cox, john

aha yikes, evil perverse use of democ safeguard to revise const and boot recall davis: only 51%, then biggest votes, could be 20?!?

https://www.alternet.org/2021/04/qanon-2652801544/

By this point, almost everyone has heard of QAnon, the conspiracy spawned by an anonymous online poster of enigmatic prophecies. Starting with an initial promise in 2017 that Hillary Rodham Clinton would be imminently arrested, a broad group of interpreters divined a conspiracy that saw President Donald Trump's Democratic opponents as a global cabal of Satanic pedophiles.

Perhaps the greatest success of the conspiracy is its ability to create a shared alternate reality, a reality that can dismiss everything from a decisive election to a deadly pandemic. The QAnon universe lives on – now largely through involvement in local, not national, Republican politics.

Moving on from contesting the election, the movement's new focus is vaccines. The influence of QAnon on pandemic denialism is significant, though the spread of Q in local politics is a source of conflict in many states.

Tug of war

The conspiracy may have begun on an obscure web forum, but it is now influencing the Republican Party at all levels.

A recent Daily Kos/Civiqs poll found that 55% of Republicans believe some element of the conspiracy is true.

And in many parts of the country, QAnon supporters are winning elections. From local school boards to city councils, QAnon now has dozens of advocates at nearly every level of local government. While many of these positions hold sway far outside Washington, D.C., the breadth of this movement shows its influence is not likely to wane any time soon.

Not all Republicans are happy with this shift. In South Carolina, Indiana, Michigan and other states, Republican politics are fraught with tensions between QAnon supporters and more traditional conservatives.

For instance, in Indiana, local newspaper The Herald Bulletin published a story on March 21, 2021, headlined “Republican tug-o'-war: Factions vie for influence," reporting that “QAnon believers … showed their support at the Indiana Statehouse in January, holding signs bearing the QAnon phrase "#WWG1WGA" for 'Where we go one, we go all.'" Kyle Hupfer, chair of the Indiana GOP, was quoted as saying, “I don't think QAnon is part of the Republican Party. Leaders need to lead in a fact-based, solution-oriented manner and stick to the actual facts that are proven. Not opinions and not conspiracy theories."

State GOP politicians have promoted QAnon in Arizona through social media posts, although one later apologized for doing so, saying, “Now I think half of them are rather nuts." In January 2021, the Twitter account of the Republican Party of Hawaii tweeted a defense of QAnon believers. The account also defended a Holocaust denier. The official who posted the tweets was later forced to resign.

A similar confrontation has played out in Huntington Beach, California, where the appointed mayor pro tem – or vice mayor – inspired a vote of no confidence for supporting QAnon along with conspiracies against mask-wearing and vaccines.

Part of the conversation

Many QAnon proponents post-election have worked to reframe the COVID-19 vaccines not as the solution to a global pandemic but as an attempt by a cabal to control the minds of a hapless world.

Opposing mask mandates, vaccines and lockdowns have been effective campaigns for QAnon as it mobilizes anti-government sentiment common among the conservative base of the Republican Party. These efforts appear to be coalescing around bans on making vaccines mandatory.

Missouri's Republican-led Senate recently voted to ban so-called vaccine passports, and Texas, Florida, Idaho and Utah have all passed similar legislation. Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds is asking for similar legislation. It is unclear to what extent these bans were influenced by QAnon. But they do echo the opposition to masks and vaccines that have shaped the conspiracy.

In California, a recall campaign against Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has targeted his COVID-19 response. The campaign was initially organized by people affiliated with both right-wing militias and QAnon supporters.

Not going away

Yotam Ophir, a communications scholar at the University at Buffalo, has studied QAnon. He told me that he doesn't “see a reason to believe the conspiracy will go away anytime soon."

Part of this is that QAnon has deep historical roots in a variety of other conspiracies, including a centuries-old anti-Semitic conspiracy of a blood libel. The flexibility of the conspiracy has also proved resilient within a shifting political landscape.

Perhaps the biggest threat posed by QAnon is articulated by Lindsay Schubiner, a program director at the Western States Center in Portland, Oregon, which works to support democracy and challenge white nationalism.

