 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
California Policy and Politics Thursday
Bass, Raman and Pratt square off on Palisades fire, police hiring in bruising mayoral debate -- In one of the evening’s most striking moments, Raman accused Bass and Pratt of working together to attack her. She said Pratt and Bass want to finish first and second in the June 2 primary, and then face each other in the Nov. 3 runoff election. David Zahniser and Noah Goldberg in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/7/26
Arellano: Two winners, one loser in L.A. mayor’s debate -- What’s shocking about Nithya Raman’s flop is that she should know how important it is to project well to a television audience, given that her husband is a screenwriter. Gustavo Arellano in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/7/26
Leading candidates for California governor face off in another high-stakes debate -- Several leading candidates for governor took to the debate stage again Wednesday night for part two of a two-night, back-to-back matchup this week as they sought to establish themselves as the person voters should elect as California’s next chief executive. Linh Tat in the LA Daily News -- 5/7/26
California county discovers trove of unopened ballots from last election in a locked box -- The Humboldt County Office of Elections made an unnerving discovery Monday: a stack of 596 sealed ballots from the most recent election left at the bottom of a locked voting drop box. The uncounted ballots would not have affected the outcome of the November statewide special election for Proposition 50, the county office said in a news release Wednesday. Clara Harter in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/7/26
As 2028 looms, Jennifer Siebel Newsom faces increased conservative attacks -- Conservatives are unloading a barrage of attacks on Jennifer Siebel Newsom, California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s wife — signaling an early start to a contentious and deeply personal race for president in the post-Trump era. Finya Swai Politico -- 5/7/26
Immigration crackdown souring Orange County’s view of Trump, poll finds -- A new poll released by UC Irvine’s School of Social Ecology shows support for Trump among Orange County voters is down to 35%, with 65% of participants saying they do not approve of the president’s performance. Hannah Fry in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/7/26
Insurance
Two California home insurers to raise rates, expand coverage by late 2026 -- Two California home insurance providers, Travelers Insurance and the Interinsurance Exchange of the Automobile Club, are seeking to hike rates 7% and 11%, respectively, under a new catastrophic modeling plan adopted by the state in 2025. Amancai Biraben in the Orange County Register$ -- 5/7/26
Trump administration supports L.A. wildfire victims suing State Farm -- The Justice Department filed a brief supporting 60 fire victims suing State Farm and other insurers for allegedly colluding to push customers onto California’s costlier FAIR Plan. Laurence Darmiento in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/7/26
Marketplace
Merger costs add up as Warner Bros. Discovery posts $2.9-billion quarterly loss -- Warner Bros. Discovery’s impending sale has rattled Hollywood — and the company’s balance sheet as the auction’s high costs increasingly come into focus. Meg James in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/7/26
Disney’s theme parks revenue holds steady, despite national economic concerns -- Walt Disney Co.’s theme parks and cruise line business is holding steady despite national concerns about discretionary consumer spending and higher gas prices. Samantha Masunaga in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/7/26
Education
UCLA medical school illegally uses race in admissions, Justice Department investigation says -- UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine intentionally used race for the last three years to discriminate against applicants during admissions — in particular white and Asian American candidates — according to U.S. Department of Justice allegations released Wednesday. Jaweed Kaleem in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/7/26
Also
If you’re an iPhone user, you could get $95 from this Apple settlement -- Some iPhone users could be eligible to collect up to $95 per device as part of a settlement over allegations that Apple misled consumers about the abilities of its artificial intelligence-powered features. Queenie Wong in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/7/26
Willie Mays Highway, from Bay Bridge to Oracle Park, named in honor of Giants legend -- On the late Hall of Famer’s birthday, the San Francisco Giants and the Say Hey Foundation, along with several state senators, announced that a roughly 2-mile stretch of Interstate 80 from Treasure Island to Oracle Park is now named in honor of Mays, with signage already installed. Susan Slusser in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Justice delos Santos in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 5/7/26
POTUS 47
The biggest obstacle to an Iran deal may be Trump’s ego -- President Donald Trump’s constant belittling of Iranian leaders is alarming some Arab and U.S. officials familiar with the Middle East who worry that such insults could prove a major obstacle to truly ending a war that has strained the world economy. Nahal Toosi and Eli Stokols Politico -- 5/7/26
