Carol Ann DelBiaggio April 16, 1936 to
June 7, 2021
Carol was born in
Wisconsin. At an early age, she and the family moved west to
Ferndale. Her family didn’t have much, but she always
talked of the family joy during those years.
She loved Ferndale — the town, the people and the community spirit. It is where she went
to school, made forever friends, and met the love of her life Henry
DelBiaggio. They spent just shy of 62 years of marriage together
before his passing in 2020. The had lived in Fortuna and Eureka for
a time before coming back to their “true” hometown of Ferndale.
The last 47 years were spent at their dream home, making it a
beautiful garden for all those who passed by. If you stopped by
Carol’s home you were probably going to leave with some flowers.
Carol worked a few
part-time jobs through the years, but she always knew her most
important jobs were being a servant for Christ, wife, mother,
grandmother and friend. She was the hub to all family occasions and
made everyone feel special.
Carol spent a
lifetime giving of herself to others, including the following: Cub
Scouts, Girl Scouts, PTA, School Board, Ferndale Museum, Humboldt
County Grand Jury, Humboldt Republican Woman’s Association, and
many church groups. We may have missed a few, our apologies. She was
also a proud Wildcat booster, and was always there for all of her
grandkids’ sporting events.
Carol was a member
of the Fortuna United Methodist Church. She loved God, family and
friends. She met friends everywhere she went.
Carol is survived
by sons Dennis (Susie), Daniel, and daughter Donna (Bob), grandkids
Tawney (Brant), Daniel Jr. (Katrina), Jourdan (Kelly), Billy
(Christine), Dustin (Tierra), Jared, Kyle (Kayla), and Samantha, and
15 great grandkids. She is also survived by her brother Bill Shewry
(Mimi) and sister Sandra (Stan) Kubanski, and brother- in- law Walter
(Diane) DelBiaggio.
The family would
like to thank Britt and Tina for their support through some difficult
times. Mom was thankful for the cards and phone calls she received
from her many close friends, and would have wanted to close by saying
to all her friends: Thank you for the wonderful journey life has
been. God Bless.
Donations in
Carol’s memory can be made to the Ferndale Museum, Fortuna United
Methodist Church or Hospice of Humboldt.
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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Carol DelBiaggio’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here.
John Charles Hrdina went to be with the Lord, dying peacefully at home on May 31, 2021. He was 88 years old at the time of his passing. John, or
“Johnny,” as he was called by those who knew him best, was born on October 14, 1932 to John and Marie Hrdina. Johnny spent most of his time growing up here in Humboldt County. He met the love of his life Marlene while she was working at the old Rialto Theatre in Eureka. They were married in July 1955 and were married for 65 years until Marlene’s passing just this last February. Johnny was fully devoted to Marlene for all of those 65 years. They had three children (Rick, Dennis, & Cindy), who they raised here in Humboldt County.
Johnny worked as a millworker in Humboldt County from about the age of 20 until his retirement at the age of 62 in 1994. He spent most of his years working at Georgia Pacific and then later at Louisiana Pacific. In more recent years, Johnny volunteered with Marlene as greeters on Sunday mornings at Faith Center Church in Eureka. Johnny and Marlene also enjoyed attending the Prime Timers group at Faith Center.
Johnny loved having a good laugh, and it would not be unusual for him to bellow out his train whistle, then sing out Johnny Cash’s “I Hear the Train a Coming” in a deep voice. Johnny was also known for busting out some of those dance moves from his younger days while at family gatherings. He really enjoyed visiting and having fun with his grandchildren. He always accepted people as they were and engaged in conversation with enthusiasm. He was a humble and kind man.
Johnny is survived by his son Rick Hrdina and wife Bonnie; son Dennis Hrdina and wife Kay; son-in-law Kurt Harpe; and brother-in-law Carl England. He is also survived by his grandchildren Rebekah Kencke, Laurie Hrdina Shepherd, Jennifer Hrdina Mathieson, Rachel Hrdina, Michelle Buckingham, Audry Hrdina, Stacia Harpe, Zach Harpe, Lisa Harpe, and Julie Harpe as well as 17 great-grandchildren & numerous nieces and nephews.
