Will Crane Fly?

Earlier blog posts have noted the appointment in late December of David Crane to the UC Regents by outgoing Governor Schwarzenegger. Crane is noted for his advocacy of putting public pension changes on the ballot, e.g., http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/02/04/EDU01HHUPL.DTL

As the article below notes, Crane has yet to be confirmed by the California Senate and is facing considerable opposition. It is possible, however, that as part of some larger deal on the budget – which could itself involve pensions, Crane would be confirmed. If that happens, there would be a voice on the Regents that might be advocating some future ballot proposition on pensions that would override the Regents own action on the UC pension taken last December. See below:

UC Regent Crane traveling rocky road toward confirmation hearing (excerpt)

Matt Krupnick, Contra Costa Times, 5/13/11

David Crane has spent less than five months as a University of California regent, but he has already attracted a decade’s worth of opposition… But he has not yet been confirmed by the Senate, and several groups are pledging to prevent that confirmation. “He’s just another person who has a strong personal connection with the governor,” said Claudia Magaña, president of the UC Student Association, which this week released a statement opposing Crane’s confirmation…

(Editor’s note: It is not clear Crane has any link with Governor Brown, although he was part of the Schwarzenegger administration.)

Crane’s confirmation hearing has not been scheduled, and Senate Leader Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, declined through a spokeswoman to comment Friday. The Senate has up to a year to confirm regents, said Alicia Trost, the spokeswoman, and routinely waits until the last minute in order to learn more about the appointee… Crane, however, has faced a similar situation. In 2006, the Senate ousted him from the influential California State Teachers’ Retirement System board after he was targeted by teachers and unions for his stand on reforming public pensions…

Full article at http://www.contracostatimes.com/news/ci_18059654

So can this nomination actually fly? Not all attempts to fly work out.