The "New California" movement, advocating that half of California should split off into a 51st state, is getting media attention since their announcement of their own "Declaration of Independence" a few days ago. But no one seems to have noticed that the movement is full of white nationalists and crazed conspiracy theorists.
New California has been covered by the AP, the CBS Sacramento affiliate, and the San Francisco Chronicle--but apparently these media outlets haven't bothered to look at the New California website.
If they did, they would learn that one of the founders of this movement, Robert Paul Preston, has a podcast called "Agenda 21 Radio." That should tell you all you need to know about Preston, since the "Agenda 21" thing is an old far-right conspiracy theory, revived by Glenn Beck in 2012, alleging that a non-binding UN resolution about sustainable growth is in fact a nefarious plot to destroy the world or whatever.
In one recent podcast, Preston rants about how the recent California fires were part of a "geo-engineering" plot involving "climate engineers" spreading chemicals throughout the planet in order to make it hotter in some places and colder in others. Or something.
The New California website features a video called "English is dying in California" by self-avowed "ethno-nationalist" (read white nationalist) Lauren Rose. Youtube star Rose once had a video pulled for pushing the conspiracy theory that the death of Heather Heyer in the Charlottesville Alt-Right rally last year was not directly due to the car attack by the crazed white nationalist, but due to a heart attack because Heyer was an overweight smoker.
Another video on the website stars Victor Davis Hanson, infamous for his view that it's logical for white people to fear young black men.
If the Facebook page of founder Tom Reed is any indication, New California is just the latest incarnation of the "State of Jefferson" hoopla. But it’s still pretty strange that media hasn’t noticed the background of the folks involved.