Bill Maze, who perhaps-coincidentially might run for Roy Ashburn's state senate seat, is promoting the idea of getting rid of those pesky liberal coastal counties.

He's even got a Web site, in which he explains that he'd cut the state approximately in half by population.

What do you think? How would we do if we shed the Los-Angeles-to-San-Francisco corridor?

Congressman Kevin McCarthy tells ABC News about the need for transparency in government.

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Lois Henry and I had coffee with state Sen. Roy Ashburn and he shared some of the closed-door drama that happened as the Senate tried to hammer out a budget agreement.

Remember, Ashburn's been whacked around by his own GOP colleagues and other party faithful for being one of three Republican senators who cast the deciding votes needed to seal the deal.

In the wee hours of the Thursday before the budget vote — which had to have been Thursday, the 12th — the Senate Republican caucus met.

One of the senators pointed to four others and basically outed them for coming to his office and asking him to vote for the budget— when they didn't have the guts to do it themselves.

Ashburn wouldn't name names.

Ashburn also said senators went to state Sen. Abel Maldonado, R-Santa Maria, and asked him to put pet projects into the budget. That as Republican senators railed against overspending. Maldonado wouldn't do it, Ashburn said.

Maldonado was another of the decisive yes votes and also is getting bloodied for it.

Also amusing, Ashburn said the smell was rank as senators were locked into the Capitol for 45-plus hours to make them come to agreement. Ashburn admitted to sneaking out once for a shower, but coming back in the same suit so no one could tell.

A few days before the budget vote, he said, Ashburn learned the budget includes $1 million for valley fever research, something near and dear to Ashburn. Ashburn said he didn't want to know anything more about it in case people thought he slipped it in. He didn't, he said.

As we sat outside Dagny's, a half dozen people approached Ashburn. All but one praised him for casting a courageous vote. One guy simply called out "Nice vote."

— Government team leader Christine Bedell.

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So I stopped by the downtown Sequoia Sandwich shop the other day and spotted this sign. Apparently they have created a new sandwich and named it after Kevin McCarthy, one of our local congressmen.

So what is the sandwich equivalent of our fast-rising Republican leader? Cracked pepper turkey, marinated artichoke hearts, cream cheese, onions, lettuce and tomatoes on a soft Pyrenees roll.

Sounds pretty eclectic. Not sure artichoke hearts and cream cheese is a natural combination, but their cracked pepper turkey is top knotch.

My next question: what would Jim Costa's sandwich be?

The California Republican Party won't be giving Roy Ashburn any money when the Bakersfield legislator runs for the state Board of Equalization in 2010.

Ashburn said he's fine with that.

Republicans voted at convention to withhold all party cash from any of the six legislators who joined with Democrats to pass a state budget earlier this week.

Ashburn called the vote offensive —  hinting strongly that it made Republican's look like they are playing the old Sacramento special interest cash-for-votes game.

And he committed to run an aggressive campaign against fellow Republican Sen. George Runner who this week announced a run for the same BOE seat Ashburn is seeking.

"I know him very, very well and the voters are going to get to know him well too," Ashburn said after calling Runner's Jessica's Law legislation a 'bring a sex offender home for dinner" law.

The float in the Whiskey Flat Days parade that carried the message "Republicans Free  Slaves Democrats Free Terrorists"  (pictured in a previous post) didn't set well with some Kernville-area residents who let the chamber of commerce know their feelings.

Here's the chamber's response:

Kernville Chamber of Commerce

MAIL: Post Office Box 397, Kernville, CA 93238-0397

11447 Kernville Road, Kernville, CA

1-866-KERNVILLE

 Phone: (760) 376-2629  Fax: (760) 376-4371

E-mail: office@kernvillechamber.org           & nbsp;       &n bsp;      

Web: http://www.kernvillechamber... target="_blank">www.kernvillechamber.org

To the citizens, friends and neighbors of   Kernville and the Kern River Valley:

We the Kernville Chamber of Commerce regret the unfortunate political statement displayed by the people who created it.

It has never been our policy to allow Whiskey Flat Days to be a  partisan forum.

We DO NOT support this inappropriate act of  ignorance – ours for having it pass by the parade officials unnoticed – theirs, the parade entrants, for their insensitivity and stupidity.

The parade this year had only 4 volunteers for over 65 entries.  We do have guide lines that are available on the chamber website, http://www.kernvillechamber... target="_blank">www.kernvillechamber.org.  Unfortunately, the tasteful decorations portion was overlooked.  Whiskey Flat Days planning starts in Sept. and perhaps you would like to volunteer this next year to help us in this critical area of promoting the parade theme , wholesome family entertainment and historical values of the Kern River Valley.

