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Essential Politics: State Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra to open Washington office, cap-and-trade auction revenue results are revealed

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Former President George W. Bush says his recent remarks have been misconstrued as criticism of Trump

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Former President George W. Bush on Wednesday pushed back at the notion that his recent remarks about the media were criticisms of President Trump.

“I’m asked the question, ‘Do I believe in free press?’ and the answer is absolutely, I believe in free press … because the press holds people to account,” he said. “Power is very addictive and it’s corrosive if it becomes central to your life and therefore there needs to be an independent group of people who hold you to account. And so I answered that question and of course the headlines were, ‘Bush criticizes Trump.’ And so therefore I needed to say, ‘There should be a free and independent press, but it ought to be accurate.’”

Bush made the remarks at the Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley during an hourlong question-and-answer session promoting “Portraits of Courage,” his new book that features his paintings of veterans. While doing media interviews about the book in recent days, he has raised eyebrows by making comments about the media, immigrants and allegations of Russian interference in the November presidential election that were widely viewed as criticisms of the new president.

He said that he decided once he left the office not to second-guess his successor, former President Obama, and that the same holds true for Trump. Doing so would undermine the office, Bush said, adding that he wants all of his successors to succeed because it is good for the nation.

“I don’t want to make the president’s job worse, no matter what political party it is. It’s a hard job,” Bush said. “Sometimes my remarks can be construed as criticism. They’re certainly not meant to be, and after I finish this book tour you probably won’t hear from me for a while.”

But he was willing to offer advice to those who follow him.

“Know what you don’t know and find people who do know what you don’t know and listen to them,” he said. “My advice is that the job is different once you get in. It looks one way and then you get in the Oval Office and it looks different. Trust me.”

Bush also made an implicit criticism of Obama’s foreign policy when asked whether the world is more dangerous than it was four years ago.

“This may be taken as criticism of one of my successors and I don’t really mean it to be. There is a lesson however when the United States decides not to take the lead and withdraw,” he said. “Vacuums can be created when U.S. presence recedes and that vacuum is generally filed with people who don’t share the ideology, the same sense of human rights and human dignity and freedom that we do.”

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Aside from a handful of serious moments, Bush was jovial and self-effacing as he described how he became an oil painter after leaving the White House. Seeking ways to fill his time, he said he read an essay by Winston Churchill about painting.

“I basically said, ‘What the hell, this guy can paint, I can paint,’” Bush said.

He hired an instructor and started painting a cube and a watermelon before moving on to portraits. Former First Lady Laura Bush was not pleased with his depiction of her, so when he painted his mother, former First Lady Barbara Bush, he decided to depict her from behind.

Barbara Bush and former President George H.W. Bush are doing well despite their recent hospitalizations, the younger Bush said.

“They’re both great given their limitations. Dad can’t walk, he’s confined to a wheelchair and yet his spirit is joyful,” Bush said. “… Mom’s doing fine. She’s shrinking, and as she does, her voice gets louder. But she’s a, she’s a piece of work is what she is.”

Bush has been reclusive since leaving office, but said he wrote the book and is publicizing it to raise money for veterans and to draw attention to the “invisible wounds” many of them suffer.

“I think when you read [their stories] you’ll be moved by stories of courage, injury, recovery willingness to help others,” he said. “… I’ve got a platform – it’s not as big as it once was — and I intend to use it to help our veterans for the rest of my life, and this is one way to do so.”

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California legislative leaders deluged with gifts, including foreign trips, sports tickets and liquor

Gov. Jerry Brown, left, with Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles), center, and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Paramount).
(Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press))

The California Legislature’s four top leaders accepted $60,000 in gifts last year, including sports tickets, expensive meals, golf games and travel to foreign countries, according the annual reports they were required to file Wednesday.

Senate leader Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles) accepted 60 gifts worth $24,381, the largest amount of the four lawmakers, including travel expenses to Morocco, El Salvador, Mexico and Puerto Rico.

He received $3,100 in expenses at the Pebble Beach golf resort from the Assn. of California Life and Health Insurance Cos. and the Governor’s Cup Foundation in exchange for speeches. He also accepted free tickets to SeaWorld, the Monterey Bay Aquarium and a soccer game at the Rose Bowl. The gifts were topped off with a $50 cigar from the Sacramento County Labor Council.

Assembly Republican leader Chad Mayes of Yucca Valley reported accepting gifts worth $19,955, including dinners, a game ticket from the San Francisco 49ers and $880 in golf games, half of it provided by the state prison guards union.

Mayes’ biggest gift was $11,077 in travel expenses for a study trip to Germany and the Czech Republic paid for by the California Foundation on the Environment and the Economy, a San Francisco think tank financed by interests including PG&E, Shell, the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, the State Building and Construction Trades Council, Tesoro and Chevron Corp.

Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Paramount) accepted 63 gifts valued at $12,949. The biggest was $5,680 in travel expenses to China paid for by the Chinese People’s Assn. for Friendship with Foreign Countries.

Rendon also received about $1,000 in art from Assembly staffers and a $68 bottle of scotch.

Senate Republican leader Jean Fuller of Bakersfield reported 29 gifts worth $2,942, including $763 in travel expenses from the California Independent Petroleum Assn. to speak at a conference in Newport Beach.

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‘You need to speak out’: Former President George W. Bush says he has been urged to raise his voice

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A Sacramento Kings ticket and a trip to Yale were among $4,500 in gifts Gov. Jerry Brown accepted last year

(Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

Gov. Jerry Brown accepted 27 gifts worth about $4,500 last year, including dinners and travel expenses, a cellphone, bottles of wine and a ticket to a basketball game from the Sacramento Kings, according to his annual filing of an economic interest form.

The amount is down significantly from 2015, when Brown accepted gifts valued at $22,136, including money from the California State Protocol Foundation to attend a climate change conference in Paris.

Last year’s biggest gift was $1,883 in travel expenses from his alma mater, Yale Law School, for a speech he gave at the New Haven, Conn., institution during reunion week. The event included him receiving the school’s prestigious Award of Merit.

