By Samuel Strait, Reporter at Large – August 4, 2021 Governor Newsom's handling of the Covid Pandemic is perhaps his most egregious misstep as governor. Granted there are many, but this alone is responsible for much of the anger being directed in his direction. Of all the fifty state governors aside from Governor Cuomo of New York, Newsom's reliance on political science rather than actual science enabled him to assume the powers granted under State of Emergency to institute draconian mandates on the citizens of California for over a year. State of Emergency powers granted to a sitting governor are meant to expedite reaction to a stated emergency in rapid fashion and not to replace legitimate government. Once the immediate threat was identified and steps were taken to address the pandemic, Newsom's powers should have ceased, restored to the normal channels of government. He did not. Continuously referring to "science", of the CDC kind, Newsom rationalized his mandates and policies based on the pin ball bleating of Federal and CDC officials without pause, despite the fact that his policies did not work, nor was there any actual science behind his mandates. The testing numbers upon which Newsom used, often a month or two out of date, to justify his actions is now in the process of being suspended. Mask efficacy has never been formally studied in the United States, that includes the CDC. Foreign studies universally show that masks have ZERO effect on both infection and transmission from human to human. Contact surfaces and hand washing are but minor role players. Social distancing is completely arbitrary and has no bearing on possible infection or transmission. Lock downs of otherwise healthy populations are more injurious than normal activity. And finally, Covid-19 has been shown to be no more serious than Influenza, with most healthy people managing the illness in many cases similar to that of an influenza infection. Treatments for Covid having evolved in a short amount of time which mitigates much of the seriousness of being infected. Most in fact being asymptomatic and unable to transmit easily were barely aware of even being ill. Vaccines and their effects on people that have been injected have become another source of friction between the Governor and the governed. Up until now, in Governor Newsom's California, a person's health was an individual and personal choice. Never before was there any thought that a person should be mandated to be injected with a vaccine. There have been before a number of viruses that could kill, yet vaccination was always a choice left to individuals. While not a complete imperative Newsom's California is inching towards requiring all citizens to become vaccinated or be excluded from normal life in the State. Many have already done so, yet most of the prized liberty remain elusive in Newsom's California. This is not what he has said it to be. Newsom's "science", or should it be labeled "science fiction" does not appear to relinquish the power of authority over its citizenry vaccinated or not. By instituting state wide mandates, Governor Newson ignored the fact that California is a large and diverse state, where local authorities are better equipped to make decisions more reflective of circumstances at hand. Del Norte County had little experience with the virus nearly the entire time the state of emergency was in force. Very few hospitalizations and still fewer deaths. Yet state government had the County follow suit with the state wide mandates and as a consequence devastated the local economy, creating significant unemployment, and on and on. For what? Not that local officials would have done any better, but Newsom's ham handed approach assured that the entire state would suffer unnecessarily. Just as federalism should be curtailed when handling the business of states, state government, in particular the governor's overreach should not be allowed to become excessive. Governor Newsom has over the past nineteen months given the citizens of California a clear message of how the governor can become a dictator with no curb. This is a man drunk on power, that uses the power to inflict great harm on those he serves, all the while setting himself, his family, and friends apart from his excesses.