Sincerely,

Kernville Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors

Cheryl Borthick

Jeanette Rogers

Sheryl Parmelee

Sharon Stenerson

Chuck Richards

Chuck Barbee

Dick Reid

Tina Jose

Cindy Jewett

Mike Ludiker

Ron Gillentine

Kellee Scott

Kernville Chamber of Commerce
P.O. Box 397
11447 Kernville Road
Kernville, CA 93238
760-376-2629

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This interesting commentary on national politics was captured in a shot of a Whiskey Flats parade float published by  the Kern Valley Sun.

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Ok. We need another photo caption.

Our thanks to Wally Skalij  of the Los Angeles Times for snapping this shot of Shafter Dent-ator Dean Florez mid-scrub in a capitol bathroom at 1:30 a.m. during budget hearings in Sacramento.

Any dentists out there able to rate him on form?

Here are key provisions of the state budget deal struck early Thursday, courtesy of the AP, Sacramento Bee and L. A. Times. What do you think of it?

BUDGET OVERVIEW

• Ttotals $15 billion in state spending reductions, $12.8 billion in temporary tax increases, $11.4 billion in borrowing and a $1 billion reserve.

• Asks voters to approve constitutional amendments to establish an open primary system and ban legislative pay increases during deficit years.

But legislative leaders rejected a proposal to eliminate legislative pay altogether when the budget is late.

• Eliminates a proposed 12-cent additional gas tax, which was estimated to bring in $2.1 billion through June 2010, and up to a 5 percent surcharge on income tax liability.

The money will be replaced with a 0.25 percent increase in the state income tax rate, federal stimulus dollars and more than $600 million in line-item vetoes.

• Provides a $10,000 tax credit for those who buy new homes. The credit, supported by home builders, would be available starting in March and run through 2010. It would be capped at $100 million.

Californians would be able to use the credit to offset their state income taxes over three years.

The measure was pushed by state Sen. Roy Ashburn, R-Bakersfield.

WHAT’S NEXT

• Voters will be asked in May to approve restraints on government growth, borrowing against future state lottery revenues, cuts in mental health and early-childhood education programs.

In June 2010, they will consider the open primary and restrictions on legislative pay hikes.

• The governor may rescind the 20,000 layoff notices recently sent out.

• Scheduled Friday furloughs will end, but state workers will be furloughed eight hours a month.

• The state ultimately will resume paying all its bills, including tax refunds. But doing so could take weeks.

• Stalled public-works projects could restart

 

From the Los Angles Times' coverage of the California State Senate's passage of a state budget — with the help of Roy Ashburn's vote:

Ashburn took to the floor to recall Ronald Reagan's decision to raise taxes in 1967 as California governor. "As president of the United States, my hero, my role model, the person who I have looked at for inspiration, raised taxes three times," Ashburn said.

He said his fellow GOP senators had failed to understand the difference between being a politician and being an elected official.

"You know this deficit cannot be solved by cuts alone," he told them as they closed their eyes or looked away. "What would Ronald Reagan do? Ronald Reagan would vote yes."

The Sacramento Bee has created a nifty calculator online that takes your income, number of kids, the value of your car and other financial data and estimates what the tax increases being debated in the Legislature could cost you.

Do the math and let us know how the taxes would hit you and whether it changes your opinion about what tax measures the Legislature should enact or kill.

Note: You'll need to register with the Bee's site if you haven't already done so.

— Government team leader Christine Bedell

We're trying to get a handle on how many state workers in Kern County may be getting a lay off notice from the state under Gov. Schwarzenegger's new order.

Officials at the Department of Personnel Administration, the point agency on this, say they won't have a geographic breakdown of where the notices are going but are rounding up a list of the number of workers affected by department.

We should see that later today.

Officials did say the largest department affected, because of its sheer size, will be the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

As we try to get more information on the local implications, are there any local state workers out there who'd be willing to talk to us about how they're affected? We can be reached via the blog, at cbedell@bakersfield.com or at 661-395-7417.

— Government team leader Christine Bedell

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We need a caption for this photo of state Senator Roy Ashburn R-Bakersfield snapped by Sacramento Bee photographer Brian Baer during this weekend's marathon budget sessions on the floor of the California Senate.

Then go to the Bee's full photo gallery here.

The Sacramento Bee's Capitol Alery website lists Bakersfield state Senator Roy Ashburn as one of only three Republicans in the senate who haven't declared opposition to the proposed state budget.

Since the budget will need three Republican votes to pass the Senate.....

We called Ashburn Thursday. We missed his return call. But he didn't return follow up attempts to reach him. I just tried him again, and got his voicemail.

