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California Policy and Politics Thursday
5 dead, more than 2,000 structures burned as new fire hits Hollywood Hills -- More than 2,000 structures have burned and at least five people are dead in wildfires burning across L.A. County. Red flag warnings remained in effect for Los Angeles County and much of Ventura County through Thursday. Rong-Gong Lin II, Noah Haggerty, Connor Sheets, Ruben Vives, Julia Wick, Hannah Fry, Grace Toohey, Noah Goldberg, Rebecca Ellis, Summer Lin and Terry Castleman in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/9/25
A ‘worst-case’ scenario: How giant insurance losses from L.A. fires could affect all Californians -- The ramifications could well be felt across California. Most obviously, the massive losses that insurers face could translate to increased rates for people across the state — particularly in the areas affected by the fires but also beyond. Megan Fan Munce in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/9/25
State Farm sought huge number of Pacific Palisades nonrenewals months before fire -- Nearly 70% of State Farm property policy holders in Pacific Palisades learned last summer that they would lose their home insurance, months before the devastating Palisades Fire hit. Aidin Vaziri, Megan Fan Munce in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/9/25
Will Rogers’ ranch house and motel owned by William Randolph Hearst consumed by Palisades fire -- Among the carnage wrought by the devastating Palisades fire were two pieces of California history dating to a bygone era. Andrew J. Campa in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/9/25
They outran the flames in Altadena, wondering how they lived through the fury -- Jason Deach and Mike Griswold — two handymen at the Zorthian Ranch, an artists colony in Altadena — had escaped the flames hours earlier, racing into the smoke, wind howling, buildings burning, trees exploding around them. Jeffrey Fleishman in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/9/25
Trump, Musk unleash on California Democrats over wildfires -- Republicans are seizing on the catastrophic wildfires that tore through the Los Angeles area early Wednesday, blaming Democratic policies for the deadly, wind-fueled conflagrations that forced tens of thousands to flee their homes. Camille von Kaenel Politico -- 1/9/25
As L.A. burns, Trump blames Newsom — and California governor pushes back -- Trump’s contention that Newsom’s water management decisions were to blame for the severity of the fires is not supported by the facts, multiple water experts told The Washington Post. Hannah Knowles, Brianna Tucker and Marianne LeVine in the Washington Post$ -- 1/9/25
Fact check: Why is Trump blaming the LA fires on Newsom’s water policies? --Trump appeared to be referring to water imported south from the Bay-Delta, fed by Northern California rivers and snowmelt. But most Los Angeles water does not come from Northern California. It comes via the city’s 112-year-old aqueduct that runs from the Owens Valley east of the Sierra Nevada, not the Delta, as well as groundwater. Alastair Bland CalMatters -- 1/9/25
Wildfire response threatens to end Karen Bass’ extended honeymoon -- The Los Angeles mayor’s ill-timed international travel — which coincided with historically destructive wildfires sweeping through her city — threatens to spiral into a political crisis for an elected official who has so far enjoyed a remarkably durable honeymoon in the nation’s second-largest city. Melanie Mason and Alex Nieves Politico -- 1/9/25
Gavin Newsom cancels DC trip for Carter funeral as wildfire devastates LA area -- Gavin Newsom is staying in California to respond to the fires that are raging through Los Angeles, canceling a trip to Washington for former President Jimmy Carter’s funeral, the governor’s office announced Wednesday morning. Rachel Bluth Politico -- 1/9/25
California infernos in January? Here’s why wildfire season keeps getting longer and more devastating -- As climate change warms the planet, wildfires have become so unpredictable and extreme that new words were invented: firenado, gigafire, fire siege — even fire pandemic. California has 78 more annual “fire days” — when conditions are ripe for fires to spark — than 50 years ago. When is California’s wildfire season? With recurring droughts, It is now year-round. Julie Cart CalMatters -- 1/9/25
S.F. mayor Lurie inaugurated Chinatown-style: ‘So goes Chinatown, so goes San Francisco’ -- On his first evening as San Francisco mayor, Daniel Lurie donned a pair of protective goggles, lit an approximately 30-foot-long string of firecrackers, ducked and ran for cover inside a Chinatown banquet hall. Ko Lyn Cheang in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/9/25
Garofoli: Daniel Lurie won by being Mr. Nice Guy. To succeed, he’ll need to be tough too -- Daniel Lurie quoted the iconic San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk during his inaugural speech Wednesday, invoking Milk’s mantra: “You have to give people hope. Hope for a better world, hope for a better tomorrow.” But hope is not a plan. Joe Garofoli in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/9/25
Congestion pricing has hit New York, could it be coming to downtown S.F.? -- For any motorist who flinched at the new $8 Bay Area bridge toll, the notion that San Francisco could take a cue from New York — and charge fees to to drive downtown during rush hour — might be triggering. Rachel Swan in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/9/25
Progressive stalwart Barbara Lee announces Oakland mayoral bid -- Lee will be running to serve the remaining term of Sheng Thao, who voters recalled in November. On Monday, the City Council voted Council Member Kevin Jenkins to serve as interim mayor until the April election. Joe Garofoli, Sarah Ravani in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/9/25
Point Reyes
Historic change coming to Point Reyes as environmentalists buy out ranchers -- In a historic deal announced Wednesday, Point Reyes National Seashore will largely do away with ranching at the park, a tradition long etched into the identity of this rural stretch of Northern California coast but one that has been controversial with visitors and environmentalists. Kurtis Alexander in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/9/25
POTUS 47
Trump Asks Supreme Court to Block Hush-Money Sentencing -- President-elect Donald Trump filed a last-ditch request asking the Supreme Court to block his coming New York sentencing for covering up hush money paid to an adult-film star. Brent Kendall and Corinne Ramey in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 1/9/25
Alito Spoke With Trump Shortly Before Supreme Court Filing -- The justice said that the call was a job reference for one of his former clerks and that the request to stay the president-elect’s sentencing did not come up. Adam Liptak in the New York Times$ -- 1/9/25
Trump Inauguration, Awash in Cash, Runs Out of Perks for Big Donors -- The president-elect has raised more than $170 million for his swearing-in, an inaugural record, as wealthy Americans flock to curry favor with him and some give money even without the prospect of V.I.P. access. Theodore Schleifer, Maggie Haberman and Kenneth P. Vogel in the New York Times$ -- 1/9/25
‘Here We Go Again’: Trump’s Territorial Ambitions Rattle a Weary World -- A distant era of global politics, when nations scrambled to grab territory, suddenly seems less distant. Damien Cave in the New York Times$ -- 1/9/25
Also
S.F.’s Union Square betting on a giant nude sculpture to help revive shopping district -- The big twinkling Christmas tree is gone from San Francisco’s Union Square and the ice rink will be shut down by the end of January. But a new beacon is coming to the neighborhood in the form of a 45-foot tall mesh wire sculpture of a naked woman that will be lit at night with open palms to welcome shoppers in a way that no mannequin ever could. Sam Whiting in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/9/25
California Policy and Politics Wednesday
5 dead, more than 1,100 structures destroyed as firestorm besieges L.A. County -- More than 1,100 buildings have burned and at least five people are dead in wildfires burning across L.A. County, making this one of the most destructive firestorms to hit the region in memory. Rong-Gong Lin II, Noah Haggerty, Connor Sheets, Ruben Vives, Julia Wick, Hannah Fry, Grace Toohey, Noah Goldberg, Rebecca Ellis, Summer Lin and Terry Castleman in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/8/25
Perilous winds will continue through Wednesday, fueling destructive L.A. fires -- Extreme winds from the north and northeast will continue to blow into the Los Angeles region through Wednesday morning, bringing gusts of up to 80 mph as firefighters battle fires. Jenny Jarvie and Grace Toohey in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/8/25
Lopez: The California compromise — be prepared to evacuate -- What do you pack? Some clothes, of course. Toiletries. Medication. Computers, phones and chargers. The dog. I grabbed a suitcase Wednesday morning and tossed some clothes into it. My wife began gathering up some family photographs. I stood and stared a bit, feeling somewhat paralyzed by uncertainty. You don’t know where you’ll go, how long you’ll be there, or what you might later return to. Steve Lopez in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/8/25
Fires tear through Pacific Palisades, Altadena, Pasadena and Sylmar; gusts of up to 100 mph reported -- The Eaton fire spread rapidly through Pasadena and Altadena overnight as firefighters also continued to battle the devastating Palisades fire Wednesday morning. Rong-Gong Lin II, Noah Haggerty, Connor Sheets, Ruben Vives, Julia Wick, Hannah Fry, Grace Toohey, Noah Goldberg, Rebecca Ellis, Summer Lin and Terry Castleman in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/8/25
99-mph winds bring night of terror as fires devastate SoCal communities -- Extraordinarily powerful winds and gusts — of up to 99 mph — have been reported as three major wildfires burn homes and businesses in Los Angeles County on Wednesday morning. Grace Toohey, Clara Harter, Noah Haggerty and Rong-Gong Lin II in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/8/25
Lack of water from hydrants in Palisades fire is hurting firefighting efforts, reports say -- As fires raged across Los Angeles on Tuesday, some firefighters battling the Palisades fire reported on internal radio systems that hydrants in Pacific Palisades were coming up dry. Matt Hamilton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/8/25
Extreme winds ground helicopters fighting Palisades and Eaton fires -- Extreme winds Tuesday night forced crews to temporarily halt efforts to battle the Palisades and Eaton fires by air, authorities said. Helicopters were grounded in the fight against the Palisades fire shortly before 8 p.m., according to a spokesperson for the Los Angeles Fire Department. As a result, firefighters are unable to drop water or flame retardant from the air. Clara Harter in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/8/25
‘If you go any further, you will die’: Fleeing flames from Palisades addiction recovery center -- Gregg Champion was about 100 yards away from the door of his business, Start-Up Recovery on Paseo Miramar, when personnel battling the Palisades fire stopped him. Summer Lin and Thomas Curwen in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/8/25
Trying to Escape the Flames, With Only One Road Out -- Cars clogged scenic Sunset Boulevard and headed away from the Palisades, a seaside neighborhood on the west side of Los Angeles. Jacey Fortin in the New York Times$ -- 1/8/25
Too wet and too dry: The crazy north-south gap in California’s rain -- Some Northern California cities have been soaked with almost twice their average rainfall, while southern cities are bone-dry. This season’s huge — possibly unprecedented — disparity works in favor of the state’s water supplies. Alastair Bland CalMatters -- 1/8/25
SDG&E rapidly turning off power to customers as Santa Ana winds slam San Diego County -- The first of two waves of fierce Santa Ana winds is generating gusts in the 45 mph to 80 mph range across much of San Diego County and conditions could get worse through mid-morning, the National Weather Service said early Wednesday morning. Gary Robbins, Rob Nikolewski in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 1/8/25
California’s $20 billion unemployment debt is looking like a political hot potato -- The legislative analyst has a plan to fix the “structural insolvency” of the unemployment benefits fund — but businesses aren’t happy and it’s unclear if lawmakers will get on board. Levi Sumagaysay CalMatters -- 1/8/25
Walters: Promises to reduce California’s high living costs conflict with state’s progressive policies -- While post-election autopsies vary on why Democrats fared so poorly in November, there is general consensus that a major factor was voter resentment of high inflation in their costs of living. Dan Walters CalMatters -- 1/8/25
Mega-development could transform S.F. railyards into cluster of towers — one 850 feet tall -- More than a decade after the late Mayor Ed Lee floated the idea, Caltrain and property owner Prologis are preparing to submit an application this spring for one of San Francisco’s most complicated development projects, part of a $8.25 billion downtown rail extension now called the Portal. J.K. Dineen in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/8/25
Major California health insurer names new CEO, first female chief in its history -- Oakland-based health insurer Blue Shield of California has named Lois Quam as its CEO, the first new leader in 12 years and the company’s first woman chief executive in its 86-year-history. Catherine Ho in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/8/25
Exxon escalates battle over plastics recycling with defamation suit against California AG -- After Attorney General Rob Bonta and environmental groups filed a lawsuit accusing ExxonMobil of polluting landfills and waterways with plastics and lying about it, the oil giant has struck back with a suit in its home state of Texas, accusing Bonta and his allies of orchestrating a “smear campaign.” Bob Egelko in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/8/25
Biden has less than 2 weeks to approve these California rules -- California is still waiting on the Biden administration to let it implement its emissions rules for trucks and trains before Donald Trump takes office — and those last two may be the toughest to get. Blanca Begert and Alex Nieves Politico -- 1/8/25
Amid fears about Hollywood’s future, L.A. approves $1-billion Television City project -- The debate over the project has played out amid a downturn in the region’s entertainment industry, with studios taking their film and television productions elsewhere. David Zahniser in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/8/25
Street
Crime in S.F. dropped to a two-decade low in 2024. Here’s where it fell the most -- Breed’s office and SFPD pointed to a slew of efforts including new technology, better coordination between law enforcement agencies and prosecutors and strategic interventions as reasons for the drop. Danielle Echeverria in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/8/25
California DOJ ends oversight of SFPD reforms, citing ‘substantial’ progress -- After spending seven years overseeing San Francisco police reforms, the California Department of Justice is stepping away from its monitoring role, saying the department has achieved 97% of its recommended goals and can continue to the finish line on its own. Megan Cassidy, Michael Barba in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/8/25
Environment
Biden’s parting gift to Northern California: A new national monument in the remains of an ancient volcano -- The Medicine Lake Highlands in Northern California, near towering Mount Shasta, has a long and storied past. Kurtis Alexander in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Paul Rogers in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 1/8/25
Education
California education issues to watch in 2025, plus predictions on how they may play out -- The impact of the Trump administration's decisions on education and immigration will devour attention in California and beyond as a new year begins. John Fensterwald and Yuxuan Xie EdSource -- 1/8/25
Mega Millions Jackpot
Why the $1.27 billion Mega Millions jackpot in California could change before it’s claimed -- For example, the Mega Millions jackpot for the Dec. 27 drawing was initially pegged at $1.22 billion the day of the drawing. Yet, after final ticket sales were tallied and interest rates were calculated, the official jackpot surged to $1.269 billion the following morning. Aidin Vaziri in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/8/25
POTUS 47
Garland prepares to release Jack Smith’s report on 2020 election subversion case against Trump -- Garland will withhold from public release a second volume of the report describing Smith’s second case against Trump for amassing classified documents at Mar-a-Lago. Kyle Cheney Politico Jeremy Roebuck and Perry Stein in the Washington Post$ -- 1/8/25
Justice Dept. Signals Report on Trump Documents Case May Never Be Released -- In a court filing, the department indicated that the report by the special counsel, Jack Smith, may not be made public before Donald J. Trump takes office, raising the prospect that the new administration will bury it. Alan Feuer and Charlie Savage in the New York Times$ -- 1/8/25
Trump asks Supreme Court to block hush money sentencing -- Trump’s lawyers filed an emergency application after a New York appeals court judge turned down his request to indefinitely postpone the sentencing. Josh Gerstein and Erica Orden Politico Brent Kendall in the Wall Street Journal$ Ann E. Marimow and Shayna Jacobs in the Washington Post$ Ben Protess and Adam Liptak in the New York Times$ -- 1/8/25
Trump Floats Using Force to Take Greenland and the Panama Canal -- In an hourlong news conference at his Florida club, Mar-a-Lago, the president-elect delivered a hodgepodge of grievances, complaints and false claims. David E. Sanger and Michael D. Shear in the New York Times$ -- 1/8/25
Trump declines to rule out ‘military or economic’ force to expand U.S. -- In a meandering, 70-minute news conference, the president-elect previewed his plans to disrupt the U.S. justice system — and global affairs. Hannah Knowles and Cat Zakrzewski in the Washington Post$ -- 1/8/25
Dripping Faucets and Seizing Greenland: Trump Is Back and Chaos Ensues -- President-elect Donald J. Trump’s news conference at Mar-a-Lago was a reminder of what the next four years may have in store. David E. Sanger in the New York Times$ -- 1/8/25
In sum: Trump just left open using military force against a NATO ally -- Trump regularly declines to rule things out, but this one on Greenland is different. Aaron Blake in the Washington Post$ -- 1/8/25
Judge Cannon Blocks Release of Special Counsel’s Final Report on Trump -- Judge Aileen M. Cannon, a Trump appointee who had dismissed the documents case in its entirety, temporarily barred the Justice Department from releasing Jack Smith’s account of his investigation. Alan Feuer and Charlie Savage in the New York Times$ -- 1/8/25