California Policy and Politics Friday

Trump asks for $152 million to rebuild Alcatraz and reopen it as a prison -- The request to Congress was buried in the 2027 budget proposal that Trump released on Friday. Alexei Koseff in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/3/26

 

US pilot ejected from their aircraft over Iran, Iranian state TV affiliate claims -- An Iranian state TV affiliate claimed a US pilot ejected from a fighter jet over southwestern Iran Friday. Iranian media also showed U.S. aircraft over the mountainous terrain. The TV anchor urged Iranians to deliver any “enemy pilot” to police for a “precious prize.” The U.S. did not immediately comment. Verda Subzwari, Brian P. D. Hannon, Hrvoje Hranjski, Luena Rodriguez-Feo Vileira, Mariam Fam Associated Press Stephen Kalin, Shelby Holliday and Anat Peled in the Wall Street Journal$ Eric Schmitt, Helene Cooper and Ronen Bergman in the New York Times$ Alex Horton and Tara Copp in the Washington Post$ -- 4/3/26

Trump asks Congress to supersize military budget, slash domestic programs -- The president’s fiscal 2027 budget request calls for Republicans to use a partisan process for enacting billions for the Pentagon. Jennifer Scholtes, Katherine Tully-McManus and Connor O'Brien PoliticoTony Romm in the New York Times$ -- 4/3/26

 

‘Amateur hour at the U.S. attorney’s office’: L.A. prosecutors face more losses in protest cases -- Federal prosecutors in L.A. have lost every assault on a federal officer case they’ve brought to trial against immigration protesters. Brittny Mejia in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/3/26

Federal judge: Continued Border Patrol sweeps in California violated court order --A federal judge rules that the Border Patrol again broke the rules in California immigration sweeps, saying agents acted “without considering or complying with law Congress enacted.” Wendy Fry and Sergio Olmos in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/3/26

California is a sanctuary state. Its public pensions invest in companies working with ICE -- California’s two biggest pension funds have invested more than $2.7 billion with companies contracting with Immigration and Customs Enforcement or the Department of Homeland Security, a new analysis shows. Suhauna Hussain in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/3/26

 

Newton: Top-two race in Los Angeles makes strange political bedfellows -- Rules governing elections are generating novel possible outcomes in the races for California’s two top executive offices — the governorship and the mayoralty of Los Angeles — and in LA they’re producing strange bedfellows as well. Jim Newton Calmatters -- 4/3/26

Arellano: Spencer Pratt is sharing a Miami sound machine ad. It won’t play in L.A. -- You know the political silly season is upon us when campaigns start to make fools of themselves trying to court Latino voters. In the Los Angeles mayoral race, that moment kicked off last week. Gustavo Arellano in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/3/26

Walters: This isn’t a race for California governor; it’s more like a game of chicken -- Political media habitually use “race” to describe contests for public office. However the word implies movement and therefore would be inaccurate if applied to this year’s election of a new governor. Dan Walters Calmatters -- 4/3/26

Workplace

Oracle’s mass layoffs hit 158 Bay Area workers -- The tech giant said that 76 software developers, 30 application developers and 11 product management staff were among the layoffs at 5815 Owens Drive. The facility will remain open. Roland Li in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/3/26

Meta lays off nearly 200 Silicon Valley workers as AI spending ramps up -- The reductions add to roughly 700 job cuts across the company in recent weeks, affecting teams in recruiting, sales, operations and its Reality Labs division. Aidin Vaziri in the San Francisco Chronicle$ George Avalos in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 4/3/26

Google proposes huge new tech buildings as company expands in San Jose -- Google has floated plans to develop a huge new tech and research hub in San Jose, a project that would greatly expand the search company’s presence and investment in the Bay Area’s largest city. George Avalos in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 4/3/26

Economists Once Dismissed the A.I. Job Threat, but Not Anymore -- Artificial intelligence hasn’t disrupted the labor market, economists say, but they are increasingly convinced that it will — and that policymakers are unprepared. Ben Casselman in the New York Times$ -- 4/3/26

Marketplace

PayPal transformed digital payments. Why the California fintech giant is now struggling -- PayPal’s branded checkout growth has slowed to just 1% as competitors like Apple Pay and Google Pay capture more digital wallet users. Queenie Wong in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/3/26

Downtown L.A.’s cratering real estate market is changing — rich renters are buying their buildings -- Downtown L.A. office buildings are plummeting in value as vacancy rates soar, creating opportunities for major tenants to purchase their properties instead of renting. Roger Vincent in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/3/26

 

Amid E. coli outbreak, California-based Raw Farm owner pushes back against a weakened FDA -- An E. coli outbreak has infected at least nine people, including seven in California. The FDA has tied the infections to raw-milk products from Raw Farm, based in Fresno. The farm’s owner, however, contends that the federal government has not proved its case. Corinne Purtill and Susanne Rust in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/3/26

Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant gets final go-ahead to run through 2030 -- The federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Thursday renewed Diablo Canyon’s license to operate, ensuring that California’s last remaining nuclear facility will continue to run through at least 2030. Blanca Begert in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/3/26

L.A. Metro confirms it was hacked. Weeks later, it’s still getting systems back online -- Metro board member Fernando Dutra said the agency had been working through a painstaking process to bring systems back online, an effort that continues. That includes reviewing about 1,400 servers individually to ensure they are secure before restoring access and bringing systems back online, he said. Gavin J. Quinton and Clara Harter in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/3/26

Avalanche

Retracing the fateful journey of the Tahoe avalanche victims -- The site of the deadliest avalanche in California history is a surprisingly peaceful ravine, highlighting the deceptive nature of the terrain that claimed nine lives. The tragedy followed critical guide decisions, including whether to proceed despite an approaching storm and how to escape once it arrived. Jack Dolan, Danny Kern, Lorena Iñiguez Elebee in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/3/26

Report criticizes ski guides’ decision in deadly Lake Tahoe avalanche, provides new details -- The guides in the deadliest avalanche in modern California history led a group of backcountry skiers below avalanche terrain during dangerous conditions and traveled in a group large enough to potentially trigger the large slide, investigators concluded in a report released this week. Matthias Gafni in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/3/26

Microplastics and pharmaceuticals named a priority threat in drinking water by health, environment officials -- Federal health and environmental officials announced a $144-million effort to study microplastics in human bodies and drinking water. For the first time, the EPA designated microplastics and pharmaceuticals as priority contaminants. Susanne Rust and Ian James in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/3/26

Earthquake

If the 1906 San Francisco earthquake struck today, these cities would get no advance warning -- The core population centers — not just San Francisco but also Oakland and Berkeley — would have no advance warning, according to Robert de Groot, the coordinator for ShakeAlert, the earthquake early warning system used in California. The shaking would start faster than the ShakeAlert system could transmit the message to them. Brooke Park in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/3/26

Street

Former S.F. official pleads not guilty to corruption. Her co-defendant enters court disguised -- A man who showed up to a once powerful San Francisco city official’s first criminal court appearance Thursday disguised in a surgical mask and balaclava was none other than her co-defendant in a case that centers around their furtive relationship. Michael Barba in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/3/26

A $200-million trust and a bitter divorce. What new documents reveal about the case against Michael Abatti -- An Imperial Valley farmer embroiled in a bitter divorce involving a $200-million trust drove to Arizona and fatally shot his estranged wife in the middle of the night, according to prosecutors and court documents released to The Times this week. Susanne Rust and Alex Wigglesworth in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/3/26

Fake deliveries, then guns: How a ‘wrench attack’ crime ring chased crypto millions from S.F. to L.A. -- San Francisco, San Jose, Sunnyvale, Los Angeles. In each city, the plan was the same: Stake out a major cryptocurrency holder, pose as a food or package courier and pull out the gun. Megan Cassidy in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/3/26

Typhus

Typhus from fleas hits record level in L.A.: Where the hot spots are and how to protect yourself -- Attention pet parents: Los Angeles County is reporting a record number of flea-borne typhus cases. Karen Garcia in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/3/26

POTUS 47

Trump weighs more Cabinet changes after Bondi ouster -- President Donald Trump has expressed frustration and disappointment with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer — and is pondering making additional changes to his Cabinet. Dasha Burns Politico -- 4/3/26

Trump speech on Iran war, recent remarks on oil, NATO, daycare costs land with a thud -- Oil prices surged after the address as Trump deflected responsibility for reopening the Strait of Hormuz to other nations. His NATO criticism and comments that the U.S. can’t afford social services while funding war sparked rebukes from Macron, diplomats, and domestic political opponents. Kevin Rector in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/3/26

How Trump Boxed Himself In on Iran -- President Trump faces the possibility that at the end of his own two-to-three week window for wrapping up the war in Iran, nothing much will have changed. David E. Sanger in the New York Times$ -- 4/2/26

Planning Commission Approves Trump’s Ballroom, but Legal Roadblocks Remain -- The National Capital Planning Commission, which is led by allies of President Trump, approved the president’s $400 million White House ballroom project despite a deluge of negative comments from the public. But legal roadblocks remain after a federal judge ruled that Mr. Trump must get approval from Congress to proceed. Luke Broadwater in the New York Times$ -- 4/3/26

Trump’s Media-Bashing Is Coming Back to Bite Him in Court -- Judges have cited attacks on the press by the president and his appointees when ruling against the government in at least three court cases. Erik Wemple in the New York Times$ -- 4/3/26

Democrats, voter rights groups file lawsuits on Trump order on mail ballots -- The plaintiffs in both cases argue that the order violates the Constitution, which directly gives states and Congress the power to regulate federal elections and voter rolls. Mariana Alfaro in the Washington Post$ -- 4/3/26