By Ray Cardello for September 16, 2021 Season 3 / Post 42

Gavin Newsom dodged a bullet and survived to rule over the Golden State for the duration of his term. Newsom fought off 46 challengers, both Democrats, and Republicans, to win the special recall election in California. His primary challenger was radio talk host Larry Elder but to listen to Newsom, he beat Donald Trump and, as he called it, Trumpism. I checked, and Trump’s name was nowhere on the ballot. It was just in Newsom’s head.

This special election cost California taxpayers a whopping $276 million. Nothing is cheap in California. Newsom raised $80.5 million to assure he stayed in the Governor’s Mansion in Sacramento. Larry Elder raised a paltry $13.8 million, but he did not have unions and celebrity money on his side. Newsom was bolstered by support from the Democrat A-Team of Biden, Harris, Sanders, and Warren. Biden was held off until the last minute when it was clear that Newsom would survive the recall. Biden’s visit was inconsequential, and a good thing for him, and Newsom for his delivery at the rally was one of his worst to date.

When Newsom went to the podium on Tuesday night to declare victory, he had a concise list of what his win meant for Californians. He proclaimed that his win was a denouncement of Trump and a call for the Green New Deal and Women’s Reproductive Rights. He said that his win shows that his supporters do not want their state to turn into Texas. I hope that the people of the West Coast have more profound thoughts and desires than Newsom.

Let’s look at what Newsom failed to detail and should have been on the mind of every voter on Tuesday.

1. Crime Homicides were up 31%in 2020, and false indicators are resulting in lower overall crime rates. The crimes are still occurring, but the state has gone soft on arrests and prosecutions. Turn your back on crime doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.
2. Homelessness There are more than 500,000 homeless Americans, and nearly 50% of these are on the streets of California. The homeless population is exploding, taking over city streets in Los Angeles and San Francisco.
3. Housing Costs The average home value in California is $800,000, 150% higher than any other state.
4. Shrinking Population For the first time in our history, more people are leaving than entering California. California will be losing a seat in Congress, and that seat will be moving to Texas. As much as Newsom claims he is preventing his state from becoming Texas, that is where the California Exodus of people and business is heading.
5. Water and Electricity The infrastructure is broken with water rationing and rolling brown-outs a way of life
6. Taxes Dems are coming very close to that point where they run out of other people’s money. States like California and New York are taking $.60 of every dollar with all Federal, State, and Local taxes combined. And they wonder why people are fleeing for Texas and Florida.
7. Gasoline Prices As if Biden isn’t squeezing people enough at the pumps, California has the highest gas prices in the country. The average price of regular in Frisco is $4.25, and in L.A. it’s $4.00. They are pushing hard for electric cars but difficult to charge them in a Brown-out.

That is just seven topics that nobody wanted to press Newsom on, but why when you can get an abortion in a green clinic? In a few blogs back, I mentioned that Democrats could not break the cycle of voting these destructive politicians into office. In this case, they had a chance to remove Newsom’s and correct a bad situation. Fool me once, shame on you. Guess the shame is on the people of California today.