‘Beast’ wants to be California’s new governor. He talked about water, immigration in Fresno
Water, jobs and immigration reform were among topics discussed by John Cox on Thursday during a campaign stop at a Fresno County farm, where the Republican candidate for governor made a bid to central San Joaquin Valley residents about why he’d be the best person to lead California.
“It’s water, it’s jobs, it’s economic development,” Cox said about issues that matter to the Valley. “It’s not a monumentous stupidity which is that train (high-speed rail).”
Cox was one of the first Republicans to launch a bid for governor in the effort to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom, what will likely be decided this fall by voters in an almost-certain recall election.
Cox, who unsuccessfully ran for governor in 2018, now faces a stacked field of governor-hopefuls that includes celebrity Caitlyn Jenner. Cox has vied for attention by campaigning with a live bear that he first trotted out for the cameras two days earlier in Sacramento. The live bear didn’t accompany him in Fresno.
He came to Fresno on the third and final day of his “Meet the Beast” tour across the state, which will end in Bakersfield.
Republican candidate John Cox made the bear his mascot
Cox is marketing himself as the “beast” to Newsom’s “beauty.”
“California has tried pretty politicians. It’s time for beastly change,” reads his website, which features large photos of growling bears prominently, which are also on the side of his tour bus. His tour follows the launch of a $5 million TV ad that also puts bears first – along with a parrot that repeatedly calls Newsom a “pretty boy.”
Cox describes himself as a businessman, entrepreneur, political outsider, and the “nicest, smartest beast you’ll ever meet in California.”
Water, drought and jobs
Cox spoke Thursday morning from a farm surrounded by almond orchards southwest of the city of Fresno.
He said Newsom has put special interests first and mismanaged the state’s natural resources.
Cox said if he was governor, he would declare a statewide drought emergency, and devote more resources to expanding water storage infrastructure across the state – naming the Shasta Reservoir and Friant-Kern Canal as a couple examples.
In addition, California should “fast track” the building of water desalination plants that could provide drinking water for people living on the Coast, while leaving reservoirs to be used for agricultural uses, he said.
Increasing job opportunities in California was another talking point. Cox said many large and small businesses have been driven out of the state because of various restrictions.
Cox said high-speed rail construction has created some jobs, but “spending just by itself doesn’t create economic growth” and California should spend money on “things that produce other spending and other growth.”
He said his brother lives in Fresno, where he works as a computer consultant, and that his mother lived in Fresno for 20 years in her retirement.
Immigration: ‘Go home’ and then reapply to be citizens, he said
When asked about immigration reform, he said people in other countries shouldn’t have to wait a dozen years to be allowed to come to the United States legally. He said California was built by immigrants, including Portuguese, Italian and Indian immigrants. He didn’t name Mexican immigrants, who make up the largest majority of immigrants in the Valley.
“My message to the undocumented who are here: We’ll give you a chance to live and work here. You’re not going to become citizens because you cut in line, it’s wrong. Go home. Reapply,” Cox said. “It’s not going to take a dozen years to come back. We’ll make sure that you come back, and you come back quickly, and then you get to be full citizens.”
When asked if he felt the same way about young people in the state through the DREAM Act, he didn’t answer the question directly.
“We’ve got to solve that ... people aren’t going to want to solve that problem unless they know that the problem is solved going forward,” Cox said.
He didn’t name any local endorsements when asked about his supporters, adding that it’s still “very early” in the campaign.
This story was originally published May 6, 2021 at 1:00 PM with the headline "‘Beast’ wants to be California’s new governor. He talked about water, immigration in Fresno."
