Socialism 2016?

After a speech on Thursday explaining his socialism ideas, Senator Bernie Sanders gained a positive impression for socialism. 56% of Democratic primary voters polled said that they had a positive feeling of socialism. At Georgetown, Sanders explained that the redistribution of wealth was at the heart of American social contract and even linked himself to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr and Theodore Roosevelt. One interesting fact is that over half of Hillary Clinton's supporters also claimed that they approved socialism. 52% percent of Americans also agree with Sanders that America should place a higher tax on the rich and distribute that wealth back to the poor. It is also good to note that socialism is very highly rated with Americans under the age of 30.

Donald Trump's SNL appearance calls for equal time

After Trump's hosting of the late night show, many Republicans filed reports for equal time, and they will get just that. However, it won't be on SNL and won't even appear in a cameo on the show. John Kasich, Mike Huckabee, James Gilmore, and Lindsey Graham received their wishes and will appear in commercial and promotional air time on NBC, maybe during SNL.

Trump attack's Clinton's stamina

The Times reports that over the last few days Trump has been bashing the democratic presidential candidate by simply saying that she is too low energy to be president. If this sounds familiar, that's probably because it is. Trump used the same tactic with great results on Republican Jeb Bush. Trump later went on to say that Hillary is just not a strong enough person to be president.

Ben Carson says he saw Muslims celebrating on 9/11

After coming under fire for claiming that he saw Muslims in New Jersey celebrating 9/11, Donald Trump's presidential rival, Ben Carson too says that he saw Muslims celebrating on the horrific day. "I saw the film of it," Carson explained. Reports of this behavior are widely considered folk lore, as officials in the state of New Jersey deny it, but Ben Carson still claims to have seen the scenes on TV, but says not all Muslims are like that. The Times reports that Carson said he understands that people will respond inappropriately to anything and that that behavior was inappropriate.

Japanese Government

     Japan has a Constitutional Monarchy (parliamentary) system of government, much like Britain and Canada. Like America, however, the Japanese is divided into three branches, the judicial, legislative and executive. The Legislative branch of their government is known as the Diet. The Diet is composed of two houses, the House of Representatives and the House of Councilors. The executive branch is known as the cabinet. The cabinet consists of the Prime Minister, who is elected by the Diet and appointed by the Emperor, and no more than 17 Ministers of State, the the Prime Minister appoints. The Judicial branch is comprised of the courts. The Japanese government is unitary, which means this national government has a large amount of control over local governments.

     There are currently about 11 parties represented in Japan's Diet. The parties are: Liberal Democratic Party, Democratic Party, Innovation Party, Komeito, Communist Party, Party for Future Generations, People's Life Party, Social Democratic Party, The Assembly to Energize Japan, New Renaissance Party, and the Okinawa Socialist Masses Party. The major parties were the first five listed above. The Liberal Democratic Party is considered as the largest party and is, ironically, a conservative party. Most of the major parties are focused on Japanese Nationalism, conservatism, social liberalism, economic liberalism, and neoconservatism.





https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_political_parties_in_Japan
http://web-jpn.org/kidsweb/explore/government/index.html
http://japan.kantei.go.jp/constitution_and_government_of_japan/fundamental_e.html

Trump gains even more attention after SNL

After receiving 12 minutes and 53 seconds of airtime on SNL, it seems that Trump received a lot of conversation on social media platforms. The Times reports that there was 28 percent more engagement around Trump this past Sunday then there was following the Republican debate in Colorado. Trump also saw a huge uproar in twitter action on the night of his appearance, during a time of day that is generally quite about politics. In his own way, Trump claims that the performance doesn't matter because the Nielson rating is expected to be high.

Ted Cruz's dad: Castro campaigner

Long before his son was a Republican presidential candidate, Rafael Cruz campaigned across Texas for none other than Fidel Castro. Rafael Cruz left Cuba in 1957 after suffering beatings from then dictator Batista, and attended the University of Texas where he spoke at local rotary clubs in favor of the Castro rebellion. Cruz ratifies his support by saying that at that time Castro had not yet spoken of his Communist ideologies. Although a friend claims to remember driving to Miami with the elder Cruz, Rafael claims that he never spent money, he only spoke.

