Sacramento, CA – Senate Bill 1253, authored by Senator Tony Strickland (R-Thousand Oaks) was heard on the Assembly floor today. It passed the Assembly by a vote of 61-0.

Supported by the California State Sheriffs’ Association, SB 1253 would prohibit a defendant convicted of lewd or lascivious acts on a child from being placed or residing within ½ mile of the child victim’s residence. While current law does state that a convicted child molester cannot live within ½ mile of a school, it does not provide for any such assurance with regard to where the victim lives.

Senator Strickland said, “Children who are victims of sexual molestation deserve to feel safe in their own neighborhood. Being forced to walk by the house of their molester in order to get to and from school will do nothing to help a child get over the tragedy of being molested.”

“I’m happy to see legislators in both houses have come together to approve this common-sense bill,” Senator Strickland added. “We need to do all we can to protect children who are victims of sexual assault and this bill is a step in the right direction towards ensuring the safety of these kids.”

SB 1253 now heads to the Governor’s desk for signature.

Tony Strickland represents California Senate District 19, which includes portions of Los Angeles, Ventura, and Santa Barbara counties.

Senator George Runner
Serving the 17th District which incorporates portions of the Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Ventura and Kern counties.

California remains home to three of the nation’s largest container ports at Los Angeles, Long Beach and Oakland. Trade through these ports constitutes one of California’s biggest economic engines, processing over $500 billion in goods in 2008, representing more than 40 percent of all the nation’s containerized imports and nearly 30 percent of all exports, generating more than $10 billion in state and local taxes and more than 2 million jobs nationwide.

With California struggling to dig its way out of the worst economic downturn since the great depression, international trade may well be our best hope for recovering lost jobs and economic activity.

And yet, there is a storm brewing on the horizon for California Ports.

Despite their importance to the economy, the state’s ports and trade infrastructure have been taken for granted for years and the competitive advantage that the state has enjoyed and the economic benefits they have brought could very well disappear over the next decade.

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Independent researchers find policies to CONTINUED »

Stretch of Arizona is off limits to Americans because of heavily armed drug smugglers and human traffickers... http://video.foxnews.com/v/4240637/giving-part-of-us-to-mexico?playlist_...

(Sacramento, CA) – Senate Bill 1253, authored by Senator Tony Strickland (R-Thousand Oaks) was heard in the Assembly Public Safety Committee today. It passed by a vote of 5-0.

Supported by the California State Sheriffs’ Association, SB 1253 would prohibit a defendant convicted of lewd or lascivious acts on a child from being placed or residing within ½ mile of the child victim’s residence. While current law does state that a convicted child molester cannot live within ½ mile of a school, it does not provide for any such assurance with regard to where the victim lives.

Senator Strickland said, “Children who are victims of sexual molestation deserve to feel safe in their own neighborhood. Being forced to walk by the house of their molester in order to get to and from school will do nothing to help a child get over the tragedy of being molested.”

“I’m happy to see legislators on both sides of the aisle have come together to approve this common-sense bill,” Senator Strickland added. “This legislation is a step in the right direction towards ensuring the safety of kids who have been victims of sexual assault.”

SB 1253 now heads to the Assembly floor for a vote.

Tony Strickland represents California Senate District 19, which includes portions of Los Angeles, Ventura, and Santa Barbara counties.

Senator George Runner
Serving the 17th District which incorporates portions of the Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Ventura and Kern counties.

During Senate Floor Session last week, I spoke against Senate Bill 1475 (Simitian). If signed into law, the bill would impose harsher penalties on drivers who text or talk on their cell phones by increasing the fine and making it worth one point on their driver’s license. The author tries to play the bill off as a small and simple fee increase, but that is not the case. Adding a point to a person’s driver’s license is a major cause for concern as it would result in thousands of dollars of increased insurance costs. Although most of the Republican Senators voted against it, the bill passed out of the Senate.

Despite tax hikes, state revenues fell

According to the Tax Foundation, as the economic recession continued through fiscal year 2009, state tax revenues fell significantly, with only five states collecting more in 2009 than they had in 2008. Among the 45 states that collected less in 2009, many saw declines of more than 10 percent—all this despite the many tax hikes that states enacted. In addition to presenting new Census data for 2009 and comparing it to 2008, we take a look back at the last decade, examining tax revenue by type to identify the sources of tax volatility.

California: Overall Change -15.0% State Rank 46

Late Saturday night President Barack Obama sent a letter to the leadership of the House and Senate urging them to approve a tax and spending bill currently being debated in the Senate that already would add $80 billion to our nation’s budget deficit. But coming off of last year’s $862 billion stimulus, President Obama is not happy with just another $80 billion in debt for this year. He also requested another $50 billion in deficit spending earmarked for bailing-out state and local governments. Without this “emergency” money, the President claims thousands of government union jobs would be lost. But even among his own party, the President faces an uphill climb. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer told The Washington Post: “I think there is spending fatigue.” “Bailout fatigue” is more like it. And the President’s envisioned spending spree is full of both.