Johnny is preceded in death by his wife of 65 years, Marlene Lois Hrdina; his parents, John Hrdina & Marie Hrdina; brother Anthony Prudek; brother-in-law Albert England; brother-in-law Clinton England and his wife, Gloria England; sister-in-law Loretta England; sister-in-law Wilma Nevers and her husband Frank Nevers. He was also preceded in death by his beloved and precious daughter who he adored, Cynthia Harpe (Cindy).
A special thanks and deepest gratitude to the staff at Redwood Coast Pace as well as Visiting Angels who faithfully provided in-home health care for Dad.
Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Philippians 2:3, 4
Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things. Philippians 4:8
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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Johnny Hrdina’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here.
UPDATE: Due to some of our family members contracting the Covid 19 Virus and most of us being exposed (yes, we’ve all been vaccinated). We have decided to postpone Dennis’ Memorial. We cant fathom the thought that we could get friends and family sick on a day that is supposed to be full of good stories, lots of hugs and many cheers to him. We will be in touch with another gathering at a differnt time. In honor of Pa, ‘pour one out for him” on this 4th of July weeknd. Stay safe…
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Dennis N. McCulley was born in Yreka
on February 15, 1960 and passed away on December 21, 2020 in
Crannell.
He
leaves behind his wife, Vicki; children Wakara Scott, Michael Norris,
Lacy Folden, Jon Richardson, Nikki Roberts (Mike) and Kara Fales
(Cory); grandchildren Sienna, Hayven, Rhiannon, Devyn, Ridly, Sky,
Blake, Braeden, Charli, Danny, Carli, Bailey and Chance; cousins
Kenny McCulley (Donna) and their son Ike; nieces, Kimberly Ludwig,
Anna Cross, Cerrie Gogerly and Rebecca McCulley; great-nephews and
-nieces Charles, Jace, Ashly, Shilo, Shannon, Drew, Ryan and
Danielle.
He
was preceded in death by his parents, Ed and Rose McCulley; his
stepfather,
Vernon Doggett; brother, Charles McCulley; and sister, Louise
Richards.
Dennis
was a proud member of the Karuk Tribe. His home place was in Hamburg,
Calif.
on the Klamath River, where he resided until he was 7 years old, at
which time he and his family had moved to the Coast. He made several
lifelong friendships after he moved to Humboldt, although his heart
remained in Siskiyou County with his extended family, the Raineys.
They shared so many great memories together.
Dennis,
known to his grandkids as Pa, was a man of few words, stoic and
passionate for what he believed in. He was an avid fisherman and
could hook one wherever he went. He loved his hunting time with his
dogs and hunting partner Cory. He had a knack for collecting guns and
fishing poles and was also extremely generous with gifting them.
Dennis
was always a worker. He worked for Giacomini Dairy in his youth and
then moved up to the Saw Shop and eventually went to work in the
woods. Logging roads and landings were his place, he was a wealth of
knowledge from every company and job he worked. He appreciated the
time spent with Elk River, Figas, Jurin, Huffman, Macmillan and Boak
Logging. He
spent the last 20+ years with Green
Diamond Resource Co. He
always found room in his work truck for a few of the many rescue dogs
and truly enjoyed being outside and driving in the hills.
We
are very thankful for the many blessings, meals, cards, messages and
hugs sent our way since his passing. We would like to invite you to a
Memorial Celebration for Dennis on Saturday, July 3 at Noon at Camp
Bauer in Korbel. We understand its a holiday weekend but please join
us if you can for a bite to eat and a quick toast in his honor. Life
changes so fast .. enjoy your time together, hug your loved ones and
don’t feel awkward to tell each other you love them.
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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Dennis McCulley’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here.
