Rough&Tumble California Policy and Politics

Updating . .

Sacramento, Placer, El Dorado demoted in COVID-19 tiers. What it means for schools, businesses -- In a calculated move designed to stem a new coronavirus surge, California health officials today demoted Sacramento and two other counties to “purple tier” status, the state’s most restrictive level, a step that will force hundreds of local businesses and houses of worship to once again halt or reduce indoor activities. Public schools that planned to reopen campuses later this month will have to put those plans on hold. Tony Bizjak, Michael McGough, Phillip Reese, and Sawsan Morrar in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/10/20

As coronavirus surges in California, more counties expected to restrict reopenings -- A handful of California counties are expected Tuesday to regress to more restrictive tiers in the state’s coronavirus reopening system amid an increasingly worrying surge in infections, officials said. Luke Money in the Los Angeles Times$ Evan Webeck in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 11/10/20

As California nears 1 million coronavirus cases, Thanksgiving threatens new super-spreading danger -- After months of declining infections amid stricter reopening rules, the virus is again spreading, with Los Angeles County and Silicon Valley seeing new surges that are sparking alarm among health officials. Rong-Gong Lin II, Luke Money, Iris Lee in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/10/20

San Francisco has handled the coronavirus pandemic well: But at what cost? -- The decision to launch San Francisco’s attack on the coronavirus — perhaps the most aggressive pandemic response in the United States — can be traced back to February, before the city had reported a single case of the new disease. Erin Allday in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/10/20

Election

In big Republican victory, Harley Rouda concedes to Michelle Steel in O.C. congressional race -- In a major win for the GOP, California 48th District Congressman Harley Rouda conceded to his Republican opponent, Michelle Steel, in one of several hard-fought races in areas that until recently were considered conservative strongholds. Stephanie Lai in the Los Angeles Times$ Brooke Staggs in the Orange County Register -- 11/10/20

Christy Smith overtakes incumbent Rep. Mike Garcia in 25th congressional race -- The roller-coaster race saw Garcia, a Republican, ahead by 432 votes entering Monday’s count. As of Tuesday morning, Smith holds a 1,287-vote lead. Hayley Smith in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/10/20

In liberal California, Black Lives Matter protests in some towns meet with ‘scary’ backlash -- Pastor Nelson Rabell-González knew that “livable, lovable Lodi,” as locals call it, had a problem when men carrying a noose and baseball bats with American flags attached shouted racial slurs at him in September as he helped lead a peaceful protest in this San Joaquin Valley town. Anita Chabria in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/10/20

High court seems likely to leave health care law in place -- The Supreme Court seemed likely Tuesday to leave in place the bulk of the Affordable Care Act, including key protections for pre-existing health conditions and subsidized insurance premiums that affect tens of millions of Americans. Mark Sherman Associated Press -- 11/10/20

What’s at stake for California if Obamacare is overturned, explained -- California has wholeheartedly embraced the Affordable Care Act — it advertises it, it invests in it, it protects it. It even goes to court for it. That’s because the Golden State has a lot to lose if the the act, also known as Obamacare, is overturned. Ana B. Ibarra CalMatters -- 11/10/20

California is prepared to keep suing a lame-duck Trump, Attorney General Xavier Becerra says -- California Attorney General Xavier Becerra has already sued President Donald Trump’s administration 106 times. As Trump enters the lame duck phase of his presidency, Becerra says he’s prepared to file even more lawsuits if the president tries to “wreck the train” on his way out. Sophia Bollag in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/10/20

Lopez: Will not having to fend off Trump’s attacks mean a California renaissance? Not likely -- California was a big winner when Joe Biden became the president-elect. For the last four years, President Trump has done everything he can to undermine the state’s environmental initiatives, immigration policies, COVID-19 efforts and healthcare. He probably would have started allowing fracking on Half Dome if he’d gotten another four years. Steve Lopez in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/10/20

Education

S.F. school board members push plan for first students to return Jan. 25 with possible vote next week -- The San Francisco school board could compel public schools to start reopening by Jan. 25 under a proposal to be introduced Tuesday. At least three of the seven members of the board of education already back the plan. Jill Tucker in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/10/20

