Some of the biggest names in the California GOP are staying quiet on recalling Gavin Newsom

Recalling Gov. Gavin Newsom is a top priority for Republicans across America. The Republican National Committee has donated $250,000 to the effort, and big-name GOP leaders like Mike Huckabee and Newt Gingrinch have offered their support and financial backing to the campaign.

But some of California’s best-known Republicans are staying fairly quiet. Eleven members of the state’s congressional delegation are Republicans, and recall organizers say they are not particularly involved in the push to oust Newsom.

“I am very happy with the level of support they’re giving, which is zero,” recall leader Orrin Heatlie said of California’s Republican Congressional delegation. “This is a movement of the people, by the people. This isn’t a party movement, this is a people’s movement. We are not specifically seeking the endorsement of Republican Congress people.”

In 2003, members of Congress were heavily involved in the effort to oust Democratic Gov. Gray Davis. California Republican Rep. Darrell Issa was one of the major financial backers of the Davis recall, donating $1.3 million of his own money to the effort.

This time, seven of the state’s Republican representatives did not respond to repeated requests for comment on the recall, including three of the members who narrowly won seats in swing districts last fall.

Things are a bit different with Newsom as poll numbers show he has a strong chance for survival. GOP consultant Mike Madrid said there’s likely to be more support from national Republicans as an election approaches.

“It’s not unusual, I think, for congressional Republicans to stay out of state affairs,” he said. “I think as it draws closer, you’ll probably see more engagement. There’s really no downside for Republicans in supporting it.”

Some, to be sure, strongly back the recall.

Newsom “has continued to pursue policies that have produced among the highest energy, water and housing costs in the nation, as well as rising crime, rampant homelessness, failing schools, faltering businesses and fleeing families,” Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Elk Grove said. “The recall was specifically designed to rid us of such officials.”

Former GOP Rep. Doug Ose, who plans to run against Newsom in a recall election, said it’s up to each member to decide whether they support the recall. Ose was in Congress during the 2003 Davis recall and said he supported removing the Democrat at that time because he had closely followed the failings of California’s energy grid.

“Each member, whether you’re Republican or Democrat, has to make a decision as to whether or not the current set of circumstances meets that requirement of improving things,” Ose said. “And I’m respectful of whatever decision they make.”

McClatchy asked every Republican member of Congress to weigh in on the Newsom recall. Here is how they responded or have commented recently:

GOP leader lays low

House Minority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield, did not respond to a request for comment, but has in the past voiced support for removing Newsom. At a Feb. 24 press conference, McCarthy criticized California’s vaccination policy and praised West Virginia.

“What California needs probably is a new governor,” McCarthy said in February. “The management is poor, the schools are shut down....this governor continues to keep us shut down.”

Newly elected Republicans

California Republicans flipped four Democratic congressional districts in 2020, and those seats are expected to be battleground again in 2022.

Rep. Michelle Steel’s office confirmed she has signed the recall petition, but she did not offer comment. Steel, R-Seal Beach, narrowly beat out incumbent Democratic Harley Rouda in 2020, winning 51.1% of the vote over his 48.9%.

Rep. Young Kim, R-Fullerton, did not respond to a request for comment, but recently criticized a bill in the California Senate that would change recall rules, saying Newsom’s leadership has resulted in “high unemployment, a slow and unorganized vaccine rollout, and tens of billions in EDD fraud.” Kim narrowly won California’s 39th district seat in 2020, with 50.6% of the over incumbent Democrat Gil Cisneros’ 49.4%.

Rep. David Valadao, R-Hanford, said “I’ll support the effort to recall Governor Newsom. For far too long, Gov. Newsom has subjected Californians to economy-crushing lockdowns, damaging school closures, mismanagement of water supply, refusal to address ravaging wildfires, and a complete failure to prioritize the needs of the Central Valley.”

Valadao narrowly beat out incumbent Democrat TJ Cox in 2020, with a margin smaller than 1% between the two.

Rep. Mike Garcia, R-Santa Clarita, did not respond to a request for comment. He won defeated Democrat Christy Smith in 2020 by a margin of about 330 votes.

Red California

Rep. Ken Calvert, R-Corona, said ”Gavin Newsom dined at the French Laundry when small businesses across the state suffered under lockdown orders, then sent his kids to in-person education at a private school when millions of California students were denied similar opportunities. His record is full of failures and hypocrisy. He deserves to be recalled.”

Rep. Doug LaMalfa, R-Oroville, did not return a request for comment, but recently posted on his campaign Facebook account thanking recall volunteers for their work.

Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Tulare, did not respond to a request for comment, but did endorse the recall during remarks at the Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, in February.

Rep. Jay Obernolte, R-Big Bear Lake, did not respond to a request for comment.

Issa, R-Vista, who was the major funder of the 2003 Davis recall, did not respond to a request for comment, but said the following in a March 19 TV interview with The National Desk, a conservative media organization.

“We can only get to 51% of the recall if a massive amount of Democrats vote with us. This could not, it is not a Republican initiative. No question at all that thousands of Democrats sign that petition every day and ask that he be recalled….They want him gone and they want somebody that will make the right decision. This hypocrite has to go.”

McClintock, R-Elk Grove, quoted in part above, said, “Yes, I support the recall of Gavin Newsom. The damage he has done to California is unprecedented. His ham-handed lockdowns destroyed millions of livelihoods while utterly failing to slow the spread of the disease. They have stolen more than a year of education from our children. They have caused a tragic increase in suicides, drug and alcohol deaths, delayed health treatments and screenings and poverty related deaths.

“Perhaps the recall can also prompt Californians finally to ask why California — once the most prosperous state in the nation — now suffers the highest effective poverty rate, and one of the highest tax burdens and unemployment rates in America.”