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A Difficult Situation To Be Sure
For too long now Republicans have been out of the business of governing California. The current and sorry state of affairs is that every statewide office is occupied by a Democrat, and they also control supermajorities in both the State Senate and the State Assembly. So what are our GOP legislators to do? Besides duct-taping down the no buttons on their desks and lamenting the challenge of always being on defense?
The answer, of course, is in effectively communicating to the public about the awful waste, fraud, abuse and corruption that is practiced by Democrats, who literally have no guardrails on them. There is no check and balance in the government itself (I didn’t mention it above, but even the State Supreme Court is stacked 6-1 with appointees of Democratic Governors). Worse yet is that, by and large, the main stream media aids and abets the messaging from Democrats, and seldom holds their feet to the fire (there are exceptions, including Ashley Zavala).
What Can Be Done By Republicans in the State Capitol?
I could go through a litany of ideas for how legislative Republicans should respond to the tyranny of the Democratic supermajorities — and that may be the topic of another Substack post. But right now I want to focus on an important tool in the toolbox — the bully pulpit. It means getting out there and talking, and writing about the liberal excesses of the left. Highlighting the waste, fraud, abuse and corruption anywhere and everywhere. Yes, to the point where it might make it awkward to meet a Democratic colleagues for some sushi, or a class of wine. So be it. One has to tell truth to abuse of power. Republicans in Sacramento do not have the luxury of being defined by what they are for — because they do not have the votes for that. They have to be defined by what they are against. The most important person on the staff of each and every legislator is the person handling their communications. Every new week should bring a new plan for engagement in newspapers, on social media, with community leaders — with a detailed plan that should be coordinated. This has been done exceptionally well on the recent move by Democrats to advance plans to ultimately implement a mileage tax. New week, new issue. Over and over.
Assemblywoman Alexandra Macedo Just Taught A Masterclass
A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of hosting Assemblywoman Ali Macedo for a one-on-one podcast here at So, Does It Matter? The was extremely articulate on that program and I encourage you to watch (or listen to) it if you have not. Yesterday I was watching the outstanding Politics 360 program hosted by Ashley Zavala on CRA-3 television in Sacramento. They are great at getting that content onto YouTube right away for those of us who cannot watch it locally. Zavala had a few guests on the program, but I want to focus on her 13.5 minute interview with Macedo. The bulk of the conversation was on the high speed rail boondoggle, with a little bit on the mileage tax proposal at the end. Macedo hit’s it out of the park. She is knowledgeable, personable, and most importantly - persuasive. Immediately below is an embedded YouTube player so you can watch it for yourself. And below the video, I have the “what next” for you, no matter your role…
Didn’t I tell you? Great job Assemblywoman. Now what (for us)?
What you should do now depends on who you are. For most of you, you should copy the link to the video (you can tap the top right of the image and copy the link). Then paste it onto your social media feeds, or paste the link into an email. Say something like this (or feel free to use exactly this)…
I just watched this short video featuring Republican Assemblywoman Alexandra Macedo, who represents a district in the Central Valley, methodically and in great detail lay out the waste, fraud and abuse associated with the California High Speed Train to nowhere. A complete money pit. Please take a few minutes to watch it. And if the message is as important to you as it was to me, please share it. The Democrats running this state are wasting money at an alarming rate, and now they want to raise your taxes, again.
Now, if you are a leader of an organization (A GOP club, a County GOP Central Committee, a Republican Women’s Club — or heck, even your Rotary Club) - send this out to your membership. Spread the word!
Finally, if you are one of Assemblywoman Macedo’s colleagues — praise her for her fine work of course. But you need to put this out on your socials, to your emails, and draw attention to it. And then ask her for talking points so that you can approach media, and independent creators in your network. Rinse. Wash. Repeat.
The Long Road Back
The road back to common sense policy-making for the State of California is a long one. But it starts by getting out there and calling balls and strikes. And it’s not by talking about the small-ball bills that a Republican legislator may be able to slip through a Democrat-dominated legislature. It’s by exposing what the left is doing. I do this through my socials, and frankly it was a motivating factor for starting this publication. You can do your part, and it starts with circulating this video!
USEFUL LINKS
KCRA’s Ashley Zavala on X [ [link removed] ]
KCRA’s YouTube Page [ [link removed] ]
Assemblywoman Macedo on X [ [link removed] ] (personal/political)
Assemblywoman Macedo on X [ [link removed] ] (government)
Jon Fleischman on X [ [link removed] ]
Link to Assemblywoman Macedo’s appearance on the [ [link removed] ]SDIM [ [link removed] ] Podcast [ [link removed] ] (the video is here, but also links to listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other popular apps).
Finally…
So, Does It Matter [ [link removed] ] Archive [ [link removed] ]. Go here and type in “rail” to see anything we have written on High Speed Rail. You can look through well over 500 previous columns here.

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