Newsom goes on the road to talk about high-speed rail, jobs

Speaking at a press conference in Bakersfield, Newsom said California is moving ahead with high-speed rail thanks to the completion of the southern railhead facility in Kern County.

“This is the only high-speed rail system of its type anywhere in the United States of America,” said Newsom. “If you care about Main Street, you care about this project. If you care about rural areas, you care about this project.”

Newsom went on to say that this is not just a transportation project.

“This is about reimagining the future of this region, one of the fastest and most dynamic regions, fastest growing in the state of California,” the Democratic governor said. “These are real jobs with family-sustaining wages.”

Earlier in the day, Newsom was in Orange County to continue his California Jobs First tour.

The governor highlighted nearly $1.6 billion in investments last year to train more than 142,000 workers and create 61,000 new jobs across California's 13 economic regions.

“I'm very passionate about this subject matter,” said Newsom. “I'm a guy who came out of college at Santa Clara University with an idea, pen to paper, got 13 investors, $7,500 each, started my first business with Pat Kelly, and we created about 21 small businesses, had about 1000 employees at peak, and I say that not to impress anybody but to impress upon you my passion for entrepreneurialism, for risk taking, for free enterprise.”

Newsom, who has been named in some 2028 presidential polls, said it’s not just about growth. It is also about inclusion.

“It was clear to me that the state of California needed to do better and more as it related to economic development and workforce development when I had the privilege of taking the oath of office some seven years ago and becoming governor,” said Newsom.

At the time, Newsom said there was no economic and workforce development strategy.

“So, we created 13 regions in the state where we ask folks to come together across the spectrum and to advance strategies to address the unique characteristics of the Orange County region versus the Redwood coast, versus the border region,” said Newsom. “We try to breathe new life into parts of the state that frankly often are forgotten, and we continue to go back to check in.”

Not everyone sees the need for high-speed rail. Steven Greenhut of the Pasadena-based Pacific Research Institute said this is a politically driven infrastructure project, one that is not necessary for transportation purposes.

“California already has a high-speed rail system,” Greenhut, director of the institute's Free Cities Center, told The Center Square. “It’s Southwest Airlines, which connects the state quickly.”

Meanwhile, California has been topped the lists in recent years for seeing the most out-of-state migration due to issues such as jobs, taxes and the cost of living.