Other travel expenses were provided by groups for speeches he gave in Santa Rosa and Mount Shasta. Brown also reported receiving dinners valued at $100 each from the U.S. State Department and United Nations.

He also received $191 worth of wine from Sen. Bill Dodd (D-Napa). The $299 cellphone was given to him by Yueting Jia, the founder of internet firm LeEco of San Jose. That would have run afoul of legislation vetoed in 2014 by Brown that would have reduced the value of gifts that could be accepted by an elected official from a single source in a year from $440 to $200.

It also would have banned gifts from lobbyists and lobbying firms to the governor and legislators, and barred officials from accepting many kinds of gifts, including tickets to professional sports contests, entertainment events and amusement parks, as well as free golf games and entertainment.

Brown also reported selling some large investments last year. He sold stock worth between $100,000 and $1 million in Health Fusion Inc., a medical office software company. He sold stock with the same value range in Edgewater Park Plaza, a development firm.

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California’s secretary of state and attorney general criticize federal decision to shift course on Texas voter ID law

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State Senate Republicans begin discussing transition of leadership, but some are reluctant to take on the job

State Senate Minority Leader Jean Fuller (R-Bakersfield)
(Gary Coronado/Los Angeles Times)

Senate Republican Leader Jean Fuller of Bakersfield has begun talking to colleagues about eventually stepping down and passing the torch to another member given that she is termed out of office next year, but so far nobody has publicly agreed to take over the job, officials say.

An attempt by the 13-member Senate Republican Caucus to discuss a possible transition Tuesday was interrupted by a fire alarm drill, so the subject was put off at least until the next weekly caucus meeting, March 7.

“[Fuller] has been calling all of us to say, ‘Hey, are you interested,’” Sen. John Moorlach (R-Costa Mesa) said. “The question is, who is willing to take it and when do we do it?”

Fuller declined to comment on the issue, saying “It is the custom and practice to respect the members of the caucus and the discussions that we have.”

Sen. Patricia Bates (R-Laguna Niguel) has been approached about the job by colleagues because term limits will not force her out of office until 2022, but she declined comment on Wednesday.

“Sen. Bates said that it would not be appropriate for her to comment at this time,” said Ronald Ongtoaboc, her spokesman.

Sen. Ted Gaines (R-Rocklin) is among those not interested in becoming the leader, a representative said. Moorlach is in the same boat.

“Who wants that job? I’ve got other things to do. It’s a busy job,” Moorlach said. “I was a business major, not a poli-sci major.”

The job is made more challenging by the fact that Democrats hold two-thirds majorities in both houses, meaning Republicans are no longer in a position to alone block major actions including tax increases.

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Only a few drips of cash expected from cap-and-trade auction

Mary Nichols is chairwoman of the California Air Resources Board, which runs the cap-and-trade program.
(Carl Costas / For The Times)

California’s cap-and-trade program limped through another weak auction of pollution permits last month, according to results provided by state regulators Wednesday.

Demand for the permits, which are required to release greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere, has fluctuated over the last year amid questions about the program’s long-term viability.

A state appeals court is expected to rule soon on whether cap and trade represents an unconstitutional tax, and lawmakers are debating whether they should ensure the program continues past 2020.

Final details on the latest auction have not been released, but the summary of results posted Wednesday indicates that revenue likely will be only about $8 million. Less than 20% of the permits offered through the auction were claimed.

That’s a drop from the two previous auctions, which saw higher demand, and roughly equivalent to the May 2016 auction.

Regulators insist that generating revenue is not the goal of the cap-and-trade program. But among lawmakers, the money has been in high demand to fund transit projects and other initiatives. Gov. Jerry Brown also is counting on the program to help finance the bullet train from Los Angeles to San Francisco.

Senate leader Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles) said he’s looking forward to working more on cap and trade and questioned whether it was delivering on its goals.

“The program is not producing stable revenues for important priorities like increased transit and other clean transportation investments,” he said in a statement. “According to California Environmental Protection Agency, it may not even be achieving pollution reduction in disadvantaged communities, when that should be our utmost priority.”

Chris Busch, who tracks the cap-and-trade market for environmental firm Energy Innovation, said the results announced Wednesday were surprising.

“It’s going to take some more unpacking to really understand them,” he said.

Busch expects demand to pick up in the coming months and years because more permits will be needed to cover the state’s economic activity.

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Immigrants with criminal records would be eligible to apply for services under changes to legal defense bill

Immigrants wait in line on consultation day at the Central American Resource Center in Los Angeles.
Immigrants wait in line on consultation day at the Central American Resource Center in Los Angeles.
(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)

A state senator plans to amend a bill that would create a legal defense program for immigrants, making all people facing deportation in California eligible to apply for services regardless of criminal background.

Immigrant advocates and legal aid agencies have lauded the compromise, which they said would counter anti-immigrant rhetoric from the Trump administration associating illegal immigration with violent crime.

But it remains to be seen how moderate Democrats and Republicans, who have argued against using taxpayer funds to defend dangerous offenders, will accept the move.

The bill, introduced by state Sen. Ben Hueso (D-San Diego), would require the California Department of Social Services to contract with local nonprofits to provide lawyers for immigrants caught in deportation or removal proceedings. It also would create a trust to accept private and philanthropic donations to cover legal aid.

From its inception, lawmakers have debated over who should benefit from the state-funded initiative as California faces a budget deficit and potential cuts to federal funding.

Hueso initially sought to provide counsel to all immigrants. But before the bill’s first hearing in January, he amended it to exclude services for all those convicted of a violent felony under the state penal code.

Hueso’s office is now considering an amendment that would make all immigrants eligible for screening. But it would prohibit representation of clients convicted of a violent crime unless they have “a meritorious claim for relief from deportation,” meaning the person has a high likelihood of not being removed from the U.S. based on the facts of the case.

