Chris White Tech Reporter
October 26, 2019 10:35 PM ET
Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom is warning citizens that they could be in for a long weekend as the state’s public utility announced Saturday plans to shut down huge sections of the electric grid.
The Pacific Gas and Electric Company’s move could black out an estimated 940,000 homes and businesses in parts of more than 30 counties up and down California. PG&E is trying to prevent potential wildfires from spreading through the state while keeping tabs on downed power lines.
Newsom, who is under pressure as gas prices increase, told Californians things are going to be tough for the next few days.
“The next 72 hours will be challenging,” the Democrat said at a news conference. “I could sugarcoat it, but I will not.”
The rolling blackouts could surpass those of the 750,000 customers who dealt with similar shut-offs earlier in October. Newsom started to circulate blame for many of the problems Californians are facing, including the blackouts and rising gas prices.
“These are difficult calls,” he said at Saturday’s conference. “But a society as industrious and entrepreneurial and innovative as ours should not have to face a choice between public safety and public blackouts. We can do both together. And that is what path we are on.”
Newsom also lit into PG&E. (RELATED: Gavin Newsom Stumped By High Gas Prices In California — Where Gas Taxes Outstrip The Other 49 States)
“It’s more than just climate change. It’s about the failure of capitalism to address climate change,” he told reporters Friday as he spoke about the utility’s continued use of rolling blackouts.
Newsom also leaned in on oil companies as the state faces staggering gas prices.
The Democratic governor asked his attorney general Oct. 23 to investigate oil companies for conspiring to keep gas prices artificially high. Newsom based his request on a report suggesting California drivers are paying $1 more per gallon of gasoline than the rest of the country, according to The Associated Press.
As for the blackouts, PG&E said the utility is keeping tabs on wind conditions.
“We are working vigilantly to forecast conditions, and the weather is dynamic and changing,” PG&E spokeswoman Suzanne Hosn said in a statement Saturday. “We are adjusting start times based on the weather forecast.”
Newsom’s office has not responded to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
Politician blames non politicians for the problems politicians caused.
It serves Californians right to suffer. They elected these clowns. And they deserve to be the victims of the politicians misfeasance.
Maybe they will learn their lesson. but, probably not. Look at Argentina. Once the fourth richest country in the world. Peronism destroyed it economically, and yet they are about to put the Peronistas back in office.
“It serves Californians right to suffer.” No, the ones who really deserve to suffer are not suffering. Life for them is great and the guilt is relieved by having the “correct” political and environmental positions.
Obama said straight out that the policies he was proposing would make energy prices “skyrocket”. The overwhelming voted for that. They are now skyrocketing. Not only do they deserve it, they demanded it.
The Republicans in the state ought to challenge the”100% Renewable Energy by 2030″ campaign with a counter campaign: “100% RELIABLE Energy by 2030”. (lol) Assuming there are any Republicans left?
So spot on. This issue is not PGE problem it is liberal govt mgmt problem in CA. 60 years of disaster waiting to happen. 90s request made to thin dead debris and tree huggers and liberals in office prevented it, results are in our faces and lungs daily. Newsom should be recalled and many in office in jail.
Your spot on brother. Libs are bad for our country.
Rex—It does seem that way. Northern California is suffering, while Southern California put in place the things that caused these problems.
Really ignorant take. Northern liberals have way more power in California.
Sheri,
Not sure of that – seems to be an awful lot of this foolishness comes from the Bay Area.
Yes, this is the truth. The “pod” that has delivered many an insane idea originates from the BAY. I heard many a goofy idea when I lived in Berkeley and Oakland 30 and 40 years before they made their way to Colorado and beyond.
Only the poor will suffer, i am talking about people making 100k or less, the others have generators and so they is not blackout for them.
Just wait Winston, soon the leftist politicians will be promising a generator to heat every pot.
All Humboldt County folks need is a lighter to heat their pot…😵
Why there has not been a massive attack on government in CA is a mystery. Those people who are destroying freedom and the state need to be removed, ballot box or no ballot box.
Compliance (wordsmithed as “tolerance”) has been indoctrinated into most of the population for decades now, and not just in CA. No significant “attack” is forthcoming.
