California lawmaker calls for a criminal investigation into Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis

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CALIFORNIA LAWMAKER CALLS FOR CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION INTO DESANTIS

A California lawmaker has introduced a resolution calling for a criminal investigation into Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for his role in sending dozens of Latin American migrants to Sacramento earlier this summer.

ACR 113, introduced by Silicon Valley Democratic Assemblyman Evan Low, was not available on the state’s legislative database website by deadline. But according to Low’s office it calls on the federal government to investigate DeSantis’ “Unauthorized Alien Transport Program,” which flew 36 migrants from Texas to California last June.

“To lie and deceive human beings just trying to survive and support their families in order to transport them unknowingly to California for the purpose of scoring cheap political points is unconscionable...” Low said in a statement Tuesday.

Low described DeSantis as an “immoral, power-hungry politician,” and offered his thanks to Gov. Gavin Newsom, Attorney General Rob Bonta and Bexar County (Texas) Sheriff Javier Salazar “for their quick action to investigate.”

A criminal investigation would likely do little to deter GOP voters from supporting DeSantis.

Former President Donald Trump, the presumptive frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination, has now been indicted four times and he shows little sign of losing support. In fact, Trump’s fundraising and standing in the polls has surged with each new indictment, according to the New York Times.

AG RELEASES REPORT ON GUN VIOLENCE PREVENTION EFFORTS

California, where rates of gun violence were once 50% above the national average, has done an almost complete turnabout, according to the California Office of Gun Violence Prevention ‘s inaugural report released Tuesday

California’s firearm homicide rate now sits at 33% below the rest of the nation, the report said. In fact, if the rest of the United States had California’s gun mortality rate over the last 10 years, there would have been nearly 140,000 fewer gun-related deaths.

One area where the state has excelled has been in reducing youth gun homicides. Though there was a pandemic-era increase in such deaths, the youth gun homicide rate in 2022 was still 50% lower than it was in 2006.

“In contrast, the next two most populous states after California — Florida and Texas — experienced substantial increases in youth homicide rates between 2006 and 2022, rising by 23% in Florida and 48% in Texas,” according to the attorney general’s office.

The report also highlighted areas where work still remains.

In 2021, more than half (50.4%) of all guns recovered by police in California and successfully traced by the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives came from dealers in other states.

And then there’s the proliferation of “ghost guns” — firearms without a serial number.

In 2015, police in the state seized 26 such weapons in connection with criminal activity. By 2021, that number had grown to 12,388. However, from 2021 to 2022, the state saw a 7% decrease in the number of firearms without a serial number recovered by law enforcement.

You can read the report here.

CALIFORNIA, AUSTRALIA COME TOGETHER FOR CLIMATE ACTION

California and Australia signed a new climate and energy pact Tuesday, bolstering the Golden State’s reputation as a powerful negotiator on global climate issues.

“We want to dominate in this economic space,” Gov. Newsom said at the signing event. “... This is about implementation now. It’s not about ambition any longer.”

Thanks to its aggressive climate policies and zero-emission goals, California has established environmental partnerships across the world. The state has led the U.S. in climate cooperation even when federal efforts stall.

Earlier this month, for instance, California signed an agreement with the Chinese province of Hainan to work together to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, phase out gas-powered vehicles and improve energy efficiency in buildings, among other efforts. The pact followed another agreement Newsom signed in April to renew a partnership with China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment.

Kevin Rudd, Australia’s Ambassador to the United States, commended California officials for their leadership.

“What you have done on EVs alone in terms of standards, your 2035 (zero-emission) target — it’s not just changing California, it’s changing America and it’s changing the world,” Rudd said.

The accord with Australia comes as California prepares to host the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in November in San Francisco. The forum will bring together international leaders, government officials and business executives to discuss regional cooperation around free trade and investments, with an emphasis on sustainability.

As Newsom acknowledged Tuesday, implementing the right policies to achieve California’s ambitious climate goals will be crucial over the coming years. Earlier this month, the state’s leading air regulator acknowledged the state’s plan to dramatically remove carbon pollution from the atmosphere by 2030 faced major roadblocks.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“The most expensive basic soap and deodorant is in our State Prisons. The price gouging mark up hurts poor families desperately trying to provide their loved ones the basic essentials all human beings deserve.”

- Assembly Majority Leader Isaac Bryan, D-Los Angeles, discussing his support for SB 474, a bill to cap how much prison canteens can charge inmates for basic necessities, via Twitter.

Best of The Bee:

• As contract bargaining heats up across the state, the chairs of California’s statehouse committees on labor and public employment have called on Gov. Gavin Newsom to bargain fairly with the largest public employee union in state government, via Maya Miller.

• A Sacramento attorney has been disbarred and is no longer eligible to practice law in California after committing multiple acts of professional misconduct while representing her clients, State Bar officials said, via Rosalio Ahumada.

• California Democrats are backing a campaign by Gov. Gavin Newsom to amend the United States Constitution with gun ownership age limits, universal background checks and an assault weapons ban, via Lindsey Holden.

• Of the four criminal indictments now facing Donald Trump, the state case filed in deep blue Fulton County, Georgia, could present the biggest threat to his freedom, via Michael Wilner.

This story was originally published August 16, 2023 at 4:55 AM.