California's Assembly Votes To Allow Communists To Hold State Jobs

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California may end a decades-old ban on members of the Communist Party working in its government, after the state Assembly approved a bill that would delete references to the party from its employment requirements.

The bill's sponsor, Assemblyman Rob Bonta, D-Oakland, said that California's laws should focus on individuals' actions and evidence rather than political affiliations and what he termed "empty labels."

Speaking on the floor of the Assembly, Bonta called the legislation a "cleanup bill that removes archaic and outdated references to the Communist Party in our state laws, specifically those stating that a public employee may be dismissed from employment if he or she advocates or is knowingly a member of the Communist Party."

The bill passed in a 41-30 vote, after a debate that touched on the Cold War, the U.S. history of fighting communism — and the potential for future conflicts.

While Bonta called the measure "an appropriate step forward" for the state, three of his Republican colleagues in the California Assembly rose to speak against the bill, AB 22.

"This bill is blatantly offensive to all Californians," said Assemblyman Travis Allen, R-Huntington Beach, who said his constituents include people who fled Vietnam's Communist regime. "Communism stands for everything that the United States stands against."

Allen concluded, "To allow subversives and avowed Communists to now work for the state of California is a direct insult to the people of California who pay for that government."

Assemblyman Randy Voepel, R-Santee, also opposed the bill, noting America's history of going to war to combat communism.

"There are 1.9 million veterans in California," Voepel said. "Many of us fought the communists. They are still a threat. We have North Korea, that wants to do us in. We have China, who is a great, great threat to the United States."

After those objections were raised, Bonta told his colleagues that the legislation includes a provision that allows the dismissal of any state employee "if that public employee advocates or is knowingly a member" of an organization that works toward "the overthrow of the government of the United States or any state by force or violence."

The Northern California chairman for the Communist Party USA, Juan Lopez, has pushed to roll back similar bans in recent years — including one that forbids teachers from being in his party.

The Communist Party isn't a registered political party in California, Lopez told the Daily Bulletin back in 2013.</s>Being a communist would no longer be a fireable offense for California government employees under a bill passed Monday by the state Assembly.

Lawmakers narrowly approved the bill to repeal part of a law enacted during the Red Scare of the 1940s and '50s when fear that communists were trying to infiltrate and overthrow the U.S. government was rampant. The bill now goes to the Senate.

It would eliminate part of the law that allows public employees to be fired for being a member of the Communist Party.

Employees could still be fired for being members of organizations they know advocate for overthrowing the government by force or violence.

The bill updates an outdated provision in state law, said Assemblyman Rob Bonta, the San Francisco Bay Area Democrat who authored the measure.

Some Assembly Republicans said the Cold War-era law should not be changed.

Assemblyman Randy Voepel, a Southern California Republican who fought in the Vietnam War, said communists in North Korea and China are "still a threat."

"This bill is blatantly offensive to all Californians," said Assemblyman Travis Allen, a Republican who represents a coastal district in Southern California. "Communism stands for everything that the United States stands against."</s>Being a communist would no longer be a fireable offense for California government employees under a bill passed Monday by the state Assembly.</s>Being a member of the Communist Party would no longer be a fireable offense for state jobs under a measure narrowly approved by the California Assembly on Monday.

The measure by Assemblyman Rob Bonta (D-Oakland) would strike language in California law dating from 1953 that warns of "a clear and present danger, which the Legislature of the State of California finds is great and imminent, that in order to advance the program, policies and objectives of the world communism movement, communist organizations in the State of California and their members will engage in concerted effort to hamper, restrict, interfere with, impede, or nullify the efforts of the State...and their members will infiltrate and seek employment by the State and its public agencies."

In another section of statute, being a member of the Communist Party is sufficient cause for dismissal for public employees. Bonta's bill would eliminate the reference to communism. Under his proposal, it would still be a fireable offense to knowingly advocate the violent overthrow of government.

"It's an old and archaic reference," said Bonta of the specific language about communism. He said his bill was "really just a technical fix to remove that reference to a label that could be misused or abused, and frankly, has been in the past, in some of the darker chapters of our history in this country."

Assemblyman Randy Voepel (R-Santee) urged his colleagues to vote no, arguing that military veterans fought wars against communists, a political ideology he said "is still a threat."