Here's what the Bee quoted him as saying:

"Sen. Roy Ashburn, R-Bakersfield, said whatever stand he ultimately takes won't stem from political pressure.

Legislators should "exercise their best judgment and vote on behalf of the people of this state, not on behalf of some caucus," Ashburn said."

This just in from Congressman Jim Costa's office:

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the House of Representatives passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (the Act) by a vote of 246 to 183.  Congressman Jim Costa (D-Fresno) voted in favor of the legislation.  The bill is expected to create and save 3.5 million jobs, provide 95% of American workers an immediate tax cut, make investments in infrastructure, provide funding for renewable energy projects, and tax breaks for home purchases. 
 
“The House and Senate have worked hard to come up with a final version of this bill that is much better than what was first passed in the House, although it is not perfect,” said Costa.  “I believe this legislation, once signed into law, will help our nation, our state and our Valley weather this economic storm.”
 
California has thousands of infrastructure projects that can be funded through the Act.  In fact, the state has identified more than $44 billion in projects which are ready to go within 120 days of enactment; Governor Schwarzenegger has stated that thousands of jobs will be created as a result of funding in the Act.  The Act provides $27 billion for highway and bridge improvement, and it is estimated that California will see about $2.5 billion, with the Valley receiving approximately $200 million.  Secondly, $18 billion has been allocated in the Act for clean water, flood control and environmental restoration.  These are critical funds for California, which is currently suffering from a severe drought and an economic crisis.
 
The Act also provides for $8 billion in competitive high-speed rail grants. Last November, California voters passed Proposition 1A to provide $9 billion in bonds to construct a statewide high speed rail system.  Costa authored the original proposition while serving in the state legislature. 
 
“These infrastructure funds are critical for our Valley, especially the funding for high-speed rail.  Each day, the strain on Valley freeways and highways is greater; federal dollars provided in this bill can help improve our roads and help the high-speed rail system to be built,” commented Costa.
 
Over the last few years, California has become a national leader in energy efficiency and green job creation.  The Act provides $3.1 billion for the State Energy Program, which provides grants to states to use to address their energy priorities and program funding to adopt renewable and efficient energy technologies.  Secondly, the Act provides $20 billion in tax incentives for renewable energy and energy efficiency over the next ten years.  This includes a three-year extension of the production tax credit for electricity derived from wind and for electricity derived from biomass, geothermal, hydropower, waste-to-energy and solar power. 
 
“Our nation, especially California, needs long-term energy plans to help wean us off dependence on dirty fuels and foreign oil.  The use of fossil fuels will change, and multiple energy sources will be the future for our children and grandchildren.  These tax provisions will help continue California’s energy program over the next few years, and make improvements on existing energy infrastructure,” stated Costa.
 
The final version of the Act extends the existing homebuyer credit for qualifying home purchases before December 1, 2009, and increases the maximum credit amount to $8,000.  California’s real estate market has suffered greatly over the past year, and this tax credit should help increase consumer confidence in the market, and get families into homes.   
 
“The Valley’s foreclosure rates are through the roof, and while this is a lower tax credit than the previous bill, we’ll take all the help we can get,” said Costa.
 
Following the conference meeting between the House and the Senate, the final version of the Act ensures that funds for initiatives, programs, or construction will be distributed through formulas or competitive grants.  There are no earmarks in the Act.  How funds are spent, all announcements of contract and grant competitions and awards, formula grant allocations must be posted on a website created by President Obama.  It will include the names of agency personnel to contact with concerns about infrastructure projects. 

We received this from the office of Congressman Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield:

Today, Congressman McCarthy voted against the $1.1 trillion tax and spending bill, and issued the following statement supporting a solution that created twice as many jobs at half the cost:
 
“American middle class families and small businesses are struggling. The downturn in this economy has made it more difficult for small businesses to pay their bills. Jobs are harder to find. That is why action is needed to jumpstart our economy. But the spending bill that passed the House today was the wrong solution for America.
 
“When the President first invited Republicans to share their ideas with him on how to stimulate our economy, my colleagues and I reached out and sought input from all Americans. We designed a bold solution to revitalize our economy. Our solution would have created an estimated 6.2 million jobs, which is twice as many jobs at half the cost of the bill that we voted on today.
 
“The President was sincere when he said he wanted bipartisan input and cooperation to stimulate our economy. Unfortunately, Speaker Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Reid crafted their $1.1 trillion spending bill behind closed doors without bipartisan input. This bill also lacked transparency. To ensure all Americans could find out what we all were going to be forced to pay for later, why wasn’t this bill posted online for the public to view 48 hours in advance of it being voted on, like President Obama campaigned for?
 
