Democrats’ homelessness headache

Presented by American Beverage Association: Inside the Golden State political arena

Aug 10, 2023 View in browser   By Lara Korte, Sejal Govindarao and Dustin Gardiner Presented by A homeless encampment is shaded by a tree in Sacramento on Aug. 12, 2022. A federal judge in the U.S. District Court for Eastern California in early August 2023, ordered Sacramento to temporarily stop clearing homeless encampments for 14 days due to excessive heat. | Rich Pedroncelli/AP Photo DRIVING THE DAY: Wildfires are devastating the Hawaiian island of Maui and displacing thousands of residents and tourists — including one notable California politician. San Francisco Mayor London Breed on Wednesday was transported from Maui to Honolulu, a person familiar confirmed to POLITICO’s Chris Cadelago. More on Breed’s evacuation here. THE BUZZ — Long running efforts to address the homelessness crisis in the shadow of the state Capitol took a turn this week when a federal judge prohibited the City of Sacramento from moving homeless people during a heat wave. But below the surface, a standoff between city and county officials is laying bare the political — and legal — difficulties of handling the seemingly intractable problem. Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg and District Attorney Thien Ho are waging a war of words over the enforcement of laws prohibiting camping on sidewalks. But the fight could end up in the courts. Ho is accusing the city of refusing to enforce the statutes and threatening to sue if leaders don’t enact a list of demands he sent Monday, including a daytime camping ban. Steinberg is accusing Ho of playing politics and “not doing his part.” As in many corners of the state, the disagreements over homelessness have involved a lot of finger-pointing. "It's difficult to play a baseball game when the other team won't come out of the dugout and onto the field,” Ho said in an interview. The spat comes as city and county leaders try to find ways to care for the thousands of residents who sleep on the streets every night. Efforts to take a tougher stance on encampments — in spite of pushback from advocacy groups — were intended to quell the frustration from Sacramentans who say the problem is affecting their quality of life. But some say it’s still not enough. Across the state, Democrats are under intensifying pressure to make tough choices on homelessness as encampments grow and public patience wears thin. The crisis has put liberal leaders in the uncomfortable position of favoring tougher enforcement to move people indoors. Gov. Gavin Newsom has directed Caltrans to clear encampments from under state highways and demanded better progress from local leaders who rely on state money. Homelessness has also been the singular focus of Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass. Earlier this summer, she reported the city had moved more than 14,000 people into shelters through her “Inside Safe” program. Steinberg has faced criticism for not taking a harder line on the issue — an accusation that could follow him if he seeks higher office in the coming years. The mayor has been vetted for a judicial appointment and said he’s considering running for California attorney general. Steve Maviglio, a longtime Democratic consultant who has lambasted Steinberg on Twitter for not doing more, said calls from the left for tougher enforcement have been borne out of frustration. “It tears at the hearts of most Democrats because we’re compassionate and want to see the problem solved,” he said. “But we’re moving the other way.”   A message from American Beverage Association: At America’s beverage companies, we are committed to reducing our plastic footprint. That’s why we’re carefully designing our plastic bottles to be 100% recyclable, including the caps. Our goal is for every bottle to become a new one, so they don’t end up in nature. Learn more at EveryBottleBack.org.   HAPPY THURSDAY. Thanks for waking up with Playbook. California’s Public Utilities Commission will take a vote today that could determine the future of self-driving car companies like Cruise and Waymo. PLAYBOOK TIP LINE — What other political fights are unfurling in local government? Let us know. Now you can text us at ‪916-562-0685‬‪ — save it as “CA Playbook” in your contacts now. Or drop us a line at lkorte@politico.com and dgardiner@politico.com, or on Twitter — @DustinGardiner and @Lara_Korte  WHERE’S GAVIN? Nothing official announced.   HITTING YOUR INBOX AUGUST 14—CALIFORNIA CLIMATE: Climate change isn’t just about the weather. It's also about how we do business and create new policies, especially in California. So we have something cool for you: A brand-new California Climate newsletter. It's not just climate or science chat, it's your daily cheat sheet to understanding how the legislative landscape around climate change is shaking up industries across the Golden State. Cut through the jargon and get the latest developments in California as lawmakers and industry leaders adapt to the changing climate. Subscribe now to California Climate to keep up with the changes.     FRESH INK RUMBLE IN THE VALLEY — You know what they say: If at first you don’t succeed, try again in a presidential election year. Former Democratic Assemblymember Adam Gray officially launched his campaign for Congress on Wednesday, looking for a rematch with Republican John Duarte in California’s 13th District. Stakes are high in the Central Valley, where Republicans are relying on wins from Duarte and neighboring Rep. David Valadao to help keep their thin margin in the House. Despite D+14 voter registration and Joe Biden holding an 11 point lead with voters in 2020, the district swung narrowing to the GOP last year, with Gray losing to Duarte by a mere 564 votes. Gray, who consistently toed a moderate line in the Legislature, pointed to his history fighting for water rights in the region and painted Duarte as foot soldier of Speaker Kevin McCarthy.  