Today: California, Here He Comes

March 13, 2018 5 AM PT

President Trump will visit the epicenter of the “resistance” for the first time since taking office.

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California, Here He Comes

Today’s itinerary for President Trump includes a stop to view border wall prototypes in San Diego and a GOP fundraiser in the Beverly Hills area. Beyond that, authorities say they aren’t sure what to expect in terms of protests but are prepared for anything, while commuters are wondering whether the famed Obamajams of years past will be replaced by a Trumpjam. You can follow all the action on our live blog throughout the day. Meanwhile, Gov. Jerry Brown, who last week characterized the Trump administration as “at war” with California, wants Trump to get on board with the bullet train. (Hey, maybe if it was renamed “the Trump train” …) And Times columnist Robin Abcarian suggests Trump focus not on the wall but on a “real border problem”: the sewage and sludge floating down the Tijuana River.

House GOP: ‘No Evidence of Collusion.’ Democrats: Wait a Minute.

Not everything prompts an ALL-CAPS tweet from Trump, but the announcement by Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee that they’ve found no evidence of collusion between the 2016 Trump campaign and meddling Russians did. Of course, ranking Democrat Rep. Adam B. Schiff begged to differ, claiming “questions unanswered, leads unexplored, countless witnesses uncalled, subpoenas unissued.” And the White House still faces the special counsel investigation led by Robert S. Mueller III, as well as two inquiries in the Senate.

About That Age Limit for Gun Purchases ...

Remember a few weeks ago when Trump said he would be “strong” on raising the age limit from 18 to 21 for the sale of powerful rifles, despite the National Rifle Assn.’s opposition? “It should all be at 21,” he said. So much for that. Tweeting Monday that there’s “not much political support (to put it mildly)” for raising the age limit, Trump said, “States are making this decision.” So what is Trump advocating? A plan to arm teachers and improve background checks, and a school safety commission led by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos (who last year said guns have a place in schools because of the threat of grizzly bears).

More Politics

-- Trump has blocked Singapore’s Broadcom from acquiring San Diego’s Qualcomm, scuttling the proposed $117-billion tech deal on national security grounds. The unusual decision could have repercussions for Silicon Valley’s relationship with China.

-- Porn actress Stormy Daniels has offered to give Trump $130,000 if she is released from her deal to keep quiet about the sexual relationship she says she had with him in 2006.

-- Trump is reportedly considering making media personality Larry Kudlow the top White House economist.

-- Ulan Bator? A ship at sea? The logistical nightmare of picking a venue for Trump to meet with Kim Jong Un.

Texas’ Deadly, Mysterious Package Bombs

Authorities in Austin are warning residents to be wary of unexpected packages after two bombings on Monday and another one earlier this month. Two people have been killed and two others injured. With the South by Southwest festival taking place, some worry it may be an attempt to terrorize the city during its big annual event. But police have not said the bombings pose a threat to SXSW, nor have they given a motive or publicly identified a suspect.

How the Zeroes and Ones Add Up

Think of computer science, and the first thing that pops to mind might be algorithms and artificial intelligence. Ethics, gender studies, economics or music, perhaps less so. That’s why Occidental College and other liberal arts schools are creating their own kinds of computer-science majors that look at how technology is reshaping society.

MUST-WATCH VIDEO

-- Ismael Chamu, the son of a migrant worker from Mexico, attends UC Berkeley, the nation’s top public research university. But he lives in a small trailer with no heat or sewer hookups.

-- Female directors for the series “Marvel’s Jessica Jones” and more are leading the charge on TV.

CALIFORNIA

-- A Los Angeles judge has ruled that a spouse in California is the presumptive healthcare decision maker and has the power to remove life support when the partner is in a persistent vegetative state.

-- “Lock up your guns”: The L.A. city attorney announced charges against two parents who kept unsecured guns in their homes and whose children threatened violence against their schools and peers.

-- Santa Barbara County authorities have ordered mandatory evacuations for residents in burn areas ahead of storms this week.

-- A Monterey Park police officer has been convicted of sexually assaulting three women during traffic stops.

HOLLYWOOD AND THE ARTS

-- Steven Spielberg’s “Ready Player One” picked up some good audience buzz (or should we say, pew-pew-pew?) at the South by Southwest film festival in Texas.

-- Britt Robertson stars as a passionate and noble defender in “For the People,” the latest entry in the slate of dramas from the factory of executive producer Shonda Rhimes.

-- The Metropolitan Opera of New York has fired conductor James Levine, saying an investigation found “credible evidence that Mr. Levine had engaged in sexually abusive and harassing conduct.”

-- Times architecture critic Christopher Hawthorne explains why he’s leaving for a job at L.A. City Hall.

CLASSIC HOLLYWOOD

Hubert de Givenchy met Audrey Hepburn in 1953 when she visited his Paris atelier to ask about wearing his designs for the film “Sabrina.” He said he agreed to meet with her only because he thought the other Miss Hepburn, Katharine, was calling. “Immediately we had this great sympathy together,” Givenchy told The Times in 1995, two years after the death of the actress who helped make his dresses famous. Now, Givenchy has died at age 91.

NATION-WORLD

-- A judge in Florida has ruled the public should be allowed to see security video filmed outside Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School during last month’s deadly shooting.

-- British Prime Minister Theresa May says the recent poisoning of a former spy and his daughter in the city of Salisbury was “highly likely” tied to Russia.

-- Myanmar has lost its luster for U.S. investors, even for a specialist in “frontier economies” who once drank serpent blood in Vietnam and had armed guards in Bulgaria.

-- Colombia‘s fragile peace deal is under pressure after candidates who have vowed to dismantle portions of the historic accord made strong showings in weekend elections.

BUSINESS

-- Do you think there’s “a positive picture for consumers in the credit card market”? The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau under the Trump administration does.

-- Meanwhile, Equifax and other credit reporting companies could get some surprising benefits in a Senate banking deregulation bill.

SPORTS

-- If you need help filling out your March Madness bracket, columnist Bill Plaschke offers some help on picking the winners in the men’s NCAA basketball tournament.

-- In the women’s tournament, the third-seeded UCLA team is excited to play host to American University in the first round.

OPINION

-- The biggest outrage about America’s gun violence is Congress’ failure to do anything about it.

-- Who in the world will defend democracy as China and Russia move against it? Certainly not the European Union, and apparently not Trump.

WHAT OUR EDITORS ARE READING

-- National Geographic looks at its own racist coverage in the past.

-- “Moonlight” director Barry Jenkins delivers the Oscars speech he would have given if last year’s flub hadn’t robbed him of the moment. (Slate)

-- In Russia, hockey plays you? Allegations of corruption and cronyism surrounding Putin’s favorite team mar the playoffs. (CBC)

ONLY IN CALIFORNIA

Have you seen this man? He was spotted trying to fit a gumball machine through a hole in the door of a Sacramento animal shelter, spilling candy onto the floor and at one point slipping on it. “What a baller. (A gum baller),” read the subtitles on a video posted by the shelter. Eventually, the Gumball Bandit man made off with the machine and its quarters — ignoring a donation box filled with cash just a few feet away.

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