Recall election shows two views of California
Newsom touts progress; foes see poor leadership
LOS ANGELES — Gov. Gavin Newsom and two leading Republican rivals in the California recall election painted disparate pictures of the nation’s most populous state, with the first-term Democrat describing it Tuesday as an economic powerhouse leading the country’s pandemic recovery and his opponents saying it’s a mismanaged state with an incompetent leader.
Newsom, who could be removed from office in the Sept. 14 election, headed to a heavily Latino neighborhood east of downtown Los Angeles to tout his new state budget, which doles out billions of dollars for pandemic relief checks and payments to cover missed rent. In a campaign-style rally, his political allies took the stage to pledge their support.
“Los Angeles County will anchor the ‘no’ on the recall,” declared Ron Herrera, president of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, which represents 800,000 workers. He called Newsom a “warrior” and a “champion.”
Meanwhile, conservative radio host Larry Elder sketched a California on the brink of collapse in his first news conference as a candidate. In Sacramento, former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer rolled out a wildfire prevention plan, part of his effort to establish himself as a candidate armed with policy solutions. He said Newsom has failed to lead on ways to prevent wildfires, which charred more of California last year than any year since records have been kept.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, a Democrat, defended Newsom at the rally for his decisions during the pandemic, saying that when it came to protecting even one life, “that’s not a tough call.” But Elder blamed Newsom for restrictive school lockdowns that he said traumatized many students, labeling Newsom’s rules an “anti-science mandate.”
The events offered a glimpse of the messaging that will dominate the campaign ahead of the September vote.
For months, Newsom has used the power and visibility of his office as he works to convince voters he deserves to keep his seat, but Tuesday’s event had all the elements of a political rally — a reminder that the nine-week campaign is underway.
The state’s $262.7 billion budget includes billions for expanding access to broadband, free transitional kindergarten for all 4-year-olds and relief for small businesses. Also among the items he touted Tuesday: $1,100 relief payments for low- and middle-class families, including immigrants, and state coverage of 100 percent of rent and utility bills people missed during the pandemic.
“You can’t come roaring back unless we have the backs of every Californian,” he said.
Republicans share a different message of California’s emergence from the pandemic, saying Newsom unnecessarily harmed people and small businesses with pandemic closures and failures in the state’s unemployment agency. They’ve characterized him as unable to tackle some of the state’s most pressing problems, including homelessness and wildfires.