A Harris Administration Will Create the United States of California
With the Democratic National Convention in the rearview mirror, we can turn our attention to the future. Do you want to know what a Harris administration will look like? Just take a look at California.
Americans should prepare for the possibility of living in the United States of California — with all the costs, inconveniences, and restrictions of California policy without any of California’s nice weather or beachfront property.
It’s no coincidence that Harris hails from California and came up through its progressive political machine. We can expect a Harris administration to double and triple down on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives as well as renewable energy subsidies and requirements. And now we know that higher taxes and restrictions on market prices are also part of her plans.
In short, a Harris administration would attempt to mold the United States into the image of California.
Federal regulators have pushed ESG everywhere they can since President Joe Biden signed Executive Order 13985, “Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government,” and Executive Order 14305 on “Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility in the Federal Workforce” in 2021. These executive orders mobilized federal agencies and federal contractors to prioritize DEI in personnel policies.
Harris was also part of Biden’s administration when he signed Executive Order 14030 on “Climate-Related Financial Risk.” The Biden–Harris administration further expanded the role of government agencies in promoting ESG priorities through the Inflation Reduction Act, killing the Keystone Pipeline project, and instituting a moratorium on the development of new liquefied natural gas export facilities in Texas.
But worst of all, Harris has said she wants to implement a wealth tax and impose price controls on groceries and other products. Few proposals could be more disruptive to the economy and harmful to the well-being of ordinary Americans. Besides expanding the reach of government even more to find and assess people’s wealth, this new tax will distort financial markets and stop innovation in its tracks. The price controls, if implemented, will lead to shortages and empty shelves in grocery stores across America.
Many people know that gas and electricity prices are high in California, but most don’t know just how high. Saying the cost is double the national average doesn’t do it justice. In some places, Californians pay over $1,000 for electricity for a modest home in a single month! A grocery store owner in Borrego Springs pays almost as much for electricity (about $8,000 a month) as he does for rent. Consider that Americans in states with “normal” electricity costs may only pay $1,200–$1,500 per year. A doubling of electricity costs would mean many Americans would pay $2,400–$3,000 per year for electricity.
To make things worse, unemployment is higher in California than it is just about everywhere else in the country. California also has one of the highest rates of homelessness in the country — more than three times the rate of states like Florida. In addition, California has the highest marginal state income tax in the nation. Meanwhile, crime has become a significant problem across California — especially in its big cities.
Not surprisingly, most people don’t want to live in the United States of California. Consider how California’s population declined three of the last four years. The imbalance of people moving to and from California is so great that it can be half the normal price or less if you rent a moving truck going to California.
Continuing the environmental and DEI policies of the Biden administration and adding a wealth tax and price controls on top of them are a surefire way to get economic stagnation, high costs, lower employment, and greater lawlessness. Additionally, the Harris campaign has promised hundreds of billions of dollars to first-time homebuyers, new small-business owners, and people with student debt.
California’s fiscal situation and unfunded liabilities are bad, but in this area, the United States is worse. Harris has offered no plans to address runaway spending and debt. Unless she is prepared to renounce the policies of her home state and of the Biden administration, as well as her recent economic policy proposals of price controls and a wealth tax, Americans should expect everywhere to look more like California under a Harris administration.
READ MORE:
Kamala Harris Is No Joe Biden. Or Is She?
The post A Harris Administration Will Create the United States of California appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.