The following is an opinion letter submitted by Lake Elsinore Mayor Pro Tem Robert "Bob" Magee:

LAKE ELSINORE, CA — This is a time unlike any other in our Nation's history, but we Americans have always found a way to rise to the occasion and meet any challenge head on. The COVID-19 virus will not defeat this great Nation. However, after this crisis has passed, it should give us pause to reevaluate some of the policies we have put in place under the guise of being a Progressive Nation. Here in California the Progressive movement has been all the rage for decades as we worked to build carpool lanes instead of simply adding more general-purpose or regular lanes to our Freeway systems. We even pushed electric cars into these lanes as an incentive to "do the right thing." Or, we have punished you into paying a toll if you wanted to avoid traffic. Today, almost no one is on the freeways and toll lane revenues are plummeting.

The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), a well-intentioned legislative effort to protect and preserve California's rich and wonderful natural beauty, has now been bastardized into a tool to extort money from developers or Union jobs from employers. Saving the Grizzly Bear — the State's symbol — is no longer a priority as the animal is extinct. There's a message there somewhere. Shouldn't we be looking to push the reset button when a policy fails or becomes obsolete? In the midst of a housing crisis, the bureaucrats continued to insist on prohibiting the construction of new homes if they believed their development "may" impact such precious (i.e. Endangered) species as the Kangaroo Rat, the Deli Sands Flower Loving Fly or the Arroyo Toad. With so many families in need of good quality, affordable housing shouldn't we be more focused on sheltering American Citizens than a frog, a rat or a fly?

Our Air Quality Police took away the ability to build a new home with a fireplace in order to reduce pollution impacts, but the Homeless (aka Urban Outdoorsman) can still have campfires and threaten the safety of those of us who follow the rules and pay our bills. And the Water Police restricted our ability to water our lawns or wash our vehicles just two short years ago — this policy will no doubt return — and now with the extra time on our hands who hasn't washed their car? The State has restricted the use of plastic bags and straws to protect wildlife in our Ocean, streams and lakes. But, the Department of Fish and Wildlife spends their time passing out tickets to Anglers with too many rods in the water rather than pursuing and arresting those who actually pollute and destroy our waterbodies. If their mission is revenue generation, then they will continue to cite those who can pay the ticket. If their mission was to protect the environment, then they would take steps to do that.

On January 31, 2020, our President placed a travel ban on China. He was immediately vilified for what the Progressives called an unnecessary isolationist policy. Some even called him a racist. Today, those same players accuse him of acting too slowly. Such is the "reality" of a true Progressive. These are the same people who legislated reusable grocery bags….and now have made them illegal! They pushed an open borders philosophy for decades and now have ordered us not to leave our homes. They reduced the penalties for "Non-Violent" Crimes in order to release convicts out onto the streets early, but now they will arrest a small business owner for operating if his or her function is defined as "non-essential." If that's how you make a living for you and your family, it sure is essential to you!

As the Pandemic rages, New York's Governor stated quite clearly that "our density is our biggest enemy." Yet, here in California our Governor has pushed for higher and higher densities ordering Riverside County to create 30,000 new housing units near mass transits hubs in the next decade. How do you maintain Social Distance in an elevator, train, bus or carpool?

After the Second World War, America's post-war production shifted to the housing industry to accommodate the Baby Boom as Americans transitioned from a rural agrarian lifestyle to a more Urban City-style and the detached single-family home became the new standard. Entrepreneurs adopted the Henry Ford model creating an assembly line of production homes on large plots of land and the subdivision was born, with living rooms and dining rooms, garages, and backyards. American's coveted having their own space, and this became "The American Dream." This dream has now been demonized by the Progressives who want us all to shrink our footprint on the globe and surrender like sheep to a new standard of living in shared spaces. Spaces that we are now told to stay in or stay away from (i.e. Gyms, Parks, Beaches, etc.) during this crisis. Where would you rather be quarantined? In the backyard by the pool with your family or barbequing a meal on your 4' x 6' balcony where you could ask your neighbor to please pass the mustard?