Cutting through all the campaign propaganda
The success of any propaganda campaign is not so much to convince you of a thing, but to make you doubt what you already know. The Trumpian MAGA influencers have elevated this to the extreme. In an election cycle, this creation of doubt is what one campaign does to the other, either by directly attacking the credibility of the other or by attacking the other’s character via third-party actors. It’s called “character assassination.” These approaches are something akin to slander, except in politics, it’s called political speech, protected warfare at the ballot box. It’s kind of like the old saying, “all is fair in love and war.” Except when it isn’t.
To sort all of this out in California’s gubernatorial race, let’s start with what we know. Two Republicans are running, hoping that a divided majority of Democrats will allow for a far-right Riverside sheriff, Chad Bianco, or Fox News host, Steve Hilton, to snatch the governor’s seat. Either would be a disaster for our state. In reaction to the situation, former LA Harbor Commissioner Diane Middleton said, “We must ensure that neither of the horrible MAGA Republicans (Bianco should be wearing a Klan hood) make it past the primary.” I agree with her.
So what’s the alternative? Congresswoman Katie Porter might be a good choice except for her poor debate performance and low poll numbers. And then there’s the billionaire candidate, Tom Steyer, who seems to be saying all the right things, but I just can’t get past the fact that he made his billions from for-profit prisons, oil investments, and kept his money in offshore accounts.
That leaves us with either Xavier Bacerra, the former Congressman from Los Angeles for more than two decades, before he was appointed California’s attorney general in 2017. He led the state’s numerous lawsuits against the first Trump administration and Republican states. And he served as U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services under Joe Biden.
Or Matt Mahan, who worked on voter engagement platforms in Silicon Valley before joining the San Jose city council in 2021 and becoming mayor in just 2023. In short, he doesn’t have the experience in the office or in Sacramento to be an effective leader. The same could be said for Steyer, who has all the right platform issues, and promises and has apologized for his past, but has never held an elected position–this kind of reminds me of the current occupant of the Oval Office–lots of promises but no experience in office.
By deduction, this leaves Becerra as the likely choice, with him likely garnering the majority of the Latino vote.
Don’t forget Lt. Governor
Michael Tubbs leads a nonprofit dedicated to ending poverty in California (EPiC). In 2016, he drew national media attention when he became the youngest and first Black mayor of Stockton at age 26 with a compelling life story: He was raised by a single mother in a poor neighborhood before receiving a scholarship to Stanford. As mayor, he piloted a universal basic income program. Tubbs served one term before he was ousted by a lesser-known Republican. He was appointed as a special economic adviser to the governor in 2021 to address the inequitable impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.
City of Los Angeles
I would like very much to have Nithya Raman as our next mayor because I like her progressive agenda, which I think this city is ready for, but I have my doubts about her ability to get it done. The other contender against Mayor Karen Bass is Spencer Pratt, who is some kind of Republican podcaster who, like Sheriff Bianco, wants to shake up the Democratic majority- another MAGA man with no elected experience. The safe bet is Bass.
I am very much in favor of the contender for LA City Attorney, Marissa Roy– I heard her speak to a group of harbor labor folks recently, and she really knows her stuff. She’s endorsed by Attorney General Rob Bonta, for whom she has worked while prosecuting the Trump administration… and winning! Bonta is probably the most trusted public official in California right now and should get a badge of courage for standing up to Trump all this time.
I have been quite disappointed with the current City Attorney, Hydee Feldstein Soto, and her actions during the ICE raids and her defense of the LAPD’s use of less tear gas and rubber bullets on demonstrators and the press.
In the end, the things to watch for are the small type at the bottom of all print flyers and TV ads. In the words of musician Tom Waits, “The large print giveth and the small print taketh away”. It’s almost invisible unless you stop to read carefully when you see some scandalous accusations about a candidate that’s put out by some political action committee, be very suspicious as a voter, some group is trying to scare you into voting against your best interests.