Steve Hilton is running to restore California’s unique spirit. The Republican nominee for governor says his campaign isn’t partisan; he believes government should get the basics right—roads, schools, public safety, water—then leave people alone.
He calls it the rebel spirit: the soul of a state built by people who did things their own way, now smothered by a bureaucracy that tells Californians what to drive, how to build, makes their lives unbearably expensive, and destroys the infrastructure that built the state.
Hilton was born in London to parents who escaped communist Hungary, ran domestic policy from 10 Downing Street, then chose California, and American citizenship. He’s campaigned across the state, and wrote the book on its decline (Califailure).
In this conversation, Steve Hilton goes deep on the issues impacting rural California:
Water. Trump’s “giant spigot” is real; he’s seen it. Hilton discusses how bureaucrats decide what flows through the Delta pumps, and why he says he can raise deliveries almost immediately, no new construction required. Plus his on-record commitment to protecting the Potter Valley dams and supporting a buyer.
Power. Behested payments, “legalized corruption,” breaking up PG&E, $3 gas, and why working people are subsidizing Teslas they’ll never drive.
Land. Wolves attacking cattle while ranchers face arrest; why predator decisions should be returned to counties. Cartels in the forests and a governor who has never once met with the state’s sheriffs. Bringing back the timber industry; six billion board feet a year, now down to about a billion and a half, while lumber is trucked in from Canada and overgrown forests burn.
Winning. He talks about what happened to Spencer Pratt in L.A., the ground game Charlie Kirk helped him plan, and the math: (6 million votes takes the state, and Trump got 6.1 million here in 2024).
Hilton makes his pitch to the ranchers and hippies, farmers and libertarians, loggers and back-to-the-landers of California’s forgotten half, united mostly by being governed by people who have never set foot in their counties. Whatever your politics, if you live on this side of California, this conversation is about your water, your power bill, your forests, your future.
Show Notes
Sponsored by Ranch Vision: www.ranchvision.io
Special thanks to Josh Woolwine for creating our intro. Follow Josh at www.instagram.com/hjwoolwine.
Referenced in this episode:
Steve Hilton for Governor: stevehiltonforgovernor.com
Califailure: Reversing the Ruin of America’s Worst-Run State by Steve Hilton
Golden Together — Achieving Water Abundance, the water blueprint co-authored with Edward Ring, and the Modern Forest Management paper: goldentogether.com
High Country Murder — Keely’s documentary on the unsolved killing of Mendocino County rancher Dick Drewry in the Emerald Triangle: americaunwon.com/p/film
UNWON’s Potter Valley coverage: Rollins and Burgum convene meeting between PG&E and potential dam buyers · Secretary Rollins fires back at Huffman · Who would want the Potter Valley dams? Meet Darcy Burke of Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District
UNWON: UC Davis study finds beef is the main food source for California wolves
Victor Davis Hanson — Is California Reaching Critical Mass?
