In summary
California filed more than 100 lawsuits during the Trump administration’s first term, achieving major victories in the environment, immigration, and health care areas.
During Donald Trump’s first four years as president, California sued him on average about every 12 days.
Now that he is back in power, Democratic state leaders are preparing for possible new lawsuits.
State Attorney General Rob Bonta plans to defend California policy since summerwhen polls showed Trump had a good chance of winning the election. Bonta said his team had prepared preliminary notes on a variety of issues in preparation for future events.
The attorney general’s office said, “During the previous Trump administration, the State of California (Department of Justice) fought vigorously against President Trump’s regressive and illegal policies that violated the rights of Californians…and will fight again if necessary. We will do so,” the attorney general’s office said in an unsigned email response ahead of the presidential election. election.
California sued the Trump administration 123 times and won a major victory. Among them: California protected state clean air regulationspreserved the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA), which benefits undocumented immigrants who came to the United States as children, and protected the Affordable Care Act.
These issues, such as the environment, immigration and health care, could once again be at the center of a lawsuit expected to unfold between California’s Democratic administration and President Trump’s White House.
Gov. Gavin Newsom foreshadowed a potential conflict in a statement Wednesday.
“California will seek to work with the next president, but to be clear, we will work with states across the country to uphold the Constitution and uphold the rule of law.” said. “Federalism is the foundation of our democracy. It is the United States of America.”
This time, some experts predict that President Trump will take a more systematic policy approach.
They point out that project 2025a 900-page document produced by the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, that lays out the conservative agenda. Trump tried to distance himself from the blueprint during the campaign, but former administration members contributed to the report. There is some overlap between his proposal and what is outlined in the document, including mass deportations and deportations. A thorough review of the Department of Justice.
Choosing battles in Trump’s second term
In his victory speech, President Trump signaled policy goals likely to conflict with California’s goals, including expanding oil production and handing over the nation’s public health agency to vaccine skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. However, it is still unclear what position he will take.
“He will help make America healthy again,” Trump said of Kennedy in his speech. “I just said, ‘But Bobby, leave the oil to me.
“‘Bobby, stay away from liquid gold. Other than that, have fun.’
Matt Lesenier, a political science professor at California State University, Long Beach, said Democratic leaders have vowed to uphold their values, but they may be more careful in choosing their battles this time.
“Some legal issues are substantive, such as regulating greenhouse gases.Other issues may be more symbolic, and they do not trivialize cultural or gender identities. “But what Trump’s victory at least made clear to me is that these cultural issues are motivating voters,” he said.
Because California is a large state, it also has the power to negotiate with the federal government.
“In the face of near-total control of the federal government by Republicans, the city of Sacramento may think it would be better off negotiating with the state,” said David A. Carrillo, executive director of Berkeley Law’s California Constitution Center. speak “That will affect whether California’s strategy is to fight on all fronts or focus on leveraging its size and market power in forging its own domestic and international agreements, what we call a soft exit. ”
Possible conflicts over abortion and medical care
Most predict that health policy will once again be contested.
During his first term, President Trump’s efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act failed, but he did cut back on some provisions of the landmark health care law.
He also influenced the reversal of the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that upheld abortion rights by appointing three conservative Supreme Court justices.
In 2019, the Trump administration also blocked clinics and providers that offer or refer patients to abortion services. From receiving federal family planning funds. The state of California filed a lawsuit. The Biden administration has since overturned President Trump’s rule. Similar restrictions on abortion would likely prompt California to respond with another lawsuit.
Carrillo predicted the Trump administration might try to use a 19th-century law known as the Comstock Act to limit mifepristone, a drug used to induce abortions. There is.
“One of the battles that California probably cannot avoid is access to abortion, specifically mifepristone,” Carrillo said. “for example, Federal Comstock Act It generally prohibits sending anything through the mail “for the purpose of inducing an abortion.”
“If federal prosecutors begin enforcing the law to block interstate shipments of medical abortion pills and contraceptives, we can expect a major legal battle,” he said.
Some say they expect a fight from states if President Trump attempts to make significant cuts to Medicaid. Approximately 14.7 million low-income Californians rely on Medicaid for health insurance. This program is also known as Medi-Cal in California.
For example, Project 2025 proposes capping the amount the federal government pays for both federally and state-funded Medicaid programs. This means the state will receive a fixed amount of money regardless of the cost. In the world of health policy, this is called a “block subsidy” or “per capita cap.”
“So this is a huge cut, a huge cost shift for the states, and states have no choice but to either significantly increase taxes or significantly reduce their Medicaid programs. , more people will be uninsured, more people will live without need,’ said Edwin Park, a research professor at Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy.
Park said one key difference between the second and first Trump administrations is that Trump and his team may have a clearer vision of what they want to do with the health care program this time around. That’s what he says. These include potentially imposing work requirements to qualify for Medi-Cal and cutting aid in the Obamacare marketplaces, making it harder to enroll.
Supported by the California Healthcare Foundation (CHCF). The foundation works to ensure people have access to the care they need, when they need it, at an affordable price. For more information, please visit www.chcf.org.
