Gov. Gavin Newsom recently signed Senate Bill 27 into law requiring candidates for president and California governor to disclose their income tax returns in order to appear on California’s primary ballot.
This law requires these candidates to provide copies of every tax return filed with the IRS for the five most recent taxable years with the California secretary of state at least 98 days prior to the primary election.
There is no such requirement at a federal level, but when has that ever stopped California’s total disregard for our country’s republic?
California politicians, as well as the mainstream media, constantly demonize President Trump. Supporters of the president are unfairly labeled as deplorables, racists, misogynists, and many other despicable names.
With their supermajority at the state Legislature, Democrats rule with seemingly no boundaries and an iron fist as a one-party state, disregarding input from any non-Democrat member.
Even after passing into law Assembly Bill 2053 in 2015 requiring employers with 50 or more employees to provide abusive conduct (bullying) prevention training, they are unable to control their own emotions. Their governance is based on their own personal feelings rather than what is fair, ethical, or provides for the greater good. They tell us what is best for the common citizen, but they are above such tedious directives.
The intent of these lawmakers is to disenfranchise the voters who oppose the Democrats’ one-party state and all supporters of our duly elected president. They hope SB27 will suppress voter participation by the nonconforming, ill-informed members of any rival political party. Much like George Orwell’s book, “Animal Farm,” they have chased the humans off the farm and the pigs are in control.
Even our own Assemblywoman Christy Smith, D-Santa Clarita, voted for the passage of this bill. It appears that her desire to further her political future outweighs what is constitutionally sound.
It’s very disappointing but not unexpected.
Why are we told to care about a candidate’s tax return? NPR wrote that we can evaluate if the candidate 1) has a conflict of interest, 2) possesses compassion for other people, and 3) are they like us?
Regarding the concern for conflict of interest, Trump campaigned on the theme “Make America Great Again.” In his inaugural address in January 2017, he said, “It’s going to be America first,” promising that every decision he makes will be to benefit American workers and American families.
Amazingly, the opposition bloviates that “America First” is a serious threat to “international solidarity” and professes that our brothers and sisters live not only within our borders, but that America should be easily accessed from around the world.
The president pledged to defend our country’s sovereignty and to act in America’s best interest. He has repeatedly taken strong action to enforce those principles, such as modifying or ending agreements that were unfair to the U.S., including renegotiating NAFTA with Canada and Mexico, discontinuing the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), creating bilateral agreements with Japan and South Korea, conducting strategic talks with North Korea, pressing sanctions against Iran, and opposing the United Nations Arms Trade Treaty imbalance in attempting to stop unfair trade practices, currency manipulation, espionage, and institutional theft by China.
Responding to compassion for other people, there are numerous examples of President Trump responding to tragic events in people’s lives with generous charity, most often as large monetary gifts. Liz Crokin, the author citing these examples prior to his presidency, wrote that she covered Trump for over a decade and never heard anything negative about the man until he announced he was running for president. She found that he didn’t drink alcohol or do drugs, was a hard-working businessman, and was a devoted father.
President Trump promised to forego his salary and he has kept that promise, donating it to various branches of government including the Department of Homeland Security, National Park Service, U.S. Education Department, Transportation Department, Department of Veterans Affairs, and Department of Health and Human Services.
Not one of the other wealthy politicians do this; not one!
Is Donald Trump like most of us? Financially, he is not. But a person’s financial net worth only differentiates people by their tax brackets. Love of country, respecting our Constitution and the willingness to forgo that business success and the accompanying revenue to help heal a country that has disappeared into a negative political abyss, makes him just like us.
Requiring tax returns by our state is a nasty ploy to examine our president’s records to cherry-pick statistics to manipulate his record in a negative manner for the upcoming election. It is grossly unfair and unconstitutional to remove a sitting president from the primary ballot and not allow myself, and millions of Californians, the right to vote for our candidate.
Mark Hershey is a Santa Clarita resident and the Chairman for 38th Assembly District Republican Central Committee. “Right Here, Right Now” appears Saturdays and rotates among several local Republicans.