Cal State schools see enrollments surge during COVID-19 pandemic -- Vincent Aguayo wasn’t sure he wanted to attend college. At 18 he was already working in construction, making good money putting up drywall, and he was on a path to becoming a supervisor with health benefits. But then the pandemic hit, and a lot of the people working the jobs to which Aguayo aspired got laid off. Nina Agrawal in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/10/20

Another Marin school pauses on-campus learning due to students partying -- Another high school in Marin County has suspended on-campus classes after learning students attended parties in both Marin and San Francisco and didn't wear masks or socially distance amid the global coronavirus pandemic. Amy Graff in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/10/20

Exhale

Knight: Red tape slashed? New legislation would prevent one person from blocking city projects -- Rain in the Bay Area. Snow in the mountains. News of a potentially promising coronavirus vaccine. An incoming president who believes in science, facts and grammar. It feels like hope has arrived in San Francisco — at long last. Heather Knight in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/10/20

Also . . .

Bay Area residents want homeless problem solved. But housing them in their backyards sparks fights -- Richard Hoyt inched his wheeled walker past Novato’s Inn Marin Hotel, one painful step at a time. The walker’s seat was filled with a plastic bag of clothes. He stared at the well-kept hotel’s sparkling white pillars and red-tiled roof, and winced. Kevin Fagan in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/10/20

L.A. Times and Tribune agree to settle pay-disparity lawsuit for $3 million -- The Los Angeles Times and Tribune Publishing have agreed to pay $3 million to resolve a class-action lawsuit brought by a multiethnic group of journalists who alleged that they were paid less than their white male counterparts. Meg James in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/10/20

LAPD officer arrested in theft of car a year ago from Orange County dealership -- A Los Angeles police officer has been arrested on suspicion of car theft by Orange police detectives in connection with the theft of a vehicle from a used-car dealership in October 2019, officials said Tuesday. Richard Winton in the Los Angeles Times$ Alma Fausto in the Orange County Register -- 11/10/20

California Policy & Politics Tuesday Morning

‘Tail winds’: California prepares for Biden presidency -- As Joe Biden prepares to enter the White House, California is planning for a transition of its own: From the state of resistance to a state of acceptance. Adam Beam Associated Press -- 11/10/20

California’s climate agenda likely to get big boost from Biden — look for reversal of Trump policies -- The legal wrangling that sparked 57 environmental lawsuits against the Trump administration — for loosening policies on everything from automobile pollution to pesticide use and salmon conservation — should turn to consensus and cooperation. Kurtis Alexander in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/10/20

Here are the Californians who could end up in Joe Biden’s administration -- With the election of Kamala Harris as vice president and San Francisco’s Nancy Pelosi seeking another term as House speaker, Californians will already be playing an outsize role in Washington under President-elect Joe Biden. Alexei Koseff in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/10/20

How California helped Arizona and Georgia turn light blue -- Joe Biden’s success in Arizona and Georgia, two longtime red states, didn’t happen overnight. The work leading to those apparent victories for the Democratic president-elect began years ago, and much of what made them possible can be traced to the Bay Area. Joe Garofoli in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/10/20

Covid

Household gatherings, Halloween are driving California coronavirus rates higher, Gov. Gavin Newsom says -- As California’s COVID-19 numbers continue to climb, state officials say they’ve identified a common source of spread: Private household gatherings. Andrew Sheeler in the Sacramento Bee$ Don Thompson Associated Press Amy Graff in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 11/10/20

Newsom warns some Calif. counties will move back to more restrictive tier this week -- California Gov. Newsom said at a Monday press briefing some counties will fall back into more restrictive tiers tomorrow because of rising coronavirus rates in the last three weeks. The state's 14-day coronavirus positivity rate was 3.7% as of Sunday. On Oct. 19, it was 2.5%. Amy Graff in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 11/10/20

Mass vaccines still months away despite promising new COVID data from Pfizer, Gov. Gavin Newsom says -- Californians shouldn’t get their hopes up about getting a coronavirus vaccine this year, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Monday, cautioning that even once a vaccine is approved, mass availability will still be months away. Sophia Bollag in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/10/20

