The key to Democrats’ affordability push is a willing and posturing Newsom | Opinion
Gov. Gavin Newsom, perhaps seeking to appeal to Americans for a future presidential run, is shifting right as the end of his term approaches in 2026. From calling it unfair for trans women to compete against cisgender women in sports to recently proposing to restrict free health care for some undocumented immigrants, Newsom is moving toward the moderate side of the political spectrum with almost every action he takes.
While it may appear that Newsom is stabbing progressives in the back with a “both-sides” knife, the governor’s rightward shift could be put to good use.
What California most desperately needs is affordability.
Our state is an incredibly expensive place to live compared to the rest of the country, an issue that particularly resonates with moderate-leaning voters. Their first choice for a leader won’t be the rich guy from Marin County, one of the richest counties in the state.
Part of Newsom’s political facelift should be appealing to the moderate crowd. Their number one issue — the one that President Trump exploited — is affordability, i.e., the price of groceries.
Which brings us to the California Assembly. It vowed this legislative session to bring affordability to California.
Now is the time to do this.
Assembly has Newsom right where they want him
Assembly Democrats have made this session’s theme affordability, but it hasn’t taken off the way you might have imagined it would, given how critically important it is to Californians.
There are some bright spots. For starters, Assemblymember Alex Lee’s AB 11 would establish a social housing authority, which focuses on creating mixed-income housing developments that will lead to more affordable units.
But other than that, the Assembly is failing to create substantial bills at a time when they could get just about anything signed by a governor who wants to look like he’s Mr. Affordable. Housing is a great place to start, but they should also be looking at how consumers can improve their credit, lower the cost of childcare and make food more accessible in all parts of California.
A 2023 Sac Bee report shows annual childcare costs range from $11,000 to $13,000 a year. To understand just how expensive that is, tuition and fees at Sacramento State come out to about $7,500 a year. A report in 2024 showed that the average household in California spends approximately $297 a week on grocery shopping, which comes out to $1,200 a month — $30 more than the reported national average.
Beyond the political games, this effort is important because we simply cannot leave Californians behind. They should not have in their minds that the best thing for their family is to leave the state.
Without blinking, the Assembly and Newsom set aside $50 million for legal cases regarding trans and immigrant issues. Yet providing a better well-being for all Californians is a stagnant river barely moving downstream.
The Democrats in the Assembly should get the ball rolling and see Newsom’s political campaign as the way to kick their affordability into high gear.
This story was originally published May 28, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
