Relationships Talk

It’s tough to take office as governor and promptly have two crises on your hands, like Gavin Newsom did with the Los Angeles teachers strike and impending bankruptcy filing of Pacific Gas and Electric Co.

So when he called the other day asking about some potential appointments, I couldn’t help but give him a couple of pieces of advice.

The first one: For now, stay out of the teachers strike.

There is little chance a political intermediary is going to make either side happy. That makes it a loser for anyone who tries.

Let Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti take a crack at it first. It’s his city. If he gets it settled, fine. If he walks the plank after ticking off both sides, then Newsom can jump in as the lifeguard to save the day.

Leading to piece of advice No. 2: Concentrate on PG&E.

I’ve represented PG&E as a lawyer in the past, so I didn’t offer any tips on how to handle its possible bankruptcy.

But no one likes big utilities, so there’s only one side to take in this fight and come out ahead: the public’s.

Smell test: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi just relearned an old political lesson: Don’t get in a skunk fight with a skunk.

And there is no bigger skunk than President Trump.

There Pelosi was, all set to head to the airport for a military flight with a congressional delegation to Afghanistan and other overseas destinations, when Trump yanked away the plane. It was a completely predictable response to her (very strong) suggestion that he reschedule his State of the Union address to Congress until the government is fully open.

With that, the whole debate over whether to fund Trump’s border wall turned into a playground spat — or skunk contest, if you prefer.

And while all of this is going on, hundreds of thousands of people are going without paychecks and genuinely hurting.

Trump couldn’t care less. With one stroke, he deflected attention from all that pain to Pelosi, whom he portrayed as just another hack politician flying off on a junket.

The trouble with getting into a fight with a skunk is that the skunk wins. Even if you manage to score a technical knockout, you still wind up with some of the stink.

New wall: Trump is intent on building two walls — one between the U.S. and Mexico, the other between the White House and Congress.

I would be willing to support a GoFundMe campaign for that purpose.

Speaking of funding: Payday loans, if properly regulated, could make life a bit easier for federal employees having to weather the shutdown storm.

And who better to set up and administer an emergency program than the banks that taxpayers bailed out during the 2008-09 financial crash?

Call on the banks to commit a percentage of their asset base for a national payday program, offering zero-interest loans based on federal workers’ take-home pay.

I’m surprised none of the many Democratic presidential candidates has proposed the idea.

In the meantime, Lefty O’Doul’s is offering free meals to federal workers and their families.

Movie time: “If Beale Street Could Talk,” a story about blacks dealing with the criminal justice system. In this movie, it is all bad.

It starts with an argument between a white cop and a black man that leads to horrific consequences. Great acting, in particular by Regina King.

There’s nothing inspirational about this movie. It’s just a taste of reality. So “Beale Street” does talk on that level.

So long: A recently widowed woman whose wedding I officiated years back approached me the other day about delivering the eulogy at her husband’s funeral.

“I will, but you know, I only met your husband at the wedding, and even then it was only for a couple of minutes,” I said.

“True,” she said. “Still, you probably knew him as well as anyone.”

Want to sound off? Email: wbrown@sfchronicle.com