California Delegation Has Reason For Hope At Republican National Convention

Here are the morning’s top stories on Thursday, July 18, 2024…

• The Republican National Convention wraps up Thursday night in Milwaukee with a speech from former president Donald Trump. Some of the talk around the convention this week is the importance of congressional races in California, and how the state can be involved in the GOP’s national agenda.
• A state ballot measure set to go before voters this November could trigger a wage hike for California prisoners. If Proposition 6 passes, it would change the state Constitution to ban the practice of forced labor in jails and prisons.
• More than 250 Black sailors who were unjustly disciplined by the US Navy during World War II, have been formally exonerated. The Navy made the announcement Wednesday on the 80th anniversary of the explosion at Port Chicago in the Bay Area.

Confidence Rising As Republican National Convention Concludes

It’s the final day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. Former President Donald Trump will accept the party’s nomination on Thursday night and address the convention.

The convention’s headliner on Wednesday night was Vice Presidential nominee J.D. Vance, who has already gained support from California’s delegation. 

Vance said that the country needs a “leader who fights for the workers in this country,” that it needs someone to “fight for working men, union and non-union alike.” He added that under a Trump-Vance administration, they would no longer fight for Wall Street, but for the working man — even as Trump told Bloomberg News he would consider JP Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon his Treasury secretary.

California delegates in Milwaukee seem to be digging into the issue of public safety as a rallying cry. In speaking with KQED’s Guy Marzorati, many feel like a public safety ballot measure on the November ballot could  be used up and down the ticket, from congressional races to state legislative races as well.

If Californians Vote To Ban Slavery This Fall, Will Prisoners Get A Raise?

Californians in the November election will vote on a ballot measure that would change the state Constitution to ban the practice of forced labor in jails and prisons, a proposal advocates say would wipe out a legacy of enslavement that dates to the 19th century. 

If Proposition 6 passes, correctional officers could not order an inmate to work. What’s less clear is what might happen if an inmate wants to work in one of the thousands of prison jobs that allow them to earn small amounts of money or to build skills. 

The legal precedent that allows California prisons to pay sub-minimum wage to inmates — less than 74 cents an hour for most — draws in part from the provision in the state Constitution that would be overturned if voters pass the anti-slavery amendment.

Deleting the provision that bans slavery except as punishment for a crime could open the door to higher pay for inmate labor depending on how courts interpret the ballot measure, according to experts and an analysis by the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Navy Exonerates 256 Black Sailors Unjustly Punished In 1944 After Deadly California Port Explosion

The U.S. Navy has exonerated 256 Black sailors who were found to be unjustly punished in 1944 following a horrific port explosion that killed hundreds of service members and exposed racist double standards among the then-segregated ranks.

On July 17, 1944, munitions being loaded onto a cargo ship detonated, causing secondary blasts that ignited 5,000 tons of explosives at Port Chicago naval weapons station near San Francisco.

The explosion killed 320 sailors and civilians, nearly 75% of whom were Black, and injured another 400 personnel. Surviving Black sailors had to pick up the human remains and clear the blast site while white officers were granted leave to recuperate.