Thread by @craigclemens

I voted for Gavin Newsom.

And today, I along with many Democrats, will vote to recall him.

Here are the 7 reasons why:

1. He let California get scammed out of $31 billion by criminals

abc7news.com/california-edd…

Your tax dollars at work, are actually now literally working to make scammers wealthy.

Yes, that's 31 BILLION, with a B.

Mafia-level money, siphoned right out from under us.

If you paid Cali taxes this year, some gangster is probably driving around in a Rolls Royce right now, on your dime.

And even before this scam, how high are our taxes, yet how bad are our roads and sidewalks?

If you're the man at the top, a scam of this size is your responsibility.

But of course, Newsom has taken NO responsibility.

That's not a leader I can trust. And if we don't vote him out now, we have no chance of getting a better Democratic Governor in 2022, because he will be the nominee again.

2. He lied about our most important issue

California wildfires have destroyed the lives of thousands. The best way to prevent them is by clearing brush in forests.

Gavin talks big about this, but then he was caught lying about how much of the forrest his team had cleared - by 690%!

sfgate.com/politics/artic…

And in 2019, he actually cut the budget for forest fire prevention. This is why the forests didn't get cleared.

Playing politics w/ wildfires is playing games with the lives of Californians.

But year after year, the fires keep getting worse.

And as a lifelong Cali resident, I'm not gonna stand for it.

3. He's taking other steps that increase global warming

Newsom talks a big climate change game...

But in reality, he is shutting down Diablo Canyon nuclear plant, which provides power to three million people.

That's more than every solar panel and wind turbine put together.

The plant is working perfectly, but this power will now have to be replaced by burning fossil fuels.

So in actuality, with this plus the mishandling of fire prevention...

Newsom is worse for climate change than the majority of his opponents.

forbes.com/sites/jamescon…

3. He keeps the schools closed against the will of parents

Gavin's biggest donor BY FAR is the teacher's unions. Unfortunately the teacher's unions don't do the best by the kids, and Gavin has to bow to them, to keep his funding flowing.

The result?

Our children in homeschool for far too long.

And imagine how difficult this must be, in homes where all kids share one computer.

This policy is leaving underprivileged families behind in their education, and that's not right.

4. He lets the homeless run rampant

The number of homeless people in California rose 31% over the last 10 years.

In the rest of the U.S.?

A decline of 18 percent.

Where New York City shelters 95% of its homeless, Cali shelters one-third...

All while spending 13 BILLION on the homeless, over the last 3 years

apnews.com/article/califo…

And now, he wants to spend 20 BILLION more!

Look, I'm all for helping the homeless.

The issue is that under Gavin's watch, the monies are NOT helping...

In fact, most of these funds go to businesses that depend on there being a homeless population, in order for them to stay in business & grow revenues.

That's a misaligned incentive. When you hear people complain about corruption in politics, it doesn't get much worse than this.

And did you know that around half of all fires in Los Angeles and the Bay Area are in homeless encampments?

In my neighborhood in LA, one of these recently spread to the hills, burning down 1,202 acres.

It makes me sad to think of all the wild animals that died in that fire, which never had to happen in the first place had Newsom been using that 13 BILLION DOLLARS to actually help our homeless population.

5. He ignores California's drug problem

Look, I don't think someone should do hard time for a bag of weed...

But Fentanyl deaths are up 2100% over the last 5 years!

theguardian.com/us-news/2021/j…

As Michael Shellenberger recently said:

"Because Californians decriminalized three grams of even fentanyl and meth, and shoplifting under $950 worth of goods...

Prosecutors do not prosecute, police do not police, and residents do not report many crimes."

3 grams is a LOT of Fentanyl.

3 MILLIGRAMS is enough to kill an average-sized man. Not dose, KILL.

So 3 GRAMS? That's a DEALER BAG.

But Newsom and those he helped get elected have decriminalized this.

Along with decriminalizing stealing $900 worth of stuff!

That's more than one person can carry!

It's no wonder homicides and home robberies in Cali are on the rise.

And Target and Walgreens are having to shut down stores, because of too much theft:

abc7news.com/target-hours-s…

6. He cheated on his wife

Yes, it was 10 years ago. But as a married man, this makes me question his judgement.

Yes I should have researched more before I voted for him. Had I done so, I would have discovered that not only did he cheat...

It was with his best friend's wife, who was working on his campaign.

We all know focus at work is important.

But if you're focused on the skirt, you're not doing the work.

Not someone I can trust as a leader.

nytimes.com/2007/02/02/us/…

7. He locked us down with non-sensible regulations

We all know the French Laundry story.

To be honest, I felt this was a little over-blown.

What wasn't overblown were the regulations put on citizens and small businesses, that made zero sense at all...

I'm sure you recall when we you allowed to eat outdoors only, but only with one family member.

But only if they were from the same household. But no one was allowed to sing. And both people had to wear masks.

But not while eating, because when you eat, the virus takes a break!

These senseless regulations hurt thousands.

Restaurants paid big bucks for plastic panels, but were then not allowed to serve.

Movie studios were allowed to keep filming, and serving food. But your friendly neighborhood cafe?

Shut down and hurt financially, beyond recovery.

All of these things have led to something that has never happened before...

Californians are actually LEAVING!

We all have friends who just couldn't take it any more...

They upped and moved to Texas, or Florida, or places where they didn't have to put up with this mismanagement, that is ruining lives and livelihoods.

But most folks can't afford to move. And those are the people Gavin Newsom is hurting the most.

So for me, this isn't political, or personal.

It's just common sense.

I voted to "hire" Gavin Newsom.

He's done a crap job, so now it's time to find someone else.

So why the recall? Why not just wait for his term to be up?

2 reasons:

1. If he doesn't get recalled now, he is FOR SURE the Democratic candidate in 2022.

So that means we have no chance of getting a better Dem. We are stuck with him. And he could go all the way up to the White House.

Reason 2:

In my opinion, the way he handled these issues was INTOLERABLY BAD.

I mean, he lied about the WILDFIRES. Our biggest issue. How many homes and people's lives did his misjudgment destroy there?

I could go issue by issue, but my point is, this isn't about eating at the French Laundry, or not wearing his own mask.

If it were just that, I wouldn't be voting for this recall.

This is about Newsom destroying our state, and destroying people's lives.

You don't have to love the other candidates.

The winner will be in office until 2022, then another election happens.

But we need to stop what's going on here, before it gets worse.

And, yes, while you may not have your ideal candidate until the next election, in 2022...

This is our ONLY chance to get a more effective Dem leader than Newsom, in 2022.

California cannot afford another disastrous fire season, or another multi-billion dollar scam (we literally can't)

Both of my brothers lost their homes to a wildfire, so this is personal for me.

Maybe your family was affected by the fires, or school closures.

Or maybe you're just tired of feeling unsafe walking in your own city.

Maybe you don't want crime to continue to rise.

You don't deserve to feel unsafe, in a place you love. And especially not in your own home.

And you don't deserve to feel frustrated by confusing, non-sensical regulations.

Or feel like your child is being left behind in their education, or social life, because of political games at the top.

So I'm voting to Recall Newsom today, and I hope you'll join me.

The future of our state, and the lives of many Californians, literally depend on it.

You can use a mail-in ballot, or find a polling place here (you must vote by 8pm today):

sos.ca.gov/elections/poll…

And retweet the first tweet here, to show this Recall isn't about Democrats or Republicans. It's just common sense:

https://twitter.com/craigclemens/status/1437811774808477701?s=20