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Author: Leslie Eastman

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Leslie Eastman

I am an Environmental Health and Safety Professional, as well as a science/technical writer for a variety of news and professional publications. I have been a citizen activist since 2009, and am one of the co-founders of the San Diego-based group, Southern California Tax Revolt Coalition.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on February 10, 2018 10 Comments
President Donald Trump and Congress are preparing for another round of negotiations over Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), this time without the national budget being held hostage.
The program expires March 5, leaving the nearly 2 million people eligible for DACA vulnerable to deportation, unless Congress acts on immigration reform and secures them legal protection.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on February 09, 2018 20 Comments
Perhaps the two aspects of Donald Trump's presidency that I admire the most are is ability to go around supposedly immovable blocks to his proposals and the way he stiffens the spines of his fellow Republicans. After the humiliating Obamacare repeal failure of 2017, many weaker men would have moved on to other matters. However, as Trump continues to take a giant eraser to Obama's legacy, he has obviously moved Congress to take a more piecemeal approach to ending the onerous health insurance regulations promulgated under his predecessor.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on February 04, 2018 13 Comments
The weekend, I discussed that Trump Derangement Syndrome had affected the America media so badly that it distorted its space-time continuum. It appears fewer people want to travel to #Planet Resistance, which led the #FakeNews makers purchased fake Twitter followers to promote their alternative reality.
Big media outlets have embraced Twitter as a distribution platform but still struggle with how reporters and editors use the social media service, particularly when they appear to be breaching journalism ethics.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on February 03, 2018 43 Comments
American automakers are trapped between the regulatory-crushing Godzilla that is President Donald Trump and the green-energy monsters that pervade California's state political system. The nation's car industry is unsure whether to promote traditional, fossil-fuel using vehicles (which are becoming exceptionally cost efficient to run in the era of fracking), or bend to excessive political pressure and force more electric cars onto the market.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on February 02, 2018 20 Comments
On January 13, we covered the reports that a false alert about a ballistic missile headed toward Hawaii was sent to cellphones there, urging people to seek immediate shelter. There were many troubling consequences as a result of that alert being issued, including parents placing their small children in sewers with potentially hazardous conditions.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on January 28, 2018 63 Comments
Legal Insurrection readers will recall the California legislature's attempt to create a special government fund as a "charity" for taxpayer donations to mitigate the loss of state and local tax (SALT) deductions in the recently passed GOP tax plans. The politicians must have realized the approach was full of fail, so now leaders of several blue states are planning a lawsuit to block the entire overhaul package. California may join in.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on January 27, 2018 21 Comments
According to its website, New York City's Guggenheim Museum "collects, preserves, and interprets modern and contemporary art, and explores ideas across cultures through dynamic curatorial and educational initiatives and collaborations.". Therefore, when given the opportunity to send a Vincent Van Gogh piece to display at the White House, so First Lady Melania Trump could demonstrate American support for classic art, the representatives at the Guggenheim behaved in the professional and exemplary manner that you would expect from the New York City art world:

Posted by Leslie Eastman on January 26, 2018 16 Comments
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt has been overseeing the substantial reduction in staff of the his agency. However, each of the 10 regional offices usually have a designated head to run the local operations. One of those regions still lacks a chief because the administration is finding it difficult to locate someone wiling to face the gauntlet of eco-activists in the San Fransisco Region 9 headquarters.
"On Tuesday, an oil and gas lobbyist from New Mexico who, according to several people inside the Trump administration, was poised to fill the post told The Times it was all a big mistake. He'd be staying put in New Mexico.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on January 25, 2018 26 Comments
A California law, which goes into effect on April 1, automatically registers people to vote when they apply for a new driver's license or new state identification card. The Golden State permits anyone who claims to be in the country legally, even without proof, to obtain a license. So, logically, I anticipate that California could be getting a whole, new crop of illegal immigrant voters.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on January 22, 2018 41 Comments
We have been following the construction and testing of the border wall prototypes that have been raised along the Mexico/US border in the San Diego area. The test phase conducted by teams of US Special forces has concluded, and it appears that the wall samples passed muster.
Recent assaults by tactical teams on prototypes of President Trump's proposed wall with Mexico indicate their imposing heights should stop border crossers, a U.S. official with direct knowledge of the rigorous assessment told the Associated Press.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on January 21, 2018 37 Comments
Just before Christmas, President Donald Trump signed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that has set America's economy on a trajectory to prosperity and put wealth back in the hands of its citizens. The new rules also substantially reduced the country's corporate tax rate to 21 percent, down from a fairly hefty 35 percent. Now, a pair of California Grinches are offering a bill that would ultimately divert some of the federal savings back into Sacramento coffers.
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