Arnold Schwarzenegger calls Prop. 50 ‘insane’ during USC forum
THE GOVERNATOR WEIGHS IN ON PROP. 50, STATE OF DEMOCRACY
Former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger made his lengthiest and harshest comments Monday on Proposition 50 after coming out earlier this summer in opposition to the ballot initiative by his successor, Gavin Newsom, to redraw California’s congressional districts.
During a forum on democracy at the University of Southern California, the former bodybuilder-turned-actor-turned-politician called the plan to draw more liberal voters into five red districts “insane.” He said it would be a “step backward” for democracy if voters approve an accompanying map that would be in place for the 2026, 2028, and 2030 election cycles to counterbalance similar GOP-led efforts in Missouri, Florida and Texas.
He recounted the effort to establish the independent Citizens Redistricting Commission, which took effect in 2010, the last year he served in office.
“Imagine both of the parties (say) that we don’t want to have an independent redistricting commission. We want the politicians to draw the district lines,” he said. “And so I said to myself, they don’t want to give this right to the people. They want to hold on to this power. So this is when I realized our democracy is in danger when we let them continue this way.”
The former governor, who posted photos of himself on a chest press machine in a shirt that said “TERMINATE GERRYMANDERING,” has not aligned himself with a competing California GOP effort tying Prop. 50 to Newsom, who said that passing Prop. 50 would break the GOP majority in the House and neuter Congress from passing Trump’s agenda.
“It doesn’t make any sense to me that because we have to fight Trump, we have to become Trump,” Schwarzenegger said. “I mean, two bad behaviors don’t make a right behavior.”
He declined to answer a question from a student who called the Trump administration’s threat to fine UCLA $1 billion an “attack” on academia: “I wish that I could answer that but I don’t know the details, number one. Number two, I try to stay with the subject of democracy and the subject of Prop. 50, and about fair elections and clean elections, rather than cheating on elections.”
He denounced conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s shooting death, blaming social media companies, mainstream media, and both political parties for fomenting polarization: “We’re getting hit from so many different angles, and we have to be very careful that we don’t get any closer to that cliff, because when you fall down that cliff down there, there is no democracy, so we have to be very, very careful.”
LIANE RANDOLPH OUT AS AIR RESOURCES BOARD CHAIR
Liane Randolph will step down from her role as chair of the California Resources Air Board next month. She will be replaced by Lauren Sanchez, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s climate czar.
Randolph said she was retiring as of Oct. 1, calling her five year tenure as head of the state climate regulatory agency the “honor of a lifetime.”
“As I leave state service, I do so with gratitude and hope — knowing the next generation is ready to lead with courage, compassion and conviction,” she said.
“Liane stepped into this role at a moment of deep uncertainty and never flinched. For five years, she’s led with vision and resolve — expanding California’s work to clean the air in our hardest-hit communities while charting the course for California to become the world’s largest economy committed to net-zero carbon,” Newsom said in a statement.
CARB has come under fire in recent years from Republicans and moderate Democrats, who blamed it for the state’s affordability crisis, pointing to CARB-led climate regulations like the Low Carbon Fuel Standard, which mandates a different blend of gasoline than other states and costs more at the pump. In May, Assemblymember Jasmeet Bains, D-Delano, called for her resignation after Randolph told lawmakers that CARB did not factor in consumer costs when implementing pollution rules.
Sanchez, who joined the governor’s cabinet as senior adviser for climate in 2021, recently helped lead the negotiations between his office and the Legislature to reauthorize the cap-and-trade program, which lawmakers passed on Saturday.
“She (Sanchez) is a force in her own right: her expertise, tenacity, and vision will serve California well as the board works to protect our communities and defends our climate progress against relentless attacks from Washington,” Newsom said.
REPUBLICANS TARGET ADAM GRAY IN SHUTDOWN AD
Via David Lightman...
Look out, Republicans said Monday – Rep. Adam Gray wants to “grind our government to a halt.”
But Gray has no record of specifically advocating for or supporting any sort of government shutdown.
“Adam has never advocated for a government shutdown,” said Ben Rodriguez, a Gray senior adviser.
The shutdown claim is in an ad launched by the National Republican Congressional Committee, which promotes GOP House candidates. Gray, a Merced Democrat who won his seat last year by 187 votes, is regarded as one of the nation’s most vulnerable Democrats.
Unless lawmakers and President Donald Trump agree to a spending plan by Sept. 30, the federal government will run out of money and most of its functions will shut down.
“Out of touch Democrat Adam Gray would rather grind our government to a halt than crack down on violent criminals, secure our border, and protect California communities. He will risk veterans’ care, military pay, and public safety just to appease his radical base,” said Christian Martinez, NRCC spokesman.
The ad, which is running in districts across the nation with vulnerable Democratic incumbents, says “Democrats are threatening a government shutdown to stop President Trump’s policies.”
Democratic leaders have said that they want changes in health care policy, notably continuation of enhanced Obamacare subsidies, attached to any spending bill. Republican leaders have balked at the idea.
Gray has not threatened to shut down the government. Asked for evidence he has, Martinez cited the March House vote to fund the government through Sept. 30. Gray and all but one Democrat opposed that plan, which ultimately became law.
Trump and Republican leaders want a “clean” budget extension, while many Democrats are seeking relief from health care cuts to be included. Some Republicans are also wary of a budget extension, believing it doesn’t scrutinize and cut enough.
Gray has positioned himself as a relatively independent voice. “The fact is, Republicans control the House and don’t need Democratic votes to pass a continuing resolution (budget extension) to keep the government open,” Rodriguez said.
“And despite their claims, no one from Speaker (Mike) Johnson’s office has ever asked Adam for his help in passing a CR. If Speaker Johnson is truly interested in a bipartisan solution, Adam would be more than happy to offer some suggestions.”
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“How does the Constitution start? We the people. Not, ‘we the politicians.’”
—Former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger during the University of Southern California’s International Day of Democracy forum.
Best of The Bee:
- Republicans could have an election edge even if California redraws House maps, via David Lightman
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This story was originally published September 16, 2025 at 4:55 AM with the headline "Arnold Schwarzenegger calls Prop. 50 ‘insane’ during USC forum."
