Newsom’s choice to replace Feinstein faces immediate scandal.
Newsom’s Pick to Replace Feinstein Faces Scandal
The appointee to replace Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who died last week, seems to check all the boxes that California Gov. Gavin Newsom promised when he talked about who would fill Feinstein’s seat were she to pass.
He promised that the replacement would be a black woman, according to ABC News. Lo and behold, Laphonza Butler is.
He also promised that she would be none of the three top contenders for the seat in 2024 — California Reps. Barbara Lee, Katie Porter and Adam Schiff. Obviously, she’s none of them.
Butler also carries far-left bona fides, having been the president of Emily’s List, a political action committee that backs pro-abortion candidates for higher office.
If only she were, you know, actually a Californian.
Yes, it seems that Newsom’s appointment — while indeed a great pick for the left-leaning faction of the California Democratic Party — has hit a bit of a snag given that Butler is a resident of Maryland, according to her bios on social media and the Emily’s List website.
It appears EMILY’s list has removed the final line in Laphonza Butler’s bio that states she lives in Maryland. pic.twitter.com/6wYYYJEqoE
— Ashley Zavala (@ZavalaA) October 2, 2023
This, meanwhile, was her social media profile before and after:
Oh hey, look who remembered to remove the Location data from her bio overnight! It’s California’s newest Senator! pic.twitter.com/x90OxXoSd6
— Enguerrand VII de Coucy (@ingelramdecoucy) October 2, 2023
While both have been changed to scrub any mention of her Maryland ties, Fox News noted that Butler would have to re-register to vote in California, where she owns property, if she wishes to run for the seat in the general election — indicating her voter registration is not in the Golden State.
A filing with the Federal Election Commission on Aug. 31 listed her address as being in Silver Spring, Maryland, a suburb of Washington.
“Newsom’s office told Fox News Digital that Butler moved to the suburbs near Washington, D.C., when she became EMILY’s List president in 2021, and that she has a house in California,” the outlet reported. “The governor’s office added that Butler will re-register to vote in California before she is sworn in.”
However, California GOP Rep. Darrell Issa is questioning whether the interim office is permissible under California law.
He told Fox News he planned to send a letter to Newsom, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and California’s other member of the upper chamber, Democrat Sen. Alex Padilla, expressing his concern over the appointment.
“We’re not talking about the question of majority, we’re talking about 38 million Californians who have an absolute right to have somebody who puts California first — not who puts the District of Columbia first or Maryland, where she’s a resident, first,” Issa said on Monday.
“It’s not that he couldn’t find somebody,” he added.
“Instead, [Newsom] chose the most progressive African-American woman he could find, seemingly for political purposes.”
“The quid pro quo of agreeing to pay your California taxes in return for becoming a senator is not an acceptable bargain,” Issa continued. “That’s a privilege the rest of us don’t get.”
Furthermore, Butler hasn’t pledged to stay away from the 2024 primary for Feinstein’s seat, nor has Newsom requested that of her.
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“I have an incredible appointee and she’ll make a decision with no constraints, no expectations,” he said, according to The New York Times.
Thus, instead of keeping his pledge that he didn’t “want to get involved in the primary” and wouldn’t pick Lee — a black woman — because of the fact she’s running, he’s already picked a black woman who has a leg up by dint of already being a sitting senator, albeit one who hasn’t won an election. And he’s picked a Maryland resident to fill the role, to boot.
Lee had already said she was “troubled” by Newsom’s pledge before he picked Butler, saying, “The idea that a black woman should be appointed only as a caretaker to simply check a box is insulting to countless black women across this country who have carried the Democratic Party to victory election after election.”
Well, just imagine how she feels now that the governor has picked a black woman from, quite literally, across the country to fill a seat she wants.
Aside from throwing a sop to the rabid pro-abortion contingent among the California Democrats, it’s hard to imagine anyone in Golden State politics — Republican or Democrat — who’s going to be thrilled with going so far out-of-state to find Feinstein’s replacement.
The post Bad News for Newsom as His Pick to Replace Feinstein Is Immediately Hit with Scandal appeared first on The Western Journal.
How are Rep. Darrell Issa and other lawmakers raising concerns about the legality of Butler’s appointment and prioritizing California’s interests
Newsom’s Pick to Replace Feinstein Faces Scandal
The recent appointment of Laphonza Butler to replace the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein by California Gov. Gavin Newsom has faced a significant scandal. While Newsom had promised to appoint a black woman as Feinstein’s replacement, and Butler fits that criteria, there are concerns about her eligibility for the position.
One of the promises made by Newsom was that the replacement would not be any of the top contenders for the seat in 2024, including California Reps. Barbara Lee, Katie Porter, and Adam Schiff. Butler, however, is not one of them, meeting another one of Newsom’s criteria.
Furthermore, Butler has a history of supporting far-left causes, having been the president of Emily’s List, a political action committee that backs pro-abortion candidates for higher office. This aligns with the left-leaning faction of the California Democratic Party.
However, the major issue with Butler’s appointment is that she is not a resident of California. According to her bios on social media and the Emily’s List website, Butler is a resident of Maryland. This discrepancy was highlighted when her social media profile was changed to remove any mention of her location after the scandal emerged.
Fox News reported that Butler would have to re-register to vote in California, where she owns property, if she intends to run for the seat in the general election, indicating that her voter registration is not currently in California. A filing with the Federal Election Commission listed her address as being in Silver Spring, Maryland.
Newsom’s office claims that Butler moved to the suburbs near Washington, D.C., when she became the president of Emily’s List in 2021 and that she does have a house in California. They stated that Butler will re-register to vote in California before being sworn in. However, Rep. Darrell Issa has raised concerns about the legality of Butler’s appointment under California law.
Issa has announced his plan to send a letter expressing his concern to Newsom, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, and California’s other senator, Democrat Sen. Alex Padilla. He argues that the appointment should prioritize someone who puts California first, rather than the District of Columbia or Maryland, where Butler currently resides.
This scandal surrounding Butler’s residency has cast a shadow over Newsom’s choice to replace Feinstein. It remains to be seen how the situation will be resolved and if Butler’s appointment will ultimately be deemed valid under California law.
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