{"id":2074246,"date":"2023-10-20T13:47:04","date_gmt":"2023-10-20T17:47:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/california-economic-summit-pushes-socialism\/"},"modified":"2023-10-20T13:53:09","modified_gmt":"2023-10-20T17:53:09","slug":"california-economic-summit-pushes-socialism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/california-economic-summit-pushes-socialism\/","title":{"rendered":"California Economic Summit Advocates for Progressive Economic Policies"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">16<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fcalifornia-economic-summit-pushes-socialism%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2074246&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><blockquote>\n<h2>California&#8217;s Economic Summit: A \u200bMirage of Solutions<\/h2>\n<p>California&#8217;s economic situation \u2063can be\u2064 summed up simply: Taxes\u2062 and \u200cregulations are too high. And everything, especially housing, costs \u200dtoo much. Alleviate those problems and the \u200cstate will \u200bget better. People will stop leaving and start coming back.<\/p>\n<p>But that short summary wouldn&#8217;t fill more than 10 minutes of the 2023 California Economic Summit held in Indian Wells Oct.\u2062 11\u201313. \u2062It was sponsored by \u200c <a href=\"https:\/\/cafwd.org\/about-us\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">California Forward<\/a>, the influential reform group that\u200c always seems\u200d to want to increase taxes\u200b and \u200cregulations. I <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/opinion\/recession-barely-registers-at-california-forwards-economic-summit-4833265\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">covered<\/a> last year&#8217;s\u2064 confab in The Epoch Times in \u2063&#8221;Recession Barely \u200cRegisters \u200cat CA FWD&#8217;s Economic Summit.&#8221;<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h2>Related Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>\n        <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/world\/g-7-to-issue-candid-response-to-chinas-economic-bullying-at-hiroshima-summit-5279713?ea_src=author_manual&#038;ea_med=related_stories\"><\/p>\n<h3>G-7 Leaders Respond to China&#8217;s Economic Bullying \u200dat Hiroshima Summit, Warn of &#8216;Consequences&#8217;<\/h3>\n<p>        <\/a><\/p>\n<p>5\/20\/2023<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n        <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/opinion\/recession-barely-registers-at-california-forwards-economic-summit-4833265?ea_src=author_manual&#038;ea_med=related_stories\"><\/p>\n<h3>Recession Barely Registers at CA FWD&#8217;s Economic Summit<\/h3>\n<p>        <\/a><\/p>\n<p>11\/1\/2022<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>According to the blurb, for this year\u2064 &#8220;the Summit influences CA FWD&#8217;s ongoing\u2063 movement to make\u200b the government\u200c and economy work for everyone. The three-day Summit is designed to create a\u200c shared \u2063economic agenda known as the <a href=\"https:\/\/cafwd.org\/resources\/2023-roadmap-to-shared-prosperity\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Roadmap to Shared Prosperity<\/a> and strengthen the Summit network, setting the\u2064 stage for collective action\u200b in the coming year.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Note all the socialist terms: &#8220;work for\u200c everyone &#8230; shared economic agenda &#8230; Shared Prosperity &#8230; collective action.&#8221; That&#8217;s what it&#8217;s really about: controlling our lives and shoveling our \u2062taxes to the union, \u2063corporate,\u2064 and\u200c other elites \u2063that run the state.<\/p>\n<p>On the <a href=\"https:\/\/cafwd.org\/news\/summit-day-one-the-powerhouse-of-californias-economy-gaining-more-recognition\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">first\u2062 day<\/a>, Lt.\u200b Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, who is <a href=\"https:\/\/eleniforca.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">running<\/a> for governor\u2063 in 2026, spoke in\u2063 platitudes\u2062 about the great opportunities the state faces. Which is\u200d true\u2014if \u2062you&#8217;re wealthy like her. She comes from a prominent Sacramento <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Eleni_Kounalakis\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">construction family<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;A great deal of my time is in the international space and\u200c that allows me to work on economic development issues,&#8221; she said. &#8220;My \u200cbelief is that\u2064 the challenges that we have in this state, difficult though they are, are \u200dnot bigger than our capacity to address them.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\" style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"aligncenter\"><figcaption>Lt.