Updating . .
PG&E Braces for Power Cuts; Tesla, Others See an Opening -- PG&E Corp. ’s plan to pre-emptively turn off power in parts of California to limit wildfire risks is creating business opportunities for alternative energy companies that say they can keep the lights on. Katherine Blunt in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 7/15/19
Hiding from ICE raids: ‘People are terrified to go out on the streets’ -- The first day of President Trump’s long-threatened ICE raids didn’t result in the large numbers of arrests some had expected. In fact, for all the hype, there was only a scattering of enforcement actions across the nation Sunday. But the threats did change life for many in immigrant communities. Giulia MCDonnell Nieto Del Rio, Molly Hennessy-Fiske and Cindy Carcamo in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/15/19
Trump moves to eliminate nearly all asylum claims at U.S. southern border -- The Trump administration moved Monday to effectively end asylum for any migrant who arrives at the U.S.-Mexico border, an enormous shift in U.S. immigration policy that could block hundreds of thousands of people from seeking protection in the U.S. — and is certain to draw legal challenges. Molly O'Toole in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/15/19
Joe Biden unveils his alternative to ‘Medicare for all’ -- Joe Biden unveiled a robust plan to expand Obamacare by adding a public program that all Americans could choose, as the former vice president argued Monday that medical insurance can be made universally accessible without scrapping the nation’s current model of delivering healthcare. Evan Halper and Noam N. Levey in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/15/19
Why this Bay Area county has one of California’s highest child poverty rates -- But the 56-year-old Beserra becomes emotional when she thinks about her granddaughter’s new home: a tent on a plot of land in Watsonville, where the family will move this month because they can’t afford to rent anymore on her $400-a-month income. With her daughter and granddaughter, Beserra and her husband, who has been out of work for two years, plan to cook on a camp stove and bathe outdoors in a plastic pool on a ranch owned by a relative. Erica Hellerstein in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 7/15/19
In Needles, a ‘sanctuary’ for gun owners—and ‘a little jab in the eyes’ for California -- Needles has declared itself a 'sanctuary' for gun rights, saying liberal state lawmakers hold it hostage. In rural California, that feeling's not unusual. John M. Glionna Calmatters -- 7/15/19
California Stopped Tracking Sexual Harassment Complaints Years Ago. That Left Leaders Without Answers In The Me Too Era -- At the height of the Me Too movement, California leaders couldn’t answer basic questions about the prevalence of sexual harassment complaints across state agencies. That’s because the state eliminated its system for tracking harassment and discrimination complaints in 2012, amid budget cuts and government consolidation. Scott Rodd Capital Public Radio -- 7/15/19
Budget Decider: Making choices that impact millions -- California lawmakers have passed a $215 billion budget filled with progressive eye-catchers such as health coverage for low-income young adults regardless of legal status, and expanded tax credits for the working poor. Tucked into the pages were a couple of new taxes, including a state penalty for people who go without health insurance and a phone bill fee to upgrade the 911 emergency system. But what if you had the awesome power to tax and spend, charting a new course for California? Judy Lin and John Osborn D’Agostino Calmatters -- 7/15/19
Rare floating home for sale, at a very San Francisco price -- The nearly 2,200-square-foot floating home has hit the market at $1.8 million and is one of only 20 that line Mission Creek — a waterway that runs from McCovey Cove near the Giants’ ballpark to Interstate 280 in Mission Bay, where it goes underground. J.K. Dineen in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/15/19
Home charter schools rein in spending of taxpayer money on ‘enrichment’ amid scrutiny -- As public scrutiny of home school charters grows, one of California’s largest home school charter networks is putting more restrictions on what families can buy with the enrichment funds that it gives them. Kristen Taketa in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 7/15/19
Does California need a math tutor? Report finds students aren’t so great with numbers -- California students might know their A-B-Cs, but they’re struggling with their 1-2-3s. A July report from the Public Policy Institute of California found students throughout the state are making “significant progress” on English assessments, but experiencing “stalled gains” in mathematics. Hannah Wiley in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 7/15/19
