Guest:

Joel Pollak - Opinion Editor @ The California Post

Guest Bio:

Joel Pollak is a journalist, political commentator, and Opinion Editor at The California Post – a new publication he helped launch focused on covering California from a center-right perspective. A longtime California resident and former Illinois native, Pollak writes extensively on state policy, media bias, and government accountability.

Show Summary

Californians are tired of things not working.

In this episode of State of Gold, Jon Slavet sits down with Joel Pollak to discuss the launch of The California Post and why he believes there is a growing appetite for accountability in the Golden State.

Pollak shares his personal experience surviving the Palisades fire, the insurance nightmare that followed, and why he believes government mismanagement made the disaster worse. The conversation explores President Trump’s executive order aimed at accelerating rebuilding, the controversy surrounding affordable housing proposals in the Palisades, and what local residents actually want.

They then zoom out to tackle systemic issues: Behested payments to politicians, legalized corruption, COVID-era fraud, runaway state spending, and the proposed billionaire tax. Pollak explains how California risks driving away its most productive innovators and why history from Illinois should serve as a warning sign.

Chapters
00:00 – Why Californians Are Sick of Government Failure

00:18 – Launching the California Post

01:44 – Is There a Silent Majority in California?

02:41 – Personal Impact of the Palisades Fire

04:09 – Insurance Battles & Rebuilding Delays

05:03 – Trump’s Executive Order on Rebuilding

06:55 – Affordable Housing Controversy in the Palisades

09:59 – Zoning, ADUs & Rebuilding Concerns

12:37 – Exposing Corruption in Los Angeles

14:09 – COVID Fraud & Behested Payments Explained

16:45 – The Billionaire Tax and Economic Flight

19:56 – The Mansion Tax Cautionary Tale

22:03 – Revenue Problem or Spending Problem?

23:31 – Rapid Fire: Fixing California Starts with Water

Connect with Joel Pollak

Twitter: https://x.com/joelpollak?s=20
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/joel-pollak
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pollakjoel

His latest pieces can be found on californiapost.com and nypost.com.

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Connect with State of Gold

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