WEBVTT - Nobody Represents The Taxpayer! Lanhee Chen Talks to A&G

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<v Speaker 1>Whoever looks out for the taxpayer? Ever? That's my question.

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<v Speaker 1>Does anybody ever represent the taxpayer in any discussion? I

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<v Speaker 1>was thinking about it so earlier. We're talking with one

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<v Speaker 1>of our experts, Market Korean, on immigration and talking about

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<v Speaker 1>you know, the social welfare state and all that sort

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<v Speaker 1>of stuff. Then we were just talking with Craig gott

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<v Speaker 1>Walls about Obamacare and healthcare and subsidies and all that

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<v Speaker 1>sort of stuff, and you know, nobody's ever looking out

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<v Speaker 1>for the taxpayer. And then I just got this email

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<v Speaker 1>from my local school. Just got this free meals program

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<v Speaker 1>extended exclamation point, and it says, we have great news

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<v Speaker 1>to share. The US to part of Agriculture recently extended

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<v Speaker 1>it's free universal Meals program for kids eighteen and under

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<v Speaker 1>throughout the summer, so kids can now get one free

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<v Speaker 1>breakfast and one free lunch per child per day. And

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<v Speaker 1>it's always presented with exclamation points, and just isn't this fantastic?

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<v Speaker 1>And does anybody ever represent the taxpayer? Who might be saying,

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<v Speaker 1>like I'm in, what are these freaking meals costing me?

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<v Speaker 1>Why aren't these parents buying their kids their own food?

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<v Speaker 1>How many of these meals get eaten versus thrown in

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<v Speaker 1>the trash. God dang it, nobody ever represents that side

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<v Speaker 1>of the discussion that drives me crazy. Thanks for taking

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<v Speaker 1>the money, that's right. Thank you Michael bringing us into

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<v Speaker 1>this discussion and others joining us as long Hea Chen

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<v Speaker 1>candidate for California State Controller. He needs to control this.

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<v Speaker 1>David and Diane Stephy, fellow in American Public Policy Studies

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<v Speaker 1>at the Hoover Institution and the Director of Domestic Policy

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<v Speaker 1>Studies at Stanford lan He welcome to the Armstrong and

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<v Speaker 1>Getty Show. Hey Jack, great to be with you. I

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<v Speaker 1>just don't like all the exclamation points anybody. So somebody times,

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<v Speaker 1>somebody talks about spending taxpayer money, it's never ever, ever

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<v Speaker 1>from the other side your comments. Yeah, yeah, well you know,

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<v Speaker 1>and I think that explains in part why you've seen

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<v Speaker 1>such a growth in I mean, if you look back

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<v Speaker 1>over the last I don't know, two years, a lot

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<v Speaker 1>of people don't realize we've put six trillion dollars of

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<v Speaker 1>spending into the economy in the U S. Six trillion dollars,

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<v Speaker 1>And at no point along the way did somebody stop

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<v Speaker 1>and say, well, is that really going to be the

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<v Speaker 1>best idea. What are the implications of it? Now, some

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<v Speaker 1>of that spending, you can argue happened. You know, we're

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<v Speaker 1>in the midst of COVID, and you know we needed

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<v Speaker 1>to buy ppe and all this other stuff. Find so

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<v Speaker 1>maybe you give them a pass for the first trillions.

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<v Speaker 1>But then the next five trillion came along, and what

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<v Speaker 1>and what happened? Well, predictably, now everything costs more. I

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<v Speaker 1>saw a graphic that on the fourth of July, all

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<v Speaker 1>of the things we needed for picnics, right, hot dogs,

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<v Speaker 1>catch up, let us condiments. The price on all of

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<v Speaker 1>those things has escalated by in some cases over the

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<v Speaker 1>course of the last eighteen months. And and so the

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<v Speaker 1>problem with all of this sort of free money kind

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<v Speaker 1>of mentality that we have is that you're right, nobody

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<v Speaker 1>ever stops and says, well, what's the cost of it?

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<v Speaker 1>And by the way, who's keeping accountability to make sure

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<v Speaker 1>that the money that's being spent is actually going to

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<v Speaker 1>where it's going. You know, the school lunch thing you

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<v Speaker 1>mentioned is really interesting because there was an expose by

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<v Speaker 1>a great reporter named Susan Crapstree who writes for Real

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<v Speaker 1>Clear Politics, and she had had an expose about I

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<v Speaker 1>don't know, six months ago where she found that what

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<v Speaker 1>was happening with these free lunch funds was that they

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<v Speaker 1>were actually going into wealthy school districts, school districts where

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<v Speaker 1>the media income was an excess of like two a year.