Sign at the front of Table Bluff Reservation. | Photo courtesy Wiyot Tribe.
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Press release from the Wiyot Tribe:
Loleta— 06/14/2021 — The Wiyot Tribe received $4,666,262.59 on June 9 from the recovery American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) – Treasury’s Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds.
The Tribal Council voted on June 9 to provide an immediate $7,000 in direct relief assistance to every Wiyot citizen. Congress has allocated Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds to tens of thousands of eligible states, local, territorial and Tribal governments.
These allocations include:
The Wiyot Tribe has been closely monitoring the global COVID-19 global pandemic. The Tribe continues to work with local, state, and federal agencies to reduce the likelihood of introduction of the virus into our communities.
In response to the novel Coronavirus COVID-19 global pandemic, the Tribe declared a State of Emergency and implemented community mitigation strategies to maintain critical infrastructure, prevent the introduction of COVID-19 into the local community and slow the spread of the virus on March 16, of 2020.
To date the Wiyot Tribe had one confirmed COVID-19 case at Table Bluff Reservation in January of 2021. The case identified was a staff member, detected through regular staff testing. Once identified, the Tribe tested all staff and issued a 10-day quarantine. No further cases were detected, which was attributed to adherence to the ongoing mitigation plan.
Several Wiyot Tribal citizens living off Reservation have reported testing positive for COVID-19 but statistical data specific to Wiyot Tribal citizens is not available.
Many Tribal citizens have reported need for economic relief due to the COVID-19 global pandemic due to increase food/internet/utility costs, work layoffs and being unable to work due to the school and childcare closures.
Tribal Council voted to release the funds immediately to help support the families who are struggling right now.
Timeline and summary of Wiyot COVID-19 Assistance to Tribal Citizens:
March 16, 2020 - Wiyot Tribe declares State of Emergency, Implementation of Community Mitigation strategies due to COVID-19 Global Pandemic Health Emergency. Wiyot staff began delivering breakfast and lunch to all youth living on the Reservation Monday through Friday (continued through school closure). Also delivered school packets to youth. Wiyot staff began delivering breakfast and lunch to all elders living on the Reservation Monday through Friday.
March 17, 2020- Tribal members with children, became eligible to receive $150 administered to California Tribal TANF. Non-Recurring short-term benefit for Crisis Services due to COVID-19 for families with children, not receiving cash aid, income 300% of poverty limit.
The Wiyot Tribe received a donation of 16 bags of sanitation supplies valued at $30.00 from Bear River Band of Rohnerville which were distributed to the eldest 16 members of the Tribe living on the Reservation.
March 18, 2020- On Reservation Elders Lunch participants received food and pet supplies as needed purchased by the title VI program through a grant from Bear River Band of Rohnerville Rancheria, received and distributed $1000.00 to on Reservation Elders in food/supplies/pet food
March 20, 2020- Wiyot Tribal Council waived all water garbage fees to on-reservation residents Resolution 20-08 for the months January-June of 2020
April 30, 2020-Wiyot Tribe began distribution of 169 shelf stable food boxes to elders through the Title VI Food program.
May 15, 2020- the Wiyot Tribe distributed $50 gift cards to all Tribal members to purchase COVID-19 Supplies, at a $32,000.00 cost to Tribe.
June 11, 2020-The Wiyot Tribe received $264,970.85. Each Tribal Citizen received $511.75 General Welfare Payment.
July 14, 2020-The Wiyot Tribe distributed $300 gift card to every Tribal Citizen purchased through a grant from the Tribal Nations COVID-19 Grant.
July 14, 2020-The Wiyot Tribe received CARES ACT 2nd Round Tribe Received $199,097.04 and $ 62,872.74 for a total of $261,969.78 in the second round. Each Tribal citizen received a $502.73 General Welfare Payment.
July 15, 2020- The Tribe dispersed reusable masks and Hand Sanitizer to all tribal members.
