Great opinion piece.
Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio?” If Simon & Garfunkel were political pundits they might ask: Where have you gone, Gavin Newsom? When Joe Biden’s stumbling, mumbling fortunes seemed to slip away, the left crowned Mr. Newsom as the obvious heir to the throne. It was near impossible to click on a link or touch the remote without seeing him romp across America, preaching California’s acceptance of abortion or flying off to China to shake hands with Xi Jinping.

But Mr. Newsom never knew where to draw the line on primping. When he hired a portrait photographer to accompany him to China and take pictures of him at the Great Wall, even the left-leaning Politico magazine couldn’t refrain from lampooning his portrait, as he attempted to look presidential at a faux Asian summit.

The staged visit exposed the governor’s most fatal political flaw—his lack of authenticity. That phony factor is one he can’t escape and was summarized in a recent exposé by the nonprofit news organization CalMatters: “Governor Newsom has long touted his baseball career, including that he played at Santa Clara University. But he was never on the roster, among other misperceptions of his accomplishments. Newsom hasn’t corrected his record.”

Embellishments like that, along with more serious ones such as traveling to Florida to claim that the Golden State is a low-tax paradise, are the type of political fumbles that have upended Mr. Newsom’s hopes for higher office. But those misadventures are peanuts compared with the damage from his governing policies, which fracture the finances and stability of California.

The fanciful bullet train project he inherited from his predecessors is now an anchor around Mr. Newsom’s neck, as it has grown from its initially budgeted $33 billion in 2008 to upward of $100 billion, just for the starter line, because of overspending and mismanagement. Mr. Newsom’s current statewide budget shortfall ranges from his wishful-thinking $38 billion to a more realistic $73 billion, and the state auditor reports that California didn’t sufficiently track outcomes of nearly $24 billion spent on homelessness in the last five fiscal years.

Statewide polls by the Institute of Intergovernmental Studies at the University of California, Berkeley show the governor’s approval ratings are south of 50%, and nearly 6 out of 10 Californians believe the state is headed in the wrong direction. His political reputation was put to the test on the March ballot, where he pushed forward a $6 billion bond measure for more homeless spending. The measure passed by a margin of less than 0.5% of the vote.

The governor, a San Francisco elitist groomed by Willie Brown and Nancy Pelosi for stardom, is flat-lining. Despite Mr. Biden’s baggage of high inflation, open borders and tongue twisting, the president has a second wind as his opponent is stuck in an unfavorable courtroom while the president is free to campaign, appearing statesmanlike amid international hostilities. Hence, liberal media and congressional loyalists are embracing Mr. Biden as the comeback kid. New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd recently asked Democratic political consultant James Carville to name the party’s promising new talents. Among governors, Mr. Carville listed North Carolina’s Roy Cooper, Michigan’s Gretchen Whitmer, Kentucky’s Andy Beshear, Maryland’s Wes Moore and Pennsylvania’s Josh Shapiro. Notice anyone missing?

Mr. Newsom was never as formidable as his fan base thought. Susan Shelley, an editorial writer for the Southern California News Group, shrewdly analyzed Mr. Newsom’s lopsided victory against a recall attempt in 2021 by pointing out that recall targets are exempt from campaign contribution limits. This allowed Mr. Newsom to raise more than $70 million against underfunded opponents at a time when he still had emergency powers to close much of the economy.

In his regularly scheduled 2022 re-election, Mr. Newsom fared worse against an obscure state senator—whom he outspent by a margin of nearly 10 to 1—than he had four years earlier against a well-financed opponent. A well-funded opponent with name recognition could have beaten Mr. Newsom.

Politicians come in flavors that fade. Beto O’Rourke and Stacey Abrams were the Democratic Party’s flavors during the past decade. You will be forgiven for not recalling their names. Mr. Newsom is the Democratic Party’s most recent flavor. His taste is rapidly fading.

Mr. Khachigian was chief speechwriter to Ronald Reagan and is author of the forthcoming memoir “Behind Closed Doors: In the Room With Reagan and Nixon.”

LINK: https://www.wsj.com/articles/w...cian-career-2024-rac

Oh, don't worry, he'll be back for another shot in the next election for sure. His ego guarantees it.

quote:

Originally posted by bigwagon:
Oh, don't worry, he'll be back for another shot in the next election for sure. His ego guarantees it.

im sure he’s on a beach somewhere with a large chunk of the disappearing billions from several of the projects that stalled when they ran out of money.

