Less than two weeks out of California’s special election, Barack Obama praised Gov. Gavin Newsom’s (D) redistricting campaign to push back against what the former president described as a “brazen” effort by Republicans to give their party an edge ahead of next year’s midterm elections.
Speaking to volunteers on a call hosted by Newsom on Wednesday, Obama said President Donald Trump and his administration have made clear they are saying they “want to change the rules of the game midstream in order to insulate ourselves from the people’s judgment.”
“They want to tinker around with it to see if they can give themselves an advantage. And it’s brazen,” Obama said. “They’re not pretending that there’s some other rationale to it. They’re simply doing it because they think they can.”
AP Photo/Erin Hooley, File
If approved, Newsom’s proposal — also known as Proposition 50 — would target five GOP-held seats in the Golden State, counteracting moves by Texas, North Carolina and other Republican-led states to redraw their congressional maps mid-decade in an effort to ensure their party maintains control of the U.S. House in the midterms.
Obama added that the passage of Proposition 50 would have “critical implications” beyond California.
“The essence of Prop 50 is to say that if you are going to play that game, then we are going to try to counteract that abuse of the system, and as a consequence of California’s actions, we have a chance, at least, to create a level playing field in the upcoming midterm elections,” he said.
“There’s a broader principle at stake that has to do with whether or not our democracy can be manipulated by those who are already in power to entrench themselves further, or whether we’re going to have a system that allows the people to decide who’s going to represent them,” he continued.
Obama appeared in an ad released last week to promote Newsom’s proposal, warning that “Democracy is on the ballot Nov. 4.”
Newsom thanked Obama for joining the effort.
“We appreciate seeing you up on our screens every hour of every day as our closing messenger on this campaign,” Newsom said.
“I hope it’s dawning on everybody just how precious this moment is,” the governor continued.