The Government Union Bailout: $23 billion of the President’s additional $50 billion... http://blog.heritage.org/2010/06/14/morning-bell-the-government-bailouts...

Written By Dick Morris

The drop in the stock market (now about 1,000 points on the Dow) is a graphic indication of the stark fact that we are entering the infamous double dip of the recession, long feared and predicted. The economy is not in a V after all (down and then up), but in a W (down, up, down again, and then, finally, up). And the cause of the second dip is not the recession itself, but the cure administered to it by President Obama and the Democratic Congress.

Consider the indications (data provided by the New America Foundation, analysis by Sherle R. Schwanninger and Samuel Sherraden):

· GDP growth has been... http://www.dickmorris.com/blog/2010/06/09/obamanomics-recession/

It is not every day we get to agree with the Obama administration. But after Sen. Blanche Lincoln defeated Lieutenant Governor Bill Halter in the Arkansas Democratic Senate primary runoff election, after the AFL-CIO, SEIU, AFSCME poured millions of dollars into Halter’s campaign, a senior White House official told Politico: “Organized labor just flushed $10 million of their members’ money down the toilet.” But it wasn’t just “their members” money that those unions were wasting. This year the Bureau of Labor Statistics confirmed that for the first time in the history of the United States, a majority of union members work for the government, not the private sector. To be exact, 52% of all union members work for the federal or state and local governments. That means more than half of the $10 million that unions wasted just in Arkansas first came from your tax dollars. And the waste goes well beyond Arkansas.

In his ongoing battle with teachers unions, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) recently told a town hall in Robbinsville: “My... http://blog.heritage.org/2010/06/09/morning-bell-unions-just-flushed-5-m...

Washington, DC

Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, today released its 2009 list of Washington's "Ten Most Wanted Corrupt Politicians." The list, in alphabetical order, includes:

1.Senator Christopher Dodd (D-CT): This marks two years in a row for Senator Dodd, who made the 2008 "Ten Most Corrupt" list for his corrupt relationship with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and for accepting preferential treatment and loan terms from Countrywide Financial, a scandal which still dogs him. In 2009, the scandals kept coming for the Connecticut Democrat. In 2009, Judicial Watch filed a Senate ethics complaint against Dodd for undervaluing a property he owns in Ireland on his Senate Financial Disclosure forms. Judicial Watch's complaint forced Dodd to amend the forms. However, press reports suggest the property to this day remains undervalued. Judicial Watch also alleges in the complaint that Dodd obtained a sweetheart deal for the property in exchange for his assistance in obtaining a presidential pardon (during the Clinton administration) and other favors for a long-time friend and business associate. The false financial disclosure forms were part of the cover-up. Dodd remains the head the Senate Banking Committee.

2.Senator John Ensign (R-NV): A number of scandals popped up in... http://www.judicialwatch.org/news/2009/dec/judicial-watch-announces-list...

City of Fillmore

CITY OF FILLMORE CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REGULAR MEETING
TUESDAY, JUNE 8, 2010 6:30 P.M. FILLMORE CITY HALL CENTRAL PARK PLAZA 250 CENTRAL AVENUE FILLMORE, CALIFORNIA 93015-1907 (805) 524-3701

Agenda
1.
Call to Order: 6:30 P.M.
2.
Pledge of Allegiance
3.
Roll Call: Councilmembers Brooks, Conaway, Hernandez, Washburn and Mayor Walker
4.
Approval of Agenda
5.
Presentations and Announcements
A.
Proclamation to the Fillmore High School Fillmore Flashes Cheerleading Squad.
6.
Public Comments CONTINUED »

Marine PFC Jake Suter

We are deeply saddened by the news that Marine Private Jake Suter, an 18-year-old Stevenson Ranch resident, was killed this week while bravely serving in Afghanistan.

The Santa Clarita Signal reports Suter played for West Ranch High School’s football team from his freshman through junior years. He was also in the Boy Scouts and reached the rank of Life Scout, which is just below Eagle Scout.

Suter died May 29 while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan. He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment of the III Marine Expeditionary Force, Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. The incident is under investigation.

A candlelight vigil will be held from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday on Bates Place in Stevenson Ranch. Everyone is encouraged to attend and bring U.S. flags. Mourners are asked to park on Kavenaugh Lane.

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The following article is authored by my colleague, Sen. Tom Harman, of Huntington Beach.

Still Missing in Action - California Jobs
By Tom Harman

California continues to CONTINUED »

Written By Scott Stewart

On the afternoon of Sunday, May 30, an Aeromexico flight from Paris to Mexico City was forced to land in Montreal after authorities discovered that a man who was on the U.S. no-fly list was aboard. The aircraft was denied permission to enter U.S. airspace, and the aircraft was diverted to Trudeau International Airport in Montreal. The man, a Somali named Abdirahman Ali Gaall, was removed from the plane and arrested by Canadian authorities on an outstanding U.S. warrant. After a search of all the remaining passengers and their baggage, the flight was allowed to continue to its original destination.

