How to close California's budget deficit? Democrats are planning a plan

The three most powerful Democrats in the state Capitol came out on Wednesday with a bizarre announcement. It boils down to this: They're working on a plan to address the state's massive budget shortfall by making some spending decisions this spring, well before the June deadline to pass the budget.

But they did not say how much their plan would close the deficit — only that it would be in the range of $12 billion to $18 billion — or specify what cuts they would make.

The announcement was strange because it just asserted the obvious — with a deficit of at least $38 billion, Gov. Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders have been haggling over taking “early action” for weeks — while ignoring the more important details. Typically when the governor and legislative leaders issue a joint budget statement, it's because they've reached a substantive agreement, so this announcement was more noteworthy for what it didn't say than for what it did.

“The plan to make a plan,” as my colleague Taryn Luna described it, illustrates the challenges that lie ahead as Newsom, Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas (D-Hollister), and Senate Leader Mike McGuire (D-Healdsburg) address what might be the problem. Largest budget deficit in state history This first phase was supposed to be the easy part, making some budget adjustments that are relatively painless compared to the deeper cuts that may come this summer.

Read more in Luna's insightful article: Newsom and Democrats announce plan to reduce massive budget deficit. how? To be determined later

I'm Laurel Rosenhall, The Times' Sacramento bureau chief. Before I get into the rest of the week's news, a quick programming update:

Together with my colleagues in the Los Angeles Times newsroom, we've been working on some exciting plans to update our political newsletters for this election year. Today's edition of California Politics is my last. We'll take a week off and return to your inbox in April with a new look and a new writer. I promise it will be great.

Now here's what else is happening in Golden State politics this week:

Willie Brown is 90 years old: still a political visionary

Willie Brown, former California Assembly speaker and mayor of San Francisco, turns 90 this week.

(Jose Luis Villegas/For The Times)

This week, columnist George Skelton caught up with Willie Brown, a legend in California politics who made history as the first president of the Black Assembly and the first black mayor of San Francisco. Brown turned 90 on Wednesday.

Recalling the first time he saw Brown at the state Capitol, Skelton remembers exactly what he was wearing — a Nehru jacket that displayed a streak of countercultural rebellion, “a sign of self-confidence and independence,” Skelton wrote.

“Brown did not enter the Assembly's big mahogany doors in 1965 simply to fit in,” Skelton writes. “He eventually did, but he led more than that, becoming one of the most important political leaders in California history.”

This is a fascinating column summarizing Brown's astonishing rise from his childhood working in a barber shop in segregated Texas to the highest levels of power in California. It's full of anecdotes from history that show Brown's political mind in action—how he gained power by turning enemies into friends.

Read it: Even at 90 and with his failing eyesight, Willie Brown's political vision remains unparalleled.

Voter fraud, real and suspected

Ballots are counted by precinct at the San Joaquin County Recorder's Office in Stockton on March 11.

(Jose Luis Villegas/For The Times)

It didn't make big news when it happened earlier this year, but former Lodi City Councilman Shakir Khan pleaded “no contest” in January to criminal charges, including election fraud, after the county sheriff's office said San Joaquin said 41 of them were found sealed. He completed ballots at his home and about 70 people registered to vote using his address, phone number or email.

The alleged scheme stems from Khan's run for City Council in 2020, as Times reporter Mackenzie Mace explains. Although there is no evidence that it is connected to any broader voter fraud conspiracy — the city's local mayor said it “had no impact on any state or federal election that we know of” — the case has become fuel for broader paranoia about election security.

It caught the attention of national conservative commentators, charged a host of local right-wing activists, sowed voter distrust in an already chaotic political environment, and prompted the county to spend thousands of dollars on election security measures like new ballot drop boxes and cameras to monitor the election. they. Mays accompanied some local activists concerned about election security on Super Tuesday and provided this fascinating story:

A Central Valley politician has been charged with voter fraud. Right-wing conspiracies took over

Keep up with California politics

Voters approve Proposition 1, Newsom's sweeping reform of California's mental health system
A close contest over Gov. Gavin Newsom's $6.4 billion bond measure to transform California's mental health system finally ended Wednesday, more than two weeks after the primary. Although election officials have until April 12 to officially certify the results, Proposition 1 led with 50.2% of the vote when the race was called after more than 7.5 million ballots were counted statewide.

Border security could sway some California Democrats and control Congress
Thirty-seven Democrats voted earlier this month for the Laken-Riley Act, which would require the Department of Homeland Security to detain immigrants arrested on suspicion of theft-related crimes. A week later, 14 Democrats voted in favor of a resolution “condemning the Biden administration’s open border policies.” The votes could reflect how Democrats in vulnerable congressional seats can fend off attacks from opponents who say they are soft on immigration and border issues.

Two Republicans will face off to replace Kevin McCarthy in California's Central Valley
Central Valley voters chose two Republicans to face off in May to represent the San Joaquin Valley in Congress for the remainder of former Rep. Kevin McCarthy's term. McCarthy's successor, handpicked by Assemblyman Vince Fung, will advance to a runoff in May. With most of the votes counted, Tulare County Sheriff Mike Boudreau, a conservative who advocates for law and order, said he also expects progress.

Rep. Katie Porter says she regrets calling California's Senate primary “rigged.”
Outspoken Rep. Katie Porter is cleaning up after a controversial comment she made in the wake of her loss in California's Senate primary to fellow Democratic Rep. Adam P. Schiff and Republican Steve Garvey.

Column: More than 30 states have elected female governors. Will California finally join them?
In its 173 years as a state, California has had 40 governors. Democrats, Republicans, members of the Unionist Party, and the Party of Ignorance. Merchants, lawyers, former mayors. Bodybuilder turned movie star. Two movie stars, actually. But never a woman. It's a reality that stands out like Half Dome, writes columnist Mark Z. Barabak.

Column: I know who Trump should pick as his running mate — and she's here in the OC
Columnist Gustavo Arellano writes that who Trump should pick for his ticket is “on no one's radar but mine” and is putting the issue to Huntington Beach Mayor Gracie Van Der Mark.