San Francisco is only one of many once-beautiful cities that have gone to hell in a handbasket after years of supermajority Democratic rule and soft-on-crime policies. This largely explains the number of people fleeing the Bay area, leading to the lowest population seen there in more than a decade. But while homelessness and crime in general are making the city unlivable for many, one area where they are really being hit revolves around the ongoing fentanyl crisis. It seems like the drug is everywhere at this point and people are literally dropping dead in the streets. In response, Governor Gavin Newsom has resorted to something he previously refused to do. He’s sending in the National Guard to help shut down the flow of the deadly drug. (NY Post)

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has directed the National Guard and California Highway Patrol to help combat San Francisco’s fentanyl trafficking crisis.

On Friday, Newsom announced an effort to have both agencies assist local authorities to address the rise in fentanyl use.

The agreement will focus on “dismantling fentanyl trafficking and disrupting the supply of the deadly drug in the city by holding the operators of large-scale drug trafficking operations accountable,” the Democratic governor’s office said.

The first step in dealing with a problem is admitting that you have one. The political optics of a move like this are terrible, but it would appear that Gavin Newsom has reached the point where he is being forced to act.

Reassigning some of the California Highway Patrol shouldn’t be an issue. They are already engaging in law enforcement operations, so bringing them to bear on the drug trafficking operations can’t hurt. But the National Guard (CalGuard) is another matter. They can’t go in and start busting drug traffickers without the Governor running into a Posse Comitatus problem.

But that doesn’t mean that the Guard can’t be of use. As long as they aren’t arresting or directly interfering with citizens, they can perform investigations and turn over information to the police. They can also be used in non-enforcement duties, freeing up more police officers to hit the streets.

A lot of these resources will be centered on the Tenderloin district. That area was literally declared to be a disaster zone by the Mayor last year. It’s where the homeless encampments are the thickest and all of the street-level crime that comes along with large homeless populations takes place. The city’s policies of ignoring open-air drug markets have come back to bite it. And now the CHP and the National Guard are being asked to help clean up the mess.

It’s a rare day when I have the opportunity to praise anything that Gavin Newsom says or does. But in this case, he’s made the right call and deserves at least some credit, though it is very, very long overdue. He had to swallow some of his political pride and admit how terribly wrong things have gone under his leadership, but if he manages to get the fentanyl problem under control, it will have been worth it.