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California Policy and Politics Sunday
Meta’s ‘Digital Companions’ Will Talk Sex With Users—Even Children -- Chatbots on Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp are empowered to engage in ‘romantic role-play’ that can turn explicit. Some people inside the company are concerned. Jeff Horwitz in the Wall Street Journal -- 4/27/25
Pressure grows on California State Bar to revert to national exam format in July after botched exam -- An influential California legislator is pressuring the State Bar of California to ditch its new multiple-choice questions after a February bar exam debacle and revert to the traditional test format in July. Jenny Jarvie in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/27/25
S.F. unveils first curbside chargers for electric vehicles -- As San Francisco residents convert to electric vehicles en masse, city officials want to make it easy to charge them — not just in a home garage or parking structure, but on a public street. Rachel Swan in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/27/25
Covered California pushes for better healthcare as federal spending cuts loom -- The 2021 subsidies are set to expire at the end of this year unless Congress renews them. If they lapse, enrollees would be on the hook to pay an average of $101 a month more for health insurance — not counting any premium hikes in 2026 and beyond. Bernard J. Wolfson KFF News in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/27/25
This California town has a breathtaking waterfall — and no legal way for the public to get there -- Less than half a mile from the city limits of this Northern California railroad town is a natural wonder so enchanting that locals compare it to geologic features in Yosemite or Yellowstone. Jessica Garrison in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/27/25
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Three U.S. citizens, ages 2, 4 and 7, swiftly deported from Louisiana -- Three U.S. citizen children from two different families were deported with their mothers by Immigration and Customs Enforcement during the early hours of Friday morning. One of them is a 4-year-old with Stage 4 cancer who was deported without medication or the ability to contact their doctors, the family’s lawyer said. Emmanuel Felton and Maegan Vazquez in the Washington Post$ -- 4/27/25
Trump won these independent voters. Now some are souring on his second term -- Unaffiliated voters are starting to turn against Trump and his disruptive agenda, demonstrating political risks for the president and his party. Hannah Knowles in the Washington Post$ -- 4/27/25
Trump approval sinks as Americans criticize his major policies, poll finds -- The initiatives have caused significant disruption to individuals, institutions and financial markets. They have produced a flurry of lawsuits from opponents, which Trump is contesting. There are few bright spots in the survey for the president, and none of his policies tested in the poll enjoy majority support. Dan Balz, Scott Clement and Emily Guskin in the Washington Post$ -- 4/27/25
In Marin County, There’s Trouble in Teslaville -- Tesla’s sleek electric vehicles used to be a status symbol in liberal Mill Valley, Calif. Now, they are despised by many — including those who drive them. Heather Knight in the New York Times$ -- 4/27/25
California Policy and Politics Saturday
The FBI arrested a judge in an immigration dispute. California officials are livid — and watching closely -- The FBI’s arrest of a Wisconsin judge on Friday represents the exact scenario California officials have tried to prevent at courthouses around the state. Sara Libby, St. John Barned-Smith in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/26/25
San Diego immigration attorney and legal rep among U.S. citizens told to leave country -- Two San Diegans who represent immigrants in court are among a number of other U.S. citizens nationwide who have recently reported receiving emails from the government telling them they must leave the country. Alexandra Mendoza, Alex Riggins in the San Diego Union Tribune -- 4/26/25
California sues Trump administration over threats to pull school funding over DEI -- Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Education threatened to revoke funds from schools that don’t terminate their DEI programs. In a lawsuit filed Friday in federal court, California and 18 other states argue the loss of those funds would be “catastrophic.” Sophia Bollag in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/26/25
Surprise atmospheric rivers, toxic seafood: How NOAA cuts could impact California -- Coast Guard rescue missions failing after running into unexpected currents. Surprise atmospheric river storms flooding downtown San Francisco. Seafood contaminated by unseen algal blooms. California scientists fear these scenarios, and more, are possible under the Trump administration’s recommendation to reduce the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s budget by $1.7 billion. Anthony Edwards, Jack Lee in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/26/25
