That's what the Sacramento Bee is asking today after a private poll came out showing that the U.S. Senator would beat Governor contender Attorney General Jerry Brown by 26%. In other polls, Brown is shown beating San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, LA Mayor Villaraigosa and Lt. Gov. John Garamendi. "If she does get in, it's over, at least on the Democratic side. Everybody, and I mean everybody, else steps out," former San Francisco Mayor Willie......

Lt. Gov. John Garamendi announced today that he is running for governor in 2010, according to the Sacramento Bee, who lists his more than three decade career. San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom has already announced his interest in running as well as Attorney General Jerry Brown. Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa was rumored to have his eyes set on running for Governor, but so far, all signs point towards him re-running for Mayor.......

They keep piling on. Today, "the governor placed a $900 million bond measure on the ballot to provide low-interest home loans to returning veterans of current and recent wars," reports John Myers at KQED's Capitol Notes. And there could be more to come, he says. Three of them could be a water bond, a budget reform proposal and a reform of the lottery initiative to raise money for the state budget. Now that's fifteen props......

Watch out Mayor Villaraigosa. After yesterday's rumors about Ashley Alexandra Dupre setting her sights on MTV reality TV fame, the New York Post found the high-class hooker who serviced former Governor Eliot Spitzer at the Jersey Shore. While she only offered a "coy giggle" and a "no comment" when asked about reality show plans, her mom said, "You'll have to follow her out to LA." (Originally reported on Gothamist)......

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom took his first official steps to run for Governor by launching an exploratory committee today. He is the first Democrat to formally do so. Attorney General Jerry Brown also plans on trying to replace Schwarzenegger and as for Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, he has been "discussed as a possible candidate, although he faces reelection in 2009, which could complicate any run for higher office," says the LA Times.......

Fundraising events when re-election campaigns are imminent are nothing all that noteworthy, unless you happen to be the Mayor of Los Angeles getting cash in another Mayor's territory, namely Mayor Gavin Newsom of San Francisco. Tonight at the Neiman-Marcus store in SF's Union Square, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa will be the central feature of an "invitation-only champagne reception" which is "expected to raise tens of thousands of dollars for his re-election bid next spring," reports SF......

Notice I didn't write "Governator." It's important to start off on the right foot here, meaning the correct one, not the opposite of left. Anyway, as a former substitute teacher in the nation's second largest school district, a parent, and a concerned Angeleno, I would like to pose a simple question to you. What the fuck are you doing? Your plan to cut $350 million from the LAUSD budget is appauling, and you should......

Not even a week after her unmasking, the woman who serviced New York Governor Eliot Spitzer is posing scantily clad in an exclusive New York Post photo shoot. And as many predicted, no doubt, this will all lead to fame, of some sort, for call girl Ashley Alexandra Dupre who went by the name 'Kristen' while working for the Emperors VIP Club. Access Hollywood executive producer Rob Silverstein told the NY Daily News, "At the......

As the country waits to see what the future holds for crusader turned illicit copulater Eliot Spitzer, it is worth examining what impact his prostitute predilection might have on the Democratic Party. Spitzer, the once immensely popular governor of New York that swept into office with 70 percent of the vote, was an early and avid supporter of Hillary Clinton. He is a Clinton superdelegate and helped solidify the support she enjoys in the state......

The Flat Stanley project was started in 1995 by Dale Hubert, a Canadian schoolteacher. The project is based on the title character in Flat Stanley, a 1964 children's book. In the book, Stanley Lambchop is squished flat, which gives him unique abilities, like being able to slide under doors and travel in envelopes. The project is intended to increase literacy and educate children about geography. Classes participating in the Flat Stanley Project make their......

Governor Schwarzenegger announced today where some of the Proposition 1B, the $20 billion infrastructure bond approved by us voters in 2006, will go... right here in Los Angeles: 12 miles of bus lane on Wilshire Blvd. ($5 million) Expo Line ($73.5 million unevenly split between Phase I and II) 95 new natural gas busses ($50 million) Bus rehab ($27.5 million)......

"Sister Cities" | Photo by Stephanie Asher via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr An update on yesterday's Harbor-Gateway shooting of a 6-year-old in a car. LAPD Chief Bratton announced: "We are very confident that we have the people who were involved in the actual shooting in custody." For the Lakers fans out there, LA City Councilman Bernard Parks declared today as "Derek Fisher Day." 1,817. That's the number of teacher layoffs so......

Photo by Skampy via Flickr For the second time in recent months, the federal government tells California that they ">cannot tell cars, and now, ships to lower their emissions. The Environmental Protection Agency argues that "unlike smog and diesel fumes, climate change is a global problem, not a state one," says the LA Times in their leading California section article today. And the EPA is right, it is a global problem. But time is......

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has begun to get the word out that he plans on running for a second term. According to the LA Times, Mayor Tony made mention of his plans, along with "his most personal remarks to date about the political fallout from his extramarital affair" on Wednesday during an interview on the Charlie Rose show. The Mayor was also asked about his plans to run for governor, which have been circulating in the......

Mitt Romney, by pauladamsmith via Flickr Mitt Romney, a Republican Governor from a Democratic state, quit the presidential race today following huge gains made by John McCain on Super Tuesday. Romney received 175 delegates on Tuesday, compared with at least 504 for McCain and 141 for Huckabee. In his goodbye speech, made today at the at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, Romney sought to end the Democratic march toward the presidency,......

