Who will replace Newsom? California governor debate

[1:05] Welcome to tonight's [1:06] gubernatorial debate. [1:08] Tonight, we're broadcasting live [1:09] from the historic [1:10] Ruth Williams Bayview Opera House [1:12] in San Francisco. [1:14] Fox Local presents [1:15] The Race for California Governor, [1:18] the first statewide debate. [1:25] Good evening and welcome [1:26] to tonight's gubernatorial debate. [1:28] Tonight, we're broadcasting live [1:30] from the historic [1:31] Ruth Williams Bayview Opera House [1:32] in San Francisco [1:33] on Fox stations around the state [1:35] and on the Fox Local app. [1:37] I'm Greg Lee, [1:38] joined on the moderator desk [1:39] by Marla Tejas and Andre Sr. [1:41] Tonight's debate is hosted [1:42] by the Black Action Alliance [1:44] and its sponsors [1:44] and presented exclusively [1:46] by KTVU, Fox 2, Fox 11 Los Angeles [1:49] and the Fox Local streaming app. [1:51] Tonight, we're joined on stage [1:52] by seven of the top candidates [1:54] in the hotly contested race [1:55] for California governor. [1:57] Let's meet those candidates. [1:58] We ask the audience [1:59] to please hold your applause [2:00] until everyone's been introduced. [2:02] Democrat and former U.S. [2:03] Secretary of Health and Human Services, [2:05] Javier Becerra. [2:07] Republican political commentator, [2:08] Steve Hill, [2:09] Democratic Mayor of San Jose, [2:11] Matt Mahan. [2:12] Entrepreneur and activist, [2:13] Democrat Tom Steyer. [2:15] State Superintendent [2:16] of Public Instruction, [2:17] Democrat Tony Thurman. [2:19] Former Los Angeles Mayor, [2:20] Democrat Antonio Villaraigosa [2:22] and former California State Controller, [2:24] Betty Yee, a Democrat. [2:26] We'd like to note here, [2:27] Democrat Congressman Eric Swalwell [2:29] was scheduled to attend tonight [2:30] but had to cancel [2:31] due to ongoing votes [2:32] in Washington, D.C. [2:33] Please, let's give our candidates [2:35] a round of applause. [2:36] Ahead of the debate, [2:45] the Black Action Alliance [2:46] reached out to 14 [2:48] of the top candidates [2:49] in this crowded field. [2:51] Based on BAA's criteria [2:52] and the candidates' schedules, [2:54] it was narrowed down [2:55] to the people you see here [2:56] on this stage now. [2:57] Let's go over the rules [2:59] for our audience [2:59] that candidates agree to backstage. [3:02] Each person will have [3:03] one minute for an opening statement [3:05] and one minute [3:06] for a closing statement. [3:08] Candidates will have [3:08] one minute to answer questions [3:10] and 30 seconds [3:11] if their names are invoked [3:13] at the moderator's discretion. [3:15] Now, if you go over [3:16] your time limit, [3:17] you'll receive a verbal warning, [3:18] then we'll mute your mic [3:20] if needed. [3:21] We will also take [3:22] a 15-minute intermission [3:23] during the debate. [3:25] For our audience at home [3:27] and in this theater, [3:29] thank you so much for watching. [3:30] Thank you for being here tonight. [3:32] We want you to be a part [3:33] of this debate. [3:34] What does that mean? [3:35] We want to hear from you [3:36] during this debate. [3:38] So we hope that you will [3:39] take the time to respond [3:40] to our poll questions. [3:42] You can do so by scanning [3:43] the QR code that will appear [3:45] on your screen occasionally. [3:47] And we will share your answers, [3:50] those results, [3:51] during the intermission [3:52] and also at the end [3:53] of the debate. [3:55] Now, tonight on the agenda, [3:57] we have a whole lot to get to. [3:58] We will cover a wide range [4:00] of topics, [4:01] everything from immigration, [4:03] cost of living, [4:04] wildfires, [4:05] to gas prices. [4:07] Our candidates, [4:07] we have positioned them [4:08] on the stage tonight [4:09] in alphabetical order [4:11] from Becerra to Yee. [4:13] And in that spirit, [4:14] we begin tonight [4:15] with our opening statement. [4:17] Thank you. [4:17] Thank you. [4:17] Thank you. [4:17] Thank you. [4:17] Thank you. [4:17] Thank you. [4:17] Thank you. [4:17] Thank you. [4:18] Thank you. [4:18] Thank you. [4:18] Thank you. [4:18] Thank you. [4:18] Thank you. [4:19] Are we ready? [4:20] Candidates? [4:22] California has the fourth [4:24] largest economy in the world. [4:26] It remains the most populous, [4:29] most diverse state [4:30] with some of the most [4:31] innovative companies [4:33] in the nation. [4:34] Yet, it has its fair share [4:36] of issues as well. [4:38] Why should voters [4:39] hand the keys to you? [4:41] Secretary Becerra, [4:42] you have one minute. [4:45] So I am Javier Becerra. [4:46] I am the son of immigrants. [4:48] I was raised in the United States [4:49] raised in the home that my father built. I am the first in my family to have a chance to graduate [4:55] from a university. Right now, we need leadership that knows how to govern through crises, whether [5:01] it's the man-made crises coming out of Washington, D.C., or if it's the affordability crises that we [5:07] see here at home. As your AG, I did exactly that. I governed through crises. I defended the Affordable [5:14] Care Act and the DACA program for DREAMers all the way to the Supreme Court and beat Donald Trump [5:19] in the Supreme Court. I took on Donald Trump over and over. How many times? Over 120 court [5:26] actions against Donald Trump, and we kept winning. As your Secretary of Health and Human Services, [5:32] I protected you during the global pandemic. I made sure that we negotiated lower prescription [5:38] drug prices for the first time in history, and I balanced a budget five times larger [5:43] than the state of California. That's what I bring to the table as your next governor. [5:47] Mr. Hilton, why should voters say, [5:52] send you to Sacramento? California needs an outsider to shake up a system that is obviously [5:59] not working. I love California, but after 16 years of one-party rule by these Democrats, [6:06] we've got the highest poverty, the highest unemployment, the highest cost of living in [6:10] America. It is time for some balance. I was raised in a working-class family. I worked [6:16] construction, started businesses of my own. For the last three years, I've been traveling our [6:22] state listening. [6:24] I've been talking to California's. I understand what needs to change. We need to end the Democrats' [6:29] climate crusade so we can have $3 gas and cut your electric bills in half. We need to end the fraud [6:36] and waste in government so we can cut taxes, your first hundred grand tax-free. We need to end the [6:43] insane regulations that make it so expensive to own your own home. You're going to hear a lot of [6:49] promises tonight, but remember, these are the people who got us into this mess. It is time for [6:54] an outsider with positive, practical plans for change, not more of the same. [7:00] Mayor Mahan, why should you be the one to head up the state of California? [7:05] Good evening. Thank you all for being here. I want to thank the Black Action [7:09] Alliance and KTVU for gathering us in this historic hall. We're all here tonight to earn [7:16] your votes, but we need California leaders to do something much harder, restore your trust. [7:24] Whether you agree or not, we're all here to help you. We're all here to help you. We're all here to [7:26] help you. Whether you agree with me or not, I want you to know that my vision for getting [7:31] California back to basics isn't driven by a need to win-win election. It's driven by my passion [7:38] for creating the change that we need to make all of our lives better. In this campaign, I'm going [7:45] to show you the respect of telling you the truth as I see it for how we can actually lower costs, [7:51] end unsheltered homelessness, make all of our communities safer and expand [7:58] economic opportunity for everyone. That's why I'm in this campaign, because you deserve [8:04] real answers, not the easy one. Mr. Steyer, why should voters hand the keys to you? [8:13] Well, I want to start by thanking the Black Action Alliance for getting us here [8:16] on the 100th anniversary of Black History Month. I'm running because the number one [8:25] problem in California is that Californians can't afford to live here anymore, and I'm going to go [8:30] after those costs aggressively, and I have a history of getting results. I come from a family, [8:35] that believes in service. My mom was a teacher. My dad was a Navy vet. I started a business. [8:42] It went really well, and I walked away from it 14 years ago to give back. I took the giving pledge [8:49] to guarantee that I'd give the bulk of my money away before I died. And during those 14 years, [8:55] I took on the special interest in California on behalf of working families. I delivered [9:00] billions of dollars to this state without charging Californians a penny. I'll continue [9:07] to do that as your governor. In a world where politicians routinely serve special interests, [9:14] I can't be bought. Superintendent Thurman, why should you be the 41st governor? [9:21] Good evening, everyone. For the last 18 years, it's been my honor to serve you [9:25] as your council member, school board member, state assembly member, and twice as your state [9:30] superintendent. Together, we provided free preschool for every four-year-old in our state, [9:35] free meals for every hungry student, $4 billion in [9:39] mental health programs, and $6 billion to make sure we close the digital divide in this state once [9:46] and for all. As your governor, I'm going to build 2 million housing units and provide housing for [9:51] the homeless. I'm going to provide you with a tax credit so you have more money in your pocket [9:56] every month to pay for the rising costs of gas, of groceries, and housing. And as your governor, [10:02] I'm going to continue to fight against this Trump administration, as I've done [10:05] with my legislation that keeps ICE out of our schools and, [10:09] in my new legislation that says, [10:12] any company that operates or supports an ICE detention center will be taxed. [10:19] I will work with Congress until we abolish ICE and we create a pathway into [10:24] citizenship. [10:24] Better California is possible. And, together, [10:27] we will build it. [10:29] Mayor Villaraigosa, why should voters choose you? [10:34] Mayor Villaraigosa, they should choose me because [10:38] I'm here today, because there's a Civil Rights Act [10:41] and a Voting Rights Act. I grew up in a state that enjoyed biggest votes. [10:43] a tough neighborhood with a single mother who struggled to make ends meet. I understood growing [10:49] up back then that to whom much is given, much is expected. My entire life, I have fought for [10:56] justice, fought to open up the door. I've said many times that the role of the first is not to [11:02] bang on your chest and say how great I am. The role of the first is to bring in the rest, and [11:07] I've done that. I was a civil rights leader, president of the ACLU, labor leader. You forgot [11:15] to mention, I was speaker of the California State Assembly before I became mayor. Balanced two [11:20] budgets with a surplus, more money for education. As mayor, crime went down 50 percent, graduation [11:29] rates went up 60 percent, put 275,000 people to work in the worst recession. I'd be honored to [11:36] be your mayor, your governor. [11:38] And your mayor. [11:43] Ms. Yee, why should voters hand the keys to you? [11:46] Good evening. It's good to be home and to stand in this historic landmark theater. [11:51] I grew up with my five siblings and immigrant parents in a studio apartment. [11:55] I went to public school here and made my way through UC Berkeley and built a career as an [12:00] expert in California's finances. I went on to win two statewide elections and became California's [12:06] state controller as the underdog candidate and was reelected with the highest number of votes [12:10] of any statewide candidate in California. [12:12] Although as controller, I manage hundreds of billions of dollars, I never forget from where I [12:19] come and how hard it is for people to earn every single dollar. Small businesses are still the heart [12:25] of our economy. And as at eight years old, I did the bookkeeping for my parents' dry cleaning [12:29] business. I remember the weeks when we didn't have enough money for milk on the table. Some say I'm [12:35] an underdog now, but that fuels me. I've exceeded expectations all my life, and I'm not stopping [12:41] here. If you feel like an underdog, exhausted, and you don't know what to do, I'm going to tell you [12:45] this. If you find yourself not yawning, your problem is that you have had to spend the last [12:48] three months of your life working for the state budget, worn out, and counted out. Know that I see [12:53] you as your governor. I will fix the state budget so that it works for all of our hard-working [12:59] Californians. Thank you. [13:02] Candidates, thank you so much. And thank you for sticking within your 60 seconds. Well done. [13:05] Andre. [13:06] A topic that I'm sure none of you will be surprised we'll be talking about. Immigration, [13:11] of course. We've seen the crackdowns are happening across the country, protests, deadly violence at [13:15] places like Minnesota. My question to all the candidates on the stage tonight is what is your [13:15] vision? [13:16] message to those who are in this country legally, those who are undocumented, and California [13:21] families in general. Mr. Hilton, I'd like to start with you. Before we go on, I really think I need [13:28] to address the elephant in the room, or perhaps, as some might say, the rhino who's not in the room. [13:33] My Republican colleague, Chad Bianco, is not here tonight to face these Democrats. For his record, [13:42] in 2020, during the Black Lives Matter riots, he took a knee when told to by BLM. Now he says [13:51] he was praying. Well, watch the video for yourself at blmbianco.org. That is blmbianco.org. [14:03] We cannot risk splitting the Republican vote and letting the Democrats in. Chad Bianco [14:10] has got more baggage than LAX. We cannot. [14:15] We have BLM Bianco, the shifty sheriff, as our candidate. Chad Bianco, he needs to drop out of [14:23] this race, just as he dropped out of tonight's debate. On the question of immigration, it's [14:28] very clear. I'm a legal immigrant. I am here for the legal immigrant community, so they can have [14:34] the California dream, and I will make sure that all laws, including our immigration laws, [14:40] are peacefully enforced. Mr. Hilton, thank you so much. Mayor Mayhem, I'd like to get your [14:45] answer to the question. [14:46] What is your message to Californians, including immigrant communities? [14:51] Well, the way that the Trump administration is enforcing immigration law is dividing us, [14:58] creating fear, and now we're seeing cases where residents' rights, civil liberties are being [15:06] threatened. San Jose, we've sued the administration to defend our civil liberties. We've passed rules [15:12] around law enforcement not unnecessarily wearing masks. We've ensured that the federal government [15:17] can't commandeer public space. [15:20] We're not doing all of the Virginia's job. We're not doing all of the Virginia's job. [15:24] We're not doing all of the Virginia's job. We're not doing all of the Virginia's job. [15:26] But the reality on immigration is both parties have failed us. The truth is, it makes sense to have a [15:30] secure border, know who and what comes into the country, to have orderly immigration, but we [15:36] should not be demonizing people who are here to do the most American thing, which is work hard and [15:41] create a better future for their kids. We need to create a legal path for people who want to be here [15:47] and are as American in their desires and actions as any of us. And we should come together, get the [15:51] out of the way and create a [15:52] compromise path forward that [15:54] respects our values as [15:55] Americans. [15:56] Mr. Steyer, if you become [16:00] the state's next top lawmaker, [16:02] immigrant families are going to [16:03] be looking to you. [16:04] What is your message to them and [16:05] to Californians? [16:06] This country was built by [16:07] immigrants. [16:08] This state doesn't work without [16:11] immigration. [16:12] Of course we need to have a [16:14] fair justice system, but this is [16:16] the exact opposite of that. [16:18] I'm very straightforward about [16:20] this. [16:21] ICE should be abolished. [16:24] You really can't reform an [16:27] organization which is absolutely [16:30] wrong and criminal from top to [16:32] bottom. [16:33] But I think we have to look at [16:34] this ICE example as just the [16:36] start of what the Trump [16:38] administration is very clearly [16:40] trying to do. [16:41] They are trying to use