So you’ve put off getting your act together about the election because it’s not as fun as watching cat videos on Facebook, right? Or you’ve been off the grid for six months. Or you just can’t stand all that political bullshit but need an “I Voted” sticker to impress your co-workers.

Now it’s time to vote and you have no friggin clue as to what’s what and who’s who. Or you’ve got questions. Or you’ve realized that it’s really, really, important to vote all the way down the ballot because not voting is how bad candidates get elected.

Fear not. We’re here to help. And if you don’t like our choices, we’ll tell you where to go for further information.   [Read more…]

Today (November 1) is Congressman Darrell Issa’s sixty-third birthday.

He’s worked hard in recent years, using the powers of his office to deny Georgetown University law student Sandra Fluke ability to testify on birth control and failing to come up with even one conclusive investigation into the Obama administration despite promising the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform would hold investigative hearings “seven hearings a week, times 40 weeks.”

The Republican leadership denied Issa’s request for an extended tenure as committee chair in 2014, due primarily to a lack of results. This wasn’t such a big deal back in the days of the Bush administration when Issa used his perch to block investigation of 22 million missing White House emails. But with Barack Obama in the driver’s seat, the party expected results and got nothing but posturing designed to build the Issa brand.   [Read more…]

The campaign season is almost over, and like an unsupervised five-year-old later in the evening on Halloween, most of us are sick of it.

Was it the candy corn or the M&M’s that pushed us over the edge? We’ll probably never know, but the one sure cure for all this queasiness is to cast your ballot. Consider it a metaphor for throwing up. Do it and you’ll feel better, honest.

As is true with hustling candy from strangers, one person’s political treat is another’s trick. So with that in mind, here’s a rundown of what I found in my bag of politics from over the weekend.   [Read more…]

“What a difference this is. Just thinking to myself right now, we should just cancel the election, and just give it to Trump, right? What are we even having it for?”–Donald J Trump, October 27, 2016

Right after I hit “publish” on this column, I’m headed to the post office to mail my ballot.

It will be filled out all the way through to the best of my ability because down-ballot races are important. It will have two stamps because we have a lot to vote on. It will be signed because it won’t count otherwise. It will be filled in with a pen, rather than a marker, so the ink doesn’t bleed thru and invalidate a vote. And it will be mailed in time to be included in the first election night results.

There are people out there who don’t want me (and you) to cast a ballot… Nihilists who say ‘elections don’t matter’ from behind the screen in their self-imposed intellectual prisons. Scornful sore losers, sure their petulant protest will bring about the collapse of the system. And the alt-right types who would destroy representative Democracy in favor of strong man rule.   [Read more…]

Barring unforeseen circumstances, Hillary Clinton will be elected as the next President of the United States on November 8, 2016. What remains to be seen is the margin of victory.

As of this morning, nearly 9 million people have already voted. Over the next week-and-a-half, as many as 40 million more people are going to head to the polls. Democrats are doing well in places like Virginia, Florida, Nevada and North Carolina. Republicans are outpacing 2012 levels in Ohio and Iowa. There is no path for Donald Trump if he loses just one of those states.

As much as some talking heads want us to believe the race for the nation’s top job is still an open question, it’s not. Watching some of these clowns try to spin the mounting evidence about the likely outcome would be humorous if it wasn’t so pathetic. And, of course, YOU still must vote.   [Read more…]

Attack mailers alleging District 9 City Council candidate Georgette Gomez is under “investigation” for “failing to disclose finacial interests” paid for by the Encinitas-based Public Safety Advocates PAC appeared in mailboxes this week.

Despite the committee’s name, it’s historically been funded by development interests. Local Democrats were quick to point out the $15,000 in contributions to the group came from individuals who are also funding Donald Trump’s campaign for president. Trump donors supporting the PAC include Republican mega-donors Tom Sudberry and Lance Waite.

Public records indicate that a second mailer from the PAC is in the works, along with another mailer paid for by the San Diego Police Officers Association. The San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce has also ponied up $25,000 to support the anti-Gomez effort.   [Read more…]

(Unless YOU don’t vote!)

The third debate was by far the best of the three. Not that it was fun to watch. Or that voters were offered substantive policy ideas. As was true with all the debates, questions about climate change were left on the cutting room floor.

Moderator Chris Wallace ran a tight ship for the most part (more on this later). Donald Trump lasted for 30 minutes before his blood sugar crashed. And Hillary Clinton showed some real passion on a woman’s right to choose.

There were quips–“nasty woman”, “bad hombre.” There were slips– can somebody please explain GDP to Trump? And there was the drip, drip, drip of Hillary Clinton making the case that her opponent simply wasn’t fit for the job.

In the end, the debate will be remembered for Trump’s refusal at the end to commit to accepting the results of the election.   [Read more…]