Jim Beall neither forgives nor forgets. After soundly squashing Joe Coto in last November’s election, Silicon Valley’s state senator has gone scorched-earth on anyone who failed to show adequate fealty during the campaign.

The state Senate race last year between Jim Beall and Joe Coto split local Democrats’ allegiances. In the end, Beall won easily. But last week, as Democrats held caucuses across the state to elect delegates, Beall faced off with up-and-comer Evan Low.

Billions spent nationally, two years of nonstop campaigning and essentially nothing changed. But the outcome of Tuesday’s election will help the economy. Gov. Jerry Brown reigns supreme. People voted to tax themselves and Democrats have super majorities in the legislature. Happy days are here again!

The City Council meets Tuesday to discuss the installation of new bike lanes, fees for events at a downtown park and the expansion of corporate office space at Santana Row, amongst other items. Not on the agenda, according to city spokesman David Vossbrink, is a report expected to come out Tuesday morning from the office of State Auditor Elaine Howle, who took a closer look at Mayor Chuck Reed’s use of the number $650 million in regards to the city’s worst-case unfunded liability scenario.

August is on the horizon, which means the local political landscape is about to heat up. Campaigns will kick back into gear, ballot initiatives will pit voters against their more indulgent neighbors, and a couple of the more intriguing local elected officials will call it quits.

The Santa Clara County Democratic Party is attempting to make the political battlefield a bit more familiar this weekend with probably the largest day of action it has held since the 2008 election cycle. In particular, the event, which is taking place Saturday at the Labor Temple between 10am and noon, is going to focus on voter registration in “historically disengaged communities.” In other words, the county party is teaming up with local, community-based Democratic chapters to focus on Hispanic outreach in East San Jose.

Jim Beall made an official announcement social media-style Thursday, telling all of his Facebook friends that he will, in fact, be running for the State Senate’s 15th District seat.

Earlier this month, I attended my fourth California Democratic Party Convention as an elected delegate to the State Central Committee (or DSCC). If I tried to explain how CDP functions, I’d blow my word limit, and you’d still be confused. At its core, the DSCC exists to set a platform for California Democrats and endorse candidates for state and federal offices. Primary endorsement contests generally amount to two formerly cordial Democrats nitpicking their respective records to death.

The state redistricting committee threw a wrench in the careers of politicians throughout California this summer by redrawing the lines. As a result, one unexpected race will pit two local, union-friendly Democrats—Jim Beall and Joe Coto—against each other in the newly established 15th State Senate District.

Assembly Member Joe Coto has withdrawn his request for the state legislature to audit the San Jose Police Department for its use-of-force practices.

The news arrived in the form of a dear-colleagues email that was sent out yesterday by Roxanne Miller, the city’s envoy to the state legislature:

GOOD NEWS. .. I’ve just been advised by staff to members of the Joint Legislative Audit Committee that Assembly Member Coto this morning has withdrawn his request for the JLAC to audit San Jose’s Police Department’s use of force. The item will be removed from the February 17 Agenda of JLAC. Note: A request for audit could be renewed later this year as there will be two other meetings of the JLAC to consider audit requests in May/June or in August.

In a letter posted yesterday to ProtectSanJose.com, the often entertaining website operated by the San Jose Police Officers Association, Mayor Chuck Reed made the not-so-subtle suggestion that Assembly Members Joe Coto and Paul Fong back off.

Assemblyman Joe Coto (D-San Jose) isn’t happy with what he’s been reading about the SJPD in the news recently. Joined by Paul Fong (D-Cupertino), he is calling on State Auditor Elaine Howle to investigate San Jose’s police force