Former Kansas Senator endorses Jeb Bush

Bob Dole, a former Senator of Kansas, has recently made it known that he is a fan and supports Jeb Bush.... and holds a grudge against Ted Cruz. Dole said that he feels Bush is "the most qualified" and that he liked virtually all the candidates "except Cruz." Last year during the Conservative Political Action Committee Cruz apparently mocked Dole and Senator McCain and it appears Mr. Dole isn't one to forget.

Republican Debate draws 13 Million Viewers

The fourth Republican presidential, aired on Fox Business News, drew a crowd of more than 13 million people. The Times Reports this was the highest viewership ever for Fox Business News, yet it was the lowest of any of the Republican debates thus far. This low rating could be contributed to the last Republican debate, which aired on CNBC, was accused of being bias and not allowing speaking time in a fair manner. It also could be attributed to the fact that Fox Business News is available in far fewer households than CNN, CNBC, and Fox news are available.

Man Behind the Mosque Questions

1. There was no formal process to making the "Ground Zero Mosque" a news story.

2. Pamela Gellar, an opposition for the mosque, brought it to the attention of Fox News.

3. On a lot of clips from cable networks we saw talking heads shouting at each other and arguing over the mosque. In addition to that, we saw very emotional sides of the story rather than facts.

4. They were never seen on cable news.

5. For knowledge on Islam, cable news relied on radical anti-Islamist. No, the information was not reliable because their information was incredibly biased.

6. The ownership is very important. As seen from this story an owner of Fox shares was also a donor for the mosque, which probably made it an important issue among the other owners as well.

7. Al-Waleed bin Talal, a Saudi Prince

8. The public simply got tired of it. It went on too long and the news of Fox's second largest shareholder donating money to the mosque probably made the public not trust Fox as much on the story and it just died.

9. Americans are not well educated when it comes to Islam.
45% say Islam is no more likely to encourage violence than any other faith.
35% say Islam is more likely to encourage violence.
Over half of Americans have a negative view of Islam.

American News 10 Facts

Journalism

1. Even though media use is spreading and becoming more popular, television remains the most dominant way that Americans receive news.

2. Almost 3 out of 4 Americans watch local TV news, making it the most popular method.

3. Those Americans who tune into cable news spend an average of 25 minutes watching it, almost double that spent on local and network news. 

4. The most dedicated cable news viewers average 72 minutes of viewing time a day.

5. Early morning newscasts pull 60% of the audience that late night does. 

6. 58% of Americans consume news from network and local news networks.

7. 38% of Americans access news online at home.

8. Viewers of one of the three cable news channels also views the competition regularly. 

9. 90% of Network news viewers also watch local news,

10. Many people get news from more than one source.

Homework

1. Television-- network and cable, radio, newspapers, social media, wire services, internet.

2. 6 companies own around 90% of the American media:GE, News-Corp, Disney, Viacom, Time Warner, CBS. These companies control nearly 70% of cable. 

3. UT-Austin: Wants to create well-rounded, ethical journalists who believe that journalism is the most important part of the First Amendment. 

4. Watchdog journalists protect the public by fact checking and other methods. They watch societal and political events.

5. The media tends to be liberal.

    The media doesn't like Republicans

Bill Clinton back on campaign trail

The former president joined his wife at a rally in Des Moines over the weekend. The Times reports that even though Clinton can be a dazzling public speaker, he has the tendency to cause controversy, as he did in the 2008 presidential race when he claimed Barack Obama was the biggest fairy-tale he had ever seen. None the less, Mr. Clinton does bring significant political star power to his wife's campaign, which could prove crucial in the long run.

Jim Webb considers going Independent

After the first Democratic Party Debate, in which he felt as if he didn't receive enough time to talk, Jim Webb has announced that he is through with the party and is now considering going independent. A former Secretary of the Navy and Republican, after entering the Democratic race over the summer he has been basically invisible in the race and barely registering on the polls. Webb really shocked viewers when he bragged about killing an enemy as a Marine during the Vietnam War and even came out and said he believed the whole debate was rigged.

Chance to meet Bush Family

Jeb Bush has recently opened a sweepstakes that will bring a lucky winner to Houston to meet all of the "big-name Bush's." The prize is worth over $2,000 and will be taxable as income. Jeb Bush's son says that "We're not joking when we say that this type of contest won't come around for awhile." However, in typical Bush fashion, the sweepstakes is not being left to chance. Ten winners will be chosen and from those ten the one who shows the best support to the Bush campaign will receive the trip.