terror. [16:43] They are trying to use violence. [16:45] And they are starting with [16:46] immigration, but they're not [16:47] going to end with immigration. [16:49] I started a grassroots effort to [16:52] impeach Mr. Trump in 2017. [16:55] Because I could see he had a [16:57] criminal administration. [16:58] That hasn't changed. [16:59] It's accelerated. [17:00] It's gotten bigger. [17:01] And it's not going to stop. [17:02] The governor of California needs [17:04] to stand up for the values of [17:06] Californians, immigrants and [17:08] nonimmigrants alike. [17:09] Superintendent Thurmond, we [17:11] heard you mention about schools. [17:13] Talk to us about what you would [17:14] tell immigrant communities here [17:16] in California and California [17:17] families in general. [17:18] My maternal grandparents were [17:21] immigrants. [17:22] They came here from Columbia, [17:24] from Jamaica. [17:25] My mother born in Panama. [17:26] A teacher here in California. [17:28] On my dad's side, they were [17:29] immigrants, too. [17:30] The descendants of slaves. [17:33] By way of Detroit and [17:35] Mississippi. [17:36] All coming here for a better [17:37] life. [17:38] My grandparents cleaned [17:39] bathrooms for a living. [17:40] And we have to create a real [17:42] path for citizenship for those [17:44] who want nothing more than to [17:46] work hard and pay taxes and [17:48] contribute to the American dream [17:50] for all of us. [17:51] And that's why I passed the [17:52] legislation that keeps ICE out [17:54] of our schools and out of our [17:55] hospitals. [17:56] I mean, people are afraid to [17:57] even see a doctor. [17:58] And when I am governor, I will [17:59] restore universal health care [18:00] for all, including undocumented [18:01] immigrants in the state of [18:02] California. [18:03] Because we know that health care [18:04] is a right. [18:05] We will abolish ICE. [18:06] We will create a pathway to [18:07] citizenship. [18:08] And right now, I have [18:09] legislation that puts a tax on [18:10] any single company in California [18:11] that does business with ICE and [18:12] ICE detention centers. [18:13] Mayor Garosa, your message [18:14] to immigrant communities in [18:15] California. [18:16] Thank you. [18:17] Thank you. [18:18] Thank you. [18:19] Thank you. [18:20] Thank you. [18:21] Thank you. [18:22] Thank you. [18:23] Thank you. [18:26] Thank you. [18:27] Thank you. [18:28] Thank you. [18:29] mayor Garosa, in addition, [18:31] stateikka, tell us about the [18:32] Human Rights Act or the [18:33] act of part-time [18:34] defense, and how it's [18:35] impacting immigrant [18:36] communities in California. [18:37] I have never in my life seen [18:39] ICE agents dressed from head to [18:41] toe, all covered up like the [18:42] Ku Klux Klan, with assault [18:43] weapons, flashbang grenades, [18:44] beating up on women, children, [18:46] and innocents. [18:47] Arresting a 170 U.S. [18:48] Citizens. [18:50] Killing two people in the [18:51] last two weeks. [18:52] We will stop ICE. [18:54] We will stand up for America's [18:55] Constitution. [18:56] We will protect the [18:57] nard evangelism that we [18:58] got. [18:59] And we will go [19:00] now. [19:01] We will stand up for civil liberties in this state when I'm governor. [19:05] And what I've said, yes, we will pass those laws, all of them, to protect our civil liberties in this state. [19:12] But we will do more. [19:13] We will use the courts. [19:15] We will use the ballot box. [19:16] I come out of the movement, and I'll tell you what. [19:19] We're going to build a mass, peaceful movement in support of our rights and in support of our democracy. [19:26] We've got to say no to ICE, and we've got to take on Trump wherever he raises his ugly head. [19:34] Mayor Villaraigosa, thank you so much. [19:37] Ms. Yee, your response. [19:39] Thank you. [19:40] First of all, as a proud daughter of immigrants, what I want to say to our immigrant communities, I see you. [19:46] I know you, and I hear you. [19:48] And we're going to do everything we can to keep you safe. [19:51] We're going to be sure that our communities are standing up for you. [19:54] Everyone should be taking a Know Your Rights training to be sure that we know [19:57] how to stand up for you and to keep you safe. [20:00] But here's what we need to do in addition to. [20:02] We need to build economic power in our immigrant communities to be sure that we can resist against [20:08] this mass immigration enforcement when people understand that immigrants are such a contributor [20:12] to our economy and to our society here in California. [20:16] And that's what we're going to build together. [20:17] We are a sanctuary state. [20:19] We're going to lean in more to that and be sure that we are making our own communities safe. [20:23] ICE has no business coming in and tearing up communities, tearing up families, [20:27] and we're going to do it. [20:28] We're going to help bring you back into the fold. [20:30] You pay taxes. [20:31] What I want to say to you, all of the immigrants out there, thank you. [20:37] Ms. Yee, thank you so much. [20:39] Secretary Becerra, your message to Californians and immigrant communities. [20:44] California wants people who work hard and play by the rules. [20:47] Full stop. [20:48] If that's an immigrant, we welcome you. [20:51] That was my parents. [20:53] They worked hard. [20:53] They came to this state with $12 in their pocket. [20:57] Yet they figured out how to somehow save enough money as a construction worker and a clerical [21:00] worker to actually buy a house. [21:02] To send my three sisters and I to college or the military. [21:06] And then to retire, not in Idaho or Arizona, but here in California. [21:10] That's what we have to be about. [21:11] As Attorney General, I defended against Trump's attacks when he tried to coerce our state [21:16] and local law enforcement to actually do ICE raids. [21:20] We beat him there. [21:21] He tried to deny us community policing dollars, $57 million, because we wouldn't do ICE raids [21:27] with them. [21:27] We'd be back on that as well. [21:30] Here's what I will tell you. [21:30] As governor, we will police the immigration. [21:33] We will arrest violators. [21:36] All right. [23:08] We are having some technical difficulties with the audio as you are watching the debate [23:12] for the race for California governor. [23:14] We have our teams working on fixing those problems. [23:17] And we'll bring that audio to you and we'll bring you back to the debate as soon as we [23:21] can. [23:22] Stick with us. [23:22] We have our teams working on this and we'll get you right back to this debate as soon [23:26] as possible. [24:29] Mic check. [24:30] Mic check. [24:31] Check him. [24:38] Let me know when we're ready, Jeff. [24:49] All right. [24:49] Welcome back. [24:50] We are fixing our audio issue and we are back to our debate. [24:52] With our candidates and candidates, let me repeat this question here for you here on [24:56] the issue of affordability. [24:58] The vast majority of the questions that we received ahead of this from viewers was about [25:02] the cost of living in California, rising prices of things like groceries, child care [25:06] and health care, utilities, consistently polling as the number one issue for voters in the [25:11] state and nationwide. [25:12] If elected, what specific plans do you have to give people relief on day one? [25:17] Mayor Mayhem, we'll start with you. [25:18] One minute. [25:20] Thank you. [25:20] Thank you. [25:21] Thank you. [25:21] Thank you. [25:21] Thank you. [25:21] Thank you. [25:21] Thank you. [25:21] Thank you. [25:21] Thank you. [25:21] Thank you. [25:21] Thank you. [25:21] Thank you. [25:21] Thank you. [25:21] Thank you. [25:21] Thank you. [25:21] Thank you. [25:21] Thank you. [25:21] Thank you. [25:21] Thank you. [25:21] Thank you. [26:21] Mr. Steyer. [26:22] So affordability is the key issue in California right now. [26:26] And it does start with housing. [26:28] And you should know I'm in favor of rent control because right now people can't make rent at [26:34] the end of the month. [26:35] But I'm also in favor of building a million houses. [26:38] And the ability to do that is not just there's no silver bullet. [26:42] It's silver buckshot. [26:44] We need to deal with permitting. [26:45] We need to deal with zoning. [26:47] And we also need to build houses. [26:48] We need to build houses that are much cheaper on a per square foot basis, which we can do [26:52] with new technology. [26:54] But the other thing I'm going to do is I'm going to go after the electric monopolies [26:58] that charge us twice as much for electricity as the average in the United States of America. [27:04] Monopolies always overcharge and underproduce. [27:08] And lastly, I'm going to bring money to the table, revenue to the table. [27:13] I'm going to close two corporate tax loopholes, a real estate loophole and a place where they [27:18] declare their income. [27:19] And bring $15 to $20 billion to Californians every year that goes to health care, that goes to child care and that goes to education. [27:29] We need revenues and I'm going to bring them. [27:31] I've done this before. [27:32] I'll do it as governor. [27:33] Thank you, Mr. [27:34] Steyer, Mr. [27:35] Thurmond, your plan on day one to lower prices. [27:37] You know, I grew up in a household where we often didn't have food. [27:40] I grew up on the free lunch program. [27:42] I grew up on food stamps and a whole lot of government cheese. [27:47] We ate so much government cheese that I thought that U.S.D.A. [27:49] was going to be a big deal. [27:49] I'm going to close the door. [27:49] I'm going to close the door. [27:49] I'm going to close the door. [27:49] I'm going to close the door. [27:49] I'm going to close the door. [27:49] The U.S.D.A. [27:50] was a brand name. [27:51] These programs help my family to overcome poverty. [27:55] And I know what it is for those who are struggling. [27:57] Many are working two jobs just to make ends meet. [28:00] On day one, I'm going to give all of you a tax credit so you have a few hundred dollars [28:05] a month more in your pocket to help you pay for the high costs of groceries, of gas and [28:12] housing. [28:13] And how are we going to accomplish this? [28:14] I will be clear and direct about it. [28:16] We're not going to tax you. [28:18] We're going to tax billionaires. [28:19] We've earned so much off of everything that this state has to offer to make sure we have [28:24] more revenue for you, for our schools and for health care. [28:27] And so we're prepared to get this done on day one. [28:31] And I'm going to build 2 million housing units so that we have affordable housing all across [28:36] our state. [28:38] Thank you, sir. [28:40] Mayor Villaraigosa, your plan on affordability, sir. [28:44] I grew up in a home with a single mom who struggled to make ends meet raising four kids [28:48] on her own. [28:50] I know affordability. [28:52] That's why I've been saying for a long time now, politicians love to acknowledge and celebrate [28:58] the fact that we have the fourth largest economy in the world. [29:02] What they don't say is we have the highest poverty rate in the United States of America. [29:07] So what do we do with housing? [29:08] We cut red tape. [29:10] We streamline our environmental rules. [29:13] We make zone changes and we invest in a first time buyer program utilities. [29:19] We got to stop over relying on electricity. [29:21] That's why I've been saying for a long time now, politicians love to acknowledge and celebrate. [29:22] The notion, and by the way, when I was mayor, number one American city in reducing carbon [29:26] emissions, number five in the world, the port, which is the biggest emitter of greenhouse [29:31] gases in the United States of America, is the greenest port. [29:35] We've got to acknowledge we're going to have an all of the above strategy when it comes [29:39] to energy. [29:42] And finally, gas prices, the way to end them to be so high is to address the fact that [29:47] we overregulate refineries who produce the cleanest fuel in the United States of America. [29:51] That's your time. [29:52] Sir. [29:53] Thank you. [29:54] They see your answer on affordability. [29:55] Sure. [29:56] So first, we've got to be sure that we are bringing new housing units online much more [30:00] quickly. [30:01] So this means expediting approval processes, but also looking at where we can build, how [30:05] we can build using our financial tools a lot better. [30:08] I do want to bring back redevelopment because we know in every jurisdiction there are places [30:12] where we can build quickly, where we are talking about rehab and reuse, adaptive reuse, and [30:17] we can bring some units online much more quickly and not have to think about the underlying [30:20] cost of the land. [30:22] So with respect to energy, look, immediate relief, I know many of you have been just [30:28] really shouldering a lot of rate increases from your utilities, just one after another [30:32] after another. [30:33] They need to be audited to be sure that they have really raised just what they needed rather [30:37] than probably owing you a refund. [30:40] So I would say at CPUC, get to your auditing job and be sure that you're giving us the [30:44] oversight that consumers deserve. [30:47] And then healthcare, we have so many that are on the fringe of losing their healthcare. [30:52] We have to grow this economy. [30:53] And really center it on growing our healthcare workforce throughout the state of California. [30:57] That's how we grow the economy, generate our revenue, and also be able to keep those that [31:01] are on health coverage insured. [31:04] Thank you, Ms. G. [31:05] Secretary Becerra, your answer on affordability, sir. [31:09] So let's start by focusing on working families because some folks can afford whatever California [31:14] gives, but some people work hard like my parents did, and it's always tough. [31:18] And so first and foremost, working families, the hardest working, the lowest paid. [31:23] We have to make sure we're there for them. [31:25] That means I will, once I am in office, I will move to freeze utility rates and home [31:30] insurance costs, the premiums you pay, until we find out why they keep going up by so much [31:35] money. [31:36] You're entitled to know that. [31:37] I will make sure we're building, as everyone has said. [31:40] I'll increase supply. [31:41] I will trim regulations where it's smart. [31:43] I will make sure our construction goes up where there are transit hubs. [31:47] I will stabilize rents so renters aren't being gouged. [31:51] I'll make sure. [31:52] As a former secretary of HHS, that we protect everyone's health care. [31:56] We will not go backwards, regardless of what happens in Washington, D.C. [31:59] And we will stabilize our clean energy transition so we don't leave working families behind [32:04] who can't afford an electric vehicle. [32:06] And finally, child care. [32:08] We have to fight to make child care affordable for every family. [32:12] Secretary Becerra, thank you. [32:14] Mr. Hilton, one minute to you, sir. [32:16] The biggest driver of the high cost of living is Democrat policies. [32:21] They've been in my life. [32:22] They've been in power for 16 years. [32:24] Who else is there to blame? [32:28] If you add up the average budget for the rest of the country and compare it to the average [32:33] household budget here in California, here's the difference, $35,000 a year. [32:38] That is how much the average Californian is paying extra just for Democrat policies. [32:43] You can look up your own, if you like. [32:45] We did a website just so you can calculate it, CaliforniaDemTax.com. [32:51] See how much they're charging you. [32:52] Here's what I'll do on day one. [32:53] I announce a deal. [32:54] That's the first one last week. [32:56] Vehicle registration. [32:57] Everywhere else in the country, pretty much, it's under $100 a year to renew your registration. [33:02] Here, $600, $700, $1,000. [33:05] Some people paying over $2,000. [33:07] That's because they're charging all these extra fees that go into their bottomless money [33:11] pit. [33:12] On day one, I will cap vehicle registration at the flat fee of $71. [33:17] Mr. Hilton, thank you. [33:20] Candidates, thank you. [33:21] Marla. [33:22] Okay. [33:23] Now we all are going to tackle with specifics. [33:24] How much? [33:25] Housing. [33:26] The median home price in California, it is almost a million dollars. [33:31] In addition, this state, it is one of the most expensive states in which to build. [33:36] What is your plan to increase housing while also increasing accessibility, particularly [33:44] to those marginalized black and brown communities? [33:47] Mr. Steyer, you have one minute. [33:49] So I started