Aaron, I suspect no one wants to have a "discussion" with you on this issue because you have no credibility.

Notwithstanding your totally ridiculous, attempt at revisionist history...

"I supported Congressman Doolittle knowing full well he was wrong on this issue"

...anyone who read this blog then knows that you were a whole-hearted defender of the earmark process when it was Doolittle who was engaging in it. You repeatedly listed the supposed benefits of Doolittle's earmarks and challenged all of us who oppose the process to not use the freeways, etc, that were expanded.

Earmarking is bad...period. To the extent Ose would engage in the process and McClintock would not, it is a point in favor of Tom.

So sorry if your post here does not generate a healthy debate, but since your "philosophical" position on this issue is that when the guy you are supporting is earmarking, it is good, and when the guy you oppose is earmarking, it is bad, that is not much of a philosophy and not likely to generate intelligent debate.

Speaking of weekend conversations, let's have one about the most recent Doug Ose mailer. I'm sure Mr. Park won't be posting the contents of this mailer so, I'll volunteer (just like I volunteered to walk precincts for Doug Ose, even though Aaron Park would have you believe that everyone who's ever supported Ose in any way has been paid handsomely by Ose).

Bill McClintock is a career politician looking for a new home for the next 2 years. In the last 20 years he:
ran for Congress in LA in 1992 and lost.
ran for State Controller in 1994 and lost.
ran or State Controller in 2002 and lost.
Ran for Governor in 2003 and lost.
Ran for Lt. Governor in 2006 and lost.
Has filed notice with the State saying he will run for Lt. Governor OR Board of Equalization in 2010.

Bill McClintock is from Los Angeles and is Los Angeles politician who knows nothing of nor does care about Northern California:

He voted to send Northern California water south to LA in 1987.
He voted against funds to help prevent gridlock in Placer County (he was the only senator to vote no on this one).
He called a Republican Plan to Help Northern California's economy in 2006, "CRAP".

All of this information is from the Doug Ose campaign's most recent mailer. It is quite an eye opener to say the least. After you're done reading Ken Campbell's new, futuristic cautionary tale elsewhere on this site, you might want to read about reality and how a career politician from LA wants to represent us in Northern California until something better comes along. Now that's crap, Tom.

Allow me to start from the bottom:

There is a reason the state has a $14 - $16 BILLION deficit despite collecting record levels of tax revenue... There is a LOT of money spent on "crab" and few elected officials have the guts to call it what it is. This "northern California help" was a bureaucrat's full-employment scheme for the central valley [I grew up in Chico where we debate whether Sacramento is really in Northern California so I am not sure where you are really from!]

Senator McClintock in his twenty years of service has often been the lone voice against such waste and since each and EVERY program has its defenders who assure us it is absolutely necessary [like the bridge to nowhere or the mohair subsidies that Ose voted for] I am sure we will have a LOT of junk mail from the Ose camp pointing to such votes to prove that McClintock is a heartless Los Angeles politician over the next few weeks.

The so-called vote against Placer County is the same type: When Senator McClintock was reelected in 1996 he began ten years of service as the Vice Chairman of both the Assembly and Senate transportation committees. In 1996 the state was collecting over $6 BILLION of vehicle and gasoline taxes and less than $2 BILLION of that money was getting anywhere near our roads. After waging war against the Caltrans bureaucrats, casting a lot of lonely votes like the one sited by the Ose smear machine, about four ballot measures and a recall election where the reductions in the car tax that Senator McClintock has achieved became a top issue, we now have the average family saving over $400 on their vehicle registrations, ALL of the sales tax collected on gasoline going to our roads and SOME progress on getting the Caltrans folks to support cars and roads instead of bicycles and hiking trails.

IF Senator McClintock had been able to manage the $165 million that was spent recently on Interstate 80 you would have had the car pool lanes sandblasted and at least four lanes of free-flowing traffic in BOTH directions at the Douglas Blvd. bottleneck [in case you are not really from this area, it is still three lanes, just like it was in the 1960's, and there is no hope for expansion except for a car pool lane which is the only thing the feds really let you spend money on! We need Senator McClintock in Congress to change that.]

With the water issue, I would again encourage folks to read what Senator McClintock has written on Infrastructure: We do need water, electricity, roads, airports and such... It is likely that we all use them. Our problem today is supply and not where it gets moved which was the battle over the canal. Senator McClintock is a champion of water rights, which is the critical need for Northern California and for water development which can be encouraged by those who have water rights IF they believe those rights are secure! IF the voters of the 4th CD can find a candidate who will defend their water rights MORE than Senator McClintock then they should vote for that candidate!

Next, I am not sure who "Bill McClintock" is, but Tom McClintock is known and supported by almost 50% of the voters in the 4th CD in large part because of all those "lost" races that you mentioned! The voters of the 4th district know where Senator McClintock stands on the issues and when they find out where Doug Ose stands, this election will be a blow-out for the conservative McClintock.

I hope that is enough of a conversation for you, but I am going to go get some breakfast!

JOHN

John Stoos, whoever you are,

I hope you are enjoying your breakfast.

1) "I grew up in Chico where we debate whether Sacramento is really in Northern California so I am not sure where you are really from!"

Besides not making any sense, I am sure the voters of Placer County will be glad to know that someone who used to work for McClintock does not consider us part of Northern California. I am from Auburn and we think of Chico as being outside the 4th district.

2) "I am sure we will have a LOT of junk mail from the Ose camp pointing to such votes to prove that McClintock is a heartless Los Angeles politician over the next few weeks."

