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Anonymous official cites Trump ‘amorality’ in NY Times op-ed -- A senior administration official sounded an alarm Wednesday about President Donald Trump’s “amorality” and “impetuous” leadership style in an unsigned opinion piece published in The New York Times. Trump swiftly responded, calling it a “gutless editorial” and “really a disgrace.” Zeke Miller Associated Press -- 9/5/18

Trump decries anonymous Times op-ed as 'gutless' -- The president was already struggling with fallout from Bob Woodward's forthcoming book chronicling the mania inside the White House. Andrew Restuccia and Nancy Cook Politico -- 9/5/18

John Cox fined for mishandling clients’ investment funds -- Republican gubernatorial candidate John Cox and his investment firm paid $16,000 in fines to securities regulators more than a decade ago to settle charges of mishandling client funds. Dale Kasler in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 9/5/18

Kavanaugh dodges Feinstein attempts to pin him down on abortion, Trump probe -- Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh dodged Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s efforts Wednesday to pin him down on abortion rights and the obligation of a president to cooperate with a criminal investigation, but said judicial precedents in both areas could not be ignored. John Wildermuth in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/5/18

Facebook’s Sandberg and Twitter’s Dorsey get to-do list from Congress -- Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg will get back to you with specifics and Twitter Chief Executive Jack Dorsey has some work to do. Those were frequent refrains as both executives appeared before the U.S. Senate’s Intelligence Committee to testify about foreign influence operations’ use of their social networks ahead of the 2018 midterm elections. Sophia Kunthara in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/5/18

A UCLA student's lawsuit aims to push frats to do more to prevent sexual assault -- On a cool night in August 2016, two UCLA students went to a fraternity party, got drunk and hooked up. Teresa Watanabe in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/5/18

Oroville Dam repairs now exceed $1 billion and ‘may be adjusted further’ as work continues -- The price tag for the 2017 crisis at Oroville Dam has surged past $1 billion. On Wednesday, the state Department of Water Resources revealed a $1.1 billion cost estimate for the massive repair work at America’s tallest dam. Ryan Sabalow and Dale Kasler in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 9/5/18

Anxious tenants face more Bay Area rent increases -- Surveys by a pair of apartment listing firms released Monday show rent increased in San Jose, San Francisco and Oakland from 2 to 4 percent over the year ending in August, once again topping the national market. Louis Hansen in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 9/5/18

An elderly resident fell 24 times in a year. His Sacramento care facility faces $10,000 fine -- Nick Alexander was visiting his stepfather Aug. 28, 2016, at Carlton Senior Living, an assisted living facility in the Sacramento suburbs. He was concerned about Alan Nelson, who had fallen numerous times at the facility, and Nick Alexander was frustrated that no changes were being made. Hannah Holzer in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 9/5/18

  Stunned by a surge in mass shootings, California lawmakers send nine gun-control bills to the governor -- Nearly 30 years after California became the first state to ban the sale of assault weapons and embarked on a path toward the strictest firearm laws in the nation, legislators have sent Gov. Jerry Brown nine new gun-control bills in response to a surge in mass shootings. Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/5/18

 

 

California Policy & Politics This Morning

California lawmakers OK a bill allowing them to live outside their districts -- Before they left town last week at the end of the 2018 legislative session, California lawmakers sent Gov. Jerry Brown a bill that makes it easier for them to live outside the districts they represent. Caitlin Chen in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 9/5/18

Hunter indictment sheds light on 'personal relationships' for congressman -- The 47-page document also says the five-term Republican from Alpine had “personal relationships” with five unnamed individuals. The federal indictment offers few details about the relationships, and Hunter’s lawyer objected to the turn the investigation took. Jeff McDonald and Morgan Cook in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 9/5/18

Walters: State’s most interesting contest is over education -- Aficionados of political jousting will find little of interest in the array of statewide offices to be filled on Nov. 6. Dan Walters in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 9/5/18

Rent Control Could Change Dramatically As Millions Of Dollars Pour Into Proposition 10 Debate -- California voters this fall will decide on Proposition 10, a statewide ballot initiative that would allow cities and counties to greatly expand rent control. Chris Nichols Capital Public Radio -- 9/5/18

Californians' Relationship With Plastic Could Change Under Bills Headed To Governor -- Under one bill, people will have to ask for straws at full-service restaurants. There will also be a funding increase for recycling centers, and non-recyclable or non-compostable take out containers will be banned at state facilities. Ezra David Romero Capital Public Radio -- 9/5/18

What’s left on Jerry Brown’s desk? -- The mad rush to pass bills before the end of session may have ended on Friday, but the uncertainty surrounding some of their fates remains. Bryan Anderson in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 9/5/18

Politifact CA: Does ICE Have Unlimited Authority To Make Courthouse Arrests? -- California’s supreme court chief justice and immigrant rights groups criticized ICE last month after the federal agency arrested an undocumented man inside a local Sacramento courtroom. Chris Nichols Politifact CA -- 9/5/18

Two newly enacted laws allow Californians to legally change their gender -- Two new laws allowing Californians to legally change their gender went into effect over the Labor Day weekend, simplifying the process of obtaining state-issued documents and court orders for the identity designation. Mini Racker in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/5/18

Sensors on New California Bridge to Record Earthquake Data -- A replacement bridge under construction at the nation's second-busiest port isn't just a crucial route for cargo trucks and Southern California commuters — it's a concrete-and-steel science experiment for engineers and seismologists. Christopher Weber Associated Press -- 9/5/18

Colin Kaepernick back in San Francisco — sort of -- Colin Kaepernick is back in San Francisco. And he’s larger than ever. The former 49ers quarterback’s likeness now towers over Union Square in the city in the form of a giant billboard as part of his new Nike ad campaign. Jon Becker in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 9/5/18

Economy, Employers, Jobs, Unions, Pensions

Oakland lining up lawsuit against Raiders, so team threatens to leave town early -- The Oakland City Council has authorized a multimillion-dollar antitrust lawsuit against the NFL and the Raiders over the team’s impending move to Las Vegas — legal action that Coliseum officials said could result in the team leaving Oakland at the end of the upcoming season. Matier & Ross in the San Francisco Chronicle$ David DeBolt in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 9/5/18

Hospital consolidation in California linked to higher health prices -- Growing consolidation among hospitals and doctors’ practices in California is linked to higher health insurance premiums and higher prices for specialty and primary care, according to a study by UC Berkeley researchers published Tuesday. Catherine Ho in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/5/18

Berkeley rejects controversial project that sought fast-track under new state law -- Berkeley will not sign off on one of the state’s first residential projects proposed under a controversial new state law, city officials said Tuesday, quashing a plan developers had hoped would be a forerunner for future projects. Marisa Kendall in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 9/5/18

Insult or opportunity? California bill requiring women on corporate boards spurs debate -- A bill sitting on Gov. Jerry Brown’s desk requiring public companies to have at least one woman on their boards is intended to advance gender equality and help break the corporate glass ceiling. But Bay Area women leaders are torn: Is this an insult or an opportunity? Julia Prodis Sulek in the Washington Post$ -- 9/5/18

Google foe pays in rubles, gets Google to run ‘Russian troll ads’ -- A mysterious and persistent enemy of Google set the company up in an elaborate scheme designed to show that it is unwilling or unable to keep Russian political operatives out of its lucrative digital advertising business. Ethan Baron in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 9/5/18

Qualcomm says uber-fast 5G networks, phones coming to the U.S. by April 2019 -- As Qualcomm battled rival Broadcom’s hostile takeover bid earlier this year – probably the biggest threat to the company in its 33-year history – it continued to pour money into developing next generation 5G wireless technologies. Mike Freeman in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 9/5/18

Blood-Testing Firm Theranos to Dissolve -- Theranos Inc., the blood-testing company accused of perpetrating Silicon Valley’s biggest fraud, will soon cease to exist. John Carreyrou in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 9/5/18

Homeless  

Cities may not prosecute homeless people for sleeping outside if they have no access to shelter, appeals court rules -- Prosecuting homeless people for sleeping on public property when they have no access to shelter violates the Constitution’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment, a federal appeals court decided Tuesday. Maura Dolan in the Los Angeles Times$ Bob Egelko and Kevin Fagan in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/5/18

Housing  

San Diego releases $50 million for affordable housing -- As part of an ongoing plan to address San Diego’s housing crisis and homeless population, city officials on Tuesday announced that up to $50 million will be available to developers for projects that create or preserve affordable units. Gary Warth in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 9/5/18

Sacramento mayor backs temporary rent control while colleagues unveil other tenant protections -- Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg said Tuesday he supports temporary rent control in the city, mere minutes after three City Council colleagues proposed an ordinance that would offer new protections to tenants without restricting rent levels. Ryan Lillis in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 9/5/18

L.A. County supervisors impose temporary rent control for some mobile homes -- The county board voted 3-1 on Tuesday, Sept. 4, to approve on a second reading a six-month moratorium on rent hikes for mobile home spaces, a move designed to protect those residents from preemptive rent hikes while permanent rent control for such housing is under consideration. The measure becomes effective in 30 days. Jeff Collins in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 9/5/18

Transit  

L.A. approves rules for thousands of scooters, with a 15-mph speed limit and aid for low-income riders -- The Los Angeles City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved the city’s first set of rules for the companies that have deposited thousands of electric scooters on sidewalks in neighborhoods from the Westside to Koreatown. Laura J. Nelson in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/5/18

Faced with a growing new mode of transit, LA leaders rein in electric scooters and the companies that rent them -- Those dockless electric scooters that have taken LA’s sidewalks by storm lost a little zip on Tuesday after the Los Angeles City Council unanimously approved regulations for a one-year pilot program that slows them down and effectively takes thousands of the tiny two-wheeled contraptions off the street. Emily Rasmussen in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 9/5/18

Cannabis

Richmond Mayor and Sons Profiting from Cannabis Compliance Push -- City officials have slowly worked to bring a massive illegal marijuana warehouse into compliance, and the mayor's family has a financial stake in its success. Josh Slowiczek in the East Bay Express -- 9/5/18

Education 

Four girls sue Anaheim school district, alleging its negligence allowed two water polo coaches to sexually abuse them -- She was 16 years old when assistant water polo coach Joshua Owens, whom she met at Kennedy High School in La Palma, molested her. Richard Winton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/5/18

Health 

How California learned to keep pregnant women, new moms from dying -- As deaths of new and expectant moms multiplied in the United States, the picture in California and the rest of the developed world has veered in the opposite direction. Kimberly Veklerov in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/5/18

Why is San Diego's heart attack rate 20 percent lower than the rest of the state? -- Be There San Diego, an organization leading a wide-ranging effort to reduce heart disease by getting doctors from different organizations to work together, is getting national attention for reducing the region’s heart attack risk. Paul Sisson in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 9/5/18

Also . . . 

LAPD commander and sergeant charged after police say they were drunk in unmarked cruiser -- A Los Angeles police commander and an L.A. Police Department sergeant have been charged in connection with an alcohol-related incident in April in which Glendale police said they found the two intoxicated inside an unmarked police cruiser. Richard Winton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/5/18

POTUS 45  

Bob Woodward’s new book reveals a ‘nervous breakdown’ of Trump’s presidency -- John Dowd was convinced that President Trump would commit perjury if he talked to special counsel Robert S. Mueller III. So, on Jan. 27, the president’s then-personal attorney staged a practice session to try to make his point. Philip Rucker and Robert Costa in the Washington Post$ -- 9/5/18

Trump suggests Woodward book bombshells 'could be just made up' -- President Trump sought to blunt the impact of a forthcoming book by longtime Washington journalist Bob Woodward, calling it possibly “made up” or the product of embittered aides, after a number of sensational excerpts emerged on Tuesday. Eli Stokol in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/5/18

‘Idiot,’ ‘Dope,’ ‘Moron’: How Trump’s aides have insulted the boss -- President Donald Trump has hurled numerous insults at Democrats, the news media and even those in his own party. But the president has also been on the receiving end, including from people who work in his administration. Rebecca Morin Politico -- 9/5/18

Beltway

Kamala Harris fears Brett Kavanaugh will put Trump before country -- In a chaotic first day of a confirmation hearing that started out testy and only turned nastier, outnumbered Senate Democrats showed Tuesday they won’t let Judge Brett Kavanaugh take a seat on the Supreme Court without a fight. John Wildermuth in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/5/18

Kamala Harris Leads a Democratic Revolt as Kavanaugh Hearings Begin -- It took about a minute for the spirit of bipartisanship that permeated Sen. John McCain's funeral Saturday to evaporate into political bitterness as the confirmation hearing for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh got underway in Washington Tuesday morning. Scott Shafer KQED -- 9/5/18

 

-- Tuesday Updates 

California Congressman's Trial Not Likely Before Election -- Republican U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter of California will likely go to trial on corruption charges after Election Day. In federal court in San Diego on Tuesday, all sides agreed a trial could begin in late November, though no date was set. Protesters outside the courthouse chanted, "Hunter has to go!" Associated Press -- 9/4/18

L.A. County D.A. declines to charge Kevin Spacey, Steven Seagal and Anthony Anderson amid allegations of sexual abuse -- The Los Angeles County district attorney’s office has declined to file charges against three actors accused of sexual abuse in the wake of the #MeToo movement. Richard Winton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/4/18

Feinstein, Kamala Harris join Democratic attacks at Brett Kavanaugh hearing -- California Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein questioned Tuesday whether Judge Brett Kavanaugh would protect a woman’s right to abortion as a Supreme Court justice, revealing what’s likely to be an important line of attack on President Trump’s nominee to the high court. John Wildermuth in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Casey Tolan in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 9/4/18

  Hunter indictment sheds light on 'personal relationships' for congressman -- The criminal indictment issued against Rep. Duncan Hunter and his wife, Margaret, late last month alleges years of cavalier spending — luxury resorts, fine dining, tequila shots and more — all paid for with political contributions. Jeff McDonald and Morgan Cook in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 9/4/18

Jeffe & Jeffe: Can The Progressive Wave Hold Water? -- Votes are in from Coast to Coast and the Democratic left is feeling good. That said, the Democratic center is hardly in retreat. Sherry Bebitch Jeffe & Doug Jeffe Fox & Hounds -- 9/4/18

El Niño fears grow as starving baby birds wash up on California beaches -- Scores of starving baby seabirds have been washing up on Northern California beaches this summer, raising fears among scientists that a climatic cycle like the one that wreaked havoc on sea creatures a few years ago may be moving in. Peter Fimrite in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 9/4/18

Pasadena’s quick exit from bike-share program is a blow for Metro -- In July of last year, volunteers mounted 375 green-and-black bicycles and pedaled them across Pasadena to celebrate the city’s enrollment in the fledgling Los Angeles County bike-share program. Fourteen months later, the bicycles are gone. Laura J. Nelson in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/4/18

Female janitors working the night shift take safety into their own hands -- The women planted their bodies and kicked one foot forward, imitating the self-defense move displayed on a projector screen: La patada hacia los testiculos. The kick to the testicles. Brittny Mejia in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 9/4/18

Bay Area medical professionals indicted in kickback scheme for Medicare referrals -- Three Bay Area doctors and three other health care professionals were indicted last month by a federal grand jury in a kickback scheme related to the referral of Medicare patients to a home health care agency in Milpitas, United States Attorney Alex G. Tse announced Thursday. Mark Gomez in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 9/4/18

Bob Woodward’s new book reveals a ‘nervous breakdown’ of Trump’s presidency -- John Dowd was convinced that President Trump would commit perjury if he talked to special counsel Robert S. Mueller III. So, on Jan. 27, the president’s then-personal attorney staged a practice session to try to make his point. Philip Rucker and Robert Costa in the Washington Post$ -- 9/4/18