Recently, there has been one bright spot for me remaining a California resident: The sheer entertainment value offered by the dramatic response of our leading politicians to President-elect Trump.
For example, our state’s representatives are lining up to work actively against our new President. The apparent goal is to make California to Trump what Texas was to Obama.
In the early morning hours after Donald Trump became president-elect of the United States, California Senate leader Kevin de León and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon were on the phone grappling with what comes next.Trump’s upset victory left the two Democrats reeling. They saw the incoming administration as an existential threat to the progressive work they accomplished in the nation’s most populous state. By midday Wednesday, they released a combative statement vowing to defend those strides….Now, the circumstance in which California finds itself recalls that of a perennial rival: Texas playing the role of chief antagonist to President Obama.That brand of resistance — a barrage of lawsuits seeking to stymie Obama’s priorities, and an elevation of state identity over a national one — may be a model, albeit an imperfect one, for California leaders wondering where the state fits into Trump’s America.
Meanwhile, outgoing U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (quite oblivious to the constitutional sensibilities of our Republic) is introducing a bill to do away with the Electoral College.
A week after her party’s White House loss, the retiring U.S. senator [Barbara Boxer] has introduced a bill that would amend the Constitution in order to abolish the Electoral College. According to a New York Times estimate, Clinton will be ahead in the popular vote by more than 2 million votes and more than 1.5 percentage points. But Trump got 306 in the Electoral College vote while Clinton got 232 — 270 is needed to win.With Republicans now in control of both congressional houses, it’s unlikely Boxer’s bill will become much more than a political statement.
Finally, while Governor Jerry Brown offered a more conciliatory statement on Trump’s election, he is vowing to fight Trump’s team on climate change policy:
“We will protect the precious rights of our people and continue to confront the existential threat of our time — devastating climate change,” he said.Brown was sharply critical of Trump during the presidential campaign season on the issue of climate change, taking aim at statements in which the businessman said he’s “not a big believer” in the phenomenon.In August, Brown vowed to “vanquish” climate change skeptics. “Bring it on,” Brown said at the time. “We’ll have more battles, and more victories.”
This should turn into an epic battle, as Trump just tapped one of the most skeptical climate change skeptics to spearhead his EPA transition team.
One cautionary note for my Legal Insurrection friends: Brown is term-limited out, and the 2018 race for the California’s next governor has already begun. Most of the leading candidates make Brown look like a Churchill-quality statesman.
Perhaps my fellow Americans should organize to expedite #CalExit?
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