\u2064 Gov. of \u2064California Eleni Kounalakis speaks onstage during EMILYs List&#8217;s 2023 Pre-Oscars\u2064 Breakfast at The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, Calif., on March 7,\u200c 2023. (Araya Doheny\/Getty Images for EMILYs List)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>As\u200c lieutenant governor, she also sits \u2062on the boards\u2062 of \u2062regents of\u200b the University of California, the trustees of\u200d the California State University system, and the governors of the California Community Colleges\u2064 system. &#8220;To me, this is our conveyor\u200b belt of talent into our societies and into our economy\u2014the largest and most powerful generator\u2063 of economic success comes through \u200dthe system of \u200bhigher ed in our state,&#8221; she said.<\/p>\n<p>Of course, she\u200c didn&#8217;t address the recent dumbing down of education standards in the state, which I <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/opinion\/californias-dumbed-down-schooling-torpedoing-us-defense-vs-china-russia-5494618\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">covered<\/a> last month in The Epoch Times\u200b in, &#8220;California&#8217;s Dumbed-Down Schooling Torpedoing US Defense \u2063vs. \u200dChina, Russia.&#8221; Like all Democrats in\u200b the state, and\u2063 many Republicans,\u200c she\u200c needs strong \u2063union endorsements to win, especially from the most powerful force in the state,\u200c the \u200dCalifornia Teachers\u2063 Association.<\/p>\n<h2>Energy &#8216;Transition&#8217;<\/h2>\n<p>Naturally, there was a panel on \u200dthe planned transition to\u2063 &#8220;carbon neutrality&#8221; by\u2063 2045. \u200cIt was hosted by Tim \u200cKelley, president and\u200b CEO of \u2064the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ivedc.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Imperial Valley Economic Development Corporation<\/a>.\u2062 That has been the fastest growing area\u200c of the state, both because it&#8217;s cheaper than\u2064 the hyper-expensive coastal areas, and because\u2063 it&#8217;s a center for the warehouses for Amazon and \u200dother <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/california-economic-summit-pushes-socialism\/\" title=\"California Economic Summit Advocates for Progressive Economic Policies\">online \u2062giants shipping goods<\/a> to the wealthier areas of Los Angeles, Orange County, and San Diego.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;In some ways, we&#8217;re not going fast enough,\u200c we&#8217;re committed to\u200b the transition,&#8221; said California \u2063Resources\u200d Corporation CEO Francisco Leon. &#8220;There&#8217;s permitting challenges, there&#8217;s regulatory challenges.&#8221; That is, the state&#8217;s existing \u200blabyrinthine regulatory structure is making\u200c it\u2063 difficult to build the new green\u2064 energy infrastructure. It&#8217;s a typical modern California \u200cstory\u200b of the state getting its feet \u2064twisted and tripping over itself.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\" style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"aligncenter\"><figcaption>Giant wind turbines are seen near \u2064Palm Springs, Calif., on May 13, 2008. (David McNew\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Said\u200d Erik Bartsch, \u200dPresident and CEO of Aera Energy, &#8220;We need to deliver affordable energy to people. We can&#8217;t leave anyone\u200b behind in this equation. We&#8217;ve got \u200bto work together to reach the \u2063state&#8217;s\u2064 2045 net-zero goals, \u200cand that means bringing out all the technology and creativity to get there.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Except the Wall Street Journal \u200d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/green-power-gets-pricier-after-years-of-declines-87d71d5f\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">reported<\/a> in August, &#8220;Wind and \u200dsolar power grew rapidly in part because <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/solar-power-is-beginning-to-eclipse-fossil-fuels-11581964338?mod=article_inline\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">the price fell \u2063for years<\/a>. Now that\u2064 trend has halted, and companies and utilities are paying \u2063more for green electricity. It reported of the San Juan solar-and-battery farm in the desert of northwest New\u2062 Mexico, planned to power \u206436,000 \u200bhomes, &#8216;But over\u2063 the past three years since the project&#8217;s contract \u2064was signed, solar components got harder to procure and costs for everything <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/solar-panel-shortage-snarls-u-s-green-energy-plans-11669671279?mod=article_inline\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">from panels<\/a> to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/business\/autos\/green-investments-stuck-between-rising-risk-and-government-backing-20c290b1?mod=article_inline\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">financing<\/a> have soared.