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Schwarzenegger compares attack on Capitol to Nazi violence -- Arnold Schwarzenegger likened this week’s siege of the U.S. Capitol to Nazi attacks on Jews in Europe ahead of World War II in a scathing video in which the former California governor also called President Trump “the worst president ever.” Alex Wigglesworth in the Los Angeles Times$ Hailey Fuchs in the New York Times$ -- 1/10/21

A day before Capitol attack, pro-Trump crowd stormed meeting, threatened officials in rural California -- The rebellion that took place inside a government building in rural Northern California happened the day before the violent siege of the U.S. Capitol by supporters of President Trump. Hailey Branson-Potts in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/10/21

Police departments across the U.S. open probes into whether their own members took part in the Capitol riot -- Departments in California, Washington state, and Texas are among those that have announced investigations into their officers based on tips, social media posts and other evidence, though more officers could be identified as evidence emerges in the coming days. Kim Bellware in the Washington Post$ -- 1/10/21

Covid  

How much worse will coronavirus crisis get in L.A. County? Here is what next few weeks could look like -- The number of COVID-19 deaths in California and Los Angeles County — an epicenter of the pandemic — is setting records or near-records almost daily. There is clear evidence that the post-Christmas holiday surge in cases is worsening, as the numbers continue to spike, particularly in L.A. County. Rong-Gong Lin II in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/10/21

New evidence that U.K. coronavirus variant spreads more easily has scientists really worried -- The coronavirus variant that emerged in the United Kingdom belongs to the world now, and mounting evidence is confirming some scientists’ early suspicions: It is a super spreader capable of turbocharging the pandemic and muscling less transmissible strains of the virus into oblivion. Melissa Healy in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/10/21

Battered by COVID surge, hospitals are admitting patients faster than they can discharge them -- The patient needed a ventilator or she would die. The hospital wanted to discharge her, but there was no place she could go. Brittny Mejia in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/10/21

‘It’s their lives’: California’s grocery workers navigate COVID outbreaks, fears -- John Grant’s voice breaks as he talks about it. “It’s overwhelming to us. The stories leave all of us weeping,” Grant said. “We’ve never had to make calls to workers who survived their husband’s death or their wife’s.” Darrell Smith in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 1/10/21

Growing consensus that schools do not contribute to COVID-19 spread is complicated by worsening surge -- Local and national experts are coming to a consensus that schools do not contribute to community COVID-19 spread — as long as the levels of the virus in the community are not high. Schools do appear to contribute to spreading the virus where it already is spreading at high rates in a community, one of two new studies shows. Kristen Taketa in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 1/10/21

State argues mentally ill patients must stay put at Patton state hospital despite COVID outbreak -- 14 have died and hundreds more are infected at the psychiatric hospital. ‘Patton is on fire with COVID-19 right now,’ says an attorney for the patients. Joe Nelson in the Orange County Register -- 1/10/21

Policy & Politics 

Virus, housing issues await returning California lawmakers -- Mending California’s coronavirus-ravaged economy and fixing a state unemployment agency that is at the center of a titanic fraud case that could exceed $2 billion are at the top of the to-do list when lawmakers resume their session on Monday. Don Thompson and Adam Beam Associated Press -- 1/10/21

Housing  

Sacramento has a plan to address its housing crisis. Some neighborhoods are fighting it -- When Maggie Coulter moved to Sacramento for a state job in 1981, she knew immediately she didn’t want to live in midtown or downtown. But she also didn’t want to move out to the suburbs. Theresa Clift in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 1/10/21

 

California Policy and P  olitics Sunday Morning  

The Capitol siege was far from San Diego. Its fringe ideologies were right at home -- The unfounded belief that the election was stolen from President Donald Trump has for months been festering in San Diego. “Stop the Steal” rallies, marked by a party-like atmosphere, plainly illustrated a determined resolve to keep Trump in power. Kristina Davis in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 1/10/21

Pro-Trump and anti-fascist protesters clash in Pacific Beach -- About 100 Trump supporters and 100 counterprotesters, some of whom described themselves as anti-fascists, stood off with San Diego police for hours in the heart of Pacific Beach Saturday, with officers trying to keep the opposing groups apart following skirmishes. Gary Robbins, Phil Diehl in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 1/10/21

These Southern California officials rallied in Washington. Now they face calls to resign -- Leandra Blades visited Washington this week for a self-described girls’ trip to spend time with friends and sightsee. Alex Wigglesworth in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/10/21

