California’s Evil Blob Problem

Tuesday, Republicans suffered probably one of the most humiliating midterm defeats in recent history. Democrats flipped both the House and Senate, swept every statewide executive office on the ballot in Texas (a longtime Republican stronghold), and the DSA claimed 127 victories nationwide.

As we all digested the election results, there were many surprising stories. And there was one very unsurprising one. California, the birthplace of American tech and home to the 4th largest economy in the world (if it were a country), keeps electing the politicians responsible for its downfall.

Xavier Becerra, who has the personality of a doorknob and who once oversaw a program accused of placing a number of unaccompanied migrant children in trafficking situations, won the governorship by nearly 28 points. He’s taking over, of course, from Gavin Newsom, who’s all but guaranteed to run for president in 2028. Newsom, who repeatedly rises from the ashes of his own catastrophes like some kind of dumpster fire phoenix, boasts that “the future of space and technology is in California” while those same companies literally flee the state for literally greener pastures (it actually rains in Texas).

Meanwhile, Nithya Raman is LA’s first DSA-backed mayor. Housing was a centerpiece of her campaign. But Raman’s track record on housing is legitimately embarrassing. In 2022, early into her tenure as City Councilmember and vice chair of the City Council’s Housing Committee, Raman campaigned hard for the “mansion tax” (a 4-5.5% tax on real estate selling above $5.4 million), which has contributed to the slowdown in multifamily construction and the loss of thousands of construction jobs. And as we reported back in August, her tenure as chair of the housing committee ended with her removal from the position, following rising homelessness, hundreds of millions in unspent funds, abysmal oversight, and vacant taxpayer-funded housing. Even some of her DSA-endorsed peers have struggled to defend her record.