The change is being weighed because immigrants in some cases have been convicted of crimes they did not commit.

At a hearing Wednesday before the state Senate Judiciary Committee, representatives from several legal service groups said they were rescinding their opposition to the legislation based on the coming amendments.

Everyone in the U.S. is entitled to due process, or fair treatment under the law, regardless of legal status, lawyers told the committee. And “the consequences in removal proceedings are just as dire... in some instances more so than in a criminal context,” said Raha Jorjani, an immigration lawyer with the Alameda County public defender’s office.

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To curb opioid epidemic, California bill would tax painkillers to fund treatment

(Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times)

As concerns mount over prescription drug abuse, a California legislator wants to impose a tax on addictive opioid medications and use the funds to expand prevention and rehabilitation services.

Assemblyman Kevin McCarty (D-Sacramento) has introduced a bill that would impose a one-cent-per-milligram surcharge on prescription opioids sold in California. The tax would be imposed on wholesalers who import the medication into the state, not at the point of sale, and it would require a two-thirds approval vote in the Legislature.

“California’s opioid epidemic has cost state taxpayers millions and the lives of too many of our sons and daughters,” McCarty said in a statement. “We must do more to help these individuals find hope and sobriety. This plan will provide counties with critical resources needed to curb the deadly cycle of opioid and heroin addiction in California.”

McCarty’s office estimates the surcharge would raise tens of millions for county drug treatment programs.

The measure, AB 1512, is not the only proposal offered by lawmakers this year to combat the growing problem of prescription drug abuse, which is closely linked to an explosion of heroin use.

State Sen. Anthony Portantino (D-La Cañada Flintridge) is carrying a bill that would prohibit prescriptions of the painkiller oxycodone for anyone under 21, in an effort to quash opiate addiction among young people.

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California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra to set up a Washington office as he prepares to fight Trump administration

California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra.
California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra.
((Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) )

California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra said Wednesday that he is setting up an office in Washington, an unusual move for a state attorney general. Opening the new office is reflective of the fact that much of his attention will be devoted to Trump administration actions that might conflict with California policies, Becerra said.

Becerra, who has already filed three amicus briefings in lawsuits challenging Trump immigration orders, said the office will help him collaborate with members of California’s congressional delegation on policies that affect the Golden State.

“Decisions that are going to affect California are going to be played out in Washington, D.C., and I think it’s important for my office to have a presence here,” Becerra said.

The state attorney general said he has hired Alejandro Perez, a former legislative affairs director for the Obama administration, to run the Washington office. It will be located in existing office space maintained by the California governor’s office.

Becerra’s predecessor, Kamala Harris, did not operate an office of the state Department of Justice in the nation’s capital, officials said.

Meanwhile, in their first face-to-face meeting since he became California’s attorney general, Becerra has told U.S. Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions that the federal immigration crackdown can hurt public safety by making the immigrant community less willing to report crimes and cooperate with law enforcement.

Becerra said Wednesday that he was one of nearly 50 state and territorial attorneys general who met the day before with Sessions in a hotel ballroom during the winter meeting of the National Assn. of Attorneys General in Washington.

“I mentioned that in order for us to do our public safety [work], that you can’t really do it from Washington, D.C., and to continue to go after the folks who are committing crimes -- you’ve got to give people in the community a sense that law enforcement, locally or federally, is there to work with them,” Becerra said.

“I asked him if he would consider the fact that when people are panicked and are not willing to approach any law enforcement because of what they are hearing about the immigration actions that it makes it more difficult to protect public safety for everyone,” Becerra added.

Sessions responded that he has heard that argument before and that federal law enforcement does need to be careful not to undermine local law enforcement, Becerra recalled.

“He went on to say that they are going to do what they need to do to try to enforce immigration law to get people off the streets,” Becerra said of Sessions.

Becerra was also part of a large delegation of state attorneys general who went to the White House on Tuesday to meet briefly with President Trump, but said he and the president did not exchange words.

The attorney general noted he did not participate in a photograph of the attorneys general with the president, but declined to say why.

Updated 4:24 pm: This post was updated with information that the new attorney general’s office will be located in building space already maintained by the governor in Washington, D.C.

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Former President George W. Bush to speak in Simi Valley tonight after recent criticism of Trump

Former President George W. Bush with Johnnie Yellock, a veteran featured in Bush's new book "Portraits of Courage," at his presidential library in Dallas on Feb. 28.
(Laura Buckman / AFP/Getty Images)

Former President George W. Bush’s speech Wednesday evening at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley is billed as a discussion of his new book featuring his paintings honoring members of the military and veterans he became close to after leaving office. But all ears will be listening for whether the former president speaks out about President Trump.

Though Bush painstakingly avoided criticizing former President Barack Obama, his Democratic successor, after leaving office in 2009, he has raised eyebrows in recent days with remarks viewed as barbs aimed at Trump, a fellow Republican.

While promoting his book, “Portraits of Courage: A Commander in Chief’s Tribute to America’s Warriors,” Bush has spoken out about the importance of the media, immigrants and investigating allegations of Russian interference in the November presidential election.

“I think we all need answers” about the claims of Russian influence, Bush said Monday on NBC’s “Today” show.

Days after Trump’s administration banned several media outlets including the Los Angeles Times from a briefing, Bush also called the free press “indispensable to democracy.”

“We need an independent media to hold people like me to account,” Bush said, adding that when he was president, he tried to impress the importance of a free press upon Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Bush, 70, also told People magazine that he was displeased by the current political tone in the country.

“I don’t like the racism and I don’t like the name-calling and I don’t like the people feeling alienated,” he said in the magazine, which goes on sale Friday. “Nobody likes that.”

Bush was immediately slammed by conservative outlets.

Bush undercuts Trump a month into presidency after staying silent on Obama for 8 years,” read a Monday headline in the Washington Times.

The fraternity of living American presidents is small, leading to relationships that can cross party lines.

