Senate poster boys

If you're a California state senator and you get yourself indicted, you're going to be asked to leave that august body. But if you're a state senator and you get yourself convicted of crimes, well, how about an indefinite leave of absence at full pay?


Ron Calderon

That's what happened this week in Sacramento.
Sen. Ron Calderon, D-Montebello, faces 24 criminal charges in a federal indictment accusing him of taking nearly $100,000 in bribes in exchange for efforts to influence legislation. The 56-year-old Montebello Democrat faces a maximum sentence of 396 years if convicted.
Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg last fall properly stripped Calderon of his committee assignments after an affidavit outlining the government's case was leaked to the press. This week Steinberg said Calderon should resign.


Rod Wright

Then there's Sen. Rod Wright, a Baldwin Hills Democrat. This week Steinberg said Wright would take an indefinite leave while he irons out his legal problems. Those problems include being convicted Jan. 29 by a Los Angeles County jury of eight counts of voter fraud and perjury stemming from charges he lied about where he lived when he ran for the state Senate six years ago.
While on leave, Wright will keep drawing his $95,291-a-year salary although at least he won't be getting his tax-free $163-a-day living expenses other senators draw.
Apparently, there is nothing in the state constitution allowing the Senate to deny a member's pay. Calderon and Wright would seem to be the perfect poster boys for a campaign to fix that little oversight.
Oddly, Steinberg did not call for Wright to step down, which he said had nothing to do with maintaining his party's super-majority in the Legislature. And in making that claim, Steinberg didn't wink, nod or grin.