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Gavin Newsom Goes Back on His Word, State of Emergency Will Remain in Place After June 15 Deadline

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  June 05, 2021 7:30 PM

On Friday, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) alerted state residents that he was not going to lift he state of emergency on June 15, which was the proposed date. Newsom made the announcement during a press conference while announcing winners of a vaccine lottery, "Vax for the Win," where those selected win $50,000 cash prizes. By the way, it's taxable. Welcome to California, the state with the highest income tax.

The casual reveal came during what Eric Ting of SF Gate called a "testy press conference" in his headline, also indicating in his piece that it was "often tense."

The exchange was between Newsom and AP reporter Adam Beam, who referenced the June 15 date:

But look, I'm mindful that this disease has not been extinguished, it hasn't gone away, and if you're in a dense workplace with hundreds of other employees, many of them haven't been vaccinated... we won't be there. We're mindful of variants. 

We've never said that we were not going to consider some modifications post June 15, let me specific: We've been very forthright in terms of modifications for large indoor settings with a lot of folks from different backgrounds, walks of life, people coming in internationally, et cetera, and mindful of the importance of face coverings, non-pharmaceutical interventions, as well as pharmaceutical interventions around vaccines and testing requirements.

When multiple reporters wanted to ask about that June 15 date, then, Newsom sarcastically jumped in to mention "I'm glad there are all the questions about the lottery."

Another exchange came between Newsom and Cal Matters' Laurel Rosenhall, who was asking about capacity restrictions, despite an announcement from May that they would be. Newsom sought to distract by seeking to "remind folks" that "guidelines are evolving" and "continue to evolve on the basis of this disease, on the basis of external reality and pressures..." and that they "have a lot of work to do on vaccinations as well."

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He also told Rosenhall when asked that he would not rescind his emergency declaration and give up his emergency powers. "Because we're still in a state of emergency," he said through laughter when asked why not. "This disease has not been extinguished. It's not vanished, it's not taking the summer months off."

"The one thing I am certain of is: There’s uncertainty in the future," the governor also said. "The emergency remains in effect after June 15."

If not asked about it, when else was Newsom planning on telling his constituents that he saw it fit to continue to extend his use of emergency powers?

Gov. Newsom himself boasted when answering a previous question from Beam that California has "the lowest case rates in America and the highest vaccination rates." 

A new Gallup poll released yesterday also finally showed a majority of adults, at 56 percent, think it's acceptable for healthy people to live normal lives. 

John Cox, who is running as a Republican in hopes of unseating Gov. Newsom in a recall election, likely to take place in October or November, tweeted extensively about the announcement, including with a statement.

Another opponent, San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer tweeted a complaint that Newsom was not following other states, or the science.

Caitlyn Jenner, who is also running as a Republican to replace Newsom, likewise expressed her displeasure over Twitter.

This air of entitlement, especially for a governor facing a recall effort, is really something else.