He alive and still sodomizing the folks here in CA. His additional 11% tax on firearms and ammo (that’s on top of any other state/local taxes) goes into effect July 1.

^^^^^^^^^^
Interesting, I thought he was doing hair commercials.

He also signed AB 1228, which increased the state's minimum wage for fast food workers to $20 per hour. Many restaurants have folded, including large chains, and 10K workers have lost their jobs completely.

Just a reminder that the Democrat bench isn't very deep if Biden continues to stumble.
If not Joe, who?

Let’s not forget his stint in rehab. Allegedly for booze but the rampant rumor in SF at the time was it was for harder stuff. Him porking his best friends wife repeatedly not a one time incicent. Who also happened to be an employee. Showing up at one of the society Gala’s in SF at around 40 years of age as the mayor with an under 21 year old date allegedly providing her booze. Plenty of news coverage of this at the time. Even liberal SF raised an eyebrow. And then storming out of an interview when asked about it.

Never mind the dining out while under covid lockdown, sending his kids to a not lock downed private school during covid. Etc etc etc. fuck that guy and hard. His piece of shit family, mom was a waitress that got knocked up by his dad, the judge. Married to his mom for only 5 short years. Then his loser dad who was soft on crime as a judge like his kid becomes family lawyer to the Getty’s. One example. The father advocated for parole for the Chowchilla kidnappers these guys kidnapped a bunch of little kids and buried them alive in a box truck. 50 years later those kids all still have PTSD and other issues. Greasy Gavin then becomes best friends with a getty whose father maintained 2 entirely separate families at the same time. Between his own absent father and the Getty, no wonder he treats his women well and has such spactacurly horrible relationships. Look at the Great influences he had. Same gettys that have bankrolled everything for Gavin.

The people of CA had ample opportunity to bounce him including the recall and they didn’t. They get everything they deserve. God forbid his policies go national.

He’s Eskimo bro’s with George clooney and Harvey Weinstein so there’s that claim to fame.

quote:

Originally posted by ElToro:
Let’s not forget his stint in rehab. Allegedly for booze but the rampant rumor in SF at the time was it was for harder stuff. Him porking his best friends wife repeatedly not a one time incicent. Who also happened to be an employee. Showing up at one of the society Gala’s in SF at around 40 years of age as the mayor with an under 21 year old date allegedly providing her booze. Plenty of news coverage of this at the time. Even liberal SF raised an eyebrow. And then storming out of an interview when asked about it.

Never mind the dining out while under covid lockdown, sending his kids to a not lock downed private school during covid. Etc etc etc. fuck that guy and hard. His piece of shit family, mom was a waitress that got knocked up by his dad, the judge. Married to his mom for only 5 short years. Then his loser dad who was soft on crime as a judge like his kid becomes family lawyer to the Getty’s. One example. The father advocated for parole for the Chowchilla kidnappers these guys kidnapped a bunch of little kids and buried them alive in a box truck. 50 years later those kids all still have PTSD and other issues. Greasy Gavin then becomes best friends with a getty whose father maintained 2 entirely separate families at the same time. Between his own absent father and the Getty, no wonder he treats his women well and has such spactacurly horrible relationships. Look at the Great influences he had. Same gettys that have bankrolled everything for Gavin.

The people of CA had ample opportunity to bounce him including the recall and they didn’t. They get everything they deserve. God forbid his policies go national.

He’s Eskimo bro’s with George clooney and Harvey Weinstein so there’s that claim to fame.

Thanks did not know much about his background. True sociopath.

https://calmatters.org/comment...t-all-in-the-family/

Good article about the several families and multiple generations that control CA politics.

Are we talking about the former Mister Kimberly Guilfoyle?

quote:

Originally posted by ElToro:

The people of CA had ample opportunity to bounce him including the recall and they didn’t. They get everything they deserve. God forbid his policies go national.

The People of California have tried to get rid of him and his ilk multiple times. Look at a map of California counties by political affiliation. Conduct true polls/surveys of California voters and you will find Newsom is pretty much universally despised.

