Everyone knows the truth. In California it is serious drug addiction that drives homelessness, overdose deaths and retail theft. The solution is mass treatment. Voters took a step in that direction in March by approving Proposition 1, which authorizes Bonds for Mental Health Treatment Facilities. The next step must be taken in November with voter approval of Proposition 36, The Homelessness, Drug Addiction, and Theft Reduction Act that will give judges the tools to require treatment. Towards that end I am supporting the Yes-On-36 PAC led by San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan. I encourage you to do the same, both to address addiction and to support Matt, who embodies the pragmatic shade of Democrat that California desperately needs.
Don’t be misled by opposition to Proposition 36 by Governor Newsom, who claims to worry about increases in prison spending and populations but whose actions are to the contrary. As Newsom has vividly demonstrated during his tenure, prison spending has been correlated more with prison union financial support for him than with prison population, which has dropped sharply yet been accompanied by an increase in spending, and in an effort to sideline Proposition 36 he just signed 10 bills that will add to prison populations. And don’t be misled by GOP extremists using Proposition 36 as a cudgel with which to claim Democrats are soft on crime. Keep your eye squarely on the objective, which is to address addiction, homelessness and theft and to assist extraordinary officials like Matt with the guts to challenge the establishment.
