Photo by Cemrecan Yurtman on Unsplash
Many folks in Shasta County enjoy reminiscing about the good ol’ days, proudly proclaiming The Cowboy Way, a symbol of our multi-generational cultural identity, heritage, and rural ethics. Sure, the Cowboy Way of a Rock Hudson Cowboy and the Marlboro Man persona—tough yet gentle, saying “thank you ma’am,” an individualist who rides the range and then comes into town to be a family man, and similar to the Rifle Man—only acts violently when necessary; it’s all indeed enduring. But here’s the truth: Hudson was gay, died of AIDS, and the most famous Marlboro Man, rancher Bob Norris, never smoked cigarettes. (The other actors who played the Marlboro Man later in the campaign were smokers and died from smoking-related illnesses.) And, sorry to be woke, but I’m sure Chairman Jack Potter or Tracy Edwards, CEO of the cultural–economic powerhouse, the Redding Rancheria, would attest that part of our Cowboy Way of yesteryear was the genocide of the North State and our First Nations nationally.
And now, the cultural persona of the Cowboy Way and the defense of our rural heritage have entered the political fight against Proposition 50 (Prop 50). During a debate with Democrat Rose Penelope Yee, Chair of the Shasta County Democratic Party (DCCSC), Shasta County Supervisor (SCBOS) Matt Plumer (a smart and friendly Republican) consistently asserted that Prop 50 was unethical and would strip away our “Rural Heritage,” as listed further on in this article.
Right off the bat, I stipulate that here in Northern California, the political figurehead and sovereign leader of the local Cowboy-Way, whether rural, urban, or otherwise, is President Trump. And under Trump’s leadership, along with Congressman D. LaMalfa, all of Northern California and, indeed, the entire United States, are under cultural and economic attack, Cowboys and all. Furthermore, we will all be significantly and adversely affected by their unethical and immoral H.R. 1 – 119th Congress (2025-2026), which was passed into law in July 2025.
Locally and nationally, numerous sources report that Trump and LaMalfa’s bill, as written, will cause working families to lose health insurance and lead to significant cuts in health services, including hospital and clinic closures. It will also result in widespread job losses across all sectors of the economy, higher inflation, and increased costs for everyday living. Trump and LaMalfa’s H.R.1. mandates will cut funding for education and food programs for working families, students, seniors, and veterans. Moreover, H.R. 1 will lead to the closure of senior care facilities that offer short-term recovery after hospitalization or long-term care for severe illness, disability, or cognitive impairment. In fact, just in LaMalfa’s Congressional District 1, over 340,000 residents rely on Medicaid (Obamacare) for health services. In Shasta County alone, 67,000 residents are on Medicaid—all of whom are now at risk.
I ask Matt Plumer this, “If the health, safety, and well-being of Shasta County are your top priorities, where will you find the funds?” Shasta County is a welfare county. I’ll also question Chair Crye, who openly distains Governor Newsom and who publicly stated, “If you weren’t born in Anderson, you should move,” the same question: “Where are you going to get your money?”
Speaking of money, I once asked Matt Plumer who Grover Norquist was. He didn’t know, but Norquist illustrates that the flawed trickle-down fallacy of making the rich richer and “shrinking the government to a point you can drown it in the bathtub” floats all boats. Because of LaMalfa and Trump’s Big Ugly Bill, the nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation reports that those earning $30,000 or less would face a tax increase. Meanwhile, the top 0.1 percent would receive a $309,000 tax cut, on average – a yearly tax break exceeding three times the typical American household’s annual income. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) finds that this wealth transfer from middle- and lower-income families to the wealthy adds over $4 trillion to the national debt. I’ll argue that Tramp and LaMalfa’s policies have the middle class and under circulating that drain.
I assert that manipulating the government through Republican gerrymandering of Congress, tax code manipulation, and corporate lobbying, harming the lower and middle classes, is both unethical and immoral. According to data from the Federal Reserve, the top 10% of households by wealth (the Red Emersons and Doug LaMalfas out there) hold about 70% of all American wealth. Meanwhile, the bottom 50% of Americans—the Shasta Counties of America—own only about 2.5% of the nation’s wealth. The rest goes to the upper middle percentile. As that inequality grows, Cowboys, it’s becoming harder to buy bacon and beans, fuel for the F-250, let alone a house.