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Then, as I <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/opinion\/california-climate-policies-only-empower-china-5364536\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">reported<\/a> in June in The Epoch\u200b Times,\u2064 &#8220;California Climate Policies Only Empower China.&#8221; I quoted Graham Allison of Harvard University, who <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/opinion\/california-climate-policies-only-empower-china-5364536\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">wrote<\/a>, \u2062&#8221;China manufactures 80 percent\u2063 of all the solar panels produced globally. And, as the IEA notes, China&#8217;s dominance \u200cis even more pronounced when one examines\u2063 the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ford-ceo-admits-he-got-a-reality-check-when-trying-road-trip-with-electric-pickup-truck\/\" title=\"Ford CEO acknowledges reality check during electric pickup truck road trip.\">entire\u200d supply chain<\/a>. \u2063It produces 85 percent of the global supply of solar \u200bcells, 88 percent of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/john-kerry-softens-u-s-stance-on-uyghur-slave-labor-from-which-he-financially-benefits\/\" title=\"John Kerry Softens U.S. Stance on Uyghur Slave Labor from Which He Financially Benefits\">solar-grade polysilicon<\/a>, and \u200b97 percent of\u200d the silicon ingots\u2062 and wafers that form\u200d the core of solar cells.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h2>DEI in Action<\/h2>\n<p>Diversity, equity, and inclusion \u2062is the \u2064buzz acronym popular \u200dnowadays. It was \u200con display at the summit in the panel &#8220;Working Session\u2014Entrepreneurship and Small Business Ownership by Women\u200b and People of\u2063 Color.&#8221; The\u200d panel summary\u200c noted, &#8220;Minority-owned small businesses are crucial to California&#8217;s economy \u2062as they represent 45% small businesses in the state, support 2.6 million\u2063 jobs annually and generate \u200b$192.8 billion in \u200ceconomic output.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>So\u200b what&#8217;s the problem? More data needed for bureaucratic meddling.\u2063 Beacon Economics&#8217; Samuel Maury-Holmes prepared a <a href=\"https:\/\/calosba.ca.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/The-State-of-Diverse-Business-in-California_v1.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">report<\/a> for the summit, &#8220;The State of Diverse Businesses in California,&#8221; commissioned by the California Hispanic, African American, and Asian American\u2062 Chambers of \u200cCommerce. But at the link, the report itself says funding was through the California Office of Small Business Advocate, on whose site the report is hosted. So we taxpayers paid for it.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\" style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"aligncenter\"><figcaption>California Gov. \u2063Gavin Newsom speaks during a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/calif-gov-slammed-for-bill-signing-ceremony-in-deli\/\" title=\"Calif. Gov. slammed for bill signing ceremony in deli\">bill signing ceremony<\/a> at Nido&#8217;s Backyard Mexican Restaurant in San Francisco on Feb. 9, 2022. (Justin Sullivan\/Getty\u2062 Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Mr. Maury-Holmes \u2064explained more data is needed,\u2063 &#8220;So policymakers and stakeholders have the tools that\u2063 they need to see if their policies they&#8217;re bringing forward and the solutions they&#8217;re bringing forward \u2063are actually having an impact on\u200b the local communities.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Actually, federal, state, and local civil rights laws already prevent discrimination. What&#8217;s needed\u200c is for government \u200dto back off \u2063and just \u2063let people compete. Read Mr. Maury-Holmes&#8217;s statement again: &#8220;tools &#8230; policies &#8230; solutions &#8230; impact&#8221; \u2063is just more socialist control\u200c of our communities.<\/p>\n<p>California needs not more\u200d pointless data and interference in \u2064the economy, \u200cbut a return to the Wild West of individualism and competition that built the \u2063state.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, note how The Epoch Times&#8217;s\u2062 California coverage, not this summit of mirrors, provides a true picture \u200cof what&#8217;s going on in this \u200cstate.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-5\">\n    <em>Views expressed in this article are opinions of the\u2064 author and do not necessarily reflect the views of \u2062The Epoch Times.<\/em>\n  <\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> <\/p>\n<h2> How did the \u2062summit&#8217;s sponsorship\u2062 by California Forward, \u200ba \u200bgroup known\u200d for \u2064advocating tax and regulatory increases, impact its prioritization of the concerns\u2062 of the people?