September 17, 18, 26, 17, 2020, October 3, 04, 2020, November 23, 24, 28, 29, 2020, December 10, 11, 23, 24, 2020, January 09, 10, 2021, February 10, 11, 25, 26, 2021 provided COVID-19 Testing on the Reservation.
September 22-21, 2020- The Tribe distributed 250 Food boxes in a drive through emergency Food box event on Broadway in Eureka and at Table Bluff Reservation.
December 2020- Wiyot Census 2020 logo masks and hand sanitizers were distributed to all Tribal citizens.
December 2020-The Tribe provided $190 (high school) and $170 (school age) additional school assistance to Wiyot school age youth.
February 5, 2021 & March 6, 2020- The Tribe offered a vaccination Event with other Tribes through United Indian Health Services in Eureka, CA
April 13, 2021- The Wiyot Tribe began the distribution of 140 Chromebooks and cases to school age youth, through a grant through Frontier Net.
May 17, 2021- 60 COVID-19 Care kits with reusable bags, hand sanitizer, alcohol wipes, digital forehead thermometer, pulse oximeter, tissues, blood pressure monitor, and disposable masks were handed out to 60 elders in the title VI service area.
May 18, 2021- Emergency pamphlet kits were sent to all Elders
May 24, 2021-152 packets of masks, first aid kids were mailed to all tribal elders.
May 27, 2021 (and every other week until further notice)- The Tribe is offering COVID-19 testing and Vaccines from 11 am to 1 pm in the table Bluff Reservation parking lot to community members.
June 07, 2021- The Tribe began distribution of 60 air purifiers to elders in the Tribes Title VI Service area.
June 07, 2021- The Wiyot Tribe began distribution of sanitation supplies to Tribal citizens.
June 09, 2021- The Wiyot Tribe received $4,666,262.59, from the recovery American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA)– Treasury’s Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds and began the distribution of $7000.00 general welfare payments to Tribal citizens.
Humboldt Redwoods Sate Park naturalist John “Griff” Griffith returns with another educational lesson about local wildlife.
In his latest video chat, Griff talks about invasive species and the severe effects they can have on native plant and wildlife populations. As an example, he breaks down the effects English ivy can have on California’s ecology.
“It turns out to be this trifecta of no thanks and this cycle of ignorance,” Griff says.
Watch the entire lesson by clicking the video embedded at the top of this story. See other lessons from Griff linked below.
The jury trial date was confirmed this morning for Bronson Moon Lewis Jr., one of two teens charged with the brutal murder of Hoopa resident Julius Tripp in July 2020.
Defense attorney Russ Clanton and Deputy District Attorney Trent Timm told Judge Kaleb Cockrum they are ready to start Lewis’s estimated five-week jury trial on June 28. Lewis and Daniel Armendariz. both 19, are charged with murdering Tripp on July 20, 2020, off Highway 96. Tripp first had his hand cut off, and then was shot with an assault rifle.
Although Clanton said he is ready for trial, he also informed the judge he won’t be able to be in court between July 18 and July 30, meaning a two-week break for the jury. Clanton said he will have no office staff at that time.
Cockrum noted it’s unlikely a judge would grant a request for two weeks off, so perhaps Clanton should reconsider whether he is indeed prepared for trial.
No mention was made today of Armendariz, whose preliminary hearing is not scheduled until July 19. The original hope was to try the men together.
Russ Clanton intends to file a motion to continue the jury trial for another client, murder suspect Ryan Anthony Tanner, whose trial also is scheduled to begin June 28.
“We’ve been getting new discovery (evidence from the prosecution) on a number of DNA issues,” Clanton told Judge Larry Killoran this morning. “The discovery is problematic because it’s material to the case.”
Deputy District Attorney Whitney Timm objected to the delay, saying “The People are ready for trial.”
Timm said she intends to file an opposition to Clanton’s motion to continue.