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<v Speaker 1>I got interrupted, so the school. I just got this

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<v Speaker 1>email from my school. House sold behind me, crappy old

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<v Speaker 1>house square feet right next to the school sold for

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<v Speaker 1>a million point one to the other day. And they're

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<v Speaker 1>giving out free lunches a hundred feet from that house

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<v Speaker 1>that I'm paying for. What the hell is that? Well?

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<v Speaker 1>And it's like, you know, if the goal of the

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<v Speaker 1>pro graham was to target kids who really needed the lunches,

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<v Speaker 1>I think everyone would say, yeah, let but there's but

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<v Speaker 1>there's no But there's nobody keeping watch. And this is

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<v Speaker 1>one of the reasons why, you know, I mean, people

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<v Speaker 1>are always like, well, what the heck does the state

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<v Speaker 1>controller do well? The reality is this is the job

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<v Speaker 1>of the state controller is to be the watchdog to

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<v Speaker 1>make sure that when we see emails like this, we

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<v Speaker 1>follow up and investigate and say, hey, what's actually going

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<v Speaker 1>on in that school district. Are the kids who really

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<v Speaker 1>need the food getting it? Or is it going to

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<v Speaker 1>a bunch of other people who, frankly, let's be honest,

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<v Speaker 1>given given their income situation, probably can afford to buy

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<v Speaker 1>their kids lunch, and can we better you can we

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<v Speaker 1>better use those resources somewhere else to solve real problems like, oh,

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<v Speaker 1>I don't know, homelessness, the crime that we see on

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<v Speaker 1>our streets, all of the challenges that we have in

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<v Speaker 1>our state with infrastructure, Can we address those? And and nobody,

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<v Speaker 1>to your point at the beginning of our of our

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<v Speaker 1>segment here, nobody is paying attention to what the tax

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<v Speaker 1>payers need and want. And this is the problem we

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<v Speaker 1>have with state governments. The problem we have with the

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<v Speaker 1>federal government is that there's nobody they're keeping watching and

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<v Speaker 1>that that attitude and mentality has to change. Is that

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<v Speaker 1>something you would be doing if you end up being

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<v Speaker 1>California's state controller. Absolutely, the controller has the ability to

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<v Speaker 1>look into spending at the state level or any any

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<v Speaker 1>local jurisdiction that uses state money. So school districts are

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<v Speaker 1>a perfect example. We have had zero accountability around spending

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<v Speaker 1>in our public schools. I just want people to realize

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<v Speaker 1>how much money has gone into the public schools from

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<v Speaker 1>the federal government now if that money had gone to

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<v Speaker 1>help classrooms be safer for kids, or making sure that

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<v Speaker 1>teachers get paid what we want them to get paid.

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<v Speaker 1>If those were the things that we were spending money on,

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<v Speaker 1>I think everyone would say, Okay, we can accept that money.

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<v Speaker 1>The problem is I and I hear these stories from

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<v Speaker 1>school district board members across our state. There is so

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<v Speaker 1>much federal money coming in they don't know how to

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<v Speaker 1>spend it. I'm sure, I guarantee you that's happening out

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<v Speaker 1>of all the six you're just talking about it. If

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<v Speaker 1>they don't spend it, the money goes away. So they said,

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<v Speaker 1>we're going to spend it on stuff. We've gotta buy stuff.

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<v Speaker 1>But nobody is saying, hey, are you spending the money

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<v Speaker 1>in a way that is consistent with what the law

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<v Speaker 1>demands and requires. Is it consistent with what's going to

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<v Speaker 1>be best for our kids and our teachers, and our

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<v Speaker 1>parents and our families. Nobody's asking that question. And that's

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<v Speaker 1>why the State Controller's office is important. That's why I

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<v Speaker 1>want to do it. And by the way, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>it is a watchdog function, and so you can't trust

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<v Speaker 1>people in the Sacramento insider Cabal to to do the job.

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<v Speaker 1>They're just not gonna do it. All they're gonna do

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<v Speaker 1>is make sure their friends are happy and they're satisfying

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<v Speaker 1>all of the other politicians around Sacramento. And that's why

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<v Speaker 1>we've got to get an outsider in there. And that's

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<v Speaker 1>the kind of background I bring to the job. Um yeah, well,

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<v Speaker 1>I like that idea of state controller being a more

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<v Speaker 1>emphasized office. You know, I don't know if every state

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<v Speaker 1>has the same role or they have different names in

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<v Speaker 1>different places, but god damn it, I I hope society

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<v Speaker 1>gets to a place someday where we attention. We get

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<v Speaker 1>our paycheck. You see the number at the top, that's

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<v Speaker 1>what you made this month. And then you see this

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<v Speaker 1>number what you're actually getting to keep? All that other money,

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<v Speaker 1>Where did it go? What did it get spent on?