Six months in: Orange County House members talk impeachment, socialism and public service -- Orange County’s congressional delegation, including four freshman Democrats, was sworn in to the House of Representatives about six months ago. Since then, their jobs — and the nation — have been rocked by a seemingly endless stream of huge issues: a humanitarian crisis at the border, a face-off with the White House over congressional hearings, and talk of impeachment. Brooke Staggs in the Orange County Register -- 7/15/19
Why Bay Area hit-and-runs go unsolved, leaving frustration, heartache -- Leticia Martinez thinks about her husband, Jose Luis Moreno Barcenas, all the time, especially when her 8-year-old daughter, Kayla, asks where her father is. Robert Salonga in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 7/15/19
‘Like your own national park’: Huge California ranch on sale at $72 million -- For more than 85 years, the Vickers and Naftzger family have owned the N3 Ranch an hour southeast of San Francisco, buying more and more land until it encompassed an enormous 80 square miles. Roland Li in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/15/19
For first time in a decade, California State Fair reports no arrests on opening weekend -- Cal Expo Police Chief Joe Robillard recently told The Bee that a series of new initiatives, including de-escalation techniques and calmer approaches by officers handling unruly conduct, have played a role in limiting arrests. Monday’s news release adds that additional officers are on patrol this year. Michael McGough in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 7/15/19
Quinn: Harris and Warren – Laying the Groundwork for a 40-State Trump Landslide -- With the likely fading of “Apologizin’ Joe” Biden, the Democratic race seems to be coming down to two women, California Sen. Kamala Harris and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren. But the Democrats should be forewarned; both these women are extremely flawed candidates whose nomination could well lead to a 40-state Trump landslide. Tony Quinn Fox & Hounds -- 7/15/19
California Policy & Politics This Morning
Few ICE raids, but much-hyped plans stoke fears in immigrant communities -- A mass federal crackdown on undocumented immigrants did not materialize Sunday in San Francisco or the other nine cities expected to be targeted. There were only a few reports of actions in Florida, Chicago and New York City, and none in the Bay Area. Gwendolyn Wu , Dominic Fracassa , J.K. Dineen and Eduardo Medina in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/15/19
Despite weeks of threats, ICE raids begin with a whimper yet still stoke fears -- Long-threatened Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids appeared to begin Sunday on a decidedly small scale, with a scattering of arrests that nonetheless sparked new fears in immigrant communities. Y Molly Hennessy-Fiske, Giulia MCDonnell Nieto Del Rio, Cindy Carcamo, Andrea Castillo and Louis Sahagun in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/15/19
Myers: Nearly all of California’s crises are worse in its Latino communities, new report says -- Five years ago this month, the demographic face of California changed for the first time in its modern history. Latinos became the state’s largest ethnic group — gaining a newfound dominance, though one that had been expected for decades. John Myers in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/15/19
Skelton: Afraid of the Big One? Consider Sacramento, which avoids the worst California quakes -- Want to be safe from earthquakes in California? You’d need to endure summer scorchers, winter flood threats and full-time politicians. But temblors don’t threaten people living in Sacramento. In the state capital — River City, Sacratomato, City of Trees — earthquakes are seen only on TV. Here, you’ll escape the Big One. George Skelton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/15/19
Economy, Employers, Jobs, Unions, Pensions
San Bernardino deficits grow after bankruptcy -- Just two years after San Bernardino left bankruptcy, one thing already seems clear: The “plan of adjustment” to cut the debt of the troubled city, which did not include pensions, is not working. Ed Mendel Calpensions.com -- 7/15/19
Where did Forever 21 go wrong? -- Nearly a decade ago, before Instagram influencers existed, Forever 21 helped teen girls dress like their favorite celebrities, for cheap. It wasn't a novel idea — teenage girls have always wanted to dress like their idols. The dizzying speed at which Forever 21 could make those trends available and affordable, however, was. James F. Peltz in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/15/19
Housing
Dream Big, Live Small: Why The Van Life Is Taking Hold in California -- A growing enclave of millennials is choosing van life as an alternative to a 9-to-5 job and a mortgage. These young professionals —artists, web developers, accountants—want the freedom to explore without the pressure of punching time cards and keeping busy social schedules. Sammy Caiola Capital Public Radio via Calmatters -- 7/15/19
Health
Rare disease discovery: Antibodies fighting cancer go on to attack brain -- Three years after he was successfully treated for testicular cancer, Glenn Sauber began suffering disturbing neurological symptoms. Erin Allday in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/14/19
Also . . .