Tanner, 34, is accused of murdering 33-year-old Jason Todd Garrett in the Ettersburg area on Feb. 12, 2020. According to an eyewitness, Tanner forced Garrett into a bathtub and shot him in the head. The body was buried under a water tank on Tanner’s property.
For now, the trial remains set for June 28. The issue will be discussed again at a hearing set for June 25.
Sentencing was postponed this morning for Eureka resident Jason Ryan Barnes, convicted of involuntary manslaughter for the December 2018 death of Bernard “Ben” Bernhard.
Deputy Public Defender David Celli, representing Barnes, told Judge Timothy Canning he is awaiting trial transcripts and intends to file a motion for new trial. On May 5 a jury convicted the 48-year-old Barnes of involuntary manslaughter, the only option remaining after Canning dismissed charges of second-degree murder and voluntary manslaughter.
Barnes struck Bertain in the side with a skateboard, with the injury eventually causing his spleen to rupture.
Barnes faces a maximum penalty of eight years in state prison for involuntary manslaughter and felony assault with a deadly weapon, along with the special allegations that he caused great bodily injury or death and personally used a deadly weapon.
Deputy District Attorney Roger Rees, the trial prosecutor, objected this morning to the delay in sentencing.
The next hearing is July 27, allowing Celli time to obtain and review the transcripts.
Then-mayor Kevin Faulconer speaking at the San Diego County Republican Party’s 2015 Lincoln Reagan Dinner in San Diego. Photo: Gage Skidmore. Creative Commons license.
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Kevin Faulconer is not the guy with the bear.
You’re thinking of John Cox, the mild-mannered Republican and unsuccessful 2018 gubernatorial candidate who spent much of May palling around the state with a 1,000-pound Kodiak named Tag, hoping to siphon off some of the bear’s starpower in his effort to unseat Gov. Gavin Newsom in the all-but-certain recall election that could be as soon as September.
Faulconer is also not the Kardashian-adjacent, Olympian-turned-reality TV star whose campaign highlights include gabbing with Sean Hannity, selling merch and claiming, despite documented evidence, that she didn’t vote in the last election. That, of course, would be Caitlyn Jenner.
A Republican former mayor of San Diego, he governed that once Republican but now reliably blue coastal city as a pro-immigrant, climate-change-believing, bilingual urbanist. He touts endorsements from the traditional quarters of state GOP leadership.
And he really wants you to take the recall election seriously.
So far, Faulconer has tried to make waves in a way that almost seems quaint in 2021: by releasing policy proposals.
If you missed that announcement, that’s probably because he rolled it out the same week that Newsom was on his statewide budget tour grabbing headlines with various plans to goose the state’s economy, including a proposal to send more cash directly to lower-income Californians.
The next week, Faulconer rolled out another plan, this one to exempt military retirement income from state income taxes. That, too, got a little bit of play on Fox News, though nothing to rival the public attention showered on Jenner the human or Tag the bear.
John Cox, a Republican candidate for governor, kicks off his “Meet the Beast” bus tour on May 4, 2021 in Sacramento. Photo by Anne Wernikoff, CalMatters
No one should be surprised that the 2021 California recall is, so far, running high on spectacle. The electoral ousting of Democratic Gov. Gray Davis in 2003 was also a bonanza of oddball candidates and attention-grabbing stunts.
Even so, Faulconer insists he’s “getting significant traction” with his policy proposals, arguing that — never mind the sensational media coverage — earnest conversations about policy are what many voters crave.
He notes his track record pushing for more development to boost San Diego’s housing supply, opening up shelters and banning people from sleeping on the sidewalks. He points to San Diego’s 2020 budget, which increased funding to the police amid calls from the left to defund the department. He references his biography as evidence of his commitment to good, nonpartisan governance: His father was assistant city manager of Oxnard, his mother a city college professor and both were Democrats. Unlike Cox and Jenner, he points to his experience governing: He served on San Diego’s city council for 12 years before running for mayor. And he highlights his ability to win over voters outside his party: In 2014, he won the mayor’s race by 6 percentage points and in 2016, he was easily reelected with 57% of the vote.
