Here’s a measuring stick to gauge a new governor: Would Gavin Newsom or John Cox veto the measures that Jerry Brown is vetoing in his last year on the job?
Let’s consider just a few examples and focus on Gavin Newsom since the recent PPIC poll has him with a solid 11-point lead over Cox.
The legislature has bent over backwards to protect immigrants in the country illegally. This has been especially true since President Donald Trump used the immigrant question as a major emphasis of his presidency. Jerry Brown generally has been aboard this legislative effort.
Yet, last week he vetoed two bills that were deemed immigrant friendly.
One bill would bar immigration arrests inside state courthouses. The second would allow immigrants in the country illegally to serve on state boards and commissions. Senator Ricardo Lara authored both measures.
In rejecting the courthouse bill, Brown warned of unspecified unintended consequences. The veto of the latter bill, contained the message: “I believe existing law – which requires citizenship for these forms of public service – is the better path.”
Gavin Newsom, squarely building his persona as the Anti-Trump, might be expected to look more favorably on both measures if he is elected governor and the bills come back. Unintended consequences are unknown. Newsom won’t buy that reasoning.
An issue that Newsom repeats often is his stand against the spread of guns. He claimed in an ad during the primary season that he was the “first to take on the National Rifle Association and win,” an assertion that was termed false by Politifact California.
Still, Newsom has dealt with gun issues since he was mayor of San Francisco and he pushed the successful Proposition 63 that imposed background checks on ammunition purchases and required a state license to sell ammunition.
It’s a safe bet Newsom would be more receptive to the gun related bills that Gov. Brown vetoed. (It should be noted Brown did sign a number of gun related issues, most notably raising the age of a gun purchaser from 18 to 21.)
AB 2888 by Assemblymember Philip Ting would have enlarged the number of people who could petition the court for a gun violence restraining orders. SB 1177 by Senator Anthony Portantino would limit purchases of long guns to one a month. Newsom would likely be willing to give both measures a fresh look.
Almost assuredly, Newsom, the former mayor of San Francisco, would be open to SB 221, authored by Senator Scott Wiener and Assemblyman Phil Ting, that would have banned all gun and ammunition sales at the state-owned Cow Palace in San Francisco. Brown vetoed the bill.
Another bill authored by Weiner shot down by Brown was the plan to extend the sale of alcohol in bars and restaurants from 2 AM to 4 AM. As someone in the hospitality business, Newsom probably would be more accepting of this one.
For the third consecutive year Brown vetoed bills to prohibit smoking at state parks and beaches. He complained we have too “many rules telling us what we can’t do.” I doubt Newsom has embraced that rational, especially when it comes to smoking.
Republican John Cox, on the other hand, might well side with Brown on all these vetoes.
Of course, all this is a guessing game. But there will be a new sheriff in town come January and he will do things differently and decide things differently than his predecessor. Expect many of the vetoed bills to come back.
(Note: Hat tip to Chris Micheli of Aprea & Micheli for pointing out some of the vetoed bills.)