Discovery of body in southeast Los Angeles County prompts investigation, tangles train schedules -- A body was found Sunday, prompting an investigation near train tracks in southeastern Los Angeles County near Pico Rivera that forced cancellation or delays for Metrolink trains and Amtrak’s Pacific Surfliner. Richard K. De Atley and Eric Licas in the Riverside Press Enterprise$ -- 7/15/19
POTUS 45
Trump Fans the Flames of a Racial Fire -- President Trump woke up on Sunday morning, gazed out at the nation he leads, saw the dry kindling of race relations and decided to throw a match on it. It was not the first time, nor is it likely to be the last. He has a pretty large carton of matches and a ready supply of kerosene. His Twitter harangue goading Democratic congresswomen of color to “go back” to the country they came from, even though most of them were actually born in the United States, shocked many. But it should have surprised few who have watched the way he has governed a multicultural, multiracial country the last two and a half years. Peter Baker in the New York Times$ -- 7/15/19
The unmistakable ugliness of Trump urging brown-skinned congresswomen to ‘go back’ to their countries -- His tweet suggested his American-born critics are foreigners. And it wasn’t subtle. Aaron Blake in the Washington Post$ -- 7/15/19
Trump to Democratic congresswomen: ‘Go back’ to where they came from. They’re Americans. -- Go back where you came from. It’s an insulting remark sometimes flung at new arrivals to the United States, at foreign-born U.S. citizens — or at those who are native-born but belong to an ethnic minority. It’s usually considered an ugly racist taunt. Laura King in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/15/19
Beltway
"This is what racism looks like:" Progressives hit back at Trump's "go back" tweet -- Democratic congresswomen hit back at President Trump Sunday, denouncing his tweet saying progressives should "go back" and fix the "crime infested places from which they came" as "white nationalism." Rebecca Falconer Axios Bobby Allyn NPR Jonathan Lemire and Calvin Woodward Associated Press -- 7/15/19
‘His own fiefdom’: Mulvaney builds ‘an empire for the right wing’ as Trump’s chief of staff -- Mick Mulvaney’s battles with Alexander Acosta began almost immediately. Weeks after he was named acting White House chief of staff, Mulvaney summoned the labor secretary for a tense January encounter that became known inside the West Wing as “the woodshed meeting.” Seung Min Kim, Lisa Rein, Josh Dawsey and Erica Werner in the Washington Post$ -- 7/15/19
In Biden and Buttigieg, Dems confront generational divide -- Amy McInerney at first saw Joe Biden as Democrats’ best hope to beat President Donald Trump — an experienced politician with the potential to peel off some of Trump’s working-class supporters. Then she heard Pete Buttigieg speak. Julie Pace Associated Press -- 7/15/19
-- Sunday Updates
No ICE raids reported so far in Bay Area on Sunday, advocates say -- No confirmed Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids were reported to immigrant rights groups in the Bay Area Sunday morning, advocates said, in a sign that an expected wave of detentions hadn’t taken place so far. Casey Tolan in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 7/14/19
Deported Marine Corps veteran hoping to find a way back to family -- Roman Sabal has been living in his home country of Belize since he found out he wouldn’t be allowed to return to the U.S., where he served years in the Marine Corps and then Army Reserves. Kate Morrissey in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 7/14/19
Deputy gangs have survived decades of lawsuits and probes. Can the FBI stop them? -- For decades, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has been under pressure to break up tattooed gangs of deputies accused of misconduct. But senior department officials, county leaders and prosecutors have failed to root out a subculture of inked clubs that pervades the nation’s largest sheriff’s agency. Maya Lau in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/14/19
Disgraced former deputy who’s now a Pinole cop paid for sex and was accused of domestic violence in divorce -- Officer Josh Shavies was hired last year by Pinole Police after being out of law enforcement for three years following termination as an Alameda County deputy. Thomas Peele and Nate Gartrell in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 7/14/19
