The campaign to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom has submitted enough valid signatures to force a recall election.
Despite the high-minded talk from the recall campaign that this is not about politicians but is about “democracy in action,” there is no denying an underlying strain of anti-democratic Trumpism and far-right views among some of the primary recall supporters.
Of course, with over a million-and-a-half recall signatures, not everyone who wants to recall Newsom is a right-wing extremist.
And even worse for the governor, way more people know about his dinner at The French Laundry than know about the social media postings of Orrin Heatlie, the recall drive’s official proponent and primary leader.
In a 2019 Facebook post, Heatlie wrote, “Microchip all illegal immigrants. It works! Just ask animal control! Process photograph, identify, and implant!”