Bush and his wife Laura attended Trump’s inauguration in January, though his representatives said that neither voted for the GOP nominee. Bush’s brother Jeb, the former Florida governor, ran for the GOP presidential nomination against Trump and tangled with the billionaire, who labeled him “low-energy.”

Bush’s relationship with Obama is unclear, but pictures earlier this year of him and former First Lady Michelle Obama warmly embracing at the opening of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture were widely circulated on social media. His father, former President George H.W. Bush, has a famously warm relationship with former President Bill Clinton, who unseated the elder Bush in 1992.

George W. Bush has largely eschewed the public limelight since leaving office, instead picking up the hobby of painting.

But he has made exceptions for promoting causes that are important to him, notably veterans. Tickets for Bush’s speech about “Portraits of Courage” are sold out.

Proceeds from the book, which contains 66 portraits and a mural Bush painted of soldiers who served in the U.S. armed forces during the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, will benefit groups that help veterans.

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California’s statewide politicians pan Trump’s speech in real time, but Gov. Jerry Brown stays silent

Top Democratic officeholders in California gave unsurprisingly negative reviews of President Trump’s first speech to Congress.

Here’s a sampling of the live-tweeted comebacks from statewide officeholders:

Absent from the insta-commentary was the Democrat at the very top of California’s political hierarchy: Gov. Jerry Brown. His Twitter feed had no immediate mention of the president’s speech.

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California legislators react to Trump’s prime-time speech with a predictable split by party

California lawmakers were quick to react through social media to President Trump’s speech to a joint session of Congress.

Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Paramount) and Senate President pro Tem Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles) wrote a number of tweets critical of both Trump’s tone and his policy proposals.

De León took issue, in particular, with the president’s comments on changes to the nation’s immigration system that would end what he called the “current system of lower-skilled immigration.”

Republicans praised the speech. Assemblywoman Melissa Melendez (R-Lake Elsinore) applauded promises on education, healthcare and illegal immigration.

Assemblyman Joaquin Arambula (D-Fresno), an emergency medicine physician, disagreed with the president’s pledge to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

Others retweeted various items related to the speech, from news organization fact-checking efforts to excerpts provided by the White House.

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California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra misses photo op with President Trump

President Donald Trump.
President Donald Trump.
(Andrew Harnik / AP)

After weeks of criticizing President Trump over his travel ban, California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra was noticeably absent Tuesday when two dozen state attorneys general posed for a photo with Trump at the White House.

Becerra was in Washington with 47 counterparts from other states for the winter meeting of the National Assn. of Attorneys General, where the elected officials were set to discuss healthcare fraud, abuse and waste.

Trump stood on a riser with some 24 attorneys general for the photo in the East Room, according to a pool report.

Representatives for Becerra did not return emails and phone calls seeking information on whether he was invited or decided to skip the event.

“Some great people, some great people,” Trump said during the photo session.

Florida Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi, who was standing to his left, responded: “Thank you, Mr. President.”

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The ‘Bernie vote’ is split in the race to replace Xavier Becerra in Congress

Some of the hopefuls running for the 34th Congressional District appeared at a candidate forum Saturday.
(Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)

Supporters of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders don’t have many clues yet on whom to back in the dizzying array of candidates vying for the 34th Congressional District.

Sanders himself has been coy about the race: When asked whether he would endorse Arturo Carmona, a former deputy political director for his campaign, he said: “We’ll see.”

Three prominent Sanders endorsers have publicly announced their support for Wendy Carrillo, another early Sanders backer.

Lucy Flores, a former Nevada legislator Sanders endorsed for Congress last year; Rania Batrice, former deputy campaign manager for Sanders’ presidential bid; and Linda Sarsour, a Muslim American activist and co-chair of the Women’s March on Washington, announced Tuesday that they support Carrillo, who recently spent time at the Standing Rock protest against the Dakota Access Pipeline.

Although Flores has been campaigning for and supporting Carrillo on social media for months, her endorsement was highlighted as part of an effort to emphasize Carrillo’s support within the Sanders political network.

“Wendy is a woman of the revolution, and I am so proud to support her as she continues her activism and tireless work on behalf of the people,” Batrice said in a statement released by Carrillo’s campaign.

Our Revolution, the political group Sanders helped start that now operates independently, decided recently not to endorse in the April 4 primary, in which 23 candidates are running.

The group has endorsed six candidates nationwide so far in 2017, including Gil Cedillo for Los Angeles City Council.

Shannon Jackson, executive director of Our Revolution, said its board carefully weighed the decision not to endorse.

“We listened to our supporters, and the base is split,” Jackson said. “We don’t want to go against the people who are there on the ground, doing the work.”

------------

UPDATES

5:28 p.m.: This post was updated to include context about Our Revolution’s other endorsements.

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Artist known for nude Trump portrait proposes initiative to add gender identity protections to California Constitution

A Los Angeles artist has proposed a new ballot initiative to add protections for gender identity to the California Constitution.

Illma Gore submitted paperwork to the state attorney general on Monday proposing a ballot initiative to add a new section to the state Constitution declaring “free exercise and enjoyment of gender identity without discrimination or preference are guaranteed.”

The initiative is dubbed the Gender Identity Liberty and Freedom Act.

The language mirrors an existing section protecting religious beliefs that reads: “free exercise and enjoyment of religion without discrimination or preference” in the Constitution.

The painting by L.A. artist Illma Gore at London's Maddox Gallery
(Andy Rain / EPA)

Gore, the artist behind the measure, became something of an Internet sensation after she was banned from Facebook for sharing a painting she made depicting a nude Donald Trump. She also said she was punched by a Trump supporter last year.

The attorney general is tasked with crafting a brief title and summary of each measure that will end up on the state ballot.

There is a 30-day public comment period on Gore’s proposal. The state Department of Finance and the Legislative Analyst’s Office also have 50 days to prepare a fiscal impact analysis of the proposal.

After a title and summary are issued, Gore has 180 days to gather 585,407 valid signatures to qualify the proposed initiative for the ballot.

