National Review's Radio Free California Podcast

In his annual State of the State address, Governor Gavin Newsom blamed “private equity firms in Manhattan” for the state’s housing crisis, and then credited the rise in tech stocks with saving the state budget. In other news: Julie Su is now New York City’s problem, State Senator Scott Wiener wants San Francisco to confiscate Pacific Gas & Electric because the city has done so well with the open-air drug trade, and California AG Rob Bonta is on a losing streak in federal court. Bonus! Finance analyst Marc Joffe joins to discuss the political role of Service Employees International Union beyond its 2026 wealth tax. Music by Metalachi.Email Us:[email protected]@calpolicycenter.orgFollow Us:@DavidBahnsen@WillSwaim@TheRadioFreeCAShow NotesNewsom overcomes unease, dyslexia to deliver a sterling State of the State addressGavin Newsom calls for California to limit home buying by large investorsNew California Rent Laws Going Into Effect in 2026AI windfall helps California narrow projected $3-billion budget deficitNewsom Vows to Stop Proposed Billionaire Tax in CaliforniaGarry Tan on XMamdani Picks Rafael Espinal to Lead New York’s Film OfficeCalifornia Should Stop Forcing Drivers to Subsidize DeforestationHow would San Francisco take over PG&E assets?California Drops Lawsuit Over $4 Billion Federal Cut to High-Speed Rail ProjectHalted: Federal Judge Blocks Enforcement of California’s Newly Enacted Labor LawNinth Circuit strikes down California urban open-carry banMarc Joffe on SEIUThe Union that May Have Broken CaliforniaWhat to Do with California’s Billionaire Tax Proceeds Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

California is in chaos: wildfires, unemployment fraud, a train to nowhere, high energy costs, lousy public education, and a California exodus that includes billionaires and working people piling their personal effects into U-Haul trailers bound for Texas. David and Will discuss why none of that will likely matter in 2028. Bonus! Will travels back nearly 500 years to the rise and fall of Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo -- the first European to set foot in California and to be buried there. Music by Metalachi.Email Us:[email protected]@calpolicycenter.orgFollow Us:@DavidBahnsen@WillSwaim@TheRadioFreeCAShow Notes:One year after the LA fires, survivors' big question: Where's the accountability?Northern California, Bay Area leaders react to strikes on Venezuela, Maduro's captureSEIU’s coy X post (facto)The Legislative Analyst’s Office analysis of the billionaire wealth taxDavid Sacks opens Austin office as threat of California ‘billionaire tax’ loomsSolana Co-Founder Calls California’s Proposed 5% Billionaire Tax Measure ‘Dumb’ – Warns Of Capital FlightBillionaires make strategic moves out of California ahead of proposed wealth taxU-Haul: Florida ranks 2nd for net gain of one-way customers; California last for sixth year in a rowCalifornia State Auditor’s reportWhy Gavin Newsom would crush JD Vance in 2028 The Atlantic: The Front-Runner Even more Cal State campuses will automatically admit eligible students under a new state lawA Math Horror Show at UC San Diego (ep 420)San Francisco mayor quietly signs reparations fund that could lead to $5M payments per personNew California law requires ingredient change for this grocery staple Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

