Government

Climate change doesn't turn the heads of oil industry lobbyists, but killing the Global Warming Solutions Act does the trick. This is a picture of the elbow-room-only scrum outside the Assembly gate as lobbyists wait to see the outcome of the Assembly floor vote on SB 32 by Senator Fran Pavley. SB 32 would codify California's commitment to reducing emissions by 2050 to 80% of 1990 levels.

As California drivers take to the freeways this Labor Day weekend, they will be paying a premium for their gasoline that's 88 cents more than the typical US driver. With crude oil prices at historic lows, and California oil refining profits at historic highs, the Golden State is getting gouged.

Governor Jerry Brown’s signature on legislation increasing the filing fee for citizens who file ballot initiatives from $200 to $2,000 is the modern equivalent of the famous salvo attributed to Marie Antoinette upon hearing of a famine among the French peasants, “Let Them Eat Cake.”

If citizens are starved for better democracy, let them pay 2K.