Jet-Fuel Prices Are Spiking and Trump’s Advisers Are Worried -- The war in Iran has increased oil, gasoline and jet-fuel prices, leading to higher airfares and political concerns for the Trump administration. U.S. airlines spent over $5 billion on fuel in March, a 30% increase from a year earlier, leading carriers to raise ticket prices and cull flights. Brian Schwartz and Alison Sider in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 5/7/26
Trump’s Indiana Victory Shows His Enduring Grip on Core Republican Supporters -- Low approval ratings? MAGA divisions? The president was able to turn out party loyalists in an Indiana primary to help him oust Republican state lawmakers who had crossed him. Nick Corasaniti and Shane Goldmacher in the New York Times$ -- 5/7/26
ICE raids reduce jobs for both U.S.-born and undocumented workers, study finds -- Immigration enforcement is weighing on the labor market, the National Bureau of Economic Research says, especially for men with a high school degree or less. Lauren Kaori Gurley in the Washington Post$ -- 5/7/26
U.S. and China Pursue Guardrails to Stop AI Rivalry From Spiraling Into Crisis -- Washington and Beijing recognize that powerful AI models could trigger crises neither side is prepared to manage. Lingling Wei in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 5/7/26
California Policy and Politics Wednesday
Candidates for California governor tangle in testy debate with mail voting already underway -- Seven candidates who want to be California’s next governor traded sharp attacks Tuesday in a wide-ranging debate that touched on issues from gas prices to raising taxes to healthcare in a contest that has no clear leader. Michael R. Blood and Sophie Austin Associated Press Lauren Gambino in The Guardian Seema Mehta, Nicole Nixon and Kevin Rector in the Los Angeles Times$ Grace Hase in the San Jose Mercury$ Kaitlyn Schallhorn in the Orange County Register$ Ben Paviour in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 5/6/26
Who won the California governor debate on CNN? Here’s what our columnists say -- Columnists Gustavo Arellano, Mark Z. Barabak and Anita Chabria took in all 120 minutes, absorbed every zinger — scripted and otherwise — and dutifully observed each parry and thrust. Here’s what they took away: Gustavo Arellano, Mark Z. Barabak and Anita Chabria in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/6/26
Walters: California’s candidates for governor target ascending Becerra on national stage -- Nothing that happened Tuesday night, as the candidates talked about living costs, gasoline prices, homelessness, immigration and other issues, appeared to be a game-changer. Dan Waters Calmatters -- 5/6/26
Elections officials urge early mail-in voting, warn about “misinformation” -- The officials also cast skepticism about social media posts that urges Democrats to vote “late” and to rally around one candidate in order to ensure a Republican doesn’t win. The posts are similar in wording and have spread on Facebook in the last week. Dakota Smith in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/6/26
Willie Brown endorses Tom Steyer for California governor -- Former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown has endorsed Tom Steyer for California governor, giving the billionaire climate activist a high-profile Bay Area boost as he tries to convert a massive self-funded campaign into votes in the state’s crowded June primary. Aidin Vaziri in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 5/6/26
A Climate Activist Wants to Run California. Coal Helped Fuel His Wealth -- Questions linger about the finances of Tom Steyer, who has emerged as a leading contender in the California governor’s race. He says he has asked that his money be separated from fossil fuel investments. Danny Hakim, Julie Tate and Laurel Rosenhall in the New York Times$ -- 5/6/26
Candidate interview: Tony Thurmond persists in longshot bid for governor -- Tony Thurmond, the state superintendent of public instruction, is the longshot candidate in California’s governor’s race. Sophia Bollag in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 5/6/26
California voters aren’t just Democratic or Republican. Here are the state’s six voting groups -- To understand exactly how voters differ beyond party affiliation, the Chronicle analyzed how the state’s nearly 20,000 voting precincts voted on 65 different ballot measures between 2016 and 2024 on topics ranging from the minimum wage to plastic bag bans. We used an algorithm to group precincts with similar voting patterns. Aseem Shukla and Nami Sumida in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 5/6/26
Mayor Karen Bass and challenger Nithya Raman tussle in first head-to-head debate -- Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and City Councilmember Nithya Raman faced off Tuesday in a freewheeling 90-minute slugfest, digging at each other over homelessness, police hiring and other major issues. David Zahniser and Noah Goldberg in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/6/26
Matsui secures $3.15M toward building 4-acre park over Interstate 5 -- The effort, known as the Sacramento Stitch Park Riverfront Project, is “a major planning effort to reconnect downtown Sacramento with the city’s riverfront,” according to a release provided by a spokesperson for Matsui. Graham Womack in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 5/6/26
Why L.A. is struggling while San Francisco is beginning to boom again -- Los Angeles County’s population and GDP dropped in 2025. San Francisco County’s rose amid an AI boom. Could two of California’s biggest cities be diverging? Terry Castleman in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/6/26
