VIDEO: Today’s Dan Walters Daily takes on legislative Democrats’ friction over California’s state budget. Watch it at this link.
So, California Republican Party Chairman Tom Del Beccaro walks into a room with two Democrats, former Assembly Speaker Fabian Núñez and former Senate leader Don Perata.
No, it’s not the setup for a joke. The three are among the speakers at the Leadership California Institute conference today in Sacramento highlighting election issues this year, including the mood of California voters, the possible effects of the new top-two primary system and the legislative races to watch between now and November.
Núñez is giving the luncheon keynote address, while Del Beccaro and Perata are among the panelists analyzing the ballot measures up this year. Click here to see the lineup. You’ll find an event flyer at this link. It’s not cheap — it costs $500 a ticket — but at least attendees get a resource guide book from Sacramento-based Redistricting Partners.
First, it was December, then January. Then February turned into March. And now the preliminary hearing in the federal fraud case against former Democratic treasurer Kinde Durkee — rescheduled for today — has been put off once again. The new date and time is March 30 at 2 p.m. Capitol Alert will not be holding its breath.
SERVICES: A funeral Mass will be said for lobbyist Rod Blonien at 10 a.m. at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament, 1017 11th St., in Sacramento, followed by a reception at 1130 K St., Suite 101. Blonien died earlier this week at 65, as Dan Walters reported in this post.
CAKE AND CANDLES: Capitol denizens have two birthdays to celebrate on Sunday, when Assemblyman Bill Berryhill, R-Ceres, turns 54, and Assemblywoman Shannon Grove, R-Bakersfield, turns 47. Congrats to both.