(Inside California Politics) \u2014 Tom Steyer is running in a unique lane in the race to be California\u2019s next governor: a billionaire populist, a progressive businessman.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t normally see candidates like that in an era where billionaires are not popular people,\u201d Inside California Politics host Nikki Laurenzo asked Steyer this week. \u201cHow do you square all of that?\u201d<\/p>\n
Steyer, one of more than a dozen Democratic candidates in this year\u2019s crowded field, said that as a businessman, he learned how things worked from the inside.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs I got into the system and saw it, I got more and more upset about the injustices of the system, the inequalities of the system and the need to change the system,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
After making billions, Steyer walked away, signing the Giving Pledge to donate a majority of his fortune. He became an advocate for progressive causes, bankrolling campaigns for and against propositions in California.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not philanthropy, Steyer said \u2014 it\u2019s activism. He said that while other wealthy politicians have quit their job to run for office, he has spent more than a decade working full time for causes he supports.<\/p>\n
Steyer has never held office before and first personally entered the world of electoral politics when he ran in the 2020 Democratic presidential primary. He\u2019s self-funding his campaign, too, vastly outspending his rivals \u2014 you\u2019ve likely seen one of his ads on television.<\/p>\n
Some of those campaign commercials focus on Steyer\u2019s anger with corporations and special interests, groups he said \u201cbasically pay for Sacramento.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThis system is rigged against working people,\u201d Steyer said. \u201cMy whole campaign is based on the idea that \u2026 working Californians can\u2019t afford to stay in California.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the one-on-one interview with Laurenzo, Steyer talked about the need to combat growing income inequality.<\/p>\n
\u201cInnovation, entrepreneurship \u2014 I love those things. I\u2019m an innovator and entrepreneur,\u201d he said. \u201cSo I\u2019m not opposed to people coming here and making a fortune. I\u2019m not opposed to people coming here and building the greatest companies in the world. But they\u2019re citizens of California \u2026 so I expect people to pay their fair share.\u201d<\/p>\n
Steyer addressed several key proposals in his campaign, including a pitch to build a million affordable homes in four years. Current Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed building 3.5 million units by 2025, a goal the state fell short of.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s no silver bullet on housing, Steyer said. Instead, it\u2019s \u201csilver buckshot\u201d \u2014 tackling a variety of barriers, including by embracing permit reform, dense zoning and manufactured homes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI believe in environmental regulation, but we have too many people regulating, too many permits,\u201d Steyer said.<\/p>\n
Contrasting himself with other candidates, Steyer touted his plan to generate more revenue to address the state\u2019s structural deficit. He believes the state could raise $15 billion to $20 billion annually by passing propositions to undo corporate tax loopholes.<\/p>\n
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