Attorney General Rob Bonta speaking at Crissy Field in San Francisco on 11/7/24 (Photo: oag.ca.gov video screenshot)
AG Bonta Announces Legal Challenges to Incoming Trump Administration Actions
Bonta confirms he has litigation ready along with other state Attorneys General
By Evan Symon, November 7, 2024 1:22 pm
Attorney General Rob Bonta spoke at Crissy Field in San Francisco on Thursday, discussing what the election of Donald Trump meant for California and what the state was doing to “prepare” for his second term as President.
Back in Trump’s first term, then Attorney General and current Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra issued legal challenges against Trump’s policies at an average rate of twice a month. In some cases the challenges resulted in the state suing the federal government, and in other cases it meant a lawsuit in less than 24 hours after Trump signed a law. Legal challenges quickly dried up during the Biden administration, during which time Becerra left office and was replaced by Bonta.
However, on Thursday, Bonta vowed to do what Becerra did and challenge the administration on anything they try to move forward that goes against Californian laws and values. During the press conference, Bonta specifically noted that the state would challenge the administration on immigration, LGBT issues, environmental issues, women’s reproductive rights, civil rights, and gun control.
“We know to take Trump at his word when he says he’ll roll back environmental protections, go after our immigrant and LGBTQ+ communities, attack our civil rights and restrict access to essential reproductive care, which means we won’t be flat footed,” explained Bonta on Thursday. “You can be sure that as California Attorney General, if Trump attacks your rights, I’ll be there. If Trump comes after your freedoms, I’ll be there. If Trump jeopardizes your safety and your well-being, I’ll be there. California DOJ did it before, and we will do it again.
“As the reality of a second Trump administration takes hold, I know there is a lot of fear and anxiety and frustration and sadness. And I understand. Those feelings are natural and understandable. I’m here today to reassure you here today that, in California, progress will prevail. No matter who is in the White House, no matter who controls Congress in California we will keep moving forward. In California, we will choose calm over chaos. Fact over fiction. Belonging over blame. Unity over division.”
“As Attorney General I will continue to use the full authority of the law and the full authority of my office to stand up for all people, especially those who have been long overlooked and undervalued. To safeguard reproductive rights. To advocate for more housing, specifically, for more affordable housing for lower and middle income families. I’ll continue to take on greedy corporate giants and fight for more affordable gas and groceries and everything in between.
“We’ve been here before. We’ve lived through Trump 1.0. We know what he’s capable of. We know what plans he has in store. The silver lining is just that – we know.
“If Trump attacks your rights come January, I’ll be there. If Trump goes after your freedoms, I’ll be there. If Trump jeopardizes your safety and your well-being, I’ll be there. The California DOJ did it before, and we’ll do it again. No matter what the incoming administration has in store, California will remain the steadfast beacon of hope and progress it has always been. A constant, unwavering, unmovable force to be reckoned with.”
Bonta, during a quick question and and answer session afterwards, said that he is also working with other state Attorneys General over draft litigation and have prepared for the second Trump administration. They also expect certain actions to come from the federal government and have litigation prepared already as a result.
While Bonta’s remarks and his willingness to go after Trump like Becerra did during the first administration was expected, it is currently unknown just how many legal challenges he and other state attorneys general will put forward. However, the number is expected to be fairly high because of both the number of issues that Bonta brought up during the press conference and the number of issues Trump has brought up during the year.
“What we saw the last few years of the Trump administration, with Becerra going after Trump, we’ll see again starting in January with Bonta,” explained Elise Cranston, a law researcher on state challenges against the federal government, to the Globe on Thursday. “It isn’t just Bonta, of course, but his speech today may it very clear what he was willing to do. He even invoked Governor [Gavin] Newsom, Senator [Alex] Padilla, incoming Senator [Adam] Schiff, all Democratic House members, all Democratic state legislators, Mayors, County Commissioners, and so on. He’s trying to say that they will all back what he does next.
“It’s also not surprising that they have been planning this for months. They saw where the election was heading and looked at everything Trump was promising to do. So, yes, you better believe him when he says they have litigation ready for when the administration starts rolling it out. Trump promised deportations shortly after taking office, for example, and Bonta highlighted that in the speech. So they’ll pounce on that once Trump signs off on that.
“We’re going to see a ton of legal challenges come January. We’re just seeing the pre-game show for it now.”
The incoming Trump administration has yet to respond to Bonta’s remarks as of Wednesday afternoon.
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“If Trump attacks your rights come January, I’ll be there. If Trump goes after your freedoms, I’ll be there. If Trump jeopardizes your safety and your well-being, I’ll be there. ” said AG Bonta.
Oh, yes, you can count of the Democrats to protect your rights. That’s why they passed laws limiting what doctors can tell you about Covid vaccines and why they just passed laws limiting election free speech. Oh, yes, you can count on the Democrats to protect your freedom. That’s why California is ranked 48th for freedom by the Cato Institute. Oh, yes, you can count of the Democrats to protect your safety. That’s why California has emptied one third of their prisons, and told everyone to not vote for Prop. 36.
Bonta is full of sh*t as usual.
Game on, National Reciprocity.
Beep, Beep!🤡
Add another one to the Gavin tiny clown car!
Maybe some people have a short memory but California locked us down, kept our children out of schools and forced citizens to take an experimental shot!
Spare me the “I will protect your civil rights” platitudes!
AG Bonta, focus on the crimes being committed on your fellow citizens instead of participating in political theater!
Time to remind every elected official in the CA Legislature that if they support ANY of this crap their position is in jeopardy….if only!!