Gaall reportedly has U.S. resident-alien status and is... http://www.stratfor.com/weekly/20100602_al_shabaab_threats_united_states...

Early Monday morning in the international waters of the Mediterranean Sea, helicopters lowered Israeli Commandos onto a Turkish-flagged ferry carrying 600 passengers determined to break Israel’s blockade of Gaza. Beset by activists armed with poles, knives and guns, the Israelis defended themselves, and the resulting violence left at least nine dead. Hours later, the International Atomic Energy Agency released a report claiming that Iran now has enough nuclear fuel, with further enrichment, to make two nuclear weapons. These two stories are not unrelated. And they ought to serve as a signal to the Obama administration that it is time to change its approach to the region.

Israel is an important ally of the United States and the most important partner... http://blog.heritage.org/2010/06/01/morning-bell-time-to-change-course-i...

Written by Robert Weissberg
As the Obama administration enters its second year, I -- and undoubtedly millions of others -- have struggled to develop a shorthand term that captures our emotional unease. Defining this discomfort is tricky. I reject nearly the entire Obama agenda, but the term "being opposed" lacks an emotional punch. Nor do terms like "worried" or "anxious" apply. I was more worried about America's future during the Johnson or Carter years, so it's not that dictionary, either. Nor, for that matter, is this about backroom odious deal-making and pork, which are endemic in American politics.

After auditioning countless political terms, I finally realized that the Obama... http://www.americanthinker.com/2010/04/a_stranger_in_our_midst.html

Senator George Runner
Serving the 17th District which incorporates portions of the Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Ventura and Kern counties.

The average California family will pay an extra $1,000 in taxes this year thanks to $13 billion in increased state taxes last year. And yet the state controller has reported a decrease in revenues.

Huh? Shouldn't the state's revenues have increased after the record-breaking tax hikes?

Clearly, consumer spending habits are influenced by tax increases. When sales tax goes up, people spend less or spend their money in other states. When car taxes increase, some car owners opt to register their vehicles as "non-operation” instead of paying the extra cash.

And now what do the tax-and-spend liberals want to do? In the Senate, the liberals propose to boost your taxes by nearly $5 billion this year to close the gaping budget hole (made in part by poor spending decisions and tax increases).

In the Assembly, Democrats have proposed to borrow $9 billion from Wall Street that will be paid off with a tax on oil.

It's time to find other solutions to the state's budget woes. Repeating the same action - pilfering money from hard-working taxpayers - makes no sense.

What do they say about people who CONTINUED »

Let Us Look At The Meaning of "Inherited"... http://momsandgrandmasunited.blogspot.com/2010/02/did-obama-inherit-huge...

City of Fillmore

CITY OF FILLMORE CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REGULAR MEETING
TUESDAY, MAY 25, 2010 6:30 P.M.
FILLMORE CITY HALL CENTRAL PARK PLAZA 250 CENTRAL AVENUE FILLMORE, CALIFORNIA 93015-1907 (805) 524-3701

WELCOME TO THE CITY OF FILLMORE CITY COUNCIL MEETING! Your participation at this public meeting is valued and appreciated. Please note the City Council and Redevelopment Agency convene concurrently.
Agenda/Packet: The Agenda/Packet is available for review at Fillmore City Hall and online at www.fillmoreca.com/cityhall/agendas 72 hours before the scheduled meeting (but generally available the Thursday prior to the scheduled Tuesday meeting). Materials related to an item on this agenda submitted to the City Council/RDA after distribution of the agenda packet are available for public inspection in the City Clerk’s Office during regular business hours and on the City’s website subject to staff’s ability to post the documents before the meeting.
Americans with Disabilities Act: In compliance with the ADA, if you need special assistance to participate in this meeting or other services in conjunction with this meeting, please contact the City Clerk’s Office at 534-3701. Notification 48 hours prior to the meeting will enable the City to make reasonable arrangements to ensure accessibility to this meeting. (28 CFR 35.102-35.104 ADA Title II)
Audible Devices: Please ensure all audible devices (pagers, telephones, etc.) are off or otherwise not audible when the City Council/RDA is in session. Thank you.
Challenging City CONTINUED »

I recently reported on the arrest of Mexican national Jose Lopez Madrigal in Edmonds, Washington for rape. Early reports indicated that he had been previously deported four times.

However, through confidential law enforcement sources and government documents, the investigative news team at KING 5 in Seattle has discovered that Madrigal has actually been deported back to Mexico a total of nine times.

On the evening of May 16, a police officer responding to a woman’s cries... http://www.examiner.com/x-35821-Immigration-Reform-Examiner~y2010m5d23-U...