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California Policy and Politics Sunday
Solar power glut boosts California electric bills. Other states reap the benefits -- California is making so much solar energy that large commercial operators are increasingly forced to stop production, raising questions about the state’s costly plan to shift entirely to carbon-free sources of electricity. Melody Petersen in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/24/24
California lawmakers jet to Maui, Asia to discuss energy, transportation -- This is the season for California lawmakers to travel across the globe, some to lush beachside resorts with schmoozing lobbyists, at no cost of their own. Anabel Sosa in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/24/24
Barbara Lee has a big decision to make: Does she want the worst job in politics? -- Andreas Cluver, a powerful labor leader in Oakland, wants outgoing Rep. Barbara Lee to run for mayor to replace the recalled Sheng Thao. Joe Garofoli in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/24/24
Oakland released hundreds of documents related to the FBI’s probe. Here’s what they say -- The release comes months after the FBI, in June, raided the home of Mayor Sheng Thao as well as three properties associated with members of the Duong family, who run curbside recycling in Oakland through their company California Waste Solutions and financially backed Evolutionary Homes. Megan Cassidy, Sarah Ravani, Rachel Swan in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/24/24
Trump’s mass deportation threats in his first term fizzled. Here’s how they may play out this time -- ACLU lawyers are already concerned that the recently shuttered federal Dublin Women’s Prison in the East Bay could be converted into one of those detention facilities — an easy drop-off spot for Bay Area roundups. Julia Prodis Sulek in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 11/24/24
Immigrants Across U.S. Rush to Prepare for Trump Crackdown -- People with green cards want to become citizens as soon as possible. People who have a tenuous legal status or who entered the country illegally are scrambling to file for asylum, because even if the claim is thin, having a pending case would — under current protocols — protect them from deportation. People in relationships with U.S. citizens are fast-tracking marriage, which makes them eligible to apply for a green card. Miriam Jordan in the New York Times$ -- 11/24/24
Presidents have sent troops to the San Diego border before. Could this time be different? -- Presidents both Republican and Democrat have called on military support in San Diego and elsewhere many times over the years to assist with border security tasks, from surveillance to reinforcing barriers. Alexandra Mendoza in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 11/24/24
Two bodies pulled from Sonoma County waters -- Guerneville floodwater claimed the life of a man who appears to have tried to drive through it Saturday morning, according to the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office, which is investigating the death. Nanette Asimov, Christian Leonard in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/24/24
A Southern California pastor says a ‘flawed’ Trump was chosen to lead a sinful nation -- Right-wing activist Charlie Kirk’s Newbury Park pastor claims he sees God’s hand in Donald Trump’s election victory. Hailey Branson-Potts in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/24/24
Workplace
After tech layoffs, idled workers seek new careers and pursue passions -- “The golden handcuffs are real,” says one laid-off worker who misses the paycheck but is unsure about returning to tech. Connor Letourneau in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/24/24
Education
Feds will teach LAUSD students how to stay safe online -- The cyber security training program led by Homeland Security Investigations agents is part of a push to fight the sexual exploitation of children. Alex Wigglesworth in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/24/24
Riverside County school district latest to be roiled by fight over trans athletes -- The suit, filed in federal court in Los Angeles, also claims that when the girls protested what they perceived as the unfairness of the situation by wearing T-shirts that said “Save Girls’ Sports,” school officials compared it to wearing a swastika in front of a Jewish student. Jessica Garrison in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/24/24
Transgender-athlete lawsuits roiling San Jose State volleyball trace back to Stanford tennis star -- San Jose State Spartan women’s volleyball at center of legal battles. Ethan Baron in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 11/24/24
A volleyball player’s gender led to secret votes, pressure campaigns and forfeits -- An athlete at San José State University is alleged to be transgender. A review of internal communications shows how coaches and administrators navigated the response. Jesse Dougherty in the Washington Post$ -- 11/24/24
Hoeven: With the election over, S.F. needs an honest answer — do we or don’t we need to close schools? -- The central question propelling the plot of nearly every rom-com is the same one facing San Francisco Unified School District leaders: Will they or won’t they? Emily Hoeven in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/24/24
Home values
Bay Area home values have risen everywhere — except in this city -- The typical home in Emeryville, a city of about 13,000 people and one of the fastest-growing municipalities in California, was valued at about $513,000 in October, according to real estate brokerage Zillow. That value reflected a 12% drop from its October 2019 value of $583,000 and a 5.6% drop from a year ago. Christian Leonard in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/24/24
