Does California Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas care more about affordability or Trump? | Opinion
Regardless of what California Assembly members want you to think, President Donald Trump is not the greatest threat harming Californians. Every day, working-class people are struggling to afford to live in California.
That’s the greatest threat facing our state.
Concerned Californians worried about their money are looking to their leaders for answers. Right now they have no answers. Their leaders are focused on Trump.
An orange-colored goose egg
This week, Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas paid lip service to California’s affordability problem: “This year our focus is on the cost of living and housing and other issues that deserve our urgency,” Rivas said to his caucus.
“We all know that because we hear it, they’re telling us repeatedly. So our task is urgent and it’s clear: to make life more affordable for every resident of our state.”
After making this speech, Rivas voted for two bills that would give money towards stopping Trump if he were to go after transgender people or immigrants, $50 million in total.
There is reason to be concerned that Trump is exceeding his authority as president by issuing sweeping executive orders that rob the power of Congress and federal courts. But Rivas and Democrats in California’s Legislature should be worried that voters trust Trump more than Democrats on the economy. More Americans had confidence in Trump on the economy than former Vice President Kamala Harris, whom Trump defeated in November. Almost 40 percent of Californians voted for Trump, with Trump carrying huge swaths of the state. To the north and east of Sacramento County, Trump won. I am no Trump fan, believe me. But I understand why people like him. More than Democrats, he speaks to issues that they care about and likes the things that he likes.
Watching California Democrats this week, I still don’t think they get this. They look lost.
Governor Gavin Newsom called for this special session on Trump and he could very well do it again. If another session is called, will Rivas stand up to him and say no? Will he tell Newsom that the assembly must stay focused on the issue of affordability? And precisely what real solutions do they have in mind?
Assembly members must create a path to affordability
If the latest election told the assembly anything, it’s that the people of California are tired of what they’re seeing but they also don’t know what to get behind. People are concerned about skyrocketing rents, but Californians rejected Proposition 33, which would have given local governments more power to cap rent. Many people can’t pay their bills, voters rejected Proposition 22, which would have helped many people pays those bills by raising the minimum wage.
The outcomes of these measures and others (most notably the tougher theft/drug sentences in Proposition 36) demonstrate the lack of leadership on key issues by California Democrats. They haven’t been able to find a way to make rents more affordable in a way that makes sense to voters. They were blind to the frustration that people feel about crime, so Californians voted for a measure that could do little to deal with the root causes of addiction and duplicate laws on the books to punish retail crime.
This is where leadership on affordability is vital as Democrats can’t find a cohesive message to combat Trump. They are giving the impression that culture issues mean more to them than economic issues.
Case and point, State Farm, the largest insurer in the state, is seeking to raise insurance costs in California for homeowners by 22% because of the damage caused by the LA wildfires. They are also seeking a 15% increase for renters and condo owners. Further, rental costs in L.A. and surrounding areas have increased as high as 150%. None of that was mentioned in Rivas’ speech. How does he expect Californians to believe his crusade for affordability if he doesn’t even talk about it?
Fifty million dollars given to address “what ifs” in battles against Trump instead of focusing on the numerous price hikes in our state is not a win.
Immigrants, trans people and everyone in between all belong in California, that much I know, but the question that Rivas needs to answer is can they afford to live here?