"The whole concept of communism and Communist Party members working for the state of California is against everything we stand for on this floor," Voepel said.

The bill, Assembly Bill 22, squeaked through with a 41-vote majority, but not before some hand-wringing from Democrats. The measure initially came up short when the roll was opened, and many members anticipating tight reelection races held off or voted no. Others came from districts with high immigrant populations that fled communist regimes in their own countries, such as Vietnam.

Bonta said he recognized that history, but added that it was important to harmonize that with the value of due process.

"Part of having a functioning democracy and a fair and equitable society is to make sure you're actually basing your decisions to take someone's job away ... based on their actual conduct, their actual behavior and actual proof and evidence, not just some loose label that could be applied overbroadly in a way that is unfair and unjust," he said.

The bill now moves to the Senate.</s>Comrade Citizen, there comes a day when progressive ideology has to go all-in. For California that day is today….

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – Being a communist would no longer be a fireable offense for California government employees under a bill passed by the state Assembly. Lawmakers narrowly approved the bill Monday. It would repeal part of a law enacted during the Red Scare of the 1940s and ’50s when fear that communists were trying to infiltrate and overthrow the U.S. government was rampant. The bill now goes to the Senate.

It would eliminate part of the law that allows public employees to be fired for being part of the Communist Party. Employees could still be fired for being members of organizations they know advocate for overthrowing the government. Some Assembly Republicans say communism is still a threat and that the Cold War-era law should not be changed. (link)</s>The California Assembly has approved a bill changing a 1953 law that made it a career-ending offense to be a member of the Communist Party.

On Monday, the state assembly narrowly approved a measure proposed by Democrat Assemblyman Rob Bonta that would remove references to communism from the 1953 bill against communist infiltration in the government, the LA Times reported.

The original statute warns of “a clear and present danger, which the Legislature of the State of California finds is great and imminent, that in order to advance the program, policies and objectives of the world communism movement, communist organizations in the State of California and their members will engage in concerted effort to hamper, restrict, interfere with, impede, or nullify the efforts of the State…and their members will infiltrate and seek employment by the State and its public agencies.”

The law then suggests being a member of the Communist Party is a sufficient reason for dismissal for public employees.

Bonta’s new bill, however, would eliminate all references to communism and would only apply to those who advocate the violent overthrow of government.

“It’s an old and archaic reference,” said the Democratic Assemblyman regarding the language about communism. In his view the bill was “really just a technical fix to remove that reference to a label that could be misused or abused, and frankly, has been in the past, in some of the darker chapters of our history in this country.”

Republican Assemblyman Randy Voepel attacked the bill, urging his colleagues to vote against it, claiming that military veterans fought against communists and a hostile political ideology “is still a threat.”

“The whole concept of communism and Communist Party members working for the state of California is against everything we stand for on this floor,” he said.

The bill managed to pass with a 41-vote majority, despite the measure initially coming up short due to some Democrats’ reluctance to vote for it, fearing future tight re-election races.

Other members of the Assembly voted ‘no’ as they came from districts with high immigrant populations who fled communist countries.

Bonta claims he recognizes the history, but added that due process must be applied to everyone.

“Part of having a functioning democracy and a fair and equitable society is to make sure you’re actually basing your decisions to take someone’s job away … based on their actual conduct, their actual behavior and actual proof and evidence, not just some loose label that could be applied overbroadly in a way that is unfair and unjust,” he said.

The bill will now move to the Senate.</s>California may allow registered communists to work in government

The California Legislature is considering eliminating a provision of state law that allows government agencies to fire public employees for being members of the Communist Party or advocating on its behalf. A bill proposing the change passed the Assembly on Monday.

AB 22, introduced by Assemblyman Rob Bonta (D-Alameda), would amend a Red Scare-era law that aimed to prevent the overthrow of the state or federal government by communists or other subversive groups. The existing law also allows local agencies, the state Legislature and the United States Congress to subpoena public employees to answer questions under oath about their ties to the Communist Party.

Bonta’s proposed amendments to the law would eliminate provisions mentioning communism, the communist movement and the Communist Party. Advocating the violent overthrow of the state or federal government would still be a fireable offense for public employees in California.