California Justice Center attorney Emily Rae explains Judge Roger Benitez’s blistering rebuke of California policies that encourage school officials, including teachers, to lie to parents about students’ changing gender identity. Benitez on Monday said state AG Rob Bonta's defense of those policies has constitutional law “upside down.” The judge also ordered state officials to notify parents and guardians of their constitutional right to be informed -- and of teachers to inform them -- “when the student expresses gender incongruence.” Music by Metalachi.Email Us:[email protected]@calpolicycenter.orgFollow Us:@DavidBahnsen@WillSwaim@TheRadioFreeCAShow Notes:Judge’s Permanent Injunction in Mirabelli v OlsonJudge’s legal opinion in Mirabelli Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In their annual Year in Review, David and Will consider Gavin Newsom, Donald Trump, TikTok, Sean Penn, Nathan Hochman, the Turtle Island Liberation Front, Karen Bass, Julie Hamill, the Oakland A’s, Nancy Pelosi, the Los Angeles Times, Kamala Harris, Ivanpah Solar, the SEIU, Prop 50, Leonardo DiCaprio, the Beach Boys, Julie Su, One Battle After Another, fire, AB 218, Larry Ellison, homeless people, Lyle Menendez, Bill Essayli, Zizians, ExxonMobil, Patrick Soon-Shiong, Wiener Watch, Brian Wilson, Zohran Mamdani, Lorena Gonzalez, Mayor Amy Bublak, and more. Music by Metalachi.Email Us:[email protected]@calpolicycenter.orgFollow Us:@DavidBahnsen@WillSwaim@TheRadioFreeCAShow Notes:Wildfire of the Vanities: California’s Political Model Has FailedTrump’s First 100 Days Have Shattered California’s Left-Wing IllusionsLawmakers urge $1-billion annual investments to save high-speed railSan Diego migrant shelter hailed as national model will shut down, with 100-plus layoffsGavin Newsom warms to Big Oil in climate reversal$2B California solar plant to shut down after a decade – for the most frustrating reason (Ivanpah)California’s War on Oil Finally Prompts a ResponseThe Public-Sector Union Behind L.A.’s Immigration AgitationGavin Newsom holds mirror to Maga by trolling TrumpCalifornia Approves New House Maps in a Major Win for Democrats and NewsomLarry Ellison Retakes No.3 Richest Spot From Jeff Bezos As Oracle Shares Rise On TikTok DealHarris' score-settling, elbow-throwing, bridge-burning memoirAlready thinking about the 2028 election? You’re not aloneLyle Menendez denied parole, will remain in prison along with younger brother ErikZohran Mamdani picks failed progressive Biden nominee Julie Su as top ‘economic justice’ aideCalifornia businesses bear brunt of growing unemployment benefit debtThe Pol Who Wants to Replace Pelosi Makes Her Look NormaBrian Wilson, Pop Auteur and Leader of the Beach Boys, Dies at 82L.A. Times owner says he intends to take newspaper public in coming yearD.A. to investigate claims of fraud in L.A. County’s $4-billion sex abuse settlementGavin Newsom’s Shameless Dodge on the Homeless CrisisFor L.A.’s mayor, a Palisades recovery marked by missteps, reversals and delays Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In March, Gavin Newsom told the late Charlie Kirk that male athletes competing against females is “deeply unfair.” This week, on Ezra Klein's podcast, he told a very different story. Will and David discuss the great movies and misguided politics of the late Rob Reiner, and the role of Greg Bahnsen in David’s life. The FBI arrests four members of the Turtle Island Liberation Front who hoped to bomb multiple Los Angeles targets on New Year's Eve. Music by Metalachi.Email Us:[email protected]@calpolicycenter.orgFollow Us:@DavidBahnsen@WillSwaim@TheRadioFreeCAShow Notes:The moment my life changed forever, December 12, 2025Rob Reiner was more than a Hollywood liberal. He was a sophisticated political operator.What did California’s novel approach to funding early-childhood programs achieve?Cigarette Taxes and Cigarette Smuggling by State, 2023Newsom taps former CDC leaders critical of Trump-era health policies for new initiativeStates Plan to Continue Regulating AI, Despite Trump’s OrderWells Fargo cuts 100+ Sacramento-area jobs as CEO says AI prompts ‘efficiency’Has Gavin Newsom really signed the most pro-trans bills of any governor?California orders Tahoe-Truckee schools to join CIF sports over gender lawsFBI Arrests Four Alleged Members of Pro-Palestinian Terror Cell, Foiling New Year’s Eve AttackWhat is Turtle Island? FBI foils Pro-Palestinian group terror attack planned for NYE in California Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.