With all the ballots from last week’s election nearly counted, California’s politicians can return to Sacramento, secure that the state’s massive spending can continue. And with that spending comes thousands of job openings in state government. The capital city’s local
SANTA MONICA, California — A small business owner who operates pony rides and a petting zoo is fighting back against the animal rights activists who convinced the city council to cancel her annual contract next May. Tawni Angel, the owner
In Tuesday’s Wall Street Journal, the indispensable Bret Stephens explained why an Iran deal–which he still regards as unlikely–would be worth less than the paper on which it is printed. Should President Barack Obama emerge, Neville Chamberlain-like, and wave the
The Obama administration is touting a new deal on greenhouse gas emissions between the U.S. and China, according to which the U.S. will decrease its emissions more rapidly now, and China will stop increasing its emissions around 2030. The deal
Aaron David Miller, one of the most prominent analysts of U.S.-Israel relations, conducts an extended thought experiment in Foreign Policy today about the possible impact of a Hillary Clinton presidency on the alliance. His conclusion is that Clinton “would indeed
Palestinian terrorist Rasmieh Odeh, who was convicted and sentenced to life in prision in Israel over 40 years ago for her involvement in bombing a supermarket in 1969, was convicted Monday of lying to immigration officials when she applied for
At Foreign Policy, Trita Parsi makes the best case possible for President Barack Obama’s recent letter to Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Parsi’s argument proceeds on the assumption–we cannot know for sure, since no one outside the White House has seen
Momentum–of a sort–is building behind the idea that California governor Jerry Brown ought to run for President in 2016. On Friday, the same day that former San Francisco mayor Willie Brown argued that Hillary Clinton might lose after all unless
Ema Shah is a superstar in Kuwait and the Arab world. Known for her singing and her musical style, which blends pop and classical influences, she is also a pioneer for women in the region, choosing to dress as she
Loretta Lynch, President Barack Obama’s choice to replace Eric Holder as Attorney General, would likely sail through confirmation hearings under normal circumstances–i.e. even when Democrats had not gutted the filibuster rule in a cynical act of partisanship, and when the
Veteran California politician Willie Brown has warned this weekend that presumptive Democratic Party presidential nominee Hillary Clinton “is going to lose” in 2016 “[u]nless there are some serious readjustments to the Democratic operation.” Brown made his remarks in his regular
The Ivanpah solar project, partly owned by Google, is now seeking a $539 million federal grant to help pay off a controversial $1.6 billion loan it has already received from taxpayers. The project, notorious for frying birds in midair with
LOS ANGELES, California — On Sunday, Nov. 9, the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall passed without notice in West Los Angeles. Whether that is because we have forgotten the significance of that event, or because communism
On Thursday, the Wall Street Journal revealed that President Barack Obama had sent a “secret letter” to Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in late October. The letter supposedly focused on proposals to cooperate in fighting the Islamic State terror army. Yet the
The most astonishing thing about the Republicans’ 2014 midterm election victory is not how many seats or governorships the party won. Nor is it how wrong the polls were, or how tone-deaf President Barack Obama remains. No–the truly amazing thing
From left: Speaker of the House John Boehner, President Barack Obama, outgoing Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. In back: Democratic Party mastermind and Andrew Breitbart nemesis John Podesta Not pictured: incoming Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell
In 2006, Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad wrote a letter to U.S. President George W. Bush, which was promptly ignored. The context was mounting international pressure on the Iranian regime, especially the UN Security Council, which was nearly unanimous in demanding
There were two messages from Republicans on the morning after their sweeping victory in the 2014 midterm elections. One was that voters had elected Republicans to stop President Barack Obama’s agenda. The other was that voters had elected Republicans to
The Republican wave election of 2014 was the result of voter dissatisfaction on a variety of fronts. As in 2006, when voters elected Democrats on the strength of frustration with the Iraq War, foreign policy was a major part of
Republican gubernatorial candidate Neel Kashkari may have lost decisively to Governor Jerry Brown, but he won more than 40% of the statewide vote, an important threshold that may establish a foundation for his future political ambitions. Moreover, at 41.3% of
As the 2014 midterm election wound to a close, left-wing pundits repeated the error of their conservative rivals in 2012, claiming that the polls forecasting doom were skewed. It turns out that they were right–but in entirely the wrong direction.