by saying that driving down housing costs is not a silver bullet. [33:54] It's silver buckshot. [33:55] So let's start with permitting. [33:57] We do multiple regulations that take an amazing amount of time and that run up the cost of [34:03] the house. [34:05] Zoning. [34:06] We have to make it possible for people to build concentrated around public transportation [34:11] and build within cities, not sprawl. [34:16] Third, we have technology now to manufacture housing as opposed to building housing on [34:22] site. [34:24] That drops the cost per square foot right now. [34:25] Right now by about a third and we believe it can get it down to a half. [34:31] So the ability to drive down the cost of building houses is within our power if we're willing [34:36] to make changes and I've pushed for these changes. [34:38] The last thing I'll say is this. [34:40] My wife and I started a bank to do low income housing finance. [34:45] We need to finance low income housing across this state aggressively. [34:49] We need to go to the state level. [34:51] Our bank has done it for over 20 years and having the money in the hands of people who [34:56] need to buy houses. [34:57] This is a first step to actually getting dealing. [35:02] Thank you. [35:04] Superintendent Thurmond, your housing plan, you know, disproportionately black and brown [35:08] people have been displaced from this very community where we stand here tonight. [35:12] We have to reverse that immediately. [35:14] We have to recognize that being able to own a home is the American dream. [35:19] And that's why you hear me always leave my plan to build two million housing units on [35:24] land that we already have. [35:26] That doesn't need any additional permitting. [35:28] School districts have surplus property in our state in every county to the tune of 75,000 [35:33] acres of land that are ready for development right now. [35:36] We can build affordable housing for teachers and staff who work in schools, for first responders [35:41] and others who want to have a chance. [35:43] As governor, I'm going to put more money into our budget to have down payment assistance [35:47] programs for those who want to be able to buy a home. [35:51] Just like we give scholarships to those who say they'll become teachers in our communities [35:54] who work in health care. [35:56] We have to invest in you. [35:57] And those of you who don't. [35:58] Those of you who want to be able to buy a home. [36:00] My legislation that I'm supporting right now will provide us with $10 billion to build affordable [36:05] housing. [36:06] And we will provide down payment assistance to those and make the American dream possible [36:10] for everyone again to own a home. [36:14] Superintendent Thurmond, thank you. [36:15] Mayor Villaraigosa, your housing plan. [36:18] Most of my time growing up, we didn't own a home. [36:20] We rented. [36:22] When I bought a home at 25 years old, I was working at a nonprofit. [36:25] I didn't have a rich father to help me buy that home. [36:29] That's not true for the vast majority of Californians. [36:33] We have the second highest housing price in the United States. [36:37] When I was mayor, I built three times the permanent support of homeless housing than [36:42] the 12 years before me. [36:44] When I was mayor, I built more housing than the 20 years before me. [36:49] I was folk downtown, had 20,000 people living there when I became mayor. [36:54] When I left, it was 60,000. [36:56] We didn't just focus on market rate, though. [36:58] We focused on that. [36:59] We focused on workforce. [37:01] We focused on affordable and important homeless housing. [37:05] The next governor is going to have to do that as well. [37:08] We need an all of the above strategy when it comes to housing. [37:11] I've mentioned some of the things that we need to do to expedite that, and I will. [37:16] I have a record doing that, not just talking about it. [37:20] Thank you, Mayor. [37:21] Ms. Yee. [37:23] One minute. [37:24] Thank you. [37:25] So we do have to bring housing, new housing stock online much more quickly. [37:29] And there are ways to do that. [37:30] And more affordable ways to do that. [37:32] And as I mentioned, redevelopment earlier. [37:34] But we're missing something here because housing is not the only question here. [37:38] It's about how do we build economically sustainable communities? [37:41] How does the state incentivize business development that comes into where we're building housing? [37:45] How does the state become a better partner with our local governments on financing infrastructure? [37:50] We can build the housing, but if people are still commuting two hours to their job, what [37:54] have we done? [37:55] And so this is about how we strengthen communities so that we have economically sustainable communities [38:00] for the long term. [38:01] We have different models of homeownership we can rely on. [38:03] And for our young people, they actually like the idea of co-ownership. [38:07] They like the idea of actually living in housing that's built on a community land trust. [38:12] And so all these models can be put to work on day one. [38:16] But we also have to think long term. [38:17] How do we bring that business development into these communities so that these communities [38:21] can continue to thrive for the long term? [38:23] Thank you, Ms. Yee. [38:24] Secretary Becerra, your housing plan. [38:29] I've already mentioned what we have to do to increase the supply, so I won't go into [38:32] that too much. [38:33] But just remember that in California, nearly 200,000 Californians live outdoors. [38:40] They live in their car. [38:41] They are homeless. [38:43] And we have to tackle that immediately. [38:45] We cannot let our brothers and sisters go without. [38:47] And more and more, we're finding they are our sisters, and they are our sisters with [38:51] children. [38:52] And so we must tackle that immediately. [38:54] But here's what I would do with regard to housing. [38:58] Aside from doing more building, which increases supply, which brings down the pressures of [39:02] demand. [39:03] And I can't get you to do more. [39:04] But here's the key. [39:05] Here's the real key. [39:06] How many of you rent? [39:07] You're paying, probably in your rent, the equivalent of what someone is paying on their [39:12] mortgage. [39:14] The difference between you and that person who owns a home and pays a mortgage? [39:17] They had money for a capital down payment. [39:20] If we gave people access to capital so they could put down the down payment, we would [39:25] have far more people housed. [39:26] And so in the black and brown community, we're gonna make down payments available so you [39:30] can become homeowners as well and create wealth. [39:33] Thank you, Secretary Becerra. [39:34] secretary and we will be talking homelessness in just a moment mr hilton your housing plan [39:40] so my parents were refugees from communism in hungary my stepfather worked construction my [39:45] first job was project manager for a construction company um i remember starting my first business [39:52] and made enough money just to buy a small home back in london and that feeling of walking across [39:57] the threshold i achieved this i earned this we are stealing that from this generation that is [40:04] a crime the very first issue i worked on many years ago when i wanted to develop solutions for [40:11] california and our problems was housing i developed a plan to end the lawsuits that block housing but [40:18] also to stop the taxes on housing i actually talked to matt about it he didn't agree with me [40:24] about capping taxes on housing he likes taxes apparently unless they're on billionaires [40:30] we've got to end the taxes on housing and we've got to end [40:35] the war on single family homes they call it sprawl i call it the california dream i want everyone to [40:41] have that dream of a single family home of your own that you can afford to buy all right mr hilton [40:47] thank you and this brings us to our first rebuttal you have 30 seconds mayor man i think things are [40:54] about to get interesting i'm glad we'll get to clear this up i'm a little confused because you [40:59] must be talking to a different mayor because actually in san jose when we were seeing that [41:05] housing and it wasn't getting built in fact what we did was we looked at those fees and taxes and [41:11] we reduced them substantially we actually eliminated construction taxes last year we got [41:17] over 2 000 new homes under construction that had been stuck in the pipeline for years this year we [41:23] will see another 2 000 homes break ground do you want me to continue with my one minute for the [41:28] rest of it to go over your housing plan so uh steve helped me start with my answer which is we [41:35] need to have a way to keep our homes in the way and when one-time fees that are nice to have [41:40] are preventing us from having something we need to have just housing for working families we have to [41:45] be willing to change that's what we've been doing in san jose and it's working but tom's right we [41:51] also need to innovate i was just down in long beach checking out a modular construction factory [41:57] where they're have these high quality union built units flying off an assembly line they can stack [42:02] them 28 stories high and they can build these projects now [42:06] and we're developing a new construction project so we're looking at the potential of [42:09] a new construction project that's going to be faster 20 lower cost and if the state would [42:14] actually incentivize this innovation we'll get greater economies of scale and see costs actually [42:20] come down even further and then finally if we want to help marginalized communities break into the [42:26] middle class and beyond and thrive we have to get rid of regulatory capture california doesn't even [42:31] build condos anymore the most accessible form of home ownership because of overly aggressive [42:36] We have to get the special interest out of the way and start building housing for working families again in California. [42:42] Mayor Mahan, thank you. Thank you, candidates. [42:46] Candidates, homelessness remains a vexing issue for the state. [42:49] A 2024 state audit showed the state spent $24 billion during a five-year period ending in 2023 on combating homelessness, [42:57] but failed to adequately track the outcomes of those programs. [43:00] It also showed the problem got worse despite those efforts. [43:03] What are your solutions for monitoring what we're spending and ensuring effectiveness? [43:08] Superintendent Thurman, we begin with you. One minute, sir. [43:11] No doubt we have to get rid of waste and abuse wherever it exists. [43:14] But we also have to acknowledge that 40% of those who are homeless are older Californians [43:19] who are making the choice between paying for rent, paying for food or medication. [43:26] As I mentioned, the legislation I'm supporting this year will provide us with $10 billion to build affordable housing. [43:33] I spent the last five years every year getting $500 million in the low-income housing tax credit [43:39] that we can use to build housing for those who are older. [43:43] We also have 10,000 young people in our state who are under the age of 18, unaccompanied and homeless. [43:52] If we don't help them today, they will become homeless adults. [43:55] And my legislation would provide them with subsidized housing and supports [43:59] to help them get into job training programs to get a formal education as we move forward. [44:04] We have to be serious about the homelessness programs that we build. [44:08] I don't think that the answer is arresting the homeless or just moving them with nowhere to go, [44:13] but putting them into subsidized housing that have mental health and substance abuse supports in it. [44:19] And that's what I'll do as governor. [44:20] Thank you, Mr. Thurman. [44:21] Mayor Villaraigosa, your answer on homelessness, sir. [44:24] And you can call me Antonio. [44:25] Okay, Antonio. [44:28] Just me. [44:29] Does that go for all three of us? [44:31] All three of you can call me Antonio. [44:34] I'm not... [44:34] Well. [44:36] Let me just say, we spent $24 billion at the state, [44:41] along with billions more from the counties and the cities throughout the state, [44:46] and homelessness went up. [44:48] We've got to acknowledge that, everybody. [44:49] We can't be afraid to look in the mirror. [44:52] The fact is, when they did that audit, [44:55] they couldn't say whether the vast majority of those programs work. [45:00] There were only two, [45:02] renter assistance programs to prevent you from going homeless in the first place, [45:07] and I think the Home Safe program. [45:08] So, we've got to acknowledge that. [45:10] We've got to put dashboards on the money that we have, [45:13] because we don't have unlimited money. [45:16] I've been a chief executive. [45:18] I left L.A. on a sound financial footing, [45:22] and when I was speaker, [45:24] balanced two budgets with a surplus with a Republican and a Democratic governor. [45:28] So, the next governor's going to have to look at the bottom line, [45:31] because you're right. [45:32] We can't criminalize homelessness. [45:35] We should be compassionate. [45:36] But we've got to invest in what works. [45:39] What's your time, Antonio? [45:40] 750,000 units. [45:41] Thank you. [45:43] Thank you. [45:44] Senator Antonio. [45:45] Ms. Yee. [45:46] It's called accountability. [45:48] We need to invite strict accountability over every dollar that we spend on our programs. [45:56] And as I like to say, when I was state controller, it's not our money, it's your money. [46:01] Where are we investing that money? [46:03] Where are we getting outcomes? [46:04] Where are we getting results? [46:05] That $24 billion, there wasn't even a conversation between the state and the counties and the [46:10] cities that all had a hand on that money. [46:13] So, how do we even coordinate? [46:14] How do we even talk about how the needs are different from jurisdiction to jurisdiction? [46:18] And how do we make accountability not a dirty word? [46:21] It's not about throwing somebody under the bus. [46:23] It's about how do we do better with the resources that we have? [46:26] And so, we should not be afraid of inviting strict accountability. [46:29] All of you should be inviting strict accountability of your elected officials at all levels of [46:34] government. [46:35] We put the money where it works best. [46:36] We offer flexibility where we know jurisdictions need it, and we pull back what we know doesn't [46:41] work. [46:42] We actually pilot some things that could work more effectively to finally make a dent [46:47] into the numbers that are going unhoused. [46:50] Thank you, Ms. Yee. [46:51] Secretary Becerra, your answer on homelessness. [46:53] First, expand emergency shelters so that we can get people off the streets. [46:59] Second, reform our zoning and permitting laws so we can move faster to find the housing [47:03] that we need for all Californians. [47:06] Then, as a government, we must make sure that hardworking families, and this is my commitment [47:11] as governor, hardworking families. [47:14] You're working. [47:15] You're working, but you're living on the edge. [47:17] You're a paycheck away from becoming homeless. [47:19] That's where I want to step in. [47:21] I want to make sure the state says, hey, you're working hard. [47:24] There is no reason why you should become homeless. [47:26] I understand we have to work to get folks who are on the streets off. [47:29] But if you're in your own home, you have shelter, and you're working, no, I got to come in. [47:34] The state will take that responsibility. [47:36] Then we will make sure that there are statewide standards so we get those shirking cities [47:40] that aren't doing their share of housing to step up. [47:42] And finally, accountability. [47:43] Thank you. [47:44] When we give billions of dollars to the cities and counties, we need to see results. [47:49] People have to be housed. [47:50] And so we have to be on top of it. [47:52] I say that not just as governor, but as a former attorney general. [47:55] Secretary, thank you. [47:58] Mr. Hilton, your answer on homelessness. [48:00] How have we put up with this for so long? [48:02] We would never allow someone, never tolerate someone we love to live in the conditions we see all over our state. [48:09] So why should we accept it for anyone else? [48:12] I won't accept it. [48:13] Here's my plan. [48:14] I'm going to give you three points. [48:16] Number one, we have to stop the fraud. [48:18] The fraud in the homeless system is stealing from the people who need our help. [48:23] Number two, we have to enforce the law. [48:26] It is illegal to camp on