Democrats still see Joe Biden entering race

After the first Democratic debate, there has been much talk over wither Biden will decide to run for president or not. Many people find it hard to believe that Biden could even find a path after such a dominating performance by Clinton. However, the Jefferson-Jackson dinner is coming up, which happens to be the same dinner that in November of 2007, then Senator Obama, tore apart her chances of becoming president without even naming her. Could we see Joe Biden do the same in an effort to make his way into the presidential Race?

Hillary leads democrats in CNN Poll

Former Secretary-of-State Hillary Clinton leads all Democrats with 45% support. The poll indicates that even after her rough summer with the e-mail scandal that she has solidified her place within the hearts of Democratic Voters. The Times reports that she was the clear winner of the first debate and she was the most qualified to represent the party. The only true challenger for Hillary and competitor for Donald Trump is Joe Biden.

Speaker of the House

1.       What does the Constitution have to say about the job of Speaker of the House?

In Article 1, Section 2, the Constitution states "The House of Representatives shall chose their Speaker and other officers." The Speaker is also understood to be the leader of the House and third in command following the President and Vice President. 

2.       The Constitution has nothing to say about parties – yet parties are the basis for organizing leadership in Congress.  Read about Congressional leadership here.  List the leadership roles that exist in each house of Congress – along with a brief description of each job.

House Of Representatives:

Speaker of the House- presides over proceedings on the House floor, influence which bills go to which committee and  rules on questions of parliamentary procedure. 

Majority Leader- helps plan the party's legislative program

Minority Leader- leads the minority party, has less power than the majority leader

Senate:

Vice President- leader of the Senate, can only vote in case of a tie.

Majority leader- most power within senate, begins debates on legislation

Minority leader- tends to work with majority leader, but has less power. 

3.       What would have to happen for the Speaker of the House to become the President?

For the Speaker of the House to become President it would require the incapacity, death, impeachment or resignation of both the President and Vice President. 

4.       Who was the longest-serving Speaker in history?

Samuel Rayburn served as Speaker of the House for 17 years, making him the longest serving Speaker. 

5.       Who was the first woman to serve as Speaker of the House?  (Provide dates and party)

The first female Speaker of the House was Democrat Nancy Pelosi. She served as Speaker from 2006 to 2010.

6.       When did Newt Gingrich serve as Speaker?  For what is he famous?

Newt Gingrich served as speaker from 1995 to 1999. He is famous for leading the "Republican Revolution" which started after Gingrich led a charge on a Democratic Republican Party who had violated campaign rules, shortly after this he became the first Republican Speaker of the House in over 40 years.

7.       Who just resigned as Speaker of the House?  How long had he been serving as Speaker, and why is he quitting now?  (Find a news article that analyzes this question.)

John Boehner, who served as Speaker of the House for almost 5 years, just resigned. Boehner chose to step down due to the heat he was facing from Conservatives who threatened to "vacate the chair" if Boehner did not pursue a policy that cut funding to Planned Parenthood. After sensing that he would probably be ousted, Boehner decided to just step down. 

8.       Who was considered to be a likely successor?  Why is that no longer the case?

Kevin McCarthy was widely considered the most likely successor, but that is no longer the case as he feels that the party is split right now and needs to unite behind one leader.

9.       Why do many Republicans in Congress hope Paul Ryan will enter the race for speaker?  What is the latest news on whether or not he is likely to do so?

He is very popular with the conservatives in congress. He is currently not planning on running, but is allegedly thinking about it. 

10.   What committee does Paul Ryan currently chair?  What is this committee responsibility?  Visit it’s website to learn about it.

Paul Ryan serves as a chairman for the Committee on Ways and Means, which is the chief tax-writing committee in the House of Representatives. 

11.   What is a congressional committee? How many are there?

A congressional committee's job is to decide which bills move forward to the House or Senate. There are currently 43 congressional committees. 

12.   What are some of the reasons he may choose NOT to take the job?

One obvious reason for Ryan to not take the job is that it has historically been political suicide. Another possible reason is that he doesn't want to spend the time away from his family at the moment. 

13.   What would you do if you were in his position?  What would be the best reasons for taking the job?  Or for avoiding it?

After doing this research, I most likely would not choose to take the job of Speaker of the House. It seems to me that rarely does any good come of it and that it tends to end politicians careers. 

