'Failed experiment': Experts reveal why Soros-backed policies failed in the deepest blue of the country

The progressive crime agenda, pushed largely by liberal megadonor George Soros, suffered a major defeat in deep-blue California this week after voters soundly rejected progressive prosecutors and policies in what Fox News Digital experts say represents a major reversal.

“I think this is broader than just a message from people who care about crime,” said Cully Stimson, senior legal fellow at the Heritage Foundation and co-author of the book “Rogue Prosecutors: How Radical Soros Lawyers Are Destroying America's.” Communities”. said Fox News Digital.

“This is a huge task and a cry for help from the population that we want our state back. We want our counties back, and we want our cities back, and that our failed social experiments have had enough time, and they are absolutely, catastrophic failures.”

California voters overwhelmingly approved Prop 36 on Tuesday, rolling back key provisions of Proposition 47 that were promoted by state Democrats as progressive crime reforms that would make the state safer.

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But in recent years, retail chains and mom-and-pop stores have been hit hard by thefts, robberies and organized retail crime, while cities like San Francisco, Oakland and Los Angeles have been plagued by uprisings in property crime and retail theft.

“Too long, [California Gov.] Gavin Newsom, [Los Angeles District Attorney] “George Gascón and Democratic leaders have tried to tell voters not to believe what they see when it comes to crime,” Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco told Fox News Digital. “They wanted to trick the public into believing that our eyes lied to us.” Well, the people have spoken overwhelmingly. The results in the LA DA race and the Prop 36 race make it clear that Californians are done with the Democrats’ soft-on-crime experiments that threaten the safety of our communities.”

When Proposition 47 passed in 2014, most thefts were downgraded from felonies to misdemeanors if the amount stolen was less than $950, “unless the defendant was previously convicted of murder, rape, certain sex offenses or certain weapons offenses.” been.”

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Nathan Hochman (left) fired Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón on Tuesday. Gascón survived two recall attempts and came under fire for his progressive criminal justice policies. (AP)

Every single county in the state voted for Prop 36, which won Thursday by an overall margin of 70.4% to 29.6%, with 54% of the vote.

“You see all these Walgreens, the first In N Out Burger closing, all these CVS's in downtown San Francisco and LA closing, these mom and pop stores closing because you're literally telling people, that you can steal up to $950 and nothing will happen to you,” Stimson told Fox News Digital. “No one with an ounce of common sense, left or right, thinks this is a good idea. This is not a reimagining of the criminal justice system. This is a cancer that is being unleashed on society under the fig leaf of reform.”

Progressives suffered another major loss in the city of Los Angeles, where District Attorney George Gascón, backed by Soros, was defeated from former federal prosecutor Nathan Hochman, as crime was seen as a top issue of the election cycle.

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George Soros delivers a speech during the 2023 Munich Security Conference. Soros has supported the campaigns of progressive prosecutors across the United States (Open Society Foundations/YouTube/Video screenshot)

Stimson told Fox News Digital that Gascón's policies are essentially a “middle finger” to victims and that the progressive prosecutor's “Achilles heel” continues to be the “invalidity and lack of common sense” that leads “directly to rising crime rates.” . “

“That's why Gascón will go down in history as the worst prosecutor in the history of the county, perhaps even the country,” Stimson said.

After losing his re-election campaign, Gascón suggested that it was part of a “shift to the right across America,” which he described as “heartbreaking.”

“Democrats have a long way to go, but the work is more important than ever and our commitment will not waver,” Gascóon said. “However, I called Mr. Hochman and wish him well as the next District Attorney of Los Angeles County. I am deeply proud of what we have accomplished over the past four years and grateful to the communities that have been and always will be at the heart of criminal justice reform.”

Gascón, co-author of Prop 47, was inaugurated in 2020 amid a controversy over police misconduct and nationwide calls for criminal justice reform. His directives — such as eliminating bail, abandoning the death penalty and refusing to try underage defendants accused of violent crimes as adults — were criticized as such soft on crime.

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Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón says, “Educators and school personnel have a fundamental duty to provide a safe environment for all students.” (Myung Chun/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

Another loss for Soros-backed prosecutors in the Golden State is Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price was called back A backlash ensued early Wednesday, less than two years after she took office, over her supposedly soft approach to crime.

Oakland's Democratic Mayor Sheng Thao, who has struggled with voter discontent amid rising crime, was also ousted from office after her recall effort passed with 65% of the vote.

In San Francisco, where crime is a major concern for voters, Democratic Mayor London Breed lost her re-election campaign.

“I don’t think this has really affected people who care about crime,” Stimson said. “We just want our beautiful state back. We want our beautiful cities back. And your cancerous, failed social experiment, your social pandemic, that you unleashed on us is over. We're done. We’re done with it.’ And that’s exactly what’s happening.”

The Bay Bridge and San Francisco skyline are seen in this view from the bay on March 9, 2020. (Jane Engelska/Digital First Media/East Bay Times via Getty Images)

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He continued: “So, Pamela Price, lose, get recalled. This is a piece of cake. George Gascón loses 2 to 1. This is a piece of cake. Prop 36 passes, that's a no-brainer because it was the epitome of stupidity, And it's hard for people to admit that Trump didn't win because black men are misogynistic and that Gascón didn't lose because black men are misogynistic , and that Hispanics were not recalled because of it. The reason Prop 36 did not pass was because the measures implemented by the other side were stupid and legally deadly.

Fox News Digital's Jamie Joseph, Louis Casiano and Michael Ruiz contributed to this report