Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Walters: The Man Who Changed the Capitol
dan_walters
By Dan Walters, CalMatters Commentary
Published 5 years ago on
January 20, 2020

Share

As strange as it may seem now, California’s state Senate was once a bastion of bipartisan — almost nonpartisan — comity.
Although Democrats were in the majority, they willingly shared power with Republicans. A bipartisan rules committee gently controlled the flow of legislation and committees were just as likely to have GOP chairmen (there were no women in the Senate until 1976) as Democrats.


Dan Walters
Opinion
The genteel nature of the house was bolstered by an unwritten rule that neither party would try to unseat an incumbent of the other party, confining partisan contests to vacant seats.
A feisty Republican senator from Southern California named Hubert L. Richardson ended that era. Richardson preferred to be called “Bill” and was widely known as “Wild Bill.” He championed rights for gun owners and tough anti-crime laws. And he decided to blow up the no-compete rule.
Richardson, an avid hunter, had been a senator for a decade when a legislative effort to curb handgun sales in the mid-1970s led him to found Gun Owners of California, the first of several political groups, and mount challenges to sitting Democratic senators.

Richardson Continued to Push His Causes, With Notable Success

A pioneer in direct mail fundraising and using technology in political campaigns, Richardson employed those skills to unseat three Democratic senators in three successive elections, beginning in 1976.
It so unnerved the Democrats that they ousted their long-time leader, Senate President Pro Tem James Mills, after their third loss in 1980, the defeat of Sacramento Sen. Al Rodda by a little-known Richardson aide, John Doolittle.
The Democrats elevated David Roberti to the top position on his pledge to protect Democratic incumbents from further challenges. Simultaneously, a year-long battle over the state Assembly’s speakership ended with the elevation of Willie Brown.
Those two events completely and radically changed the tenor of the Capitol, deemphasizing legislative accomplishment in favor of raising lots of money from special interest groups to fight partisan wars.
The Capitol’s pay-to-play, dog-eat-dog atmosphere continued for two decades, until Democrats achieved unquestioned dominance. It also sparked a federal corruption investigation that sent a number of legislators and other figures to prison.
After unseating those three senators, Richardson continued to push his causes, with notable success.

Wild Bill Richardson Was a Very Controversial Figure in His Day

He helped elect Republican George Deukmejian as governor in 1982 by a very narrow margin, mobilizing gun owners to oppose an anti-gun ballot measure that was also on the 1982 ballot. He founded a national gun owners organization and, perhaps most importantly, spearheaded the successful 1986 campaign to stop the re-election of Rose Bird, the state Supreme Court chief justice, and two other liberal justices deemed to oppose the state’s death penalty.

Obviously, Wild Bill Richardson was a very controversial figure in his day. Obviously, too, he single-handedly changed the nature of the Capitol, pioneered political techniques that continue to be used and altered the course of California history by playing key roles in the election of Deukmejian as governor and the defeat of Chief Justice Bird.
Richardson’s take-no-prisoners approach to politics was framed in one of the several books he authored, “Confrontational Politics.” Another book, “What Makes You Think We Read the Bills?” was an insider look — from a very personal standpoint — at the foibles of the Legislature.
Richardson, who continued to live in the Sacramento area after leaving the Legislature in 1988, died last week at age 92. His death was announced by Gun Owners of California, now headed by his son-in-law, Sam Paredes.
Obviously, Wild Bill Richardson was a very controversial figure in his day. Obviously, too, he single-handedly changed the nature of the Capitol, pioneered political techniques that continue to be used and altered the course of California history by playing key roles in the election of Deukmejian as governor and the defeat of Chief Justice Bird.
Very few political figures past or present could claim to have had such impact.
CalMatters is a public interest journalism venture committed to explaining how California’s state Capitol works and why it matters. For more stories by Dan Walters, go to calmatters.org/commentary.
[activecampaign form=31]

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Tulare County Man Arrested After Firing at Deputies During Eviction Attempt

DON'T MISS

If ex-Bitwise CEOs Behave in Prison, How Much Less Time Will They Serve?

DON'T MISS

Trump Just Bet the Farm

DON'T MISS

Staged Crashes and Insurance Fraud: Is Your California Commute a Target?

