California State Assembly Republican Leader James Gallagher criticized Governor Gavin Newsom's aversion to endorse reparations, saying he makes "big promises he can't or won't keep."
Gallagher said no matter what Newsom does "he's going to anger part of his base."
“It will take absurd mental gymnastics to require California taxpayers, including new immigrants, low-income workers, and even some African Americans to pay for a wrong committed by other states more than 150 years ago, but that’s the position Newsom put himself in," Gallagher told Fox News Digital.
The State Assembly leader went on to say the California Governor makes "big promises he can’t or won’t keep.”
Last week, Newsom declined to sign off on California issuing reparations to black residents saying, “dealing with that legacy is about much more than cash payments.”
"The Reparations Task Force’s independent findings and recommendations are a milestone in our bipartisan effort to advance justice and promote healing,” the California Governor said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “This has been an important process, and we should continue to work as a nation to reconcile our original sin of slavery and understand how that history has shaped our country.”
He continued:Many of the recommendations put forward by the Task Force are critical action items we’ve already been hard at work addressing: breaking down barriers to vote, bolstering resources to address hate, enacting sweeping law enforcement and justice reforms to build trust and safety, strengthening economic mobility — all while investing billions to root out disparities and improve equity in housing, education, healthcare, and well beyond. This work must continue.
"Following the Task Force’s submission of its final report this summer, I look forward to a continued partnership with the Legislature to advance systemic changes that ensure an inclusive and equitable future for all Californians," Newsom concluded.
Based on California’s Task Force’s findings, the group recommended payments to African Americans in the state broken down by historical discrimination. Black Californians affected by redlining by banks would receive $3,366 per year if they lived as a resident in the Golden State between the early 1930s and the late 1970s, Fox News reported. Based on the guidelines, a single individual affected by redlining may receive up to $148,099 in payment.
Black Californians who resided in the state between 1970 and 2020 could receive $2,352 in compensation for over-policing and mass incarceration for each year lived in the state — totaling upwards of $115,260 in payment.
Black Californians qualifying for multiple reparation recommendations could receive a total payment of $1.2 million.
"This futile reparations exercise exposes the non-serious nature of Governor Newsom's leadership," Republican Assemblyman Bill Essayli told Fox News Digital. "Rather than dealing with the problems of California head on he prefers headlines and do-nothing commissions. It might work in a Democrat super-majority state like California, but the rest of America will see right through him."
