SACRAMENTO—We all know the old Peanuts comic where Lucy offers to hold the football for Charlie Brown so that he can kick it, then she yanks it away at the last moment and Charlie falls down on his back. She does this constantly and yet, sure enough, Charlie Brown always takes the bait. It has become symbolic of people who are slow to learn obvious lessons—even painful ones.
It’s also a metaphor for California Democrats who every year step in a trap set by Republicans regarding the crime issue. It’s an astounding sight considering that Democrats have all the power—supermajorities in the Legislature, control of the governorship and every state constitutional office. Perhaps it’s born of the arrogance of power, but they nevertheless continually get outsmarted on one of the few issues where the GOP can make headway.
The latest fracas involves Assembly Bill 379, an anti-sex-trafficking bill sponsored by a moderate Democrat but strongly supported by Republicans. “California Democrats rejected … a Republican-backed effort to advance a policy to increase penalties for soliciting and buying sex from 16- and 17-year-olds, an issue that’s caused friction among Democrats and prompted Gov. Gavin Newsom to weigh in,” according to a May 1 report in the Associated Press.
Why would the legislative majority think such a move would fly under the radar? As expected, Republicans used the vote to portray Democrats as soft on crime and willing to look the other way at predators who abuse teen-agers. Buying sex from those 15 years old or younger is a felony, but buying sex from 16- or 17-year-olds is a misdemeanor. Republicans identified the loophole—and then let Democrats revert to form by opposing an effort to close it.
“Do 16- and 17-year-olds deserve the same protection as all other minor when it comes to child prostitution?” asked Republican Minority Leader James Gallagher of Yuba City. Progressives had argued that the bill would be used to target minorities and members of the LGBTQ community, which isn’t particularly persuasive given the measure deals only with prostitution. Their one possibly legitimate argument—that prosecutors could impose harsh penalties on, say, an 18-year-old who was in a relationship with a 17-year-old—also seemed odd given the bill deals with prostitution.
Indeed, after the blowback lawmakers addressed that concern. They reinstated tough penalties for solicitation, but included an amendment applying it only when the accused is three years older than the solicited teen. Most of the bill seems relatively noncontroversial, as it focuses on rehabilitation programs for those convicted of soliciting sex. Whatever the substantive details, the Democrats obligingly played the Charlie Brown role and got tripped up in its most-controversial element.
The Democratic blunder wasn’t lost on Gov. Gavin Newsom, who weighed in: “The law should treat all sex predators who solicit minors the same, as a felony, regardless of the intended victim’s age. Full stop.” If Newsom does run for president, he’s smart enough not to want nationally televised GOP ads that could portray him as soft on sex trafficking and child prostitution. Why his legislative allies couldn’t do this from the start is anyone’s guess—especially given recent history on a similar measure.
In 2023, Sen. Shannon Grove, R-Bakersfield, authored a bill that would have classified child trafficking as a “serious felony” under the state’s three strikes law. Per news reports, Democrats wouldn’t go on the record opposing it. But the Assembly Public Safety Committee—the redoubt of progressive opposition to crime bills—quietly blocked it. But then the public backlash ensued, Democrats reversed course, and the governor backed it and ultimately signed Senate Bill 14. Grove is one of the most conservative members in a liberal Legislature, yet she was able to embarrass Democrats and get them to backpedal.
Democrats self-immolated regarding Proposition 36, the 2024 ballot initiative that passed with 68% of the vote. Democrats had played all sorts of games. They delayed passing an anti-crime package, then inserted (and removed under pressure) poison pill amendments to those bills that were designed to undermine support for Prop. 36. They even tried unsuccessfully to qualify competing anti-crime measures on the ballot to confuse voters.
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Steven Greenhut is Western region director for the R Street Institute and a member of the Southern California News Group Editorial Board. Write to him at [email protected].
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