Eric Swalwell was among the last lawmakers to leave the House floor during the Capitol attack. Here’s what he saw -- With Rep. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., Swalwell was one of the last members of Congress to leave the House floor, sticking around to make sure everyone was out and yelling directions to panicked people in the gallery above as sergeants at arms piled furniture against the doors. Michael Cabanatuan in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/10/21

Donald Trump is gone from Twitter. So are his claims that ‘California is going to hell’ -- “California is going to hell,” President Trump tweeted in October. Since launching @realdDonaldTrump in 2009, the president has tweeted “California” in at least 221 missives over the nearly 12-year life of his popular handle, according to a Times analysis. Matt Stiles in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/10/21

Rep. Vargas joins voices calling for impeachment -- “He’s desperate ... completely irresponsible and very dangerous,” said Vargas, D-San Diego, at a news conference held on the sidewalk in front of the Hall of Justice downtown. Phil Diehl in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 1/10/21

Pelosi ties rioters’ actions to ‘whiteness’ -- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is accusing the Trump supporters who rioted in the Capitol this week of choosing “their whiteness over democracy.” The California Democrat used an online video meeting with her hometown San Francisco constituents to criticize the overwhelmingly white mob that attacked Congress on Wednesday as it met to formally finalize Joe Biden’s presidential victory. Associated Press -- 1/10/21

South Bay GOP leader faces call to resign after urging ‘citizens take arms’ while US Capitol stormed -- Two Democratic lawmakers are calling for a local Republican leader to resign from the Santa Clara County Republican Party’s elected central committee after he urged citizens to “take arms” in a series of Facebook posts during Wednesday’s Capitol insurrection. Fiona Kelliher in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 1/10/21

Huntington Beach far-right activist contrite after fiery video about Capitol attack goes viral -- Shortly after a mob of President Donald Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol, Kristopher Dreww recorded a fiery video in his Washington, D.C., hotel room. Scott Schwebke in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 1/10/21

Covid  

Record deaths in California as coronavirus surges; Bay Area stay-at-home order remains -- The coronavirus surge across the state showed no signs of abating as deaths spiked and hospitals continued to fill to the breaking point, prompting health officials Saturday to maintain the Bay Area’s stay-home order indefinitely. Jill Tucker in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/10/21

‘A mass fatality event’: California struggles with backlog of bodies of COVID-19 victims -- With hospital morgues overwhelmed by soaring numbers of bodies amid a surge in COVID-19 deaths, hard-hit parts of California are struggling to store the bodies of those who have died. Rong-Gong Lin II, Luke Money in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/10/21

Walters: How did California lose control of COVID-19? -- How did California go from exemplifying success in taming the coronavirus last spring to an epicenter of disease, with 2.5 million COVID-19 cases, nearly 28,000 deaths and the second highest infection rate of any state? Dan Walters CalMatters -- 1/10/21

Knight: S.F. Millennial was fit and healthy before COVID-19. He’s a disabled 'long-hauler' now -- Twilight at Spreckels Lake in Golden Gate Park couldn’t be quieter. Senior citizens chat on benches or circle the lake, canes in hand. Toddlers feed the ducks. And Charlie McCone, on a good day, tries to walk around the tiny lake once. Heather Knight in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/10/21

As COVID deaths surge, these California politicians gathered to call for reopenings -- As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to surge, elected officials from across California gathered for a conference this weekend in Rancho Murieta to protest coronavirus-related restrictions and discuss ways to reopen the state’s economy. Vincent Moleski in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 1/10/21

Street  

San Jose police are slow to respond to crime, failing to meet city targets -- Twice, vandals broke into his business, shattered windows and stole his cash register. Once, a man harassed him, his workers and customers and refused to leave his establishment. Another time, thieves smashed into his truck and made off with $10,000 in earnings he had inside. Maggie Angst in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 1/10/21

Environment   

Gray whale die-off pushes into second year. Can the giants survive? -- A troubling die-off of gray whales along the Pacific Coast two years ago appears to have continued through 2020, raising concern that the celebrated rebound of the ocean giants might not be a sure thing. Kurtis Alexander in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/10/21

POTUS 46  

Capitol attack may have divided Republicans, but it didn’t make Biden’s job easier -- Joe Biden says his “overarching job” will be to calm the nation after Donald Trump inspired a mob to overrun the Capitol — much like Gerald Ford sought to do when Richard Nixon resigned after the Watergate scandal. Joe Garofoli in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/10/21

POTUS 45  

Can Twitter Legally Bar Trump? The First Amendment Says Yes -- There are reasons to question the wisdom of recent actions by Twitter in barring President Trump from its site and Simon & Schuster in canceling the publication of Senator Josh Hawley’s book. But the First Amendment is on their side. Adam Liptak in the New York Times$ -- 1/10/21

