Posts Tagged: official

California yearns to be The Decider

A rally for Democratic presidential contender Bernie Sanders in Irvine, May 22. (Photo: mikeledray, via Shutterstock)

by CHUCK MCFADDEN posted 05.31.2016

At long last, we were to be The Deciders. After more than 50 years, Californians were going to pick the Republican nominee for president! Ted Cruz was vowing to make his last stand against Donald Trump right here, with his back against the Pacific! San Francisco Republicans would become objects of desire instead of an endangered species!

The high-stakes fight over Medi-Cal

A physician on the night shift examining a CT scan. (Photo: Beerkoff, via Shutterstock)

by CHUCK MCFADDEN posted 09.08.2015

It’s all about coming up with a plan to hang onto the $1.1 billion in matching funds the feds ship to California each year to help finance MediCal, the immense program that provides health care to about 12.5 million of California’s poorest patients. MediCal is larger than ever now because of the Affordable Care Act, which added more than four million Californians to the millions already receiving MediCal coverage

Is the governor house hunting?

The governor's mansion, now a state historical park, in downtown Sacramento at 16th and H Streets. (Photo: Kensly, Google Earth)

by JOHN HOWARD posted 07.02.2015

California’s iconic, 138-year-old governor’s mansion, commanding a busy downtown intersection less than a mile from the Capitol, is getting spruced up and may even become home, once again, to California governors.

State urged to take lead in probing police-custody deaths

Demonstrators protesting police conduct at a gathering in Capitol Park, Sacramento, October 2014. (Photo: Rachael Towne)

by SAMANTHA GALLEGOS posted 05.18.2015

An effort is under way to make California the first state in the nation to have its top law enforcement officer independently investigate deaths in police custody, bypassing the prosecutors in California’s 58 counties. Under the plan, the state attorney general would appoint a special prosecutor to direct an investigation when a civilian dies as a result of deadly physical force by a peace officer.

He’s back — in his official portait

Former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger poses with his official portrait after it was unveiled at the Capitol in Sacramento, Calif., Monday, Sept. 8, 2014. The photograph-like giant image of the former governor was done by Austrian artist Gottfried Helnwein and will hang on the third floor of the Capitol. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

by SAMANTHA GALLEGOS posted 09.08.2014

Arnold Schwarzenegger returned to the Capitol today for the first time since leaving office as governor nearly four years ago to unveil his official – and massive – executive portrait. The big painting — it’s about seven feet long by five feet wide — will be the largest portrait of a governor hanging on the walls of the state Capitol.

Study: Stakes high for internet poker

A computer keyboard flanked by the elements of traditional poker. (Photo: Pedro Sala)

by SAMANTHA GALLEGOS posted 05.28.2014

As negotiations intensify over establishing internet poker in California, a study commissioned by several casino-owning tribes says online gaming could result in $845 million in revenue and more than 2,600 new jobs by 2020. The figures stem in part from an analysis of legislation that was considered – and rejected — by lawmakers last year. Similar legislation is the focus of negotiations this year, but so far an agreement has proven elusive.

Jim Brulte, who served as GOP leader in both the Assembly and Senate, heads the California Republican Party – not exactly a dream job in a state dominated by Democrats. Exactly a year into his new gig, Brulte faces a basic problem: Can he put Republicans on the road to a political comeback? It’s a long, difficult journey back and the challenges are daunting.

Well over half of California’s 120 state legislators come from local government – the 450-plus city councils, the 58 boards of supervisors, the 1,100 school districts and the other local bodies that do the heavy lifting of day-today governance.

But once they get to Sacramento, the perspective changes. And if blaming Sacramento is common at