[Amerigomag]

a different Democratic Party.

An overlooked, little understood, little discussed but accurate observation.

During Edmond Brown's administration, cultural/racial minorities had little political power in California, not even in the CADEM. Unions prevailed only in the large, metropolitan areas, principally in Los Angeles and San Francisco Counties because of the traditional, heavy industries in those locations.

Today, racial/cultural minority blocs from Los Angeles County have risen to positions of leadership and power in the California Assembly and will soon do so in the Senate. Unions hold sway in both the Assembly and Senate, principally because they have been successful in unionizing government employment.

It would be nearly impossible in California today to pass "open shop"/"right-to-work" legislation or eliminate the "prevailing wage" provision of state contracts, even without federal participation.

[goldstategop]

Yep. The Democrats came to power in 1958 in no small part over the "right to work" issue. This has always been a unionized state but as you observed the demographics have changed significantly. Older unions were concentrated in the private sector but because of steep membership declines they've been supplanted by public unions that have enrolled most of the state's employees. And of course the most prominent of these unions is the correctional guards union. Its a cottage industry in California.

(Denny Crane: "I Don't Want To Socialize With A Pinko Liberal Democrat Commie. Say What You Like About Republicans. We Stick To Our Convictions. Even When We Know We're Dead Wrong.")