Hate to burst everybody’s bubble those fires are intentionally set. The PG&e it’s just a cover story.as well as the fires that burnt down Paradise California. Most parts of northern California are predominantly white. Governor of California should be arrested for treason. This is a textbook case of socialism. Which history teaches us socialism either turns into fascism, Marxism ,communism ,or totalitarianism. Either way it’s all bad. California is the Pinnacle of what’s about to happen in this country. Wake up people. Pay attention quit listen to the liberal media.
Has anyone noticed that the conservative counties in California overlap most of the power outages?
Because we live in the foothills. Nothing nefarious this time
Probably because all the conservatives live in rural California, and all the socialists that vote Democrat live in the big cities. But maybe they are turning the power off with glee for the rural folk that are a majority conservative.
Trump had the 3rd highest total of votes cast by state from California. Almost the same as Florida and not far behind Texas. Its just that California has a third more population than Texas and double that of Florida
Its still a lot of Trump supporters.
And by the time Barr gets finished with Deep State prosecutions, there may not be more than a handful of Democrats willing to admit that’s what they are! Oh, well!!
“They elected these clowns,” They? I didn’t; I just got stuck with the results of other people voting for these clowns. There are many millions of Californians who didn’t vote for these socialist clowns who are stuck with their policies and have been for years. Not everybody can just pack up and leave. A little compassion is called for here.
There comes a time in the development of tyranny… political, economic, social where it becomes literally too late to leave. Some wish to stay to avoid loss of economic establishment (pensions etc.) which will become near worthless in the coming years due to massive under-funding,inflation, and outright confiscation.
Ask a once middle class Venezuelan, or the ghost of a German Jew.
Amen!
My family and I didn’t vote for these assholes
But we’re stuck with the suffering from their stupid decision-making.
Well said dave
It is obvious that the Californian government is taxing gas at the pump and causing the high prices.
If the prices were because of poor supply, gas would be imported from neighboring states which would stabilize the prices.
You are right, whoever are running California are clowns!
Cheers
Roger
Roger Surf
re: Importing gasoline from neighboring states to stabilize prices
Literally can’t (legally) be done. CA regulators mandate specific gasoline blends for various CA micro-climates (address air pollution). If a specific area runs out of its specific blend, OTHER GASOLINE CANNOT BE BROUGHT IN TO ADDRESS THE SHORTAGE.
I work for a Oil company. We “Import” gas all the time to Ca. They add all the bullshit, and hike up the taxes/prices in state at refineries. Quite the criminal enterprise California has.
I can assure everyone that Walter is right on the money, to wit: I am writing from Mendoza, Argentina, and today is the Presidential voting day, with a winner only if over 50% or 10% ahead of second place, and the leading candidates are Peronists, socialists, and the VP candidate on the ticket is under multiple indictments for (very profitable) corruption. As a Natural Resources Geologist I can assure everyone that the mining potential is second to no other country on the face of the planet we call Earth, because it is both well-mineralized and the corruption has prevented mining for a long time. Some day? Be careful what you vote for, it might bite you.
He doesn’t look like a clown. He looks quite pretty, a bit like Justin Trudeau. How could he screw things up?
In Shakespeare’s words, “Oh villain, villain, smiling damned villain”.
Walter, not all of us voted for the miscreants, yet we suffer as well.
Don’t worry while the peons are out of power the rich and powerful will have theirs kept on. The rich will have all the electricity in the world while everyone else suffers don’t worry nothing to see here peasants move along.
“Walter Sobchak October 27, 2019 at 10:20 am
Politician blames non politicians for the problems politicians caused.
It serves Californians right to suffer. They elected these clowns. And they deserve to be the victims of the politicians misfeasance.
Maybe they will learn their lesson. but, probably not. Look at
Argentina[] [ : ] Once the fourth richest country in the world. Peronism destroyed it economically, and yet they are about to put the Peronistas back in office”.
____________________________________
The problem of Argentina is not “peronism”.
The problem of Argentina is growing a quasi landlocked State.
Before UN regulations and ECB Chile was happy to accept export carriage from Argentina, getting transport fees from Argentina when shipping their goods to their customers.
With the new regulations Argentinas transport fees skyrocketed to the advantage of Chile.
So now Argentina has to transfer it’s goods 1,000 miles to the south to its own freight havens.
And to ship their goods a 1,000 miles min. back north to their customers.
With “just in time” orders Argentina plain simple lost its competivness – and had to queue in to other economical “deplorables”.
The times they ar’a changing.
California should post the following text as warning signs at its borders:
“Per me si va ne la citta dolente,
per me si va ne l’etterno dolore,
per me si va tra la perduta gente.
Giustizia mosse il mio alto fattore;
fecemi la divina podestate,
la somma sapienza e ‘l primo amore.
Dinanzi a me non fuor cose create
se non etterne, e io etterno duro.
Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch’intrate.”
“Through me the way to the city of woe,
through me the way to everlasting pain,
through me the way among the lost.
Justice moved my maker on high.
Divine power made me,
wisdom supreme, and primal love.
Before me nothing was but things eternal,
and eternal I endure.
Abandon all hope, you who enter here.”
http://etcweb.princeton.edu/dante/pdp/
Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri,
Book Inferno, Canto III: 1-9
I guess the “tipping point” was when Paradise burn to the ground last year.
Don’t it always seem to go
That you don’t know what you’ve got
‘Till it’s gone
They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot
A parking lot doesn’t burn. It would have been much better.
It does if it’s asphalt.
Here’s another fitting song-
Okay, it burns much, much slower.
“It’s more than just climate change. It’s about the failure of capitalism to address climate change,”
Funny, other states don’t seem to have this problem.
And socialism is the obvious answer. Always.
That is an outrageous lie — as anyone who has ever been involved with the total regulation of any utility . The State cannot escape culpability because they oversee and sign off on every decision made .
It is the State which has responsibility for the now burning commons . And if the powerline right-of-ways were not properly trimmed and cleared , they share responsibility with the utility for not budgeting and executing the needed clearing and preventive maintenance .
Exactly Bob. An entity that is state control is, by definition, *not capitalist.
(and that’s putting aside the fact that “Climate change” has absolutely nothing to do with it. Even if the “climate’ was exactly that of 100 years ago, the problem would still be there because it’s the failure to keep the lines clear and properly maintained, the failure to properly manage the forests, etc)
It’s more than just climate change. It’s about the failure of capitalism to address climate change,” he told reporters Friday…. – Oh, shut up, Gavin, you incredible moron. You’re an incompetent gasbag. If the only excuse you can crank up to explain your incompetence is ‘”climate change this, climate change that”, you should be fired and sent packing. You’re an idiot. And yes, it IS your fault – ALL OF IT, ALL OF IT, ALL OF IT.
Rant over.
To be fair, he inherited all of it. But he certainly doesn’t show any aptitude for anything but blame someone/something else.
And he will pass it to the next Progressive Socialist in worse shape than he inherited it.
He may have inherited it, but he also supported the actions taken that have created the conditions that California’s residents now suffer. It’s interesting that now that the “bill has come due” that Newsom is trying to shift the blame away from legislation and regulations that created the problems to begin with.
To be fair, just who did he inherit it from?
Who voted for those people and policies?
There are many conservatives in California, but they don’t vote because they think there is no point. When you don’t vote, that is half a vote for those who are destroying your state and the future of your children. Your children. Your choice. Your vote.
Jon Jewett
Specifically, he inherited it from Jerry “Moonbeam” Brown, and was elected with a 62% margin.
Who do you think votes for these people – it’s CA citizens, not the tooth fairy. Voting is free & secret; there may not be as many conservatives in that goofy state as you think.
Plenty of conservatives, but the lefties control the vote count.
The fall of conservative influence is more of a result from non-participation than failure to vote. If you get a chance, make sure to visit the caucuses in your district. Apparently these events trigger a lot more changes than just nominating a candidate into office. Unfortunately, from what I’ve witnessed in 2017, very few Republicans show up to these sessions compared to the large turnouts from Democrats.
Uh, no, not really. Our Governor was the Lieutenant Governor under Jerry Brown. He was and is complicit.
Thanks Sara, you said it about perfectly.
I’m one of those Kali conservatives, been here since 1961 (7 years old), would love to leave but it’s not going to happen soon.
Randle Dewees
Here’s a “leaving CA” story for you:
After 40 years in the Bay Area, I retired and moved to the Atlantic coast of Florida.
I lease zippy higher-end 5-series BMWs, and leasing means paying sales tax on the monthly lease payment (about $980/mo).
At the time I left CA, sales tax was 10% or an additional $98/mo; in FL with a 6% tax, it dropped to $58/mo.
That’s a $40/mo ($480/year) savings – ON SALES TAX.
I won’t even mention FL has no state income tax, so I can deduct all the FL sales tax I pay (the IRS has a nifty table to calculate it).
Im dealing wjth my 96 year old dad, who is basically at the end of the line. Really not going to jerk him around the country because of my distate for living here. Afterwards, who knows, I cant think that far ahead.
Up thread some mention of conservative CA voters giving up and not voting. Huh, not me.
I agree with you wholeheartedly Sara. However, Gavin needs to be told this directly via an email campaign or any other means. Telling him on this site how much of a moron he is, is preaching to the choir. Most of us on here know that you’re correct but he needs to hear this. I’m from Alberta and we know here that this AGW hoax is an excuse for Liberals to peddle their nonsense. How do we get a large number of voices to confront him and his ilk?
Sara, I live on the central coast CA. Only been here a few years. After getting acquitted I began hearing complaints about Jerry Brown. I said, don’t get too critical the next one will be worse. I’ve never been more right about anything in my life. We know there’s an AOC out there just waiting to replace Newsom….Yes, he’s a pathetic excuse for anything. His blaming capitalism for this democrat mess is a new low. But he’s not the problem. It’s the LA and SF voters, the government employees, especially the education “industry” and taxpayer funded “social” programs, It’s going to get a lot worse before it gets better. But hey, I’m old, the weather is great and I absolutely love it here! Eat, drink and be merry……..
Californians traversing the country for the last few years have been well aware that gas prices have been around a dollar a gallon more expensive in California. Has this man been living under a rock?
When do you suppose was the last time he pumped his own gas. He is being chauffeured around with a state supplied body guard. he doesn’t have to pay for gas or own a gun to protect himself.
Yep. The CHP handles all that for him.
Let’s start by looking into how much of that $1 per gallon premium (it’s actually more than that) is state and local taxes. Most sheeple in CA are probably unaware how much their government has artificially jacked up gas prices. It’s time they sat up and took notice.
Yes, what are the total taxes that make up the Californian price and how does that compare to other states?
Tonyb
Tonyb-
See this article:
https://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/9734844-181/california-gas-tax-increases-monday
It says Californians pay approximately $0.80 taxes per gallon. It varies because part of the taxes are state and local sales taxes, which means the tax varies with the cost of the gasoline and where you are in the state.
Because of Utah’s isolated location, our oil fields provided plenty of crude for our refineries, making our fuel prices one of the lowest in the country. Because California, which has plenty of its own oil, refused to build any more refineries for its growing population… they built a pipeline, nearly 20 years ago, from Salt Lake to Las Vegas. The pipeline from California to Las Vegas that supplied Nellis Air Force Base and southern Nevada now flows backwards providing Southern California with fuel from Utah. Because of supply and demand, our prices for fuel are now very high. Recently I was at a gas station when a trucker was delivering fuel. I asked him where it was from? He said he used to deliver fuel to the neighboring states from Utah, now the company he works for increases it’s profits by buying fuel from New Mexico, 700 miles away, instead of buying it 10 miles away. Thanks California.
He’s only governor because the D party out there is more like a huge corporation. He started low, paid his dues, failed upwards by being popular in San Francisco, and now is attempting to tell the weather what to do.
Is there a better word than hubris? I can’t think of one.
Newsom, like his supporters, has failed to learn this fundamental lesson:
“If you want to make the world a better place, take a look in the mirror and make the change!”
They refuse to see the cascading failures lie within themselves. They market catastrophic climate change fraud as the justification for their avaricious socialist agenda, which is driving California rapidly into Venezuela style 3rd world failure.
