It is hard to escape the conclusion that people are re-sorting themselves into new political tribes that do not line up with conventional understandings of what it means to be “right” or “left.”
This is most apparent in the Democrat party, which has been changing its historical position on free expression and losing members who value constitutional free speech rights. But it’s not just abstract ideas putting the leadership on the left at odds with the rank and file; it’s serious issues like the ability to walk down the street safely.
California’s Proposition 36 is highlighting the divide. The referendum put to the voters would reverse much of the earlier Proposition 47. That earlier referendum lowered the penalties for some crimes, dropping them from felonies to misdemeanors. It also made it harder to prosecute shoplifting.
The new referendum, 36, would reverse those provisions, and would also alter the court procedure for drug addicts, and would require state courts to warn people convicted of selling drugs that they may be charged with murder if a customer dies.
A recent poll found that 73 percent of Californians are likely to vote for Prop. 36, and support for the tough on crime measure cuts across political lines. Republicans support it the most at 85 percent, but 63 percent of Democrats and 73 percent of Independents say they’ll vote for it, too.
That is not music to the ears of Democrat leaders like Governor Gavin Newsom. Newsom and other party leaders are against it, likely because Newsom was a strong advocate of Prop. 47, which lightened criminal penalties. Newsom said the new referendum would be “going back to the broken policies of the last century.” He continues to claim that “mass incarceration” is “not the answer,” but he fails to say why. Voters are wondering just what is wrong or “ineffective” about putting dangerous people behind bars to keep the public safe.
Newsom tried to keep Prop. 36 off the ballot, but his efforts failed. It appears that his opposition to the measure is not likely to override the will of the voters, including more than half of those in his own party. The new poll by the Public Policy Institute of California shows that support for the referendum is 45 percent higher than opposition to it.
PPI’s Mark Baldassare said he was “surprised” by how popular the measure turned out to be in the organization’s recent survey.