Bonta the stupid s**t he is should be sucking up to Trump as Cali devoid of it’s regular injection of federal money would be a shanty town and Bonta would be homeless.
So Bonta, what about when it’s you taking rights?
Keep hearing a rumor — and other readers who live in the Bay Area may already be familiar with this —- that A.G. Bonta’s name is connected to the same name behind whatever suspected illegal activity now-recalled Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao may have been up to that caused her house to be raided by the FBI not that long ago. Thus it’s possible that Bonta may be in hot water too and may not be long for the Atty General office. The Feds work slowly because they are serious and methodical about gathering every scrap of what they need to ensure a prosecution. Thus whatever case they may be building would not surface until they have the goods on everyone, if they do. Who knows? —- maybe even Newsom will be caught in their dragnet.
What I heard was that the same guy who made donations to the Oakland mayor (from gambling and prostitution) also made a large donation to both Bonta’s, and the Bonta’s then “donated” the money to charity when it was exposed.
As for Bonta- is it possible to detest someone more than Newsom? Because that awful speech he just made should be in the Wokeism HOF.
Yes, Rod, that seems to be the story. And the Bontas part in it, especially the way you describe it, certainly appears to stink to high heaven, doesn’t it? Who else in the Bay Area political world might be implicated? We don’t know now, but there could be others.
Meanwhile, the cliche-ridden Rob Bonta seems to be trying to emulate Newsom, with his slicked-back hair, his staccato speaking style, and most of all his willingness to do the sleazy, scummy stuff that Newsom himself is famous for, which by the way doesn’t help Californians AT ALL, except maybe for the ones that can help Newsom/Bonta politically. Unfortunately he is not as skilled or “charismatic” a politician as Newsom is on the surface, so he ends up looking even more foolish than Newsom does, which is really saying something. So it’s not surprising to hear that Bonta repels you even more than Newsom does.
Dear Mr. Bonta,
Settle down. The constitution of California plays second fiddle to the US Constitution. The taxpayers of California are not paying your salary for you to put on a cape and pretend that you are freedom-protecting superhero. You are kinda proving what the Mayo Clinic says about Narcissistic Personality Disorder: At the same time, people with narcissistic personality disorder have trouble handling anything they view as criticism. They can:
Become impatient or angry when they don’t receive special recognition or treatment.
Have major problems interacting with others and easily feel slighted.
React with rage or contempt and try to belittle other people to make themselves appear superior.
Have difficulty managing their emotions and behavior.
Experience major problems dealing with stress and adapting to change.
Withdraw from or avoid situations in which they might fail.
Feel depressed and moody because they fall short of perfection.
Have secret feelings of insecurity, shame, humiliation and fear of being exposed as a failure.
Trump will make mince meat out of him. Bring it on. As Showandtell says, Trump likely has enough on him to nuke him before Bonta gets out of the gate. A new day is here. Justice will rule and criminals like Bonta that have conducted lawfare by abusing their authority are in deep trouble.
Rob Bonta is a Yale trained lawyer with ZERO ethics who is part of the criminal Democrat mafia that controls this state. He has blatantly steered state contracts and campaign funds to his wife Mia’s non-profits and campaigns. No doubt he’s fearful that Trump’s DOJ might investigate him and his shady dealings? Just recently news broke about a FBI Probe into an Oakland energy plant and questions about AG Bonta’s involvement:
(https://www.sfchronicle.com/eastbay/article/rob-bonta-viridis-oakland-19789139.php)
Here are a couple of articles about Rob Bonta’s questionable ethics:
(https://calmatters.org/projects/california-political-legislative-nonprofits-rob-bonta-wife/)
(https://thevoicesf.org/the-bonta-money-trail/)
Thanks a million for posting this for readers TJ.
All of these guys are literally fighting to stay out of prison. Somebody breakout the popcorn. The next 70 days or so are going to be eventful.
i will NEVER vote for Rob Bonta after he put gun owners in jeopardy by accidentally
( on purpose) leaking their names , addresses, birthday, and even the make and model of firearms that they purchased. Many of these people are judges, law enforcement officers and other Californians that applied for a concealed carry permit.
That shows how petty and vindictive he can be.
Of course , the investigation into the incident found that it was not intentional-
it is easier to ask for forgiveness than it is permission.
Mary, I have been missing you and your comments —- glad to see you again. 🙂
Ashamed to say I had forgotten all about the Bonta gun owner leaks until you reminded us. Leaks which were, as you say, obviously purposely done.
Outrageous.
That was a big one but in my own defense I guess it’s easier to forget even a big one when the list of beyond-outrageous Bonta dirty tricks and abuses is so LONG.
Hi again, Show, and thank you for the kind words.
It is great to be here with all of the commentators after a nice big sweep of the election by Donald Trump.
By the way, I recently watched Tucker talking to fellow Californian Chris Moritz – long but super informative.
Chris Moritz: How Kamala Gave California to the Cartels, & the Psychopaths Ruling the Democrat Party
Nobody in the media ever mentions it, but Kamala Harris helped turn the biggest state in the union from paradise into a dangerous slum.
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&opi=89978449&url=https://www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DEqcKs15txTg&ved=2ahUKEwin4oP9_tOJAxU-DEQIHdxNCF4QFnoECBkQAQ&usg=AOvVaw3khKuGTdifbqjaFK-pelhL
Thank you for the link, Mary! I look forward to watching the Tucker/Chris Moritz video.
Yes, because the media neglected to mention Kamala’s huge role in wrecking California, Trump made up for that by mentioning it repeatedly in his rallies and interviews. Good thing! And Newsom received plenty of credit from Trump, too, for his role in destroying the state. What a relief it is that Trump was elected. 🙂