SACRAMENTO, CA- Once again, California Democrats find themselves on the wrong side of an 80/20 issue. Politico reports that Democrats on an assembly committee are advocating decreasing penalties for adults who target 16 and 17-year-olds for sex. Even some Democrats are becoming increasingly uncomfortable with the direction their party is taking.
That proposal comes as there has been increased focus on human trafficking, especially of minors, a trend that has been the focus of border czar Tom Homan and President Trump.
According to Politico, the current legislative session was supposed to focus on tackling affordability in California and restoring confidence in their ability to deal with rampant crime and homelessness. Instead, the state assembly is engaged “in a bitter debate around tightening penalties for soliciting sex from older teenagers,” a proposal that runs counter to the feelings of Gov. Gavin Newsom and other Democrats.
Democrats are being slammed, with critics accusing them of losing their way on public safety, including a former state senator.
“Our job right now is to be able to communicate effectively how Democrats are serving Californians and making people’s lives better. This does not help,” Susan Eggman said. Last year, she slammed California Democrats for becoming “laughingstocks” and losing the political center.
“It is hard to be taken seriously when you have difficulty articulating the policies you continue to support or oppose,” she continued, “and unless you can articulate that in a way my 16-year-old can understand, then you have trouble with the average voter.”
The Assembly committee is suggesting that people who solicit older teenagers, 16 and 17-year-olds, for sex should be treated less severely than those who target younger children. This is a repeat of what happened last year, when California Democrats were again on the losing side of an 80/20 issue when Republicans accused them of blocking or watering down bills addressing sex crimes against minors. Democrats claimed that laws that treat younger and older teens equally would do more harm than good, claiming it would “tie the hands” of judges and other officials.
Republicans, fresh off gains on President Trump’s coattails last November, are expected to take advantage of the Democrats’ disarray and infighting over the issue. In the last election, Republicans flipped a number of seats in counties where the president made significant inroads.
“You’re trying to pull the con job on the California voters,” Assemblymember Carl DeMaio said, but “I don’t think the voters are going to fall for this, and I will spend every day working to ensure that.”
Newsom has been placed squarely in the middle by the Democrats as he’s been forced to mediate between Democratic Party factions. Newsom advocates for harsher penalties, and as a possible 2028 Democrat presidential contender, he has attempted to thwart politically charged bills, such as banning tackle football and shielding more illegal aliens with criminal convictions from deportation.
Among those supporting Newsom this go-around are Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, and Christine Pelosi, who some expect to run for her fossilized mother’s House seat when she retires. Pelosi slammed the proposed measure on X, claiming it would diminish voter trust, with some commenters noting that California Democrats had jumped the shark.
Freshman Assemblymember Maggy Krell, who drew law enforcement support in her campaign, joined Republicans to try and force through her bill rather than a compromise measure developed by Democratic leadership.
Speaker Robert Rivas accused Krell of selling out and reneging on a deal. The Democrat caucus complained she had put them in an untenable position, had put a target on their back for Republicans, and fed into the narrative that Democrats are in disarray. One Democrat even slammed “some of the highest constitutional officers” for spreading “misinformation,” which was believed to be directed toward Newsom and Kounalakis.
“Watching the Republicans be emboldened to attack us the way they did, that was a hard pill for people to swallow,” said one Democrat assemblymember who spoke on condition of anonymity. “The Democrats were blindsided by one of our own.”
The fallout from this bill reflects a changing attitude among California voters, who approved a ballot measure to strengthen theft and drug penalties last year despite overwhelming opposition from Democratic state lawmakers and other state officials, including Newsom. It is believed that the fallout from Krell’s bill fed into concerns that the Democrats’ reputation on public safety is turning off voters.
One Assemblymember suffering from Trump Derangement Syndrome, Jasmeet Bains, a “moderate” Democrat, said that despite Trump “tank[ing] the economy and deport[ing] innocent children, the American people still don’t trust the Democrats.”
Clearly.
Bains was one of only two Democrats who voted with Krell and Republicans. The caucus was otherwise unified and accused Republicans of “manufacturing outrage,” while claiming current California law already includes felony charges for purchasing minors for sex.
“The Republicans are looking for any opportunity to try to paint Democrats as somehow soft on crime or not caring about crime, and it’s so inaccurate,” said state Sen. Scott Wiener, a far-left radical who has authored several controversial bills.
One of those bills would have repealed a bill on prostitution. He has also proposed bills to remove some pedophiles from the state’s sex offender registry, proposed legislation to house inmates according to their gender identity, proposed a trans refuge law to make the state a sanctuary for trans individuals, and several LGBTQ-oriented bills.
“There was a lot of politics going on, a lot of grandstanding, even though we have strong laws on the books,” Wiener said.
Opponents of Krell’s bill claimed it would take away judges’ discretion, risk penalizing victims, and apply the same punishment to 18-year-olds as middle-aged solicitors of sex. Republicans painted Democrats as soft on crime and showed them to be apathetic about crimes against children.
Andrew Acost, a Democratic political consultant who managed Krell’s unsuccessful run for district attorney, believes her arguments will resonate with California voters.
“She’s doing what she thinks is the right thing,” he said, and I'm sure that if you polled them, most voters would be in agreement.”