“Bigoted conspiracy theories like QAnon have an enormous influence on the context in which local government operates," Schubiner told me. “Democratic governance is hard to achieve if we don't live in a shared reality, and that's as true on the local level as it is on the national level."

Sophie Bjork-James, Assistant Professor of the Practice in Anthropology, Vanderbilt University

ref1

https://www.newsweek.com/recall-gavin-newsom-movement-includes-proud-boys-member-1564573

members of the far-right Proud Boys group, the Three Percenters militia movement, and someone who has described

Black Lives Matter activists as "vile, violent...the black version of the KKK" are among the activists linked to the effort to recall California Governor Gavin Newsom.

The Proud Boys, founded in 2016, are a right-wing extremist group who were involved in the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol building on January 6. The group, which glorifies violence and believes men and Western culture are under attack, has been banned from several social networks, and is listed as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

The Three Percenters are an American and Canadian far-right, anti-government militia movement. The "three percent" refers to the belief that only three percent of the American colonists fought against the British during the American Revolution in the 1700s. Founded in 2008, the paramilitary organisation sees itself as a group of dedicated "patriots" protecting Americans from government tyranny.

The campaign to recall Newsom began in July last year. Supporters of the recall have until March 17 to collect the 1,495,709 signatures required for a recall election. The campaign is picking up steam, with more than 1.2 million people signing a petition to demand Newsom's recall.

Recall supporters have criticized Newsom for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic, tax increases, abolishing capital punishment, rising crime and lack of affordable housing. The official became the focus of public outrage when he was caught dining with friends at an upmarket restaurant in November—seated closely together and without masks—after telling Californians to avoid social gatherings and stay home to avoid risk of spreading the coronavirus.

aaron Bate, an El Dorado County recall organizer, is a member of the Three Percenters. Bate is noted in a Three Percenter newsletter with fellow member Daniel Seoane as fundraising for the recall movement. Antifa Sacramento has also accused Bate of organizing with the American Guard, a neo-Nazi group. Newsweek has contacted Bate for comment.

Jeffery Perrine, a recently-elected member of the Sacramento County Republican Party's Central Committee, who is a member of the Proud Boys, has said he had been "intimately involved in the Recall movement". The Sacramento County Republican Party on Monday called for his resignation due to his ties with the far-right group. Social media videos show Perrine in Portland shouting that "illegal immigrants should have their heads smashed into the concrete."

Jeffrey Erik Perrine, a member of the SPLC designated hate-group the Proud Boys, was recently elected to Sacramento County’s GOP Central Committee.

He was in Portland on June 30th, 2018 calling for the murder of immigrants and the separation of parents from their children. pic.twitter.com/AH4WiSVYfk

— Daniel V. Media (@danielvmedia) January 26, 2021

Perrine told Newsweekthat his words were taken out of context by leftwing activists.

"The clip is completely out of context. Its not what it seems. I can however see how it was taken and spun to look like I was only talking about illegals in a disparaging way. When that is not what I was there really even talking about. I touched on many subjects that day. That one just so happens to be the one the left snagged, and trimmed, to make me look as bad as possible," he said.

"I understand my mistake, and have grown significantly since that clip."

Stephen Frank, who is on the board of the California Revival PAC group, has been seen speaking at recall rallies and he held a virtual townhall on the recall of the California governor in June last year. The PAC group's website shares the Recall Gavin Newsom petition on its home page and it donated $60,000 towards the campaign in the fall.

Frank has previously described Black Lives Matter activists as "vile, violent...the black version of the KKK" on the California Political Review, the conservative website he is a senior editor of. Frank has also often referred to Black public figures he disagrees with as a member of "The Klan in Tan," using the phrase on Michelle Obama and former Attorney General Eric Holder on the same website. The phrase is considered hate speech. A St. Louis police officer was investigated by his own department in 2017 for having used the phrase in reference to Black Lives Matter activists.

Commenting on the remarks, Frank told Newsweek that he opposed all racism "black or white".

"The term "The Klan in Tan" is a term that was used by Dr. Walter Williams," he said. Williams was a Black conservative economist who died in December. Frank's claim that he first used the term is unproven.