ANOTHER ONE  — Murrieta Valley Unified School District is the latest school board to propose a policy requiring school officials to inform parents if their student comes out as transgender. The board is expected to discuss the policy at a meeting tonight. The measure is similar to the one proposed by the Chino Valley Unified School District two weeks ago, which was adopted after a raucous meeting that saw State Superintendent of Public Institution Tony Thurmond escorted out by law enforcement. Murietta’s move is the latest chapter in what LGBTQ+ rights groups say is a troubling trend in California school boards. In addition to Chino Valley’s policy towards transgender students, district leaders in Temecula earlier this summer tried to pull teaching material that mentioned gay rights leader Harvey Milk — a decision that was met with swift backlash from the state. Jorge Reyes Salinas, communications director for Equality California, said the group is tracking similar anti-LGBTQ policies in 10 districts around the state. "It's an alarming increase of planned anti-LGBTQ+ attacks that are being disguised as parental rights, or igniting fear about the safety of their child,” Reyes Salinas said. Murrieta Valley School Board President Paul F. Diffley, who is carrying the measure, didn’t respond to a request for comment. Two other members of the Murrieta Valley board, Courtney Cooper and Nick Pardue, who is also supporting the measure, are backed by the same PAC that helped install the three conservative members in Temecula.   A message from American Beverage Association:   WHAT WE'RE READING TODAY BRUTAL FOR THE VP — "'There are polls that also say I have great approval ratings.'"  by PolitiFact’s Louis Jacobson: “Harris did not answer the question, but responded instead, ‘There are polls that also say I have great approval ratings.’ However, public polling results do not support her assertion.” — "Big risk, high reward for Newsom if he tries to end Hollywood strikes," by the Los Angeles Times’ Taryn Luna: “If he steps in and tries to help resolve the conflict, an error could leave Newsom on the wrong side of scribes and actors, who carry enormous social and political influence in California, or afoul of the deep-pocketed studios that are masters at swaying public opinion." — "Closure of 3 Southern California power plants likely to be postponed, state energy officials decide," by The Associated Press’ Sophie Austin: “The commission acknowledged it was a difficult decision. Environmentalists say the state needs to transition to more short-and-long-term solutions that will help it move away from fossil fuels and to rely more on renewable energy sources like solar and wind.” — "Thousands of homes in peril from fast-paced Bunnie fire in San Diego County," by the Los Angeles Times’ Cari Spencer and Christian Martinez: “The Bunnie fire ignited around 11:20 a.m. in the unincorporated community of Ramona, near San Vicente and Chuck Wagon roads, reaching 10 acres by noon. By 1:47 p.m., it had burned through 183 acres, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.”   STEP INSIDE THE WEST WING: What's really happening in West Wing offices? Find out who's up, who's down, and who really has the president’s ear in our West Wing Playbook newsletter, the insider's guide to the Biden White House and Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details that you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today.     Playbookers — Amelia Matier has joined Democrat Dave Min’s House campaign as a communications adviser. She was an adviser for Min’s state Senate campaign in 2020.   A message from American Beverage Association: America’s leading beverage companies - The Coca-Cola Company, Keurig Dr Pepper and PepsiCo - are working together to reduce our industry’s plastic footprint through our Every Bottle Back initiative. We’re investing in efforts to get our bottles back so we can remake them into new bottles and use less new plastic.  Together, we’re:  Designing 100% recyclable plastic bottles – we’re making our bottles from PET that’s strong, lightweight and easy to recycle.    Investing in community recycling – we’re marshalling the equivalent of nearly a half-billion dollars with The Recycling Partnership and Closed Loop Partners to support community recycling programs where we can have the greatest impact.  Raising awareness – we’re adding on-pack reminders to encourage consumers to recycle our plastic bottles and caps.      Our bottles are made to be remade. Please help us get Every Bottle Back.   CALIFORNIA POLICY IS ALWAYS CHANGING: Know your next move. From Sacramento to Silicon Valley, POLITICO California Pro provides policy professionals with the in-depth reporting and tools they need to get ahead of policy trends and political developments shaping the Golden State. To learn more about the exclusive insight and analysis this subscriber-only service offers, click here. Want to make an impact? POLITICO California has a variety of solutions available for partners looking to reach and activate the most influential people in the Golden State. Have a petition you want signed? A cause you’re promoting? Seeking to increase brand awareness amongst this key audience? Share your message with our influential readers to foster engagement and drive action. Contact Jesse Shapiro to find out how: jshapiro@politico.com.   Follow us on Twitter Dustin Gardiner @dustingardiner Lara Korte @lara_korte POLITICO California @politicoca   Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook  |  Playbook PM  |  California Playbook  |  Florida Playbook  |  Illinois Playbook  |  Massachusetts Playbook  |  New Jersey Playbook  |  New York Playbook  |  Ottawa Playbook  |  Brussels Playbook  |  London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters Follow us

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