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Now, US states are warning of significant revenue losses due to President Trump's administrations government cuts and trade policies. The cuts coming out of time when states are already facing flat revenue growth, rising costs from inflation, and the end of pandemic aid, with governors and lawmakers debating how indeed to make up for those losses. So what might any or all of this mean for the US state that is the biggest in the United States the economy and it is now.
The fourth largest economy in the world.
I was corrected before where we came on air and next year, of course, is host to a governor's race. We're talking about California and we want to talk to someone who's looking to be the next governor in the state of California. Joining us is Steven j. Klubec He is twenty twenty six Democratic candidate for governor of California. Founder and former CEO of Diamond Resorts International. He's an investor in the publicly held microcap and online gaming company
Plays Studios. He's been on Undercover Boss. He's rumored at one time to maybe run for governor of Nevada. This is what happens when you do a little bit of a search. He also served as a Nevada State Athletic Commission and he's got a new book out. It is entitled Facing Hard Truths, How Americans Can get real, pulled together and turn our country around. It's published just earlier this month. He joins au Center Bloomberg Interactive Broker Studio.
A long lead up, but I want people to know kind of a little bit about who you are.
Well, you forgot about something.
Very important, Which did I leave out?
The first chairman up Brand USA, the head of tourism and travel of the United States from America under President Obama.
I don't know how I let that.
I don't know.
Okay, maybe my editors got in there.
How's the US brand looking right now?
You know, that's a very good that's a very good point because I was at I was at a meeting with the Treasury secretary and he was explaining what the philosophy was of the president, who I know very well. I was going to do a deal with him in Las Vegas. Yeah, the Trump Tower, and I passed. We had the same architect because I have values, I have integrity and he doesn't have that. And I pay my contractors and he doesn't. But look for a brand guy who licenses his brand, you know it takes decades to
build a brand. He sure killed ours within minutes. And I asked the Secretary of Treasury, I'm like, how could you upset the largest buyers of our bonds, the Chinese and Japanese? How could you have them lose face the concept of face? And he says, well, you know, the guy likes to live in chaos and he likes to play game crazy Ivan. I said, did you just say crazy Ivan?
You're killing me, right, I said, look, and Scott Besson said that to you.
Of course he did in front of me in two hundred and it was reported by Puck and I got to tell you dropping the bomb in the bar and playing reality TV with the best brand in the world, the United States of America is beyond any comprehension of anyone that understands brand marketing sales. I don't get it.
What do you make of a.
Treasury secretary who understands financial markets considering his background, right, he understood that works, and that the understanding of having kind of full faith in the US government, right, and there needs to be some calmon consistency rather than volatility, stability, stability exactly. So what do you make of what some might say is a US Treasury secretary who should know better?
Well?
You know, I know very well because my first partner at Diamond Resorts was Sorrows, Your Sorrows brah a minute. And then you know, Guggenheim became my my equity partner because the Sorrows at that time too was betting against the consumer. And I said, I can't have you know that philosophy at that time. And I said I And so I know Scott, he was the CEO. And I'm like, what, what what's going on here? I don't know why everyone around President Trump sells their soul? Why they sell their soul?
Because I've been involved in power and politics, you know, trained by by by Bill Clinton and my adopted father, Harry Reid. Look, we all have a soul and conscious conscience, and I just would never sell my soul, never pander, and these folks they get sucked into the vortex and I don't get it.
But to play Devil's advocate, maybe a little bit here is that some would say, listen, President Trump is dealing with some issues that need to be dealt with, and whether it's immigration and leading illegal immigration, not even when President Biden came in, a lot of this tire of stayed in place, right, So there are issues that he is tackling and some I love this and forgive me, I repeat it, and I haven't quite meant.
I don't remember the story. So there was somebody at the Times, but it was like.
Donald Trump being the right question, He's just not the right answer meaning and that's not my view. It's just how some say that he's asking the right questions.
But maybe I ask the.
Right questions too. I have warmth and compassion. Okay, I am also a guy of performance and results in California. I'm going to create the Department of California Performance and Results, known as CPR, which the state needs.
Well talk well let's talk about California because you know it's a crowded field. It is a crowded field, and you know there's some veteran politicians too, So how do you, how do you stand out? How do you how do you maybe take California to the next you know, it's next ten, twenty thirty years.
Well, the goodness, if.
They were good at what they did, we wouldn't have the problems with California that we do. Okay, they have failed well, affordability number one, homelessness number two, the lack of transparency, the lack of execution, the lack of enforcement, will take me to.
Affordability because Matt and I have been around the block a few times, and I think it's safe to say I'm not looking to age you because you never age minus there.
Oh my god, I'm pretty old.
No. But I think my point is that we've been talking about housing affordability, particularly to California, for decades, and yet here we are.
So how do we fix.
And we have the same issue here, that's.
Right, right, So how would you fix that?
Great question? So I was a builder in the eighties and nineties in California, and I seemed to was able to pull my approvals without the onset of Sequea sequas, a highly regulated regulation in California, and the Species Act and the Coastal Commission. Okay, So, California has over three hundred and eighty thousand regulations onto its and over the last ten years, the FTEs the full time employees and government have increased by forty five thousand. Because these laws
beget regulations which we get FTEs. California is not open for business. It's not affordable, leveable, or workable. Okay. And I just as as a builder, tried to get something permitted over last year and a half and it is almost.
