Rose Kapolczynski, a veteran campaign and communications strategist with more than three decades of experience joins Tim Foster and John Howard on the Capitol Weekly Podcast to chat about politics and the pandemic. Rose is best known for running former U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer’s campaigns, from Boxer’s initial upset victory in 1992 in the “Year of the Woman” to her final race against Carly Fiorina in 2010.
Some of the district boundaries of Los Angeles City Council seats. (Image: City of Los Angeles)California has become a model for non-partisan, transparent, open and fair redistricting. The state commission’s focus on legitimate redistricting practices — like enforcing the Voting Rights Act, preserving communities of interest, reducing any splitting of cities and counties, even drawing lines without regard to partisanship or incumbency — have earned praise among policymakers and researchers around the country.
The entrance to Frank Fat's on L Street. (Photo: Frank Fat's)Standing only about 5 feet 2 inches tall, Frank Fat left a big impression with everyone who knew him. Arriving in America as a teen-ager, the Chinese immigrant opened a chain of restaurants in the Sacramento area, was active in community causes and built strong relations with everyone from politicians to ordinary citizens.This year, his flagship restaurant Frank Fat’s in downtown Sacramento two blocks from the Capitol, is celebrating its 80th anniversary.
Digitally tracking the performance of investment products in the bond market. (Illustration: Vintage Tone, via Shutterstock) OPINION: Thanks to Assembly Bill 33, introduced by State Assemblyman Rob Bonta, the California State Legislature will spend time and resources to codify an issue that California pensioners have spoken on before: divesting from high-performing funds for political purposes.AB 33, as written, would require that state retirement systems, namely California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) and the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS), divest of all investments in private corrections companies and disallow investing in those same companies in the future.
California Gov. Jerry Brown takes questions from reporters and others at a meeting of the Sacramento Press Club. (Photo: Rich Pedroncelli/Associated Press)California’s longest-serving governor will turn things over to incoming Gavin Newsom on Jan. 7, but during a recent public appearance Jerry Brown bathed in the upside of politics. “I like sparring with the press, I like raising money, I like attacking my opponents, I like being attacked by my opponents.”
Gavin Newsom, then a candidate for governor, addresses a group last year during a campaign stop. (Photo: Associated Press)Gavin Christopher Newsom is tall and handsome, with a beautiful wife and four adorable children. He’d like to be California’s next governor, and, if the polls are correct, he’ll get his wish. But the golden-boy image attached to the lieutenant governor isn’t the whole picture. Newsom’s life has had its dark times.
Republican candidate for governor John Cox talks to reporters before launching a statewide bus tour in Sacramento. (Photo: AP/Rich Pedroncelli)Republican John Cox, running for governor, wants you to realize a few things. California has the highest poverty rate in the nation. Our schools are failing. Millions of forgotten Californians cannot afford decent housing. Millions more must choose between buying a half-tank of gas or groceries for their families. And all of this happened on Gavin Newsom’s watch.
State Sen. Vanessa Delgado. (Photo: vanessadelgado.com)California has long had a reputation for sometimes wacky politics: movie stars, bodybuilders and strippers have been candidates at one time or another. None of the above are on hand this time around, but the recent situation involving who will represent state Senate District 32 is the most recent bizarre development.
Sunrise in the Mojave Desert, CAstle Peaks. (Photo: sierralara, via Shutterstock)OPINION: The window of opportunity is rapidly closing for Senate Leader Toni Atkins and the California Legislature to save the Mojave Desert from Cadiz, Inc.’s reckless plan to suck the water out from under one of the Earth’s driest places and sell it to water golf courses and suburban lawns as far away as Orange County. Killed by Barack Obama and revived by Donald Trump, the water mining project would dramatically overdraw the aquifer below the desert and almost certainly stop the flow of water to the springs that preserve the Mojave’s fragile biodiversity.
Photo of candidate Steve Poizner from his official websiteThe first person to hold statewide office in California without aligning with a political party could be Steve Poizner. He is vying for the seat left open by Dave Jones, who is running for state attorney general. Poizner’s main opponents are Democrats Sen. Ricardo Lara and physician Asif Mahmood. The Department of Insurance has more than 1,300 employees and a $250 million budget. It oversees the state’s $300 billion insurance market, the largest in the country.