California Democrats intent on damage control after Leland Yee arrest (gun-running Dem a downer)

CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR ^ | 3/31/14 | Daniel B. Wood, Staff writer

[Liz]

The stunning arrest of veteran Democrat Leland Yee will erode, at least temporarily, Democratic dominance in the very blue Golden State. Yee, arrested after a five-year FBI sting operation, faces federal charges related to conspiracy to traffic in firearms without a license and accepting campaign funds in exchange for political favors.

An LA Times headline read, “Even old hands are stunned by Yee allegations.” “If there ever has been a more nauseating corruption scandal in Sacramento, I’m not aware of it, writes one observer. “The notion of a legislator masquerading as a gun control crusader while offering to help a mobster traffic in automatic rifles and rocket launchers is beyond hypocrisy. It’s sick.”

Longer term, the Yee case may fuel anti-incumbent sentiment among voters in this year's elections, possibly giving Republican candidates a boost. “The Yee saga represents a potential political earthquake that California goes through about every 10 to 15 years,” says a political scientist at Sonoma State University.

The size of the ripple effect will depend on yet-to-emerge details. “The Yee case involves a respectable person doing unspeakable things with garish criminals. It's a mix of 'Breaking Bad,' 'House of Cards,' and 'The Wire.' People pay attention, which is why his suspension followed so soon" after Yee's arrest. It may also affect Asian-American voters and candidates... Betty Yee, state controller candidate, could see her campaign suffer by name association.

[SunkenCiv]

http://www.examiner.com/article/jerry-brown-defies-intent-of-california-term-limits

[Carry_Okie]

No, that’s what you get with the Demagogic Party.

I wish that was the case. For example, the legislation that "deregulated" only electrical demand and therefore precipitated the California power crisis of 2002 was written by a Republican, passed unanimously, and was signed by Pete Wilson. Here is a history, here is my account of the causes of that history.