Gavin Newsom

Make Me California’s Next Senator

The Senate Is an Absurd Institution, so Let’s Put an Even More Absurd Californian in the Office

Make Me California’s Next Senator | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

Dear Governor Newsom,

You’ve complained publicly that you’re overwhelmed with texts and calls, and I understand why. With the election of Kamala Harris as vice president, you must appoint someone to fill the final two years of her United States Senate term. Everyone in politics wants this gig, and that’s a lot of pressure.

So let me take this burden off your hands. You don’t have to make the excruciating decision to elevate one of your politician buddies over all the others. The right candidate is no politician, and is hereby making …

by Joe Mathews |

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I Love ‘Newsom at Noon,’ but It Needs a New Star | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

I Love ‘Newsom at Noon,’ but It Needs a New Star

Let Nonpartisan Scientists and Doctors Lead the State’s Daily COVID-19 Briefings

by Joe Mathews |

Dear Governor,

Your lunchtime COVID-19 briefings—“Newsom at Noon”—are must-see TV.

No California governor has ever had such a regular, closely observed platform, and you are making the most of it. Your …

Now Is the Time for California to Think Big, Again | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

Now Is the Time for California to Think Big, Again

Will the State Use This Moment to Be Ambitious—Or Shrink Back Into Its Old Habit of Budget Cuts?

by Joe Mathews |

Coronavirus is forcing Californians to isolate themselves. But it has brought us together in one big way: by fusing all of our biggest problems into one colossal crisis.

That crisis could …

Canceling School for COVID-19 Cheats California’s Kids | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

Canceling School for COVID-19 Cheats California’s Kids

When This Epidemic Ends, Schools Should Make Up the 50 Days of Instruction Our Kids Are Missing Now

by Joe Mathews |

Not one day.

Our kids should not lose one day of school, not a single day of instruction, to the coronavirus.

Let me be clear: I’m not arguing against closing schools right …

Meet the Not-At-All-Human Multi-Billionaire Who Is Supposed to Save California | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

Meet the Not-At-All-Human Multi-Billionaire Who Is Supposed to Save California

The State’s Rainy Day Fund Has Never Been Tapped—But That’s About to Change

by The Rainy Day Fund, as told to Joe Mathews |

I’m ready for my close-up, Ms. Gerwig!

OK, as a budget fund without acting credits, I shouldn’t expect Greta Gerwig to put me in her next film—even if both she and …

Both Democrats and Republicans Love ‘Opportunity Zones’— and That’s a Bad Sign | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

Both Democrats and Republicans Love ‘Opportunity Zones’—and That’s a Bad Sign

The Policy Delivers Tax Breaks to Wealthy Political Donors but Little to California’s Struggling Communities

by Joe Mathews |

Who says California opposes everything the Trump administration does? Our state’s leaders are frantically embracing at least one lousy presidential idea: “opportunity zones.”

Opportunity zones is the term for the …


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