Why these top Californians keep talking about abortion

May 28, 2024

By Dustin Gardiner, Rachel Bluth and Lara Korte

Presented by The Climate Center Action Fund

Vice President Kamala Harris waves with California Gov. Gavin Newsom during a campaign event in San Leandro, California.

Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Gavin Newsom have been among Democrats' top messengers to rally voters around abortion rights. | Carolyn Kaster/AP Photo

THE BUZZ: CALIFORNIA CALVARY — California’s two likeliest future Democratic presidential contenders, Gov. Gavin Newsom and Vice President Kamala Harris, are gravitating toward the same issue as they boost their national profiles: abortion rights.

Newsom and Harris have both traveled the country in recent months, rallying voters around efforts to expand abortion access as they try to aid President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign.

Just last Thursday, Newsom signed a law to allow some doctors from Arizona to become temporarily licensed in California, so more Arizona women can obtain the procedure across state lines. And Harris last week slammed the GOP after Louisiana became the first state to classify abortion-inducing medications as controlled substances. “Donald Trump is to blame,” she tweeted.

But the abortion fight also offers Newsom and Harris a chance to position themselves for potential 2028 bids, as they speak to new audiences in different parts of the country while hammering former President Trump and Republicans in the process.

As Rachel reports today, Newsom is part of a group of Democratic governors who’ve traveled to battleground and red states to tout Biden’s pro-abortion-rights message. Harris, meanwhile, has used her national “reproductive freedoms tour” to rejuvenate her lukewarm brand.

“Abortion is a gift. It’s the easiest thing to go into another state to talk about,” said Celinda Lake, a 2020 Biden campaign pollster and the president of Lake Research Partners.

Newsom has blistered Republican governors over aggressive restrictions on women’s reproductive rights passed in red states since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade. Through his own Campaign for Democracy PAC, he’s paid for billboards and television ads in GOP-led states, including in Alabama and Tennessee, that tout abortion and IVF access in California.

The governor’s prodding has enraged Trump. In a rambling post on Truth Social last month, Trump claimed that “Gavin Newscum” and Democrats support “the killing of a child in the 8th month, 9th month, or even after birth.”

Newsom has, in turn, framed Republicans’ efforts to roll back women’s abortion rights as part of a larger cultural purge. “We’re seeing this great divergence and red and blue states are increasingly on the frontlines of this rights battle,” Newsom said earlier this year while campaigning for Biden in South Carolina.

Harris, a native Californian who was previously the state’s U.S. senator and attorney general, has similarly hit the road to make abortion rights an election-year platform for Democrats.

Last month, Harris campaigned in Nevada alongside Eva Burch, an Arizona legislator who said she planned to abort a non-viable pregnancy, weeks before the state’s 1864 near-total abortion ban took effect. Burch and Harris also made a campaign stop in Tucson.

Harris, during a campaign event in Jacksonville, Florida this month, told the crowd that another Trump term would be devastating for women: “More bans, more suffering, less freedom.”

GOOD MORNING. Happy Tuesday. Thanks for waking up with Playbook, and we hope you had a relaxing Memorial Day weekend.

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WHERE’S GAVIN? Nothing official announced.

A message from The Climate Center Action Fund:

Governor Newsom and legislators can do more to protect clean air by ending billion-dollar tax breaks to the oil industry. The governor is fighting to end price gouging and took a small step toward taking Big Oil off the state’s payroll, now we must go all the way. With a huge deficit putting critical climate and clean air programs at risk, ending fossil fuel subsidies ensures California invests in people, not oil and gas industry profits. Learn more.

THE SCOOP

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK I: TEACHERS DEAL — Newsom and the state’s largest teachers union have reached a deal that would provide California schools billions more in future funding and resolve a bristling public feud over the state budget, our own Blake Jones reports today.

The agreement comes less than a week after the California Teachers Association released an ad needling Newsom over his education spending proposal — part of an intense campaign to publicly and privately pressure the administration and Legislature not to cut school spending.

Newsom’s previous plan would have lowered the amount of money guaranteed to schools by nearly $12 billion over two years to help close a massive state budget deficit. The new deal promises a more generous calculation of the guarantee, known as Proposition 98, in which the state would pay schools an added $5.5 billion in the future that would be difficult to afford now.

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK II: MELLON OUT — Veteran Newsom staffer Erin Mellon will depart the governor’s office June 14, the latest in a series of senior advisers to depart the horseshoe.

Mellon, who will join the California Medical Association as vice president of strategic communications, has been a centerpiece of the governor’s public relations strategy for the better part of four years.

She came to his office in fall 2020, and helped Newsom navigate an onslaught of crises over the years: a global pandemic, raging wildfire seasons, record drought, severe flooding and a recall election.

"Erin came to us under battle conditions and helped transform the comms team during a chaotic time for the state,” said Dana Williamson, Newsom’s chief of staff. “She brought stability and professionalism, and built a tremendous team.”

Mellon was Newsom’s longest-serving communications director, a post in which she rebuilt his media team and oversaw a redesign of the governor’s website. She moved to a different role, as senior comms adviser about two months ago. Izzy Gardon replaced her in the comms director gig.

In an interview with Playbook, Mellon reflected on how the comms office has grown from the difficult days of fall 2020, when she said a small team was stretched thin to the point of exhaustion.

“I’m really proud of what we’ve become, and how far we’ve come,” Mellon said.

Erin Mellon

Newsom adviser Erin Mellon will join the California Medical Association as vice president of strategic communications. | Courtesy of the governor's office.

