By Miriam Raftery

January 21, 2017 (Washington D.C.) – In an inauguration speech that Donald Trump has said he wrote himself, the new President pledged to “rebuild our country and to restores its promise for all of our people.”  

East County News Service

January 21, 2017 (Sacramento) - Assemblymember Randy Voepel (R-Santee) has announced he has been appointed to the following Assembly Committees:

Programs funding the arts, public broadcasting, civil rights, legal services for the poor, violence against women, civil rights enforcement and police salaries are all set for elimination or deep cuts

By Miriam Raftery

January 19, 2017 (Washington D.C.) – Donald Trump is preparing a budget that would “take an axe to government spending,” reports The Hill, an online news site specializing in capitol politics. The budget is based on plans from the conservative Heritage Foundation.  It includes deep cuts or outright elimination of many cherished American institutions, as well as safety nets for the poor and elderly.

Photo:  Bonnie Dumanis, after winning reelection in 2014

By Miriam Raftery

January 17, 2017 (San Diego) — Bonnie Dumanis has served as San Diego’s District Attorney for the past 14 years.  Today, she announced that she will not seek reelection in 2018, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

By Miriam Raftery

January 16, 2017 (Washington D.C.) – After revelations of plagiarism, Monica Crowley has announced that she is stepping down from her appointment as Donald Trump’s nominee for director of communication at the National Security Council.

By Mike Allen

January 15, 2017 (Santee) -- The Santee City Council is seeking a fifth member to fill out the two years remaining on Mayor John Minto’s term after he was elected in November, vacating his Council seat. At the Council’s January 11th meeting, the four members decided to appoint Minto’s successor rather than hold a special election that was deemed too costly.

Congressional Members Susan Davis and Scott Peters to hold Save Our Health” press event Sunday to share concerns over repeal

East County News Service

January 13, 2017 (Washington D.C.) – In the dead of the night while most Americans were sleeping,  the Senate voted 51-48 to repeal the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) even though no replacement plan has been introduced.  That leaves 300,000 people in San Diego County poised to lose their healthcare.  More than 900,000 others receive health care through Medi-Cal, many of whom became eligible through the ACA and could be left with no coverage potentially as soon as later this month, when President-Elect Donald Trump takes office, if he signs a repeal into law. 

The measure still needs approval by the House, but with overwhelming support by Republicans in control, it’s expected to sail through. Even many Republicans are raising doubts over whether any replacement plan could be enacted in time to prevent loss of coverage, how much coverage would cost, or whether some would be left uncovered by a future GOP plan.

San Diego Democratic Congressional members Susan Davis and Scott Peters will hold a “Save Our Healthcare” press event on Sunday, January 15th from 1 p.m. to 1:30 at Sharp Memorial Outpatient Pavilion, 3075 Health Center Drive, San Diego. (view map)

East County News Service

January 12, 2017 (Santee) – Santee’s Mayor Minto,  newly elected in November, will be the featured speaker at the Santee Chamber of Commerce mixer on January 17^th at 7:30 a.m. at Mimi’s Café (9812 Mission Gorge Rd., Santee).

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: Cedar Creek Falls in Cleveland National Forest, located in San Diego’s East County

January 8, 2017 (San Diego) – San Diego Republicans Duncan Hunter and Darrell Issa joined with the House Majority in voting for a rules change would allow giveaway of federal lands to states, local governments, or tribes.  Potentially, such giveaways could include national parks such as Yosemite or the Grand Canyon. It also encompasses all other public lands; here in San Diego these include Cleveland National Forest, federal recreation areas and national wildlife preserves.

East County News Service

January 11, 2017 (San Diego) - At Tuesday’s meeting, San Diego Supervisors voted 4 to1 to raise their own pay by 12.5 percent, an increase of over $19,000 a year. Supervisors will now be making $172,450 annually, after they approved a final reading of the ordinance. The pay hike also means an increase in pensions for Supervisors, four of whom will leave office due to term limits when their current terms end.

By Miriam Raftery

January 8, 2017 (Sacramento) – California has the most delegates of any state in the nation during presidential primary elections.  But states that vote early, even small states, have excessive clout in helping to choose front runners and narrow the fields of candidates in both Republican and Democratic races.

By Chris Jennewein

Reprinted with permission from Times of San Diego, a member of the San Diego Online News Association

January 7, 2017 (San Diego’s East County) -- Rep. Susan Davis on Friday called for a “truly bipartisan and independent” probe into Russian hacking during the Presidential election.

Davis, a Democrat who serves on the influential House Armed Services Committee, described the reports of Russian hacking as “chilling.”

East County News Service

January 3, 2017 (San Diego) – San Diego Republican Congressman Darrell Issa has introduced the Midnight Rules Relief Act, or HR 21.  If approved, it would make it easier for Congress to undo regulations issued in the final weeks of President Barack Obama’s administration.

By Miriam Raftery

January 3, 2017 (Washington D.C) –The first action of the 115th Congress was a closed-door vote by House Republicans to gut the Office of Congressional Ethics’  (OCE) independence and oversight powers.  But hours later,  after media reported on the action and members received a flood of calls from angry constituents, a new vote was held to scrap that plan and keep the OCE intact, for now.

The OCE was created in 2008 by then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi, in response to the corruption scandal involving lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who was later convicted of multiple felonies.  The House Ethics Committee did nothing about that scandal. Nor did it take any action against Randy “Duke” Cunningham, a San Diego Congressman sentenced to a decade in prison for bribery and corruption charges. It also took no action against Congressman Bob Filner when he was charged with trespass after pushing past a TSA agent at an airport.

In light of the House Ethics Committee’s impotence, the OCE  was created to conduct independent investigations, including probes based on tips from staffers, the public and anonymous sources.  

By Miriam Raftery

December 28, 2016 (San Diego) - San Diego Republican Party Chairman Tony Krvaric has named a new acting executive director, Sage Naumann.  But there’s controversy surrounding the appointment due to photos of Naumann making Nazi jokes while wearing a German military uniform for Halloween seven years ago in 2009, when he was 18 years old.