14.   The Speaker of the House is an important position – but is it a stepping stone to the White House?  Has a former Speaker ever risen to the presidency? 

I don't believe it is a stepping stone to the White House as I could find no instances in which the Speaker of the House became President. 

15.   What is a congressional caucus?  How many are there?  How are caucuses different from committees?

Congressional Caucuses are groups of members of congress put together to form the political or legislative agenda.  There are far more caucuses than committees and they differ in that caucuses seem to find what the political problems are and the committees decide what bills actually make it to congress. 

16.   What is the House Freedom Caucus?  What role is it playing in the current struggle over leadership?  What kind of speaker do they want?

It is a new Caucus designed to springboard a candidate in the the job of Speaker of the House. They are making the struggle for leadership because they want a leader who will support their border control bills. 

17.   Add a current articles summary to your blog, based on one or more of the articles you’ve read today. 

First Quarter Reflection

One cool thing that we have learned, in my opinion, was the stereotypes that go with either being a conservative or liberal and I enjoyed the political typology quiz we did the first day of school. We also learned the reasoning behind our constitution and how policies are made. I've enjoyed the class so far, just because I like the people in it and I enjoy Mrs.  Lawson's teaching style. Other than that, I don't really enjoy the class. The subject of government doesn't interest me as much as I thought it would. I hope to get to where I can connect the dots and make assumptions based on questions like our homework, and I believe this class will help me with it.

Feminists Enjoy watching Fiorina take on Trump

Feminists everywhere are confused by the Fiorina campaign. On one hand, they love watching her stand up to Donald Trump. Some say that Fiorina reminds them of themselves at times. Then, on the other hand, her conservative views are viewed as something that is to be against the feminist views. These views include her stance on Planned Parenthood. One interesting question that has been brought up by her campaign is "Can you love a campaign but hate a candidate's policies?"

"First in the Nation" states shouldn't be too comfortable

Reince Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee, has announced that Iowa and New Hampshire may no longer have the right to kick off the nomination season. The Republican party has often fought to keep the two states from being overruled by other states, but this could soon change. The Times says opposition of the "First in the Nation" states claim that by being the first in the nomination process the states receive too much attention from candidates and thus receive far more money in campaigning than do other states in order to get momentum going into the nomination.

Jeb gains top fundraiser

Anthony Scaramucci, a New York investor and top fundraiser for Scott Walker's failed presidential campaign, was recently picked up by Jeb Bush's campaign. The hire is expected to make donors feel more confident in the Bush campaign and Jeb Bush has even said that Scaramucci is a "valuable asset." One good side note is that other members of Walker's failed campaign joined Marco Rubio's campaign, a candidate who recently saw his numbers go up in the polls.

Jeb Bush focuses campaign on New Hampshire

Jeb Bush's campaign has announce that it is saving millions of dollars for television ad time in January and February. They also announced that $4.6 million would be set aside for New Hampshire alone. The Times reports that these totals show the importance of the state to Bush's campaign. The hope is that New Hampshire votes will be more for a a Republican candidate with more moderate views on issues such as immigration.

Trump back on Fox

A week ago, Donald Trump announced that he would not be "doing any more Fox shows for the foreseeable future." Yet, now, he is expected to be on the O'Reilly Factor on Tuesday. This comes after Fox had cancelled his appearance just last week following Trump's twitter boycott of the company. The Times reports that the feud comes from Trump feeling as if he was treated unfairly on Fox's Republican debate. However, it is rumored that Trump and the CEO of the company are set to meet sometime this week.

Government Shutdown harms Anti-Abortion cause

Carol Tobias, President of the National Right to Life Committee, said that her group had not yet taken an official stance on opposing a government shutdown, because even though the Planned Parenthood undercover videos had surfaced, she believes there are flaws in the Republican plan to block any government-wide funding bill that spent any money on the company. Ms. Tobias even went on to say "Quite frankly, I think Planned Parenthood is a vile organization..." The Times reports that Tobias likes the idea of stand-alone measures, ones in which funding is only cut to Planned Parenthood affiliates who perform abortions.