DON'T MISS

Fight Over Phonics: Will CA Require the ‘Science of Reading’ in K-12 Schools?

DON'T MISS

Russia Says Trump’s Threats Against Iran Could Trigger ‘Global Catastrophe’

DON'T MISS

Get Off the Phone! Fresno Police Target Distracted Driving

DON'T MISS

Federal Reserve Chief Says Trump Tariffs Likely to Raise Inflation and Slow US Economic Growth

DON'T MISS

The NBA’s Playoff Chase Enters Its Final Days. Here’s a Look at What’s Happening

DON'T MISS

USC’s JuJu Watkins Named AP Player of the Year After Historic Sophomore Season

UP NEXT

As Dem Candidates for Governor Increase, They Wait for Harris to Decide

UP NEXT

Why Project Labor Agreements Are Good for Our Schools and Students: Opinion

UP NEXT

State Center Trustees Vote for Special Interest Giveaway Over Students: Opinion

UP NEXT

I Will Force Votes on Blocking Arms Sales to Israel: Sen. Bernie Sanders

UP NEXT

What Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ Tariffs Could Mean for Americans: Fareed Zakaria

UP NEXT

Why the Nation Would Be Wise to Support a Third Term Amendment for Donald Trump

UP NEXT

If California Bails Out LA’s $1 Billion Budget Deficit, Beware the Slippery Slope

UP NEXT

Trump Has Had Enough. He Is Not Alone.

UP NEXT

The Real Crisis in California Schools Is Low Achievement, Not Cultural Conflicts

UP NEXT

Trump and Musk Are Suffering From Soros Derangement Syndrome

Staged Crashes and Insurance Fraud: Is Your California Commute a Target?

1 hour ago

Fight Over Phonics: Will CA Require the ‘Science of Reading’ in K-12 Schools?

1 hour ago

Russia Says Trump’s Threats Against Iran Could Trigger ‘Global Catastrophe’

2 hours ago

Get Off the Phone! Fresno Police Target Distracted Driving

2 hours ago

Federal Reserve Chief Says Trump Tariffs Likely to Raise Inflation and Slow US Economic Growth

2 hours ago

The NBA’s Playoff Chase Enters Its Final Days. Here’s a Look at What’s Happening

2 hours ago

USC’s JuJu Watkins Named AP Player of the Year After Historic Sophomore Season

2 hours ago

Dodgers’ Freddie Freeman Lands on Injured List Following Fall in His Shower at Home

2 hours ago

How Trump’s Latest Tariffs Could Affect Your Wallet

2 hours ago

Curry Scores 37 Points and Warriors Beat Lakers in a Potential First-Round Playoff Preview

2 hours ago

Tulare County Man Arrested After Firing at Deputies During Eviction Attempt

A Porterville man accused of opening fire on Tulare County Sheriff’s deputies during an attempted eviction was arrested late Thursday, autho...

37 minutes ago

Kenneth Bratton, 43, was arrested after allegedly firing at Tulare County Sheriff’s deputies during an eviction attempt in Porterville. (Tulare County SO)
37 minutes ago

Tulare County Man Arrested After Firing at Deputies During Eviction Attempt

47 minutes ago

If ex-Bitwise CEOs Behave in Prison, How Much Less Time Will They Serve?

1 hour ago

Trump Just Bet the Farm

1 hour ago

Staged Crashes and Insurance Fraud: Is Your California Commute a Target?

1 hour ago

Fight Over Phonics: Will CA Require the ‘Science of Reading’ in K-12 Schools?

2 hours ago

Russia Says Trump’s Threats Against Iran Could Trigger ‘Global Catastrophe’

The Fresno Police Department will conduct an enforcement operation on April 7, 2025, to target drivers violating the hands-free cell phone law, aiming to reduce distracted driving. (Shutterstock)
2 hours ago

Get Off the Phone! Fresno Police Target Distracted Driving

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell speaks during a news conference after the Federal Open Market Committee meeting, Wednesday, March 19, 2025, at the Federal Reserve in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
2 hours ago

Federal Reserve Chief Says Trump Tariffs Likely to Raise Inflation and Slow US Economic Growth

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend