By admin 
The California Chamber of Commerce bucked precedent when it endorsed a Democrat — Xavier Becerra — for governor last week.
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Becerra said he was “honored” by their backing and touted it in two press releases. But Republican rival Steve Hilton slammed the group for political opportunism. At the same time, progressive and labor groups that often find themselves at odds with the Chamber are avoiding jumping to conclusions, saying the move speaks more to the group’s quest for relevance than Becerra’s politics.
Hilton took to the pages of The Wall Street Journal Wednesday to slam the chamber’s decision an op-ed, describing it as a sign of “dangerous complacency” from California’s business community.
At a press conference outside the Capitol Thursday, he went farther, likening business groups backing of Becerra more broadly as a “corporate version of Stockholm syndrome.” Business interests, including the chamber, Meta, Chevron and PG&E, collectively contributed more than $52 million toward electing Becerra and opposing Tom Steyer, his top Democratic rival in the final weeks of the primary.
The chamber knows “that we have to change direction” but “believe that they got to be in with a guy who they think is going to win, so they can get some scraps from the table through their lobbying,” Hilton said.
Hilton acknowledged one facet of the endorsement: his own long odds at winning the governor’s mansion. A UC Berkeley poll conducted before the June 2 primary found likely voters favored Becerra by more than 20 percentage points in what was then a hypothetical general election matchup.
“Everyone assumes that this is now a foregone conclusion that Becerra is going to be the next governor … that’s probably what you all think,” Hilton told reporters. “I want to be clear that that is not how it’s going to be this year.”
Chamber spokesperson John Myers said in a statement that the chamber’s decision “reflects a nonpartisan, clear-eyed assessment of which candidate is most likely to succeed in working with the Legislature and other statewide officers on ways to strengthen California’s economy.”
Labor and progressive groups downplay Chamber endorsement
Many labor, environmental and progressive groups that have tangled with the chamber in the Legislature are so far reserving judgment on the group’s might say about Becerra’s platform, which has so far been light on specifics.
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Teri Olle, vice president of The Economic Security California Action, which is warring with the chamber over a bill that aims to strengthen California’s antitrust laws, said an endorsement would not “seal the deal on how a California governor behaves.”
At the same time, she said that “anyone who wants to be governor of California should be taking a hard look at what’s driving the affordability crisis in California.” A situation, she argued, that was driven by anticompetitive conduct of firms the chamber represents.
The chamber has disputed that characterization, arguing the bill will drive up costs for consumers.
Jamie Court, president of the advocacy group Consumer Watchdog, said the chamber was “trying to get their hooks” in Becerra, but said the Democrat is “a blank slate as far as I’m concerned.”
“Everybody wants to get next to him, including the chamber, but that doesn’t mean he’s going to buy what they’re selling,” Court said.
California Labor Federation President Lorena Gonzalez said Becerra had a clear track record as a progressive Democrat.
“I think this is more about the chamber knowing that they don’t have a lot of options,” Gonzalez said. “Becerra is going to win and they don’t want to be on the outs.”
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