PG&E’s finances are public record. It is interesting the Main Stream Media have not bothered to examine where rate payer money is going. California electric rates are among the highest in the nation. That should have triggered some sort of investigation. But wait…
If MSM did look at the finances, they would have discovered that most of customer rate money goes directly to state, county, and local agencies. This also covers paying off bonds left over from the Gray Davis “Deregulation” fiasco a decade ago. It is common for cities to require the Investor Owned Utilities to collect a tax added to utility bills as a percentage of the total bill before the tax. Of course, the IOWs must buy their electricity through the states agencies, not through direct contracts.
What goes to the utility is less than a third of the bill. From that money, must come operating costs, maintenance costs, state required green projects, CPUC required loans and bonds to cover costs during high electricity prices, and all the various franchise and wheeling fees.
Remember, the CPUC does not allow PG&E to keep enough cash on hand to cover costs during high energy price times. They are required to borrow money each year to cover high costs and then pay it back during low cost times. How would you like to operate a company the is required by law to NOT keep enough money on hand to cover emergencies?
So study the financial data? Nope. The answer would conflict with the Democrat/ MSM story line.
Part of the reason gas prices are high in California is the EPA’s requirement of different gasolines for different regions, claiming that air pollution is reduced this way. Gives the refiners an excuse to charge more for the different blends. Kills us here in Chicago too, and it is a complete, non-scientific absurdity.
“…It’s more than just climate change. It’s about the failure of capitalism to address climate change…”
What planet do these people live on? It is the fault of climate change and capitalism? Pull the string attached to a Democrat’s back, and that’s what it spits-out.
His predecessor had a UNANIMOUSLY passed bill on his desk to help address this issue in 2016, and he vetoed it saying the issue was already covered. Even as a staunch promoter of fears concerning climate change, he thought it was ok. He thought capitalism and other sources were addressing it just fine.
We can go back to over-regulation and any number of anti-capitalistic reasons for this issue as well.
“Pull the string attached to a Democrat’s back, and that’s what it spits-out.”
Lol, I’m nabbing that one.
Message to normal Californians, i.e. those not part of the political elite, If you make bad decisions expect bad things to happen. You voted for the democrat governor.Do not make that mistake again, the lights do not need to go out, that is simply a sign of how awful your political leader is.
Newsom is just the visible tiny tip of that awful iceberg of bottom-feeding Democrats in Sacramento. Democrats beholden to special interest campaign cash to get re-elected. The special interests include Tom Steyer and his rate-payer fleecing PAC, the public unions of municipal and state worker, the public teachers union, the environmental lobby that gets its money from the GreenSlime, and the aerospace-defense industry lobbyists that need environmental regulation exemptions to remain in California.
You might want to re-examine your accusation against the aerospace defense firms. They have been moving business out of California over the last decades owing o the environmental regulations, and the high cost of doing business.
So, how many WUWT posters correctly guessed what the California liberal Democrats would be blaming their self-imposed troubles on, …… to wit:
And just why would a Public Utility have need of their own personal meteorologist for forecasting weather conditions, to wit:
Makes me wonder just who hired Suzanne?
” investigate oil companies for conspiring to keep gas prices artificially high.”
California’s gas prices are the highest in the country. Not because of oil companies’ price fixing, but due to draconian taxation from the feds and the state.
California also has “enhanced” fuel requirements as mandated by CaEPA, CARB, SCAQMD and other air quality management districts. It costs more to produce the fuels sold in CA.
Cal’s Democrats are facing a Trifecta of converging problems of their own making.
That gas price differential is growing to around $1.50 now. And with Cal’s cap and trade carbon tax steadily increasing with each year, that differential will keep climbing. Cal’s residents see that of course.
San Francisco $4.50/gal then fly to Phoenix $3/gal. San Diego’s $4/gal gas then fly/drive to Tucson and its $2.50/gal. Same for Dallas.
Add to that they have electric bills that are already 50% or more higher than states around them and guaranteed to skyrocket in the coming years under Democrat’s close Diablo Canyon Power plant and other anti-fossil fuel policies kick-in and a bankrupt PG&E delivers blackouts to boot.
