Why the Libertarians are backing the recall
At the end of last month I was asked to write a declaration to be used in a lawsuit against Gov. Gavin Newsom and California Secretary of State Shirley Weber by the proponents of the Recall Newsom effort.
This lawsuit was regarding the inclusion of governor’s argument in the voter guide that will be sent to all registered voters in California, that the recall is a partisan Republican effort.
Superior Court Judge Laurie M. Earl decided to reject the lawsuit, writing, “As persuasively demonstrated by Governor Newsom, the recall effort was clearly spearheaded by Republicans.”
It appears that she didn’t give any weight to the declarations of five registered voters in the state of California, which includes me, who are clearly not Republicans and who have strongly supported the recall. I am the chairperson of the Libertarian Party of California, and although I don’t agree with many supporters of the recall effort for their reasons for recalling the governor, I truly believe that the governor should be removed.
The Libertarian Party is the third largest political party in the United States and achieved permanent ballot status in California in 1978. We are one of only three political parties in the country to have our presidential candidate on every ballot in the past two presidential elections. The Libertarian Party of California is an affiliate of the National Libertarian Party, and is not a part of, nor influenced by, any other political party.
Since March of 2020, residents and businesses have fled the state due to the restrictive environment caused by Gov. Gavin Newsom’s executive orders in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Countless businesses have had to close their doors forever due to the government deeming them to be “non-essential.”
The Libertarian Party of California supports the recall
Mercedes de Leon, of Riverside, holds a “Recall Gavin Newsom” flag after speaking to the Board of Supervisors at County Administrative Center in Riverside on Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2020.
based on our party platform, beliefs and the actions of Gov. Newsom.
Gov. Newson has used overreaching executive powers throughout his administration, not only to impose devastating lock-downs throughout the state during the past 15 months, which have devastated lives and businesses in California. He has continued his assault on the Second Amendment and the natural rights of individuals to defend themselves and has signed bills that would limit the liability of PG&E for wildfire damage caused by them at the expense of the consumers and California taxpayers.
Gov. Newsom championed and signed into law bills that have had devastating repercussions on independent contractors and the gig economy. Assembly Bill 5 was so overwhelmingly unpopular with Californians that Proposition 22 was passed with almost 59% of the vote. But that only helped workers in certain industries, while others still struggle with not being able to work in California because of AB 5, which he celebrated.
I personally find it offensive that the governor has written an argument that will be included in the voter information
guide that states the recall effort is “an attempt by the national Republicans and Trump supporters to force an election and grab power in California.”
I am neither a Republican nor Trump supporter and I support the recall for the above reasons however I don’t support a “Republican takeover” of our state.” I believe that truth is the governor and the super-majority of Democrats in Sacramento are the ones that have been engaging in a power grab against all Californians. I live in Los Angeles County and it’s been reported that a larger percentage of Democrats in the county signed the recall petition than Republicans, which further stresses the fact that the governor’s language in the recall argument is disingenuous at best, and a falsehood at worse.
But what’s worse is that Dr. Weber has no authority to include these arguments in the Voter Information Guide. After taking a brief look at the California Elections Code, the only arguments permitted and required are those that were written when the notice of intent to recall the governor was approved, and the answer from the governor.
Of course, per the same provisions in the Elections Code,
the governor could have submitted a candidate’s statement for inclusion in the guide, along with all the other candidates running to replace him. He failed to do so by the deadline, much like he missed the deadline to have his party affiliation included next to his name in the recall. So it seems that Weber, Newsom’s personally appointed Secretary of State, has created additional arguments for the voter guide out of thin air. What a stroke of “luck” for the governor.
Now is the time for real change in California, and voting to recall the governor is a great start.
But for true change, we need to stop doing the same thing over and over expecting a different outcome (that’s the definition of insanity).
Now is the time to elect a Libertarian for governor, and Riverside County Supervisor Jeff Hewitt is my choice. Overseeing a county with a population of more than 2.5 million people and an annual budget of $6.8 billion, Jeff has what it takes to do the job as governor.
Recall Newsom, elect Jeff Hewitt.