Trump doesn't fact check

In the most recent Republican debate, Donald Trump claimed that he believes vaccines can cause autism in children. The only thing is, decades of scientific research and evidence have came up with nothing. There aren't any true, credible studies that show the linkage between vaccines and autism. Ben Carson and Rand Paul, both physicians, argued that the science linking the two is lacking, but that maybe spreading out the childhood vaccination schedule would be helpful. Due to parent requests, however, many doctors are forced to administer the vaccines to children, which puts them at risk of exposure to disease pre-vaccination. The Times reports that a recent outbreak of measles was aided by people who didn't receive the vaccine and were able to help spread the disease.

Jeb defends George

After sending much of the year sending mixed signals about his plans to deal with the legacy of his brother, Jeb Bush recently took to twitter to defend his big brother against Donald Trump. The tweet contained the iconic picture of George W. Bush standing on top of the ruins of the World Trade Center following 9/11 with a microphone making a speech. Next to the picture Jeb quoted himself, saying "When it comes to my brother, there's one thing I know for sure, he kept us safe." The point during this Wednesday's debate that Jeb said that regarding his brother's foreign policy record was seen by many as his strongest moment. The Times predicts that maybe it wouldn't be such a bad thing voter-wise for Jeb Bush to embrace his brother a little more, as his is still largely popular in Iowa and South Carolina.

Millions watched Republican Debate

The Times reports that nearly 23 million people tuned into CNN Wednesday to watch the Republican debate, The three hour debate averaged 22.9 million viewers, a record for CNN. However, the debate drew less attention than last month's, which appeared on Fox. Before this year, CNN's highest total viewers for a debate was 8.3 million, which came from the Democratic debate in 2008.

Planned Parenthood part of Republican plans to avoid Government Shutdown

Currently, Congress has two weeks left to decide something before the government will go into yet again an other shutdown. One proposed plan to cut spending proposed by the GOP was to cut federal funding to any Planned Parenthood affiliate and to impose criminal penalties on any healthcare provider who doesn't give treatment to any baby who survives an abortion attempt. The bill is not expected to make it very far in the Senate, but it will ignite outrage against Planned Parenthood after a couple of undercover videos show that the organization is illegally selling fetal tissue to researchers for a profit. According to the Times, this video led to many Republicans in both the House and Senate stating that they would not vote for any funding bill that included money being sent to Planned Parenthood.

Federalism

1. Duhaime's Law Dictionary defines federalism as a system of government which has created, by written agreement, a central and national government to which it has distributed specified legislative (law-making) powers, called the federal government, and regional or local governments (or sometimes called provinces or states) to which is distributed other, specified legislative powers.

2. There are currently about 196 Nation-states in the world today.

3. There are about 25 countries in the world today that use the federal system of government. These countries include Australia, Brazil, Canada, Ethiopia, Germany, India, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Argentina, Austria, Belgium , Comoros, Malaysia, Micronesia, Nepal, Russia, South Africa, Spain, United States of America, etc...

4. The countries tend to have in common that they are all large countries in terms of size.

5. Unitary, by definition, is a sovereign state governed as a single entity.

6. More than 150 countries use a unitary system of government. The 5 largest unitary countries are China, Khazakstan, Algeria, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Saudi Arabia.

7. The difference between a unitary and federal system of government is that federal systems have states and large national governments that work together. Unitary systems consist of one large government that controls everything.

8.The Picture of the two guys presents the idea that federalism isn't a good thing, or that it is basically just a way for state government's to receive handouts without having to answer to any real authority.

9. This picture presents a sort of ironic view of the federal government because the federal government is preventing someone from getting something that they need for their illness because it is illegal.

10. This picture shows a Republican (the elephant) claiming that he doesn't believe in government obstruction within business and citizen's lives, but the minute a citizen wants to change something he steps in and says they are wrong.

11. The video compares federalism to a three layered cake. The local government is on top, the state government in the middle, and national government on the bottom.

12.  This cake creates a totally different metaphor for federalism. It creates a sense that all the governments are blended together instead of separated.

Donald Trump Golf Course eases Taxes

The Times Reports that Trump is trying to lessen the taxes he pays on the Trump National Golf Club. In order to do so, a Trump lawyer recently filed paperwork stating the property was only worth $1.36 million, significantly less than previous estimates. The property is currently taxed on a $13.5 million value, and if approved the tax reduction will be nearly 90 percent. Interestingly enough, in July, Trump listed as worth $50 million in his personal financial disclosure with the U.S. government.

