Posts Tagged: hope

Opinion

California takes lead in fight against Alzheimer’s

The young hands of a caregiver surround the hands of an elderly patient. (Photo: Ocskay Mark, via Shutterstock)

OPINION: Everywhere you turn these days we’re being told that government doesn’t work, that our democracy is too polarized to deliver for everyday people. The budget Gov. Newsom recently signed tells a different story. It will help turbocharge our recovery from COVID-19 and make a historic commitment on another urgent public health crisis: Alzheimer’s.

Opinion

California must defend its environmental protection laws

Morning mist and the lake near Mt. Lassen. (Photo: Matthew Connolly, via Shutterstock)

OPINION: The governor of California delivered a blow to the environmental community recently by vetoing a bill that would have ensured that laws protecting water, as well as air, climate, worker safety and endangered species could not be weakened by future federal government rollbacks.

News

Politically, 2015 is a wrap — almost

California presented in the colors of the state's official flag. (Photo: Savelyev, Shutterstock)

It was, as always, a mixture of hope and disappointment, deals made and unmade, the bizarre and the mundane. For the Capitol community, 2015 was also a year of anticipation. Initiative creators were busy in 2015. The latest available figures tell us that 63 initiatives and referenda have been cleared for circulation by the Secretary of State’s office. Not all of them will make it to the Nov. 8 ballot, but four have already, including a proposal to overturn the state’s ban on plastic bags.

Opinion

The Pope, immigration and Father Junipero Serra

A statue of Father Junipero Serra. (Photo: stjunipero.org)

OPINION: Father Junipero Serra was one of California’s first immigrants in 1769. Nearly 250 years later, Californians – whose state is now home to more than 10 million immigrants – watched closely as Pope Francis addressed a joint session of Congress the following day the canonization.

Opinion

Lobbying: A veteran advocate details his profession

Lobbyist Bev Hansen, left, and her fellow advocates in an Assembly corridor just days before the end of the 2014 session. (Photo: Rich Pedroncelli/AP)

While most people have heard of lobbyists and have a general idea of what the lobbying profession is about, few understand the breadth and complexity of this work and the important role that lobbyists play in developing state policy. When I first began lobbying, long-time relationships ruled the process, there was far more bipartisan collaboration, and individual legislators wielded enormous clout.

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