If there has ever been a more glaring or costly illustration of the corruption and ineptitude bred by blind extreme ideology and one-party dominance, the collapse of the credibility of California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, and many more public servants from one end of the Golden State to the other and at all levels of government.
Consider Bass, who was paid $300,154 in 2023, according to Open the Books. That figure does not include the value of the multiple financial and other perks that come with holding the highest office in the City of Angels.
The wildfires sweeping through Los Angeles county and city did not suddenly appear out of nowhere. Weather forecasters had warned for days of the annual assault of the Santa Ana winds. If there was a genuine surprise, it was the hurricane-force strength of the winds.
Plus, wilderness conservation and preservation experts have been warning for decades that California's (and the federal government's) opposition to systematically clearing underbrush, setting controlled fires, and creating fire breaks would inevitably lead to a catastrophe such as we are now seeing.
Those facts didn't prevent Mayor Bass from cutting the city's fire department budget by $23 million, sanctioning the subjection of those first responders to the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) madness, or leaving the country shortly before the flames exploded to attend a meaningless inauguration on the other side of the world.
The jaw-dropping video of Bass refusing to even acknowledge the presence, much less answer the questions put to her by a journalist, as she deplaned from her return flight from Africa amid the destruction and deaths is likely the centerpiece of her political legacy.
But Bass is far from the highest-paid Los Angeles city employee, as you can see in this chart from Open the Books. In fact, she isn't even in the top 10, which is topped by Mark Chambers, a Department of Water and Power (DWP) Load Dispatcher who pulls down $857,458.
Second on the list of the top 10 is John Getchius, a Fire Captain, who was paid $801,389. Kenneth McCrank is another Load Dispatcher and he comes in as the third-highest-paid Los Angeles employee at $786,789.
Holding down the fourth slot is Gary Carivau, an Electrical Services Manager for the DWP, who makes $782,738, while the fifth spot is occupied by William Santana, an Electric Distribution Manager for DWP, who received $763,675.
Then there is Newsom, who is paid approximately $240,000 annually. PJ Media's Victoria Taft's "Where's the Water, Gavin?" column captures his accountability on so many fronts, including foot-dragging on water storage and refusing to push for new water reservoirs that could have saved tens of thousands of homes that are now smoking ruins.
It's doubtful that there could ever be a more precise demonstration of failed political accountability than the video of Newsom being confronted by a California mother and claiming to be talking with the President.
To Newsom's credit, he hasn't hesitated to seek help from those outside of California and even beyond the U.S. borders with the equipment and willingness to help. When Mexico's President called to offer aid, Newsom quickly accepted it, announcing the move in this X post.
The sole silver lining that might come from this California catastrophe is the possibility of it stirring a new majority that will restore common sense and accountability at all levels of government in the Golden State.
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