News from CCR’s President

CCR Shines at CAGOP Convention

First off, I would like to thank all the Republican candidates for their pursuit of public office.  From school board to Governor of California, the campaign trail is a long one that is emotionally, physically, and financially draining.  Republican candidates are peppered with endless questions about their ideas and solutions to problems and are often misquoted or attacked in the press and social media.  So, I applaud the candidates for the courage, dedication, and hard work it takes to run for an office.

The California Congress of Republicans held their endorsement convention just prior to the CAGOP Anaheim Convention. CCR delegates from all parts of California, from Shasta to San Diego, from the Central Coast to Hemet and San Bernardino, gathered and endorsed Republican candidates for 8 statewide offices as well as numerous candidates for district seats. Our endorsements were publicized on our website and through email blasts. Many candidates touted their CCR endorsement in their speeches and campaigns.  At the CAGOP convention, delegates voted to endorse 6 statewide candidates, all of whom were previously endorsed by CCR.

The California Congress of Republicans co-sponsored with the Log Cabin and Young Republican organizations, a “Spring Cleaning” reception on Saturday evening at the Anaheim Convention.  Hundreds of Republicans enjoyed the event with the theme of “cleaning” the Democrats out of office in our 2022 election.

The California Congress of Republicans presented itself well at the convention. Our endorsements helped six statewide candidates secure the CAGOP endorsement. No CCR endorsed candidate was opposed by the CAGOP. We shared a fun time with our Republican friends from all over California at our social event.

Now is the time to help our endorsed candidates and turn out our fellow Republican voters in the primary election.  Reach out to your family and friends and offer your knowledge and recommendations.  Email or text them a link to the California Congress of Republicans endorsements in both statewide and district races.  And of course, don’t forget to cast your vote early and track your ballot to be sure it is counted!

This is the Most Wonderful Time of Year

The season begins with leaves changing their color and the weather turning crisper and cooler. The obscene dry heat is a thing of the past and the air just smells better. In California, we begin our hopes that we will get rain.  Anticipation grows as several holidays and celebrations approach.

Perhaps my favorite holiday is Thanksgiving.  It reminds us to be grateful for everything we hold dear and for our good fortune.  A joyous feast is the center piece of the holiday where we consume great quantities of comfort food with family members. During our food coma, we play games, exchange stories, and enjoy each other’s company. We flashback to the difficulties faced by the earliest settlers and their perseverance that led to the formation of the greatest country on earth that provides the freedom and liberties we all enjoy every day of the year.

Christmas sneaks up on us next. It always seems to arrive too quickly, but it is a wonderful journey.  We attend several parties, mail Christmas cards to our friends, reach out to persons that we don’t see regularly, and make lists for gift shopping and check it twice. We start scheduling the timetable to watch our favorite movies, “A Charlie Brown Christmas”, “Frosty the Snowman”, “Miracle on 34^th Street”, “A Christmas Carol”, “How the Grinch stole Christmas”, and “Elf”, to name a few.  And it all culminates with another family gathering where gifts are exchanged, and another delicious meal is shared.

New Years Eve is a late but festive evening and morphs into parades and football bowl games on January 1^st.  Another time for friends and family to gather and make our resolutions for the year.  And of course, more food.

I love the Holiday Season. Let the diets begin

Vote Yes to Recall Gavin Newsom

The California Congress of Republicans proudly endorses the “Yes” vote to Recall Governor Gavin Newsom. The utmost priority must be to

vote YES on Question 1: Recall Gavin Newsome and rid our state of the worst governor in California history.