“This election calls for a serious candidate with serious policy proposals,” he said in an interview.
“Serious” is but one way to describe Faulconer’s earnest, pragmatic approach to politics. There’s also “calm,” “mild-mannered,” “genial,” “cautious” and “not the loudest guy in the room.” This is the man, after all, whose 2013 bid for mayor featured the slogan: “There’s no Democrat or Republican way to fill a pothole.”
Thus the other adjective that’s sometimes used to describe the former mayor: “boring.”
“His advantage is that he’s a boring guy who at least has an agenda,” said Carl Luna, a political science professor at San Diego Mesa College and a longtime watcher of local politics. “Whereas Cox is a boring guy with a bear.”
“This election calls for a serious candidate with serious policy proposals.” — Kevin Faulconer, Republican candidate for governor
After months of lockdowns, political tumult and economic calamity, boring could be just what California voters want. Or not. Even some of Faulconer’s allies still aren’t sure he’s wise to have jumped into the recall race.
“Kevin has the ability to break out as the sober responsible person who’s not using gimmicks, who is substantive,” said Jason Cabel Roe, Faulconer’s longtime political advisor in San Diego politics who has since moved to Michigan, where he serves as the state GOP’s executive director.
Should his recall campaign prove to be a bust, Faulconer plans to run for governor during the next regularly scheduled election in 2022. But, Roe said: “The whole circus of the recall diminishes everyone that’s involved.”
The ‘good luck kid’
There’s an inevitable logic to Faulconer’s campaign. California political consultants have been predicting it for years.
As the former mayor of California’s second largest city, he is one of the few Republicans who comes close to resembling a rising star.
In theory, he’s also the kind of politician who could appeal to voters outside his own party. He supports immigration reform, believes in the science of climate change, speaks Spanish and — until voting for him in the 2020 election — distanced himself from the nativist politics and incendiary personage of Donald Trump.
“His advantage is that he’s a boring guy who at least has an agenda.” — Carl Luna, a political science professor at San Diego Mesa College
In 2019, New Way California, a cadre of the California GOP’s few remaining centrists, held a summit a few blocks from the state Capitol. Faulconer, one of the headline speakers, encouraged California’s GOP to “not be a carbon copy” of the national party remade in Trump’s image.
In a state where registered Democratic voters outnumber Republicans nearly two-to-one and where a Republican hasn’t won a statewide race since 2006, Faulconer’s centrist cred makes him an obvious choice for strategically minded Republicans.
A Faulconer campaign memo, circulated to reporters earlier this year, said as much.
The “secret” to Faulconer’s success was that he is not “perceived as far-right by Democrats and Independents,” he is running on a “fiscal-conservative message, promising to be a barrier to tax-and-spend” Democratic lawmakers and he is “libertarian on social issues,” the memo read.
“He wasn’t a ‘build the wall’ guy, so I think he takes a lot of the kind of lazy hits that the Democrats have used for years off the table,” said Roe.
In a typical election, that relative moderation could very well hurt a candidate as much as it might help. It’s a perennial problem that statewide Republicans face: To win a spot in the general election, candidates often have to lock up the support of the party’s Trump-supporting, conservative diehards. But doing so can disqualify a candidate with many of the Democratic voters a candidate needs to win statewide.
This year could be different. That’s because of the weird way that California holds its recall elections — nixing a two-step primary process and simply handing the governorship to the candidate who gets the most votes in the first round, if a majority of voters decide to kick out Newsom. That could give a candidate like Faulconer the rare opportunity to run a consistent up-the-middle campaign.
“You don’t have to do these two stages of running to the right and then wriggling back to the center,” said UC San Diego political scientist Thad Kousser. The recall hands candidates a “get out of polarization free card.”
Faulconer has played that card before. In his first city council race and in his two successful mayoral runs, he repeatedly benefited from Democratic scandal and a fragmented left-of-center vote, and ran less on his partisan brand and more on pledges to compromise and adopt “common sense” solutions.
