Head to Head

THE ISSUE: Gov. Jerry Brown says the state's budget deficit has risen to $15.7 billion. Last month, he called on legislators to "man up" and make significant cuts, while continuing to make his case for a tax-increase initiative on November's ballot.

THE ISSUE: Former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger penned an op-ed for the Los Angeles Times, titled "Take down that small tent," in response to the Republican Party's recent loss of two up-and-coming Republicans who became independents. He denounced the party for rigidity, urging "a welcoming, open and diverse Republican Party."

THE ISSUE: The Assembly Appropriations Committee will soon consider a bill by Assemblyman Richard Pan, D-Sacramento, that would require parents to obtain a signed waiver from a doctor before seeking personal-belief exemptions from required immunizations.

THE ISSUE: Democrats and Republicans are offering very different versions of the DREAM Act, involving the legal status of young people raised in this country, but whose parents came to the country illegally. U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., is proposing "DREAM ACT 2.0" which would offer them temporary non-immigrant visas.

THE ISSUE: A special task force led by former California State Supreme Court Justice Cruz Reynoso last week condemned UC Davis campus leaders and police for their response to student protesters. The task force blamed the university administration for poor leadership and communication, and a "dysfunctional" police force for disobeying orders and needlessly escalating force.

THE ISSUE: Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., has offered a budget plan with two separate pieces – spending cuts and tax overhaul – that passed the House 228-191 on March 29. Most attention has focused on the spending cuts to Medicare and other federal programs.

THE ISSUE: The U.S. Supreme Court this week heard an unprecedented three days of arguments on the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The justices will decide by June whether the legislation, which includes a requirement that virtually every American buy health insurance by 2014 or pay a penalty, passes constitutional muster.

Voters in 2008 approved Proposition 1A – the Safe, Reliable High-Speed Passenger Train Bond Act for the 21st Century. The California Legislature must decide by June 30 whether to release $2.7 billion in voter-approved high-speed rail construction funds to begin construction on the first segment and take advantage of $3.5 billion in federal high-speed rail funds.

After 30-year-old Georgetown University law student Sandra Fluke testified before Congress on whether insurance companies should cover contraception, talk radio host Rush Limbaugh called her a "slut" and "prostitute," among other comments.

THE ISSUE: A federal mandate requiring health insurance providers to cover contraception without out-of-pocket costs among their offerings has become a major political controversy this election year. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, among others, believes the rule violates its religious liberties.

Unless you use cash only (not credit cards), shop in brick-and-mortar stores (not online) and interact with friends and family in person (not by mobile device or computer), tech companies collect your personal data and track your online habits.

Assemblywoman Shannon Grove, a Bakersfield Republican, is circulating petitions for a November ballot initiative that would reduce the state Legislature to part-time status for the first time since 1966, as well as slash lawmakers' pay to $1,500 a month.

THE ISSUE: All states test students at least once a year in reading and math in grades 3 through 8 and grade 11. California, in addition, tests students in grades 2, 9 and 10. It also tests students in science, history and physical fitness above grade 4. It requires an "exit exam" for high school graduation. Gov. Jerry Brown wants to reduce the number of tests.

The California Air Resources Board last week approved sweeping new vehicle efficiency rules requiring, among other things, that 15 percent of cars sold in the Golden State by 2025 are "zero-emission vehicles," such as a plug-in electric.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie signed a bill last year that prohibits businesses from excluding unemployed individuals from job ads in print or online. Employers face a penalty of $1,000 for the first offense, $5,000 for the second and $10,000 for subsequent offenses. Assemblyman Michael Allen, D-Santa Rosa, has introduced a similar bill in California (AB 1450).

Gov. Jerry Brown is moving ahead with plans to build a water diversion canal or tunnel through the San Joaquin-Sacramento Delta, saying the project is essential for reducing conflicts over fish and ensuring reliable water deliveries. Worried about environmental impacts and water rights, many residents in the Delta and Northern California oppose the project.

Gov. Jerry Brown signed a law ending California's existing redevelopment program in June. The state Supreme Court upheld the law, shutting down agencies on Feb. 1. Sponsoring cities (and some counties) will hold the assets and pay off outstanding debt. The state will save $1.7 billion in 2011-12 from the end of redevelopment.

The gloomsayers have been predicting the end of the U.S. Postal Service since the advent of the telegraph – then the telephone, the computer and the Internet.

With just a few days left before Christmas, you could give that friend or family member a garish tie or a basket of cheese.

U.S. workers normally pay 6.2 percent on the first $106,800 of their wages into Social Security, but the president and Congress approved a temporary 2 percent payroll tax cut for 2011. That expires on Dec. 31 unless Congress and the White House can reach a deal. The president wants to extend and expand the tax break for another year.

The failure earlier this month of the congressional supercommittee to reach a deal on deficit reduction has President Barack Obama once again threatening action on the economy with or without Congress.

