Never too late to say sorry

Your afternoon must-read briefing on politics and government in the Golden State

Feb 21, 2024 View in browser   By Eric He and Christopher Cadelago ALL APOLOGIES: California is behind Alabama for a change. We’re also behind Florida, North Carolina, Maryland and even New Jersey, among other places — in apologizing for slavery and its intertwined legacies of racism and discrimination. That could be about to change. Legislation introduced this week by Assemblymember Reggie Jones-Sawyer would direct the state to acknowledge its role in slavery and apologize for the harms that Black people continue to face as a result. Under Assembly Bill 3089, the formal apology would be memorialized in a signed letter from the governor and other state leaders and publicly displayed in the Capitol. “When you make an apology because you've done something really horrendous, you have to acknowledge it first,” Jones-Sawyer said following a news conference today. “And it's not to shame you. It’s not to make you feel bad. It’s to begin that process of healing.” Assemblymember Reggie Jones-Sawyer, D-Los Angeles, speaks about a package of reparations legislation at a press conference at the state Capitol on Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Sophie Austin) | AP The bill is part of a package of legislation from Jones-Sawyer and other members of the Black Caucus that emerged from the work of the state task force on reparations created after the killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis in 2020. After months of research and public hearings, the task force produced an extensive report on the corrosive and persistent legacy of slavery in California — which wasn’t a slave state but a place where enslaved people were brought and the fugitive slave laws were enforced in the 19th century. The bill package includes legislation to restore property taken in “race-based” cases of eminent domain, but not direct payments — an idea that drew a cool response last year from Gov. Gavin Newsom, who said he was otherwise supportive of the overall work of the task force. Newsom’s office declined to take a position on the apology legislation, as it does on most pending bills. But, in a statement, the office said the governor is in “productive conversations with the California Legislative Black Caucus” and “is committed to further building upon California's record of advancing justice, opportunity, and equity for Black Californians.” IT’S WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON. This is California Playbook PM, a POLITICO newsletter that serves as an afternoon temperature check on California politics and a look at what our policy reporters are watching. Got tips or suggestions? Shoot an email to ehe@politico.com or send a shout on X. DMs are open. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY President Joe Biden speaks at Culver City Julian Dixon Library in Culver City, California, Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024. | AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta SPLIT SCREEN: President Joe Biden is in California for a West Coast fundraising swing just as Newsom heads to Washington for meetings with governors and other officials. The role-reversal will have Biden raising money with House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi and wealthy Bay Area benefactors like the Getty and Marcus families and former state Controller Steve Westly. Newsom is set to meet with top White House aides and attend meetings with the national and Democratic governors groups. The trips spurred a new round of press inquiries that both Biden and Newsom have laughed off. On Tuesday, as the president prepared to leave for the West Coast, a reporter asked the president whether he planned to plot a “Plan B” with Newsom, should he not be able to run for president. Newsom, meantime, was asked for the umpteenth time about running for president this year if Biden, for some unspecified reason, isn’t on the ticket. The governor, dismissing the premise, said he hopes to be invited to Biden’s second inauguration. The two men are expected to see each other on Friday and Saturday around the National Governors Association meetings. ON THE BEATS DEFICIT-MEASURING CONTEST: From the "City of Broad Shoulders" comes even broader ambitions. On Wednesday, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker took an unprovoked shot at Newsom during remarks pegged to the state of the state and budget. Pritzker, bragging about his state’s balanced budget, then contrasted that with shade: “California,” he said, “for example, has a $38 billion deficit to contend with." Both men are ambitious Democratic governors of large blue states, and both have received attention as top surrogates for Biden. Newsom himself has connections to the Pritzker clan: He worked with family members who helped fund his 2016 ballot initiative to legalize recreational marijuana. Pritzker isn’t the first Democrat to clap at Newsom. In November, Sen. John Fetterman, a Pennsylvania Democrat, accused Newsom of running a shadow campaign for president, adding he simply didn’t have the “guts to announce it.” Ironically, Fetterman took his shot at Newsom when speaking at a party event in [checks notes] Altoona, Iowa. LESS FLAVORED: Lawmakers are trying again to make California’s ban on flavored tobacco more enforceable. Healdsburg Assemblymember Jim Wood introduced AB 3218, which would create a list of allowable unflavored tobacco products that stores may sell. The proposal, backed by Speaker Robert Rivas and Attorney General Rob Bonta, is meant to bolster 2020’s ban on flavored tobacco. Despite the ban being upheld in court and on the ballot, enforcement, which was left to local authorities, has proved challenging. Public health officials have said they weren’t sure which products were banned as the tobacco industry created new cigarettes to skirt the ban. Marin Assemblymember Damon Connolly tried to make changes last year with AB 935, which increased penalties and clarified that the attorney general and Department of Public Health could enforce it. But retailers still complained that they didn’t know which new products were allowed. Wood’s proposed solution requires tobacco companies to run their products by the attorney general’s office, which will issue a list of products that are allowed to be sold. — Rachel Bluth ACT II: Sen. Alex Padilla announced today that he will reintroduce his Housing for All Act, a bill that would provide more than $450 billion for housing and homelessness over the next 10 years. Backed by Rep. Ted Lieu and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, Padilla said at a news conference that he would try again on a bill that failed to get enough votes to advance in the divided Senate. The senator said he anticipates more support this year, but is willing to keep bringing it back even if it fails. “If we have to try again next year and keep building momentum, then we're going to do that,” he said, “because the problem isn't going away.” — Sarah Grace Taylor  WHAT WE'RE READING TODAY RARE RECREATION: Rain from a series of atmospheric rivers has led to the rare reappearance of Lake Manly, creating an unusual opportunity for kayakers in Death Valley National Park. (Los Angeles Times) LIFE IN THE FAST LANE: A judge will decide in a trial that started today whether three men broke the law to get their hands on valuable original drafts of the lyrics to such Eagles classics as “Hotel California” and “Life in the Fast Lane.” (Associated Press)   Follow us on Twitter 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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