UC Irvine neurobiologist Hans Keirstead, a Democrat running for Congress against Rep. Dana Rohrabacher in Orange County. (Photo: UC Irvine)A relatively obscure stem cell scientist last week one-upped — sort of — one of the more powerful lawmakers in the United States Senate. It was not a direct, head-to-head contest — just sort of a rough comparison involving Democratic politics in California.
Outside the House office of California Republican Congressman Darrell Issa, who plans to retire, following an apparent uptick in Democratic strength in his district. (Photo: Katherine Welles)>The national narrative on the 2018 election goes something like this: The first midterm election of a new president always goes strongly against the party in power. President Trump has been more unpopular in his first term than any in the modern age of polling, so this could get very bad for Republicans.
Gov. Jerry Brown presents his 2018-19 budget draft to the Legislature. (Photo: Corben Wilson, Capitol Weekly)On Jan. 10, the governor presented his initial 2018‑19 budget plan to the Legislature. In this report, the Legislative Analyst provides a brief summary of the governor’s proposed budget. (In the coming weeks, the LAO will analyze the plan more thoroughly and release several additional budget analysis publications.)
People in support of the Affordable Care Act rally in Washington, D.C. (Photo: Rena Schild) OPINION: Democrats and Republicans have found ways in the past to bridge the partisan divide on major health policy issues such as insurance for low-income children, the expansion of Medicare to include drugs, and changing the way Medicare pays for health care services that emphasize value. There’s no reason we can’t do the same to fix the Affordable Care Act, stabilize the marketplace and improve affordability and choice.
Since Congress failed to take Obamacare away from 20 million people, the current President issued an executive order allowing young, healthy people to opt out and buy cheaper health insurance. This benefits them with cheaper payments, but as they might learn the hard way, you get what you pay for.
People at a 2016 political rally in Anaheim for Republican presidential contender Donald Trump. (Photo: mikeledray, via Shutterstock) Throughout the 2016 election cycle, Capitol Weekly conducted several polls. Two of them, one during the primary and the other during the general, were targeted to voters right after they had mailed in their ballots. In total, more than 80,000 Californians participated in these surveys. Now, we’ve gone back asked these voters how they feel about the candidates they backed and about the issues, and we sought their perceptions about the political climate. We’ll start with the Trump voters.
Former Assemblywoman Sally Lieber surrounded by children at a refugee camp in Greece. (Photo courtesy of Sally Lieber)Of all the committees and offices available in the California Assembly, few give a better perspective on the daily operations of the house than that of Assembly Speaker pro Tem. Sally Lieber, who served as Speaker pro Tem from 2006 to 2008, describes it as a combination of the location and the limitation that the role places on the officeholder.
A political rally in 2016 prior to the primary election. (Photo: Joseph Sohm)CA120: The 2016 elections have yet to fade in our rear-view mirror, but already the most important topic in Sacramento — and nationally — is the coming 2018 election cycle. After a tumultuous 2016, many of us are expecting the mid-term elections to be a deep and engaging referendum on the current administration and whatever intervening events occur in the coming year and a half.
A young boy taking a vision exam. (Photo: GWImages, via Shutterstock)OPINION: California’s optometrists have a prescription for our members of Congress this year: Don’t lose sight of our children’s vision. As discussions about the Affordable Care Act take center stage with a new President and new Congress in January, children’s vision is a prime example of the comprehensive and economically sound approach to health that is at risk if the ACA is repealed without a replacement.
Hunger marchers descend on Washington, D.C., January 1931. (Photo: Everett Historical, via Shutterstock)OPINION: For those who think the issues at hand are unique to the current domestic dis-tranquility or represent new challenges for inmates of the governing class, gander this: “This is becoming the richest and the poorest country in the world.”