Gore said volunteers are starting to prepare for the signature-gathering process.

“California is one of the leaders of the country in diversity and LGBT rights. I don’t think we will have a problem gathering signatures here,” she said in an email.

She said the goal of the measure is to “protect gender identity as a form of free speech under the Constitution.”

The initiative would essentially make LGBT rights the same as religious rights in the Constitution, said Jessica Levinson, a Loyola Law School professor who specializes in election law.

“It is trying to stave off or prevent individual laws that, for instance, deal with a landlord who doesn’t want to rent to a transgender person, or an employer who doesn’t want to provide the same level of benefits, or maybe a pediatrician who doesn’t want to serve a gay couple,” she said.

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Meet the anti-poverty crusader who now has a top role in crafting the California state budget

State Sen. Holly Mitchell
(Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)

Two years ago, Holly J. Mitchell stood on the state Senate floor and, in a crisp, deliberate voice, laced into the budget that her fellow Democrats were poised to approve.

The plan “picks winners and losers,” the state senator from Los Angeles said. “It appears to me that poor people in California and their children continue to be on the losing end of that equation.”

Mitchell had never been shy in urging her colleagues to do more for the poor. But this time, she went even further — withholding her support when the bill came to a vote, a flagrant violation of an unwritten legislative rule among the Capitol’s ruling Democrats that could best be described as “thou shalt not defect on a budget vote.”

The plan passed anyway, and Mitchell could’ve been shunned and made a pariah. But since that rebellion, her influence has only grown. Last year, her signature cause — repeal of a decades-old rule capping aid to certain mothers on welfare — became law. And this year, she was awarded the job she’s long coveted: chair of the Senate budget committee.

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Three Californians whose relatives were killed by immigrants in the U.S. illegally will be Trump’s speech guests

(Barbara Davidson / Los Angeles Times)

Three Californians whose relatives were killed by people in the U.S. illegally will be among President Trump’s guests as he addresses a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night.

Their presence indicates that illegal immigration -- on which Trump staked his campaign -- will likely be a major part of his speech to the Senate and House .

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State lawmaker proposes bill to help determine how many untested rape kits exist in California

Tens of thousands of rape kits are sitting untested in evidence locker rooms across the country. But no one knows exactly how many, and police and sheriff’s departments rarely track the reasons why the exams go unanalyzed.

A bill authored by Assemblyman David Chiu (D-San Francisco) would require local law enforcement agencies in California to report information on their rape kit evidence to the state Department of Justice through a database within 120 days of the collection of a sample.

Chiu said the improved recording would help policymakers assess which departments need resources to tackle their backlogs, and provide greater transparency around an intrusive procedure that lasts hours.

“We know the value and the power of DNA evidence,” he said. “But for thousands of survivors and victims in California, they don’t know why the DNA evidence has not been tested.”

The legislation moved out of the Assembly Public Safety Committee on Tuesday on a 7-0 vote.

Speaking before the committee, Cory Salzillo, legislative director with the California State Sheriffs’ Assn., said his organization opposed the bill due to its fiscal and workload implications.

“It creates another unfunded mandate,” he said, while state law already requires law enforcement agencies to notify victims when their samples will not be examined.

But supporters said the state needed better reporting mechanisms as it attempts to measure and potentially reduce a backlog that the state Justice Department has estimated to reach upward of 400,000 untested rape kits.

Alameda County Dist. Atty. Nancy O’Malley said police agencies log all of the kits in their property collection databases. The additional work the bill would require would amount only to a “few extra keystrokes,” she said.

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Jimmy Gomez consolidates support from major labor unions with endorsement from L.A. County Federation of Labor

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Lawmakers support creating task force to study impaired driving by marijuana users

Customers buy products at a medical marijuana dispensary in San Francisco in April.
Customers buy products at a medical marijuana dispensary in San Francisco in April.
(Haven Daley / Associated Press)

The California Highway Patrol would form a task force to develop methods for identifying when drivers are impaired by marijuana or prescription drugs, under legislation that moved forward on Tuesday.

The study would also look at technology for measuring impairment by the chemical THC, under legislation proposed by the California Police Chiefs Assn. and introduced by Assemblyman Tom Lackey (R-Palmdale).

“The bill, AB 6, is a reasonable approach forward to address our fight against drugged driving,” said Lackey, a retired CHP sergeant. “The urgency of this should be very clear to all of us.”

The task force would include law enforcement officials, a prosecutor, physician, drug researcher, defense attorney and representatives of the marijuana industry.

The Assembly Public Safety Committee unanimously recommended the bill after hearing emotional testimony from Antelope Valley teacher Karen Smith about how her husband was killed by a car driven by a young man who had allegedly used marijuana. She said she had to push hard to get blood tests analyzed.

“What has happened here is a disgrace, and no other family should have to go through it,” she told the panel.

Proposition 64, which California voters approved in November to legalize the recreational use of marijuana, provides funds for studies on the impact of cannabis on driving and to develop training and procedures for identifying drugged driving.

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Republican lawmakers blast removal of state senator from the floor, call for full investigation

Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León on Monday pledged a nonpartisan review into actions taken last week by Democratic leaders to remove Sen. Janet Nguyen from the house floor, saying he was troubled and unsettled by the tense events that unfolded.

“Members, last Thursday was not one of the finest moments of the Senate,” he said. “As the leader of this body, I take full responsibility for what transpired and in making sure that it never happens again.”

Republican lawmakers commended the statement. But they blasted what they described as the majority party’s infringement of free speech. They demanded a formal apology for Nguyen and called for the resignation of De León’s chief of staff, who they said made inappropriate comments about the incident to the media.

Nguyen (R-Garden Grove), a Vietnamese refugee, on Thursday was escorted from the Senate floor by sergeants-at-arms after she tried to offer what she said was a different historical perspective on the late Tom Hayden and his opposition to the Vietnam War.

