Written by Urvi Sakurikar
Along with the looming threat of being recalled, Governor Gavin Newsom is now being confronted by California House Republicans regarding the recent findings of $11 billion worth of fraudulent state employment claims.
All eleven of the House Republicans wrote a letter to Governor Newsom demanding answers regarding the fraud itself, the state’s plan for recovering the money, the payment of pending legitimate claims, and relief for victims of identity theft.
Led by Rep. Michelle Steel, the Republicans claimed that “California had the resources to combat rampant fraud… and appears to have been warned repeatedly about the possibility of fraudulent unemployment assistance payments being made”.
In response, a representative of Newsom’s office declared that the administration was addressing the problems by bringing in new leadership and hiring more people, leaving countless questions unanswered. Attorney General Xavier Becerra and Labor Secretary Julie Su are also facing confrontation from Republicans.
The fraud, although unfortunate, could have easily been prevented by putting in place accountability measures. An audit of the EDD department revealed this last month.
But the root of the problem lies in something deeper; Governor Newsom’s tyrannical lockdown measures, which have forced countless people to rely on unemployment instead of being allowed to work, essentially overloading the system.
Spokeswoman Erin Mellon insists that “The governor has taken many actions to fix the problems EDD faces today as well as addressing the systemic challenges that have plagued [it’s] ability to provide benefits to qualifying Californians.” However, this empty statement still does not account for the chaos produced by the mismanagement of the program nor does it address the concerns of the House Republicans.
From the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, Governor Newsom’s failures as a leader have caused suffering across California.
Now, his lack of competence when administering pandemic relief programs has betrayed the trust of all taxpayers and has done nothing for those who genuinely need financial help, despite the fact that he is to blame for their situation.
The Newsom administration has yet to clearly answer for the $11 billion in taxpayer money lost to illegitimate unemployment claims, and spokeswomen Mellon even blamed “95% of the fraud” on the lack of safeguards on federal unemployment assistance, showing once again how keen California Democrats are to close their eyes to reality and blame all problems on someone else.
This scandal will only push Governor Newsom’s career further down the drain. The petition to recall him has officially hit its goal of 1.5 million signatures, and there are still weeks until the deadline. Organizers are now shooting for 2M signatures, in case any of the 1.5M already collected are invalidated.
If Californians ever want to see their state recover from the pandemic, they must remove all obstacles, starting with Governor Newsom. His blatant carelessness and lack of leadership have already done too much damage.
The best way to save California now, and prevent Gov. Newsom from causing more damage, is to sign the petition and make the right decision when the recall election rolls around. Visit RescueCalifornia.org now to download and sign!