CAMPAIGN TRAIL

Derek Tran post

A now-deleted social media post from Democratic House candidate Derek Tran depicted his Republican opponent, Orange County Rep. Michelle Steel, with a handgun angled toward her head.

POST SCRUBBED — Democratic House candidate Derek Tran posted a social media graphic that depicted his Republican opponent, Orange County Rep. Michelle Steel, with a handgun angled toward her head. The post included background about Steel’s pro-gun voting record.

Tran quickly deleted the X post on Friday and re-upped a new version that positioned the gun so it wasn’t angled toward Steel. But that didn’t quit complaints from Republicans.

NRCC spokesperson Ben Petersen said Tran’s post “crossed the line.” Petersen added, “Tran and his backers at the DCCC should apologize for this shameful post.”

Tran, who’s trying to unseat Steel in CA-45, responded by doubling down on the message of the post, which criticized Steel’s rating from the National Rifle Association on the anniversary of the mass shooting that killed 21 people in Uvalde, Texas.

“Campaign changed the post but Michelle Steel’s grade from the NRA remains the same = A,” Orrin Evans, a spokesperson for Tran, said in a text message.

A message from The Climate Center Action Fund:

ON THE AGENDA

Defendant David DePape (center) testifies Tuesday in the federal trial against him in U.S. District Court in downtown San Francisco.

David DePape testifies in the federal trial against him last fall. | Courtroom artist Vicki Behringer

RESENTENCING — David DePape — the man convicted of assaulting Nancy Pelosi’s husband with a hammer — will be back in federal court today for a sentencing do-over. His attorneys argue a judge violated DePape’s rights when she sentenced him to 30 years in prison without asking whether he wanted to address the court beforehand.

Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley admitted the error and scheduled a new sentencing hearing for today. But DePape’s attorneys are trying to block it from proceeding and have pushed to remove Corley from the case. Federal prosecutors and independent legal experts have called the strategy a stretch — and it's not even clear if DePape will exercise his right to speak.

FLOOR SESH — The state Assembly and Senate will hold floor sessions at 1 p.m. and 2 p.m., respectively. Lawmakers will resume committee hearings this week.

CLIMATE AND ENERGY

THE HUNT FOR GAS PRICE SPIKES — UC Berkeley economist Severin Borenstein coined the term “mystery gasoline surcharge” to describe part of the difference between gas prices in California and other states. He told us what he really thinks about the Newsom administration's effort to regulate prices (hint: it's risky). Read more in the latest issue of California Climate newsletter.

TOP TALKERS

— A deep sense of fear has settled in among top Democrats over President Biden's prospects against Trump. As our colleagues Christopher Cadelago, Sally Goldenberg and Elena Schneider write today, party leaders are panicking over Biden's consistently poor polling in battleground states — with only five months to go until Election Day. Read more here. (POLITICO)

— San Francisco’s Painted Ladies are a prime example of how Proposition 13, the state law that ties property taxes to purchase value, can create vast tax disparities between neighbors. For example, the tax bill for one of the iconic Victorian homes is $1,100 while a neighbor two doors down pays $44,000. (San Francisco Chronicle)

— Sen. Alex Padilla diverged from the Biden administration when he helped lead an effort to block the bipartisan border security bill last week. The outcome is the latest example of how Padilla has gone to the mat protesting a bill that he has criticized for not including any provisions to change the status of undocumented immigrants. (Los Angeles Times)

A message from The Climate Center Action Fund:

While the state struggles to balance its budget and risks cutting billions from clean air programs that save lives, why are taxpayers still responsible for billions in oil and gas industry handouts? Over 70 groups have urged Governor Newsom and the legislature to end this practice. Fossil fuel corporations like Chevron don’t need it. That money should instead go to cutting pollution from cars, trucks and buildings, and getting more clean energy on the grid. Programs that currently support these goals are on the chopping block. Before we even think about cutting funding for lifesaving programs, we need the Governor and the legislature to end subsidies and tax breaks for polluters! Learn more.

AROUND THE STATE

— Police agencies in the San Diego area are using aggressive perks to lure new officers amid staffing shortages, including $30,000 bonuses and take-home cars. (The San Diego Union-Tribune)

— Despite evidence documenting the health impact of its poor air-quality, Fresno has been slow to act on a plan to reroute semi-trucks away from residential neighborhoods. (Fresnoland)

— Marin County is cracking down on vacation rentals, capping the number of short-term homes for rent in unincorporated areas popular with tourists, including quaint beach towns near Point Reyes. (Los Angeles Times)

— “General Sherman,” one of California's iconic Sequoia trees, has been scaled for the first time. Researchers made the climb to ensure the tree isn’t infected with bark beetles. (KTLA)

PLAYBOOKERS

PEOPLE MOVES — Judith Gutierrez is the new communications director for Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel. She previously worked as comms director for Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo and was the communications managers for the California Student Aid Commission (CSAC).

— Sunitha Menon is the first executive director of the newly-created Los Angeles County LGBTQ+ Commission, which will advise the Board of Supervisors on inclusive and equitable policies. Menon, who also works as managing director of operations of Equality California, will lead the commission’s efforts to recommend LGBTQ-focused legislation and programs.

BIRTHDAYS — Furkan Yalcin, comms director for Assemblymember Pilar Schiavo …

BELATED B-DAY WISHES — (was Monday): David Plouffe … former Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) … (was Sunday): Amnon Shashua … Mia Shaw

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