Political news, analysis, commentary and more about California and beyond

The Calbuzz Content Preparation, Generation and Presentation Division was overwhelmed by the terrific submissions of  Jerry Brown haikus from readers and we had a difficult decision picking the winners.

Such smart readers — remembering Jacques Barzaghi, the Plymouth and so much more of the atmospherics that make Crusty the General such a delight to have as a candidate, whether he wins or loses.

The team of Cone and Sicilia, however, offered the best bribes and since Mike is a Phillies fan and is constantly overshadowed by his talented wife, we were full of pity and mercy.

1. Gavin does not smile
when he reads about the polls.
The Old Man’s got legs.
—  Lucinda Cone and Michael Sicilia

2. In his winter years
the old lone wolf hunts again,
seeking a new pack
— Hap Freund

3. Barzaghi no more.
Can a Gust blow strong enough?
Paddle our canoe.
— Ave7

4. Thirty years later,
“This time I will get it right,”
should be his slogan.
—  Rob Feraru

5. What’s my legacy?
Moonbeam to Metamucil?
Tune up the Plymouth.
— Rob Gunnison

6. Governor Moonbeam:
Remembering the old days.
Wanna try again?
— Deborah Zimmer

Special suck-up award:

All things Brown and Prince,
eMeg, Dudley and Commish.
Calbuzz is the link.
— Steve Glazer

All we can say is:
Calbuzz Haiku posts
Poets of politics bloom
Fine lines here and now

Read all the rest of the wonderful haikus that were entered here.

Press Clips: Kudos to Rob Hotakainen of the B- for a heads-up story noting that Dianne Feinstein has angered California labor groups with her refusal to back the Employee Free Choice Act, the top priority for unions across the nation. But what’s with the copy desk tagging her a “Labor Stalwart” in the hed? Our online dictionary defines stalwart as “one who steadfastly supports an organization or cause” and, as we’ve reported, Senator DiFi  has a looong history of placating business on issues involving her purported friends in labor, hanging out there in the middle of the road, along with the yellow stripes and furry squished varmints.

Boxer rebellion: Over at Red County conservative blogger Eric Ingemunson previews a Republican line of attack against Barbara Boxer, namely her dismal record in getting anything actually passed in the Senate. Which may explain why Babs rolled out everything but blaring trumpets at a flag-festooned press conference about cap-and-trade climate change legislation this week.

But wait: the Boxer bill, once the defining measure of her alleged, um, Senate agenda,  somewhere along the way became the Kerry-Boxer bill. And the Massachusetts Senator joined South Carolina Republican Lindsey Graham to pen a high-profile NYT op-ed promoting a bipartisan solution on the issue, which seemed to shunt aside Boxer’s trademark, left-handed  take-no-prisoners approach to all things political.  And while we’re at it: What’s with the celebrity shades Senator Babs? Has your latest literary effort made you so famous you need to duck the unruly,  autograph seeking hordes of hoi polloi ?

Republican Senate wannabe Chuck DeVore, still reveling in his Bash Carly Fiorina Tour, meanwhile offers a novel rationale for his candidacy, in a great quote captured by wily Padres veteran John Marelius:

“Would you rather lose on principle or would you rather lose when the public doesn’t even know why there’s a race, where there are no clarifying principles?”

Pencil Press Backs Campbell: Quite a week for what you call your GOP gubernatorial hopeful Tom Campbell. Dudley Do Right would win unanimously if voter registration was limited to pundits and reporters, as evidenced here, here and here.

Norwegian good: Among the millions of trees murdered so commentators could hold forth on Obama’s Nobel Prize, the funniest take was a crisp little faux acceptance speech by screenwriter Yoni Brenner. Among other things, he offers a terrific vamp on fjords, and notes that Big O won the Cy Young award a few months after throwing out the first pitch at the All-Star game while  first daughter Sasha captured the Nobel in Zoology shortly after petting a reindeer in Norway.

Why we love the internets and its self-correcting mechanism: This week’s “If it’s news, it’s news to us” goes to Calbuzz for the shameless “Excloo” screamer hed on our expose about email traffic showing apparent Bagley-Keene Act violations by members of the Parsky tax commission. As duly noted in our asterisk-laden updates of the post, Laura Mahoney of the Bureau of National Affairs got there first with some substantive reporting on the issue.

This just in to Calbuzz:
“Michael Jackson reported missing, sources say.”
“Military insiders hint Union troops hold edge on Confederacy.”
“African-American said to eye presidency.”
“Generalissimo Francisco Franco still dead.”
“Pope is Catholic, according to insiders.”