The recall election could be “another one of these perfect storms that has marked his career,” said Luna. “He’s either the ‘accidental candidate’ or the ‘good luck kid’ and maybe that will be enough to take him into Sacramento.”
The most recent polls don’t have any perfect storms in the forecast. Last month, a survey from the Public Policy Institute of California found that 57% of likely voters did not support ousting Newsom. The financial figures aren’t much more encouraging. So far, the committee fighting the recall has outraised the pro-recall committees more than three-fold, according to a CalMatters tracker.
But if a majority of voters turn on Newsom — and that’s a big if — Faulconer could be next in line. Though Cox has pulled $7.7 million into his 2021 and 2022 campaign committees, most of that has come from his own wallet. With $2.4 million, Faulconer has dramatically outraised the rest of the competition, including Jenner and former member of Congress Doug Ose.
Another statewide poll from May, conducted by UC Berkeley’s Institute of Governmental Studies, asked voters if they were inclined to support any of the four highest profile Republicans running to replace Newsom so far. The good news for Faulconer is that he was neck-and-neck with Cox for first place.
The bad news: First place was still only 22% of voters (Jenner came last with 6%).
A late embrace of Trump
Some of Faulconer’s critics say it’s too late for him to portray himself as the bipartisan problem-solver.
In recent weeks, Faulconer has been making the rounds of right-wing media to shore up his bonafides with conservative voters in California and conservative donors everywhere. In late May, Faulconer was on Ruthless, the podcast co-hosted by U.S. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell’s former chief of staff, where he bemoaned a state government “captive to the far-left.” A week later he spoke to conservative pundit and YouTuber Ben Shapiro.
“The media have been basically ignoring your candidacy…they are focused mainly on attempting to downplay the recall itself by focusing in on candidates who are, frankly, I think, patently unserious,” Shapiro said during the interview.
“I think we’re always going to have to deal with that kind of bias,” Faulconer responded. But “we are a serious campaign with serious plans.”
What’s likely to be a bigger liability for Faulconer is his apparent warming to the former president whom California’s voters rejected last November by nearly 30 percentage points.
After the national GOP’s nomination of Trump in 2016, Faulconer, having just won his own re-election as mayor, told a reporter that he “could never vote for Trump” and found his “divisive rhetoric” to be “unacceptable.”
Four years later, Faulconer said he changed his mind, noting that Trump was “going to be best for our economy and to keep folks employed.” He said he did not revise that opinion after the storming of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 and Trump’s subsequent second impeachment. “I still feel like from an economic standpoint, there was a very clear difference in the presidential race,” Faulconer said.
Mike Madrid, a longtime political consultant who has been one of the former president’s sharpest critics within the Republican party, called Faulconer’s belated embrace of Trump a “huge tactical blunder.”
“I think he will personally regret it because that’s not who he is,” said Madrid. “Though to give the guy some grace, he’s kind of damned if he does and damned if he doesn’t.
“That’s the conundrum of Republicans who want to govern.”
Faulconer, who has spent his entire political career in increasingly Democratic San Diego successfully resisting such pigeonholing, said he is confident state voters are willing to put aside their loyalties to one party or another.
“I think people are less concerned whether you have an ‘R’ or a ‘D’ next to your name,” he told CalMatters. “This campaign is a referendum on Gavin Newsom’s failures, and that’s what voters are focused on.”
The governor and his electoral defenders are hoping instead for a referendum on partisan identity. Hence the name of the political action committee that has so far raked in nearly $15 million to back the governor: “Stop the Republican Recall.”
That’s a good bet, said Madrid.
“With the exception of the Schwarzenegger years, the trend line for the Republican vote has been remarkably consistent,” he said. “Gavin (Newsom) just has to partisan-ize it.”
Even the most serious of Republican candidates will have a hard time overcoming that.
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CALmatters.org is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.
