Newsletter: Essential California: Trump lawyer says sanctuary city directive is ‘narrow’

Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. It is Saturday, April 15. Here’s what you don’t want to miss this weekend:

TOP STORIES

It’s Trump vs. the ‘sanctuary cities’

A lawyer for the Trump administration told a federal judge Friday that an executive order targeting so-called sanctuary cities and counties was “narrow” and would not result in a loss of massive funds to governments that refuse to cooperate with immigration authorities.“We don’t know yet exactly how the policy is going to be applied,” Asst. Atty. Gen. Chad A. Readler told U.S. District Court Judge William H. Orrick, a President Obama appointee. “We don’t know whether there will be any enforcement action and what it will look like.” Los Angeles Times

And it’s Trump vs. California on the climate

California has tried to get other states to follow its lead on climate change for years. Trump’s federal rollback has made its efforts more important than ever, but the record is mixed. Los Angeles Times

A tragedy heard on tape

The San Bernardino Police Department has released two harrowing 911 tapes of the frantic moments after a gunman entered a special education classroom this week, killing a teacher and an 8-year-old boy and wounding a second boy. Los Angeles Times

The Coachella lowdown

Coachella continues today, and it’s going to have more Latin music than ever. The 2017 roster includes the highest volume of Latino and Spanish-language bands in its 18-year history. Given Southern California’s demographics, some might say this is a long time coming, especially when one takes into account that the actual city of Coachella is more than 96% Latino. Los Angeles Times

Plus: Here’s your Coachella 2017 survival guide. Los Angeles Times

Apple enters the autonomous car race

Apple has received a permit to test autonomous cars in California, the first official confirmation that the maker of the iPhone sees the century-old automobile as a product that’s ripe for reinvention and a reflection of its need to find new markets to sustain its growth. Business Insider

An ICE protest in #DTLA

Thirty-five demonstrators, including clergy, were arrested during ICE protest in downtown L.A. Los Angeles Times

Beware of illegal gun sales from cops

The head of the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in Los Angeles has cautioned Southland police departments to watch out for the “growing trend” of law enforcement officers engaging in unlicensed, illegal firearms dealing. San Gabriel Valley Tribune

This week’s most popular stories in Essential California:

1. Sex and longing in Larry Sultan’s California suburbs. The New Yorker

2. A jog near the border fence ends with dueling lawsuits between a former Navy SEAL and a Border Patrol agent. San Diego Union-Tribune

3. Your guide to talking like a Californian. Here are some tips for the “hella tricky” dialect. Los Angeles Times

4. United passenger threatened with handcuffs to make room for “higher-priority” traveler. Los Angeles Times

5. Murder-suicide in a San Bernardino classroom: “He just shot everywhere.” Los Angeles Times

ICYMI, here are this week’s Great Reads

Train safety trouble: The construction of California’s high-speed rail is prompting designers to think long and hard about how to keep riders safe, while staying on budget. “One safety concern playing out at the moment stems from the fact that the bullet trains will run in some places at 220 mph, alongside lines carrying everything from toxic chemicals to military tanks.” Los Angeles Times

No more vacay for Mexicans in the U.S.: Mexicans used to love to come to the U.S. for their Easter vacations. But some travel industry experts say they’re seeing a major drop in interest in travel to the United States. One Mexico City resident, Rafael Sifuentes Barba, says he will wait until President Trump leaves office to return to the United States. Los Angeles Times

Wine vs. weed: The California wine industry is not necessarily viewing weed as a competitor in the ways that some people might think. “Despite occasional efforts to pit wine and weed against each other, people in the wine business exude an air of mellow acceptance that the two substances can coexist in harmony.” New York Times

An interesting suit: The Center for Biological Diversity is suing the government challenging the Trump administration to complete an environmental analysis of the effects of building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.  Randy Serraglio, an advocate with the CBD, explains why this suit is important. Pacific Standard Magazine

Looking Ahead

Sunday: Easter events across California, including at Los Angeles’ skid row.

Monday: The California Public Utilities Commission hearing on the future of the Aliso Canyon gas facility.

Thursday: Sen. Dianne Feinstein holds a town hall at Los Angeles’ First AME Church.

Friday: The Selden Ring Award for Investigative Reporting is handed out at USC.

Please let us know what we can do to make this newsletter more useful to you. Send comments, complaints and ideas to Benjamin Oreskes and Shelby Grad. Also follow them on Twitter @boreskes and @shelbygrad.