"If you work all day, you don't have time to do heroin"

Yes, Kentucky senator Rand Paul actually said that. He also said that Americans shouldn't be given a penny if they don't work and that work needs to be attached to everything. Paul delivered this speech in New Hampshire, which has seen a 90 percent increase in heroin users admitted to state treatment centers from 2004 to 2013. Huffington Post reports that Paul eventually went on to say that heroin addiction had to do with more than just lack of work. Paul actually co-sponsors an organization with the goal to treat addiction as more of a health problem by giving medical assistance to the addicted. 

Ben Carson looking better in Polls

A recently released national poll showed that the brain surgeon was the only candidate who outperforms Donald Trump in head-to-head polls. Republican voters preferred Ben Carson 55% compared to Trump at 36%, the Times reports. Patrick Murray, Directer of the Monmouth University Polling institute stated that “The fact that the only one who can challenge Trump is the only other candidate who has never held or run for elected office speaks volumes to the low regard G.O.P. voters have for the establishment.” The new poll puts Carson in second place, following only Trump who received 30% when matched against the full Republican field.

Trump Pledges to Republican Party

Earlier today, Donald Trump signed a pledge to the Republican Party stating that he would no join a third-party and would support the Republican's eventual nominee. In a very Trumpesque way, he made it a big deal. There were many supporters there, holding up there "Make America Great Again" signs and dozens of reporters and photographers. The Times reports that Trump claims he gets nothing out of signing the pledge, just "assurance." Trump also lashed out at other candidates such as Chris Christie and Jeb Bush, mostly Jeb Bush. He also did a great job avoiding the questions he doesn't want to answer, as he always does.

Jeb's choice of words causes problems

Jeb Bush recently offended Asian-Americans in an attempt to soothe Hispanics. He explained that the use of the phrase "anchor babies" was referring to people from Asian countries who sneak into the United States to give birth. California Representative Judy Chu stated on the matter that "No matter which ethnic group you're referring to, 'anchor babies' is a slur that stigmatizes children from birth." The Alliance for Citizenship group has also came forward and stated that the use of the slang term was wrong, and Donald Trump-like, and although his views on immigration are nowhere near Trump's, Jeb also recently told people to chill out on political correctness in Colorado. The Times also reports Trump's tweet saying "Asians are very offended that JEB said the anchor babies applies to them as a way to be more politically correct to hispanics. A mess!"

Joe Biden for president?

Joe Biden has recently stated that he will be running for the Democratic Party's presidential nomination against, mainly, Hillary Clinton. On Tuesday, Mr. Biden invited hundreds of committee members to a press conference in which he was scheduled to discuss the Iran nuclear deal. The Times reported that two members of this committee thought this was weird, because they had never before been called to a conference call in which the Vice President discussed foreign policy and that they take it as if he wants to be on the political radar before the Democratic party's session on Friday.

Rick Perry's Campaign takes a hit

As of Monday, the Chairman of Republican candidate Rick Perry's campaign in Iowa, Sam Clovis is leaving. A Texas native, Perry has decided to still campaign the crucial state. Since losing Clavis, the Times reports that the campaign has been struggling to raise money and has been forced to cut officials in key states. Governor Perry only raised $1 million through the end of June and is now relying on the Super PAC for funding.

Third Party Presidential Candidate

In Iowa, a high school student is putting up some of the most impressive third-party numbers in decades despite being far too young. The student, Brady Olson, is running under the name Deez Nuts. Olson claims he decided to run because he was tired of the two party political system America Time magazine claims that this is part of a larger trend that is occurring all around the United States, and that is the rise of candidates who have never held public office. Donald Trump and Ben Carson are noteworthy examples of this trend.
currently has.

Shade Balls

In recent years, California has been experimenting with "shade balls"  to try to reduce evaporation and protect it from wildlife. Just recently however, the city of Los Angeles dumped 20,000 of the little black balls into their main reservoir. These balls are set to save the city 300 million gallons of each year, which is only a drop in the bucket compared to 13.6 billion gallons of water Los Angeles used last year. The shade balls themselves only costed $34.5 million, but actually saved the city a lot of money. The EPA had mandated earlier that the city cover its' reservoir, which would cost around $300 million, but thanks to shade balls this wasn't necessary. 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/08/12/plastic-shade-balls-the-hypnotizing-tool-california-is-using-to-save-water/