A few samplings from the buffet line of news items as the weekend arrives…

* Voting Machine Testing: As reported here first last week, Secretary of State Debra Bowen is now prepping for a new series of tests on voting machines in California. And those plans are meeting with some early skepticism from local elections officials. The radio version of my reporting aired this morning on The California Report; you can hear it by clicking here.

* Judicial Diversity… Or Not: On this weekend’s newsmagazine edition of TCR (our shorthand lingo for our newscast), host Scott Shafer examines the debate over whether Governor Schwarzenegger has appointed enough judges that actually represent the ethnic diversity of the Golden State. For local airtimes, click here.

* Au Revoir, Tout Le Monde: While many legislators will be back in their districts during next week’s spring recess, Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez and a bipartisan group of colleagues will be in France. Why France? Why, to examine the country’s high-speed rail system and to talk about global warming, bien sur! And just in case you were curious: “Assembly members will be paying for their own flights and hotels,” says Nunez spokesman Steve Maviglio in an email to reporters. Incroyable!