Speaking to politicians and leaders who represent Greater California Southern, the state’s dark blue hue isn’t so obvious.
Behind what local leaders call a “blue curtain” created by Sacramento, a rebellion is brewing among more than 1.1 million registered Republicans – a Republican population larger than that of 40 other US states – and independent voices on the front lines.
Some say they are trapped in an “abusive relationship” with a one-party state that has traded the Californian dream for sweeping mandates, leaving families feeling “attacked” every time they stop at a gas pump.
“We have to do so much by car, especially parents, workers, a lot of people commute because, as you can see, Los Angeles County is 4,600 square miles and the inland areas, the places with the most jobs, are the most expensive to live in,” Roxanne Hoge, chairwoman of the Los Angeles Republican Party, told Fox News Digital. Los Angeles County is actually about 4,751 square miles. “Kamala Harris, our former vice president, stood outside a gas station in North Carolina and said, ‘Can you believe this price, $3.97?’ We would love $3.97 here in LA, we don’t see that at all. »
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“It’s something that everyone is talking about because it affects not only gas prices, but food prices and everything, the whole economy…I can feel it in my own wallet,” said Los Angeles City Council member John Lee, the city’s only non-Democratic elected official, when asked what his constituents tell him about California’s high costs. “I notice in my family, when we go to the grocery store, that the prices are more expensive… Historically, California has always been either [first]- or the second most expensive gas price in this country, and that’s due to the highest taxes and fees we impose as a government. »
Under the leadership of Gov. Gavin Newsom, current Republican and independent city leaders are criticizing “one-size-fits-all” policies that undercut the middle class. (Getty Images)
For the average Californian, going to the pump is not only an errand, but also a financial hit that critics say is driven by state lawmakers. California’s gas taxes and local and state environmental regulations add about $1.50 per gallon to the national average and are believed to be directly linked to the state’s one-party dominance and lack of political diversity in its leadership.
“The real reason for the extremely high prices is really due to taxes and the regulatory situation,” said Joel Kotkin, a professor of urban studies at Chapman University. “We did something absolutely astonishing. We had a thriving oil industry in California. California was one of the major oil exporters in the ’30s and ’40s. We have a lot of oil potential, but the problem is we have an administration that has constantly tried to destroy the industry, especially under [Gov. Gavin] Newsom.”
“I’m not a Republican or a Democrat. Are there enough people to say: This is what’s really happening? I mean, two things can happen at the same time. You can have, on paper, a booming economy with a lot of wealth created, and you can still have the highest poverty rate, the highest youth unemployment rate, the highest unemployment rate. You can have a whole cascade of terrible things, even if a small group of people gain money,” Kotkin continued.
The professor added that “the problem is that we are now a one-party state… If you take a place like Orange County, where it’s essentially 50-50, the parties have to be responsive to a certain extent. You can’t go crazy. You can’t be a far-left Democrat or a far-right Republican and do too well in Orange County. You have to moderate to a certain extent. In California, there’s no need to moderate.”
This is the very problem Lee and Hoge face in their positions, particularly when opposing Newsom-backed laws like AB X2-1, which allows the California Energy Commission (CEC) to set minimum inventory levels for refiners, and SB clean electricity network and electric vehicle mandates.
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office declined an interview with Fox News Digital and referred questions to the CEC, which said AB X2-1 and SB
“They’re going to have to show me where we’re saving money. It doesn’t matter what any spreadsheet tells them, but all you have to do is look at the price of gasoline and ask anyone in the city of Los Angeles if they feel like the price is going down?” Lee, who recently filed a resolution asking state lawmakers to temporarily suspend the gas tax, said.
“The people of the 12th District elected me to represent them in City Hall because I’m that independent voice. I’m that voice that doesn’t need to look to anyone else, other than the people I represent, to tell me what’s best to serve them,” Lee said. “The simplest way is for Sacramento to reduce some of the fees and taxes imposed on energy costs. And if we could do that, it would provide the most immediate relief to our families that they desperately need right now.”