"Riots around the nation, violence against innocent people, the belief that people not of color are racist, these are vile and violent actions and values. It is not civil discourse, it is use of brutal strength to get political goals," he added.

Daniel Seoane is an author on the recall campaign's website and also a member of the Three Percenters. He is listed as one of the proponents of the fifth recall effort submitted on February 21, 2020. The Three Percenters newsletter reported in January 2020 on Seoane and Aaron Bate's efforts to get recall petitions signed. In a social media video, he can be seen wearing a Three Percenter patch (the Roman numeral three with stars encircling it) while refusing to answer students who asked him what group he's with.

An investigation by theL.A.Times found that vaccine skeptics had also worked with the Recall movement. Two local leaders in the anti-vaccination movement, Denise Aguilar and Tara Thornton with the Freedom Angels, organized and participated in several demonstrations at the state Capitol that supported the ousting of Newsom. Speakers also denounced vaccines and health orders, the paper said.

Although many recall supporters identify as Republican, there are past Democrat donors who have rallied behind the effort. For example, Chamath Palihapitiya, a former Facebook executive and a major Democratic donor, on Twitter revealed he supported the campaign and told CNBC he thought that Newsom "has done a terrible job."

"First step is we need to recall Gavin Newsom," Palihapitiya added.

On the other side of the political aisle, Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has endorsed the movement, as well as the California Republican Party. Half a dozen GOP party leaders in the state also support it.

Orrin Heatlie, a leading proponent of the recall movement, told Newsweek he believed that people in California care more about what Newsom has done and how they've been impacted than who the people behind the movement are.

"I want to emphasize the fact that we are aware there are people in this movement from the entire political spectrum and from all walks of life," said Heatlie, a recently retired Yolo County Sergeant.

"These include liberal and environmental groups angry about Newsom's lack of leadership regarding climate change, and that he signed off oil fracking permits, to the anti-vaxxer crowd, the anti-maskers, open schools, open California, 'let them play' groups and pro-Trump and pro-Bernie Sanders individuals."

Heatlie, who worked with Bate on an early petition drive for the recall movement, said it is policy of the campaign to keep posts on their Facebook network focused on the recall.

"We do not take a position or promote matters unrelated to the recall. Postings about COVID, global or national politics, are not allowed. Do some get by? Yes, and we take appropriate action when brought to our attention," he said. He added that the campaign has removed many members and administrators that have failed to adhere to its messaging standards.

[READ MORE

He said people who support the recall movement attend different rallies and gatherings on their own accord to collect signatures, but the recall campaign does not promote the events themselves, other than to announce that people may be able to gather signatures. Heatlie added that just because a person or group may endorse the recall, doesn't mean the campaign's management supports them.

"We have no control over who promotes the recall by their own volition. This is a non-partisan all-inclusive movement. We promote unity and harmony across the board! This is a peaceful movement and we denounce any person or group who engage in acts of violence, threats or vandalism on any level," he said.

Hundreds of people gather to protest the stay-at-home orders outside the state capitol building in Sacramento, California on May 1, 2020. The campaign to remove California Governor Gavin Newsom is building up steam, with more than 1.2 million people having signed a petition to remove him from office.JOSH EDELSON/GETTY

In June last year, Newsom said that the recall will cost state taxpayers $81 million. If the recall campaign manages to get 1,495,709 signatures, a special election will take place this year, where multiple candidates will be able to run for California governor.

California Democratic Party chair Rusty Hicks has called the recall campaign a "coup" and said it was associated with "right-wing conspiracy theorists."

Since 1911, Californians have attempted to recall their governor 55 times, but were successful only in 2003 against Gray Davis. Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger was elected to replace Davis as governor in a special election

LAT

no lnx

Far-right movements including QAnon, virus skeptics linked to Newsom recall

Hundreds protest the stay-at-home orders outside the Capitol in Sacramento

Hundreds protest the stay-at-home orders in May outside the Capitol in Sacramento. (Josh Edelson / AFP/Getty Images)

By ANITA CHABRIA, PAIGE ST. JOHN

PUBLISHED JAN. 23, 2021 UPDATED JAN. 24, 2021 8:08 PM PT

SACRAMENTO — As the pandemic continues to shutter businesses, close schools and upend lives in California, Gov. Gavin Newsom has become a target of angry frustration for some, driving a grassroots effort to recall him from office. What once started as a pipe dream is beginning to look like a political threat for the Democratic governor.

