It’s unquestioned that Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon is essentially perpetrating a reign of terror on the good people of the county and has a major pro-criminal bias. His policies have been so harmful that even in this Democrat stronghold a poll by the very liberal Institute of Governmental Studies showed that had a proposed recall qualified for the ballot, Gascon would have lost by more than 20 points.
Unfortunately, due to the ineptitude of those running the recall campaign, who were unable to turn in the required number of valid signatures even after raising and spending more than $8 million, it appears that the recall will not be on the ballot in Los Angeles and Gascon will be in power for at least two more years.
People in Los Angeles County who supported the recall effort, and especially those who volunteered time or donated money, are understandably disappointed and frustrated, and are still looking for any way to mitigate the damage Gascon’s policies will do in the next two and a half years.
Enter California’s GOP candidate for Attorney General, Nathan Hochman, who’s found a way to give them that hope. Hochman promises that if voters elect him on November 8, he will step in and have his office take over prosecution from Gascon’s office if Gascon isn’t doing his duty. Appearing on KABC’s The John Phillips Show on September 16, Hochman said:
So, I think that what people in LA need to understand is the power of the Attorney General’s office, because the Attorney General, under the California constitution is like the super DA. He’s like the boss of George Gascón. And while he doesn’t have the right to fire George Gascón he can come in and take over any case where he believes that George Gascón is not doing his duty. And Rob Bonta is in complete alliance, in complete league with George Gascón, so he will not lift a finger. In fact, he encourages and supports everything that George Gascón is doing.
So when I tell voters even though the recall doesn’t look like it’s gonna go forward, that all hope is not lost, that I basically, in the Attorney General’s position, would be LA’s last and best hope to rein in George Gascón. Because if I become the Attorney General on the November 8 election, when I assume power on January 3rd, one of the very first things I will do is come into Los Angeles County, and in the cases where George Gascón refuses to do his job — if he won’t bring a gun enhancement against someone who uses a gun, if he won’t bring a gang enhancement against someone who’s in a gang, if he won’t bring a great bodily injury enhancement if someone suffers great bodily injury — I will take Gascón off the case, put on the California Attorney General’s office, and prosecute that case the way the evidence dictates. That is my solemn commitment to the voters in Los Angeles, that I will absolutely do that.
California’s current Attorney General, Rob Bonta, was appointed by Gavin Newsom after Xavier Becerra became Biden’s Health and Human Services secretary, and got 54 percent of the vote in the June primary – hardly a blowout. By tying Bonta to Gascon in Los Angeles County — where 1 out of 4 California voters reside — Hochman’s got an opportunity to flip the seat. It’s all going to hinge on turnout.
Hochman continued:
Rob Bonta actually encourages George Gascón. He’s endorsed George Gascón. He will absolutely pose not even the slightest check on the reign of King George Gascón of Los Angeles.
What I would tell voters is that if they do not like what George Gascón is up to, whether it’s in connection with Sheila Kuehl, shootings, rapes, murders, juvenile attacks, anything that you’ve seen. People being arrested in the morning and released in the afternoon. If people are upset, fed up, and frustrated with George Gascón, the way to rein him in is to vote for Nathan Hochman for Attorney General, kick out Rob Bonta, and come January 3rd we will bring back safety and security to Los Angeles County.
Hochman’s push to get himself in the media and in front of voters is a welcome change from the normal defeatist attitude of some of those in the California Republican Party elite, such as Senate Minority Leader Scott Wilk, who recently showcased just how broken the state’s Democrats have left him in an interview with Inside California Politics. Wilk touted legislation in which the state will eventually send its residents a $400 debit card as a way to combat $6/gallon gas prices as the Senate Republican Caucus’s big achievement of the year…
“It just takes a tremendous amount of energy and effort… Everything is setup so we lose.” @ScottWilkCA explains why he plans to step down as the minority leader of the CA Senate, perhaps by the end of the year, to @NikkiLaurenzo on #InsideCAPolitics pic.twitter.com/ZrRxszySHp
— Inside California Politics (@CAinsider) September 2, 2022
… then blamed Larry Elder for the failure of the Newsom recall, saying he “did a disservice to 40 million residents of California by getting in that race.”
“I don’t think Larry Elder was in that to win it… he did a disservice to 40 million residents of CA by getting in that race.” @ScottWilkCA gives his thoughts on the “historic opportunity” he feels his party lost during the #Recall campaign, to @NikkiLaurenzo #InsideCAPolitics pic.twitter.com/E7v7oKWH1g
— Inside California Politics (@CAinsider) September 2, 2022
Yet, as far as I can tell, Wilk and his Senate Republican Caucus did nothing to help ensure that Newsom was recalled, and they damn sure did nothing to actually get the recall qualified for the ballot.
After watching the entirety of Wilk’s Stockholm Syndrome interview, hearing Hochman on fire and fighting to win the election was especially rewarding.
Listen to Hochman’s comments here:
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