There is a ruling class, an autocracy if you will, in this state that now dominates. It keeps these assholes in power and uses a commission to draw the electoral maps. Throw in the absentee/mail-in voting for years and this is what you get. There is no way no matter how much money they threw behind him that Newsom won the recall on the up and up. No way. The far left hates him and everyone right of center hates him. The fact that anyone considered him national election worthy is a complete joke.

The fact that there has been a conservative exodus in this state in the past 10 years hasn't helped, but it also doesn't help that the national Republican Party has pretty much abandoned us.

They don't even try and the gubernatorial candidates they keep putting forward just plain suck. When Dems decide they want to flip a state they flood it with their people. The RNC should be doing the same with California. Look at Trump's rally in The Bronx. That's how this state would be given the chance, especially in any county east of the coast.

Oh and lucky us get to have our gas tax increased by another .02 cents July 1st.
Hmmm I wonder where he lost that 24B dollars?

Kev, I am very well aware. My parents and other folks I deeply care about are still there. Mostly in denial. Even if they lean right.

I’m a 5th generation California. My earliest ancestors came in the 1860s. I was born and raised and left in 2021 after 45 years old BS. I worked in downtown SF the last 15. The trend is not reversible in my opinion. It will get much much worse before it gets better. I am one of those high earners that left for a tax free, lower regulated and much freer 2A zone. My teens are doing much better in school and have a reasonable chance at owning a home sometime in the next decade+.

Best of luck to all those behind enemy lines.

It’s probably been suggested to Newsom by higher ups in the DNC, party donors and powerful Dems in Federal and state governments that he needs to step back for now. “His turn” will come later.

All hands on deck, the job at hand is to get Biden re-elected and to allow the spotlight on him and only him. Any positive accomplishments even with minuscule involvement by the Biden administration will be credited to it.

When Pelosi lost the Speakership, suddenly California's in a deficit. Not coincidental.

Last week, a picture of Kamala Harris with Jeffery Epstein was leaked on-line, leaked supposedly by Newsome.

Also last week, Biden was giving a speech and pooped his pants. Jill Biden had to lead him off the stage.

Biden is failing fast and the Democrats have nobody on deck. Newsome believes he's the one, but knows he couldn't win a general election with his record in California, so why not replace Kamala, then replace Joe? It's all he's got and he's very desperate to leave his California legacy.

I saw him drinking a piña colada at Trader Vic's. His hair was perfect.

Newsom is an opportunist, well seasoned in CA politics. He is smart enough to know that running in 2024 against a juggernaut like Trump is dumb, especially saddled with the negatives of a Biden presidency, and CA's bad rep. He is priming himself for a run in 2028, when there are lessor candidates not named Trump, the reason why he agreed to debate DeSantis.

quote:

Originally posted by ElToro:
Let’s not forget his stint in rehab. Allegedly for booze but the rampant rumor in SF at the time was it was for harder stuff.

Oh, it's confirmed he was into the white candy. Plenty of stories from SFPD of those officers who were detailed to Newsom as mayor and had to drive him around. The Fillmore Triangle was his hunting ground, he was a regular at Balboa Cafe and was an investor in Matrix-Fillmore. As a poon-hound he'd get smashed nightly, make a mess in the back of the town car, then his detail would have to get it cleaned-up before they grabbed him in the morning.

quote:

Originally posted by KevH:
The fact that there has been a conservative exodus in this state in the past 10 years hasn't helped, but it also doesn't help that the national Republican Party has pretty much abandoned us.

They don't even try and the gubernatorial candidates they keep putting forward just plain suck. When Dems decide they want to flip a state they flood it with their people. The RNC should be doing the same with California. Look at Trump's rally in The Bronx. That's how this state would be given the chance, especially in any county east of the coast.

Preach! the GOP is largely non-existent here. Small business owners have zero political allies or, anybody they can turn-to now that owning a business, defending your property or, making any profit is viewed as evil and grotesque. The GOP should've been the ones stepping up to defend small business' instead, they were more interested in chasing religious votes and looking for lost souls seeking a savior. All anybody has been looking for is a party to help reduce taxes, defend entrepreneurialism and the choice to raise your family as one see's fit.

On a related note, Trump was in SF (something Bush #43 never did) for a fund raiser several days ago, heartening to see supporters in San Francisco. SF news media did its best to downplay and minimize his visit. The irony is the home he was at, is across the street from Newsom's benefactor, Gordon Getty's house.