the streets. [48:29] If local leaders won't enforce the law, as governor, I will make sure from the state level that we do. [48:35] After that, we need to get people into the treatment that they need. [48:39] It is shameful that Gavin Newsom just vetoed a sober housing bill. [48:43] Shame on him for doing that. [48:45] We have to provide people the mental health treatment that they need. [48:49] We have to implement Prop 36 that we all voted for in California. [48:54] And then finally, I have to say sorry to keep picking on Matt. [48:57] But he just said in an interview that the thing he most admires about Gavin Newsom is his record on homelessness. [49:04] You've got to be kidding, Matt. [49:06] That's your time, Mr. Hilton. [49:08] Mayor Mahan, 30 seconds to respond to Mr. Hilton. [49:11] Well, first of all. [49:14] First, I'll just note that, Steve, you came to San Jose just a week ago to see what's working in San Jose. [49:22] Because we've been reducing unsheltered homelessness faster. [49:27] We've been reducing unsheltered homelessness faster than any other city in the state. [49:33] And last week, Steve came to see what's working in our interim housing communities and with our outreach model. [49:38] And I don't know what's changed in the last week. [49:40] But it seems that it's the fact that I jumped into this race. [49:44] And frankly, that's exactly wrong with our politics. [49:46] In all seriousness. [49:48] Is that an idea is good one day until the other side. [49:51] Time on your rebuttal, sir. [49:52] Go ahead on your answer. [49:54] I still have a minute. [49:55] So I'll just. [49:56] Thank you. [49:57] I'll continue with the point, which is what's wrong with our politics is when we denigrate ideas because of who had them. [50:03] And the truth is there are gaps on all sides of this issue. [50:09] I ran for office because of the same concerns that were raised in that audit. [50:14] I saw spending a million dollars a door taking six years to build housing for people in our city. [50:19] We have thousands of people out on our streets. [50:21] We don't have that kind of time to wait. [50:23] We have thousands of people literally out on our streets. [50:25] Many dying thousands dying per year in San Jose. [50:28] What we've done is we've gotten back to basics. [50:31] We've built basic dignified shelter. [50:33] We do thoughtful outreach when shelters available. [50:37] Make every effort to require that people come indoors to connect them to services. [50:41] We created those dashboards that track utilization cost per outcome and create greater accountability for spending our precious dollars. [50:48] To help people. [50:49] To help people turn their lives around. [50:51] And we could do a lot more if the state got every city and county to do the same. [50:54] Thank you, Mayor. [50:56] Mr. Shire, homelessness. [50:59] So I think one of the things people forget sometimes about homelessness is that only about one in seven people who hit the street and are unhoused have some serious form of mental health condition. [51:13] Either substance abuse or bipolar or whatever. [51:16] But being on the street itself is so stressful. [51:20] It's so destructive. [51:22] It's so dangerous. [51:24] That it puts everybody in a position of developing serious mental health problems. [51:30] And that leads me to a very straightforward, you know, answer to this question is we need to keep people off the street. [51:38] It's most important to keep people off the street. [51:40] And if they end up on the street, to get them off the street as fast as possible. [51:44] And that's why I do support the kinds of things like emergency interim housing. [51:49] Not trying to get people to go to shelters they don't want to go to. [51:52] Because waiting six years is just too long. [51:55] And the last thing I want to say is the reason these housing is so expensive is partially the fees that everyone keeps talking about. [52:02] But those fees are because the cities can't afford the health and education costs of the people who are moving there. [52:09] And I will solve that with revenues. [52:11] Thank you, candidates. [52:12] Andre. [52:14] Let's talk about the issue of public safety, which crime falls under. [52:17] Two years ago, California voters approved Prop 36. [52:21] Increasing penalties for repeat theft and drug offenses. [52:23] As governor, would you fund Prop 36? [52:26] If so, how? [52:27] And would you include and incorporate here, incorporate prevention and restorative justice efforts? [52:33] Mayor Ragosa, we will start with you on this one. [52:36] You know, I grew up in a pretty violent neighborhood. [52:41] And when I became mayor of Los Angeles, L.A. was the most violent big city in America. [52:47] We grew the police department. [52:51] We dramatically expanded after school programs and summer youth jobs. [52:55] We developed innovative prevention and infrastructure. [52:58] We developed intervention programs that Obama took to Central America. [53:03] We have to address the fact that in our cities, we've had too much crime. [53:08] And particularly in neighborhoods, communities of color. [53:12] But we need a policy that focuses on redemption. [53:18] A policy on restorative justice. [53:20] And as governor, I'll do that. [53:22] Yes, we have to fund the drug treatment in Prop 36. [53:26] And I will as governor. [53:27] Yes, we have to look at juvenile justice. [53:29] As I did when I was speaker and passed the most far-reaching juvenile justice program in the United States of America. [53:36] And yes, we've got to get the guns off the streets of California cities. [53:42] Mayor, thank you so much. [53:43] Ms. Yee, what are your thoughts? [53:45] Would you fund Prop 36 and incorporate restorative justice efforts? [53:49] Yes, we definitely should be increasing our drug treatment capacity. [53:54] If we have a provision for felony mandated treatment, we should have the treatment available in every jurisdiction. [54:00] So I do support that. [54:02] But I also want to know that when that treatment ends and offenders have completed their sentence, they have the ability to return to their communities. [54:10] And so this is also an economic issue. [54:13] We have to be sure that they have opportunities to return back to. [54:16] And so when I think about public safety, it's a partnership. [54:19] It's a partnership between law enforcement and the community about how we're going to deal with some of the underlying determinants of what leads people to actually commit crimes. [54:27] And so restorative justice is a big piece of this. [54:29] But let's be sure that we have the treatment that we promised through Prop 36 built throughout the state. [54:35] Secretary Becerra, would you fund Prop 36? [54:42] How? [54:43] And would you incorporate restorative justice? [54:45] I voted for Prop 36. [54:47] I will make sure we fund Prop 36. [54:49] The people of California spoke clearly. [54:51] They want us to take this on. [54:53] And they want us to fund the services that Prop 36 calls for. [54:57] Otherwise, we are going backwards. [54:59] We are just treating those offenders as people we're going to incarcerate. [55:02] And so here's what we will do. [55:04] We will find the revenue. [55:05] And if we don't have it, then we will go get it because we cannot afford a short change in this program. [55:10] We want to give those individuals who are caught in this trap a chance to get to the right place in community. [55:16] And so we must fund mental health services. [55:19] We must fund addiction treatment. [55:21] I started when I was Secretary of Health and Human Services a program called 988. [55:26] It is the line that you can call for suicide and mental health challenges. [55:30] And it is working. [55:32] Tens of millions of people have now come to that line in the last three or four years. [55:37] I started a program under Medi-Cal which allows those who are offenders who are on the verge of being released to actually have health care through Medi-Cal before they're released so when they reenter, they're not without their health care. [55:51] Those are the things that make it possible for people to land well. [55:55] Thank you so much. [55:56] Mr. Hilton, would you fund Prop 36 and would you include restorative justice? [56:00] I would very much fund Prop 36. [56:04] In fact, one of the authors of Prop 36, Jeff Reisig, the DA of Yolo County, is a strong supporter of my campaign. [56:11] And we've spoken in detail about what's going wrong and what needs to be fixed on that. [56:15] And I agree with Antonio, by the way, on everything he said about prevention programs. [56:20] It's incredibly important. [56:22] I've worked on those kinds of programs for many, many years, written about them in my books. [56:26] He's absolutely right about that. [56:28] But we also have to make something happen. [56:30] We have to make something clear when it comes to this question of public safety. [56:33] We have to enforce the law in California. [56:36] We're very good, it seems, at passing laws, not so good at enforcing them. [56:40] And there's one big thing that the next governor needs to do. [56:43] We have to stop this destructive prison closure program where we've had tens of thousands of dangerous, violent criminals released into the community [56:53] or transferred to county jails that are completely overwhelmed, can't cope. [56:58] That means law enforcement are undermined. [57:00] They know that there's going to be no accountability for crime. [57:03] All that needs to change. [57:05] It's very simple. [57:06] More prisons, less crime. [57:08] That's what we're going to do. [57:09] Mr. Hilton, thank you so much. [57:10] Mayor Mahan, your thoughts on Prop 36, funding it, and restorative justice efforts. [57:15] Prop 36 was supported by nearly 70 percent of Californians. [57:21] If we want to protect our democracy, we need to practice it here at home by implementing it. [57:27] But implementing it thoughtfully and with restorative justice. [57:31] You know, in our attempt to end the era of mass incarceration, we unintentionally left thousands of people to suffer and die on our streets. [57:39] Prop 36 gives us a middle path, an opportunity to usher in an era of mass treatment. [57:46] I've had a family member who was on the streets because of addiction. [57:51] I know that it takes real intervention and a threat of consequences to help people recover. [57:57] There is no recovery. [57:58] There is no recovery without accountability. [58:01] And we will implement Prop 36 so that it saves lives and helps people turn their life around by connecting them to critical services. [58:10] Mayor Mahan, thank you so much. [58:13] Mr. Steyer, your thoughts on Prop 36, funding it, and restorative justice efforts. [58:17] I think it's important to remember where we've come from. [58:20] Because we came from a place of mass incarceration. [58:23] We've added 24 state prisons since 1965. [58:29] We've added four UCs. [58:33] In fact, we are coming back from a place where we were absolutely in the wrong. [58:38] And in fact, the California Department of Corrections did not even have the word rehabilitation in its name for a long time. [58:46] So when you ask about Prop 36, the opportunity to provide treatment as opposed to incarceration, of course we have to keep our streets and communities safe. [58:58] But the fact is, we need to have step-down facilities. [59:00] We need treatment, not incarceration where it's available. [59:03] We need to treat people as if they can be rehabilitated, to train them so that when they come back, they can be productive members of society. [59:11] That's what Prop 36 can do if we fund it, and that's what we have to do. [59:15] Mr. Steyer, thank you for your response. [59:18] Superintendent Thurmond, your thoughts on funding Prop 36 and restorative justice efforts. [59:23] To be clear, I voted to ban private prisons in our state because they have over-criminalized black and brown people in the state of California. [59:30] And let me just say, no one should have to go to prison to get substance abuse treatment. [59:37] And by the way, in the prisons, guess what they have? [59:41] Access to drugs and alcohol in rampant waves. [59:45] And so let me be clear. [59:47] I voted against Prop 36, okay, because I don't support the over-criminalization of black people and brown people. [59:54] But we have to be smart about how we approach crime, not just trying to be tough on someone. [1:00:01] We have the opportunity to add more police in our communities to keep our communities safe. [1:00:05] They should be community police officers and dispatchers and folks who come from our community who want the help in our community. [1:00:12] I launched a program last year in Oakland that gives a paid job training program to young people to learn about STEAM careers. [1:00:18] Let's give young people an alternative to ending up in the criminal justice system. [1:00:23] Put money in their pockets. [1:00:24] Give them an opportunity to make change. [1:00:27] I'll implement Prop 36 with diversion programs. [1:00:30] Superintendent Thurmond. [1:00:31] Community policing alike. [1:00:32] That's your time. [1:00:33] All right. [1:00:35] That concludes the first half of our debate. [1:00:37] Thank you, candidates, for our viewers at home and in the audience. [1:00:40] Please scan the QR code on your screen to weigh in on the topics we've discussed so far. [1:00:44] Coming up after the break, Mike Kneback and Claudine Wong are standing by with analysts, one from the Bay Area, one from Southern California, to break down what we have heard. [1:00:52] We'll be back for part two of our debate in about 15 minutes. [1:00:55] We have much more to discuss about the biggest issues facing California. [1:00:58] Stay with us. [1:00:59] The Black Action Alliance and these debate sponsors. [1:01:10] So while we take a break from the debate, we want to ask, how are each of the candidates doing? [1:03:44] So we have assembled a panel of experts tonight. [1:03:47] Joining us this evening for this intermission for a half hour after the debate as well in studio in Oakland, we do have Melissa Michaelson, the dean of arts and sciences and political science professor at Menlo College in Atherton. [1:04:00] And in Los Angeles, we have Jasmine Kanick, a political strategist and delegate for the L.A. County Democratic Party. [1:04:07] We've also been asking you questions about how you think the debate is going. [1:04:11] And we're showing some of those results to you to those surveys at the bottom of your screen there. [1:04:16] So let's talk about it. [1:04:18] Let's go. [1:04:19] Jasmine, I'm going to begin with you. [1:04:20] We've got a lot of good content out there. [1:04:22] But we also have a lot of one-liners, too. [1:04:24] Melissa, Jasmine. [1:04:26] Jasmine, your thoughts. [1:04:27] Who came out swinging here? [1:04:30] No one just yet. [1:04:32] Not for me. [1:04:33] I think there have been a lot of non-answers. [1:04:37] I think voters want a little bit more play. [1:04:38] Okay. [1:04:39] I think voters want to hear more about my language and not a TED talk. [1:04:42] I think that there's been a lot of leaning on growing up in poverty but having been so far removed from that for at least 20, 30 years for a lot of these candidates that I don't think that that's working for them every time they say I grew up poor, I was on food stamps. [1:04:57] So I've been hearing a lot of that. [1:04:59] And just as a voter, that's not connecting with me. [1:05:02] I think voters want to hear more about my rent, my groceries, public safety, education. [1:05:08] But not so much, you know, what you grew up in. [1:05:14] Because we know that a lot of these candidates are very wealthy. [1:05:18] They're very far removed from poverty and from those days. [1:05:22] And I heard that almost out of every single candidate's mouth up there repeatedly. [1:05:27] And I was just like, really? [1:05:29] Yeah. [1:05:30] I mean, this has been an effort to try to define each candidate for the voters. [1:05:36] So, Melissa, what was your take on this? [1:05:37] In terms of how's it going and are the candidates doing what they need to do? [1:05:42] Some of them definitely. [1:05:43] I thought it was notable that Steve Hilton right away put himself out there as I'm one of the two Republicans and you all shouldn't vote for Chad Bianco. [1:05:52] You should vote for me. [1:05:53] So very much understanding that in a top two primary with a lot of Democrats and two Republicans, he needs to solidify his Republican support. [1:06:00] And of course, Chad Bianco isn't there to defend himself. [1:06:03] So that's probably going to help him a lot. [1:06:06] We saw. [1:06:07] Tony Thurmond come out right away talking about abolish ICE, which other people mentioned as well when asked about