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The Sacramento Bee Capitol bureau has a new chief. Dan Smith, the bureau’s deputy bureau chief, has been promoted to the bureau’s top job, taking half of
Amy Chance’s title. Chance will continue to be the political editor of the paper and work out of the bureau. Smith says “operationally, there will be minor changes. We’re both going to be running the bureau. She’s still the boss.” The title swap simply is a reflection of “what’s been going on the last few years anyway,” Smith says, with Chance increasingly busy involved in administration, long-term projects and developing the paper’s new premium online service. …

Maybe they can lend some of those editing services to the governor’s press shop. This week, Capitol reporters received two copies of the exact same message. Each message came with a “personal note” from someone in the governor’s press office perched atop a list of talking points about a LAO report. Problem is, the same personal note came from two different people in the press office. …

What’s 8-feet tall, 60-feet wide, weighs 400 pounds and is full of hot air? As of 4 a.m. Thursday morning, the Capitol was under siege by 480 cubic feet of inflatable crab. The crab, nicknamed Jake, is courtesy of McCormick & Schmicks, the new seafood joint and bar opening on 11th and J streets. The place opens tonight with a VIP reception after work and will have its formal public opening next week. The restaurant comes complete with private booths where people can draw curtains for a little extra privacy, so you can hold that clandestine fundraising dinner without everybody knowing your business. …

A couple of former administration officials have landed new plum appointments. Former cabinet secretary Fred Aguiar was named to the Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board, complete with $124,000 salary. Department Of Consumer Affairs director Charlene Zettel gets a raise with her new appointment to the San Diego Regional Airport Authority Governing Board. The new job pays $171,648. Meanwhile, Abel Maldonado’s chief of staff, Chris Mowrer, is moving into the administration as the deputy legislative secretary for the Resources Agency.

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