According to Worldometer, which has a shade over the “official” Covid-19 numbers—and thus slightly more “accurate”—Florida is fifth in the U.S. in deaths-per-million from the virus, and should be a few ticks higher given the revelation that early on, Gov. Ron DeSantis’ political hacks in certain county health departments had discounted as many as 5,000 “probable” deaths, before being forced to abandon the practice after negative media coverage. DeSantis, who now is pushing a “free” monoclonal antibodies treatment for those already infected by the virus, which was part of the $600,000 treatment provided to Donald Trump. Of course, it would be much cheaper to get vaccinated or wear a facemask, and the monoclonal treatment is most effective in the early (pre-symptomatic) stages of the virus, and entirely useless in late stage cases. But it is a good PR move for the governor, except of course it is a little late in the game.
Unfortunately, Florida does not have a recall program for killer governors, even those clearly demented. California, while it has the most death of the virus in raw numbers, ranks only 35th in the country in deaths-per-million. Yet it has one of the incomprehensible recall statutes anywhere in the world. The state’s two-part system has an up or down vote on recalling the governor, and a second section which for who the voter wants as a replacement. This system is currently being challenged in court as unconstitutional, and it is easy to see why. As early voting continues for California’s Sept. 14 recall vote, Gov. Gavin Newsom is treading water on the first part, and in a field of almost 50 candidates, the current “leader” is a radio talk show host named Larry Elder at just under 19 percent. Elder is a black Republican and avid Trumpist, and as with most who call themselves “libertarians,” he is big on conspiratorial sound bites and short on actual policy ideas.
Thus Newsom could receive 49 percent of the “No” vote on recall, and yet a crackpot candidate 30 points below could be the next governor of California. And given the fact that high profile Democrats were dissuaded from becoming candidates, the “choices” are not exactly more elevated. Besides a Republican state legislator and a former San Diego mayor who are technically “moderate” but have belatedly embraced Trump, the list is a who’s-who of assorted no-name goofballs, who list their principle various qualifications as mother, father, college student, actor, cannabis policy advisor, retired airport analyst, free speech lawyer, realtor, pastor, aircraft mechanic, retired correctional officer, retired homicide detective, farmer, deputy sheriff, community volunteer, musician, hairstylist, “entertainer,” teacher, retail store worker, software engineer, and a couple of “no ballot designation.” And then of course there is Caitlyn Jenner.
In other words, any Dick and Jane can get their names on the ballot and brag to their grandchildren that they were once a “candidate” for governor. The “Democrat” on the list getting the most media attention is Kevin Paffrath, one of those realtors, who has some “typical” Democratic social positions intermixed with some “out-there” proposals which include banning state income taxes for those earning less than $250,000 a year, elevate gun rights for those “properly trained,” use the National Guard to round-up the homeless, and make all Covid-19 safety protocols “optional.” Some polling suggests that he and Elder are running “neck-and-neck” as possible replacements for Newsom.
Of course, the question then is “How did we get to crazy?” Not too difficult to understand, especially when Democrats like eating their own for lunch over the tiniest infraction of a gender nature. The principle webpage extolling the virtues of recalling Newsom, recallgavin2020.com—yeah, that’s how long this has been going on—are the usual right-wing grab bag of complaints against anyone who happens to be Governor Democrat. Taxes, immigration, gun rights, homelessness, wildfires, water shortages, power pricing—you know, the things the governor either has no control over, or happened to be the law when he was elected.
The usual racist paranoia is present, such as “Mandatory Health Insurance or be Fined to Pay for Illegal’s Health Insurance” and “Prop 47: Reduces Felonies to Misdemeanors of Violent Criminals.” Like most of the complaints listed, Newsom has very little personal responsibility for the proposition, which was passed back in 2014, and was an attempt to unpack prisons with first time offenders for things like shoplifting, cannabis possession and passing bad checks as. Naturally, the right-wing thinks all of these things are fueling “violent crime.”
Because he is a Democrat, Newsom is also “guilty” of “government overreach,” particularly in regard to the pandemic. On the webpage many of complaints in this regard are rather “out-of-date,” particularly in regard to numbers and the lack of that thing called “context.” What is most remarkable is that more attention has been given one of Newsom’s “slips”—being photographed at some social event without a mask—which is overshadowing the fact that whatever the merit of Newsom’s pandemic response, it has been more effective than what other states have done.
There are those who assert the “real” reasons for the recall attempt is simply that Newsom supposedly “mismanagement” of things like business and school re-openings, which has more to do with the vagaries of the virus surges; politicians—unless, of course, they are Republicans who don’t care if people live or die as long as their “freedom” to do so is maintained—don’t want to be on the “wrong” side of history on this thing. Newsom is only “human,” after all. Others suggest that there is perhaps another, more personal reason involved here: that it is felt that Newsom, like Dianne Feinstein who refuses to give up her U.S. Senate seat despite clear of evidence of the outset of dementia, is arrogant and out-of-touch with the “common” voter. Is that a good enough reason for recall?
One thing for certain is that this heavily Democratic state seems poised to make a brutal mistake by “electing” a far-right Trumpist with no government experience because of apathy among Democratic voters. In 2003, California recalled its governor in favor of an actor who had the nerve to “school” Hispanics on how to speak English “properly,” but at least Arnold Schwarzenegger—who was married to a member of the Kennedy clan before he was caught humping the maid—was one of those “liberal” Republicans. That isn’t going to happen this time.
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