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<v Speaker 1>Why don't more people care about that? Well? It is interesting, right.

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<v Speaker 1>We we have a financial literacy issue in our country

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<v Speaker 1>where we need to help people understand exactly where their

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<v Speaker 1>money is going and what it's being used for. You know,

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<v Speaker 1>my son's eleven. Uh, he's taken to biking around with

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<v Speaker 1>his friends. It's the summer, of course, that's what they do,

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<v Speaker 1>and you know they end up every once in a

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<v Speaker 1>while at Basket Robbins. Great, they end up at Basket Robbins.

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<v Speaker 1>They buy a scoop of ice cream and my son

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<v Speaker 1>comes back and he says, I don't get it the

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<v Speaker 1>scoop of ice cream and said, you know, it was

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<v Speaker 1>two dollars, but they asked me for you know, two dollars,

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<v Speaker 1>and well, yes, then that's something called sales tax. And

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<v Speaker 1>he said, well, why don't they tell you about this?

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<v Speaker 1>And it's like, well, yeah they do, it's on the receipt.

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<v Speaker 1>But yeah, I mean, I suppose we could do a

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<v Speaker 1>better job of telling people they got a pay scales tax.

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<v Speaker 1>But his basic point is like, well, if I if

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<v Speaker 1>I knew it would cost the extra twenty five cents

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<v Speaker 1>that I would have budgeted accordingly, you know, I may

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<v Speaker 1>be wondering where that cents goes. And he's like, well,

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<v Speaker 1>what do you think it goes that? And I'm like,

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<v Speaker 1>great question, great question. I'm actually not sure where it goes.

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<v Speaker 1>But somebody needs to figure that out. And and this

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<v Speaker 1>is the this is the thing for people across our

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<v Speaker 1>state and across our country. It's like, you know, the

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<v Speaker 1>the issue we have is that there's no accountability for

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<v Speaker 1>where this money is going. I think people would feel

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<v Speaker 1>a lot better if if we actually knew where the

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<v Speaker 1>money was going, and we felt comfortable saying, Okay, let's

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<v Speaker 1>determine whether this is a good use of spending or not. Unfortunately,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, we don't have that. UM. I don't know

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<v Speaker 1>that there's any mouthfeasance going on here. But there's a

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<v Speaker 1>couple of schools where I've seen them do I like,

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<v Speaker 1>when I'm playing at the part of my kids do

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<v Speaker 1>some paving jobs around the school that I think, why

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<v Speaker 1>are you doing that? I don't see what the problem was,

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<v Speaker 1>or I feel like they're just trying to spend some

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<v Speaker 1>of that money that's got to be happening various places. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>I think it is. And and you know the problem

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<v Speaker 1>is there are a lot of places around the state

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<v Speaker 1>where we probably could use actual you know, paving of

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<v Speaker 1>the roads or pay and and and and you know

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<v Speaker 1>the problem and the challenge again comes back to all

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<v Speaker 1>of this money has flooded into California and they can't

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<v Speaker 1>spend it fast enough. You know, people wonder why we

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<v Speaker 1>had twenty billion dollars in fraud in our unemployment insurance system.

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<v Speaker 1>I don't know if you've heard about this wrapper that

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<v Speaker 1>got arrested. He basically was flaunting how he defrauded taxpayers

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<v Speaker 1>in California. The focus of his rap was basically how

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<v Speaker 1>he was making a living off of off of defrauding

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<v Speaker 1>people through the unemployment insurance system. And the reason this

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<v Speaker 1>happens is because the proper controls aren't in place. Nobody

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<v Speaker 1>is stopping and saying, hey, does it make sense for

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<v Speaker 1>you to give benefits to everybody, even if maybe they're

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<v Speaker 1>not qualified? And and nobody saw fit to ask these questions,

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<v Speaker 1>and so twenty billion dollars later, I want folks to

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<v Speaker 1>realize we had a three set increase in the gas

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<v Speaker 1>tax on July one here in Californias. Okay, for the

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<v Speaker 1>amount of money these fraudsters took from us, they could

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<v Speaker 1>have paid. We could have paid for thirty eight year. Wow,

0:10:02.880 --> 0:10:06.840
<v Speaker 1>thirty eight years. And and and by the way, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>nothing to see here. You have to do some nothing

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<v Speaker 1>to see the Democratic leadership in the state of California.

