Kevin Kiley is a snowflake who isn’t ready for a few questions, let alone Congress

Assemblyman Kevin Kiley, the precious little hothouse flower from Rocklin, is running for the House of Representatives.

Kiley was the valedictorian of his class at Granite Bay High School and went on to graduate from Harvard as well as Yale Law School. These are institutions that presumably teach critical thought and real-world resilience.

Or maybe not.

Kiley’s staff noted this week that because of my bullying (in a column and a few cartoons), he won’t come in for an endorsement interview with The Bee’s Editorial board. Kiley also seems afraid of my colleague Hannah Holzer, who went to the same high school as Kiley — over a decade later. At 23, it appears that Hannah is to Kiley what Kryptonite is to Superman.

Apparently, Kiley and his staff believe that Hannah and I pose a grave threat and could entrap the legislator in what his representative called a “political ambush masquerading as an editorial board meeting.” Dude, our editorial endorsement meetings are still being conducted remotely. If we’re really that scary, you could just have one of your minions show you how to log off.

If I were Kiley, who is aspiring to join a legislative body with the power to declare war, then maybe a 61-year-old political cartoonist shouldn’t seem like, you know, a heavy lift.

Kiley is running against Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones. If Kiley is afraid of me, imagine how he feels about Jones, who is usually armed.

Honestly, though, I think I could wax Kiley in a debate, particularly on easier questions such as whether Joe Biden was elected president of the United States, a fact Kiley seems to have trouble acknowledging.

If I were to debate Kiley, I would probably just stick to questions any smart guy from Harvard and Yale should be able to answer.

I’d probably start with: “Assemblyman Kiley, you worked hard on an attempted recall of Gov. Gavin Newsom last year, and it wasted more than $215 million in public money. In the recall election, you came in sixth place behind several other Kevins. How does that square with any fiscal conservatism you currently advocate?”

I might then ask: “Assemblyman Kiley, in 2020, you supported former President Donald Trump, a man who attempted to violently overthrow the United States government through extra-constitutional means, such as rioting that injured and led to the deaths of police officers. What constitutional law class at Yale teaches that such an insurrection is OK? Furthermore, if Trump runs again in 2024, will you still be on board with violent treason?”

Heck, any senior at Granite Bay High could answer that one.

But my guess is that Kiley won’t make it through the primary — which isn’t an endorsement, believe me.

There is a another conservative Yalie I have admired for decades, though. The late William F. Buckley Jr. was really good at debating, and he managed to be friends with people with whom he disagreed.

Hey, Kevin, read Buckley’s Cruising Speed. You might enjoy your fellow alum’s take on how to handle questions.