Reading a letter to Secretary of the Senate Daniel Alvarez, Sen. Jean Fuller (R-Bakersfield), leader of the Senate Republican Caucus, called for a complete and transparent investigation.

Fuller said Nguyen spoke from the heart when she said Hayden’s being honored triggered outrage among the constituents in her district’s Vietnamese community, where memories of the war were still raw.

“Brutality of the Vietnamese Communist party continues to haunt the collective memory of the Vietnamese American community,” Fuller said. The letter was submitted to the Senate journal through a unanimous vote.

Before the start of session, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle shook hands with Nguyen as she entered the chamber for her first time back since her ouster last week. Some Republican lawmakers embraced her and whispered words of approval and encouragement.

“Thursday’s events were shocking and distressing,” she later said. “But what happened today on the floor reaffirmed my faith in America’s deep belief in the democratic process.”

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Gun rights activists win round in free-speech court case against state of California

(Andrew Burton / Getty Images)

A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction Monday against the state for continuing to demand the removal of a blog post that listed the home addresses of legislators who voted for California’s newest gun control measures.

The lawsuit is funded by the Firearms Policy Coalition on behalf of one of the group’s members, who is listed in the lawsuit under the pseudonym “Publius” and writes a blog called The Real Write Winger.

Last year, the blog published the names, home addresses and home phone numbers of 40 legislators who voted for a package of gun control measures in June, saying the lawmakers “decided to make you a criminal if you don’t abide by their dictates. So below is the current tyrant registry.”

The Web hosting company WordPress took the post down after it received a letter from Deputy Legislative Counsel Kathryn Londenberg saying the information put elected officials at “grave risk,” and citing state law barring the release of such information.

Chief U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill in Fresno issued an order Monday granting the plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction in the 1st Amendment civil rights lawsuit, saying the plaintiffs are “likely to succeed” on their claims that the state law violates the 1st Amendment.

“We are delighted that Judge O’Neill saw the statute and the State’s enforcement of it for exactly what it was: an unconstitutional restriction on free speech,” said coalition president Brandon Combs.

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Sen. Kamala Harris and other black senators to talk tonight about diversity, economics and black leaders

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House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes warns against ‘witch hunt’ over Trump-Russia ties

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes (R-Tulare) talks to reporters about his committee's Russia investigation.
(Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. Devin Nunes said on Monday he had seen no evidence from the intelligence community that there was contact between Russia and the Trump campaign.

“I want to be very careful; we can’t just go on a witch hunt against Americans because they appear in a news story,” said Nunes (R-Tulare). “We still don’t have any evidence of them talking to Russia.”

He said the committee had been briefed on the “highlights” of what the intelligence community had found but was still collecting evidence.

The committee’s ranking Democrat, Adam B. Schiff (D-Burbank), quickly responded, saying the committee’s investigation is in its “infancy” and it’s too soon to reach conclusions about the evidence.

“We haven’t obtained any of the evidence yet, so it’s premature for us to be saying we’ve reached any conclusion about the issue of collusion,” Schiff said. “The most that we’ve had are private conversations, the chair and I, with intelligence officials. That’s not a substitute for an investigation.”

The House and Senate intelligence committees are conducting separate investigations into Russia’s reported attempts to influence voters in 2016 in an effort to curtail Hillary Clinton’s chances and boost Donald Trump’s. A leaked U.S. intelligence report on the attempts did not look at whether the effort succeeded.

The House committee has expanded a previous ongoing investigation of Russia cyberhacking to include a look at efforts to interfere in the 2016 election, Nunes told reporters Monday. Though it is still in its early stages — the leaders of the committee are still discussing the investigation’s scope — Nunes said he expected the findings to be made public.

Schiff and Nunes spoke separately to reporters Monday. Schiff said the two agreed privately that they would jointly address reporters about the investigation going forward.

Nunes, who served as a member of Trump’s transition team, said he continued to be concerned about leaks of classified and sensitive information from the White House and intelligence communities. The leaks — one of which resulted in a report about the FBI investigating Trump campaign officials — will be part of the committee’s investigation.

“A government can’t function with massive leaks at the highest level,” Nunes said.

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California state leaders are officially asking for records on recent immigration enforcement moves

Amid national debate over whether the Trump administration is following through on its campaign promise of mass deportations, state Senate leader Kevin de León and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon on Monday filed a federal records request to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The Democratic leaders, who have been vocal opponents of Trump’s anti-immigrant rhetoric, want to see documents related to ICE’s implementation of the president’s January immigration executive order and Homeland Security Secretary John F. Kelly’s February memo on immigration enforcement and sanctuary cities.

They also asked for records on the planning and execution of February immigration raids, which ICE has said were not part of a new crackdown.

In the letter, De León (D-Los Angeles) and Rendon (D-Paramount) said there should be transparency about the agency’s policies on immigration enforcement at or near government entities and community buildings, including churches, schools and hospitals.

They also asked about the agency’s policies on access to lawyers for people who have been detained and treatment of people registered for immigration programs such as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals.

ICE has released little information, they said, resulting in “increased confusion and fear in many communities.”

California is believed to be home to huge portion of the millions of immigrants living in the country illegally, and many families have a mixture of immigration statuses.

“All of these parents and children are potentially at risk of separation at the hands of ICE,” the request says. “To set the community’s fear to rest, much greater clarity is needed about what ICE’s enforcement policies, procedures and priorities will be going forward.”

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California’s campaign finance and lobbying violations are down, but total fines are up

The California Capitol in Sacramento.
The California Capitol in Sacramento.
(Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)

California’s campaign finance watchdog found fewer lobbyists and campaigns to sanction in 2016, while collecting more in fines as it focused on bigger cases.

The Fair Political Practices Commission reported Monday that last year’s violations were at a three-year low. But the agency collected $200,000 more in fines than it did in 2015, raking in $900,000 because it pursued bigger cases.

The agency issued fines in 311 cases last year, down from the record 333 such cases the year before, and 332 cases in 2014.

