Gavin Newsom would like the rest of America to believe that California is the model for the nation. And in a way, he’s right. California is a model — of how poor leadership, broken promises and ideological arrogance can take a state from prosperity to dysfunction.

Let’s start with homelessness. California has had the highest per capita homeless population in America since 2005.

Nearly 1 in 4 homeless Americans lives in California. This didn’t start yesterday. Back in 2004, then-San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom proudly announced his 10-year plan to “aggressively confront” homelessness.

Well, it’s been two decades. How’s that plan working out? Just walk the streets of Los Angeles, San Francisco or Sacramento and you’ll see for yourself. Two decades of empty talk, press conferences and ribbon cuttings — and the tents and suffering are still there.

Housing? Same story. Newsom came into office as governor promising to build 3.5 million new homes by 2025. Here we are, in 2025, and we’ve barely permitted 650,000. That’s not a small miss — it’s a catastrophic failure. Meanwhile, Californians pay more than 25% of their monthly income just to keep a roof over their heads. That’s if they’re lucky enough to find a place to live in the first place. Housing supply remains chronically low, and every policy designed to fix it gets swallowed up by bureaucratic red tape, labor restrictions and environmental lawsuits.

Speaking of costs, let’s talk about the highest gas prices in the nation.

While the national average sits comfortably around $3 per gallon, Californians routinely pay far more. Why? Because of the highest gas taxes in America, plus environmental mandates, cap-and-trade fees and a special fuel blend requirement that makes refining more expensive.

Oh, and by next year, two of our refineries will shut down permanently, eliminating 20% of our gasoline supply. And where does most of our oil come from? Not California — we import much of it from foreign countries. So much for energy independence.

And what about the state’s fiscal health? On Newsom’s watch, California is running deficits for the third year in a row. This year alone, the state faces a $12 billion shortfall. And the Legislative Analyst’s Office warns that without serious change, we’ll be drowning in $10 billion to $20 billion deficits every year through 2028-29.

So what’s Gavin Newsom doing about all of this? Fixing the homeless crisis? Lowering housing costs?

Not even close.

Instead of fixing California, Newsom has been busy creating new crises. He supported Biden in opening the border to millions of illegal crossings, then did everything in his power to block law enforcement from doing its job. He shoveled taxpayer funds to activist nonprofits like CHIRLA, egged on rioters with inflammatory rhetoric, and when chaos erupted, he had the gall to blame the National Guard — the very people risking their lives to restore order. The Ninth Circuit Court unanimously rejected his frivolous, taxpayer-funded lawsuit to remove those troops, exposing his shameless political gamesmanship for what it was.

For the past two years, instead of governing, he has been auditioning for the presidency.

Blind to his own failures and certainly blinded by ambition, he thinks the entire nation should live like California. High gas prices for Oklahoma. Housing shortages for Kentucky. Lawless streets for Ohio. This is the “California model” Newsom wants to export from coast to coast.

Apparently, he thinks the people of Arizona, Georgia and Florida should experience the same glorious California model: crushing gas prices, unaffordable housing, and sidewalks lined with tents. That’s the future Newsom wants to export to the rest of America.

California deserves leadership that solves problems — not one that uses failure as a launchpad for higher office.

Melissa Melendez is the former California state Assemblywoman for District 67 and state senator for District 28 in Riverside County.