immigration. [1:06:14] But he had it as part of his opening statement. [1:06:17] Right. [1:06:18] So I thought several of the candidates came out really clearly right away saying, here's the lane I'm in. [1:06:23] Here's who I'm here for. [1:06:25] And made some pretty strong statements that are going to help define them for Californians. [1:06:30] Jasmine, as we move forward, not just in the debate, but, you know, as these we make our way toward June in the primary. [1:06:36] What issue what's your top issue? [1:06:38] What do they need to nail on to convince California voters to go vote for me? [1:06:43] I think that that they're going to fight President Trump, that they're going to stand up not just for us here in California, but for folks around the country. [1:06:54] Because, as you know, California is a leader. [1:06:57] We're a leader state. [1:06:58] What happens here tends to happen other places. [1:07:02] So I think, you know, all of the candidates, particularly let me rephrase that. [1:07:06] The Democratic candidates are going to need to be able to get their message across that. [1:07:12] Yes, they can lead the state, but they're also willing to stand up to Trump. [1:07:16] And that is going to be very, very important. [1:07:19] We have a group of candidates, many of whom come off as moderate Democrats. [1:07:24] And so that's another sort of struggle within the Democratic Party. [1:07:28] Moderate versus progressive. [1:07:30] Yes, we heard a few candidates so far tonight seemed to lean a little bit. [1:07:35] More towards the progressive end. [1:07:37] But most of the Democratic candidates sound like moderates. [1:07:40] And I think what a lot of voters want to know is that when our current governor leaves, we are replacing that governor with someone who is going to stand up to what is going on in Washington, D.C. [1:07:51] Well, certainly. [1:07:52] And certainly Newsom has made a name for himself by being very vocal and outspoken against Trump. [1:07:57] And I actually took note of that when I was listening to the opening statements about who actually was going to go in that direction. [1:08:04] Who was going to win. [1:08:05] Who was going to stick with maybe affordability. [1:08:07] Becerra talked about all the lawsuits against Trump. [1:08:10] And Thurmond talked about fighting Trump. [1:08:12] Everyone else kind of stayed in a more even lane, at least just in open statements. [1:08:17] As it went through, people, you know, individually kind of went in and took to it. [1:08:22] But I thought it was interesting that out of the gate, especially given all of the events that we have been following, that not all of them did. [1:08:30] Melissa, did you expect more swings really initially? [1:08:34] And maybe more forcefully? [1:08:36] I did expect more people to speak about Trump. [1:08:39] But I think there's maybe an assumption by many people that whichever Democrat in particular would be the nominee, would be the next governor, of course that they would be standing up to Trump. [1:08:49] That that's a given. [1:08:50] And that if you make your whole campaign or most of your campaign about how I'm going to stand up to Trump, then what are you giving voters to vote for? [1:08:57] And so every Democratic candidate can say, I'm against Trump. [1:09:01] I'm going to fight Trump. [1:09:02] But in real life. [1:09:03] But in order to distinguish themselves from the field, they have to say, and here's what I'm going to do. [1:09:08] Are they doing that, though? [1:09:10] There's so many of them. [1:09:11] Right. [1:09:12] Voters. [1:09:13] And that's the problem, right? [1:09:14] Like that for voters is how do you distinguish and how do you have a front runner? [1:09:17] Are they doing that for you? [1:09:18] I think they are. [1:09:19] I think on housing, they're giving different answers. [1:09:22] Some of them are talking more about regulations. [1:09:24] Some of them are talking more about single family homes. [1:09:26] Some of them are talking about focusing more on keeping people from becoming homeless. [1:09:31] And some people are talking about how do we get more unhoused people in? [1:09:34] How do we get people off of the streets? [1:09:35] So the distinctions are maybe minor because, you know, they're most of them are Democrats. [1:09:40] And apart from Steve Hilton, they are going to say similar things. [1:09:43] But they're not all progressive as as we just heard. [1:09:47] Right. [1:09:48] Some of them are more moderate. [1:09:49] Some of them are more progressive. [1:09:50] And I think folks can hear distinctions if they're paying attention. [1:09:53] Jasmine, how hard is it for someone like a Matt Mahan, the mayor of San Jose, Northern California? [1:09:58] How hard is it for him to get votes down in Southern California, you think? [1:10:02] I think it's going to be very hard. [1:10:05] It's going to be very hard for him. [1:10:07] And he's going to have to get down here and start talking to voters. [1:10:11] You know, California is an extremely large state. [1:10:14] And, you know, campaigning from one end to the other takes a lot of time. [1:10:20] And so that is really the big challenge as well for all of these candidates. [1:10:24] I mean, obviously, we have debates like this which help them be able to connect to voters. [1:10:29] But everyone's not watching the debate tonight. [1:10:31] And so it'll be really on them to hit the road and make sure that they go [1:10:35] to a whole bunch of different communities, not just the wealthy communities, [1:10:39] not just the well-known communities, but go to as many communities in California [1:10:44] as they possibly can to hear what the issues are from everyone. [1:10:48] You know, we've got this interaction from earlier. [1:10:51] We want to play a clip real quick between him and Hilton. [1:10:53] Let's run it. [1:10:54] Sorry to keep picking on Matt, but he just said in an interview [1:10:58] that the thing he most admires about Gavin Newsom is his record on homelessness. [1:11:03] You've got to be kidding, Matt. [1:11:04] That's your time, Mr. Hilton. [1:11:06] Mayor Mahan, 30 seconds to respond to Mr. Hilton. [1:11:09] Well, first I'll just note that, Steve, you came to San Jose just a week ago [1:11:18] to see what's working in San Jose because we've been reducing unsheltered homelessness faster. [1:11:25] We've been reducing unsheltered homelessness faster than any other city. [1:11:30] What do you think, Melissa, did something like that grab votes for Southern Californians? [1:11:35] I think it absolutely does. [1:11:37] And the no tie, by the way. No tie matter. [1:11:39] Well, then the no tie is notable because I think it's part of the image he's trying to present. [1:11:44] He's new. He just announced. [1:11:46] And so he wants people to see this is who he is. [1:11:48] And it probably resonates with the Silicon Valley donors that he's going to be raising money from. [1:11:52] But I think that he's the one that Steve Hilton attacked and that he had an answer and said, [1:11:57] hey, check out my record. I've been getting things done. [1:11:59] That's what people want to hear. [1:12:01] It's one thing when, you know, Antonio Villaraigosa says that he hasn't been a mayor for 20 years. [1:12:05] But Matt Mahan is saying, well, I'm doing it. I'm doing it now. [1:12:08] And so that's I think that's going to catch people's attention, even if they're not from the San Jose area. [1:12:13] Jasmine, did it surprise you that Steve Hilton really did focus on Matt Mahan? [1:12:17] He's the newest candidate. He's from Northern California. [1:12:20] And he did put his attention on him. It was the the first rebuttal came, you know, from Matt Mahan. [1:12:25] It didn't surprise me. But look, this is a debate. [1:12:29] We're going to have spicy moments. I hope we have more of them because it gives us a chance. [1:12:35] It gives us a chance to see what these candidates are. [1:12:39] Made of in the moment, on the spot, giving a direct response to maybe a question or an accusation that they weren't ready for. [1:12:50] And I like seeing that. I like to see how candidates respond. [1:12:54] And in those moments, what do you guys hope for the back half of this debate? [1:12:59] Well, I hope that we get more of the interactions, I think, especially on the issues that we've heard. [1:13:06] The candidates knew these questions were coming right. [1:13:08] If if you didn't know, these questions were coming. [1:13:10] You should not be governor. But maybe if we get into some back and forth and into some smaller issues that maybe haven't been the headline yet, [1:13:18] I think we'll we'll really see what these candidates are made of and how good are they at thinking on the fly and how deep is their knowledge. [1:13:23] To Jasmine's point, I think people like that. They like off script. [1:13:27] Yeah. Yeah. I want to hear more about people who are not in the middle class. [1:13:31] I want to hear more about renters. I want to hear more about what they're going to do to help folks who are considered poor. [1:13:40] I want to hear more from them about people that tend to get left out of these conversations. [1:13:48] Everybody talks about, oh, we want to save people from falling out of the middle class. [1:13:52] And it's like, well, when they fall out of the middle class, where do they fall into? [1:13:55] Can we talk about those people? All right. Let's hope for a great second half. [1:13:58] Jasmine, Melissa, thank you both. That is all the time we do have for now. [1:14:02] The debate is about to resume in just about two minutes from now. [1:14:05] But be sure to stick around after the debate at 730 for a half hour post debate. [1:14:10] Analysis will have a reaction from the candidates as they walk off the stage. [1:14:13] And we'll also be back with our panel for a full discussion. [1:14:16] We'll see you then now and allow one member to ask the candidates a question. [1:16:59] Good evening, candidates. My name is Michael Johnson. I'm an attorney in Alameda County and a parent. [1:17:04] And this question is about education. The 2024 to the excuse me. [1:17:19] Is that better? Great. The 2024, 2025 California statewide assessment results. [1:17:26] Show of continued progress across all student groups, including among black students and other minority groups. [1:17:34] But data reported by Ed Source showed that black students were completing and passing transfer level coursework. [1:17:42] Thirty points behind their counterparts. My question is, why is a specific demographic doing so poorly? [1:17:51] And what is your plan to fix it? Missy, we'll begin with you on this question. One minute. [1:17:57] So public education is under invested in. [1:18:02] And when we look at progress with assessments, it just can't be a point in time. [1:18:07] It requires a consistent investment, particularly in our communities that are under resourced. [1:18:12] And we know what works in terms of investments in education, but it has to be consistent investment. [1:18:17] And we want to bring the best practices into these communities as well in terms of why the progress is not being made as quickly in these communities. [1:18:24] So it's not just all about funding. It's about how we direct our. [1:18:29] Focused attention in these communities. It's about how we meet learners where they are in terms of how they're able to learn. [1:18:36] Our learners learn in all different ways. And as we've talked about earlier, we're a state of immigrants. [1:18:40] And so people have different ways of learning. And so we have to recognize those uniqueness, the uniqueness of our learners. [1:18:46] But also understand that that commitment of funding and just focused attention on these communities has to be consistent. [1:18:54] It can't be there one year and gone the next year to where then progress can't be sustained. [1:18:58] Thank you. [1:18:59] Secretary Becerra, why is this specific demographic doing so poorly and what is your plan to fix it? [1:19:04] Here is where we get into the systemic challenges that people of color have always faced. [1:19:11] And certainly in the black community, it's obviously very clear that when you have fewer resources, when you don't even have good grocery stores, let alone good schools, [1:19:21] when you have less of an opportunity to buy a house because it's so tough for you with your lower wage to be able to save enough to build down the money you need for education. [1:19:30] That's what makes it tough. [1:19:33] But here's what we have to do. [1:19:34] We cannot accept that the systemic challenges and the systemic racism will stop us from educating all of our kids. [1:19:42] That's why when I was Attorney General, I took on the Stockton Unified School District because they were using the police to deal with disciplinary challenges way more than they should have. [1:19:51] That's why South Toledo, not far from here, guess what? [1:19:54] I filed the first desegregation case in 50 years against South Toledo Marine School District. [1:19:59] Because they were violating people's rights and their kids. [1:20:03] We can deal with this, but we've got to resource communities with the same type of resources we give to rich communities. [1:20:09] Secretary, thank you. [1:20:10] Mr. Hilton, why is this specific demographic doing so poorly? [1:20:13] What is your plan to fix it if elected? [1:20:15] I just want to thank you for the question. [1:20:17] It's an incredibly important question. [1:20:19] And it's at the heart of something that really is a massive problem that's gone on for so long, the racial wealth gap. [1:20:25] If you don't have that educational opportunity, you're not going to get it. [1:20:30] You're never going to close that racial wealth gap. [1:20:33] Education is the engine of opportunity. [1:20:35] I know that as the son of refugees who ended up at Oxford University working in 10 Downing Street, moving here with my wife and sons in 2012, teaching at Stanford, all because of a great education. [1:20:46] Every child, especially the black kids who've been left behind and the Latino kids who've been left behind after 16 years of Democrat one-party rule, we've got to do better. [1:20:55] Here's my plan. [1:20:56] Number one, look what's happened in Mississippi. [1:20:59] Mississippi overtaking California by simple things like making sure that every child reads in third grade. [1:21:05] If they can't, they don't move to fourth grade. [1:21:07] We need to have phonics in every school. [1:21:09] We need to have accountability, a grade for every school, a grade for every teacher so we can reward the good teachers and remove the bad ones. [1:21:16] That's how we address this very, very serious problem. [1:21:19] Mr. Hilton, thank you. [1:21:20] Mayor Mahan, your question of education to you, sir. [1:21:23] I served as a public school teacher in Eastside San Jose teaching English and history in a middle school. [1:21:28] Serving first-generation and low-income students. [1:21:32] And it used to be that we simply just didn't invest enough in education. [1:21:36] What I've seen, though, is that there's also a lack of accountability. [1:21:40] The truth is we need to have high expectations for our kids. [1:21:44] We need to assess their learning. [1:21:47] And we need to intervene in ways that work. [1:21:51] High-dosage tutoring, summer programs, youth jobs to build confidence. [1:21:56] Ensuring every kid has a pathway to education. [1:21:58] A pathway to participating in our economy and thriving in our society. [1:22:04] We need to hold the adults in the system accountable because the lack of focus and accountability is disproportionately borne by our most vulnerable children. [1:22:16] So it's not just about spending more. [1:22:18] It's about using those dollars better and increasing accountability for outcomes, especially for our black and brown children. [1:22:25] Mayor, thank you. [1:22:26] Mr. Steyer, education to you, sir. [1:22:28] One minute. [1:22:30] Thank you. [1:22:31] So California, on a cost-adjusted basis, spends the 31st most out of the 50 U.S. states. [1:22:38] And lo and behold, we're about the 31st best state in terms of education. [1:22:43] And that is not nearly good enough. [1:22:46] Because I agree with Mr. Hilton that education is the opportunity for people to move up in America. [1:22:51] But let me say, I am the person who wants to bring $15 to $20 billion a year of new revenue to the state of California for healthcare. [1:23:01] And specifically for education. [1:23:02] Because we all know teachers, all the teachers I know, take money out of their pocket to spend for school supplies in their classroom, even though they're not anything like very well paid. [1:23:16] That's the first thing. [1:23:17] We need more money. [1:23:18] Second of all, the community schools that have been tried over the last four or five