I will list a few of the reasons why the Governor must be removed:

• The Employment Development Department has wasted over $30 billion in fraudulent checks to prison inmates and other criminals, while forcing hundreds of thousands of out-of-work Californians to wait for months for the money they are owed.
• After ordering strict stay at home and mask mandates, along with limitations on social gatherings, Gavin Newsom arrogantly ignored his own edicts by dining with lobbyists at the French Laundry restaurant while not wearing a mask or social distancing.
• Gavin Newsom cut 150 million dollars from the state’s fire protection budget and misled the public about his fire protection record. Devastating wildfires continue to ravage our state every year, setting new records for total acreage destroyed.
• Gavin Newsom allowed teachers’ unions, not science, to dictate when schools could reopen and set the rules on mask mandates and vaccination requirements.
• Massive number of Executive Orders and Government overreach without involvement of State legislature
• Homelessness is rampant and continues to grow. Governor Newsom has been completely awful at solving this problem. He wants to spend billions more on new programs and estimates it will take five more years to see any progress
• Californians pay more than $1.20 over than the national average for a gallon of gasoline. Gavin Newsome refused to stop the most recent gas tax increase on July 1.
• Highest State Income Tax in our nation.
• One of the Highest State Sales Tax in our Nation.
• One of the Highest State Property Tax in our Nation
• Executive Order to Phase Out Gasoline-Powered Cars by 2035
• Infringements on our 1st Amendment Rights to Protest and Worship
• Crime is spiking and yet he continues to release thousands of violent criminals from prison
• Sanctuary state for illegal aliens and criminals
• Countless new Gun and Ammo laws
• AB 5 law hindering Truckers and Independent contractors
• Mandatory Mail-in Voting

There is a very strong field of Republican candidates running for Governor in the Recall Election.  Let’s have the voters decide who will be the next Governor.  California will be much better off after we remove the arrogant, elitist Gavin Newsom from office on September 14.

Vote YES on Question 1: Recall Gavin Newsom

Submitted:

Mark Hershey

President, California Congress of Republicans

No More Taxes. PLEASE.

Taxes hurt.  Taxes hurt bad.  Even socialist Bernie Sanders does not want to pay taxes.  Bernie earned $1.1 million dollars in 2016 and 2017, but when he was asked if he paid extra taxes to support his socialist agenda, he deflected the question and rationalized that other rich people do not pay extra taxes. Typical response from big government legislators – “Do as I say, not as I do.”

I understand taxes are necessary to pay the debts and provide for the national defense and general welfare of the United States of America, the greatest country on Earth.  But the expansion of “general welfare” has been blown out of control, especially in our beloved state of California.  Irresponsible tax-generating legislators have found creative ways to hide their methods of taxation on us.

In California, we are taxed, surcharged, assessed, and fined from a myriad of sources, many of which we are unaware. Besides the highest income tax in the country at 13.3%, California charges a 1% lumber tax on qualified wood products, a paint fee of 75 cents per gallon, a Tire Fee when purchasing each new tire as well as a disposal fee when you return the old tire, an automotive battery fee, an Electronic Waste Recycling fee on purchases of laptops, televisions, and computer monitors, and even a $10.50 mattress recycling fee.  Los Angeles county sales tax comes in around 9 %.  My cellphone bill collected seven different state taxes and one L A county tax.  My property tax bill had the 1% general tax levy but added another $1400 in annual taxes for community college, schools, sanitation district, sewer, vector control, flood control and many more itemized fees. Check out your bills, you may be surprised.

California also has extreme taxes on tobacco products, alcoholic beverages, and cannabis.  The tax for one pack of cigarettes is $2.87 with other tobacco products being taxed at 56% of the wholesale cost.  Cannabis has 15% excise tax rate of the average market price plus 60% markup for arm length transactions.  The California Liquor Tax is $3.30 per gallon.  Of course, there are licensing fees for all persons or businesses making sales of these products.

In 2017, California legislators passed Senate Bill 1 which was the infamous gasoline tax that has increased state excise taxes to 50.5 cents per gallon. California state sales tax on gasoline adds on average another 10.7 cents per gallon.  The federal government charges an excise tax of 18.4 cents per gallon.  That total comes to 79.6 cents per gallon.

Harder to find fees include:

• Underground Storage Tank fee of 2 cents per gallon
• Fuels Under the Cap fee currently charges another 14.3 cents per gallon
• Low Carbon Fuel Standard fee varies but estimated to be 22.6 cents per gallon.