And the third element hitting Sacramento Democrats hard is the Federal income tax cap on State and Local Taxes (SALT) at $10,000 that is now driving an increasing outflow of wealthy Californians who can move. Cal’s high taxes on its high earners means the Federal taxpayers are no long subsidizing the high tax states like Cal with 36% markdowns on their Federal tax bills. Those high earners got whacked pretty hard this year paying their 2018 Federal IRS taxes which were much higher. Even pro athletes are demanding much higher salaries to come play for California teams to offset the huge tax disadvantage high incomes face in California.
Newsom’s caterwauling reportedly included a plea for Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway to buy PG&E.
Buffett isn’t dumb enough to put a large chunk of capital where it can be constructively expropriated by ambulance-chasers, economically-illiterate demagogic politicians and crypto-communists.
California rate-payers and voters are currently reaping what they sowed over the last couple of decades.
Warren Buffett has B.H. shareholders to answer to. Do they think he’s like the Sultan of Brunei?
If you want to see illiterate Democrat Congresspeople like AOC of NY and Al Green of Texas in action, then watch this FoxNews Greg Gutfield piece on House Democrats asking questions to Mark Zuckerberg. Zuckerberg was there of course being questioned about his FaceBook’s views on censorship and ad-revenue controlling ways.
It is fricking hilarious.
https://video.foxnews.com/v/6097466233001/
Both Al Green and AOC earned Billy Madison’s for their inane questions and grimace-worthy performances.
A direct result of California Greening? (Sorry Mammas and Pappas) Oh dear. What a shame. Never mind.
Wow! what utter rubbish! Everything is climate change these days, its like greta, dull, grey and utterly boring!! Even the mighty California is lost without fossil fuels.. imagine if they had none at all, California would be a third world state.
It’s more than just climate change. It’s about the failure of capitalism to address climate change,
Sorry I forgot to add, that its climate changes fault, yet he wanta fossil fuel companies to help, Lolol This is to funny….
Newsom also leaned in on oil companies as the state faces staggering gas prices.
“Newsom also leaned in on oil companies as the state faces staggering gas prices.”
Which is due to CA’s outrages taxes and regulations, not the oil companies.
Free Enterprise is a hard sell.
It produces lots of Billionaires and often leaves unproductive and unmotivated and unlucky individuals impoverished. This tweaks the normal human sense is fairness.
Most of these individuals got to be billionaires by being exceptionally creative, inventive. and very productive. Most of the money they accrue gets EFFICIENTLY invested which generates even more wealth.
Under Socialism incentives are lacking for doing
anything better or more efficiently. Workers might bitch about implementing ways of doing something EASIER, but never more productively. Nearly half the midsized and smaller corporations in the US produce or provide products and services that nobody would think of without the profit motive.
Billionaires sometimes use their wealth in ways destructive to civilization (like making large donations to Democrats)…THIS is the worst aspect of Free Enterprise.
Otherwise, the more Billionaires the better.
The first thing to do before trying to solve a problem is to identify the causes.
So, this climate change clown (and his predecessors) has no chance of solving anything, instead, he will certainly worsen every issue he will try to solve.
The only issue(s) anyone in California is trying to resolve is their “re-election” issues.
An interesting tweet and thread by Michael Shellenberger:
https://twitter.com/ShellenbergerMD/status/1188520695866593280
Shellenberger made an ill-fated independent bid for governor of California. When it comes time to replace Newsom, they could do a lot worse.
“Find out why California’s gas prices are a dollar more than other states”??? Is he really that stoopid? Or is it that he thinks Californians are that stoopid?
I’m guessing it’s both. What a piece of work.
And btw here in Alabama it’s more like two dollars less.
So what’s the word on the ground re how this most recent fire started? PG&E had a wire live that wasn’t supposed to be, but that doesn’t mean it is the source of the fire. I’m wondering if there has been any news on this? Google is and all I get is articles laying blame without foundation.
I wonder how the everyday normal person in Calizuela is feeling this morning?
“The People have spoken … and they must be punished.”
– Ed Koch