Recall Newsom
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RECALL NEWSOM THE CASE AGAINST AMERICA’S MOST CORRUPT GOVERNOR KEVIN KILEY Copyright © 2021 by Kevin Kiley All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. Although this publication is designed to provide accurate information in regard to the subject matter covered, and every effort was made to do so, the publisher and the author assume no responsibility for errors, inaccuracies, omissions, or any other inconsistencies herein. This publication is meant as a source of valuable information for the reader, however it is not meant as a replacement for your own research and analysis. First Edition January 2021 ISBN: 978-1098361587 Cover art by John Adlai Interior layout by Teddi Deppner Production by Joshua Hoover “Gavin Newsom” photo by Gage Skidmore Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 Printed in the United States of America Published by Kevin Kiley www.CapitolQuagmire.com “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” – John Dalberg-Acton ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The Recall is a citizens’ movement, and I want to thank the countless patriotic Californians who have worked tirelessly to bring it to life. Without you, there would not be a book to write. It’s because of your heroic efforts that we have this opportunity to set our state on the right course. This book came together very quickly, and would not have been possible without tremendous support from a number of people. I’m quite lucky in that one of the smartest people I’ve ever met, John Reynen, is also so generous with his time, providing detailed feedback on every chapter and making sure each argument was not only fully accurate and logically rigorous but a true reflection of the vision we share for our state (while also helping me to keep a sense of humor during long stretches of writing!). John Adlai stepped up and designed a fantastic cover. Teddi Deppner did amazing work getting the book ready for primetime in the final stages of production. On the Recall campaign, thank you in particular to Orrin Heatlie, Mike Netter, and Randy Economy for your encouragement of this project and for working day and night as leaders of the movement. Thank you to my research team, Blanye Clegg-Swann, Chris Luna, Daniel Lieber, Max Minshull, Megan Myers, and Abigail Scott, for working through the holidays to help make this a book that I believe will stand up to exacting scrutiny. And thank you to Joshua Hoover who ably managed and organized its production, while also exemplifying public service as a leader in our own community. Finally, thank you to my Assembly staff members. They are the best team I could ask for and have helped a great many people in our district weather the storms of this past year. CONTENTS Preface .............................................................................................9 Introduction .................................................................................14 PART I - Prelude to COVID ...........................................27 1. The Mario Kart Governor ...................................................30 2. California’s Cruelest Law ...................................................41 3. COVID Begins .......................................................................53 PART II - America’s Worst COVID Response .............56 4. Self-Promotional ...................................................................58 5. Lawless ....................................................................................72 6. Corrupt ...................................................................................86 7. Unscientific ......................................................................... 103 8. Incompetent ........................................................................ 117 9. Partisan ................................................................................ 128 10. Hypocritical ........................................................................ 135 11. Neglectful ............................................................................ 143 PART III - After Newsom ..............................................152 12. Back to Basics ..................................................................... 154 13. The Revival of Self-Government .................................... 160 How You Can Help .................................................................. 168 Notes ........................................................................................... 169 PREFACE A Tale of Two Speeches On March 16, 2020, I rose to address my colleagues in the California State Assembly. “Today,” I began, “I am supporting our Governor. I call on every legislator and every Californian, regardless of political preference, to trust in Governor Newsom’s leadership and listen to his guidance.” I spoke from my desk on the far-left side of the Assembly. The Chamber is a grand, magnificent space, modeled after Britain’s House of Commons. I’ve always enjoyed hosting classes on field trips and seeing the students look around in awe. Above the dais hangs a portrait of Abraham Lincoln holding the Emancipation Proclamation. Sometimes I imagine an animated Honest Abe, like a painting in Harry Potter, musing at the proceedings below as the People’s representatives pass legislation to designate an official state sport (surfing), state dinosaur (Augustynolophus morrisi), and even a state nut (almond, pecan, walnut and pistachio—as it turns out, all technically seeds). But frivolity is not usually the reason I imagine our 16th President to be shaking his painted head. More commonly, it’s something much worse: corruption. Lincoln must have encountered his share of it as an Illinois state representative in the 1830s. But there is no comparison, past or present, to what happens underneath the dome of the California State Capitol. 9 RECALL NEWSOM When I rise to give a speech in the Assembly, it is usually to oppose some corrupt scheme that Special Interests have cooked up, to be rubber stamped by their legislative enablers. Sometimes I succeed in killing such legislation, but more often what is said on the Assembly Floor doesn’t matter. The outcome is preordained; debate is nonexistent or farcical. Whenever I speak, the Majority Leader is on guard to try to find ways to cut me off. Every year, new methods are devised to stifle discussion and public participation. The contrast could not be greater between the grandeur of the Assembly Chamber and the tawdriness of its proceedings. Observers are often taken aback by the absence of any apparent sense of responsibility or public mindedness in this room where 80 men and women are trusted with matters of profound importance to 40 million people. Yet on this day, March 16, I hoped it would be different. I tried to summon a sense of our collective responsibility as we faced an impending crisis. “I rise today at a moment without precedent in any of our experience,” I said. “For nearly 40 million Californians, 330 million Americans, and people around the world, this is a surreal time, a sharp and sudden break from all normalcy. It’s a moment of crisis in every sense—social paralysis, economic upheaval, and mortal peril. The partisan rituals of ordinary politics have no place in these extraordinary times.” Now, even at this moment, I was no fan of Gavin Newsom. In his first year in office, I watched him hand over the keys to the Governor’s Office to Special Interests that spent millions electing him. He signed one of the most corrupt laws ever passed in the United States, Assembly Bill 5, which put tens of thousands of independent contractors out of work. He viciously went after our poorest kids by seeking to close the public schools that serve them best. He’d proven the very embodiment of our Capitol’s corruption. And unlike his predecessor Jerry Brown, who made an effort to build relationships with legislators, Newsom 10 KEVIN KILEY seemed to find it beneath him. Even favorable media outlets gave his first year poor reviews. But none of that mattered to me on March 16. Our state faced a novel threat, and Newsom was our Governor. We needed to work together. From my desk in the Assembly I called on our state’s elected leaders to put aside any differences. “A relationship of trust, openness, dialogue, and accessibility between Californians and their elected representatives has never been more important,” I said. “We’re in this together, and the only way we can meet these challenges is together—with ingenuity and resourcefulness, with goodwill and compassion, with strength and solidarity. Social distance need not mean societal dissonance, or spiritual discord. In a way, the very interconnectedness that made this virus so quick to spread also gives us the capacity to defeat it.” The essence of political leadership, in my view, is bringing people together for a shared purpose. Beyond the griminess and sharp edges, the practice of politics can appeal to the better angels of our nature (in Lincoln’s memorable words) as we pursue something larger than ourselves. This is what I hoped our Governor would do at this uncertain moment in our state’s history. My own background was not a political one. I had worked as a high school teacher in inner-city Los Angeles