Street
What’s Behind the Remarkable Drop in U.S. Overdose Deaths -- Experts are puzzling over which interventions are saving lives. The evolving illicit supply itself may hold important clues. Jan Hoffman and Noah Weiland in the New York Times$ -- 11/24/24
Also
How Brunch Came to a Backyard Farm in Compton -- It was once a vacant, weedy lot next to a school. Now, it provides fresh produce and a twice-monthly meal to customers. Meghan McCarron, Adali Schell in the New York Times$ -- 11/24/24
POTUS 47
Trump Is Running His Transition Team on Secret Money -- Breaking with past practice, President-elect Donald J. Trump has not agreed to disclose the donors paying for his planning effort or to limit their contributions. Ken Bensinger and David A. Fahrenthold in the New York Times$ -- 11/24/24
Pam Bondi, Trump’s AG pick, said ‘prosecutors will be prosecuted’ -- Trump’s choice for U.S. attorney general has served as a reliable ally and a fierce critic of attempts to investigate or prosecute him. Mark Berman and David Nakamura in the Washington Post$ -- 11/24/24
Trump’s Choices for Health Agencies Suggest a Shake-Up Is Coming -- The picks to oversee public health have all pushed back against Covid policies or supported ideas that are outside the medical mainstream. Emily Anthes and Emily Baumgaertner in the New York Times$ -- 11/24/24
Trump health picks largely untested in fighting disease outbreaks -- They have questioned vaccines and other interventions overseen by the health agencies they have been tapped to lead. Lena H. Sun, Dan Diamond, Rachel Roubein and Fenit Nirappil in the Washington Post$ -- 11/24/24
Sexual misconduct allegations didn’t stop Trump picking these candidates -- Several of the president-elect’s selections for top jobs in his administration have faced accusations of sexual misconduct. Justine McDaniel and Hannah Knowles in the Washington Post$ -- 11/24/24
How Hegseth Cultivated an Image That Caught Trump’s Eye -- The Pentagon nominee built a TV profile as a brash provocateur; Trump ‘would watch Pete a lot’ Nancy A. Youssef, Vera Bergengruen and Lara Seligman in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 11/24/24
Gorka and his hard-right views on Islam head back to the White House -- Sebastian Gorka has ruffled feathers among even reverent Trump loyalists and other Republicans, who have described him as underqualified. Alex Horton and John Hudson in the Washington Post$ -- 11/24/24
Trump and GOP eye new limits on Consumer Financial Protection Bureau -- The discussions align Republicans with banks and other financial giants, which have chafed at the agency’s regulations and crackdowns on fees. Tony Romm in the Washington Post$ -- 11/24/24
California Policy and Politics Saturday
Laura Richardson completes a political comeback, winning tight race to represent South L.A. in the California Capitol -- Laura Richardson emerged the victor of the competitive, costly and feisty election to win a South Los Angeles seat in the state Senate — completing her political comeback more than 10 years after a tumultuous tenure in the House of Representatives. Angie Orellana Hernandez in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/23/24
A fateful night in Monterey: Drinking, conservative banter, sexual assault allegations involving Pete Hegseth -- Revelation of the incident has set off a firestorm, both in Washington and among the members of the California Federation of Republican Women. Hannah Fry, Jessica Garrison and Richard Winton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/23/24
‘Why do we need to rush?’ California’s Lake County may have the nation’s slowest elections department -- Lake County elections officials are tired of the rush to count ballots, defending their history of being the last in California and possibly the nation to tally votes. Mackenzie Mays, Josh Edelson in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/23/24
Mayor London Breed’s last big decision has S.F. City Hall insiders worried -- Breed will soon name a new member of the Board of Supervisors to fill the seat being vacated by Catherine Stefani, who was just elected to the state Assembly. One of several people the mayor is considering for the appointment is Conor Johnston, a former Breed aide who remains one of her close confidants. J.D. Morris, Aldo Toledo in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/23/24
Skelton: Electoral college system is a bad way to pick a president -- Before this year’s presidential election slips into gloomy history, we should pause to slam our moldy, undemocratic vote-counting system called the electoral college. George Skelton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/23/24
Sun Valley residents endured a methane leak for years. Now L.A. will pay them $60 million -- For years, many residents in the working-class, mostly Latino communities of Sun Valley and Pacoima thought they were going crazy as doctors were unable to figure out why they were plagued with frequent headaches, nausea and nosebleeds. It turns out they were being gaslighted. Clara Harter in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/23/24
S.F. judge tosses most charges against Golden Gate Bridge Gaza protesters -- A San Francisco judge on Friday dismissed many of the charges against several people arrested in an April 15 protest that shut down the Golden Gate Bridge, but in most cases left in place the most serious, felony counts. Megan Cassidy in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/23/24