Purple to red, and back? How California counties’ COVID risk tiers have changed over time -- When California launched its color-coded tier system for coronavirus risk at the end of August, 38 of the state’s 58 counties were in the highest possible purple tier, indicating widespread risk of the virus. By the weekly update on Nov. 4, the number of counties in the state’s most restrictive level was down to 10. Jayson Chesler in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/10/20

Bay Area counties issue guidance for holiday travel and gatherings -- Keep in-person gatherings small, avoid traveling long distances, and gather outside, health officers from Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz and Solano counties and the city of Berkeley said in a joint statement Monday. Aidin Vaziri in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/10/20

Here’s how Joe Biden’s victory will change coronavirus strategy -- There’s not a lot that President-elect Joe Biden can do to quell the rising swell of coronavirus cases now crashing across much of the United States, but he is already planning his response for what will surely be a tough winter. Erin Allday in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/10/20

Reopen

San Diego Businesses brace for changes that would severely limit operations -- Local businesses began to prepare Monday for what looks like an inevitable fall to the most-restrictive level of the state’s COVID-19 reopening system. Paul Sisson, Lori Weisberg, Phillip Molnar in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 11/10/20

Disneyland announces additional furloughs as state guidelines leave theme park ‘in limbo’ -- Disneyland president Ken Potrock announced the furloughs of executive, salaried and hourly workers on Monday, Nov. 9 in a letter to cast members, Disney parlance for employees. Brady MacDonald in the Orange County Register -- 11/10/20

Disneyland to reopen Disney Vacation Club villas in time for winter holidays -- Disneyland plans to continue its gradual phased reopening in December with the return of the Disney Vacation Club villas while the theme parks and hotels remain closed indefinitely amid the continuing coronavirus pandemic. Brady MacDonald in the Orange County Register -- 11/10/20

Disneyland hotels no longer taking reservations -- The Disneyland resort’s three hotels are no longer accepting reservations and will remain closed indefinitely as the continuing coronavirus closure of Disney’s two adjacent theme parks stretches toward eight months. Brady MacDonald in the Orange County Register -- 11/10/20

Tolls or Layoffs

Golden Gate Bridge district may raise tolls or lay off workers in pandemic financial crisis: ‘It’s quite brutal’ -- The agency that operates the Golden Gate Bridge is in crisis: The transit district will run out of federal emergency funds it has been using to pay its employees at the end of this month, officials said Monday. Mallory Moench in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/10/20

Policy & Politics

Walters: Winners celebrate while losers rationalize -- It’s been a week since election day, and while there’s a modicum of doubt about some outcomes as ballots continue to be counted, overall results are pretty well settled. Dan Walters CalMatters -- 11/10/20

Affordable Care Act challenge before Supreme Court could strip insurance from millions -- As the Supreme Court hears a challenge Tuesday to the Affordable Care Act, the stakes are enormous: insurance coverage for more than 20 million Americans during a disastrous pandemic. Medicaid coverage for more than 15 million with low incomes. About $27 billion a year in federal funding for California. Bob Egelko in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Angela Hart California Healthline via in the Orange County Register -- 11/10/20

San Bernardino County planning commissioner implicated in FBI corruption probe resigns -- Less than two weeks after his Upland home was raided by the FBI in connection with a cannabis-related corruption probe, Gabriel Chavez has resigned from the San Bernardino County Planning Commission. Joe Nelson in the Orange County Register -- 11/10/20

Menlo Park school official resigns following wife’s vulgar tweet about Kamala Harris -- In a Twitter post responding to a conversation about Harris’ qualifications, Mehridith Philips Venverloh used a profane sexual term, suggesting that all Harris needed “to be qualified” was to be Black. "No brain needed!!!” the message said. The post and the account connected to it has since been deleted. Vanessa Arredondo in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/10/20

Election

Orange County will conduct audit of 2020 presidential election ballots -- The risk-limiting audit is not required under California law, the Orange County registrar of voters said, but the procedure is meant to provide “strong statistical evidence” that the outcome of the election is correct. Hayley Smith in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/10/20

Street

Nearly 9 in 10 LAPD officers felt unsupported by Moore after summer protests, survey finds -- Nearly nine out of 10 Los Angeles Police Department officers did not feel supported by Chief Michel Moore and did not believe he or other commanders provided strong leadership during recent protests and unrest, according to a summer survey conducted by the officers’ union. Richard Winton, Kevin Rector in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/10/20