years have worked incredibly well. [1:23:24] And that is a place where the school becomes a center. [1:23:26] And the last thing, accountability. [1:23:28] We need accountability standards done with teachers. [1:23:30] Done with the community. [1:23:31] And done with experts to make sure we're holding people accountable and getting the kids the education they need and deserve. [1:23:37] Mr. Steyer, thank you. [1:23:38] Superintendent Thurmond, question to you, sir. [1:23:40] Big shout out to all the teachers and educators who have been working so hard to help our kids. [1:23:45] You know, for all 57 years of my life, we've been talking about closing this so-called achievement gap. [1:23:55] You know, if we can send the person to the moon, we can close the achievement gap. [1:23:59] We have to have the political will to do it. [1:24:00] And then back it up. [1:24:02] It's not an achievement gap. [1:24:03] Our kids can achieve. [1:24:04] But there are barriers in their way. [1:24:06] And we have to remove those barriers. [1:24:08] And so I, too, have launched a five-year plan to make sure that every child in our state can read by third grade. [1:24:15] Because we know that is the difference between them graduating and maybe ending up in the criminal justice system. [1:24:20] If we do the right things, we can educate and not incarcerate our kids in the great state of California. [1:24:27] This year, I'm going to make kindergarten. [1:24:29] I'm going to make kindergarten a requirement because many of our kids show up to first grade not ready to learn. [1:24:35] We've watched our graduation rates improve and other areas improve. [1:24:39] But it's not enough. [1:24:40] We've got to keep going and give them career training. [1:24:43] I passed a law to give them personal finance to help prepare them for the future so they can be without debt and go on to college. [1:24:50] That's your time, superintendent. [1:24:52] Thank you. [1:24:54] Mayor Villaraigosa. [1:24:55] We're number one in teacher pay. [1:24:58] We're 21st in per pupil spending. [1:25:00] We're in the mid-30s. [1:25:01] And reading and math in fourth grade. [1:25:03] And we're dead last in graduation. [1:25:05] That's a fact. [1:25:07] I've been fighting for public schools my entire life. [1:25:11] Even though, as I've often said, it was a Catholic school that gave me a foundation and a public school that gave me a second chance. [1:25:18] When I was mayor, one out of three schools were failing. [1:25:21] One out of three in the second biggest school district in the country. [1:25:27] By the time I left, it was one out of ten, a 60% increase in the graduation rate. [1:25:31] We focused on the achievement gap. [1:25:34] I have about 20 schools in Watts, downtown, and on the east side. [1:25:40] Those schools were the lowest performing. [1:25:42] They had a 36% graduation rate. [1:25:45] Today, those schools have a 92% graduation rate. [1:25:48] We've got to set high expectations for our kids. [1:25:51] We've got to expand pre-kindergarten. [1:25:55] We've got to focus on this achievement gap and expand the local control funding formula, [1:26:00] which will do that. [1:26:01] Mayor, thank you. [1:26:02] Candidates, thank you. [1:26:04] And thank you to your audience member for that question. [1:26:06] Thank you. [1:26:07] Our next topic is that of wildfires. [1:26:10] January 7th, of course, we just marked one year since the start of the devastating and deadly Los Angeles County wildfires. [1:26:17] I was out there personally in the Pacific Palisades. [1:26:20] I've seen it firsthand myself. [1:26:22] Recovery has been slow, with the state's unstable insurance market remaining one of the largest barriers to recovery. [1:26:30] How do you prioritize recovery for those who've lost everything, and there are thousands of those people watching tonight, [1:26:38] while also addressing wildfire prevention? [1:26:42] Secretary Becerra, start with you with one minute. [1:26:46] Well, that's why I began this debate by mentioning that I would freeze home insurance costs, [1:26:52] because some people are paying premiums, and they still haven't received anything from their insurance company. [1:26:58] That is not just wrong. [1:27:00] It's criminal. [1:27:01] And we have to make sure we protect people. [1:27:03] The second thing is we have to push back on this corporate takeover of properties that's going on. [1:27:08] Wall Street is trying to gobble up all these places, and they're going to try to increase the cost. [1:27:13] We have to support home ownership retention programs so that people who lost their home want to stay, [1:27:20] but are going to find it really tough to rebuild. [1:27:22] We support them. [1:27:23] We don't want them to become homeless. [1:27:25] And at the same time, we have to crack down on that price gouging that we know is going on. [1:27:31] That's the oversight of those insurance claims. [1:27:33] If I'm governor in January 2027 and these claims have not been resolved, [1:27:39] we will, in the first 100 days, make sure that everyone gets their payment and the date certain when they're going to get it. [1:27:45] It is not fair for people to pay their fair share to the insurance industry [1:27:49] and then not get anything back when it's time for them to collect. [1:27:52] Secretary Becerra, thank you. [1:27:54] Mr. Hilton, your plan for prioritizing recovery and wildfire prevention? [1:27:58] Look, what's going on in the Palisades and Altadena? [1:28:00] It's an absolute scandal. [1:28:02] It's more than a year now. [1:28:03] And that place, I've been there many, many times. [1:28:06] I talk to people there. [1:28:07] I listen to what they're saying. [1:28:08] They are furious. [1:28:09] I spoke at the rally on the one-year anniversary. [1:28:12] Do you know what they called that rally? [1:28:13] They let us burn. [1:28:15] Just think about the intensity of how that community feels. [1:28:19] They let us burn. [1:28:20] You know who they mean by they? [1:28:22] Gavin Newsom, Karen Bass. [1:28:23] It is outrageous. [1:28:24] Gavin Newsom promised a year ago a Marshall Plan to rebuild L.A. [1:28:29] Where is it? [1:28:30] Nothing's been done. [1:28:31] I will remove the bureaucracy that is stopping recovery and rebuild. [1:28:36] On prevention, the very first policy paper I published in my policy organization, Golden Together, was this. [1:28:43] Reducing California's carbon emissions through modern forest management. [1:28:48] That's what we have to do. [1:28:50] We can revive our timber industry so that we sell the trees that we need to thin the forest so wildfires don't burn out of control. [1:28:58] Creating jobs and opportunity in rural areas. [1:29:00] And reducing wildfire risk and lowering the cost of construction materials. [1:29:04] That's my plan. [1:29:05] Mr. Hilton, thank you very much. [1:29:07] Mayor Mahan, your wildfire recovery and prevention plan. [1:29:12] First, I just want to thank the first responders who put their lives on the line to fight these fires. [1:29:18] We were proud in San Jose to send teams down to the Palisades and Altadena to protect people. [1:29:24] And I'm grateful to them. [1:29:26] In terms of how we address where we are in the community. [1:29:29] Number one, there is no excuse for slow permitting in rebuilding this housing. [1:29:36] And we have got to let people get back into their homes, into their neighborhoods. [1:29:40] Number two, we have to be accountable for investing in prevention. [1:29:45] If we prevent catastrophic fires, we will save lives. [1:29:49] And over time, we bring back our insurance market by reducing costs for everyone. [1:29:54] Because we're all paying the cost of recovery from these catastrophic fires. [1:29:58] And on that final note, the insurance market in California is broken. [1:30:02] We have to bring back private insurers. [1:30:05] We have to properly price risk and help people reduce risk around their homes. [1:30:09] And bring back competition to that market. [1:30:11] We can't have it all fall on the backs of California taxpayers. [1:30:15] Thank you, Mayor. [1:30:16] Mr. Steyer, one minute. [1:30:19] Look, it's the job of the governor to stand up for Californian citizens when they're being screwed. [1:30:25] And frankly, a year in, the insurance company is not paying people back. [1:30:28] Not paying people their insurance. [1:30:30] And FEMA owing people $34 billion is absolutely unacceptable. [1:30:35] So it's absolutely important for the governor of the state of California, [1:30:39] when Californian citizens are being taken advantage of, to step up. [1:30:43] That's the first thing that has to happen. [1:30:45] The second thing is this. [1:30:46] We can control fire risk. [1:30:49] California has had fires for thousands of years. [1:30:52] We're trying to avoid catastrophic fires in places where there are buildings and houses. [1:30:57] We can do that with prescribed burns. [1:30:59] On a macro level, which we're doing. [1:31:01] And we can harden houses so that, in fact, they can resist fires. [1:31:05] And then it's the job of the governor to go to those insurance companies and insist they charge fair rates. [1:31:12] Because when we've taken care of the risk, we should be charged based on that. [1:31:17] And the governor should step up and force them to take into account the data and support Californian citizens. [1:31:24] I feel like I was just watching your commercial. [1:31:26] I've seen it a lot these days. [1:31:28] Mr. Steyer, thank you so much. [1:31:30] I couldn't let that one go. [1:31:32] Superintendent Thurman, your plan to prioritize recovery while addressing wildfire prevention. [1:31:38] You know, again, our hearts go out to the folks in the Palisades and Pasadena and Altadena. [1:31:44] You know, I was out. [1:31:45] I've been to every community that has experienced fire disaster in the last seven years because school communities have been deeply impacted. [1:31:53] We've raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to help the victims of those fires get money for temporary housing, [1:31:59] gas cards, food, books, water, clothes, you name it. [1:32:04] And as we think about it, we cannot let Altadena, it was one of the first places in this state where black families can buy a home, [1:32:11] and today where Latino families buy a home. [1:32:13] This can't turn into a reason for there to be gentrification. [1:32:16] We can't let people sit on re-permitting the rebuilding of those homes so that people lose their American dream. [1:32:24] Let's expedite the permitting. [1:32:26] Let's get those folks back in there. [1:32:28] You know what? [1:32:29] The homeowners insurance industry, they failed us. [1:32:32] They said no to everyone, and we're not going to insure you. [1:32:35] And then after these fires, they got a rate increase. [1:32:37] Where I come from, you don't get a raise when you do a bad job. [1:32:40] We're going to hold the homeowners insurance industry accountable to the people of this state. [1:32:44] Thank you, Superintendent. [1:32:46] Antonio, your plan. [1:32:48] That's my name, everybody. [1:32:51] I'm just a regular guy. [1:32:54] Let me just say we're the only state that didn't do, with respect to insurance, [1:32:59] the only state that didn't do catastrophic modeling in a time of climate change. [1:33:05] The only state that took more than a year to pass a rate hike. [1:33:11] The only state where we didn't have reinsurance. [1:33:15] So the entire market left. [1:33:17] We've got to bring them back. [1:33:18] We've got to set limits. [1:33:21] But we've got to make sure we have an insurance market or nobody's going to be able to build a home. [1:33:25] We've got to harden assets around homes. [1:33:27] That means there are going to be sprinklers. [1:33:29] There's going to be grates and screens on parts of your home. [1:33:35] We're going to reduce fire risk by supporting our firefighters and growing Cal Fire. [1:33:40] We're going to expand prescribed burns. [1:33:43] We've got to make fires an absolute priority with the next governor in this state. [1:33:50] Ms. Yee? [1:33:51] Thank you very much, Antonio. [1:33:53] Ms. Yee? [1:33:55] Well, as governor, we have to prioritize getting these communities rebuilt. [1:33:59] It's been, the wait has been too long. [1:34:01] And with respect to just what we can help them do that, the way we can help them do that, expedite the approval processes. [1:34:09] We have the know-how in terms of how to help local governments do that. [1:34:13] We have the technology in terms of how we can look at applications and be able to expedite those being approved. [1:34:19] But having said that, we want to be sure we're building back smarter as well. [1:34:23] Climate change is real. [1:34:24] And this is what we are living with. [1:34:28] And we're not going to be telling people. [1:34:30] You can't rebuild where you had your home, even though it may burn again. [1:34:35] We're going to do everything we can to be sure that we are prepared. [1:34:38] And we want to be sure that we have a culture of preparedness from all parties involved. [1:34:42] And with respect to the insurance companies, start to really pay attention to what your shareholders really want you to do. [1:34:48] The right thing to understand how you value risk in this new era of climate change. [1:34:52] There are risk models and catastrophic models you should be looking at. [1:34:55] And we're going to be sure that would compel them to do that. [1:34:57] Ms. Yee, thank you. [1:34:58] Thank you, candidate. [1:34:59] Andre? [1:35:01] All right. [1:35:02] Well, gas prices, you know, if you travel anywhere outside of California, pay $2.79. [1:35:07] Obviously not in California, recently on a trip out of the state. [1:35:11] Drivers also pay a $0.54 tax a gallon to cover the cost of complying with the state's environmental regulations to reduce health disparities in communities near refineries. [1:35:21] Yet high gas prices disproportionately burden low-income households. [1:35:26] Mr. Hilton, you have promised $3 gas prices. [1:35:29] You blame Democrats and environmental programs. [1:35:31] What is your plan to provide relief at the pump? [1:35:33] We have to end the Democrat climate crusade that has led to these astronomical gas prices that are particularly hurting working families who drive their cars and trucks two, three, four, five hours a day. [1:35:49] It's not the climate warriors in Marin County tapping away at their MacBooks that are hurt by high gas prices. [1:35:56] It's working-class Californians. [1:35:58] Here's what we're going to do. [1:35:59] We're going to stop the insane importing of gas. [1:36:01] We're going to stop the insane importing of oil and gas from halfway around the world on giant supertankers spewing out carbon emissions while shutting down oil production right here in California. [1:36:12] That makes no sense. [1:36:14] We're going to end these environmental regulations on the refineries that are causing them to shut down with zero environmental benefits. [1:36:22] That's how we get to $3 gas. [1:36:25] That's going to help every single working family and small business in California. [1:36:30] We will reduce our costs overall. [1:36:32] We've got to get it done. [1:36:33] Thank you, Mr. Hilton. [1:36:36] Mayor Mahan, what is your plan? [1:36:40] $0.54 extra burdening low-income families. [1:36:44] What is your plan to provide relief for those families? [1:36:46] Yeah, thank you, Andre Senior. [1:36:48] You know, there's a lot of talk of holding the utilities accountable that we hear, but in San Jose, we're actually doing it. [1:36:54] We set up a community choice aggregator to compete with them on buying energy that's cleaner and cheaper. [1:37:00] We set our rates lower, and we've been innovating. [1:37:02] We held them accountable, got them to the table, and set an agreement that requires them to provide better, faster service to our customers and to invest in upgrades to the grid to improve reliability. [1:37:15] We also have to be honest with Californians. [1:37:19] We cannot simply demonize and push all other forms of energy out of the state before we've innovated enough to fully transition to a clean future. [1:37:28] Right now, we need both. [1:37:30] It's a process. [1:37:31] And if we are overly idealistic and we simply push all other sources out of the state other than solar and wind, we are driving up costs for working people. [1:37:39] We have to be balanced, innovative, and have a long-term course to that clean energy future that's affordable for working families. [1:37:46] Mayor Mahan, thank you so much. [1:37:50] Mr. Steyer, what is your plan to help lift the burden of gas prices on these low-income families here in California? [1:37:56] So, one of the things that drives me crazy is monopolies and small combinations of businesses that can't be