Videos of UC Davis police pepper-spraying student demonstrators last week triggered a national uproar, coming after incidents at UC Berkeley and other places where police have clashed with demonstrators. What should authorities learn from this in balancing concerns of free speech, public safety and officer safety?

When Congress passed the Controlled Substances Act in 1970, it listed marijuana as a Schedule I dangerous drug. Some states, including California, have decriminalized possession and allow people to cultivate and distribute marijuana for medical purposes. State law, however, doesn't protect doctors, dispensaries and growers from federal prosecution, as the recent federal crackdown shows.

Gov. Jerry Brown last week unveiled his 12-point plan to overhaul California's public pension system. If passed, Brown's plan would switch the pension program for new hires from a defined-benefit plan to a partly defined contribution plan, and raise the retirement age for most workers outside public safety from 55 to 67.

Congressional Republicans believe government regulation is the principal factor holding back employment. They seek a moratorium on all federal regulations and repeal of "job-destroying regulations." Are regs really hurting the economy?

Gov. Jerry Brown signed Senate Bill 202, which moves all future ballot initiatives to the November general election, when voter turnout is higher. "The idea of direct democracy is to involve as many voters as possible," Brown wrote in signing the bill. A good call?

THE ISSUE: As productivity has increased, wages as a share of the economy are at their lowest in more than 60 years, while profits account for the largest share of the economy in 60 years.

No Child Left Behind, the controversial 2001 federal education law, is long overdue for an overhaul as states fast approach a 2014 deadline to ensure 100 percent of students achieve proficiency in reading and math. As Congress debates at least five different bills reauthorizing the law, the Obama administration is granting some states waivers from the deadline – with certain strings attached.

In a GOP presidential debate last week, Texas Gov. Rick Perry defended his signing of a 2001 Texas law that granted in-state tuition and state financial aid to students educated in Texas high schools without regard to their immigration status. If you oppose the law, Perry said, "I don't think you have a heart."

The bankruptcy filing of Fremont-based Solyndra in August has cast harsh new light on the U.S. Department of Energy's loan guarantee program. The solar panel maker received $534 million in loan guarantees. Now Congress is investigating whether the company received special favors from the Obama administration.

The Social Security system, which marked its 75th anniversary last year, was established as a pay-as-you-go social insurance program, whereby benefits to retirees are paid out of payroll tax contributions from current workers. Critics, most recently Texas Gov. Rick Perry, have called it a "Ponzi scheme." Supporters call it a vital "intergenerational compact."

THE ISSUE: Tuition at the University of California has tripled in the past decade, and for the first time this year revenue from student fees will exceed the amount of funding UC receives from the state.

Speaking in Sacramento last week, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa called for sweeping changes to Prop. 13, the 1978 ballot measure that capped property tax increases and requires a two-thirds legislative vote for tax hikes. "Prop. 13 was never intended to be a corporate tax giveaway, but that is what it has become," he said. "We need a grand bargain with our business community."

The federal surpluses from 1998 through 2001 have disappeared in a sea of red ink. Billionaire investor Warren Buffett and others have suggested that the United States raise taxes on those with the highest incomes to help balance the budget.

With Gov. Jerry Brown's signature Monday, California joins seven other states and the District of Columbia in the National Popular Vote compact. If enough states sign on – the goal is 270 electoral votes, or enough to elect a president – compact members would direct their electoral votes to the winner of the national popular vote in a presidential election.

"The future of energy is not Texas oil; it's California sun," Gov. Jerry Brown said, and he set a goal of producing one-third of current peak electricity use of 65,000 megawatts from renewable resources by 2020 – 12,000 megawatts from localized generation and 8,000 megawatts from large-scale projects.

A solid majority of Californians in 1996 approved Proposition 209, which bars the use of race, ethnicity or sex-based discrimination in state contracts, hiring or college admissions. But efforts are under way to overturn this constitutional amendment.

The United States reached its debt ceiling of $14.3 trillion on May 16. Since then, the U.S. Treasury has taken "extraordinary measures" to keep the country out of default until Aug. 2. Congress has not raised the debt ceiling since February 2010.

Many of us this weekend will celebrate the 235th anniversary of independence from the British with fireworks, barbecue and block parties. While offering a respite from politics, the holiday is also an occasion to reflect on whether we've strayed too far from the spirit of 1776.

Gov. Jerry Brown continues to fall short of two Republican votes in the Assembly and two in the Senate to get a two-thirds supermajority vote to place an extension of temporary taxes enacted by legislators in 2009 on the ballot. Should he attempt an end run?

President Barack Obama's approval rating remains at about 50 percent in most polls. But the jobless rate is still high, having ticked up to 9.1 percent in May. No president since Franklin Roosevelt has been re-elected with unemployment above 7.2 percent. That leaves Obama highly vulnerable in 2012.

My beef is that I don't like being incessantly on call, as it were. I am neither important enough nor interesting enough to merit 24/7 connectedness.