Unless something has changed in the last year or 2, HSR money is paying for at least part of the Caltrain electrification. Caltrain doesn't have the money, even though they have made it clear that unless electrification happens they can't keep operating with diesels (fuel cost, etc.). So perhaps the unstated purpose of preventing electrification is to eliminate the railroad entirely so any future HSR operation would have noplace to go?

Opponents of "blended" HSR need to consider the real world (I know - a reality distortion field is mandatory in Bay Area residents and the legal profession). It's easier to locate a new line and MUCH cheaper to build it out of town, and high speed over long distance is where you get the major benefit. Yes, to get ~2 hours to LA you need the city segments too (every minute if not second counts for that kind of timing), but operation can start up at competitive timings (say, 3-4 hours depending on stops) without them (see e.g. Spain, France), using existing lines in terminal areas with modest enhancements, and then add the real HSR terminal lines incrementally. CAHSR was never expected (except by nutcases) to be built for $10B - even the initial mid-$30B estimate was bogus if viewed by a person with working brain cells given the level of design & studies done at that time (essentially zero). But it was necessary to start something in order to complete it by the time our (great?) grandchildren need it. Electrification of Caltrain is a necessary piece of the interim HSR puzzle as well as vital for the survival of Caltrain.