California’s Soft-on-Crime Fiasco: Dodging Accountability
Today, Assembly Democrats Again Refused to Get Tough on Those Trafficking 16- and 17-Year-Olds
(Anyone with a green up arrow by their name voted against increasing the consequences for people selling 16 and 17 year old minors for sex.)
This week, California’s Democrats killed Assembly Bill 379, which would have made purchasing 16- and 17-year-olds for sex a felony, matching penalties for trafficking younger minors. As an advocate for individual liberty and responsibility, I see this as a refusal to hold predators accountable. Today, Republicans and the bill’s Democratic author, Maggy Krell, forced a floor vote to demand transparency, but Democrats used parliamentary maneuvers, stripped Krell from her own bill, made vague promises of a solution, and sent it to another committee, dodging accountability. Those who advocate a soft-on-crime position claim societal pressures—like poverty—drive such crimes, prioritizing leniency over justice.
This mirrors their resistance to Proposition 36, passed in 2024 with 70% voter support to toughen penalties for retail theft and drug crimes. It reversed parts of Proposition 47, which had downgraded theft under $950 to misdemeanors, fueling a 26% shoplifting surge since 2019. Prop 36 targets repeat offenders with felonies and offers drug treatment, yet soft-on-crime advocates opposed it, arguing punishment deepens systemic harm.
Excusing personal choices undermines the liberty I cherish. When individuals face no consequences, society suffers—retail theft skyrockets, and trafficking persists. AB 379’s defeat, today’s Assembly dodge, and Prop 36’s necessity expose a collectivist mindset blaming society over individuals. As a fierce defender of freedom, I insist liberty demands accountability. We must uphold personal responsibility as justice’s bedrock, ensuring a free society where choices have consequences.
Perhaps the best news for these progressive collectivist Democrats is that most constituents vote party labels, oblivious to how batshit crazy their policies are. If voters truly understood how these legislators oppose stiff penalties for those who sell 16- and 17-year-olds, they’d toss them out on their keisters.