Back to School

No sharing, use ‘airplane arms’: Las Virgenes kids are among first in L.A. to return to school -- Learning to share is typically among the first lessons for kindergartners. But not when hundreds arrived on campus Monday, the first public school children in Los Angeles County to return to something like a regular classroom amid surging coronavirus infections. Laura Newberry, Julia Barajas, Howard Blume in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/10/20

Education

Here’s how Biden’s win could help California school districts, teachers and students -- After four years of school voucher talk under the Trump administration, the education community across California was giddy in the wake of Joe Biden’s presidential win, with his platform of more money for teachers, increased pandemic support and free college tuition. Jill Tucker in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/10/20

Community colleges find an advocate in future First Lady Jill Biden -- For the first time in American history, the nation’s First Lady will hold a job outside the White House, and that job will involve teaching. Jill Biden will continue teaching English at Northern Virginia Community College, where even as Second Lady, she has advocated for students and education after high school. Ashley A. Smith EdSource -- 11/10/20

Ready for a ‘real’ college experience, transfer students find their hopes dashed -- Kaylin Tran imagined her first year at UCLA after transferring from Pasadena City College as kind of like a coming of age movie: She’d join clubs, make lifelong friends and pore over books in the university’s iconic library. Instead, thanks to the pandemic, she’s sitting in front of a computer screen in her family’s San Gabriel home, paying $14,000 a year for tuition instead of $1,600. Omar Rashad CalMatters -- 11/10/20

School

San Diego Unified School Board to consider COVID-19 testing contract, reopening plan on Tuesday -- San Diego Unified is looking to partner with UC San Diego to provide COVID-19 testing for all students and staff on all school campuses every 14 days. Kristen Taketa in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 11/10/20

Sounds of students ring out at Las Virgenes Unified schools for first time since pandemic kicked in -- Elementary schools in the Las Virgenes Unified School District felt a long-coveted slice of normalcy Monday, Nov. 9, as the first groups of students returned to campuses after the district received waivers from the county to reopen schools for kindergarten to 2nd grade students. Tarek Fattal in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 11/10/20

Covid Economy

San Francisco’s small businesses, struggling amid pandemic, to get more financial help -- The program, called the San Francisco Hardship and Emergency Loan Program or SF HELP, will provide zero-interest loans of up to $50,000 to approximately 80 small businesses, the city announced Monday. Shwanika Narayan in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/10/20

Wildfire

This year’s power shutoffs were smaller, but critics say PG&E is avoiding the real problem -- A year after it cut power to millions of people to prevent its equipment from sparking another devastating wildfire during Northern California’s fearsome “Diablo Winds,” Pacific Gas and Electric Co. shut off far fewer people’s electricity last month as a similarly dangerous wind storm roared across the region. Nico Savidge in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/10/20

Also . . .

Broadcaster Michael Krasny announces retirement from KQED -- For the past 27 years, thousands of listeners anchored their morning routine around KQED radio broadcaster Michael Krasny's "Forum" broadcast at 9 a.m. Monday through Friday. So his announcement Monday morning that he will retire Feb. 15, 2021, sent shock waves throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Douglas Zimmerman in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/10/20

POTUS 45

White House, escalating tensions, orders agencies to rebuff Biden transition team -- The Trump White House on Monday instructed senior government leaders to block cooperation with President-elect Joe Biden’s transition team, escalating a standoff that threatens to impede the transfer of power and prompting the Biden team to consider legal action. Lisa Rein, Matt Viser, Greg Miller and Josh Dawsey in the Washington Post$ -- 11/10/20

Trump’s quest to end the Affordable Care Act arrives at Supreme Court -- The latest legal challenge to the Affordable Care Act comes Tuesday before a reconstituted Supreme Court, during a pandemic, in a rapidly changing political environment. All of those factors are likely to play a role when Republican-led states and the Trump administration ask the justices to find a key provision unconstitutional. Robert Barnes in the Washington Post$ -- 11/10/20