managed. [1:38:02] And in the case of gasoline, we're held hostage by a very small group of companies that can control refineries and push these prices up all the time. [1:38:14] That's where we are. [1:38:15] They have us by the throat. [1:38:17] For us to get lower gas prices, we need to find competition. [1:38:21] We need to import gasoline either from neighboring states like Washington, or we need to buy it, regardless of what Mr. Hilton says, from Asia and have them refine it there and ship it to us. [1:38:33] But that's all the short-term. [1:38:34] We've got to hear, Tom. [1:38:35] Why don't we use California gas? [1:38:36] That's all the short-term question. [1:38:37] We've got our own. [1:38:38] We'll get to you in a second, Mr. Hilton. [1:38:39] Mr. Steyer, finish. [1:38:40] Long-term, what we need to do is move to electric vehicles. [1:38:41] And that is something which is cheaper to fuel, cheaper to maintain, and we need to get them into hands of working families. [1:38:42] And that means cash for clunkers. [1:38:43] It means doing whatever we can to drive down the upfront cost of EVs so that, in fact, that transaction is not going to happen. [1:38:44] Mr. Steyer, finish. [1:38:45] Mr. Steyer, finish. [1:38:46] Mr. Steyer, finish. [1:38:47] Mr. Steyer, finish. [1:38:48] Mr. Steyer, finish. [1:38:49] Mr. Steyer, you have 30 seconds to respond. [1:38:56] There's a very simple, common-sense principle. [1:38:57] As long as we are using oil and gas in California, let's use California oil and gas instead of [1:39:08] importing it from halfway across the desert to peak our economic sobering hours, which [1:39:17] is an example. [1:39:19] halfway around the world. Did you know that not that long ago, we actually produced most of the [1:39:24] oil and gas we use in California right here in state? Now we import 80%. You know our number [1:39:30] one provider, Iraq. We are shipping oil across the ocean, spewing out carbon emissions. It makes [1:39:37] no sense. Let's use California oil and gas while we can. Superintendent Thurman, my question to you, [1:39:48] you scrutinize the supply chain here and you support transistors to clean your energy. Talk [1:39:52] about your plan to help release the burden on low-income Californians dealing with these gas [1:39:57] prices. Thank you, Andre. You're claiming my time here. No, you're good. As I mentioned earlier, [1:40:06] I'm going to give a tax credit, a tax break to working Californians to have a couple hundred [1:40:11] dollars a month more in your pocket every month for rising costs of gas. Let's face it, the cost [1:40:16] of gas is high. The reality is this climate change is going to make it harder for us to [1:40:18] change is real. But we do have to shift to alternative energy. We have to have a plan [1:40:23] and a timeline for how to do that. And we have to build out the infrastructure that allows us to get [1:40:27] there. And so while we are working to get there, two things can be true at the same time. We can [1:40:32] keep the refineries open that keep us from having to buy gas from outside of the country, which will [1:40:37] drive up the cost because California has a very special blend that we use for better emissions. [1:40:42] And we can build a million charging stations to move closer to [1:40:48] L.A. [1:40:48] Electric vehicles. Those two things have to be true at the same time. We have to move with climate [1:40:54] change in mind, use the barrels of oil that we have until they're used up and move to alternative [1:40:59] energy as quickly as we can. Superintendent Thurman, thank you so much. Mayor Ragosa, [1:41:04] what is your plan here to help families here? You want to slow down regulations on refineries. [1:41:10] Tell us more about your plan. Look, everybody, we're talking about going green. And by the way, [1:41:15] 100 percent record in six years I was in the legislature, the author of the Carl Moyer Act, [1:41:20] the biggest effort to clean up the air since the Clean Air Act until AB 32 and SB 32. Number one American [1:41:26] city in reducing carbon emissions, number five in the world. When I say that we overregulate [1:41:30] the refineries, actually, Steve is right. And that is we import 75 percent of our oil and gas [1:41:40] from Iraq, Ecuador and other places. The next governor is going to admit the fact, yes, we do [1:41:49] need to go electric. But we don't need to go electric. We need to go electric. We need to go electric. [1:41:50] We need to go electric. We need to go electric. We need to go electric. We need to go electric. [1:41:50] We built 167,000 charging stations the last 10 years. We need two million more in the next 10 [1:41:56] years. And if we built them, we don't have the grid. And by the way, we're the last in the [1:42:02] Western states in building that grid. So the next governor's got to focus on expanding ethanol. If we [1:42:08] do expand ethanol by 15 percent, we'll increase or reduce the tax on that by 30 cents. And we got [1:42:18] to focus on bringing it down. [1:42:20] Ms. Yee, you have one minute to answer the question. [1:42:25] Thank you. So with respect to helping just hardworking Californians pocketbooks, [1:42:30] I also would propose a tax credit, looking at expanding an earned income tax credit [1:42:35] so that they can actually be able to get to work every day. But let me just say this in terms of [1:42:40] where we're headed. California has been on the leading edge of the environmental movement. And [1:42:46] we should not feel ashamed of that. What we should feel ashamed of is the impacts to low-income [1:42:50] communities that have not felt the benefits of our tax credit. So I'm going to ask Ms. Yee to [1:42:53] give us a little bit of an overview of our transition. So here's what we need to do. And [1:42:57] just right across the bay here in Rodeo, this is not a transition that's going to happen overnight. [1:43:03] We don't flip a switch to get to green and clean. We actually need to have transitional fuels. So in [1:43:08] Rodeo, we have renewable diesel that's being refined at the expense of the company, by the way. [1:43:14] Nobody's subsidizing them because they're trying to be responsible. But this is a transition. So we [1:43:19] have to be sure that communities, all communities, particularly low-income communities, [1:43:23] particularly our black and brown communities, [1:43:25] part of the transition can share in having cleaner air and more healthier communities. [1:43:30] Ms. Yee, thank you so much. Secretary Becerra, your plan to help communities that are burdened [1:43:37] by these gas prices? Well, first, we can't ignore what's going on, the climate change that's [1:43:43] occurring, not just in our state and around the world, the extreme heat, the wildfires, the [1:43:49] landslides that are occurring, these atmospheric rivers that are dumping rain in huge amounts. [1:43:55] We have to be prepared. [1:43:56] We have to be prepared for what's coming. That's why we have to have an energy transition. But that [1:44:02] energy transition has to be stable. We cannot move faster than our working-class families can [1:44:08] because we'll leave them behind. And if we leave them behind, they'll stop being the environmentalists [1:44:13] and the conservationists that they already are. We want them to join us in having clean energy, [1:44:18] which means we have to fight Donald Trump and the cuts he made to wind and solar. And we have to [1:44:23] have a policy that says all sources of energy, [1:44:26] have to be on the table, because we have to make this transition smooth for the folks who work really [1:44:32] hard but don't make a lot of money. We want to make sure they come and join us. And that means [1:44:36] moving towards clean energy, like electricity, but doing it at the pace of our working class. [1:44:42] Secretary Becerra, thank you so much. [1:44:44] Candidates, as we said earlier, we asked viewers ahead of this debate to weigh in on the questions [1:44:48] they wanted to be asked tonight. This is a question from Henry in San Bernardino. He says, [1:44:53] Governor Newsom made several high-profile commitments, such as addressing housing, [1:44:57] affordability, reducing homelessness, and improving public safety that some Californians [1:45:01] feel remain unmet or insufficiently delivered. What concrete accountability mechanisms would [1:45:07] you put in place to ensure that your own commitments are not just announced but [1:45:11] measurably delivered within a defined timeline? Mayor Mahan, you've been a vocal critic of the [1:45:16] governor. We begin with you. One minute. Look, I think the governor's done many important things [1:45:21] for our state. I think he's focused on the right issues. The next governor is going to have to build [1:45:25] on initiatives like [1:45:28] care court and sequel reform and things the governor's championed. But I agree that in [1:45:33] government at all levels, state, county, cities, certainly the federal government, there's not been [1:45:38] enough accountability for outcomes. When I ran for mayor of San Jose, I ran on a simple premise. [1:45:44] We're going to focus on fewer things. We're going to focus on the things that are most [1:45:47] important for our residents. We're going to set public goals. And yes, we're going to put them [1:45:52] up in dashboards. We're going to show you where every dollar goes. And we will measure the [1:45:57] performance of those dollars. We're going to measure the performance of those dollars. We're going to [1:45:58] measure the performance of those dollars. We're going to measure the performance of those dollars. The programs and the policies that we [1:46:01] pass, that we say are our best hypotheses for delivering better outcomes. And the truth is, if the things we're spending your money on aren't [1:46:09] delivering better outcomes, we need to be held accountable. We need to see that in the data [1:46:14] and be willing to change what we're doing. In San Jose, we've done that. We've become the safest big [1:46:18] city. We've reduced homelessness faster. We've gotten thousands of new homes under construction [1:46:22] by thinking differently. Mayor, thank you. Mr. Steyer, how do you deliver on your commitments if elected? [1:46:30] Look, there's an old saying, if you can't measure it, you can't manage it. And so I think as governor, [1:46:36] it's going to be incredibly important to set forward what you're trying to do to make your [1:46:41] goals public, to be transparent, and then continually measure yourself against what [1:46:47] you've promised to do. That is what I'm going to do. And that's the only way that I understand how [1:46:53] to build results. So for instance, I say I want us to be a top 10 education state in the United States. [1:47:01] And again, if you're a top 10, you have to be a top 10 education state. There has to be a plan [1:47:04] explicitly how to get there. It's not hope. It's actually a plan. But then you have to measure [1:47:10] exactly what the results are in the schools in California. When we talk about building a million [1:47:16] homes, that's a specific promise. And that means I've got to live up to it and measure it so that [1:47:22] at every point we can see, am I living up to it? Will I take on the electric monopolies and drive [1:47:28] down costs by 25 percent? That's specific. I promise to be transparent and hold you accountable. [1:47:31] hold myself to account, because that's what Californians need and deserve. [1:47:35] Thank you, Mr. Starr. [1:47:37] Superintendent Thurman, how do you deliver on your promises? [1:47:39] I've been very explicit. [1:47:41] I've said, I put a timeline on my housing plan, for example. [1:47:45] I have said that we will build 2 million housing units, affordable housing, by the year 2030. [1:47:53] That means if we, on average, for every surplus property parcel that exists, [1:47:59] built on average 12 units, we will get to 2.3 million units by the year 2030. [1:48:08] As a candidate, I'm here giving it to you as explicitly and direct as I can. [1:48:14] We have the capacity and the know-how to deliver. [1:48:18] And it's why I have a bill in the legislature that would get money to our school districts [1:48:22] to give them the startup funds and the technical assistance on how to value the land, on how to build. [1:48:28] Remember, these are... [1:48:29] These are units that can be built without any additional permitting. [1:48:33] There is surplus property in each of the 58 counties in our state. [1:48:37] If we simply just built 12 on each parcel, we get to 2.3 million by the year 2030. [1:48:44] Superintendent, thank you. [1:48:46] Antonio, how do you deliver on your promises? [1:48:49] I'll tell you what I did. [1:48:51] I put dashboards by everything. [1:48:53] I put metrics and people on every goal that I had set out, every campaign promise. [1:48:58] Someone said it was about 100. [1:49:00] And that's how... [1:49:01] It went down nearly 50%. [1:49:03] Graduation rates went up 60%. [1:49:06] Greenhouse gases went down higher than any other city in the country, number five in the world. [1:49:14] So putting metrics that are transparent, that are on, you know, the computer so that you can come and look at it [1:49:21] and see where the progress is, holding people accountable, that's what you have to do. [1:49:26] And I'm the only one on this stage that's actually had a job like that. [1:49:31] You know, 50%. [1:49:31] 50,000 employees. [1:49:33] Yeah, 50,000 employees. [1:49:36] And importantly, I made those decisions, not a city manager. [1:49:40] It was the mayor that made those decisions. [1:49:42] And I can tell you, it's about accountability, and I intend to focus on that as governor. [1:49:48] Antonio, thank you. [1:49:50] Ms. Yee? [1:49:51] As governor, I am going to set the tone for accountability for the state of California. [1:49:55] Look, all of these plans that my colleagues have talked about, they're great until we deliver. [1:50:02] Unless we can't... [1:50:03] How do we deliver on them? [1:50:04] How do we deliver on them? [1:50:06] We make sure that the appropriations are there. [1:50:08] Make sure that the money is actually getting the outcomes that we want. [1:50:11] We work with the legislature to have them be able to provide scrutiny over every dollar during their budget hearings. [1:50:16] You know, we have not been accountable or transparent with our dollars for a long time. [1:50:20] Why are we right now, in secession years, spending more than we're bringing in? [1:50:27] This is where we are. [1:50:29] So accountability has to be a tone set from the top. [1:50:31] Through the legislature that we work with. [1:50:34] Budget hearings. [1:50:34] You're going to... [1:50:35] We're going to scrutinize every department in my executive branch to be sure that we're delivering on every dollar that you appropriated to us. [1:50:40] And are we talking to the communities that are affected? [1:50:43] Because if they're not seeing the results, something's wrong. [1:50:47] You know, when we talk about accountability, it's just not to the voters. [1:50:50] It's to the people we deliver to. [1:50:51] It's to the different branches of government. [1:50:53] And I also want to have a more robust relationship with our cities and counties as well as partners in accountability. [1:50:58] Ms. Yee, thank you. [1:51:01] Secretary Becerra, how do you remain accountable to your promises? [1:51:03] By suing Donald Trump over 120 times. [1:51:08] By making sure that every time he tried to violate the law and hurt our people, we stood up and we held him accountable. [1:51:16] By making sure that as Attorney General, we went out and took action against police departments that were profiling, [1:51:23] that were going after people in a non-official legal policing way. [1:51:29] And that's why we began investigations, what are called pattern and practice investigations, [1:51:33] against L.A. County Sheriff's Department, Kern County Sheriff's Department, and the Bakersfield Police Department. [1:51:38] You hold people accountable. [1:51:41] That's why I issued the regulations that put in place the racial profiling parameters under how a police stop can be conducted. [1:51:50] And you hold everyone accountable. [1:51:52] And finally, I should mention, as HHS Secretary, when I established 988, the Program for Suicide and Mental Health Assistance, [1:51:59] I said one thing. [1:52:00] Our goal when we launch is to make sure that no one is put on hold and no one gets a busy signal. [1:52:06] Because people have to know that service will be delivered. [1:52:08] You hold yourself accountable. [1:52:10] You hold your deputies accountable. [1:52:11] Thank you, Secretary. [1:52:13] Mr. Hilton? [1:52:14] So this is exactly why we need an outsider to shake things up in California. [1:52:18] Unlike my Democrat friends here, I've