Sacramento Not long ago, I quoted Swedish economist Assar Lindbeck’s conclusion about the results of rent control. He wrote that in many cases, it “appears to be the most efficient technique presently known to destroy a city — except for…
Sacramento California officials have been obsessed this year about the ongoing housing crisis, as home prices soar out of reach of most of the state’s residents and as rent prices consume an ever-greater portion of people’s incomes. Absurdly high housing…
Sacramento California voters apparently aren’t the only ones who believe that wealth can be created by government edict and income inequality fixed by approving ever-higher minimum-wage rates. In the 72,000-population northern Arizona city of Flagstaff, voters in November 2016 approved…
The Legislature is back in session and it’s strange to see the priorities of the state’s dominant Democrats. Assemblyman Ian Calderon of Whittier, for instance, introduced a bill that would forbid restaurants from handing out straws to their customers —…
California Gov. Jerry Brown introduced his final budget last week. For a sense of perspective, the first general-fund budget he introduced back in 1975 was for $11.5 billion. His final one spends $132 billion — a whopping $190 billion if…
There’s little question that Jerry Brown has had a long and storied career in California politics. He was the state’s youngest governor when he was first elected in 1975 and will soon begin his final year as the state’s oldest…
Sacramento The newly announced California Assembly’s Republican leadership team is, as I reported, a “who’s who” of “Republicans in name only” (RINOs) — a poke in the eye of party activists. No matter how riled the party’s dwindling number of…
Sacramento California’s legislative session has, mercifully, come to a close. The big takeaway, from a national political perspective, is that the state’s Democratic leadership has thrown down the gauntlet at the Trump administration. If Gov. Jerry Brown signs the “sanctuary…
Sacramento In a Meet the Press interview in March, Gov. Jerry Brown blasted the Trump administration’s threat to cut off funds to California if it becomes a “sanctuary state” for illegal immigrants. “We’re the innovation capital, high-tech, agriculture, $40 to…
Sacramento The California Legislature isn’t shy about taking meaningless moral positions on national and international issues. It’s therefore no surprise that legislators returning from summer recess have been touting a variety of such proposals and resolutions. Democratic leaders held a…