Newsom Delivers Good News And Warnings In State Of The State

By Robert J. Hansen | OBSERVER Staff Writer Gov. Gavin Newsom delivers his prerecorded State of the State address June 25. Robert J. Hansen, OBSERVER Gov. Gavin Newsom opened his State of the State address June 25 with an ominous warning that democracy is under attack from far-right Republicans. Newsom said economic prosperity, health, safety, and freedom are under assault. California’s values and way of life, Newsom said, are the antidote to the “poisonous populist” ways of the right. “California, we won’t bend,” Newsom said. In a prerecorded speech, the governor proclaimed the state’s support for women’s rights and its commitment to improving public safety, education and homelessness.& Newsom hammered Republicans in California and across the country for their stances on everything from gun control and public safety to women’s rights and homelessness. The governor touted the state’s proactivity in protecting women’s health. “We will never turn our backs on women or threaten their freedom to travel,” he said, calling California’s pro-women’s health measures the nation’s strongest.& The state has made major strides to address homelessness, clearing more than 9,300 homeless encampments, helping tens of thousands of people move from tents and under freeways into shelter or housing, Newsom asserted....