Weintraub v. Court
snichols doesn't like it when one of her adherents attacks another. Perhaps that's why she hasn't blogged lately.

Here's what happened:
snichols-adherent #1 (Sacramento Bee columnist Dan Weintraub--whom snichols thinks can rightly be called one of her adherents, even though they agree on only 2 things, because he reads snicholsblog and encourages her mightily in all endeavors) recently launched into snichols-adherent #2 (Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights President Jamie Court--although Jamie might argue that she should be more of an adherent of his than he of hers, she agrees with Jamie in virtually all things except occasionally his choice of tie) in Weintraub's blog, The California Insider . In relevant part:

You've got to love the arrogance of Jamie Court, he of Harvey Rosenfield's Consumer Watchdog outfit, lecturing Common Cause against its budding alliance with Schwarzenegger on redistricting reform...isn't it a little hypocritical for Court to be leading that charge, when his own organization, long suspected of being a front for the trial lawyer lobby, refuses to disclose the sources of its contributions?

Court fails to dignify Weintraub's comments with a reply in his fabulous Arnold Watch , but he tells some of the rest of the story:

A conversation with staffers at the group confirms Common Cause opposes the redistricting ballot initiatives on file to be circulated for the November special election. The group is also against Arnold's "no limits" fundraising practices for the November...

Here's the thing:

snichols knows Jamie Court, and she knows the "trial lawyer lobby." Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights has never, ever, been a "front group" for the latter. Does the Foundation solicit and accept contributions from individual plaintiff's lawyers? Undeniably.

Why do individual consumer attorneys give FTCR $? Because FTCR is the hardest-hitting consumer rights group in California (with an appropriate shout out to Richard Holober and snichols' homies at Consumer Federation of California who recently backed the Governator out of a series of proposals to remove appropriate oversight of various professions).

Can/do the consumer attorneys control FTCR? Not a chance. Believe me, there's been times when their old guard smoke-filled-room big boy lobbyist (whose stale tactics have long ceased working) would have loved to control Jamie Court, Doug Heller and their warriers for truth and justice. But they can't and they won't.

snichols knows that that both Jamie Court and Daniel Weintraub will keep pushing the Governor to do the right thing (although it might be time for Jamie to admit that he supported the recall).