By Reis Thebault · The Washington Post (c) 2024
SACRAMENTO – California lawmakers are returning to the capitol here on Monday to open an emergency special session aimed at establishing a multimillion dollar legal fund to combat the incoming Trump administration with an expected barrage of lawsuits.
The special session, which Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) called after President-elect Donald Trump’s victory last month, kicks off on the same day the state legislature will swear in its own newly elected members – meaning some of their first official actions will be planning for years of anticipated conflict with the federal government.
During the session, which will wrap up before Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20, lawmakers will debate measures to increase funding for the California Department of Justice, whose lawyers are already planning how they will fight the president-elect’s policy proposals in court. Newsom has asked the legislature to create a $25 million litigation reserve.
The special session begins as Democrats across the country are still scrambling to respond to Trump’s election and prepare for an administration that has promised open hostility to blue states and liberal policies.
Trump has said he would revoke California’s ability to set strict pollution limits, and he has mused about withholding federal aid for the state’s schools and for its disaster relief efforts. In addition, his threats of a “mass deportation” would wreak havoc in a state home to more unauthorized immigrants than any other. After his election, Trump’s team pledged to deliver on his campaign promises.
Democrats hold every statewide elected office, maintain a supermajority in the legislature, and Trump remains deeply unpopular in California. But he has benefited from a rightward swing even here, losing by about 20 percentage points in 2024, compared to nearly 30 in 2020.
Even as they navigate these shifting political dynamics in the state, which will make Resistance 2.0 a more challenging undertaking, Newsom and other ambitious California leaders have once again positioned themselves at the vanguard of the anti-Trump movement.
“It would be naive of state leaders if we didn’t take the president-elect at his word: He has his sights set on California,” state Sen. Mike McGuire, a Democrat and the highest-ranking member of California’s upper chamber, said in an interview.
The weeks before Trump takes office are “the calm before the storm,” he said. “Hurricane force winds are about to hit all of us. And in any disaster, it’s all about preparedness. California is battening down the hatches.”
It’s a familiar posture for the state, which under Newsom and his predecessor, Jerry Brown (D), mounted a vigorous and vocal defense against Trump’s policies during his first term. In all, California filed more than 120 lawsuits against that administration and spent nearly $42 million fighting it in court, according to state figures.
Projections indicate that California’s budget remains “roughly balanced,” but the state is just months removed from overcoming a massive shortfall. Nonetheless, Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta argue that the proposed litigation fund represents a bargain investment: During Trump’s first term, for instance, one legal victory ensured that California would receive nearly $60 million in federal grants that the Trump administration had sought to withhold.
The litigation “not only safeguarded California’s values and residents but also delivered tangible financial benefits,” the governor’s office said in a statement.
Using a special session to secure the additional funding will allow money to flow into the attorney general’s office faster, said Jesse Gabriel (D), who leads the California State Assembly’s budget committee.
“We know that in litigation, speed matters and being prepared matters,” said Gabriel, who before running for office represented a group of undocumented immigrants who sued the Trump administration over its attempt to end the program protecting those brought to the country as children. “We want make sure that we have tools in place on Day One to defend California values if we need to.”
The case eventually reached the U.S. Supreme Court, where justices blocked Trump’s attempt to dismantle the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Gabriel said he saw firsthand the power of California’s Justice Department, which led the coalition of states and others fighting the move.
“Because of our size, we’re in a position to assert ourselves and push back that a lot of other states aren’t,” he said. “We’re not going to be afraid to play that role if necessary.”
On Monday, Gabriel introduced two special-session bills to fund future litigation – one of which would establish the $25 million fund – and lawmakers are expected to vote on them when they reconvene in early January. It’s unclear whether any other proposals will be discussed; officials say the special session will be narrowly focused on Justice Department funding.
Still, others argue that the special session has another purpose: to burnish the national credentials of a governor who is widely believed to be interested in running for president.
“There’s no apparent substantive need for a special session at all, but it provides a tremendous platform for Newsom to push back against Trump,” said Dan Schnur, a public policy professor and longtime California political strategist. “There will be a lot more attention – both in California and in Washington – when the legislative session is ‘special.’”
Newsom has criticized his party for not taking on Trump more directly, Schnur said, and the special session could be “an effort on his part to encourage national Democrats to be more confrontational.”
But it will also provide another test for the governor and some fellow Democrats, who have attempted to strike a somewhat awkward balance in the weeks following Trump’s election.
Newsom was quick to denounce Trump as a danger to California, and he has eagerly promoted the state’s efforts to combat the administration’s plans. Last week, he said California would step in and provide rebates for electric vehicle purchases if Trump nixes the federal tax credit, as he has vowed to do.
At the same time, Newsom has sought to temper his tone, embarking on a tour of California counties that voted for Trump to promote a new economic development strategy. At one stop, in Fresno, he promised to extend “an open hand, not a closed fist” to the president-elect.
In a statement Monday, Newsom said he “will work with the incoming administration, and we want President Trump to succeed in serving all Americans.” But he also pledged that “when rights and freedoms are targeted, we will take action.”
Other state Democrats are similarly trying to reassure constituents that they will fight a Trump administration’s attempts to carry out mass deportations, roll back LGBTQ rights or block climate policies – while also signaling they are focused on solving quality of life issues that turned California into a national punching bag.
“We need to look in the mirror at ourselves and ask, ‘Are we doing the best job?’” said Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, the second-highest-ranking Democrat in the State Assembly.
Aguiar-Curry, whose first election to office in 2016 coincided with Trump’s, said this time around is different.
“We kind of know what the Trump administration may be sending forth,” said Aguiar-Curry, whose Northern California district includes much of wine country and other rural areas.“We’ll see if it comes to fruition. But I’m telling my colleagues to keep focused. Let’s just keep focused on the needs of our constituents.”
State Sen. Josh Becker, a Democrat who represents the southern Bay Area, said the state needs to be prepared to counter potential Trump policies targeting California’s immigrant communities and its federal funding for disaster relief. But, he added, he doesn’t think they should spend the next four years simply reacting to Trump’s sudden moves.
Lawmakers shouldn’t lose sight of areas where they can still wield significant power, he said, such as partnering with other states on climate policy.
“It’s not all about Trump,” Becker said. “We have an agenda that we’ll need to continue moving forward.”