The CotoBuzz Journal, Community Journalism

Rancho Santa Margarita, CA- While Orange County City Hall has been reluctant to stand up and be counted, assembly and senate candidates seem to be more receptive to fielding Joe the Taxpayer questions. Chuck DeVore did it, now assembly candidate district 5 Craig DeLuz has weighed in on what we call the ANDRES BOCELI Initiative: Assembly and Reactive Senate Bureaucracy Obliteration Cronyism Elimination and Lobbyist Incineration.

DeLuz is a local school board member and former teacher running on a platform of lower taxes, traditional values and educational reform. Born in the Bay Area, Craig grew up in a working-class household, where he learned the value of honesty, work, and cooperation. Craig went on to study business finance at California State University at Chico. While attending Chico State, he became CEO of all student-owned businesses and was elected as the first black Associated Student Government president in the university’s 100-year history.

According to the CraigForAssembly website, “Craig is a widely recognized voice for conservative values. As Founder of Uncommon Sense Media Group, Craig has served as Editor for Red County-Sacramento, the publisher of the VOICE of North Sacramento and Editor-N-Chief for Man2Man Magazine. He is also a featured commentator with the American Urban Radio Network and MAD Moments on Sacramento’s 1380 AM KTKZ. Additionally, hosts his own blog at the Home of Uncommon Sense.”

Craig currently serves as a member of the Robla School District Board of Trustees and works as the Deputy Chief of Staff for Assemblyman Kevin Jeffries. This follows his tenure as Legislative Aide and Communications Director for Assemblyman Tim Leslie.

DeLuz does not want to get into a debate as to whether or not public employee unions are even necessary. Instead, he thinks four areas need to be addressed:

"1) A large percentage of public employee unions are registered republicans or self-described conservatives. This means that they are having money forcibly taken from their paychecks to support candidates and or initiatives that are inconsistent with their values. We must first, protect their right not to have their hard earned money used against them and support the Citizen’s Power Campaign, which requires unions to get permission form their members before using their dues for political purposes.

2) We must help these republican/conservative union members organize within their unions in order to return them to some a semblance of common sense.

3) We must put an end to the monopoly that these public employee unions have on government work. The right to free association is an American tradition that is completely ignored by the public unions.

4) It makes no sense that public employees can give money to those who (if elected) will be able to vote on their contracts. This is a direct conflict of interest that should be put to an end."

As opposed to assemblyman Chuck DeVore, who implies there is not much Joe the Taxpayer can do – if we understood him correctly. According to DeVore "...we have to understand that many regulatory bureaucracies are a threat to liberty as they can issue rules, but we the people cannot defeat them at the ballot box.". DeLuz on the other hand, has some suggestions that are noteworthy

"One way to address this would be to implement zero-based budgeting. Make every department defend its budget and prove its worth every budget year," says DeLuz.

DeLuz adds, " I would also implement a 2-year budget cycle in which the first year of a legislative session would be budget and the second would be legislation. This way, every member of the legislature could sit on a budget subcommittee and participate in hearings where each of these departments would come before them and justify the value of what they do and how much it costs to do it."

While Mr. DeLuz’ suggestions seem to have merit, this sounds very much like a scalpel, where an ax may be better suited. We are eagerly waiting to hear from Carly's campaign, other lawmakers and Orange County City Hall officials.

Rancho Santa Margarita, CA - If as a candidate, you vehemently denounce the use of devious methods to circumvent the Constitution and as elected official you argue this to be the only method available for "effective government continuity”, you know you are a demagogue.

Villa Park, CA - Our quest to find out whether Orange County City Hall supports the Baugh Initiative has started to yield good fruit. The Baugh Initiative advanced by Orange County GOP’s Chairman Scott Baugh requires politicians to choose between the GOP or the the union

The Orange County's Newest Dance Craze: The Mumbaugh! Rancho Santa Margarita CA - A new dance craze is sweeping Orange County. It is a fusion between Irish step dancing and California move. It is not a re-incarnation of the Macarena, Salsa or Mambo. It is more like Riverdance, the phenomenon from ten years ago; Riverdance is a theatrical show consisting of traditional Irish step dancing, and notable for its rapid leg movements while body and arms are kept stationary for the most part. Dubbed the mumbaugh (rhymes with Mambo), like Riverdance it consists of rapid leg movement, but in this case, in complete silence and in the dark, most popular with the politicians throughout Orange County, triggered by what we have called the Baugh Initiative.

Lake Forest, CA - We continue to be amazed at how quickly the mumbaugh (rhymes with mambo), a new dance craze has spread all over Orange County. Not unlike the theatrical Riverdance show consisting of traditional Irish step dancing, and notable for its rapid leg movements while body and arms are kept stationary for the most

Craig DeLuz Weighs in on ANDRES BOCELI