There is a dirty word in American politics, worse than “crook,” more terrible than “philanderer,” and more despicable than “liar.” The word is “spoiler.”

San Diego, Calif.- First reported by sdcitytimes.com, Trudy Gerald, the dean of the Arts, Humanities and Communications departments at San Diego City College, has been placed on administrative leave, according to college officials.

Gerald has not been on campus since February 1st.

Over the past year or so there has been quite a bit of 'jawboning' over the mayor's dream to create a CCA aka Community Choice Aggregation to address the issue of reducing CO2 in the atmosphere by only powering our homes and businesses with renewable energy.

Our current energy provider, SDG&E, is reportedly now using renewables for as much as 45% of the energy supplied to their marketplace and the state has mandated that to be 100% by the year 2045, or just ten years later than the city's Climate Action Plan goal.

The 2020 Democratic field is already larger than it was in 2008. So far, 11 Democrats have launched or formally announced their intentions to launch a presidential bid, and more are expected in the coming weeks and months.

One of the biggest names many are still waiting on, however, is US Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) Is Bernie 2020 going to happen? The answer could come very soon.

Here are some things to look at:

As a business owner and lifelong resident of Michigan, I am proud to have stood with so many of my fellow citizens soliciting signatures for days and weeks on end to get the “Nonpartisan Redistricting” and “Promote the Vote” initiatives on the ballot and successfully passed in the 2018 midterm election. They were a big win for Michigan democracy and important steps on a journey to a more representative government.

Yet, there remains a large obstruction in our path to achieving a healthy, functioning government in Michigan.

San Diego, Calif.- IVN has learned communities will likely be seeing a budget squeeze due to historically high overtime increases for the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department, according to the mid-year budget report by the city's independent budget analyst.

The presidential field is quickly emerging for the 2020 election. Ten Democrats have already officially launched their campaigns  Meanwhile, President Trump is still waiting to see if he will face a primary challenge at all.

Regardless of political party, the partisan presidential primary process determines not only which candidates are willing to run, but the issues, tone, and target audience for their message.

As the new year begins, state legislatures around the country are convening to tackle the issues of the day. After seeing pro-democracy measures surge on the ballot in the 2018 midterms, it’s no surprise that efforts to address our broken elections continue to dominate discussion among the public and in the halls of power.

SAN DIEGO, CALIF. - Another State of the Union address, and an inevitably contradictive response has come and gone. Within days, no one beyond political aficionados will remember the content of either speech, or the reactions that were witnessed, beyond what talking points the parties and media outlets choose to use to manipulate beliefs. As has become the practice, one party offers hope while the other pleads for change.

Dr. Elisabeth Rosenthal is a journalist, author, and former medical practitioner. She was kind enough to join Independent Voting’s Vice President for National Development, Cathy Stewart, for her Politics for the People Book Club in December to discuss her book, An American Sickness: How Healthcare Became Big Business and How You Can Take It Back.