While I disagree that it is junk mail I definitely agree that we will see a lot of evidence that McClintock is a Los Angeles politician who wants to get a job here in Northern California for the next couple years. I don't think he's heartless though. I'm surprised you do.

3) "IF Senator McClintock had been able to manage the $165 million that was spent recently on Interstate 80 you would have had the car pool lanes sandblasted and at least four lanes of free-flowing traffic in BOTH directions at the Douglas Blvd."

Again, he was the ONLY senator to vote against this plan. Thanks Tom!

4) "in case you are not really from this area, it is still three lanes, just like it was in the 1960's, and there is no hope for expansion except for a car pool lane which is the only thing the feds really let you spend money on!"

I'm from here, have lived here all my life and drive that section of the freeway all the time. I know exactly what it's like. Does Tom? I doubt it. You're from Chico right, John? Glad you can come down to 'Southern' Northern California and tell us about our home.

5) "IF the voters of the 4th CD can find a candidate who will defend their water rights MORE than Senator McClintock then they should vote for that candidate!"

I agree!!! Doug Ose will defend Northern California water rights (even Chico's) and keep our water from being diverted south. Tom McClintock will not.

6) "Next, I am not sure who "Bill McClintock" is,"

Whoops, I meant Tom. He sometimes remind of Bill Clinton though. You know, career politician, thinks he's entitled to win every race he enters, self-absorbed, etc.

7) "Tom McClintock is known and supported by almost 50% of the voters in the 4th CD in large part because of all those "lost" races that you mentioned!"

You're forgetting one thing, no one in Northern California, not even Chico, has voted for Tom McClintock to represent them in congress. Doug Ose has represented Northern California before and he knows what the voters of the 4th CD are concerned about. Tom doesn't even know how to get here without getting lost.

Jeff - I do not understand your obsession with my support of Doolittle. It seems like some sort of attempt to establish intellectual superiority. I don't owe you or anyone an apology for supporting Doolittle.

It is not inconsistent at all to defend someone warts and all.

However, now that Doolittle is retired - it is fair and good to want the new Congressman NOT to have Doolittle's faults.

When you were attacking Doolittle - I defended him.

Auburnymous (Ose staffer) - glad to see you are obsessed with the residency issue, just like Jeff Flint is with my support of Doolittle...

Remember Doolittle? The guy Liberal Millionaire Former Congressman Doug Ose was angling to replace long before he retired? You guys pointed your finger at Rico...

Your 'boss' Ose, is the "team player" people talk about who only raises money for Moderates and who participates in MainStreet Partnership attacks against Conservatives.

Keep being obsessed with the residency issue - the voters will decide based on:

Ose's lifetime "F" rating from National Right To Life - including voting for taxpayer funded abortion and voting to undermine the partial birth abortion ban he takes credit for.

Tom McClintock: lifetime "A"

Lifetime "F" rating from Gun Owners of America.

Tom McClintock: Lifetime "A"

Lifetime "F" rating from FAIR - including voting against increased border security to stop drug traffic, voting to give illegal aliens social security, voting to ease residency requirements...

Doug Ose voted against the Defense of Marriage Ammendment

Doug Ose voted against defending "Under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance

Doug Ose voted against Republican Study Committee budgets that would have cut wasteful government spending

On and on and on...

P.S. Glad to see that this blog dissuaded Ose from using paid walkers.

Aaron Park (McClintock staffer) - glad to see you still don't get it. The voters do and will come election day though.

Tom McClintock is out of a job and is only interested in the 4th CD because he wants to remain in public office at any cost.

He has voted to move water from north to south.

He voted against funds to help end gridlock in Placer County.

He was opposed to a 2006 plan to help the Northern California economy.

And he has already made it clear he will be running for a different office in 2010.

On and on and on...

Those are the issues that voters here in Northern California are going to the polls with.

P.S. Glad to see that my comments haven't dissuaded you from realizing that you are not as important nor as influential as you like to think you are.

Aaron:

I am not doing anything other than pointing out the hypocrisy of your positions...if you take that as proving your intellectual inferiority...that is up to you.

As long as you are hypocritical and disingenuous in your positions, I will point them out.

And let me explain the difference between me and you. If I choose to back Ose, I will do so while acknowledging concerns I have with some of his positions, and explain my decision. If you had said something along the lines of, "While I disagree with John Doolittle on his use of earmarks, on the whole he has been a good member for Placer County, maintained a good record and I am sticking with him," then I would not be able to make this criticism.

But you were not even silent on the earmark issue. You offered it full-throated defense...when it was your guy that was doing it. Now that you are for a different guy, who opposes earmarks, you attack earmarks as the worst sin.

That is the definition of a disingenuous hypocrite. It may be painful for you to have it pointed out, but I will nonetheless.

"But you were not even silent on the earmark issue. You offered it full-throated defense...when it was your guy that was doing it."

Guilty as charged, Jeff - but I don't owe you or anyone else an explanation for defending John Doolittle. That is hardly hypocricy.

"If you had said something along the lines of, "While I disagree with John Doolittle on his use of earmarks, on the whole he has been a good member for Placer County, maintained a good record and I am sticking with him," then I would not be able to make this criticism." - point taken...

Auburnymous - if that's the best you can come up with on McClintock - voting no on Arnold's Bond measures and whatever else... Good Lord.

To both of you: I must have some credibility and power - because you both feel the need to keep coming back for more.

And Doug Ose keeps digging into his pockets for more - $800K and counting... you wrote "(Doug Ose) is out of a job and is only interested in the 4th CD because he wants to remain in public office at any cost."

Sounds like the shoe fits.