Thanks, Willie, But It Didn't Work

Former SF-Mayor and Assembly Speaker Willie Brown has advice for Republicans. (Appreciate that his tone is not snarky or insincere, as is much of the "advice" given by partisans to their opponents.) [bold added]

Willie Brown (OC Register)

It’s clear that Republicans’ slip in California relevance has turned into an all-out slide. The midterm results show that Republicans are being hurt as young adults and other progressively inclined people fan out from the Bay Area and Los Angeles into onetime GOP territory like Orange County and Central Valley cities.

Add in the toxicity of President Trump, and you have a party that is clearly in need of major retooling if it ever again hopes to be a factor on the state level.

Republicans could start by getting rid of the Tea Party and Freedom Caucus types who have made the GOP platform so distasteful to new voters.

But if they really want to make a comeback, the GOP should turn the party over to women. Not only would they give the party a better public face, they would inject a better balance on social issues.

Well, the Republicans did try the woman strategy; they had a textbook candidate in Korean-American Young Kim:

Young Kim (CNN)

Kim was considered by many to have an edge going into the race because of her name recognition and long history as a district staffer for [ex-Representative Ed] Royce, who had endorsed her....Kim broke with Trump on several of his policies, including family separation at the border and curtailing family-sponsored visas. Nearly a third of the district’s residents are Asian American, and a third are Latino.

If ever there was a seat that Republicans should have taken it was the seat held by Ed Royce(R) in the formerly conservative bastion of Orange County.

Democrat Gil Cisneros was the eventual winner, overcoming Young Kim's lead with provisional and mail-in ballots days after the election.

Time to Put Them Up

Encampment by Angels Stadium, Anaheim (WSJ photo)

1½ months ago we commented on Orange County's homelessness conundrum: OC residents don't want the homeless living in tents and they don't want to build homeless shelters in their cities. (The obvious answer, which politicians seem to be reticent to voice out loud, is to move the homeless away--far, far away.)

Homelessness seems to be worsening more in California than in other states: [bold added]

Last year California’s homeless population jumped 13.7%, compared with 3.6% in New York and 1% nationwide, according to an annual survey by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Most homeless people around the country live in emergency shelters or public transitional housing. But in California they camp outside in public spaces.

Southern California's year-round temperate climate is one reason for the encampments. (There's a similar phenomenon in Hawaii.) Two other factors make it worse.

What’s causing the surge? For one thing, skyrocketing rents have made it harder for low-income people to find affordable quarters. Because of regulatory restrictions on development, the demand for housing hugely exceeds the supply. The stock of public and rent-controlled housing is especially limited.

Another apparent culprit is Proposition 47, a 2014 ballot initiative that reduced jail sentences for nonviolent crimes, including shoplifting, theft of less than $950, and drug use. Police officers have reported that they no longer arrest thieves and drug users, since offenders now often get released in short order.

People who once would have been locked up, including those with drug addictions and mental-health problems, have been left to the streets. Many steal to feed their habits. Since Proposition 47 passed, property crime has soared in many California cities even while falling nationwide. Between 2014 and 2017, larceny increased by 9% in Anaheim, 22% in Los Angeles and Santa Ana, and 44% in San Francisco.

Leaders in our one-party State exude confidence about how progressive goals (e.g., open borders, carbonless energy, high taxes and high services like universal health care) will lead to a glorious future. If they can solve the homeless problem, they'll have a lot of credibility with many, including me.

Shore Up Your Home Front First

Something tells me that these Orange County stories are related, but I can't figure how exactly.

Orange County Was Set to House the Homeless, and There Was a Popular Revolt [bold added]

Encampment in Orange County (OC Register)

All three cities where temporary shelters had been proposed—Irvine, Huntington Beach and Laguna Niguel—threatened to file their own lawsuits against the county if the plan were enacted, arguing that it placed an unfair burden on their communities.

Quote #1 - Santa Ana school board president Valerie Amezcu: “We’ve taken the brunt...our kids can’t use the libraries. Our kids go to school in the morning, and somebody is sleeping in front of our schools.

Quote #2 - Irvine mayor Christina L. Shea: “Because the county has chosen to close their eyes and not solve the problem, all of a sudden they’re saying, just build a tent here next to $1 million homes.”

Comment: in olden times caring was optional. Now, you will be made to care.

California Faces Pushback From Towns on Sanctuary State Law

OC Residents against the sanctuary state law.(OC Register)
See the women and non-white men--looks like America!

Orange County officials on Tuesday voted to condemn...California’s so-called sanctuary state law, which strictly limits when and how local authorities can cooperate with federal immigration authorities.

Comment #1 (an imagined dialogue):
California: "You can take your Washington immigration law and shove it."
Orange County: "You can take your Sacramento immigration law and shove it."
California: "You can't because that's different."

Comment #2: before you go to war, shore up your home front first.