Will Artemis II Astronauts Get California Tax Bills? And ICYMI - 6 Great Columns From This Week - A Great Video
We featured a lot of great, original content this past week. Below are six highlights of columns, one great video from the week.
Did The Artemis Astronauts Land In The Wrong State?
There was a time when returning to Earth was the hard part. Now, apparently, it’s dealing with California. Picture the scene. After a 10-day mission around the moon, the Artemis astronauts splash down safely in the Pacific. They climb out of the capsule, tired, exhilarated, and probably still trying to process the fact that they just traveled farther than any humans in decades. And waiting for them on the recovery ship is California’s governor, smiling politely, holding a clipboard. “Welcome back,” he says. “Before you go, we just need to settle a few things.”
Because, of course, landing in California isn’t just a landing. It’s a taxable event. There’s likely a “reentry impact fee” for disturbing coastal waters. An environmental surcharge for the mission’s carbon footprint, regardless of how it compares to the average Sacramento bureaucracy conference. And naturally, a temporary use tax for occupying a capsule that technically touched state-controlled waters.
Then comes the paperwork. Forms to certify that no extraterrestrial material was introduced without proper permitting. Compliance reviews to ensure the mission met California labor standards. Possibly even a requirement that future space crews reflect the state’s preferred policy priorities before being cleared for splashdown.
Absurd? Sure. But not by much. The joke works because it reflects something real. California has built a system where success is treated as a revenue opportunity. The bigger the achievement, the more the state looks for a way to take its cut.
These astronauts didn’t just orbit the moon. They tested the limits of human capability, engineering, and risk. And yet, in this imagined—but not entirely implausible—moment, none of that matters as much as the fact that they landed here. That’s the punchline. In California, you can leave the planet, travel a quarter-million miles into space, and make history. But the moment you come back, the meter is running.
This Sunday ICYMI edition is always free for all subscribers and visitors to this Substack page! Thanks for being a part of this look at CA politics!
THIS IS A GREAT COLUMN TO FORWARD TO PEOPLE YOU THINK MIGHT ENJOY OUR CONTENT!
BELOW ARE SIX STORIES FROM THIS WEEK THAT YOU MAY HAVE MISSED!
*Breaking News* President Trump Endorses Steve Hilton for Governor - Full Analysis
Our morning content is free for all subscribers and guests! You can also listen to this post — along with my California Post column — on our podcast feed, So, Does It Matter? SPOKEN. It’s available on your favorite podcasting app, or you can find it
California Gas Prices Aren’t A Mystery. They’re The Result Of Progressive Policy
This column is free for all subscribers and guests! You can also listen to this post — along with my California Post column — on our podcast feed, So, Does It Matter? SPOKEN. It’s available on your favorite podcasting app, or you can find it here.
Matt Mahan’s $35 Million Rescue Mission - You Can't Make This Up
You can listen to this post on our podcast feed, So, Does It Matter? SPOKEN. It’s available on your favorite podcasting app, or you can find it here.
Straight Talk with John Park, Vice Chairman of the California Republican Party
Our weekly interview podcasts are free for all subscribers — but if you want the full experience, including exclusive content and deeper analysis, you’ll need to be a paid member. About 40% of everything we produce is reserved for paid subscribers. It’s priced well below what Substack recommends — and during a critical election cycle, that access matters.
Top Ten Winners & Losers In California Politics For The Week Ending 4/10 - Who Had The Worst Week? Hint: He Wears A Gun On His Hip
Below is our Top Ten List of Winners and Losers for the Week. This feature is available to all of our subscribers, free and paid. This week, being Spring Break, I have been light on the paywalls (look for this “preview week” to be over come Monday). So at the bottom of this post is our “Worst Week In California” special feature. It's me, in rare form, o…
FOMO? There are half a dozen other items that aren’t highlighted above. But you can read them here.
One Video…
National Review Editor-in-Chief Rich Lowry walks through the woke train wreck that is California’s “First Partner” - you cannot make this up.
On This Date in History… in 1861
Fort Sumter Is Attacked - Starting The Civil War
The attack on Fort Sumter marked the official beginning of the Civil War. In the early morning hours of April 12, Confederate forces opened fire on the Union-held fort in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina. For months, tensions between the North and South had been building following the election of Abraham Lincoln and the secession of several Southern states. Sumter became the flashpoint.
Union Major Robert Anderson and his small garrison held the fort under increasingly difficult conditions, short on supplies and cut off from reinforcement. When Confederate General P.G.T. Beauregard demanded surrender, Anderson refused. The bombardment that followed lasted about 34 hours, as Confederate artillery rained shells down on the fort.
Despite the intensity of the attack, there were no combat fatalities during the bombardment itself. Facing dwindling supplies and mounting damage, Anderson agreed to evacuate on April 13, lowering the U.S. flag over Fort Sumter.
What followed would define the nation’s future. Within days, President Lincoln called for troops to suppress the rebellion, prompting additional Southern states to secede. A long and bloody conflict had begun, one that would claim hundreds of thousands of lives and ultimately determine the survival of the Union.