Newsom's Nuances

By Brent E. Zepke, Esq.

Gavin Newsom. Courtesy Instagram

Portrait of an Active (but ineffective) Governor

California Governor Gavin Newsom’s photograph along with the interview of him wearing aviator sunglasses, the clean black tee that Steve Jobs, and now Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, have made required apparel for anyone hoping to be identified with the tech industry, jeans, and work gloves as he picked up trash left by a homeless encampment in Los Angeles, inspired me to think of the phrase “Newsom’s Nuances.” 

A nuance is a subtle difference in the meaning of an expression.

Why did this photograph and interview inspire thoughts of a “nuance?”

The Photograph, The Questions

Was the photograph – actually, a video – that was meant to appear to be random, really random? Or was it part of a program established six months ago, when Charles Ommanney accompanied the governor of California on a trip to China?

After that trip, coincidentally, the governor created a new taxpayer-funded state position of Director of Photography, at a starting salary of $200,000 a year, and wouldn’t you know, he gave the job to… Charles Ommanney, who is a journalist and who creates portraitures for use in social media.

A portraiture is defined as “the art of creating a portrait, which is a close study of one person.” For example, taking a candid shot of your friend riding her skateboard isn’t a portraiture, but asking her to pose with her skateboard while you take a photo is. 

Ommanney’s photo, or video, of the governor wearing aviator sunglasses, and a black tee shirt, while picking up trash in L.A. appears to be posed, hence, it’s a portraiture.

Homelessness 

A decade or more ago, when I served as representative for supervisor Brooks Firestone on Santa Barbara’s Human Relations Commission, the retiring head of housing told me that Santa Barbara used the federal definition of homelessness that included, according to him, anyone who spent at least a day a year without a roof over his head, or whenever too many people occupied the same unit.

Hmmm, I hope he misspoke, as I find it hard to believe that Santa Barbara would consider anyone homeless for going camping. And if four people share a housing unit designed for three, who is homeless: one, two, three, or all of them?

Currently, the actual federal definition of homelessness is a family that lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence.

 The California definition is anyone who is: 

1. literally homeless,

2. at imminent risk of becoming homeless,

3. homeless under federal statutes,

4. fleeing/attempting to flee domestic violence. 

I must confess I do not see the difference between 1 and 3 above, or between 2 and 4.

The Interview

Was the interview by the trash site meant to be a candid interview or part of a portraiture?

The interview of the governor, dressed as he was, alone, picking up trash in L.A. – the city with the most homelessness in California – hundreds of miles from Sacramento, appears to have been posed.

Governor Newsom discussed the Executive Order he issued after the U.S. Supreme Court, in Grants Pass, Oregon v Johnson, overturned the Ninth Circuit to permit the removal of homeless encampments on public properties.

While the governor seemed to be creating the impression that his July 25, 2024, Executive Order was reducing homelessness in California, was there a subtle difference between what he had done or was doing, and reality?

The Executive Order

Governor Newsom’s executive order directs state agencies and departments to adopt humane and dignified policies to urgently address encampments on state property.

Notice his order only applies to state agencies and departments, and state property.

How does one remove someone humanely and with dignity who doesn’t want to be removed? 

The order requires the adoption of policies and plans consistent with the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans). Clean California projects prioritize encampments that pose a threat to the life, health, and safety, of the community. Caltrans provides advance notice of clearance and works with local service providers to support those experiencing homelessness at the encampment, and stores personal property collected at the site for at least 60 days.

Once the homeless are humanely, and with dignity, removed from state properties, how can local service providers support those experiencing homelessness?

By providing a place for them to move to.

The choices available are owned by the federal or local governments, such as buildings and parks, or by private businesses or persons.

How many homeless are there?

The Number of Homeless

Newsom’s Executive Order cites over 180,000 who have experienced homelessness on any given night in 2023 in California, the leading state for homelessness, including 123,000 who experienced unsheltered living, in tents, trailers, and vehicles.

As you read this, the number is increasing, as the San Diego Border Patrol reported on June 25, 2024, that almost 200,000 people cross the border daily through California ports of entry. 

If only half need housing to accommodate their living four to a unit, it would require adding 25,000 new units a day.

The Nuances

Photographs, videos, and interviews can all be used to pose someone for creating a portraiture to be posted on social media; subtle differences between the posed photograph and reality make it a nuance.

Was the photograph, video, and interview, of the governor wearing aviator sunglasses and a black tee shirt to pick up trash in L.A. used to create a portraiture to be used on social media?

Are we viewing a portraiture of a governor helping to solve the homelessness crisis, or are we looking at someone pretending to solve the homelessness problem, whose Executive Order did not reduce the homelessness situation at all, but only shifted the problem from state properties to the properties of others?

The somewhat subtle difference could be considered Newsom’s Nuances.

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