SANTA MONICA, California — Measure D, which would have defended the Santa Monica Airport by forcing any land use change by the local city council to go to the voters first in a referendum, lost big on Tuesday, going down
It was a long night for California Republicans, who failed to win any statewide offices. However, the GOP did well in the drought-stricken Central Valley, with Doug Ose defeating freshman incumbent Rep. Ami Bera in the 7th congressional district; Johnny Tacherra
With 100% of precincts reporting, former San Diego city councilman Carl DeMaio appears to have unseated incumbent Democrat Scott Peters in California’s 52nd congressional district, becoming the first openly gay Republican to win a seat in Congress. However, DeMaio’s lead
Tuesday was the worst day in the recent history of the Democratic Party–worse, by far, than the 2010 elections or even the 1994 “revolution.” It was bad because Democratic leaders insisted until the end that they would hold the Senate;
LOS ANGELES, California — Sandra Fluke, the feminist icon who rose to national prominence after being called a “slut” by conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh, and after urging that Obamacare require religious institutions to cover abortion and birth control, has
While apathy has set in across the Golden State this Election Day, at least in statewide contests, several local ballot initiatives have excited voters in several California communities in particular. Here are ones to watch: Measure L, Sacramento: Mayor Kevin
Here is an update how California’s most interesting local government ballot measures fared on Election Day. Measure L, Sacramento: Mayor Kevin Johnson has long been seeking to shift the city to a “strong mayor” model of governance. The controversial measure
On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case of Zivotofsky v. Kerry, involving a U.S. citizen born in Jerusalem who wants his passport to list “Israel” as the country of his birth. Currently, U.S. citizens born in
Vice President Joe Biden has a 1-in-10 chance of becoming the most powerful person in the world today. No–not because President Barack Obama will resign after the election results, or that–God forbid–something will happen to him. Rather, Biden stands a
On Sunday, I had the opportunity to join guest host Danny Seaman on Israel’s Voice of Israel, to discuss the most recent thorn in U.S.-Israel relations–namely, the “chickensh*t” comment by an unnamed Obama official. One point I tried to make,
Once in a while a real “human rights” issue comes along that demands concerned protest from friends of Israel. In this case, however, the usual critics are silent, because the target whose rights are being threatened is a right-wing conservative,
New evidence has emerged that the Palestinian Authority leaders–the so-called “moderates” who are meant to be partners for peace, and who receive hundreds of million of dollars in direct aid from American taxpayers each year–are deliberately destroying the peace process.
Entrepreneur Richard Branson is fighting off angry allegations of mismanagement after Friday’s crash of a Virgin Galactic rocket in California’s Mojave Desert, with critics saying that safety problems have long been an issue. The Daily Mail reports that there were
Gov. Jerry Brown has not been campaigning much in 2014. Up roughly 20 points in the polls, he has not needed to describe his policy proposals for a 4th term, much less reach out to voters for their support. Yet
A California man dressed as a Fox News reporter was violently assaulted in the left-wing haven of Santa Cruz, California during the annual Halloween parade this weekend. A 29-year-old man, Scott Kory, allegedly shouted “I hate Fox News!” before grabbing
You know there is something seriously wrong with the American tech sector when it is lining up its best, brightest, and richest to support whatever executive action President Barack Obama takes in December to grant amnesty to illegal immigrants. Tech
U.S. Marine veteran Andrew Tahmooressi has been released from a Mexican jail, where he had languished for months on weapons charges after crossing the border with three guns in his car earlier this year. Tahmooressi has long maintained his innocence,
Virgin Galactic, the commercial space tourism venture set to launch next year under the supervision of British investor and adventurer Richard Branson, suffered a fatal crash in California’s Mojave Desert today as it was testing a new rocket engine called