By the way, while an argument might be made that Shasta County is culturally a Cowboy Way county, it is hardly because of population. The latest data shows that 70.7% of Shasta County’s population (approximately 125,321 people) live in urban areas, while 29.3% (approximately 51,902 people) live in rural areas. So, Cowboys, don’t fret, although we do have a Brokeoff Mt. in Shasta County, we don’t have a Brokeback Mt. just yet. And don’t worry, much of the Cowboy Way, as exemplified in The Power of the Dog, continues.
Okay, enough. Rural Northern California has a lot to offer. From the lush and welcoming North Coast to Mt. Lassen, past Mount Shasta to the Siskiyous, and the Shasta–Sacramento and Klamath rivers to the high plains of Modoc, Rural California features some of the most beautiful and diverse geological landscapes in the United States. It offers world-renowned natural resources, agricultural, and recreational opportunities, all of which add significant value to our diverse culture and economy. And after all, Red Emmerson and his family are the largest private landowners in the country, holding over 2.4 million rural acres. Now I don’t know if the Emerson Family is a pillar of the Cowboy Way, but the family is a Trump campaign contributor who, over the years, has shelled out bankloads of cash to conservative politicians and lobbyists, and reportedly has a net worth of $5.4 billion as of March 2024. One might wonder if 5.4 billion skews our county’s median income stats.
So, that leaves me with Matt’s moral–ethical argument, which I think I can paraphrase as, “Just because Texas gerrymandered (the heck out of Texas as Trump demanded), for us to do so is immoral and unethical.” After all, Michael Obama famously quoted, “When they go low, we go high.” It’s a quandary like the nonviolence dilemma many Quakers faced when it came to fighting Nazism, Fascism, and Imperialism during WWII, or what Cowboy Way Hero John Wayne faced in Angel and the Badman (1947). (Wayne played an outlaw who was wounded and taken in by a Quaker family, and must choose between his violent past and their peaceful way of life.) And just a sidebar here, Matt, before we leave the question of morals and ethics, I’ll bet you a veggie burger lunch at Damm Burger that you voted for the convicted adjudicated rapist and 34-count felon—just like all but a few Republicans in Shasta County did—being the pillar of Republican morals and ethics, the criminal he is.
Matt might argue that Prop 50 is a nondemocratic Power Grab and that having legislators re-create the map morally invalidates the voters’ decision to establish a nonpartisan, independent Citizens Redistricting Commission. Nope. Legislators in Texas imposed the districts on citizens, but our Commission remains intact, and in California, THE VOTERS will decide Prop 50’s outcome, not Trump’s billionaires or politicians.
Matt might argue that Prop 50 is a betrayal of democratic principles. Nope, unrestricted legal voting, as Prop 50 requires, is the very foundation of the democratic principles and our Constitution. By the way, SCBOS Chair Crye actually said in a board meeting, “I hate the word democratic.” And Patty Plumb’s New California, which Shasta County Registrar of Voters Clint Curtis votes with, actually says on its website, “End Democracy, Restore The Republic.” Now, Matt isn’t that interesting, if not remarkable?
Matt might argue that Prop 50 diminishes the Cowboy Way and rural representation. Well, I might say, don’t worry, Matt, the Cowboy Way isn’t going away anytime soon in Shasta County. The City of Redding, local officials, Republican and Democratic politicians, and many community groups actively support the Redding Rodeo. In fact, if conservatives don’t kill it, we’re providing the Rodeo with a significant amount of funding in just a few weeks via Measure A. However, Rural America nationwide faces critical socioeconomic pressures and challenges, all of which are currently worsened by Trump’s and LaMalfa’s Big Ugly Bill.
Data from the Public Police Institute of California (PPIC) shows:
1. Rural Californians are more likely than urban residents to be older, white, male, and born in the US, who speak only English at home, and I’ll add likely to support Trump.
2. Rural Californians are less likely to have graduated from college. 27% have at least a bachelor’s degree, compared to 36% of urban residents.
