aid from Democrats
Rebecca Kimitch, Staff Writer
Created: 10/10/2010 08:31:49 PM PDT

Last year, national Democrats had their eyes on Republican David Dreier’s seat representing the 26th Congressional District.

Their optimism came in the wake of the 2008 election, when voters in the district, which stretches across the foothills from La Canada Flintridge to San Bernardino County, favored Barack Obama 51 percent to 47 percent. And though Dreier soundly defeated Democratic challenger Russ Warner, his 53 percent support was one of his lowest ever.

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GOP wants to roll back Obama policies
Staff and Wire Reports
Created: 09/26/2010 09:42:23 PM PDT

Pushing toward big gains on Nov. 2, House Republicans on Thursday promised to end a slew of Democratic policies and restore Americans’ trust in government as they rolled out a campaign manifesto designed to show they’re listening to an angry public and are focused on creating jobs.

“The land of opportunity has become the land of shrinking prosperity. … Our government has failed us,” said Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield. “We will take back our country. We will restore for a better future. This is our pledge to you.”

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10:23 PM PDT on Monday, July 26, 2010

By BEN GOAD
Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON – As Republicans eye a takeover in the House of Representatives this fall, two Inland congressmen are well positioned to reap the benefits.

Reps. Darrell Issa and Jerry Lewis serve as the top Republican members of the House Oversight and Appropriations committees, respectively. But if the Republicans win back majority status, the two lawmakers could become significantly more powerful as chairmen of the two panels.

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Rep. David Dreier

Sandra Emerson, Staff Writer
Created: 07/04/2010 09:02:43 PM PDT

SAN DIMAS – A sit-in by immigration activists at Rep. David Dreier’s office in June motivated some of his anti-illegal-immigration constituents to stage their own demonstration.

Activists from anti-illegal immigration groups and people opposing amnesty staged a rally outside Dreier’s San Dimas office Friday calling for his public support of Arizona’s immigration law.

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Ryan Carter, Staff Writer
Posted: 06/16/2010 09:41:25 PM PDT

Lawmakers debating financial reform in a House-Senate conference committee agreed late Tuesday on an amendment that would allow 6,500 former IndyMac depositors to recoup about $233 million in savings lost when the bank failed two years ago.

If passed by the full House and Senate, the amendment, called the IndyAct, would make a federal deposit insurance cap of $250,000 retroactive to Jan. 1, 2008, seven months before the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. seized the collapsing bank headquartered in Pasadena.

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Ryan Carter, Staff Writer
Created: 05/27/2010 08:48:14 PM PDT

Southern California lawmakers Thursday re-introduced an amendment to financial reform that would allow depositors at the failed Pasadena- based IndyMac Bank to recoup about $233 million in lost savings.

The amendment, called the Indy Act, would make a federal deposit insurance cap of $250,000 retroactive to the time IndyMac failed in July 2008.

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Reps. Dreier, Miller in races before fall election
Rebecca Kimitch, Staff Writer
Created: 05/22/2010 10:25:14 PM PDT

Amid the campaign signs that have sprouted up in the 42nd Congressional District are ones that take a negative tone unusual for a lawn sign.

“Don’t elect tax fraud Phil Liberatore,” the signs read.

They are the work of Rep. Gary Miller, R-Brea.

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Migration calls soar

Stephen Wall, Staff Writer
Posted: 05/15/2010 10:45:13 PM PDT

It’s been a banner year for a toll-free tip line that citizens can call to report immigration violations.

Fueled in part by citizens fed up with illegal immigration, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials received nearly 100,000 calls to the tip line from Oct. 1 through the end of April.

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James Rufus Koren, Staff Writer
Created: 03/13/2010 06:07:29 AM PST

Pledges by Washington lawmakers to limit or ban earmarks have been praised by critics of the controversial practice, but local beneficiaries of the millions in federal dollars worry the move could hurt the Inland Empire economy.

House Democratic leaders announced last week they would ban all earmarks – funding secured by members of Congress for projects in their districts – directed toward for-profit companies. The next day, House Republicans went a step further, pledging a one-year moratorium on all earmarks.

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James Rufus Koren, Staff Writer
Posted: 03/11/2010 06:01:46 PM PST

Local lawmakers lauded moves by both parties to curb the practice of earmarking, which critics have said is commonly tainted by corruption.

Democratic leaders on Wednesday said they would ban earmarks – spending requests for specific projects in lawmakers’ home districts – directed to for-profit companies. Republicans one-upped Democrats on Thursday by committing to a ban on all earmarks for the coming year.

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Babies of illegals would not receive citizenship

Stephen Wall, Staff Writer
Posted: 02/14/2010 09:11:01 AM PST

Republican lawmakers in Congress are sponsoring a bill that seeks to abolish birthright citizenship for children born in the United States to illegal immigrant parents.

Federal law automatically grants citizenship to any person born on American soil, regardless of the immigration status of the child’s parents.

Supporters of the bill say that many people come to this country for the express purpose of having children who are American citizens, making the family eligible for welfare and other government benefits.

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James Rufus Koren, Staff Writer
Posted: 01/13/2010 05:24:24 PM PST

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will travel to Washington next week to ask federal officials for nearly $7 billion to help balance the state’s budget – a plan lawmakers and the state’s nonpartisan fiscal analyst say won’t pan out.

Schwarzenegger says the feds owe California $6.9 billion because of the state cost of federal programs and because California creates more federal tax revenue than the state ultimately receives from Washington. Over the weekend, he told NBC’s “Meet the Press” that he plans to push for that money by meeting with California’s Congressional delegation, which he said has not been “representing us really well in this case.”

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