Like many young people who grew up in California, I view my state as a bastion of liberal progress and a place where democracy is truly at work. In many ways, this is true. California has been a leader in climate adaptation strategies, campaign finance reform, and many other issues I am passionate about. However, recent history has shown that rather than an obstructionist opposition party, an obstructionist governor has wreaked havoc on the California progressive agenda.
Read MoreSkyrocketing housing prices, exorbitant monthly rents, and tent cities popping up throughout California cities. We’ve all heard the statistics - California is in a severe housing crisis. In response to this, our leaders have set aggressive housing production goals, with Governor Newsom notably promising to develop a whopping 3.5 million new homes by 2025. Yet we are continually disappointed. In the four years since Newsom took office, less than half a million homes have been built within the state.
Read MoreFollowing the leak of the draft opinion of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization in May 2022, Governor Gavin Newsom tweeted that, “California will not sit back. We are going to fight like hell.” The decision, officially released later that year in June, overturned the 50-year precedent of Roe v. Wade and removed federal protection of abortion services in the United States. This decision turned abortion rights over to the states, which has resulted in 13 states banning abortion.
Read MoreCalifornia has not executed a death row inmate since January 2006, yet still has 690 inmates living in fear of execution. In 2012 and 2016, propositions to abolish the death penalty failed. In 2012, the proposition was defeated with 51.95% of the vote, and in 2016, the proposition was defeated with 53.15% of the vote. In comparison, President Obama received 59.3% of the vote in California in 2012 and Hilary Clinton received 61.5% in 2016. The stark contrast between the two results can be explained by the American fear of crime and its importance in elections.
Gavin Newsom has alluded to running for president multiple times in the last few years following a successful recall avoidance and a steamroll reelection win in 2022, but when would he run? And if he runs…could he win?
According to Berkeley professor of politics Dan Schnur, “Yeah, he’s definitely running for president, the only question is where he’s running in 2024 or 2028.”
On Sept. 28th, Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law AB 2011, greenlighting the conversion of derelict commercial spaces into housing, regardless of local government objections. The bill is the latest in a series of moves meant to tackle California’s ballooning cost of housing, limiting the power of cities and counties to micromanage or block new construction. That same day, Newsom gave his signature to AB 2097, eliminating parking mandates for developments near mass transit, and AB 2221, which specifies legal ambiguities surrounding what constitutes a ‘granny flat’, ending the ability of localities to deny their erection on arbitrary grounds.
The paramount issue lies not just within the idea of justice for crime but the way in which criminal justice has been used as a weapon within which some are treated more kindly while others are not, regardless of what the law says.
Read MoreThe High-speed rail project has suddenly become the next battleground in the war between President Trump and the state of California.
Read MoreCalifornia Attorney General Xavier Becerra files lawsuit, on Newsom’s behalf against the Huntington Beach City Council over repeatedly voting down a measure to create low-income and high-density housing within their affluent community.
Read MoreGovernor Newsom’s proposal may put us on the path towards improving the lives of incarcerated children.
Read More