Sutter Health settles antitrust class-action lawsuit for $228.5 million -- Sutter Health has agreed to pay $228.5 million to settle a long-running class-action lawsuit that accused the health care provider of abusing its market power to drive up prices for insurers, employers and individuals. Catherine Ho in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Annika Merrilees in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 4/26/25
Oakland poised to pay $1 million to former violence prevention staffer -- Oakland is poised to pay $1 million to a former staffer in the city’s Department of Violence Prevention who alleged harassment and discrimination, the second settlement involving allegations against the former director. Sarah Ravani in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/26/25
Cricket moves U.S. headquarters from San Francisco to Texas -- Major League Cricket is relocating its headquarters from San Francisco to Grand Prairie, cementing the Texas city’s status as the epicenter of U.S. cricket and underscoring its push to expand the global sport’s reach in the American market. Aidin Vaziri in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/26/25
Education
‘It’s like whack-a-mole’: DOJ reverses terminations on international student visas -- The Trump administration announced Friday that it is restoring legal status for international students in the United States, reversing the abrupt terminations of visas for more than 1,000 students, including dozens in California. Jessica Flores, Anna Bauman in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Chris Biderman in the Sacramento Bee$ Michelle Hackman and Joseph Pisani in the Wall Street Journal -- 4/26/25
Trump administration puts new pressure on UC Berkeley with investigation into foreign funding -- The Trump administration, which is engaged in an effort to exert control over universities it sees as promoting liberalism, said Friday it is looking into whether UC Berkeley violated federal requirements for disclosing funding from foreign sources. Nanette Asimov in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/26/25
California researchers stunned by Trump’s $312 million in grant cuts: ‘No warning’ -- What the studies have in common are words in their title or summary that reflect diversity — such as “equity,” “gender identity,” “minority,” “Latinx,” “disabilities,” “Black” — or concepts that run counter to the political views of President Donald Trump, such as “environmental” and “misinformation.” Nanette Asimov in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/26/25
Workplace
Tesla settles lawsuit over ‘welcome to the plantation’ remark made to Black employee -- Tesla has settled a racial discrimination lawsuit filed by a Black female employee who accused the company of racist remarks and unfair treatment at its Fremont manufacturing facility, court records reveal. Aidin Vaziri in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/26/25
Tech Workers Are Just Like the Rest of Us: Miserable at Work -- Google, Meta and Amazon are piling on demands and taking away perks. A job in Silicon Valley just isn’t what it used to be. Katherine Bindley in the Wall Street Journal -- 4/26/25
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Judge says 2-year-old US citizen appears to have been deported with ‘no meaningful process’ -- A federal judge is raising alarms that the Trump administration deported a two-year-old U.S. citizen to Honduras with “no meaningful process,” even as the child’s father was frantically petitioning the courts to keep her in the country. Kyle Cheney and Josh Gerstein Politico Alan Feuer in the New York Times$ -- 4/26/25
Voters See Trump’s Use of Power as Overreaching, Times/Siena Poll Finds -- The turbulent early months of Mr. Trump’s administration are seen as “chaotic” and “scary” by majorities of voters — even many who approve of the job he is doing. Voters do not view him as understanding the problems in their daily lives and have soured on his leadership as he approaches his 100th day in office. Shane Goldmacher, Ruth Igielnik and Camille Baker in the New York Times$ -- 4/26/25
Trump Claims He’s Negotiating With China on Trade. China Says Otherwise -- President Trump said that “we’re meeting with China” on tariffs, comments aimed at soothing jittery financial markets. But Chinese officials say no talks have taken place. Ana Swanson and Jonathan Swan in the New York Times$ -- 4/26/25
Pentagon Prepared Briefing for Musk on Top Secret U.S. Weapons for China War -- Top Pentagon aides were developing a briefing for Elon Musk last month on more than two dozen highly classified weapons programs for fighting China until the department’s top lawyer intervened, people familiar with the plan said. Alexander Ward and Nancy A. Youssef in the Wall Street Journal -- 4/26/25
Pam Bondi’s striking comments on arresting judges -- Amid criticisms that the administration is intimidating judges, the attorney general didn’t exactly downplay the idea that this was part of a larger crusade against the judiciary. Aaron Blake in the Washington Post$ -- 4/26/25