“AB 22 is a cleanup bill that removes archaic and outdated references to the Communist Party in our state law,” Bonta said on the Assembly floor. The Democratic assemblyman added that the existing legislation should be “updated so the law focuses on the actions of individuals and evidence of their conduct.”

Assemblyman Traveis Allen (R-Huntington Beach) responded by saying the bill is offensive to all Californians and that communism killed more than 90 million people in the 20th Century alone.

“Communism stands for everything the United States stands against,” Allen said. “To allow subversives and avowed communists to now work for the state of California is a direct insult to the people of California that pay for that government.”

Provisions in the existing state law warn of the possibility of communists entering government in California and advancing the policies and objectives of international communism.

“There is a clear and present danger, which the Legislature of the State of California finds is great and imminent, that in order to advance the program, policies and objectives of the world communism movement, communist organizations in the state of California and their members will engage in concerted effort to hamper, restrict, interfere with, impede, or nullify the efforts of the state and the public agencies of the state to comply with and enforce the laws of the state of California and their members will infiltrate and seek employment by the state and its public agencies,” the existing law states.

On Monday, the Assembly voted 41-30 in favor of AB 22. The bill now advances to the state Senate.</s>Being a communist would no longer be a fireable offense for California government employees under a bill passed Monday by the state Assembly.

Lawmakers narrowly approved the bill to repeal part of a law enacted during the Red Scare of the 1940s and '50s when fear that communists were trying to infiltrate and overthrow the US government was rampant.

The bill, which was authored by Democratic Assemblyman Rob Bonta, now goes to the Senate.

If passed there, it would eliminate part of the law that allows public employees to be fired for being a member of the Communist Party.

Employees could still be fired for being members of organizations they know advocate for overthrowing the government by force or violence.

The bill updates an outdated provision in state law, said Bonta.

Some Assembly Republicans said the Cold War-era law should not be changed.

Assemblyman Randy Voepel, a Southern California Republican who fought in the Vietnam War, said communists in North Korea and China are 'still a threat.'

'This bill is blatantly offensive to all Californians,' said Assemblyman Travis Allen, a Republican who represents a coastal district in Southern California. 'Communism stands for everything that the United States stands against.'

This isn't the first time such a measure has been brought in the California legislature.

Then Democratic state Senator Alan Lowenthal called for a similar repeal in 2008.

Courts had already declared the basic tenants of the longstanding law unconstitutional as a violation of First Amendment rights, Lowenthal told Fox 8 at the time.

'Being a member of the Communist Party in and of itself does not mean you advocate the overthrow of the government,' he said in April 2008. 'It doesn’t mean we agree with them, but they’re not a threat to our survival.'

Lowenthal is now a US Representative for California's 47th congressional district, and has been since 2013.</s>It would be California, right? Let’s just ignore the hundreds of millions killed or the continuing effort to bring chaos to our streets.

Being a communist would no longer be a fireable offense for California government employees under a bill passed Monday by the state Assembly.

Lawmakers narrowly approved the bill to repeal part of a law enacted during the Red Scare of the 1940s and ’50s when fear that communists were trying to infiltrate and overthrow the U.S. government was rampant. The bill now goes to the Senate.

It would eliminate part of the law that allows public employees to be fired for being a member of the Communist Party.

Employees could still be fired for being members of organizations they know advocate for overthrowing the government by force or violence.

The bill updates an outdated provision in state law, said Assemblyman Rob Bonta, the San Francisco Bay Area Democrat who authored the measure.</s>SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - Being a communist would no longer be a fireable offense for California government employees under a bill passed by the state Assembly.

Lawmakers narrowly approved the bill Monday. It would repeal part of a law enacted during the Red Scare of the 1940s and '50s when fear that communists were trying to infiltrate and overthrow the U.S. government was rampant. The bill now goes to the Senate.

It would eliminate part of the law that allows public employees to be fired for being part of the Communist Party.

Employees could still be fired for being members of organizations they know advocate for overthrowing the government.

Some Assembly Republicans say communism is still a threat and that the Cold War-era law should not be changed.

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The Assembly of California votes in favor of ending a ban which barred members of the Communist Party USA from holding positions in the state government.