Gov. Gavin Newsom, D-Calif., does appear to be positioning himself for a 2028 presidential run. He’s been making policy shifts that would be met with a favorable reception in most red states.
Keep in mind most of Newsom’s statements have not been followed up with any action.
His musings on the unfair advantage "hemales" have when competing against females for instance. Still, it’s fun to watch as his campaign machinery clanks into action producing output that would have been unthinkable a few short years ago.
Newsom’s latest announcement took some courage, because it will face intense backlash from his union base.
We give him credit for that.
The governor told the 95,000 state employees who . . . er . . . "work" from home, that henceforth they will be required to be in the office four days per week.
A year full of three-day weekends would be heaven for most of us, but when you’ve been able to take four and five day weekends and still get paid, this is a severe cutback.
We wonder what with Trump’s China tariffs and this cutback on leisure shopping, will Amazon.com ever recover?
The Los Angeles Times quotes Newsom, "In-person work makes us all stronger — period," Newsom said in a statement.
He added, "When we work together, collaboration improves, innovation thrives, and accountability increases.
"That means better service, better solutions, and better results for Californians, while still allowing flexibility."
That might actually be true, once the level of anger and resentment from these newly commuting employees recedes to say, DMV levels.
Surprisingly enough, most state employees already had to report to the office," California has more than 220,000 full-time state employees and about 60 percent work in positions, as janitors and highway patrol officers for example, that already require them to report in-person daily."
Even with the best internet connection it’s tough for a highway patrolman to work from the living room couch.
However, this policy change is not as abrupt as it might seem.
During the "Panicdemic" Newsom told agencies to set their own policies for office appearances. This caused an explosion in shopping app downloads.
Later, Newsom had second thoughts and last summer required two days per week in the office. Those enemies of the taxpayer, the public employee unions, are not going to be happy about the change in office attendance.
"SEIU Local 1000, the largest public sector union in the country, has resisted sweeping return to the office mandates and argued last year that any policy changes from departments and agencies must be collectively bargained.
"Labor unions have also disputed the contention that requiring people to commute to work again increases productivity."
We don’t know if there are instruments in existence that are sensitive enough to actually measure a public servant’s productivity while phoning it in from home, but we do know appearing in the office at least confirms the person cashing the government’s check is still alive.
We wish the governor all possible success in implementing this new policy and we will watch with interest as he continues his perilous political journey towards the middle of the ideological spectrum.
Michael Reagan, the eldest son of President Ronald Reagan, is a Newsmax TV analyst. A syndicated columnist and author, he chairs The Reagan Legacy Foundation. Mr. Reagan is an in-demand speaker with Premiere Speaker's Bureau. Read Michael Reagan's Reports — More Here.
Michael R. Shannon is a commentator, researcher for the League of American Voters, and an award-winning political and advertising consultant with nationwide and international experience. He is author of "Conservative Christian's Guidebook for Living in Secular Times (Now With Added Humor!)" Read Michael Shannon's Reports — More Here.