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<v Speaker 1>Nothing to see here. Move right along. Let's oh, don't

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<v Speaker 1>don't go away. Phone here. Okay, you're back. Uh sorry,

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<v Speaker 1>we lost you there just briefly. And I understand exactly

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<v Speaker 1>what you're saying. Uh, nobody's paying any attention to that. Hey,

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<v Speaker 1>I gotta ask you a question before you go. By

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<v Speaker 1>the way of if you vote in California, vote for

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<v Speaker 1>Long Eachen for California State Controller. I mean he's being

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<v Speaker 1>he's being endorsed by people that never endorsed Republicans, because

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<v Speaker 1>we need that. I got a question for you. So

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<v Speaker 1>polling came out this week. We've got the lowest numbers

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<v Speaker 1>ever for UH. Belief in the institution of the Supreme Court,

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<v Speaker 1>Congress is at seven percent, the belief in the presidency

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<v Speaker 1>wrong track is now almost How big a problem is

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<v Speaker 1>this for a country to have those numbers. Yeah, it

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<v Speaker 1>is a problem when institutional people's belief in institutions get

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<v Speaker 1>gets eroded like it's been eroded. And the Supreme Court

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<v Speaker 1>is interesting. You know, it used to have approval ratings

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<v Speaker 1>that were north of seventy or eight. But like everything else,

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<v Speaker 1>everything else has become polarized, you know, whether it's the

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<v Speaker 1>presidency or Congress. Uh, it's become polarized. And I think

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<v Speaker 1>it's a big problem for American democracy because one of

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<v Speaker 1>the things that our democracy relies on is faith and

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<v Speaker 1>trust in institutions, and it's very difficult to have that

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<v Speaker 1>when everything has been so polarized. And unfortunately, I wish

0:11:34.280 --> 0:11:36.439
<v Speaker 1>I could say that I saw better days ahead, but

0:11:36.480 --> 0:11:39.320
<v Speaker 1>the problem is everything is polarized. I mean, I don't

0:11:39.360 --> 0:11:42.440
<v Speaker 1>care what it is, even stuff outside of politics, you know,

0:11:42.559 --> 0:11:46.120
<v Speaker 1>social media and pop culture. Everything has become polarized. So

0:11:46.160 --> 0:11:48.240
<v Speaker 1>I do worry about that. I mean, it's tational. Like

0:11:48.320 --> 0:11:51.560
<v Speaker 1>the Supreme Court, it is their responsibility to interpret the law,

0:11:51.640 --> 0:11:54.400
<v Speaker 1>to uphold the rule of law, to to call other

0:11:54.480 --> 0:11:57.040
<v Speaker 1>branches of government out when they cross the line, and

0:11:57.320 --> 0:12:00.880
<v Speaker 1>they serve that function legitimately. And I think part of

0:12:00.920 --> 0:12:03.160
<v Speaker 1>the challenges that people look at it and they say,

0:12:03.760 --> 0:12:05.839
<v Speaker 1>you know, I don't really buy that institution stuff anymore

0:12:05.840 --> 0:12:08.240
<v Speaker 1>because I don't agree with them. And you know, the

0:12:08.320 --> 0:12:11.960
<v Speaker 1>Constitution doesn't say that you believe in institutions when you

0:12:12.000 --> 0:12:15.400
<v Speaker 1>agree with them. The Constitution says, here the institutions, here's

0:12:15.400 --> 0:12:17.560
<v Speaker 1>what they're supposed to do. And and we have a

0:12:17.559 --> 0:12:19.720
<v Speaker 1>system of government that's worked for as long as worked

0:12:20.080 --> 0:12:23.400
<v Speaker 1>because we believe in institutions. And so I do worry

0:12:23.440 --> 0:12:25.560
<v Speaker 1>about it, Jack, I worry about where we're headed. Yeah,

0:12:25.640 --> 0:12:28.160
<v Speaker 1>I do too, and I I got to believe that

0:12:28.280 --> 0:12:31.559
<v Speaker 1>those numbers don't get reversed very easily. I mean, that

0:12:31.600 --> 0:12:35.360
<v Speaker 1>would take years and years to rebuild that sort of

0:12:35.360 --> 0:12:38.520
<v Speaker 1>faith in those institutions, which you know, I don't. I

0:12:38.520 --> 0:12:40.520
<v Speaker 1>don't even know if it's impossible. But anyway, long hy

0:12:40.640 --> 0:12:43.480
<v Speaker 1>Chen candidate for California State Controller, and all kinds of

0:12:43.559 --> 0:12:46.720
<v Speaker 1>other stuff. Thanks for coming on the show. Thanks Jack

0:12:46.760 --> 0:12:48.800
<v Speaker 1>rich With you aren't