Our crack political team is projecting "reason to believe" that both Rudy Giuliani and Gov. Schwarzenegger will endorse John McCain for the Republican nomination very soon. We've sorted through various flight plans and itineraries, deciphered a number of "no comments" and left several voice messages on Wolf Blitzer's cell. Schwarzenegger will endorse "within days," Sen. Lindsay Graham told reporters before McCain took off for Burbank this morning. It's unclear whether that means today, or......

Topanga State Beach is not one of the state recreation areas threatened by the Governor Schwarzenegger's proposed budget cuts. Reader submitted video......

More advertising on street furniture can help raise revenue for the city | Photo by el monstrito via flickr Today, Wendy Greuel announced a top ten list of sorts on new measures to save the city millions of dollars. It's good timing. On February 5th, we go to the polls and vote on Measure S, which will determine if $270 million will be taxed on our phone bills or not. If no is the......

When the UC Board of Regents held a meeting this past Thursday, students and staff were on hand to express dismay with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's recently announced proposal for increased fees, enrollment limits, and salary freezes. According to the LA Times, the organized protest included approximately "50 students carrying protest banners" who spoke out about the possible fee hikes because of the troubled state budget. Students feel it is not right for them to have......

Mitt Romney is the consummate, cookie-cutter, robot-like Republican. Forget about eliciting animation or human emotion from this wanna-be prez. Even his campaign henchmen lack the ability to opine on, well, just about anything, as evidenced below. Romney is lucky to have 30 delegates on his side after Iowa and New Hampshire. Problem is, it takes 1,191 to win the Republican nomination. The 60-year-old former Massachusetts governor does have one or two things going for him,......

Los Angeles is $75 million in the red and the state is using the same colored crayon at $14 billion. And where's the Mayor? He's spending a lot of time with Hillary Clinton. Naysayers may suspect Mayor Villaraigosa is bored with LA already and is ready to climb the political ladder ASAP, but columnist Rick Orlov at the Daily News says it more has to do with a future run at Governor and better federal......

What will Hike The Geek do?!?! In order to face up to budget-balancing woes and a state-wide financial crunch, Governor Schwartzenegger has proposed to close 48 different national park sites, as well as cut funding to many school, health care, and criminal justice programs. Parks in the L.A. area like the Will Rogers State Historic Park, Topanga State Park, and Pio Pico State Historic Park in Whittier will all be shut down, affecting many......

After declaring a fiscal emergency, Governor Schwarzenegger yesterday unveiled his budget plan which seeks to close the gap in California's budget. The governor proposed a 10 percent cut across the board for state programs, including education, health care and social services. Democratic state representatvies are stongly opposing the plan, including Assembly Speaker Fabian Nuñez of Los Angeles. The Daily News reports: "All of the cards ought to be on the table," said Assembly Speaker......

The law has always struggled to keep up with the fast-paced, ever-changing world of the internet. A federal investigation of fraud involving MySpace could set important legal precedents. The case brings up issues of first ammendment rights versus prosecution of harassment and other cybercrimes, as well as the question of jurisdiction in cyberspace. According to the Los Angeles Times, a federal grand jury in Los Angeles has issued subpoenas to MySpace and related parties in......

Why do all these prisoners love our governor? Because in his budget cuts that were released today, it proposes just that -- an early release for 22,000 low-risk inmates. "The governor says the cuts are necessary to erase a $14 billion revenue shortfall over the next 18 months. Schwarzenegger's new budget would spend 3 percent less than the one he signed last summer," according to the AP. Here is some of what is also......

Federline family values: Fading pop diva and the ex-Mrs. K-Fed who sent law enforcement and the paparazzi into a tailspin last night has lost visitation rights to see her two sons, a court ruled today. Sole custody has been temporarily award to her babies' daddy, meanwhile, Britney remains involuntarily hospitalized. What is it going to take to get Ms. Spears back on track? The homicide tally for 2008 moves up another notch with the reporting......

The Non-Partisan Election Reform Organization, Why Tuesday? only has one Christmas wish. And a fair one to wish at that. Presidential Candidates Mayor Giuliani, Governor Romney and Senator Thompson, listen up! Check our our interview with the Executive Director of Why Tuesday, Jacob Soboroff (who happens to be Los Angeles based).......

So, you know how MTA is considering ridding our freeways of carpool lanes? One outraged blogger blames Bush because, "local officials in the MTA are being forced to take a more free-enterprise approach to freeway management in order to qualify for federal transportation dollars." In a move designed to empower local Iraqi municipalities, the US Army is planning on concentrating its forces in Baghdad as the army continues to draw down its forces after......

CityWatch is reporting that today is quite a busy day at 200 N. Main St. Here are some highlights for the mayor and city council: "The Mayor and the Governor open the action with the announcement at a 9:30 media conference that LA will receive $150 million to pay for synchronizing every traffic light in the city. The funding is LA’s share of the $250 billion transportation bond passed by voters in 2006." "With time......

With unseasonable weather descending upon much of North America, schools getting ready to reconvene, and sports seasons getting exciting, it's a busy time of year for us here in the Ist-A-Verse. Luckily, even with all the things we have to do, we still managed to get together to let you know what we've all been up to. After cooling down from a hot weekend of many badass Sunset Junction Street Fair photo dispatches, LAist asked......