The Radio Free Hillsdale Hour

Episode: Who Killed the California Dream?
Date: November 7, 2025
Host: Scott Bertram
Guest: Susan Crabtree, senior correspondent at RealClearPolitics and co-author of Fool's Gold: The Radicals, Con Artists, and Traitors Who Killed the California Dream and Now Threaten Us All
Podcast Theme: Examining California’s decline, from failed policy and corruption to national political ramifications.

Episode Overview

This episode delves into the crisis facing California, examining how mismanagement, corruption, and one-party rule have eroded the so-called "California Dream." Host Scott Bertram interviews Susan Crabtree, a leading political journalist and co-author of a book exposing the policies and figures responsible for California's decline. Together, they explore the roots of homelessness, crime, and governmental failure, and consider how California’s problems are spreading to the broader United States. (Colonial America is discussed in the second segment.)

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Outsized Influence of California

Timestamp: 02:09

• National Model: California is described as a "petri dish for liberal causes," exporting progressive policies to the rest of the country regardless of their success at home.
• Lack of Political Competition: One-party dominance in the state (Democratic supermajority) means little policy accountability or robust electoral challenge.
• Exporting Leaders: Key national political figures, including Gavin Newsom and Kamala Harris, come from the same insular San Francisco political environment.
• Quote:

  “It's sort of like this bad sort of chemistry testing zone out here in California, a little petri dish for liberal causes. ... The electorate just keeps electing politicians based on the D or R beside their name and mainly the D.” — Susan Crabtree (02:09)

2. Population Decline and Social Symptoms

Timestamp: 03:23

• Mass Exodus: San Francisco has experienced a historic population drop (6.3% from 2019 to 2021), with out-migration continuing due to remote work and urban decline.
• Pervasive Disorder: Widespread drug use, open-air drug markets, and increased crime led to the closure of federal buildings and have transformed once-proud areas into blighted zones.
• Massive Homelessness Spending, Little Oversight: Investigations revealed billions in homelessness funds unaccounted for, with some officials indicted for flagrant embezzlement.
• Quote:

  “There was some... progress in investigations into $24 billion in homelessness, money that just went down a rat hole and was never accounted for. ... Tens of millions of dollars... spent it on things like their American Express credit cards, their Beverly Hills rent for their mansions, gifts, luxurious cars, gifts for their girlfriend of jewelry and Birkin bags.” — Susan Crabtree (03:52)

3. Firsthand Changes in California’s Quality of Life

Timestamp: 06:24

• Personal Perspective: Susan, a native Californian, recounts a steep decline in living conditions and affordability since her childhood.
• Staggering Costs, Diminished Dreams: California now leads the nation in gas taxes, insurance rates, energy costs, housing prices, poverty, and illiteracy rates.
• Public Health Catastrophes: Homeless encampments contributed to a hepatitis outbreak in San Diego, killing residents and giving the area a "third world country" feel.
• Quote:

  “It just looked like they were just awful looking like they were sick, both mentally and physically. ... Shortly after that visit to downtown, hepatitis had spread in the city because they weren't cleaning up the excrement on the sidewalks from the homeless people. And it had killed 17 individuals... This just felt like a third world country now...” — Susan Crabtree (06:24)

4. The Homeless Industrial Complex

Timestamp: 09:49

• Nonprofit Grift: Hundreds of NGOs in San Francisco alone exist to service homelessness, sustained by state grants with no meaningful oversight or results.
• Beneficiaries: Nonprofits, lobbyists (some with Newsom connections), and government insiders benefit from the flow of state money, not the homeless or local communities.
• Quote:

  “There are hundreds of homeless NGOs, nonprofits in San Francisco alone, and they operate by state grants. ... Millions are being tens of millions, even more than that are being misspent just on, on personal credit cards, luxury vehicles.” — Susan Crabtree (09:49)

5. Failed Policies—Housing First and Addiction

Timestamp: 13:38

• 'Housing First' Policy Failure: Massive investments in converting hotels into homeless shelters ("Homekey" program) created dangerous, unsanitary conditions and did nothing to address underlying addiction and mental health problems.
• Political Maneuvering: Newsom, with national ambitions, pivots his rhetoric to focus on addiction and mental health, but policy remains ineffective.
• Quote:

  “It's really these failed housing first policies that the Democrats have clung to for forever in California... They turned hotels over, old hotels, motels into homelessness housing. And it was a disaster... these people have mental health issues and addiction issues, and these former hotels became dens of thieves... excrement strewed on the walls.” — Susan Crabtree (13:38)

6. Soft-on-Crime Policies: Prop 47

Timestamp: 15:54

• Prop 47's Impact: Lowered theft offenses under $900 from felonies to misdemeanors, leading to waves of retail theft and "smash and grabs."
• Blame and Backlash: Tied to progressive prosecutors (e.g., George Gascon, Chesa Boudin), initially supported by Newsom; both faced voter backlash and removal.
• Systemic Undermining of Enforcement: New pro-police ballot initiative (Prop 36) passed, but legislature and governor withhold funding; crime problems persist.
• Quote:

