President Trump said many times during the 2016 election that the American people would “win” so much under his administration that they would get tired of winning.
Now that the 2019 legislative session is over, Gov. Gavin Newsom may be making the same boast.California’s new governor was, by all accounts, the big winner of this year’s legislative session.
Unlike his predecessors, he was hands on, getting in the weeds on policy minutiae, and prevailed on virtually every one of his administration’s top priorities. From vaccines to independent contractors, Newsom was personally at the center of virtually every big “deal” cut at the State Capitol this year.
In contrast, former Gov. Jerry Brown also dominated the Legislature but was more likely to lecture lawmakers on Aristotelian logic than engage with them. Gray Davis thought so little of lawmakers that he once famously declared that the Legislature’s job was to, “implement my vision.”
Even when the Legislature tested Newsom, as Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins did when she sent SB 1 to the Governor’s desk without accepting his requested amendments, he still won by quickly issuing a statement declaring his intent to veto the bill.
Now that the dust has settled on the 2019 session – are Californians tired of Newsom’s winning so much this session?
Parents and students who are looking for more school choice options are probably tired of Newsom and his teacher union allies scoring numerous “wins” on legislation to impose new restrictions and regulations on charter schools.
As PRI’s Lance Izumi recently said in an episode of the “Next Round” podcast, “there’s not going to be virtually any new charter schools – or very few charter schools – authorized under this new regime, and I think that is a travesty and a tragedy for the children of California.”
Californians who are looking for relief from high housing costs are surely tired of Newsom and the far left in the Legislature agreeing upon so-called “rent gouging” legislation. This is despite Newsom opposing 2018’s rent control measure, Proposition 10, which was rejected by voters.
The last thing many Californians want are more government housing regulations that, notes the California Association of Realtors, “not only doesn’t increase the (housing) supply, it discourages the provision of rental housing.” Yet, as PRI’s Kerry Jackson wrote recently [will link to Kerry’s Tuesday upcoming blog post on the issue], “the default position for nearly all policymakers and executives . . . is to throw more government at all problems, whether real or perceived . . . So it’s no surprise at all that Newsom and legislators took the path toward a state rent control regime.”
And those who work in the gig economy, or who work part time for a sharing economy firm or as an independent contractor have surely had enough of Newsom’s winning in his quest to force more Californians into a 40-hour-a-week, union employee, outdated 1970’s vision of work.
When they read Newsom writes, “we must do more to reverse the 40-year trends that have hollowed out our middle class and driven income inequality,” they are reminded of Ronald Reagan’s warning about someone saying they are from the government and they’re here to help.
As I recently wrote, “AB 5 will . . . make it harder for Californians to be their own boss, work as they choose, or create the next California innovation.” Californians know what AB 5 will mean for them – lost opportunities to work for tens of thousands.
These and millions of other Californians are indeed tired of Newsom winning so much in the legislature this year, and they’re holding their breath wondering what additional “victories” will await them in 2020.
Tim Anaya is the Pacific Research Institute’s communications director.
