Guest:

Senator Catherine Blakespear

Guest Bio: 

Catherine Blakespear represents the 38th District, covering northern San Diego County and southern Orange County. A lawyer and former journalist for the Los Angeles Times and Associated Press, she transitioned into public service as the Traffic Commissioner for Encinitas before serving eight years in local government, including six years as Mayor. Now in the State Senate, Blakespear chairs the Environmental Quality Committee and the Transportation Subcommittee on LOSSAN Rail Corridor Resiliency. Her legislative focus includes increasing housing affordability, preventing gun violence, and finding structural solutions to California’s homelessness humanitarian crisis.

Show Summary

It costs an average of $700,000 and takes seven years to build a single unit of housing in California—a reality Senator Catherine Blakespear calls "anathema to my sense of humanity". In this episode of State of Gold, Jon Slavet and Senator Blakespear tackle the "multi-billion dollar question" of why California’s housing and homelessness crises continue to spiral despite hundreds of new laws.Blakespear shares her unique perspective as a former Mayor who once fought against high-density mandates, explaining why she now believes the state must balance local control with the urgent need for a million new homes. The conversation takes a sharp turn into the "shocking" reality of the state's homelessness response. Blakespear reveals her firsthand findings after touring Care Court, describing it as a "resource-intensive group therapy" that fails to scale because it remains entirely voluntary.

In a rare moment of candor from the Democratic side, Blakespear argues it is time to move the "pendulum" back toward involuntary commitment for the gravely disabled, stating that leaving people to die in the elements is a violation of human rights. From the complexities of the insurance market and the Cap-and-Invest program to a debate over Gavin Newsom’s leadership, this episode is an essential look at the policies required to reclaim the "Golden State."

Chapters

00:00 – The Waiting Room: California’s Housing Math Problem
01:12 – From Mayor to Senator: The Battle Over High-Density Housing
02:43 – Public vs. Private: Solving the Million-Home Shortage
03:41 – Local Control: Why Some Cities Fight State Mandates
06:19 – Developers, Density, and the Insurance Crisis
08:28 – The "Stab in the Heart": Addressing the Humanity of Homelessness
09:06 – Functional Zero: Why "Permanent Housing Only" is Failing
11:24 – The Case for Involuntary Commitment: Moving the Pendulum
13:53 – Exposing Care Court: Why Voluntary Care Isn't Scaling
16:48 – Cap and Invest: Climate Goals vs. Affordability
19:43 – The Billionaire Tax and the Innovation Economy
21:49 – Assessing Gavin Newsom: Practicality vs. Policy

Connect with Catherine Blakespear

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/senatorblakespear/about/
• Twitter: https://x.com/Cblakespear
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/catherineblakespear

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