The agency also sent out 489 warning letters last year for technical or minor violations, but didn’t fine those violations. It sent out hundreds more warning letters in 2014.

Big cases last year included one in which state Sen. Tony Mendoza (D-Artesia) and supporters agreed to pay $57,000 for making campaign contributions over state limits, improperly controlling multiple committees and filing inaccurate campaign statements.

A case against Oakland business AB&I Foundry discovered that 37 campaign contributions it made were laundered, hiding the true source of the money, and the company was fined $100,000.

The numbers reflect an agency “focusing on strict enforcement of serious violations,” chairwoman Jodi Remke wrote in the agency’s annual report.

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L.A. County Young Democrats endorse Sara Hernandez in congressional race

Sara Hernandez received the endorsement of the Los Angeles County Young Democrats over the weekend. On Twitter, Hernandez said the local club “represents the changing face of progressive politics,” and called their endorsement “an honor.”

The endorsement comes days after the local club co-hosted a forum featuring Hernandez and five other candidates for the 34th Congressional District seat.

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Trump provides excitement for California Republicans, but at home there’s less to cheer about

San Diego Republican Party Chairman Tony Krvaric attends the California Republican Party convention Saturday in Sacramento.
(Carl Costas / For The Times)

California Republicans were in a festive mood at their weekend convention in Sacramento.

They toasted their airy new downtown headquarters with views of the Capitol and decorated with pictures of Ronald Reagan and other memorabilia from the party’s storied history in the state. They reelected leadership that had turned a practically bankrupt party into one that raised $19 million last year. And they celebrated having helped elect a Republican president for the first time in more than a decade.

“Isn’t it nice to win?” Rep. Devin Nunes of Tulare asked hundreds of delegates and guests during a dinner speech Saturday night.

But for all the cheer, the state GOP still faces a hard reality. It has not elected a statewide politician in more than a decade, its numbers are dwindling, Democrats have a supermajority in both houses of the Legislature and, after three consecutive election cycles where Republicans ceded the top posts in government to Democrats, it has no major prospects to run for governor or Senate next year.

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Election officials question financial reports of Darrell Issa’s opponent

(Charlie Neuman / San Diego Union-Tribune)

As Democrat Doug Applegate begins raising money for a second challenge to Republican Rep. Darrell Issa, federal elections officials are questioning his campaign’s financial reporting, and filings show a nearly $400,000 drop in cash on hand that the campaign has yet to explain.

Applegate, a retired Marine colonel from San Clemente, lost a close race in November as a first-time candidate against Issa, of Vista. Applegate soon after announced he would run again in 2018.

Applegate’s campaign has missed deadlines for five requests for additional information from the Federal Election Commission since July, records show. Election officials’ concerns include mathematical errors, misidentification of contributors, failure to adequately describe expenditures and discrepancies in accounting for loans Applegate made to the campaign.

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Resolutions backing Trump agenda sail through on last day of California GOP convention, but internal politics bubble up

(Christine Mai-Duc / Los Angeles Times)

There was no debate before delegates easily passed a slate of resolutions supporting key tenets of the Trump administration’s agenda Sunday, the last day of the California Republican convention.

The four resolutions, all supported by the Tea Party California Caucus, were to support Trump’s travel ban, repeal and replace Obamacare, and to oppose a gas tax hike proposed in Gov. Jerry Brown’s budget and Democrats’ efforts to create sanctuary cities.

But although those measures, controversial with many other Californians, sailed through with an easy voice vote, internal politics of another sort took center stage for a brief moment.

The question was whether or not a newly formed group, the California Impact Republicans, should be chartered as an affiliate of the state party. The group was started by former members of the California Republican Assembly, part of the most conservative wing of the state GOP.

Although Ronald Reagan once described the California Republican Assembly as the “conscience of the Republican Party,” it has been declining in numbers and influence for some time.

Baron Night, a CRA board member from Buena Park, rose to oppose the new group’s charter.

“If you can’t trust a person or an organization, there is no relationship,” Night began, before listing four officers of the Impact Republicans and saying they hadn’t complied with party rules.

After being warned by Brulte about avoiding personal attacks, Night said the committee “didn’t do enough research” into the backgrounds of the officers, all of whom are former CRA officers.

After about 10 minutes of procedural confusion and debate, a loud voice vote showed clear division among the ranks of the party delegates, with so many opposing the group’s charter that Brulte called for a second vote.

“In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it,” Brulte said after another clearly divided voice vote.

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California Republican Party convention delegates elect Jim Brulte to third term as chairman

Jim Brulte
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)

The California Republican Party on Sunday voted to keep Chairman Jim Brulte in the job for a third term to steer the party toward what is expected to be a crucial election for the GOP in 2018.

Brutle, a former state Senate Republican leader from Rancho Cucamonga, took over as chairman in 2013 and is credited for putting the state party on a firm financial footing and launching a rebuilding process.

At the party convention last year, Republican delegates voted to extend the term limits for the GOP chair. The change was written in a way to make it apply only to Brulte, so it will not affect future party chiefs.

Prior to that, party rules limited state Republican chairs to two two-year terms.

Delegates also reelected the rest of the party’s current leadership team: Stanislaus County Supervisor Kristin Olsen, a former Assembly Republican leader, as vice chair; former Nevada County Republican Party chair Deborah Wilder as secretary; and former Downey mayor Mario Guerra as treasurer.

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Rep. Devin Nunes tells California Republicans to push five ballot initiatives, though each could face tall hurdles

Rep. Devin Nunes on Saturday night urged California Republicans to regain relevancy by pushing ballot initiatives that could be a tough sell with the state’s voters, ones that would create battles potentially costing tens of millions of dollars to wage.

The ideas he floated in his speech to the state GOP convention include increased offshore oil drilling, elimination of the state income tax, shifting the Legislature into one body or part-time status, moving bonds earmarked for high-speed rail to water storage and changing how public employee union dues are collected.