3. Rural Californians are less likely than urban residents to be in the labor force (53% vs. 64%) and more likely to be unemployed (7.0% vs. 6.4%). Median income is $83,100 for rural households compared to $92,400 for urban households.
4. Economic outcomes tend to be worse for Californians who live in remote rural areas than for those who live in urban zones. For example, residents of Modoc County have much lower personal incomes than other rural residents ($30,000 vs. $36,000) and urban Californians ($40,000).
5. California’s rural counties have been experiencing population decline well before recent statewide drops. The loss rate in primarily rural areas is twice as high as in urban counties (2.9% vs. 1.1% from 2020 to 2023), as they are quickly losing young adults to larger urban centers for jobs, education, and cultural opportunities.
6. For residents in remote rural areas, access to healthcare can be limited due to a shortage of providers. Many rural hospitals (five alone in LaMalfa’s district) face serious financial problems, with some cutting services or even shutting down.
7. And distressingly, from 2000 to 2020, suicide rates in non-metropolitan (rural) areas increased by 46%, while metropolitan (urban) areas saw an increase of 27.3%
I’ll ask Matt to consider this. Many analysts, farmers, and ag economists report that Trump’s current policies are harming U.S. farmers in multiple ways. In fact, just like he did with the healthcare sector, Trump is creating conditions that make farming more difficult, and some farmers are being forced out through bankruptcy, scaling back, or giving up. There has also been an alarming rise in family farm bankruptcies, nearly doubling compared to the same period last year under the Biden Administration.
In fact, the Biden administration and existing Democrats in Congress support farmers mainly through conservation, climate investment, trade openings, equity-focused assistance, and infrastructure upgrades. These policies offered farmers direct financial aid and opportunities for long-term resilience. But Cowboys need not worry, LaMalfa, who has received $5,700,147 in USDA subsidy payments so far, while gutting and cutting USDA food programs for kids, working families, senior citizens, and even Vets, will still be able to get federal money from Trump, so all’s good, eh Matt?
Interestingly, instead of reducing the number of rural counties, Prop 50 will actually increase the count by including Siskiyou and Modoc Counties. Check this out.
- Sonoma County = Urban. Approximately 76% of the population (around 371,161 people) lives in urban zones, and 24% (about 115,605 people) lives in rural zones.
- Trinity County = Rural. The majority of the population lives in rural areas, defined by the U.S. Census Bureau as any place with fewer than 5,000 people or 2,000 housing units, or low population densities.
- Mendocino County = Rural. 86.8% of Mendocino County residents live in rural zones, and 13.2% live in urban zones.
- Marin County = Urban. Marin County had an urban population of 235,952 and a rural population of 16,457
- Humboldt County = Rural. Around 48,120 people in Humboldt County live in urban areas, and about 88,344 live in rural areas.
- Del Norte County = Rural. 6,673 people live in urban zones, 21,000 in rural zones.
- Siskiyou County = Rural. (55%) live in unincorporated, rural areas. 19,597 people (45%) live in the small urban centers and cities within the county.
- Shasta County = Urban. 70.7% of Shasta County’s population (approximately 125,321 people) lived in urban zones, while 29.3% (around 51,902 people) lived in rural zones.
- Modoc County = Rural. According to a 2024 report by the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC), Modoc County is one of six California counties that are entirely rural. This means that virtually the entire population of Modoc County lives in a rural zone.
In closing, Proposition 50 might not be a Cowboy Way. Still, it is a tool that the Republican Party, sanctioned by the U.S. Supreme Court, has used far more than the Democratic Party to gerrymander for control of the United States government. Look up the REDMAP project. Democrats have tried numerous times in Congress to pass legislation that mandates that all states use nonpartisan election commissions to draw Congressional and state voter districts. In all cases, all Republican politicians have voted no, and it is the party that has taken the right to gerrymander to all courts, right up to the Supreme Court today in Louisiana v. Callais. Proposition 50 is simply way to create a firewall against Trump and LaMalfa’s attempts to burn the Constitution for the rich and powerful, who are just fine with authoritarian power that too often can lead to fascism.
Stop The Fire, Save Democracy, Vote Yes On Proposition 50.
Christian Gardinier
A Shasta County Democrat, LCSW, and concerned political activist.