never run for office before. [1:52:21] All my life, I've had to focus on results. [1:52:24] Starting and running businesses, working inside of a government, fighting the bureaucracy, trying to make change happen. [1:52:31] I'll give you a little story that shows exactly what's gone wrong in California. [1:52:34] It's Mayor Karen Bass in L.A. claiming that she's streamlined permitting for rebates. [1:52:39] And here's what she actually said. [1:52:41] I remember it exactly. [1:52:42] I have just signed an executive order tasking agency heads with developing paths forward to streamlining permitting. [1:52:52] These are the things you get from career politicians who don't know how to deliver results. [1:52:57] It's all about process. [1:52:59] When I get to Sacramento, I will take a sledgehammer to our bloated, bureaucratic nanny state, and I will enjoy doing it. [1:53:07] Mr. Hilton, thank you. [1:53:10] Candidates. [1:53:11] Thank you. [1:53:11] Arla. [1:53:13] All right. [1:53:13] Now we have made it to our rapid-fire portion of the debate. [1:53:18] We have a few rapid-fire questions for you lined up. [1:53:21] Please only answer with a simple yes or no or the options we provide. [1:53:27] First question, as governor, a simple yes or no, would you support a billionaire's tax? [1:53:34] We will go down the stage and begin with Secretary Becerra. [1:53:38] No, if we're talking about the initiative that's maybe on the ballot. [1:53:42] Okay. [1:53:44] No. [1:53:44] Mr. Hilton. [1:53:47] No. [1:53:48] Mr. Mahan. [1:53:51] We should close loopholes billionaires use to not pay taxes. [1:53:55] Okay, so do we get an opportunity to give more than a yes or no? [1:54:00] Let, yeah, we're going to. [1:54:01] You're claiming my time. [1:54:06] Mr. Sire. [1:54:09] I believe that billionaires have to pay their fair share. [1:54:12] Oh, my goodness. [1:54:13] So that's a yes. [1:54:15] You were asking me if we're going to tax billionaires more, and I'm saying billionaires have to pay their fair share. [1:54:20] Yes. [1:54:21] Okay. [1:54:23] Superintendent. [1:54:23] Superintendent Thurmond. [1:54:24] Yes. [1:54:27] No. [1:54:29] Yes. [1:54:33] Andre. [1:54:34] Next rapid fire question. [1:54:35] You guys remember that train, high-speed rail? [1:54:38] I want to start with you. [1:54:39] Here, Becerra. [1:54:41] Would you complete it, shrink it, or end it? [1:54:44] High-speed rail. [1:54:46] Japan has it. [1:54:47] Europe has it. [1:54:47] China has it. [1:54:48] We're going to have it, too. [1:54:48] We're just going to do it smart. [1:54:50] We're not going to have these cost overruns, and we'll make sure it runs efficiently because [1:54:54] Californians need to have access to high-speed rail. [1:54:56] Mr. Hilton, would you shrink it, complete it, or end it? [1:54:59] They're not even talking. [1:55:00] They're not even talking about completing it for another decade or so. [1:55:02] No, of course not. [1:55:03] We can't send good money after bad. [1:55:06] We need to invest that money in real things to help families expand the roads. [1:55:10] I'm having fire here, candidate. [1:55:11] Yes, local rail working. [1:55:13] Mayor Mahan, would you shrink it, complete it, or end it? [1:55:17] We need to complete it with a different mindset and greater accountability for getting it done. [1:55:21] Thank you, Mayor. [1:55:22] Mr. Steyer, would you complete it, shrink it, or end it? [1:55:25] Who isn't for high-speed public transportation, but we can't pay any price for it. [1:55:30] All right. [1:55:30] That is actually right. [1:55:31] We have to do it in a new way. [1:55:33] Mr. Thurman, would you complete it, shrink it, or end it? [1:55:35] Complete it. [1:55:36] All right. [1:55:37] Thank you, Mr. Villaraigosa. [1:55:39] Complete it. [1:55:40] All right. [1:55:41] Ms. Yee? [1:55:42] Complete it. [1:55:42] Thank you. [1:55:44] Candidates, last rapid fire. [1:55:45] Remind you, yes or no, would you continue Governor Newsom's fight to phase out the sale [1:55:49] of gas-powered vehicles by 2035? [1:55:52] Secretary Becerra, yes or no? [1:55:54] We're going to do it in a stable transition period. [1:55:57] Yes or no, sir. [1:55:58] Everyone. [1:55:58] Hey, come on. [1:55:59] Our working family is going to be able to afford it. [1:56:01] That's my point. [1:56:03] Mr. Hilton. [1:56:03] Our working family is going to afford it. [1:56:04] We're there. [1:56:05] No. [1:56:05] We're sick of being bossed around. [1:56:07] Mayor Mahan. [1:56:07] I want you to drive the car that you want to drive. [1:56:10] Moving on. [1:56:10] Mayor Mahan, yes or no? [1:56:14] Look, only if the technology is there so it doesn't increase costs for middle class citizens. [1:56:18] Mr. Starr. [1:56:19] I wrote a book on this called Cheaper, Faster, Better, How We Win the Climate War. [1:56:23] If it's better for the people of California, I'm for it. [1:56:26] Okay. [1:56:26] Superintendent Thurman, yes or no? [1:56:28] Yes. [1:56:31] Antonio, yes or no? [1:56:32] No. [1:56:33] Ms. Yee? [1:56:34] Yes. [1:56:37] Candidates, thank you. [1:56:38] We are four months from the June primary. [1:56:40] Polls show most voters in this state are undecided in this race. [1:56:44] As you well know, this is a crowded field. [1:56:46] It is time for our closing statements. [1:56:48] For that, we ask you, what sets you apart? [1:56:52] We'll go in reverse order from our opening statements. [1:56:54] Ms. Yee, you have one minute for your closing statement. [1:56:56] Great. [1:56:57] Well, thank you to our moderators, to Black Action Alliance, KTVU, Fox 11, and everyone watching. [1:57:04] It's important that we're here tonight. [1:57:06] Because as... [1:57:07] You just heard, all the polls show that this race is wide open. [1:57:12] You know, I think voters have had enough. [1:57:14] I've been around the state. [1:57:15] I've spoken to thousands of them. [1:57:17] Enough of the lies, the broken campaign promises, the billionaires trying to run the world. [1:57:23] You know, look, I'm the adult in the room. [1:57:26] I'm a no gimmicks, no nonsense, straight shooter, and a woman who gets things done. [1:57:31] I'm the only candidate who's ready to lead now. [1:57:35] I don't need on-the-job training. [1:57:36] And California can't afford a rookie in the governor's office. [1:57:41] And we certainly can't afford a leader who thinks grandstanding is actually governing. [1:57:46] You know, growing up on the west side of the city when things got tough, [1:57:49] my mom used to always say, well, you know what we got to do. [1:57:53] And we get to work doing it. [1:57:55] She's now 102 years old, and I still take her advice. [1:57:58] I'm eager to do... to get to work, to do what we got to do to make California better for all who call the state home. [1:58:04] Thank you, Ms. Yee. [1:58:05] I'd be honored to earn your vote. [1:58:09] Antonio, one minute. [1:58:11] We need a proven problem solver. [1:58:13] Someone who's done it before. [1:58:16] We need somebody who will take on Trump. [1:58:18] We want to fight to restore affordability in this state, but we also need a uniter. [1:58:26] You know, I grew up in the civil rights movement. [1:58:28] My entire life, I understood that we had to bring people together so we could move the country forward. [1:58:33] The fact of the matter is, everybody, that the country is divided evenly. [1:58:39] In this state, we're blue. [1:58:41] But 25% voted for... 25% are Republican, 40% voted for Donald Trump, [1:58:48] and 48% said, I'm open. [1:58:51] I'm open to a Republican governor. [1:58:53] We need to work with everybody. [1:58:55] We need to be able to say to this state, if you want to work hard and play by the rules, I'm for you. [1:59:01] If you want to contribute and pay your taxes, whether you're an immigrant or you're someone that's been here for a generation, I'm for you. [1:59:09] We need a state that focuses on getting things done, and as your candidate for governor, I'll be that person. [1:59:18] Thank you, Antonio. [1:59:19] Superintendent Thurmond, your closing statement. [1:59:21] Thank you for this evening. [1:59:22] California is going through some very tough times. [1:59:25] And as I think about my own life, you know, I know what it's like to try to overcome tough times. [1:59:31] My life has been a story of overcoming humble beginnings. [1:59:34] I told you about my grandparents who were immigrants and descendants of slaves. [1:59:39] You know, I lost both my parents by the time I was six years old. [1:59:42] My mom to cancer. [1:59:44] My dad, who never returned from the Vietnam War. [1:59:47] I met my father after finding him on the Internet just about my 40th birthday. [1:59:51] So I grew up in a household where we went without. [1:59:54] When I finally got a job, it paid $3.35 an hour. [1:59:58] I know what it is to have to work two and three jobs like many Californians are doing right now. [2:00:04] So select a candidate who not only has the experience and the vision, but the lived experience of our Californians who are struggling. [2:00:14] Together, we'll build 2 million housing units. [2:00:16] We'll provide a tax credit for working Californians. [2:00:19] And we will make sure that we provide jobs. [2:00:21] We will make sure that we provide good-paying jobs for all Californians. [2:00:24] California can be better. [2:00:25] Let's build it together. [2:00:26] Thank you, Superintendent. [2:00:29] Mr. Steyer, one minute for your closing statement. [2:00:31] So I want to thank the Black Action Alliance again for having us here. [2:00:36] And I want to say that to lower costs, we're going to have to have a governor who's willing to take on the special interests and raise revenue. [2:00:43] I've always stood up to them, and I've always won. [2:00:46] I took on the oil companies and beat them. [2:00:48] I took on the tobacco companies and beat them. [2:00:51] I took on multinational companies. [2:00:52] Multinational companies and beat them. [2:00:54] And in every case, I brought billions of dollars to California without charging Californians a penny. [2:01:00] Right now, the big tech CEOs are terrified about the idea of paying their fair share. [2:01:09] Right now, they're supporting that. [2:01:11] That's where they are. [2:01:12] Who have I got? [2:01:13] I've got the nurses. [2:01:16] I've got the bus drivers. [2:01:18] I've got the cafeteria workers. [2:01:20] I've got the custodians. [2:01:22] I've taken on the special interests three times. [2:01:24] And I've always beaten them. [2:01:27] I'm the billionaire who's going to take on the billionaires for working families. [2:01:32] Thank you, Mr. Starr. [2:01:34] A note for our audience. [2:01:36] Our candidates agreed to no rebuttals during openings and closing. [2:01:39] One other note. [2:01:40] During our tech difficulties, we lost half of Mr. Mahan's answer when it comes to affordability. [2:01:45] So we have agreed. [2:01:46] Mayor Mahan, 90 seconds for your closing, sir. [2:01:48] Thank you, Tom. [2:01:50] I've got about three billion reasons not to trust your answer on that. [2:01:54] I'll just say that, look, what sets me apart in this race is I am willing to tell the truth. [2:02:02] And the truth is never as simple as a one-word answer. [2:02:07] I oppose the wealth tax because it will send good, high-paying jobs out of our state and harm working families in the long run. [2:02:14] We'll all pay more taxes for it. [2:02:16] On the other hand, I will tell you, the wealthiest amongst us use loopholes in the tax code to avoid paying certain taxes. [2:02:23] And we should close those loopholes. [2:02:25] We should not destroy middle-class jobs. [2:02:28] So the truth is that our politics has been oversimplified. [2:02:32] It's become this bloodsport between populists on both sides. [2:02:35] And you deserve real answers, not the easy answers. [2:02:39] And the way that we're going to move California forward is by getting our state government back to basics on the issues that matter most to you, [2:02:49] starting with the brutally high cost of housing, [2:02:55] the human tragedy of untreated labor, [2:02:57] untreated addiction, [2:02:59] and mental illness, [2:03:00] the obvious failures of our policies to address homelessness, [2:03:03] schools that are giving up on too many of our kids. [2:03:07] The way we move forward is setting goals, [2:03:10] being honest that there are not simple answers, [2:03:12] and holding ourselves more accountable for delivering for you. [2:03:17] Mayor, thank you. [2:03:19] Mr. Ellison, one minute for your closing statement. [2:03:22] So what sets me apart in this race is that I'm not a Democrat. [2:03:26] And after 16 years... [2:03:28] After 16 years of... [2:03:30] After 16 years of that one-party rule that have given us the highest poverty, [2:03:33] the highest unemployment, [2:03:34] the highest cost of living in America, [2:03:36] I think it's a very good thing. [2:03:37] We don't need another Democrat. [2:03:38] We need change. [2:03:40] We've got the plans to make it happen. [2:03:42] $3 gas. [2:03:44] Cut your electric bill in half. [2:03:46] Your first hundred grand tax-free. [2:03:48] A home you can afford to buy. [2:03:50] And that's how we make our state affordable. [2:03:52] But the other thing that makes me different, [2:03:54] I'm building a team. [2:03:56] I'm building a team to get this done. [2:03:58] For Lieutenant Governor, running with me, [2:04:00] Sonia Romero. [2:04:01] She was the former Democrat leader of the State Senate. [2:04:03] Michael Gates, running with me, [2:04:05] for Attorney General to enforce the law. [2:04:07] Herb Morgan, running with me, [2:04:09] for State Comptroller to end the fraud in our government. [2:04:12] That's how we make our state golden again [2:04:15] with the golden ticket and the team I'm putting together. [2:04:18] Thank you, Mr. Hilton. [2:04:20] To our audience, please contain your comments. [2:04:22] Secretary Becerra, one minute for your closing, sir. [2:04:26] I've taken on a reckless federal government [2:04:32] and ruthless corporations. [2:04:35] I've defended workers' wages, women's health, [2:04:38] immigrant rights. [2:04:40] I launched civil rights investigations, [2:04:44] the 988 suicide and mental health lifeline. [2:04:47] I've taken down sex trafficking rings [2:04:49] and organized crime operations. [2:04:51] I'm deeply in love with the same woman [2:04:54] I married 37 years ago, Carolina Reyes, [2:04:57] a high-risk obstetrician-gynecologist, [2:04:59] and our three daughters. [2:05:01] I'm not the richest candidate, [2:05:04] and I'm not the slickest candidate. [2:05:06] And the governor's office is not a place [2:05:09] for on-the-job training or inflated promises. [2:05:12] It's a place where you have to know how to fight, [2:05:14] but more importantly, know how to win. [2:05:16] I intend to win for the hardest-working [2:05:19] and lowest-paid in California. [2:05:21] I intend to win for young families [2:05:23] struggling to figure out how they can do what my parents did [2:05:25] even though they didn't get an education. [2:05:27] And I will fight for California's seniors [2:05:30] who are ready to retire, [2:05:31] not in Idaho or Arizona, but here in California. [2:05:34] That's what I fight for. [2:05:35] Secretary, thank you. [2:05:36] And with that, that wraps our debate up for today. [2:05:40] Thank you to our candidates, [2:05:41] our audience here at the historic [2:05:43] Ruth Williams Bayview Opera House, [2:05:45] and to you at home. [2:05:46] For more information on the election, [2:05:47] the candidates, and tonight's debate, [2:05:49] you can visit KTVU.com, [2:05:51] Fox.com, or BlackActionAlliance.com. [2:05:54] If you joined us midway, we want to let you know [2:05:56] that our teams are currently working [2:05:58] to add this entire debate to our Fox local TV app. [2:06:01] Please tune your way in on tonight's debate [2:06:03] via that QR code on your screen. [2:06:05] With that, let's take it to the KTVU studios in Oakland [2:06:08] where Mike Meebeck and Claudine Meebeck [2:06:10] are standing by with two political experts [2:06:12] for analysis and reaction. [2:06:13] Take it away, guys. [2:06:14] All right, thank you, Greg. [2:06:16] And from public safety to housing affordability, [2:06:19] homelessness and education, [2:06:20] you have just seen and heard [2:06:22] from seven of the gubernatorial candidates [2:06:24] on some of the major issues [2:06:26] playing a role in this year's election. [2:06:29] Welcome back. [2:06:30] I'm Claudine Wong at the KTVU studios [2:06:31] in Jack London Square in Oakland. [2:06:33] And I'm Mike Meebeck. [2:06:34] So the debate is over. [2:06:35] What are the main takeaways? [2:06:37] Who won the debate? [2:06:38] We'll get to our panel in just a moment. [2:06:40] We're also asking you at home [2:06:42] what you've been thinking of the debate since we began. [2:06:44] Yeah.