On Tuesday California’s Senate begins confirmation hearings on Governor Jerry Brown’s nominee for the state’s attorney general, Xavier Becerra (shown). Given his radical background, his long history of associating with communist and progressive groups, and his far-left voting record including opposition to rights enshrined in the Second Amendment, Becerra ought to be a slam-dunk.
First voted into office as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives in 1992, Becerra has welcomed the support of far-left groups such as the Democratic Socialists of America, which formally endorsed his reelection to the House in 1996. He returned the favor by supporting other far-left groups such as the Chicano Coalition for Peace and Social Justice, a group that had been infiltrated by the Communist Party USA (CPUSA). In 2005 he joined Latinos for Peace, an anti-Iraq War front group of the CPUSA.
In September of 2009, when the House voted 345-75 to defund ACORN, Becerra was one of the 75 who voted to continue funding for the notoriously radical and corrupt community organization. He currently chairs the House Democratic Caucus, a position he’ll have to give up once California’s senate confirms him as the state’s AG.
His voting record related to the Second Amendment reflects consistent opposition to it. He voted against H.R. 766, the Financial Institution Customer Protection Act of 2015, which would have prohibited “Operation Choke Point,” an initiative of the U.S. Justice Department which was being used to strangle firearms businesses using credit to finance their operations. He also voted against H.R. 822, the National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of 2011, as well as H.R. 6842, which would have restored Second Amendment-protected rights in Washington, D.C. Becerra voted against the “Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act,” which would protect the firearms industry from frivolous lawsuits related to the criminal misuse of firearms. He also opposed H.R. 4635, the “Arming Pilots Against Terrorism Act.”
When his voting record is compared to the strictures of the U.S. Constitution, Becerra rates just 21 percent out of 100 percent according to the Freedom Index for the U.S. Congress prepared by The John Birch Society (the parent organization of this magazine).
Having won every election to the House since 1992 by margins never less than 72 percent, Becerra is poised to become California’s attorney general, a nearly perfect replica of the AG he is replacing: Kamala Harris. Harris is taking over former Senator Barbara Boxer’s seat in the Senate, leaving behind a similar record in California against gun rights which earned her a rating of “F” from the National Rifle Association.
Photo: AP Images
An Ivy League graduate and former investment advisor, Bob is a regular contributor to The New American magazine and blogs frequently at LightFromTheRight.com, primarily on economics and politics. He can be reached at [email protected].