POTUS 46

Biden behaves as the incoming president, even as Trump balks at giving up power -- President-elect Joe Biden sought to project the authority of an incoming president Monday as he dealt with matters domestic and international, even as the defeated incumbent continued to balk at turning over the reins. Annie Linskey and Sean Sullivan in the Washington Post$ -- 11/10/20

Biden Moves to Confront a Pandemic Racing Out of Control -- President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. moved on Monday to begin assuming responsibility for the surging coronavirus pandemic, naming a string of high-profile scientists — including a former surgeon general and a former Food and Drug Administration commissioner — to advise him on the pandemic and imploring Americans to wear masks. Sheryl Gay Stolberg in the New York Times$ -- 11/10/20

-- Monday Updates

Biden taps 2 UCSF doctors for national coronavirus task force -- President-elect Joe Biden’s coronavirus task force includes three experts with Bay Area ties, including two current UCSF doctors. Nora Mishanec in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/9/20

The Californians who could end up in Joe Biden’s cabinet -- As President-elect Joe Biden begins to put together his Cabinet, there are reportedly a number of people from the Golden State in the running to be part of the new administration who will help him make key decisions on everything from foreign policy to health care. Emily DeRuy in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 11/9/20

Coronavirus surge in L.A. County coincides with more large gatherings -- As throngs of political partiers and protesters took to the streets over the weekend, California public health officials again raised red flags, warning that crowded gatherings threaten to exacerbate the spread of the coronavirus at a precarious point in the pandemic. Luke Money in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/9/20

Pfizer vaccine is 90% effective at preventing the coronavirus, company says -- The findings are based on the first interim analysis of Phase 3 clinical trial data by an independent board, Pfizer said. It was announced in a press release and has not been peer reviewed. Catherine Ho in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Auran Neergaard and Linda A. Johnson Associated Press -- 11/9/20

Ford rolls out 2 million masks for LAUSD’s relief effort -- The Ford Motor Company Fund on Monday, Nov. 9, approved a donation of 2 million protective masks to be distributed at schools throughout Los Angeles Unified as part of the district’s coronavirus relief effort. The item is in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 11/9/20

Biden implores Americans to wear masks amid vaccine progress -- President-elect Joe Biden on Monday implored Americans to wear masks to slow the spread of the coronavirus, even as he cheered promising news about the development of an effective vaccine. Will Weissert, Philip Marcelo and Aamer Madhani Associated Press Alice Miranda Ollstein and Quint Forgey Politico -- 11/9/20

FBI raids on local officials mark latest probe targeting corruption in cannabis licensing -- Since California voters legalized recreational cannabis four years ago, allegations of conflicts of interest, bribery and bias in the permitting process have plagued cities and counties as they try to regulate the fledgling industry. Adam Elmahrek, Ruben Vives in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/9/20

Election

Affirmative action failed on California’s ballot — but colleges commit to diversity goals -- After California voters rejected a measure to repeal the state’s ban on affirmative action last week, higher education leaders reiterated a commitment to diversify their student population by providing outreach and support to Latino and under-represented students. Kim Bojórquez in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/9/20

Taylor: Californians reject affirmative action. Maybe they’re not progressive after all -- Almost a quarter century after it was banned in California, affirmative action was on the ballot in a year when a social justice movement rippled across the country. Otis R. Taylor Jr. in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/9/20

What will a Biden presidency mean for California? A lot fewer lawsuits, for one -- Donald Trump clashed with California throughout his presidency like nowhere else in the country over everything from immigration to automobile efficiency. By a two-to-one margin, Californians backed his Democratic challenger Joe Biden for president. John Woolfolk, Paul Rogers in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 11/9/20

Trump expanded his support in Beverly Hills, a rare spot of red in blue L.A. County -- Hours after the U.S. presidential election was called for Joe Biden on Saturday morning, an older, dark-haired woman clutched her ash-blue jacket tighter in a chilly shadow cast by the Greystone Mansion in one of the priciest areas of Beverly Hills. She wasn’t feeling festive. Lila Seidman in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/9/20

Fox: Taxing Big Tech? -- If the Proposition 15 commercial property tax increase remains behind and ultimately is rejected when all votes have been tabulated, pro-taxers in the legislature will look for other avenues to increase revenue. Joel Fox Fox & Hounds -- 11/9/20