RE-ELECT NEWSOM AS HE EYES HIS NEXT RACE

Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom’s re-election campaign follows an eventful first term that admirers and detractors of the former lieutenant governor and San Francisco mayor could write a book about.

Unlike with Newsom, brief narratives can fairly describe his predecessors’ records. Most recently, Jerry Brown was superb in repairing a broken state budget, and had valuable insights if not success on housing, but was disengaged on key issues like K-12 student achievement. Before him, Arnold Schwarzenegger peaked early on, starting with the landmark Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, but he ran out of steam, undone by the Great Recession and poor relations with the Legislature. And then there is Gray Davis. The aloof leader so alienated all parts of the political spectrum with his dithering during an energy blackout crisis and his imperious demands for deference that he was decisively recalled in 2003 — less than a year after his re-election.

Newsom easily fended off his own recall election last year, making his re-election this year all but certain. He did so during a once-in-a-century pandemic that put his ambitious housing agenda and other plans on the back burner but helped him introduce himself to a nation sharply divided in its political response to health and economic crises.

All the while, as he has throughout his political career, Newsom has been a voice advocating for California’s inclusive values and its determination to protect vulnerable communities — starting with people of color and LGBTQ people. He’s fond of saying we don’t tolerate diversity in California, we celebrate it, and his political appointments back that up. His defense of immigrants, refugees and women placed in difficult circumstances because of unwanted pregnancies has never wavered even as the rise of Trumpism and an activist conservative Supreme Court raised the risks these groups face. Other important issues are works in progress. On the climate emergency, Newsom deserves credit for continuing California’s leadership in pushing for an end to fossil-fuel vehicles and many other changes to reduce the emissions that are warming the atmosphere. This summer, when confronted with the evidence that the state power grid continued to badly need the 6 percent of electricity supplied by the Diablo Canyon nuclear plant, the governor swung big and won the Legislature’s approval of his plan to keep the plant operating for five years past its scheduled 2025 closure. Regulators also OK’D his plan to ban new gas vehicles sales by 2035.

But the fact that a shift to inconsistent renewable energy would put the power grid at risk on hot afternoons and evenings has been plain for years — as is the fact that the climate is warming. California lawmakers, only starting with Newsom, need to do far more to ensure a reliable grid, affordable energy and accessible infrastructure. The state avoided rolling outages during an unprecedented heat wave this month, but that might not happen next time.

On housing and the related issue of homelessness, budget surpluses and the Legislature’s Democratic majorities have allowed Newsom to spend billions on shelter. But a growing number of residents are still moving out of state, where homeownership seems possible. And most residents of big cities see homelessness burgeoning, not receding. This is another issue on which Newsom took a big swing this year by unveiling his CARE Court plan, under which people with severe mental illnesses, many of whom are homeless, can be compelled to accept care and housing. But somewhat similar bold steps didn’t pay off at all in San Francisco.

On the pandemic, California did better than most other big states in keeping down cases and deaths, and Newsom was ready to step up when the Trump administration chose not to lead the response to a national emergency. But he lost a court case on his church closures, suggesting he overreached at times. And California took longer than some other states to reopen classrooms, and the learning loss suffered by many students, especially children in low-income households, will linger for years.

Then there are issues where Newsom’s record is not mixed but negligent. A recent series by the Los Angeles Times found his administration’s poor oversight of the state law allowing legal recreational use of cannabis has led to environmental degradation and a sense of anarchy in many rural communities. By its own estimate, the state Employment Development Department sent out more than $10 billion in fraudulent payments early in the pandemic despite obvious warning signs that claims were false, starting with claimants with prison mailing addresses. And the state high-speed rail project is on track to spend far more than that without ever building a route that comes even near a major city.

None of these issues will get the attention a real gubernatorial race would bring. Not only did Newsom not draw a heavyweight challenger for his Nov. 8 election — it’s state Sen. Brian Dahle, R-bieber — Newsom’s not even campaigning against him. In interviews on Thursday, both candidates said the other had agreed to a debate with details to come. But Newsom was more interested in discussing billboards he was putting up in Texas, Indiana, Mississippi, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota and Oklahoma using his re-election campaign funds to promote abortion.ca.gov, California’s new abortion access website. And Friday, Newsom challenged Florida Gov. Ron Desantis to a debate on immigration instead of prepping for one in-state.

In his interview with The San Diego Union-tribune Editorial Board, Newsom’s command of issues, recall of facts and figures, and verbal dexterity was on dazzling display as he responded to every question with substance. But as the hour-long interview wore on, it was striking how often his thoughtful answers to pointed questions would veer into criticism of Desantis or Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and comparisons of California to Florida and Texas. If this is his standard script now — even in a discussion with California journalists — no wonder the national media assumes he is running for president.

While Newsom has been ignoring Dahle, the farmer and small business owner has been trying to make the case, including in a Q&A and in a meeting with the Editorial Board, that life hasn’t gotten better for most Californians as the Democratic Party has increased its dominance over state government. That’s a fair argument. But he has also been trying to make the case that Newsom is all hat and no cattle, to use a Texas idiom. That isn’t. Newsom clearly deserves to keep taking big swings on major issues that he understands in great detail. In looking past Dahle, he’s not just eyeing a bigger stage. He’s on it.

The San Diego Union-tribune Editorial Board endorses Gavin Newsom for governor.