“Instead of focusing on creating jobs, the bill unfortunately seems to focus on creating more spending for Washington programs. An example is $300 million for the federal government to purchase “green” golf carts. We could have done better. We could have put people before politics. Instead of passing more debt to our children, we could have agreed on solutions that created jobs that last. We will continue to reach out to our Democratic colleagues to work for common-sense solutions to fix America’s pressing problems.”
 
The House Democratic economic stimulus bill passed by a vote of 246-183. The bill totals over $787 billion in new tax and spending programs. Because the spending for this bill would have to come from borrowed money, the total estimated cost of this bill, with interest from the borrowing, is over $1.1 trillion.

Here's an e-mail from Senator Dean Florez, D-Shafter, about the state budget deal.

PoliAny: Will you vote for it?
Florez: I haven't seen the final details of the current budget proposal at this time, so it's difficult to give you precise information at this point, but in general I'm ready to vote for a budget, and I previously voted in favor of the $18 billion dollar majority vote budget that was sent to the governor earlier this year.  So, you could say that I have voted for a budget and I'm ready to vote for a budget.

PoliAny: Why or why not (and) What are the goods and bads of it?
Florez: There's never any real "good" when you have a $41 billion dollar hole in the state's budget.  But in general, some of the good things include: state will no longer be in a position of having to issue IOU's, hopefully our credit rating will improve, Treasurer Lockyer can go back to the financial markets to sell bonds for infrastructure projects to put people back to work, and local governments, including school districts, can now plan their budgets accordingly.  Not to mention the fact that state government can go back to the business of serving the public.

The bads?  There is a whole list of them - but in general, raising taxes is a difficult necessity that folks on both sides recognize is needed, cuts in education certainly hurts, and so do cuts in social services, especially for seniors and the newly unemployed.

PoliAny: what does it mean for Kern County citizens, governments and businesses?
Florez: It means all of the above.  Kern County is not necessarily targeted, meaning that Kern residents will feel the upside and downside of the budget like every other Californian.

The House passed the final version of the federal stimulus bill today, and here are the details from the L.A. Times.

Congressman Jim Costa voted for it, his office said. And since no Republicans supported the legislation, obviously Congressman Kevin McCarthy was again a no vote.

Costa's staff is putting together a press release explaining the congressman's vote. We may get to talk to him later today. We left a message for McCarthy.

— Christine Bedell

I caught last week's Washington Press Foundation Congressional Dinner on C-SPAN yesterday. The very last speaker was our own Kevin McCarthy, who did not make the case that Republicans can be just as funny as Democrats.

Nancy Pelosi started, and she was OK. Minnesota's Only Senator, Amy Klobuchar, was the keynote speaker, and she delivered the best jokes of the night. When she started out, feeling dejected, she made calls to people who've been there for her in the past, and thus set a Senate record, raising $17,000 from ex-boyfriends. The House record, she said, is held by Barney Frank.

McCarthy came last and mentioned that he was filling in for Eric Cantor, and had only five days notice. A couple of his jokes drew more Ooooooos than laughs. "It's a roast!" he said to the crowd. But his delivery was kind of flat, and he was obviously reading his jokes.

You can watch the whole thing at the link above. This is a little more than an hour.

 — James Geluso

So labor is targeting Danny Gilmore in their attempt to get the Republicans to back off trying to repeal some workplace law during the budget process.

They sent out the attached mailer, including Gilmore's phone number. Before the conference call, I called the number to make sure it led where it was supposed to.

"Assemblyman Joe Coto's office," the voice on the other end said.

Whoops.

I said I was trying to reach Gilmore's office, and she helpfully gave me the number -- 2030. They're on the same floor, she said. (This should have been a clue to me. The number I'd called was a 559 area code, but this clearly was a Capitol number, and that's 916.)

On the conference call, I mentioned that the phone number wasn't Gilmore's. They checked into it and reported back that they got the number off Gilmore's Web site. So Gilmore's office messed it up!

Then I got in touch with someone in Gilmore's Capitol office. She had it figured out. The number on the site and the mailer were both right. The staff in the Hanford office, the 559 number, were out for the day and had forwarded their phones to Sacramento... but misdialed, and sent it to the offices of Coto instead.

— James Geluso

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In a real tragedy, this photo of George W. Bush at age 3 didn't run with the story in Monday's Californian updating folks on the renovation of his family's former home on Monterey Street.

This is W. on the back porch of the house, photo courtesy of Mark Abernathy. It was shot, no pun intended, in 1949.

Perfect for a write your own caption contest. Mine: "Bring it on."

Yours?

— Government team leader Christine Bedell