At Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco, a lot of the politics was local
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BIDEN COMES TO SAN FRANCISCO, NEWSOM MAKES CRACK ABOUT TRUMP
On Wednesday, President Joe Biden met with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, at a lavish California coastal estate. The meeting brought international scrutiny to nearby San Francisco, which played host this week to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.
According to the New York Times, “Biden and Xi hit similar themes in their remarks, with both saying their goal was to keep the relationship between their countries from turning into a conflict.”
The night before, Biden held a Democratic fundraiser, along with Vice President Kamala Harris and California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
California GOP Chairwoman Jessica Millan Patterson used the occasion to poke at the rumored rivalry between Harris and Newsom, who both came of age in Bay Area politics.
“Oh, to be a fly on the wall at tonight’s California fundraiser as Vice President Harris and Governor Newsom salivate over the opportunity to take Biden’s place at the top of the ticket,” said CAGOP Chairwoman Jessica Millan Patterson in a statement.
California Sen. Brian Dahle, R-Bieber, who unsuccessfully challenged Newsom in 2022, observed that while San Francisco for years has struggled with homelessness, the city somehow found a way to deal with the issue when international eyes fell upon the city.
“For years the governor has been making never-ending excuses as to why San Francisco and other communities have not been able to move or clean up homeless encampments for regular, every day hardworking residents,” Dahle said in a statement. “But when the ‘international elitists’ come into San Francisco and the world will be watching, the city literally was cleaned up in just days. What a slap in the face to the residents who have been waiting for this for years.”
Speaking of the governor, he couldn’t resist taking a poke of his own at Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump.
“He saw first-hand the ravages of Mother Nature, ‘course he don’t believe in climate change,” Newsom said, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, as he discussed the impact of climate change on the Golden State and Trump’s 2018 visit to California in the aftermath of the deadly Camp Fire.
MCCLINTOCK, OBERNOLTE VOTE AGAINST KEEPING FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OPEN
Reps. Tom McClintock and Jay Obernolte were the only California House members to vote no on the stopgap spending plan that will keep the government running through at least January.
McClintock, R-Elk Grove, tweeted Wednesday that the bill “has NO spending reductions, NO border security, extends the Pelosi spending binge for another THREE MONTHS and extends the farm bill for a full year, precluding any reforms to the bloated food stamp program.
“We have met the big spenders, and they is us,” he wrote.
Obernolte, R-Big Bear Lake, also had concerns about spending.
“The federal government’s deficit spending continues to cause inflation, rising interest rates, and an out-of-control national debt. Congress must work to balance the federal budget and return to responsible levels of spending,” he tweeted Tuesday.
The House passed the plan Tuesday, 336 to 95, with 93 Republicans voting no and 127 voting yes. Two Democrats were opposed and 209 supported.
The bill extends current spending through Jan. 19 for veterans, military construction, agriculture, energy, transportation and housing programs.
Most of the government spending, though, is included in the other part of the package, which runs through Feb. 2. Current spending would be maintained until then for defense, health and human services and other programs.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“I don’t trust Burchett. … He’s a man that lacks character.”
- Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Oklahoma, discussing the claim by Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tennessee, that former Speaker Kevin McCarthy punched him in the kidneys, via The Hill. Mullin had his own brush with violence, first when he challenged Teamsters boss Sean O’Brien to a fight and then when he said in a podcast interview he’s “not afraid of biting” people.
Best of The Bee:
A chill in the air, the threat of rain and even an unfair practice charge couldn’t stop California state scientists from going on strike in downtown Sacramento, via Maya Miller.
$4.50, maybe $4.25. That’s how low a regular gallon of gasoline could cost in California by the end of the year, said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, which tracks price trends, via David Lightman.
Sacramento County District Attorney Thien Ho ratcheted up his fight with the city of Sacramento over the homeless crisis, issuing a letter suggesting officials may face “criminal liability” for allowing unhoused citizens to live at a toxic site dubbed Camp Resolution, via Sam Stanton.
Following last month’s federal raids on his grocery stores and homes, pressure is increasing on Sacramento City Councilman Sean Loloee to resign, via Theresa Clift.
