What is Jon Reading Special Edition - Billionaires, Unions, and Gavin Newsom’s Power Grab

Silicon Valley cash and labor muscle are funding Prop. 50 — a gerrymander Democrats swore they’d never embrace.

Normally on Saturday’s this column is chock full of links to things I read online all week. Political stories. Non-political stories. Videos. Whatever. And now these Saturday columns are a THANK YOU to my paid subscribers.

But this was an unusual week for me, I wasn’t surfing around a lot. There will be some links below and our “On The Date” feature. But you are all benefitting from me reading a long-form article in the New York Times (I subscribe so you don’t have to - LOL) - all about Newsom, Prop. 50 and the money. I was going to summarize it for you, but it kind of ended up being a column that merged information from the story, and my own personal opinions. LOL. It’s a full column (over 700 words) so it is the bulk of this post. But there are a few links below it.

Why should you subscribe? Read this.

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What I Got Out Of A New York Times Long Form Article, Plus My Spin!

It’s official: Gavin Newsom has decided California’s ballot box should double as a war chest for national Democrats. The governor is spearheading Proposition 50, a ballot measure that would shred the state’s supposedly “independent” redistricting system and replace it with a gerrymander designed to flip Republican seats and shore up vulnerable Democrats.

This isn’t about fairness. It’s about stacking the deck.

A Blitz of Billionaires and Union Bosses

Newsom isn’t even pretending otherwise. He’s been working the phones, leaning on California billionaires and union bosses to cough up checks in the $2.5–$5 million range. To show he’s serious, he even threw in $10 million of his own campaign stash. The message: Democrats can’t afford to “unilaterally disarm” while Republicans redraw maps in places like Texas.

But let’s be clear — this isn’t disarmament. It’s escalation. Proposition 50 was carefully drawn to flip five GOP-held seats and protect four shaky Democratic incumbents, tilting the balance of power in the House not just in 2026, but through 2030.

💡 A Note on Saturdays:

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