Ben Phelps

🚨🔥🚨 ABSOLUTE OUTRAGE: California Democrats just rammed through SB79, the "Destroy Single-Family Zoning Act," paving the way to bulldoze our quiet neighborhoods and force everyone but the ultra-rich into cramped rental apartments! This is a direct assault on the American Dream—homeownership that low-income, middle-class, and minority families have fought tooth and nail to achieve. As a dad who treasures privacy, safety, a peaceful backyard where my kids can play without dodging drug needles or homeless attacks, I would NEVER live in one of these cookie cutter rentals. And neither should you be forced to! @GavinNewsom, VETO THIS BILL THE SECOND IT HITS YOUR DESK! Don't let @Scott_Wiener and his developer cronies turn our communities into overcrowded slums. My Assemblyman @RickChavezZbur nailed it: low-income neighborhoods will suffer the MOST—cheaper land means developers swarm in, demolishing hard-earned single-family homes and replacing them with towering apartments that displace families and jack up prices. Generational wealth? Gone. Safe, stable communities? Eradicated. Only the filthy rich like Newsom in their gated enclaves will enjoy what's left of single-family living. This scam ONLY benefits greedy developers drooling over prime land, building luxury units under the guise of "affordability" and "homelessness prevention"—while ignoring REAL solutions like cracking down on crime and addiction. No regard for what people WANT: single-family homes in safe, quiet areas, not forced into vertical ghettos! And the transit fantasy? SB79 assumes we'll all magically ditch cars for public buses and trains—after endless horror stories of stabbings, shootings, rapes, and sharing seats with reeking homeless? NO WAY! It's unsafe, unreliable, and a recipe for more chaos in already strained cities like LA and San Diego. Californians, RISE UP! This is state overreach at its worst—eroding local control, gentrifying vulnerable areas, and selling out residents to big-money interests. @GavinNewsom, prove you're for the people, not the payoffs—VETO SB79 NOW! Or face the backlash from families you've betrayed. @KarenBassLA @lanegretesm @GloriaJRomero @spencerpratt @ScottPresler @JustineBateman @SteveHiltonx @jenvanlaar @LindseyPHorvath @

Today I signed a City Council resolution opposing SB79 unless it is amended to exempt cities with a state-approved and compliant Housing Element. While I support the intent to accelerate housing development statewide, as written, this bill risks unintended consequences for LA.

Mexico is America's largest source of imported fresh fruits & veggies, and Trump's 25% tariffs hit in the depth of winter when the US relies the most on imports—the vast majority of raspberries, limes, avocados, peppers, mangoes, & tomatoes come from MX/CA and will jump in price

Democrats: what you need to all be saying, with a single voice, is "The United States government is in crisis, and our political and economic system may collapse, because Donald Trump is trying to throw out the Constitution and make himself a dictator."