-- Saturday Updates

Oakland Police Department vows to ‘root out’ officers who endorsed Capitol takeover posts -- Oakland police vowed to investigate allegations that officers have endorsed or “been involved” in social media accounts of Wednesday’s Capitol takeover. “We will not tolerate any form of hate speech, any expression that supports hate speech or any acts of subversion, whether in-person or on online platforms,” the department said in a statement released on Friday. Steve Rubenstein in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/9/21

How likely is it that Trump will face criminal prosecution after leaving office? -- Even after repeatedly pushing the limits of presidential power and surviving an impeachment last year, his last-ditch bid to hold on to power through intimidation and insurrection has dramatically increased the odds he will face a criminal investigation and possibly the first-ever prosecution of an ex-president. David G. Savage in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/9/21

Here lies @realDonaldTrump, having tweeted itself to death -- The Twitter account @realDonaldTrump died Friday. It was 11 years, 8 months old and had issued nearly 47,000 tweets. None of them survived. The cause of death was hubris. Owen Thomas in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/9/21

‘The storm is here’: Ashli Babbitt’s journey from capital ‘guardian’ to invader -- The politician she revered above all others had lost an election. She’d struggled with crippling amounts of debt. Her home state of California was locking down again because of a virus she believed was fiction. As she walked east along the Mall on Wednesday, wearing a backpack emblazoned with the American flag, Ashli Babbitt was elated. Peter Jamison, Hannah Natanson, John Woodrow Cox and Alex Horton in the Washington Post$ -- 1/9/21

Covid  

L.A. County Christmas coronavirus surge worsening; coming days will be critical -- The post-Christmas surge of coronavirus cases is worsening considerably in Los Angeles County, a much-feared scenario that officials say will result in more patient crowding at already overwhelmed hospitals and an increase in deaths. Rong-Gong Lin II in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/9/21

California is desperate, but volunteer health corps dwindles -- California desperately needs more medical workers at facilities swamped by coronavirus patients, but almost no help is coming from a volunteer program that Gov. Gavin Newsom created at the start of the pandemic. An army of 95,000 initially raised their hands, and just 14 are now working in the field. Don Thompson Associated Press -- 1/9/21

California is expanding who it’s vaccinating. Are you next? -- Weeks into the California’s mass vaccination plan, we’re far behind schedule. Of the roughly 2 million doses that have been distributed, only about 650,000 have been injected into the arms of state residents, according to Friday’s data from the California Department of Public Health. Lisa M. Krieger in the San Jose Mercury$ Catherine Ho in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/9/21

COVID-19 vaccine rollout painfully slow to nursing homes and other long-term care facilities -- No group has suffered more during the COVID-19 pandemic than staff and residents of nursing homes, where high concentrations of elderly people with serious health problems created the perfect killing ground for the virus. Jack Dolan in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/9/21

Questions and anxiety mount over San Diego’s slow roll-out of COVID-19 vaccine -- County health officials don’t know the total number of immunizations that have occurred so far. Jonathan Wosen, Gary Robbins in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 1/9/21

Policy & Politics 

After a painful 2020, California’s next budget will have far more cash than anticipated -- Just months ago, California officials expected this year’s budget would be another bloodbath of cuts to schools and services. But instead, Gov. Gavin Newsom and lawmakers find themselves in an unexpected budget oasis, practically swimming in money. Sophia Bollag, Lara Korte, and Hannah Wiley in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 1/9/21

Newsom’s budget targets reopening, reviving public schools and universities -- In a turnaround from recent dire predictions, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposed budget boosts next year’s funding for K-12 school districts and includes emergency grants to reopen campuses as soon as possible — part of a sweeping effort to address learning loss and social stresses in children. Howard Blume, Teresa Watanabe, Nina Agrawal in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/9/21

How Californians plan to spend $600 stimulus checks — some need the money, some can share it -- For Mary Bane and her husband in Sacramento, $1,200 will help the couple in their mid-70s get groceries delivered, avoiding trips to stores where they could contact the coronavirus. Jeong Park and Kim Bojórquez in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 1/9/21

Share the Road  

Sport cyclists and car culture collide in San Diego’s massive expansion of bike lanes -- Horns blared and wheels screeched on Highway 101 along Cardiff State Beach. “Did you see that?” exclaimed Serge Issakov, who was out for a ride on a recent Saturday, clad in full green and black cycling attire. Joshua Emerson Smith in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 1/9/21