Gov. Gavin Newsom proclaimed yet another special session last November to “safeguard California values and fundamental rights in the face of an incoming Trump administration.”

The Legislature is proposing $25 million to the California Department of Justice to “Trump-proof” California and another $25 million for illegal immigration legal and support services. But what purpose does a special session even serve?

Well, their purpose is made abundantly clear by their official term. It’s officially an “extraordinary” session. The dictionary tells me that means “going beyond what is usual, regular or customary.”

Let’s say, hypothetically, a natural disaster like a wildfire destroys a portion of Los Angeles while the Legislature isn’t in session. It would make perfect sense for the governor to call the Legislature back to address recovery efforts.

But, for better or worse, our Legislature is a full-time body, so lawmakers are in regular session for most of the year. The session convenes in December and doesn’t end until September (with a month off for summer). They don’t need to be called back. They’re already here.

Well, you might be saying, the governor called them into special session in November. You said they aren’t in session in November, so they needed a special session. But they didn’t come back in November. When Newsom declared a special session, he gave it a starting date of “December 2, when the Legislature convenes.”

Even then, they didn’t really get going on it until January – when the regular session is already fully underway. So, what is calling a special session, especially one about fighting Trump, about? Well, you could say it’s about emphasizing priorities. But really it is nothing more than political theater.

Sure, the governor and legislative leaders could just tackle conflicts with the Trump administration in the normal course of their jobs, but that doesn’t generate national headlines. With Newsom’s national aspirations back on track after Kamala Harris’ defeat at the polls, garnering good press is a high priority for the administration.

But how is that working out? When the wildfires erupted in L.A. County, the political posturing was seen for what it was: an empty exercise that was tone-deaf and in poor taste. Fiddling about Trump while Pacific Palisades and Altadena burned.

Media scrutiny was growing, and more responsible legislative leaders were justifiably questioning the wisdom of continuing the Trump-related special session, especially relative to legitimate public business.

Moreover, existing legislative rules allow important bills to move quickly without a special session. The only thing stopping lawmakers from addressing the fires, or Trump for that matter, in the regular session was that they are simultaneously in a special session. But rather than go back to their regularly scheduled business and deal with all the issues facing California, including the wildfires, they doubled down.

Newsom announced he was expanding the special session to fight both Trump and the fires. Democrats also planned to lump it all together in one big bill. Tying funding for victims of a natural disaster to opposing Trump? That didn’t go well.

Legislative Republicans immediately objected to holding wildfire funding hostage, and legislative leaders backed down after further public scrutiny. Now the Assembly is taking up a $2.5 billion proposal to respond to the fires while the Senate considers the $50 million to fight Trump.

Excessive spending had already stretched the budget to the point that the governor called for pulling billions out of the state’s rainy-day reserves. Now, thanks to two sessions at once, the Legislature can spend your money twice as fast. Enough is enough.

Jon Coupal is president of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association.