In recent years, California, as a highly anticipated economic and innovation center, has faced various challenges and crises, from Los Angeles to San Francisco, from the Central Valley to the coast. Many local governments have found it difficult to navigate issues related to urban economic development and public safety. What lies behind this situation?
Elaine Culotti, founder and host of the political travel series “Mayors Matter,” recently embarked on a 50-day statewide tour, engaging in conversations with mayors of 50 cities and numerous Californians.
“I’ve talked to most mayors and residents, and what they care about isn’t the Democratic or Republican parties, but safe streets and economic development,” Culotti found. Despite everyone’s efforts, achieving these two goals seems exceptionally difficult, with the crux lying in the state government in Sacramento.
Culotti recently appeared on “American Thought Leaders,” interviewed by Jan Jekielek, a senior editor at the English-language Epoch Times, where she analyzed the deep-rooted causes of the challenges facing California.
“Californians are actually a very easy-going group of people who dislike interfering with others. Those in the media spotlight, such as the Newsom administration, do not represent the entire state,” she said. Most Californians, regardless of party, skin color, race, or age, all hope for a safe environment, which is a common sentiment among mayors and residents. However, the current state of California is completely off track.
How did Culotti reach her conclusions? Here are some of her insights after in-depth investigation.
Culotti has been involved in many in-depth studies on California. After visiting the entire state, she confirmed one thing: While many consider California to be the most left-leaning state in the US, most voters do not strongly support either the Democratic Party or the Republican Party. Rather, they are genuinely concerned about public safety and the economy.
“We are a swing state,” unfortunately, the partisan disputes among politicians overlook everything. “Californians know they’ve been led by the nose, brainwashed by rhetoric from top to bottom, all for the sake of power.”
Culotti observed that Republicans prefer small government and emphasize fiscal discipline, while Democrats lean towards big government and are concerned about whether those in need of resources can receive government assistance on social issues. These two models are designed to work together, but each party governs separately, only caring about winning or losing.
“Politicians would rather support their own camp’s ‘terrible ideas’ than endorse good ideas from the moderates,” she said. This leaves a large group of people in the middle very confused about what to do.
Due to the focus of Sacramento politicians on party lines, Culotti believes that California has become disconnected from the federal government, and some politicians even use resisting President Trump as a political “selling point,” ultimately harming cities and taxpayers.
“According to Trump’s plan, there will be $18 trillion in new business opportunities flowing into the US in the next ten years, but California won’t get a cent. We don’t even have the opportunity to participate in the discussion,” she said. At the same time, she noted that policies like the proposed wealth tax in California have already had a significant impact on the economy.
As of Monday (April 27), the 2026 “California Billionaire Tax Act” proposed by the California union has collected 1.5 million signatures, and once validated by the Secretary of State’s office, it will be included on the November ballot. The proposal suggests levying a one-time tax equivalent to 5% of the net assets on California residents with assets exceeding $10 billion from January 1, 2026. This has already led to several billionaires leaving California. The Hoover Institution pointed out that the departure of billionaires also means that California will completely lose the state income taxes they would have paid in the future.
“The leftist faction is currently in power, so they must be accountable for these bad decisions,” Culotti noted. “The power-hungry politicians have ruined California; our state has strayed from its focus.”
In the program, Culotti mentioned that the vast majority of taxpayers’ funds in California are not being used to support urban development and improve the quality of life for the people but are flowing primarily to the state government. The state government is bloated, with over 500,000 employees; on the contrary, cities receive minimal funds. Additionally, several surveys have shown the presence of widespread corruption and fraud at the state government level.
“This is a situation where priorities are reversed, and cities are not receiving the funds they deserve,” Culotti stated. “I’ve spoken with many mayors in California, and they no longer care about party affiliation; they just want governance improvements, want to lead the development of their cities, and do not want to be subjected to unfunded mandates from the state government.”
As a self-made entrepreneur, Culotti understands that the core of California lies in small businesses. However, she sees that e-commerce and large direct shipping companies are impacting the local economies of various cities.
She pointed out that sales tax generated by local businesses directly contributes to city funds, but massive e-commerce platforms are squeezing out local businesses. The sales tax generated from online transactions goes directly to the state government, barely benefiting the cities. Furthermore, politicians funded by e-commerce and large direct shipping companies lobby for the construction of logistics centers in cities.
“The massive direct shipping business is ruining local business districts, causing road wear and tear, increased truck traffic, and a lot of boxes and garbage,” Culotti remarked. The entire system is imbalanced, with small businesses facing various regulations from the state government.
“Homeless people can sleep at the storefront, and you can’t touch them; someone can defecate publicly on the median strip on your street,” Culotti also discovered that California is becoming increasingly dirty. “After the pandemic, California stopped penalizing people for littering. We care so much about air quality but throw trash on the ground? It’s crazy.”
In the upcoming November elections, California voters will elect a new governor. Culotti hopes that California can change its course, return the money that should belong to cities to local governments, truly use the funds to help small businesses and Californians instead of continuously taxing and using money to subsidize illegal immigrants’ healthcare.