These fees add an additional 38.9 cents per gallon for a total of $1.185 per gallon in taxes and fees. Congratulations, California has the highest gas prices in the country.

Vehicle registration also increased dramatically with all the revenue promised to improve state and local roadways.  But in stepped Governor Newsom to sign Executive Order N-19-19 which directed the state to spend money on projects “to help reverse the trend of increased fuel consumption and reduce greenhouse gas emissions associated with the transportation sector.” In response, the California Department of Transportation proposed delaying funding for three highway widening projects in San Luis Obispo County and the Central Valley, instead setting aside $61 million in SB 1 funds “for priority rail projects and other priorities aligned with the Executive Order.”

And Now

President Biden has outlined a two-part economic plan that will cost between $3 trillion and $4 trillion over the course of a decade.  The president says the first is the “American Jobs Plan” and the second is the “American Families Plan.” Some considerations in the plan include $621 billion in transportation infrastructure, $400 billion for expanding access to quality, affordable home- or community-based care for elderly and people with disabilities, expanding health insurance coverage, extending the child tax benefit, building 500,000 electric vehicle chargers, and numerous mentions of investments in technology addressing climate change.  But President Biden assures us that our taxes will not increase because these plans will be funded by raising the corporate tax rate to 28%, an increase of 7%. This massive infrastructure proposal is a vehicle to advance far-left wing policies.

We cannot afford the policies of these tax grabbing elected officials.  Our children cannot afford these costs.  Our national debt is greater than $27 trillion, and America’s federal debt is set to exceed the size of the entire U.S. economy this year for only the second time since the end of World War II. The cost of living in California is already too high and forcing many of our young people to move out of state where they can buy a home and live a middle-class lifestyle. Big government is not efficient and is extremely expensive. Help the California Congress of Republicans elect more fiscally responsible legislators. We cannot afford any more bigger spenders.

Mark Hershey

Resources:

• The Epoch Times
• California Department of Tax and Fee Administration   cdtfa.ca.gov
• National Debt Clock, Peter G. Peterson Foundation,  pgpf.org/national-debt-clock
• Property Tax Statement for author, Los Angeles County Tax Collector

Introduction to CCR

Mark Hershey, CCR Chair

California Congress of Republicans (CCR) is a statewide organization, permanently chartered by the California Republican Party with chapters throughout the State of California. Many of our members also serve on their respective county Republican Central Committees and local Republican clubs.

The CCR has many objectives, some of which are: (a) to become an influential political force for constructive action to preserve and protect responsible constitutional government, (b) to educate members and the public at large regarding pending legislation, candidates for public office, and the important issues of the day, (c) to encourage qualified Republicans to seek public office, (d) to help Republican candidates get elected, (e) to increase Republican registration and voter turnout, and (f) to promote unity, effectiveness and loyalty among all Republican groups.

To achieve some of CCR objectives, we partnered with South Peninsula Area Republican Coalition (SPARC) to provide a monthly “Speaker’s Series” presentation.  An important and timely topic is selected and then an outstanding speaker is scheduled for the event. These topics include: “What’s Next for the Supreme Court”; U.S. and China relations; California ballot initiatives; post-election analysis; legislative attacks on Proposition 13; and the effects of Propositions 47 and 57 on the criminal justice system.

California Congress of Republicans provide an opportunity for like-minded individuals who share important core values to network and socialize with each other. This camaraderie can be furthered by participating in or joining a chartered organization in their community.  Because CCR is statewide and a chartered organization, its members’ voices are heard at the California State Republican Party level.

We welcome new members with diverse ideas, who relish the power of teamwork. We will assist you in building your chapter!  CCR helps identify, bring forward and endorse statewide candidates. Send your recommendations to our leadership.

For more information, please call me at (661) 433-2593 or email me at [email protected].

Sincerely,

Mark Hershey

CCR President’s News Archive