There is a growing consensus that Governor Newsom will be recalled. However, it still seems unlikely that he will be removed from office.
The question is, how did we get here? Newsom used to be extremely popular all over the state of California. According to the Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies, Newsom’s approval rating is just 46%. That is down from 64% last September.
The main cause for the drop is his handling of the Covid-19 pandemic. The virus has decimated Los Angeles, and California as a whole has the most cases out of any state.
Governor Newsom’s handling of unemployment funds is also under fire. Unlike Newsom, many California citizens don’t think allowing $11 billion to be stolen is acceptable.
Covid
California has endured two of the strictest lockdowns in America. We were the first state to lock down all the way back in March of 2020. We also recently got out of another regional lockdown.
So what do we have to show for all the lockdowns? Has California done any better than the states that did not lockdown? Of course not. California has more Covid cases than any other state.
California has nearly 4 million cases as of February 7th, 2021. Los Angeles County alone has 1,146,450 cases.
Newsom is now facing pressure from both sides of the political aisle. Some on the right are mad that Newsom has done everything he can to kill small businesses without doing anything to protect us from the virus. Some on the left are angry he lifted the regional stay at home order while the number of cases is still so high. Even the Los Angeles Unified School District is mad at Newsom. He wants schools to open soon. They do not.
Despite the strict covid restrictions, we are worse off than we were last March. Many people are wondering why the government has not come up with a better plan around a year into the pandemic.
Unemployment
This stat is hard to believe. $11 billion in state unemployment claims were fraudulent. There is also another $19 billion worth of unemployment claims that are being investigated. Keep in mind that there are 66,436 homeless people in Los Angeles. There are definitely better uses of $11 billion than letting people steal it.
Of course, the governor will try to pass the buck and make excuses as to why it is not his fault. But let’s be honest, people trying to steal free money is the most obvious thing in history. Normal unemployment plus $600 a week was always going to be a target for thieves. The governor should have known this and made a plan to reduce the risk.
My Thoughts
At the end of the day, California is a very blue state. Registered Democrats outnumber Republicans 2–1. It is doubtful that Governor Newsom will lose his job in a state that leans this far left. The talk of a future presidential bid has taken a huge hit, though. Having a 46% approval rating in a state as blue as California doesn’t bode well for any potential national elections.
Also, Newsom brought this all on himself. The fundamental flaw of leadership is that you get too much credit when things go well and too much blame when things go bad.
In March, he was given too much credit for being the first to issue a statewide shutdown. He should have been honest then and told everyone that he was getting too much credit and that he was simply lucky. But, since he pretended to be so in control of covid then, he looks terrible now that things have gotten out of control.
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