<\/h2>\n<p><span>  \u200d California&#8217;s Economic \u200cSummit: A Mirage of\u2062 Solutions<\/p>\n<p>The California Economic\u200d Summit held in Indian Wells from October 11-13, 2023, \u2064aimed to address the economic \u2063challenges facing the\u2064 state. However, it seems that the summit \u200dfailed\u200d to deliver\u200c meaningful solutions, instead perpetuating the same issues\u200c that\u2062 are \u200bhindering California&#8217;s growth.<\/p>\n<p>One of the primary problems highlighted by participants is the high\u2063 taxes and excessive regulations in the\u2064 state. These factors contribute to the rising cost of living, with\u200d housing being\u2064 especially unaffordable for many Californians. It is\u2062 widely believed that addressing\u2062 these issues\u200d would greatly improve the state&#8217;s \u2062economic outlook, encouraging\u2063 people to stay and even \u200cattracting new\u2064 residents.<\/p>\n<p>However, it appears that\u2062 the summit, sponsored\u2064 by \u2064California Forward, a group known \u2064for advocating tax and regulatory \u200dincreases, failed to prioritize the concerns of the\u200c people.\u2063 In \u200bfact, last year&#8217;s summit, \u200ccovered by The Epoch Times, was titled &#8220;Recession Barely Registers at CA FWD&#8217;s Economic Summit,&#8221; suggesting that the event did not \u2064adequately address the economic \u2064challenges faced by the state.<\/p>\n<p>The blurb for \u2063this year&#8217;s summit claims that\u2064 it \u200daims to create a shared economic \u200dagenda known as \u2064the &#8220;Roadmap to Shared Prosperity.&#8221; However, the\u2063 language \u200cused, such as &#8220;work for everyone,&#8221; &#8220;shared economic\u200d agenda,&#8221; and &#8220;collective action,&#8221; raises\u2063 concerns about the \u200dtrue intentions behind this initiative. It seems that the summit is more focused on\u2064 controlling\u200c the lives of Californians and funneling \u200dtheir taxes to unions, corporations, and \u2062other elites that hold sway in the state.<\/p>\n<p>On the first \u2062day\u2062 of the \u2064summit, Lt.\u200c Gov. \u2064Eleni Kounalakis, who is running for governor in\u200b 2026, spoke about\u200c the opportunities facing the state. However, her perspective seems limited to the wealthy, given her\u2063 background in a prominent construction family. While she acknowledged the \u200bchallenges faced by the state, she expressed belief in the capacity to address them. However, \u2064it remains to be seen whether her\u2064 beliefs \u2063align with the \u200bconcerns of ordinary \u2063Californians.<\/p>\n<p>It\u200c is worth noting that \u2062Lt. Gov. Kounalakis also\u200b holds \u2062positions on\u200b various state boards and\u200d committees related to education. \u200cShe \u2062emphasized the importance\u200b of the education system in driving economic\u200d success. However, she failed to address the recent concerns about \u2062the declining standards \u2063in California&#8217;s\u200b education system. This omission raises doubts about the effectiveness of her \u2063leadership \u2062in addressing the state&#8217;s economic \u2063challenges.<\/p>\n<p>In\u200b conclusion, \u2063the 2023 California Economic \u200bSummit held in \u200dIndian Wells appears to be a mirage of solutions. While the event claimed \u200dto address the state&#8217;s economic challenges, it \u2064failed to prioritize the concerns \u2064of Californians, especially\u2064 regarding high taxes and \u200cexcessive regulations. The true intentions behind the\u200b summit&#8217;s \u2064initiatives are\u200c questionable,\u2063 as they seem \u2063to focus \u2062on exerting control rather than delivering\u200c tangible benefits to the people. With inadequate attention given to critical issues, such as declining \u200deducation standards, it is \u200cuncertain\u200d whether this\u2063 summit\u2064 will bring the<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>California&#8217;s economic woes can be boiled down to this: excessive taxes and regulations, along with exorbitant costs, particularly in housing. Addressing these issues will lead to improvement, enticing people to stay and return. However, this concise summary would only occupy a mere 10 minutes during the 2023 California Economic Summit.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1801,"featured_media":2074247,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[543],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2074246","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-epoch-times"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2074246","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1801"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2074246"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2074246\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2074247"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2074246"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2074246"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2074246"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}