Opinion: The myth of California’s economic standing
First, California’s economy was big long before the current leaders were in office, making their claim to its success flimsy.
To the first point, Newsom is not the first governor to tout the size of California’s economy. Governors on both sides of the aisle have said it for decades. In fact, a Washington Post article from April 1980 cites Democrat Jerry Brown, from his first time as governor, and former Gov. Ronald Reagan, a Republican who was running for president at that time, as both having touted California’s position as a top 10 economy in the world.
Well, policymakers have banned official travel to half of the states in an effort to fight “discrimination,” which suggests they’d have a tough time finding trade partners who share California’s “values.” And there’s nothing to suggest the state would use any restraint in printing its own money. The population has declined three years in a row. While this is likely due to many factors, the main reason has to be the lack of housing that’s affordable. The national average home price last year was $507,800; in California it was $816,804.