Student athletes sue California district over right to wear shirts targeting trans teammate -- Two teammates of a high school cross-country runner who is transgender have filed a lawsuit against Riverside Unified School District in Southern California, alleging that the player “unfairly” took their spot at a team event and that their free speech rights were violated when they were told to stop wearing T-shirts with transphobic messages. Erin Allday in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/23/24
Workplace
Cluster of farmworkers diagnosed with rare animal-borne disease in Ventura County -- The bacterial infection, leptospirosis, has resulted in severe symptoms for some workers, including meningitis, an inflammation of the brain lining and spinal cord. Symptoms for mild cases included headaches and fevers. Noah Haggerty in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/23/24
Microsoft
This tech giant’s conference is coming to S.F. for the first time in three decades -- Microsoft is bringing its Ignite tech conference to San Francisco in 2025 for the first time, a win for the city as it continues to grapple with lost business travel since the pandemic. Roland Li in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/23/24
Education
LAUSD students approach pre-pandemic achievement levels, outpacing state -- The Los Angeles Unified School District showed strong gains in newly released state metrics and reached a record graduation rate, but overall academic performance fell well short of state learning goals. Howard Blume in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/23/24
Earthquake
Despite active quake year, some California suburbs refuse to fix vulnerable buildings -- Amid Southern California’s most seismically active year in decades, some cities have yet to require retrofits of many apartment buildings deemed most at risk of collapse. Rong-Gong Lin II in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/23/24
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Sharp elbows and raised voices: Inside Trump’s bumpy transition -- Donald Trump’s attorney and adviser Boris Epshteyn arrived recently for a meeting about Cabinet picks in the Tea Room at Mar-a-Lago only to find his way blocked. Ashley Parker, Josh Dawsey and Michael Scherer in the Washington Post$ -- 11/23/24
Tracking Trump’s picks for his Cabinet and administration -- Here are the people Donald Trump has selected or is considering to fill his Cabinet and key positions in his administration. The list is in the Washington Post$ -- 11/23/24
Trump’s Trade Agenda Could Benefit Friends and Punish Rivals -- Donald Trump has a record of pardoning favored companies from tariffs. Companies are once again lining up to try to influence him. Ana Swanson in the New York Times$ -- 11/23/24
Trump Promised to Halve Energy Costs in 18 Months. Experts Have Doubts -- “It can’t happen,” said Ed Hirs, an energy economist at the University of Houston. “Good luck,” said Gernot Wagner, a climate economist at Columbia Business School. Lisa Friedman in the New York Times$ -- 11/23/24
Trump plans to fire Jack Smith’s team, use DOJ to probe 2020 election -- President-elect Donald Trump plans to fire the entire team that worked with special counsel Jack Smith to pursue two federal prosecutions against the former president, including career attorneys typically protected from political retribution, according to two individuals close to Trump’s transition. Amy Gardner, Josh Dawsey, Ashley Parker and Perry Stein in the Washington Post$ -- 11/23/24
Trump taps hedge fund manager Bessent to lead Treasury -- Bessent has called for slashing regulation, reducing the deficit and increasing U.S. energy production. Meridith McGraw, Michael Stratford and Sam Sutton Politico -- 11/23/24
Trump Picks Russell Vought, a Project 2025 Author, for Budget Role -- Donald Trump on Friday selected Russell Vought for a powerful budget role in his coming administration, marking the latest hire with ties to Project 2025 to join the president-elect’s government after he had disavowed the controversial policy and personnel blueprint on the campaign trail. Catherine Lucey and Andrew Restuccia in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 11/23/24
Musk Unleashes Online Army on Federal Workers. ‘A Tough Way to Find Out She’s Losing Her Job.’ -- As Trump efficiency czar, the billionaire is targeting employees by name on X—sparking pushback. Jim Carlton and Rebecca Ballhaus in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 11/23/24
Trump nominates union-friendly Republican for Labor secretary -- President-elect Donald Trump has tapped Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-Ore.) to serve as Labor secretary, a move that could bolster his credentials among organized labor after he made inroads with working-class voters in his victory over Vice President Kamala Harris. Lawrence Ukenye and Nick Niedzwiadek Politico Lauren Kaori Gurley in the Washington Post$ -- 11/23/24
Sebastian Gorka to Return to White House as Adviser -- In a statement, Donald J. Trump lauded the firebrand conservative commentator as a “tireless advocate” for his agenda. There was no mention that Mr. Gorka had been forced out of the Trump administration in 2017. Chris Cameron in the New York Times$ -- 11/23/24
Also
‘It’s Hollywood magic’: Filming for a movie in a downtown L.A. high-rise building spurs 911 calls -- The Los Angeles Police Department was flooded with calls Thursday night when people reported a high-rise on fire. Fire officials said it was part of film set. Ruben Vives in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/23/24
Lopez: It’s the season for scams, so here’s a piece of advice: Never do business with strangers -- Fraud is a year-round, multibillion-dollar enterprise, but the holiday season offers a wide-open window of opportunity as scammers fish with email, phone calls, texts, fliers and regular mail Steve Lopez in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/23/24