Jon Coupal: No more special sessions in Sacramento – San Bernardino County Sun

Gov. Gavin Newsom called another special session last November to “protect California’s values ​​and fundamental rights in the face of the incoming Trump administration.”

The Legislature is offering $25 million to the California Department of Justice for a “Trump-proof” California and another $25 million for illegal immigration legal and support services. But what is the purpose of the special session?

Well, their purpose is abundantly clear from their official term. Officially, the session is “extraordinary”. My dictionary says it means “beyond what is customary, regular, or usual.”

Let’s say, hypothetically, a natural disaster like a wildfire destroys part of Los Angeles while the legislature is out of session. It would make perfect sense for the governor to reconvene the Legislature to tackle recovery efforts.

But for better or worse, our state legislature is a full-time legislature, so they are in regular session for most of the year. The session meets in December and doesn’t end until September (with a month off for the summer). They do not need to be called back. They are already here.

Well, you might say, the governor called them into special session in November. You said they don’t have a session in November so they need a special session. But they did not return in November. When Newsom declared a special session, he gave it a start date of “Dec. 2, when the Legislature meets.”

Even then, they didn’t get around to it until January – when the regular session is already in full swing. So what does it mean to call a special session, especially one to fight Trump? Well, you could say it’s about prioritizing. But in fact it is nothing more than political theater.

Of course, the governor and legislative leaders could simply deal with conflicts with the Trump administration in the normal course of their work, but that doesn’t generate national headlines. With Kamala Harris’ defeat in the election putting Newsom’s national aspirations back on track, garnering good press is a top priority for the administration.

But how does this happen? When wildfires broke out in Los Angeles County, the political posture was seen for what it was; an empty exercise that was tone deaf and in poor taste. Rambling for Trump while Pacific Palisades and Altadena burned.

Media scrutiny was mounting, and more responsible legislative leaders were rightly questioning the wisdom of continuing the Trump-related special session, especially on legitimate public business.

Additionally, existing legislative rules allow important bills to move quickly without a special session. The only thing stopping lawmakers from addressing the fires or Trump in the regular session is that they are in special session at the same time. But instead of going back to their regular schedule and dealing with all the issues facing California, including the wildfires, they doubled down.