CALIFORNIA, THERE IT GOES – OVERNIGHT:  Californians are about to go to the polls to decide whether to recall Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom.  It would be great if it happened, considering the horrible condition California is in, but we must be realistic.  All the polls heavily favor Newsom's being retained as governor, and the Dems are sounding very optimistic.  From Fox: 

Gov. Gavin Newsom's team seems to be striking a confident tone just a day before Tuesday's California recall election, and said that there's no "scenario where we lose."

"I don’t see a scenario where we’re not talking about a victory for the governor and a complete rejection of this appalling partisan power grab," said Newsom strategist Sean Clegg. "I think what we’re seeing in our projections in the early vote is we’re performing so well we might reach a point where there’s not enough Republican vote left on the table for them to overtake us. We’ll let you know when we reach that." 

Newsom, who was overwhelmingly elected governor in 2018 in California, is facing a recall sparked last year mainly over accusations that he mishandled his state’s response to the coronavirus.

Republicans see the recall election as their best chance to topple a politician who has never lost an election during his years as San Francisco mayor, California lieutenant governor, and now governor – and their first chance to win a statewide contest since the 2006 gubernatorial reelection victory by then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

On Monday night, President Biden urged Californians to keep Newsom as their governor during a rally in Long Beach.

"The eyes of the nation are on California because the decision you’re going to make isn’t just going to have a huge impact on California, it’s going to reverberate around the nation, and quite frankly — not a joke — around the world," Biden said. 

The president also contended that a "Trump clone" could replace Newsom, which was an apparent reference to conservative talk radio host Larry Elder, the Republican frontrunner.

"All of you know that last year I got to run against the real Donald Trump," Biden said. "Well, this year the leading Republican running for governor is a closest thing to a Trump clone that I've ever seen in your state."

"You either keep Gavin Newsom as your governor or you’ll get Donald Trump," he added. "It’s not a joke. A Republican governor blocking progress on COVID-19 who is also anti-woman, anti-worker, a climate denier, who doesn’t believe in choice. The choice should be absolutely clear."

The recall push was launched in June 2020 due to frustrations by many Californians over the governor’s restrictive response to the coronavirus. On Monday, Biden defended Newsom's handling of the virus, arguing that voting no would protect California from "Trump Republicans trying to block us from beating this pandemic."

"We don't need politics in this battle against Covid," he added. "We need science. We need courage. We need leadership. We need Gavin Newsom."

COMMENT:  As I've written here many times, the only thing that counts in an election is winning.  It's not like the Olympics.  There's no silver medal.

But, despite the overwhelming odds against us in this recall – California is one of the bluest states in the Union – there can still be benefits to the exercise.   Some people with good political connections in California tell me to get ready for a voter surprise.  These sources say that the Latino vote is turning against Newsom and that, if that vote turns out in large numbers, the race could be much closer than it now appears.  Also, we'll want to look at other communities the Dems think are in the bag.  California has a large Asian-American community, and Asian Americans have shown increasing frustration at being ignored by the Democratic Party.   So the vote may give us a pretty good picture of the California electorate, as of today.  Very useful as we move into 2022.

September 13,  2021