California’s political elite, including Gov. Jerry Brown, turned out in mass Wednesday at the State Capitol to honor the late former State Sen. John Vasconcellos. “John always believed people were born good,” Brown said. “I have a darker view.”

State Assembly candidate, Milpitas Councilman and San Jose budget director Armando Gomez has found himself the target of an increasing number of union-funded hit pieces. And just about all of them are wildly misleading.

Campaign records with the Secretary of State’s office show that an alleged co-conspirator in State Sen. Leland Yee's pubic corruption case contributed money to just two political candidates since the beginning of 2010: Yee and Assemblywoman Nora Campos (D-San Jose).

An Asian power couple, the nation’s first female African American nuclear scientist, a Latino policy wonk, a pot-club tolerant former police chief and a Republican are trying to pull off something that’s never been done in the South-East Bay’s 25th Assembly District: not be Bob Wieckowski.

Paul Fong may not be breaking any rules by letting a lobbyist hold a $100,000 debt over his head during his entire time in the State Assembly, but his latest campaign transgression could be seen as a violation of state law and local police policies.

Assemblyman Paul Fong (D-San Jose) has owed a Sacramento lobbyist $100,000 since 2008. He refuses to talk about it, but consultants running his San Jose City Council campaign say the amount is "in dispute."

State Assemblyman Paul Fong has owed $100,000 to one of Sacramento's most notorious lobbyists throughout his five-plus years in the State Assembly. A review of Fong's voting record shows the favor has not gone unreturned.

Assemblymember Nora Campos is apparently that rare politician who just knows what the people want without asking. So, when she relinquishes half a million dollars to the state, rather than having a properly staffed office or conducting outreach services to her constituents, she’s bucking her budget allotments out of a noble sense of duty. That’s the message Campos’ communications director, Steve Harmon, trotted out during an interview with local radio station KLIV 1590 in response to a report Metro/San Jose Inside published last week. A closer inspection of Harmon’s comments, however, show that they don’t pass the smell test.

The staff churn in Speaker pro Tem Nora Campos’ office is the talk of Sacramento, raising questions about the assemblymember’s ability to advocate for constituents who’ve been shortchanged by ineffective leadership.

Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation Thursday that grants drivers licenses to undocumented immigrants, while a number of gun control measures are pending approval.

Michael Hunsweck won’t apologize for his politics, which is great, because the neoconservative could be a YouTube celebrity if he keeps it up. A candidate in next year’s race for State Assembly District 28—which includes west San Jose, Cupertino, Campbell, Saratoga, Los Gatos and Monte Sereno—Hunsweck will face off with Campbell Mayor Evan Low and Cupertino Councilman Barry Chang. It’s unclear if the field to replace Assemblyman Paul Fong will grow more crowded—Ken Yeager, president of the county Board of Supervisors, already pulled out of the race earlier this year—but one thing is certain: Hunsweck has a deliciously awkward style all his own.

A bill landed on Gov. Jerry Brown’s desk Friday that would give victims of childhood sexual abuse a longer window to sue private organizations that employed their abusers. Senate Bill 131, authored by State Sen. Jim Beall (D-San Jose), passed the Assembly Wednesday and then the state Senate with a 21-8 vote Friday. Brown has less than a month to sign the bill into law.

Joe Simitian wants to run for Congress. It’s the worst kept secret in local politics. What seat the former state legislator and current county supervisor will run for is anybody’s guess. But Mighty Joe will be ready. In the first six months of the year, Simitian raised almost $50,000 through his officeholder account, a good chunk of which came in the last month of the filing period. Fly called Simitian to discuss, and the supervisor was more than happy to oblige.

Joe Simitian takes exception with the notion that he isn’t transparent. On Tuesday, the recidivist county supervisor waxed pedantic, crashing the Finance and Government Operations Committee meeting to argue that the county could get sunburned by a new policy of publishing county officials’ calendars. But could this all have something to do with Simitian’s perpetual fundraising?

Should the city recruit more department heads from outside or promote from within? Councilman Don Rocha says he thinks the city needs to do a better job casting its net to outside talent.

Xavier Campos is a public servant who doesn’t like to talk to the media. For this reason, and maybe a few others, the San Jose councilman refused to answer Fly’s questions about his former campaign treasurer, Linda Delgado, who handled accounting duties for his council race in 2010. Treasurers aren’t usually a hot topic of conversation, but Delgado also happens to be one of the absentee accountants who facilitated George Shirakawa’s embezzlement of more than $100K in campaign contributions.