  “Proposition 47 lowered the penalties from felonies to misdemeanors for crimes that were below $900... It's really responsible for these, this series of smash and grabs we’ve seen... the people in California are fed up with this soft on crime approach.” — Susan Crabtree (15:54)

7. California's Political Elite: Newsom, Harris, and Insular Power Structures

Timestamp: 18:53

• Nepotism and Old Boys/Old Girls’ Club: Newsom and Harris rose under the patronage of Willie Brown. Both share radical San Francisco politics and little national vetting.
• Succession and Weak 'Bench': Despite dismal records, Democrats continue promoting untested or failed leaders due to a lack of alternative candidates.
• Quote:

  “They're made of the same cloth, they're cut from the same cloth. ... Why are the Democrats thinking about going again to a very unvetted person in Gavin Newsom? And we just experienced the same thing from Kamala Harris.” — Susan Crabtree (18:53)

8. Oversized Government and Systemic Mismanagement

Timestamp: 21:19

• Regulatory Capture and Corruption: State agencies meant to oversee entities like Pacific Gas & Electric (PGE) are staffed by industry insiders, leading to unchecked disasters (e.g., Paradise, Altadena fires).
• Water Mismanagement: Despite record rainfall, 80% of runoff is lost, reservoirs go dry, and water infrastructure fails.
• Media Complicity: Collapse of local press means less accountability—officials and cronyism flourish unchallenged.
• Quote:

  “Little accountability and a lot of information silos in California and access journalism. ... Many [regulators] came from the utility companies. It's a revolving door between the utility companies and the oversight agency that's supposed to be providing the oversight...” — Susan Crabtree (22:17)

9. Current and Future Power Struggles in California Politics

Timestamp: 25:59

• Power Plays: While Newsom dominates, speculation exists about succession maneuvers involving Adam Schiff, Alex Padilla, and a struggling Katie Porter.
• Senate-Governor Swap: Discusses potential strategies for Newsom to step into the Senate seat after terms out as governor, with allies orchestrating the transition.
• Quote:

  “There's talk now in California that Alex Padilla... could come back and run for governor and get Gavin Newsom's blessing and Gavin Newsom could become senator... That would be a really interesting shift and scramble in the California political machine that would actually bolster Gavin Newsom's chances even more.” — Susan Crabtree (26:22)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On California as a Political Test Lab:

  “It's sort of like this bad sort of chemistry testing zone out here in California, a little petri dish for liberal causes. ... The electorate just keeps electing politicians based on the D or R beside their name and mainly the D.” (Susan Crabtree, 02:09)

• On the Homeless Crisis and Corruption:

  “We're just peeling the onion alpha... They operate by state grants. And so... millions are being tens of millions, even more than that are being misspent just on, on personal credit cards, luxury vehicles.” (Susan Crabtree, 09:49)

• On Decline of Public Order and Safety:

  “Homeless people walking... in a stupor, just like if they were on fentanyl or something. ... This just felt like a third world country now...” (Susan Crabtree, 06:24)

• On Governmental Failure:

  “This is just government mismanagement at a obscene level... The fact that Gavin Newsom is a viable candidate and a top polling candidate for the Democrats right now is personally mind boggling.” (Susan Crabtree, 22:17)

Timestamps for Major Segments

• California’s National Influence: 02:09–03:23
• Population Decline & Symptoms: 03:23–06:08
• Personal Changes in Quality of Life: 06:24–09:26
• The Homeless Industrial Complex: 09:49–12:25
• Policy Failures on Homelessness: 13:38–15:35
• Proposition 47 and Crime: 15:54–18:21
• Newsom, Harris, Political Culture: 18:53–21:19
• Regulatory Capture/Gov’t Failure: 21:19–25:59
• Power Dynamics (Newsom, Harris, Schiff, Porter): 25:59–28:34

Conclusion & Key Takeaway

Susan Crabtree, grounding her argument in firsthand experience and investigative reporting, paints a portrait of a state undermined by one-party rule, institutionalized corruption, and a cycle of failed progressive policies. The ramifications, she argues, are not contained within California’s borders—these models and their consequences are making their way into national political discourse and practice.

“A great explanation of what's happened in California and what we should be watching out for these next years.” — Scott Bertram (28:34)

Related Segment:

Colonial America: Preview of Hillsdale’s Online Course
Starting around 30:39, Jeremiah Regan discusses Hillsdale College’s new online course on Colonial America, focusing on the settlers’ endurance, formation of self-government, and the roots of American identity.

For deeper insight:
Check out Susan Crabtree’s book, Fool's Gold: The Radicals, Con Artists, and Traitors Who Killed the California Dream and Now Threaten Us All.