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Hoge agrees: “They could repeal the gas tax, just suspend it for a while. This would save us a lot of money… The sad truth is that California has incredible oil and gas energy reserves.
“What happens in California doesn’t stay in California. The crazy bills that get passed, whether it’s CAFE standards or education equity requirements or gasoline standards and electric car mandates, they’re all coming for you.”
-Roxanne Hoge”Sacramento has a thousand and one ways to plug the holes they’ve caused. By the way, they’re not only behind on budget and revenue. They have an unfunded pension liability that’s like a sword of Damocles that’s well over a trillion dollars at this point. They’re completely enumerated.[d] and economically illiterate,” she said.
The disconnect with California’s top politicians translates into other major problems, like California’s recovery efforts. the Palisades and Eaton fires. Douglas Elliman’s agent, Cory Weiss, helped rehouse more than 30 families after losing their homes and, two weeks after the fires, saw Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass dining at the same steakhouse as him.
“I said, you know, ‘You let us down.’ I think she thought I was going to say hello and congratulate her. She didn’t know who I was. And I said, ‘Look, I just helped 30 families who were displaced and you’re here having a steak dinner, you’ve let us down.’ And she just gave me a blank look and…kept shaking her head…I didn’t see any remorse,” Weiss recalled.
“I would say I’m critical of our current mayor,” Weiss said. “There has been no accountability, no real path forward, no bringing the community together. I’m really surprised there haven’t been more community events that weren’t politically motivated, and “we’re all in this together.” And that, to me, is what’s really sad.”
Bass’ office did not respond to multiple interview requests from Fox News Digital.
“I think demographic forces are pushing California’s fundamental politics toward a more left-wing perspective,” Kotkin warned. “When you eliminate entire industries and people say, ‘Well, building things isn’t going to get me anywhere,’ you’re going to have a policy that’s more interested in giving money to the teachers union than creating blue-collar jobs.”
“The Republicans have abandoned California. And again, I’m not a Republican,” the professor reiterated, “but I wish we had a two-party system, because if you have a one-party system, it’s very difficult to change anything and no one is accountable.”
“So many people across the country are saying, ‘Oh, California, you got what you deserve.’ No, we don’t. There are many of us out here fighting behind the blue curtain, doing our best and trying to vote, express ourselves and put our energy into running for office,” Hoge said. “But more importantly, what happens in California doesn’t stay in California. The crazy bills that get passed, whether it’s [Corporate Average Fuel Economy] wacky standards or equity requirements for education or gasoline standards and mandates for electric cars, they all come for you. We are such a large state in terms of population that all of these mandates are shouldered by producers. Whether you live in a ruby red state or not, you are going to suffer if you don’t help us. »
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“We are the second largest city in the greatest country in the world and we are the great economic engine of the state of California, which is one of the largest economies in the world. You would think that Sacramento would pay a little more attention to us and understand the differences between a city over here and maybe a city up there. Unfortunately, Sacramento loves to propose this type of one-size-fits-all legislation that just doesn’t work,” Lee said. “And so, yes, it’s very frustrating. It’s very frustrating when they take this approach without consulting us, without talking to us, without getting our input. And so when we introduce legislation like I did to ask for this [suspension]I hope someone will take care of it. At the same time, I have no control over this. »
“I think we have the voice of the city of Los Angeles, and I think these council members, our mayor and I need to apply more pressure,” the councilman said. “My colleagues, I know they feel the same way, too, that they understand that their constituents are hurting as well. So I think they need to speak up, raise their voices and make sure they express their frustrations with what’s going on and what their constituents are feeling right now.”
“I think the American dream is still alive, the California dream is still alive, but I think we have to be able to be flexible and consider different ways … to bring these things to our city.”
This is part three of the Fox News Digital series, “The Golden State Strain: Inside the Nightmare “For part four, we travel to San Diego to talk to struggling small businesses and a multibillion-dollar loan company to see how skyrocketing energy costs are stifling the local economy.
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