But a Times investigation found that recall campaign leaders, seeking to capitalize on the darkening public mood, allied with radical and extreme elements early on to help collect signatures. Those included groups promoting distrust of government, science and medicine; peddlers of QAnon doomsday conspiracies; “patriots” readying for battle and one organization allied with the far-right extremist group, the Proud Boys.

The recall gave those fringe factions a higher profile and a shared villain. They helped energize the campaign with large and often inflammatory rallies over masks, in support of Trump and against the election they falsely say was stolen from the former president — ripe venues to harvest petition signatures.

Many supporters of the recall are not extremists and may not be aware of the far-right groups involved with the effort. But with the violent insurgency at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, organizers are grappling with the consequences of their alliances. They now insist the extremists don’t represent the values of the recall movement but continue to associate with them, amid a national debate about how far is too far when it comes to winning in politics.

“Do we have to denounce everybody that is involved to move it forward?” the official proponent of the recall drive, a retired sheriff’s sergeant from Yolo County named Orrin Heatlie, asked The Times.

“Or do we just move forward and ignore those other elements?”

Behind the momentum that Heatlie would now look past, The Times found:

Hardline activists from the anti-vaccination movement. Two leaders, Denise Aguilar and Tara Thornton with the Freedom Angels, organized and participated in numerous rallies at the state Capitol that promoted the recall effort. At these events, speakers denounced vaccines and health orders. The Proud Boys, who have been involved in protest violence, from street brawls in Sacramento to the incursion of the nation’s Capitol, are also often present. Aguilar has said they provided security.

The recall campaign itself provided a safe harbor for the propaganda and violent rhetoric that riled the Republican voter base and spilled over into the Capitol riot. An organizer in El Dorado County is a Three Percenter — an anti-government extremist movement, according to the Anti-Defamation League. Until social media crackdowns and questions from reporters at The Times, the recall’s ostensibly bipartisan Facebook pages repeated the surreal conspiracies of QAnon as fact and asserted the national election was rigged despite all evidence to the contrary. Those pages have also likened the daily disruptions of COVID-19 to the Holocaust and the governor to Hitler, framing their struggles as if they were on par with the massacre of 6 million Jews.

Recall officials, including Heatlie, all said it is unfair to hold the campaign accountable for the individual actions of its volunteers and supporters, and they are unable to monitor where signatures are gathered.

“You cannot control a movement,” said Randy Economy, a veteran political consultant who is the recall’s senior advisor and chief publicist. “It’s not our job to manage what somebody says about the recall at a public event.”

Economy said more than 1.2 million Californians have signed the petition to remove Newsom. As of Jan. 6, state elections officials said 723,783 signatures have been turned in by the recall campaign and of those, 485,650 have been verified. The campaign needs to turn in almost 1.5 million signatures by the March 17 deadline, though far more will likely need to be collected to mitigate for those proved invalid.

Many of those signing are fed up with coronavirus testing problems and disarray around lockdown rules and data, slow vaccine access and Newsom’s now-infamous dinner party at the French Laundry without the masks that other Californians were told to wear, Economy said.

Heatlie said his organization cut ties with at least one of those early partners, the Freedom Angels, and is careful about connections to groups with far-right views such as science deniers. Yet, The Times found recall signature gatherers continue to frequent such events.

Last weekend, the recall participated in a “Free and the Brave” Sutter County event featuring false claims about the virus and a silent auction for militia training.

The Church of Glad Tidings hosted the three-day conference against pandemic restrictions, and there were no masks in sight. One of the recall’s earliest regional organizers, Donna Wahlberg, was excited to set up her petition table inside the church where speakers advocated defiance of COVID-19 health orders and claimed that wearing masks was more dangerous than the virus.

Speakers touted COVID-19 cures of vitamins and horse wormer, and claimed hospitals are “murdering people” to collect government money for treating coronavirus patients.

