by Jack lee
Here is the main reason why we are in trouble and why many republican candidates have trouble winning in California. As of 2008 the democrat voters outnumber the republicans by well over 1.5 million votes. There are 6,518,631 registered democrats in CA. as opposed to 5, 364,832 reps. This is why we keep reelecting the same old bums and expecting better results.
Note: Oddly, only 68% of those legible to vote have registered to vote and on average only about 36% turnout to vote.
Here is the next reason why California’s economy is stalled: Taxes. As of 2008 we were the 6th most heavily taxed state in the nation and we would rank first today if it were not for Prop 13. Taxes collections grew by a factor of 33X since 1967 to 1997. If you were making $900 a month in 1967 you should be making $29,700 a month today, if your salary kept pace with the state revenues from taxes, so are you? The federal government took $314 billion in taxes out of this state in 2007.
So its ignorant (uninformed) voters and high taxes that are killing CA, but you probably knew that already, I just added a few statistics to bolster our logic.
Source: CA Dept. of Finance
There is also gerrymandering by Democrats that was put in place back in the Pat Brown days. (Prior to Pat Brown? I forget.)
For example, Contra Costa County was once a Republican stronghold. Redistricting gathered in parts of Oakland and the East Bay Area into Contra Costa’s district and forever converted it into a Democrat politician’s paradise.
Clever move.
California Republicans seem to always put up the wrong candidates, imho. They put up the wrong two candidates in Whitman and Fiorina. They put up the wrong candidate in Schwarzenegger. While it is now all just so much water under the bridge I still believe if Davis and the Democrats had continued as they were and the recall never happened, we would be facing a very different political climate than we are today.
Now with the passage of Prop 25 and Democrats sweeping state offices and their never ending stranglehold on the legislature, California Republicans are now are completely and utterly irrelevant.
The only thing we can hope for is that some of the progressive Democrats in the US who now rule this state will go hog wild under Moonbeam like they did at the federal level under Obama. I suspect there is a very good chance they simply will not be able to help themselves.
The only stick conservatives have left is if California again goes begging to the feds. California Conservatives will have to convince House Republicans that there should be no more state bailouts.
My bet is that the repeal of Prop 13 is on the table. Ultimately Californians will have to suffer a lot more under the progressives before we can even see a glimmer of hope that this state might turn around.
More than a few conservatives have already thrown in the towel calling California a lost cause.
Agree with everything you said!
This state is goind under. Just wondering how many will survive and how bad it will be.
Peggy, what I think we’ll see are more deep cuts to balance the budget. That’s about it. We won’t want for services – we’ll make do. We have a huge income, it’s just that too many dirty little hands are reaching for it and we need to spank em and send em home…empty. That’s the start of how we learn to live within our means.
Well, the only clear statement made by the 35% of California voters to exert themselves was to give this “independent” commission a clear shot at redrawing districts. We shall see how it goes.
One of the biggest problems in CA is not really the number of voters as much as the distortion and dilution of the conservative message. I really do not think the party needs to demand a party playbook for the candidates but some agreement on issues for the party itself would help some. When you have the top two candidates on the ballot declaring totaly different messages people should wonder what the party message is. As an example Carly was for securing the borders, Meg was not, or at least her signs in So.Cal in Spanish did not indicate she agreed. Carly discussed conservative social values, Meg did not. Since they both lost what exactly was the Republican message? When you hear veterans supporting Boxer you have to wonder what they are hearing since you can look at Boxer’s vote record and see that she does not vote for issues on their behalf. I did not hear anyone for Prop. 23 try to dilute the “curse of the oil corporations” for suspending jobs and fueling corporate greed like the No on 23 spent heavily to get that message across. I did not hear the Republican hiarchy cheering conservative women. The biggest question is “what does the presidential election of 2012 have to do with who is elected in 2010?
There is more wrong in politics than just the number who vote. I understand the money issue so why do poorer Californians think Republicans have all the money and Democrat candidates are just poor working people who only care about others and not themselves? Do they not hear that the richest people in D.C. are a majority of Democrats? They seem to only hear that Republican candidates spend millions to buy elections. The don’t comprehend that incumbents like Boxer spent the last six years fundraising toward this election. She spent their money not hers that she made on the way from insider investing.
Yes, there is a whole lot more wrong than just the numbers of voters.
With prop. 23 failing we are in deep trouble,
All energy will go up, as will food, etc. some say gas per gallon is estimated at $6.00.
Did anyone read the letter by Robin Huffman, of BEC? She is delighted 23 failed even acknowledging the higher costs in this state.
We have too may loonies like Robin that seem to get folks to listen and believe.
I wonder if some group will file a law suit to stop the madness. Liberals sue when a law is passed they dont like.
One of the core tactics of the entire environmental sector is to make the cost of energy so high that we will be forced to seek less costly and less polluting sources. $6 a gallon for gas is about right if this is your agenda. The smarter way is to make cleaner fuels less expensive to compete with fossil fuels. You can’t do that with a tariff on imported ethanol or the corn lobby forcing us to use corn when other products are more efficient and produce cheaper alcohol.
Nuclear Energy comes to mind, However people with the mind set of Huffman not going to allow it.
Harriet, I like nuclear energy too, but I’ve never met a liberal that did. Given the balance of reasonably smart people to crazy dumb liberal people in CA. we would have a lot of trouble building a nuclear reactor anywhere in this state.
You are correct of course, nevermind 25% of what we use comes from Nuclear. They would rather we burn coal, which is very polluting, but then that gives the liberals something to go after us for, pollution,!!
Harriet … ride your bike to the market … with a cloth bag hanging from yer handle bar … once a day, and learn to knit … and we’re halfway there.
Libby and her sarcasm once again, sorry love, but a bike and an oxygen tank do not balance well, Cloth bag? no, just another thing to wash, have to get rid of all the bacteria that grows in them; rather voids the Organic vegies don’t ya’ know. Besides if I use cloth, then have to buy plastic bags for my under sink garbage pail which, by the way is emptied daily.