By Lara Korte and Dustin Gardiner

The California state Capitol in Sacramento. | AP

DRIVING THE DAY: Past and present will converge in the fields of Oxnard today as the California-born United Farm Workers union endorses President Joe Biden for a second term with Biden campaign manager Julie Chávez Rodríguez — the granddaughter of UFW founder César Chávez — expected to be on hand. Biden placed a bust of Chavez in the Oval Office and, in 2021, put Newsom on blast over the governor’s opposition to a UFW organizing bill.

THE BUZZ — Republicans in the California Legislature already have less power than their Democratic counterparts, and according to a new POLITICO analysis of staffers’ salaries, they have less money, too.

Assembly staff who work for Republicans earn about 18 percent less than their Democratic counterparts, according to an analysis of salary data by POLITICO just published this morning.

The disparity is structural — Republicans, as the minority party, don’t get the financial benefits like committee chairmanships that come with Capitol leadership — and reflects the GOP’s diminished stature in a state where Democrats have long had an ironclad grip on every office and branch of state government.

Democratic staff earn a median annual salary of about $87,620, compared to $72,220 for those working for GOP lawmakers. Democratic lawmakers also tend to have larger staffs than Republicans. The pay data does not show the party affiliation of the individual employees — only the party for whom they work — and the overall pattern is clear.

"It's political,” said Minority Leader James Gallagher of the pay disparity. “It's kind of been the case for a long time now that Republican members in the minority don't have the same staffing."

It’s part of the reason a small handful of Republicans this year backed Assembly Bill 1 by Democrat Tina McKinnor, pivoting away from the GOP’s long-held resistance to organized labor. The goal of the legislation was to make the Capitol a better place to work and reduce staff turnover.

At the behest of Republicans, McKinnor added a provision specifying that staffers would bargain as one unit, regardless of political affiliation.

That brought on the support of lawmakers across the aisle, like Assemblymember Tom Lackey. 

“When I worked with the California Highway Patrol, I knew that my pay wasn’t going to be less because of my political affiliation, because I had those protections built into the system,” Lackey told us. “I find that this AB 1 would restore that kind of fairness. So I’m all in.”

Not all Republicans are on board. Gallagher, the minority leader, didn’t back the effort, and said that Assembly leadership could close the party pay gap without a union.

The bill now sits on Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk, and is one of several high-profile labor priorities he’ll have to weigh in on. Stay tuned!

HAPPY TUESDAY. Thanks for waking up with Playbook. 

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WHERE’S GAVIN? Nothing official announced.

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Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) visits striking UAW members outside Los Angeles on Sept. 23, 2023. | Courtesy Owen Kilmer.

SPOTTED — BREAKFAST VIA AGUILAR EATS: Rep. Pete Aguilar visited a picket line and delivered breakfast burritos to striking United Auto Workers at a Stellantis plant outside Los Angeles over the weekend. The Hot Labor Summer has officially stretched into the Hot Labor Fall.

Then-Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom at the 2017 San Francisco Pride parade. | Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images

ON THE DEFENSE — Newsom on Monday was asked again to defend his veto of a bill involving transgender children — this time, during a call with other Democratic heavyweights.

Newsom joined former Speaker Nancy Pelosi and DNC Chairman Jaime Harrison for a call with reporters yesterday to hype up the party’s platforms ahead of a week where Republicans are set to converge on Southern California for a presidential debate and state party convention.

But Semafor’s David Weigel turned the spotlight back on Democrats, asking Newsom to respond to complaints from constituents: "I've seen people saying, 'what is the point of voting for Democrats if they're going to veto legislation like this?'" Weigel said, referencing Assemblymember Lori Wilson’s bill that would have imposed new considerations related to transgender minors during custody disputes.

Newsom fell back on some familiar talking points: highlighting the party's leadership around LGBTQ issues and, of course, his own role marrying same-sex couples in 2004 as mayor of San Francisco.

"As it related to the details of the bill and the nuances around making court determinations and decisions, I felt like that was not necessary as it relates to existing law," Newsom said.

Pop star Taylor Swift | AP

BLANK SPACE — California lawmakers had big ambitions this year to pass measures that would provide more transparency around Ticketmaster’s business practices and give buyers more rights to resell event tickets.

But the Legislature ended its session with little to show for it. Key proposals on the issue were shelved amid a gauntlet of lobbying in Sacramento from the ticketing industry.

Now, players on both sides of the issue are regrouping for a rematch. The Consumer Federation of California has shifted its focus to Congress, where there are multiple bills that would increase oversight of ticketing companies, including Live Nation Entertainment, Ticketmaster’s parent company.

Robert Herrell, the Consumer Federation’s executive director, said his group hopes that federal movement on the issue will help nudge California.

Legislation to tighten rules for the industry was, in large part, inspired by a run on Taylor Swift tickets that angered her legions of fans and sparked criticism of Ticketmaster.

But groups representing music artists and sports teams also opposed the legislative push, which they said would have limited the rights of performers and venues to control their own business amid rampant ticket scalping.

The attention to Ticketmaster was driven by ticket resale companies trying to seize on the Swift uproar to chip away at artists' business rights, said Susan Genco, a board member of the Music Artists Coalition.

“We just live in a world of bots and scalpers,” she said. “What value do they bring to the ecosystem? I think none.”

Enter the “room where it happens”, where global power players shape policy and politics, with Power Play. POLITICO’s brand-new podcast will host conversations with the leaders and power players shaping the biggest ideas and driving the global conversations, moderated by award-winning journalist Anne McElvoy. Sign up today to be notified of the first episodes in September – click here.

BAD REPUTATION: Many San Franciscans have grown frustrated with national attacks on their city's reputation. Now, residents are emphasizing how the city is preparing for a strong recovery — and how outsiders have always painted it with an unsavory brush. (The New York Times)

MAN V. MACHINE: Beyond wages and benefits, the Hollywood writers’ strike functioned as a proxy battle in the struggle between workers and corporations looking to leverage artificial intelligence. The end of the strike could signal a pivotal moment in terms of creative workers limiting the use of AI. (Los Angeles Times)

BIRTHDAYS — Mark Isakowitz of Google ...

(was Monday): Rep. Doris Matsui (D-Calif.) … Salesforce’s Marc Benioff … Lauren Loftus …

(was Sunday): Amazon’s Nate Blake, Jessica Schumer and Phil Wolgin … Danny Yadron … FTI Consulting’s Will Allison and Adam Rice … Alexandra Jaffe … 

(was Saturday): Nicole Mata of Rep. Ro Khanna’s (D-Calif.) office … Angela Maddahi ... Oren Zeev ... Gabriella Schwarz … Naomi Seligman ...

(was Friday): John Fishel ... Liz Leshin

CALIFORNIA POLICY IS ALWAYS CHANGING: Know your next move. From Sacramento to Silicon Valley, POLITICO California Pro provides policy professionals with the in-depth reporting and tools they need to get ahead of policy trends and political developments shaping the Golden State. To learn more about the exclusive insight and analysis this subscriber-only service offers, click here.

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