Outside the church, thick-muscled men in tactical vests protected those attending with an arsenal of pepper ball guns, pepper rifles and Tasers. A trio of sheriff’s cars sat down the road.

Wahlberg said she promoted the conference on official recall web sites to tens of thousands of subscribers across California.

“We wanted as many people statewide [as possible] to attend this,” said Wahlberg, festooned in lively accents of red, from her brightly lacquered toenails to the turban wrap crowning her head. She is a Yuba County web administrator for the recall campaign, and before that, worked with Heatlie on a prior Newsom recall effort.

Heatlie said he was unaware his campaign had promoted the conference on its social media, but because there are so few large events to collect signatures at during the pandemic, there “might be a certain level of acceptance for certain gatherings.”

Heatlie also said he monitors all of his organization’s Facebook pages and has rules forbidding posts about federal politics or personal views, though The Times found multiple examples of such messaging across groups. Some included misinformation from QAnon — a nonsensical mythos that Trump was fighting a secret war with deep state occults who traffic children, and would declare martial law with executions.

These include posts from San Diego that carried the QAnon motto, W1GWGA (where one goes, we go all). Other posts depict Newsom as Adolf Hitler and compare pandemic restrictions to the rise of the Third Reich.

A protest sign against Gov. Gavin Newsom on the side of a truck outside the state Capitol

A protest sign against Gov. Gavin Newsom is displayed on a truck outside the state Capitol in May. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

That imagery is characterized as hate speech by the Anti-Defamation League, but for months, the image of Newsom as Hitler has been prominent at rallies, and the theme was adopted by a San Diego recall organizer to announce petition signings.

One politician who stands to benefit from Newsom’s ouster is John Cox, a San Diego-based venture capitalist and Republican gubernatorial hopeful who has already contributed $50,000 to the recall campaign and $1 million into his own gubernatorial exploratory committee. Cox said he was unaware of the role extreme groups have played in helping the recall gain momentum. He minimized the prevalence of such factions in the campaign, attributing them to “a couple of people who were unhinged.”

Cox said he found the Holocaust imagery of Newsom objectionable. “You’ll never see me inciting anything like that.”

Kathryn Olmsted, a professor of history at UC Davis who studies politics and conspiracy theories, said conspiracy theories, especially those associated with QAnon, are dangerous to peaceful politics.

“If you really believe your political opponents are Satan-worshiping pedophiles, you can be justified in using any weapon against them,” she said.

Strident language has become more common in the recall as the pandemic progresses, with the Freedom Angels one group turning up the temperature. The group first gained prominence in California opposing laws that require vaccinations for public school attendance, which they claim is an overreach of government authority. With the pandemic, two leaders of the Freedom Angels splintered off to join those opposed to COVID-19 closure and stay-at-home orders.

The splinter group also recently started an all-female militia, and advertises seminars on social media on how to target local health department officials, including staging nonviolent actions at officials’ private homes.

Aguilar, one of the founders of the offshoot group, is also a supporter of the Proud Boys, appearing at one Capitol rally wearing a shirt with a patch that read, “I (heart) Proud Boys” and at another introducing group members as security. Since the election, Proud Boys have fought with antifa counter-protesters during at least seven Capitol rallies, according to Sacramento police, and 27 people have been arrested or cited.

STOCKTON, CA - DECEMBER 10, 2020 - Stockton business owners make their statement for keeping their businesses open and call for local government to declare Stockton a "sanctuary city" for businesses on the steps of City Hall In Stockton on December 10, 2020. Faced with a dire shortage of hospitals beds, health officials announced Saturday a large swath of the Central Valley, which included San Joaquin County, and the vast region of Southern California to be placed under a sweeping new lockdown. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

CALIFORNIA

Anti-vaccine and alt-right groups team up to stoke fears of COVID-19 vaccine

Dec. 18, 2020

In a Dec. 13 Facebook post, Aguilar wrote, “I will have their back to the fullest and will not be shy about my support for my PB’s.”

Heatlie said he became concerned about the Freedom Angels in May, after an unruly Capitol rally in which 32 people, including Aguilar and Thornton, were detained by the California Highway Patrol. But despite his misgivings, Heatlie agreed to appear on a Freedom Angels webcast in June, on the day the Secretary of State’s office approved his petitions for circulation. And later in the month, Heatlie’s recall campaign called on supporters to attend a Freedom Angels rally at the Sacramento courthouse to support those who had been arrested during demonstrations.

Denise Aguilar, far left, and Tara Thornton, right, huddle together as they are detained by California Highway Patrol.

Freedom Angels founders Denise Aguilar, far left, and Tara Thornton, right, huddle together as they are detained by CHP officers during a May demonstration in Sacramento against Gov. Gavin Newsom’s stay-at-home orders.(Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

Aguilar declined to speak to The Times about her organization’s alliances, saying the recall campaign reflects only the voices of those who sign the petitions, though she continues to promote it. Thornton did not respond to calls for comment.

Heatlie said he cut formal ties with the Freedom Angels in July, but acknowledged that signature gatherers continue to frequent events featuring or arranged by the group.

The recall also has not censured those within its own ranks.

Aaron Bate, an El Dorado County recall organizer who with Heatlie was part of an earlier petition drive against Newsom, is active in the Three Percenters and has personally delivered thousands of recall signatures to his county election office.

On social media, Bate has posed with others flashing a Three Percenter hand sign, and with men in Proud Boys clothing flashing an OK hand gesture associated with their group and with white supremacy. Brian Levin, professor of criminal justice and director of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at Cal State San Bernardino, described the Three Percenters as “an anti-government paramilitary group that promotes the idea that violence is legitimate to combat gun control laws.”

In an email, Bate disputed that characterization.

“The Three Percent Groups are not a Militia nor are they far right,” Bate wrote. “They are made up of people from all Races, Political Views and Professions. There are Vets, Police Officers, Doctors, Electricians, and many other Professions.”

Robin McCrea, chief financial officer for the recall and one of its founding members, posted memes and comments on a personal social media page disputing the election. “PEVERT (sic) Quid Pro Joe Corrupt Beijing Biden will NEVER be the President of Patriots...NEVER,” she wrote in one. Later that day, she posted false assertions that the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol was the work of anti-fascist activists, another conspiracy theory that quickly took hold after the insurgency.

McCrea said via email that she stands by her views.

“I’ve seen on live TV the way Biden touches young girls. Would I want my child or a grandchild around him? No.,” McCrea wrote in an email. “Do I believe there was and is ample evidence to show the election results were not accurate? Yes ... Do my views regarding national politics have a thing to do with the Recall of Newsom? No.”

Heatlie defended both McCrea and Bate. He said that being a member of the Three Percenters was not a reason to remove Bate from the recall organization.

“This is about recalling the government. It’s not about Aaron Bate or his personal views,” said Heatlie.

Heatlie said he was unaware of McCrea’s views and she had not shared them in official channels, but that her financial skills were valuable to the campaign.

“If [people] don’t want to sign the petition because Robin McCrea is on the board or the committee or part of the management team or part of the volunteer team, then I don’t know what to tell you,” he said. “She helped bring this opportunity to the people of California.”

Two groups are raising money for the recall. Separate from Heatlie’s organization is Rescue California-Recall Gavin Newsom, which has a PAC headed by Tom Del Beccaro, former state Republican Party chairman. That PAC is tapping donors in the Republican establishment, campaign finance reports show.

Del Beccaro is a frequent contributor to the far-right Epoch Times, which has come under scrutiny for its far-reaching dissemination of pandemic falsehoods. In one piece, he commented on what he called the “CCP virus” (Chinese Communist Party) in an article entitled, “The Pandemic Expansion: The Greatest Media Bias of All is Pushing Ever Larger government.”

Del Beccaro’s committees are separately distributing petitions by mass mail, and he said he is unaware of Heatlie’s connections. But he also characterized those elements as irrelevant.

“It doesn’t matter what Orrin thinks, doesn’t matter what I think,” Del Beccaro said. “I represent or am fostering helping the 1.2 million (who signed petitions) and that’s, that’s what matters.”

Ann Ravel, chairwoman of the California Fair Political Practices Commission, discusses the $1 million fine, the largest in its history, levied against two political action committees for campaign-reporting violations, during a news conference in Sacramento, Calif., Thursday, Oct. 24, 2013. The FPPC also ordered two separate groups to pay the state's general fund the amount of money donated to them during the 2012 election cycle by the groups that were fined. The Small Business Action Committee was ordered to pay $11 million while the California Future Fund for Free Markets was ordered to pay $4 million. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

CALIFORNIA

Gavin Newsom recall effort faces ‘dark money’ complaint over alleged hidden donors

Jan. 5, 2021

If the recall does qualify for the ballot, it would trigger a special election this year. Unlike a regular vote for governor, the recall ballot could see multiple candidates — with the winner simply needing the most votes.

Last week, California Democrats attempted to brand the Recall Newsom campaign as an “attempted coup” akin to the Capitol insurrection — an effort that backfired, with critics saying it was reckless to characterize a legal recall attempt with what happened on Jan. 6. But one prominent Republican analyst said few should be shocked that the recall has extremists and conspiracy theorists.

“That’s become mainstream Republican politics,” said Mike Madrid, a former state Republican Party political director who co-founded The Lincoln Project, a political action committee of Republicans aligned against Trump.

“It used to be low taxes,” Madrid said. “It is now white grievance.”

Updates

9:31 AM, Jan. 24, 2021: This article has been updated with the headline of Tom Del Becarro’s Epoch Times article.

Anita Chabria

Anita Chabria covers California state politics and policy for the Los Angeles Times and is based in Sacramento. Before joining The Times, she worked for the Sacramento Bee as a member of its statewide investigative team, and previously covered criminal justice and City Hall.

Paige St. John

Paige St. John covers criminal justice, disasters and investigative stories for the Los Angeles Times from Northern California.

https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article215852940.html

...Brown said Wednesday that the state will spend what it must to attack the fires.

“There is money in this year’s budget,” he said. “In a year or slightly longer, that money will start to diminish. … Things will get much tighter in the next five years as the business cycle turns negative and the fires continue.”

He suggested California has been caught off-guard by the current demands.

“No one expected a fire tornado,” Brown said. “We’re getting a new phenomenon and that new phenomenon is we’re in a new climate weather era and so we have to learn.”

Brown since 2015 has directed more than $800 million in one-time budget funds for fire prevention, including the removal of dead trees and other vegetation that fuel fires.

In May, he outlined in an executive order a $96 million plan to expand vegetation thinning, controlled fires and reforestation on up to 500,000 acres of land. He also spent $160 million in cap-and-trade revenue to support forest improvements and fire protection.

The plan also seeks to make it easier for private landowners to thin vegetation on their properties by streamlining the approvals process for permits needed to do so.

Some say the state’s efforts to date don’t go far enough.

Republican gubernatorial candidate John Cox blasted state lawmakers for not adequately funding fire prevention. He downplayed concerns voiced by his Democratic opponent, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, and Brown about climate change and the increasing threat of disastrous wildfires.

Cox, who toured the fire zone in Shasta County this week with Republican lawmakers, said “I don’t know” if climate change is human-caused.

“Politicians like Mr. Brown and Mr. Newsom are distracting people,” Cox said. “What’s really going on here is they’re blaming this on climate change to cover up for the fact that they haven’t devoted the time and the resources and the planning to actually doing something about forestry management.”

Cox also backs the thinning of forests, saying the state should be investing in “fire breaks, controlled burns and clearing out dead and diseased trees.”

He said the state also needs to invest more heavily in boosting the ranks of firefighters, training and equipment.

“We’re going to find the money, believe me,” Cox said.

Newsom spokesman Nathan Click said “Cox’s Trumpian climate change denials, in the face of overwhelming scientific evidence, only undermine what little credibility remains in his campaign.”

Newsom outlined a detailed approach for how he’d address the looming wildfire threat to California. He said the state must improve vegetation management, boost funding for fire prevention and containment, bolster resources for fire departments across the state, invest in weather monitoring technology and a statewide early warning system and more aggressively lower greenhouse gas emissions to put the state on a path to 100 percent renewable energy.

“The science is clear — increased fire threat due to climate change is becoming a fact of life in our state,” Newsom said in a statement. “We need a comprehensive strategy and more resources to address this growing crisis.”

...