Those ads ripping Garcetti on homelessness? They’re about fighting his Green New Deal -- When Eric Garcetti ran for mayor six years ago, he rode a wave of anger over the political power wielded by the union that represents workers at the Department of Water and Power — and later vowed to reform the agency that Los Angeles residents love to hate. Emily Alpert Reyes, David Zahniser and Sammy Roth in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/14/19
Across L.A., murals are a testament to Nipsey Hussle’s legacy -- Months after his death in March, Nipsey Hussle’s influence pulses through the city — in alleys, on the fronts and sides of buildings, along busy highways and streets, on billboards and basketball courts, in galleries and breweries. Dorany Pineda in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/14/19
The (nearly) impossible search for a cheap Bay Area home -- Seven years ago, for sale signs dotted suburban lawns and city streets, hot bidding wars were uncommon, and the typical single-family, Bay Area home sold for $425,000. Those days are long gone. Louis Hansen in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 7/14/19
PG&E made big plans to reduce wildfire risk. Here’s its progress so far -- In the early days of the 2019 wildfire season last month, a Pacific Gas and Electric Co. transformer near Mount Tamalpais failed, starting a quarter-acre brush fire. Two weeks later, another brush fire that swelled to more than 2,500 acres in southern Monterey County was linked to PG&E power lines. J.D. Morris in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/14/19
‘These beautiful people held me up’: Ghost Ship fire parents cling to each other during trial -- Colleen Dolan collapsed in the courthouse lobby. She leaned against the wall next to the elevators at first, but then dropped straight to the floor and wept. She had spent the morning in the Oakland courtroom listening to a witness testify about the final minutes of the Ghost Ship warehouse fire that claimed the lives of 36 people trapped inside, and about the young blond-haired woman who had made it out of the inferno alive only to race back inside to try to save her friends. Julia Prodis Sulek in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 7/14/19
Schnur: California’s tax laws need to benefit the middle class. Here’s what should change -- California’s middle class often gets squeezed into an economy with no room for errors. As the gap between the very rich and the very poor continues to grow, The Sacramento Bee’s California Influencers weighed in on how best to help those caught in between. Dan Schnur in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 7/14/19
Corn dogs and chocolate tastings. Can food save the California State Fair? -- After years of bleeding attendance, the State Fair has shed its classic title to become formally known as the California State Fair and Food Festival. With concession sales largely bankrolling the 17-day extravaganza , organizers hope the intensified emphasis can draw more food lovers in and around Sacramento to Cal Expo. Benjy Egel and Kyung Mi Lee in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 7/14/19
Leave the US, Trump tells Democratic congresswomen of color -- President Donald Trump on Sunday assailed a group of Democratic congresswomen of color as foreign-born troublemakers who should go back to the “broken and crime infested places from which they came,” ignoring the fact that the women are American citizens and all but one was born in the U.S. Jonathan Lemire and Calvin Woodward Associated Press Bianca Quilantan and David Cohen Politico Katie Rogers and Nicholas Fandos in the New York Times$ Felicia Sonmez and Mike DeBonis in the Washington Post$ -- 7/14/19
Could the Apollo 11 moon landing be duplicated today? ‘Lots of luck with that’ -- The Apollo program’s stunning technical success depended on a government leadership culture, an industrial organization, a tolerance for risk and a political environment that do not exist today — even as NASA insists it will land humans on the moon in five years. Ralph Vartabedian and Samantha Masunaga in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/14/19