California Policy and Politics Sunday

California’s slow vote count stirs frustration, but changes would be hard -- California’s push to expand accessibility and increase security in elections has come with a tradeoff: slower ballot counts. Particularly tight races, like this year’s primary for governor and L.A. mayor, take days to call, which erodes voter confidence and fuels online conspiracy theories. Grace Toohey in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/14/26

L.A.’s Year of the Dog: Why Pratt and other candidates campaigned against animal abuse -- The city’s management of animal shelters looms ahead as a potential issue in the mayoral runoff between incumbent Karen Bass and Councilmember Nithya Raman. Sandra McDonald in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/14/26

Spencer Pratt decries ‘very suspicious fire’ at his crystal company office in Pacific Palisades -- Last January, Spencer Pratt’s house in Pacific Palisades was razed by the raging flames of the Palisades Fire. Now, there has been what he called a “very suspicious fire” in a building in the neighborhood’s tony Highlands where he maintained an office for his crystals company. Connor Sheets in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/14/26

Scott Wiener wants housing to shape the race to replace Pelosi. Connie Chan does, too -- The race to succeed Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi was a brawl before the June primary. Now, it’s a two-person matchup that is set to become a bitter slugfest between San Francisco political factions. J.D. Morris in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 6/14/26

Banner of bodies on S.F.’s Ocean Beach sends Trump a pointed birthday warning -- On the eve of President Donald Trump’s highly orchestrated celebrations of his 80th birthday, hundreds of protesters gathered on San Francisco’s Ocean Beach with an alternative sentiment Saturday. Warren Pederson in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 6/13/26

Barabak: This historic Nevada mining town has seen better days. Trump is excavating hope -- Some years ago, Harry Chahal and his wife were on a trip to Las Vegas when, like countless motorists before and since, they passed through this high desert speck of a town. Mark Z. Barabak in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/14/26

Rich Californians Are Finding Creative Ways to Get Ahead of the Billionaire Tax -- Tax-planning strategies include buying dream vacation homes, increasing philanthropy. Juliet Chung in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 6/14/26

Federal judge rejects fired biologist’s free speech lawsuit over Yosemite trans flag demonstration -- After helping display a pink, white and blue transgender flag at El Capitan in May 2025, Shannon Joslin, who uses “they/them” pronouns, found themselves at the center of controversy, claiming they were wrongfully terminated for their involvement and that their free speech rights had been violated. Jasmine Mendez in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/14/26

The hardest days are when calls don’t go through: Andy Pages opens up about family in Cuba -- In his third season with the Dodgers, rising star Andy Pages navigates the agonizing reality of being separated from his parents and sister as U.S.-Cuba relations face new flashpoints. Liana Handler in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/14/26

Measles

Measles case in Santa Clara County as thousands gather for World Cup -- As thousands of World Cup soccer fans descend upon Santa Clara County and Levi’s Stadium, the county’s public health officials announced Saturday that a resident infected with measles traveled to San Francisco International Airport and two San Jose markets this week while contagious. Matthias Gafni in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Connor Sheets in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/14/26

World Cup

As Bay Area hosts World Cup, empty red seats are everywhere at Levi’s Stadium -- There were thousands of empty seats scattered throughout Levi’s Stadium during Qatar’s surprising 1-1 draw with Switzerland on Saturday at the World Cup. On an unseasonably warm June afternoon by Bay Area standards, with the temperature at kickoff around 82 degrees Fahrenheit (28 degrees Celsius), many of those vacant seats were on the east side of the stadium that typically can get very hot for much of the year. Janie Mccauley Associated Press -- 6/14/26

AI

Anthropic shuts down Mythos access after sweeping U.S. order -- Anthropic PBC has disabled access to its most advanced artificial intelligence models, including Mythos, following an unprecedented order by the Trump administration to keep the technology out of the hands of all foreign nationals. Maggie Eastland and Hadriana Lowenkron Bloomberg in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/14/26

Inside the Room Where America’s Brightest Game Out How to Avoid an AI Apocalypse -- What happened when 40 leading minds huddled to envision U.S. society in 2030 and how artificial intelligence will shake up the economy and jobs. Lauren Weber in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 6/14/26

AI is saving office workers hours — and stealing much of that time back in ‘botsitting’ -- A new survey of individuals using AI found it made them more productive, saving each roughly 11 hours per week. But at the same time, the workers on average have to spend more than six hours “botsitting,” checking the AI output, fixing mistakes and rerunning the prompt. Nilesh Christopher in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/13/26

Environment

California’s waterways could get clogged by a problem that didn’t exist two years ago -- When golden mussels were found in an international shipping channel in Stockton nearly two years ago, marking the first detection of the invasive shellfish in North America, state officials knew it was going to be bad. Now those fears are being borne out. Kurtis Alexander in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 6/14/26

Also

Sea water floods S.F.’s Embarcadero amid predictions of record summer tides -- The National Weather Service issued a coastal flood advisory through Wednesday morning for San Francisco Bay, with up to 2 feet of inundation above ground level in low-lying areas near shorelines and waterways. Warren Pederson in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 6/14/26

S.F. celebrates Juneteenth on ‘sacred ground’ with moving mix of joy and pride -- Thousands of people turned San Francisco’s Fillmore district into an eight-block-long expression of Black joy and resilience Saturday with Juneteenth celebrations that stretched from morning to evening. Lucy Hodgman in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 6/14/26

POTUS 47

The Iranian Enforcer Driving Tehran’s Hard Bargaining With the U.S. -- The pugilistic new paramilitary commander is seen as a power broker asserting control over negotiations even as the two sides appear near a deal. Benoit Faucon and Summer Said in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 6/14/26

U.S. and Iran to close deal within a day, Trump says, but Tehran yet to confirm -- An agreement would extend the ceasefire and pave the way for a longer truce, leaders said, though an Iranian official denied a deal will be signed Sunday. Victoria Craw, Rachel Chason and Cate Cadell in the Washington Post$ -- 6/14/26

Trump Bets on South Lawn UFC Spectacle to Energize His Political Base -- Sunday’s fights at the White House promise a violent show and chance for Trump to project power. Alex Leary in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 6/14/26

Trump’s Big New Vulnerability in 2026: Blue-Collar White Voters -- A review of polling data shows an extraordinary swing among white working-class voters on the president’s handling of the economy. Shane Goldmacher in the New York Times$ -- 6/14/26

At the Kennedy Center, a Name Change Shrouded in Uncertainty -- President Trump’s name was removed from the arts institution’s facade overnight on Saturday. Many questions remain, including whether or not it stays off. Elizabeth Williamson and Julia Jacobs in the New York Times$ -- 6/14/26

At 80, Trump Is Everywhere and Showing Signs of Age -- President Trump, nearing his 80th birthday, and his advisers are strategically portraying him as an omnipresent figure. The White House disputes reports of President Trump falling asleep at an NBA Finals game and attributes his hand bruising to frequent handshaking. Annie Linskey in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 6/14/26