California's seemingly unstoppable growth adds the equivalent of the city of Sacramento every year, stressing the schools and roads and water supply while threatening the very environment that makes the state so attractive in the first place. Minorities have become a majority, forcing us all to find new ways of communicating with each other and thinking about our society. California's companies lead the world in innovation, and its economy throws off billions more in tax revenue than our lawmakers can find ways to spend. Yet within our state we still have some of the poorest people in America, and the gap between the haves and have-nots remains stubbornly large. How our elected leaders handle these challenges will be the major focus of my work.
Campaigns can be fascinating.
But I am less interested in the strategies politicians use to win elections than in what they do with their power once they take office. I have been a reporter for 18 years, the last 14 in the state Capitol, and I will remain a reporter even as I take on this new role. As I report, I will share with you my insights on how and why the powerful do what they do, and whether their actions are consistent with their words. I will look not just at what they do but at what they fail to do, and I'll examine whether their priorities match the needs of the state and the wishes of its people. I am not a cynic.