The club welcomed Catherine Blakespear, our new State Senator, who spoke about her work in Sacramento. She described how much more orderly and professional the environment was compared to her local governing experience. Her team were working on three gun safety bills, including the concept of requiring  insurance for gun-owners. Homelessness remains an intractable issue, despite its obvious impact in the state - it's impact and causes are so diffused through the law and culture that a simple legal vector simply shifts the problem without solving it. It's on everyone's mind, and Sacramento continues to look for solutions.

Next up was Rimga Vishkanta, who talked about the challenges local school boards face. School districts and their board meetings have become a flash point for the culture wars during and since the pandemic. Various so-called "Parent Groups" come to the meetings to hijack the agenda and argue about "CRT,"  Trans kids, and other politically-motivated wedge issues.  GOP messaging is promoting this bad, disruptive behavior. And the schools are looking for help in settling the situation down. There are various non-partisan groups that are attempting to step in.