California politics may once again be making national news. Don Perata, who represents my district in the State Senate, is under intense investigation by the FBI on the suspicion of receiving bribes from various sources. Nothing is proven, of course. Yet. And the presumption of innocence must apply.

What makes the story interesting is the fact that Perata was recently elected majority leader of the State Senate, where the Democrats hold almost two thirds of the seats. he was all set to become the most powerful Democrat in Arnold Schwartzenegger's California state government. If he should be indicted and convicted, there will be a perfect platform on which the make a broad appeal to Califoirnia's fed—up voting public to make a clean—sweep of the state legislature.

Stranger things could happen. Outsiders have a hard time understanding how restive the citizenry of this state are. The state government is bigger than all buit a handful of national governments in budgetary terms, spending a hundred billion dollars a year, yet the state delivers prcious few services, and does so fairly badly, in most cases. The highways are a disgrace, something which is apparent to practically everyone on a daily basis. When I travel to Texas or other well—governed states, the difference is immediately apparent between a functional state government and a dysfunctional one.

Stay tuned.

Thomas Lifson   11 24 04