Workplace
AI Is Forcing CEOs to Make a Stark Choice: Lay Off Workers or Make Them Do More -- Company bosses are splitting into two camps over what the technology’s best, immediate benefits are. Neither calls for more hiring anytime soon. Chip Cutter and Lindsay Ellis in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 5/6/26
Bay Area biotech giant Gilead to lay off 108 workers in Redwood City -- Gilead Sciences plans to lay off 108 workers in Redwood City, the latest job cuts by one of the Bay Area’s biggest biotech companies. Aidin Vaziri in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 5/6/26
After grenade kills 3 L.A. sheriff’s detectives, D.A. considers charges. Against whom isn’t clear -- Last summer, a grenade exploded at an L.A. County Sheriff’s Department training facility, killing three bomb squad detectives. Now, the L.A. County district attorney’s office is considering whether to file criminal charges in their deaths. Richard Winton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/6/26
Housing
‘Baffling’: YIMBYs push back on Lurie’s plan for housing around transit hubs -- San Francisco is swapping a controversial state law that would allow taller housing along transit corridors for a similar but more tailored plan despite objections from some pro-housing groups. Alyce McFadden in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/6/26
Education
LAUSD investigated for allegedly reassigning, not removing, teachers accused of sex misconduct -- The U.S. Department of Education is investigating LAUSD for allegedly reassigning, rather than removing, teachers accused of sexual misconduct during investigations. Howard Blume in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/6/26
Replacing a broken water heater in the Bay Area is about to get vastly more expensive -- A broken water heater will soon become thousands of dollars more expensive to replace in the Bay Area, as regulators move to phase out gas-powered models. Brooke Park in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 5/6/26
Ban on new natural gas water heaters, set to take effect in seven months, may be relaxed -- But with polls showing Americans’ top concern is the rising cost of living — and residents facing a roughly $3,500 cost increase for new electric heat pump models once traditional tank water heaters are prohibited — a plan is afoot to turn down the temperature on the ban. Paul Rogers in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 5/6/26
Street
The reins on cash bail just got tighter in California. How much is up for debate -- New state Supreme Court ruling narrows instances when bail can be withheld, and prohibits unaffordable bail; experts differ on how sweeping the impact will be. Robert Salonga in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 5/6/26
Also
Yosemite ditches reservations, drawing huge crowds in a free-for-all -- Over the weekend, the wait in traffic to get through the park entrance was 1½ hours. Critics are blaming the Trump administration for abandoning a reservation requirement that has helped control the number of visitors. Jack Dolan in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/6/26
California drivers could soon get Disneyland license plates -- State Treasurer Fiona Ma announced Tuesday that her office, Disneyland Resort and the California Children’s Hospital Association are moving forward with plans for a Disneyland-themed specialized license plate. Aidin Vaziri in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 5/6/26
POTUS 47
White House Insists Iran War Is Over, Even While Missiles Fly -- For the White House, the insistence that the war was over was the latest rhetorical leap in an effort to put a war that has created the greatest political crisis of Mr. Trump’s presidency in the rearview mirror. But the mere proclamation does not make it true. Missiles were still flying. Both sides insist they control traffic in the waterway. David E. Sanger in the New York Times$ -- 5/6/26
Iran has hit far more U.S. military assets than reported, satellite images show -- Imagery published by Iranian state-affiliated media and verified by The Post shows damage to at least 228 structures or pieces of equipment at U.S. military sites. Evan Hill, Jarrett Ley, Alex Horton, Tara Copp and Dan Lamothe in the Washington Post$ -- 5/6/26
Trump Again Shifts U.S. Focus on Strait, Pausing Day-Old Escort Mission -- President Trump announced on Tuesday evening that he was pausing the day-old U.S. operation to escort commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz “for a short period of time,” citing what he said was “great progress” toward an agreement with Iran. Erica L. Green, Megan Mineiro, Eric Schmitt and Greg Jaffe in the New York Times$ -- 5/6/26
Operation Epic Fury against Iran ‘is over,’ Rubio says -- President Trump said he was pausing ‘Project Freedom’ to allow more time for a deal with Iran. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth warns Iran of ‘devastating’ consequences if attacks on commercial vessels continue, while insisting ceasefire remains in effect. Ana Ceballos, Nabih Bulos and Michael Wilner in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/6/26
Republicans propose $1 billion in an immigration bill for Trump’s ballroom project -- Senate Republicans have inserted $1 billion for White House East Wing security enhancements in the immigration enforcement funding bill they hope to rush through Congress this month, setting up a political fight over a ballroom that President Trump has said would be financed with private money. Carl Hulse in the New York Times$ -- 5/6/26