Impossible saying if those regulations are rolled back that that that will.
Lead to affordable housing.
Yes, so let me kay, let me let me finish, because I'm about solutions for the other career.
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The laws sequel and the coast Book Commission and the Species Act. So I'm going to declare an affordability emergency in the state of California until the legislature creates new laws for affordability that will allow housing to be constructed properly, Okay, without having Nimby or Nimby not in my backyard weaponized along with the unions weaponized to hold up permits, because that seems to be the major issue.
Steven, I want to ask about this because I've also have been frustrated by red tape, and clearly it's a problem, especially in a place like California. On the other hand, without regulations, you will have disasters like the wildfires that end up burning down. You know, so much of residential la so well, A very good question.
Yeah, And you know what's great about this campaign that I'm running is I've got solutions where the other candidates don't. Now, if you did your homework, you know I was a regulator with indictment power, and you know I was also a judge, and I've changed laws in many states too, So I understand not only how to fix broken broken businesses, broken institutions, but I know how to create laws, regulate,
and adjudicate. So I bring this full to the table and I'll tell you this, regulations are good to keep bad actors out, But too many regulations inhibit good business from doing good business.
But what's the guarantee that that good business means that you are building affordable housing in the places that are needed. A lot of folks will say, especially where there's major cities, it's not that we need affordable housing out in the suburbs where people have to commute another hour and a half to get in for workers who maybe can't afford to even do that, that you need to do it in the cities where the jobs are.
And where they have those jobs. How do we get that done?
So you really have to have three types of regulations with regard to affordability and housing. You need rural, suburban, and urban. Okay, And that's the way it was done decades ago, and there is something to be looked at with regard to going back to what worked before. So it's almost as if California has been putting band aids on band aids on band aids and they're all bleeding and they need to be repaired. So the only way to repair a wound is to rip the band aid
off and get to the heart of the issue. And in the interim pause, these regulations, okay, still making sure bad actors don't exist and get to a solution that allows us to grow and have aspiration in California. I remember I grew up in the aspiration in California, and today there is no aspiration because we're closed for business.
It has the affordability your key policy platform or what is.
Oh one of benny and the others Insurance Okay, what's your key?
Yeah, it's affordable, livable, workable, and all the subcomponent parts of that. So insurance, for example, I have a fix for the insurance crisis in California. If you go to my website you'll see it. You've got to really talk about the great exports of California. Okay, we have five great exports, not in any order. Innovation, manufacturing, agriculture, tourism and travel. Okay, you've got entertainment, and you've got education. Education used to be an export in the state also,
okay when I was growing up there. So you've got our uc system and our cal state system, and our cal state system needs to be reinvented. Okay, to talk about allowing people to do good work in the real world, so people are prepared for the real world and more trade oriented you know behavior, So there's it's as if California has not been run by an executive in many decades, and that's what we need to look forward to. And
I'm the only candidate that has that experience. I'm qualified where the others are not qualified.
Stephen, how do you though, run against someone like Gavin Newsom who is a nationally recognized name and has been for manal election cycles.
You know, that's a good question because Gavin Newsom has an expiration date and that's my birth date.
It's it's expensive, though. I imagine how much Gvins.
Turned out to win with the joke, but yeah, it turned out.
Okay.
How do you how do you run against other candidates though? Then with real name recognition? It without putting down millions of dollars or how much are you prepared to spend to win the race?
I guess is what I'm assing. So you didn't see my Undercover Boss episodes, I'm the number one Undercover Boss in the history of that television show, sixteen million plus ratings. So when you say I don't have name recognition, I beg to differ.
I guess I don't watch Undercover Boss. You should.
It's a good show.
I'm sure it's fantastic. But do you do you have to spend? How much do you have to spend to win? Well, I'll be a lot more efficient than the other candidates. So you know, we just did a lunch Sextant poll and my bio has twenty seven percent already, Name recognition and interest.
One thing I want to ask because one of the things that any governor, the next governor of California will have to deal with is you have.
To deal with President Trump. So how would you.
Deal with him as governor of the largest state, because we know it's tricky.
Well, I've sat across the table from him numerous times.
Many people have sat Elon Musk has sat across the table several times. I understand that their relationship has.
Evolved, no question about it. And I do have respect for him, and I believe he has respect for me. We know each other pretty well. I have his cell phone number, he's got mine. And there's no other candidate that will fight for California, nor has California values like me. Kindergarten through first year of college, and I'm not afraid. I mean, I come from the rough and tumble business world, that also has been trained in ledge rag and adjudication
by some very very good talents. And if you want to underestimate me, God bless you at your own risk.
Well, we look forward to watching the race. We go from race to race. I'me today, Yes, Stephen, thank you so much for your time. I'm Stephen Kuschek. He's twenty twenty six Democratic candidate for Governor of California and as we mentioned, founder, former CE of Diamond Resorts International, and so much more.
As we later recover Boss, I'm going to go back and watch apparently the most explosive Boss in series.
History and most generous.
That's which is nice.
That's what I want to do.
Is actually really important, apologetically authentic and warm and compassionate.
All right, come back soon, Stephen. Good luck