Nunes, a Central Valley representative who chairs the powerful House Intelligence Committee, said the state’s Republicans needed to be as bold as President Trump was during his campaign.

“Isn’t it nice to win?” Nunes told hundreds of supporters attending the convention’s dinner event. “This guy put it all on the line. He was willing to lose. We have to be willing to lose.”

Most of the proposals have either proven unappealing to California voters in the polls, have lost at the ballot box already, or would require enormous structural changes to the state’s government and finances.

For example, a ballot initiative to transfer high-speed rail money to water storage failed to garner sufficient donors to earn a spot on the fall 2016 ballot.

More than 6 in 10 likely California voters opposed increased offshore oil drilling in a July 2016 poll by the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California.

In 2012, a ballot measure that would have banned automatic public employee union dues from being used for political purposes, Proposition 32, failed by a 56%-43% margin.

Nunes’ suggestion of eliminating California’s personal income tax stands in stark contrast to data from the state Department of Finance estimating it will comprise 68% of all general fund revenues in the fiscal year that begins this summer.

Nunes, speaking to reporters after his speech, said the money could be replaced by changing the state’s sales tax.

“It’s been a few years since I worked on it, but we looked at doing, basically, a broader type of sales tax,” he said. “You would just basically get rid of the income tax and just basically have a consumption type system.”

He said such a move would not be regressive.

“It’s a very transparent way to do it, 150 countries around the world do it that way, there’s no reason why the state of California couldn’t do it,” Nunes said.

A state commission studied a similar tax plan in 2009, but the proposal was summarily rejected by state lawmakers.

Nunes told the delegates and their guests that if the ballot measures fail, Republicans should keep trying until they succeed. He later told reporters that he estimated it would cost the state GOP $10 million to $12 million each election cycle that the initiatives appear on the ballot.

“I would argue that’s the best $10 or $12 million we could spend by putting the initiatives on the ballot” and therefore putting a Republican agenda on the ballot each election, he said.

“I think it would show people in California what we actually stand for. I think right now it’s very difficult to get our message across because we’re drowned out.”

Kevin Spillane, a veteran GOP strategist, said Nunes’ proposals were not realistic.

“It sounds like smoke and mirrors rather than a practical political strategy for Republicans in California. Congressman Nunes has failed to sponsor any ballot measures in the past. It’s hard to believe he would do so in the future.”

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Transgender California GOP delegate says the Trump administration will protect the LGBTQ community

Republican delegate Gina Roberts at the headquarters of the California Republican Party on Friday.
(Phil Willon / Los Angeles Times)

Gina Roberts, a champion target shooter and supporter of President Trump, says she wishes everyone would take a deep breath and relax about the controversy over transgender students using bathrooms.

Roberts was one of hundreds of GOP loyalists attending the California Republican Party convention in Sacramento this weekend and almost assuredly, she surmised, the party’s first transgender delegate.

At a Saturday gathering of tea party supporters, Roberts stood up and asked how they could all work together without all the “background noise,” a suggestion that appeared to be well received by other speakers there.

Beforehand, she told The Times that Trump’s critics overreacted to the administration’s decision to cease a federal mandate, implemented by President Obama, directing schools to allow transgender students to use restrooms and other facilities that match their gender identities.

Roberts called the Obama policy heavy-handed, saying threats of federal legal action put conservatives on the defensive and escalated tensions.

“I’ve been using the bathroom for 35 years for the gender I presented, and I’m not exactly a small person who isn’t noticed,” said Roberts, 62. “I’ve never had a problem.”

Roberts also criticized those who want to ban transgender students from using the bathroom that matches their gender identity, saying it was ignorant to believe they are sexual “predators” who should be feared.

“I think transgender rights need to be considered civil rights,” Roberts said. “Would you require black people to use separate bathrooms?”

Roberts said she is confident that the Trump administration will work diligently to protect the LGBTQ community from discrimination, saying Vice President Mike Pence made that exact promise.

Roberts is chair of the San Diego Log Cabin Republicans, a chapter of the nation’s largest gay GOP political organization, and a longtime engineering consultant from Valley Center. Roberts said she underwent her transition surgery just five weeks ago.

During the presidential campaign, Roberts initially supported Rand Paul and Carly Fiorina. When Trump won the nomination, she said it was an easy decision to support him because she thought Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton was unfit for office.

Roberts, a board member of the San Diego County Gun Owners organization, saw Clinton as a threat to gun rights. She said she was also outraged by Clinton’s use of a private email server while she was secretary of State.

“I hated Hillary,” Roberts said. “I was in the national security field. Had I done that, I would have been in jail for 35 years.”

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Looks like the new California GOP boss will be the same as the old boss

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Rep. Darrell Issa calls on the GOP to reach out to all Americans — even his party’s critics

Rep. Darrell Issa speaks at the California Republican Party convention in Sacramento Sunday.
(Carl Costas / For the Times)

Republican Rep. Darrell Issa of Vista, who once called President Obama “one of the most corrupt presidents in modern times,” struck a more conciliatory tone Saturday and said Republicans have to do a better job listening to the concerns of all Americans, even those critical of the GOP.

Issa, speaking at the California Republican Party’s convention in Sacramento, said that after surviving a surprising tight reelection campaign in November, he too needs to follow that advice.

“We as a party have not reached out enough and not translated over these last years that we … do believe in the people, our constituents,” he told party delegates.

He added that last week he spent 90 minutes meeting with a mix of protestors and tea party supporters gathered outside his office in Vista, fielding all their questions.

“Some of the people did not have their hearts and minds changed. But some did,” he said.

Issa, whose congressional district stretches from La Jolla to Dana Point, defeated Democratic challenger Doug Applegate by fewer than 2,000 votes in November, his closest election since taking office in 2003.

During his lunchtime speech, Issa took a few shots at the former president, referring to him as “Barack Hussein Obama” at one point, and accusing him of failing to live up to promises to increase transparency in the federal government.

Most of Issa’s speech, however, focused on promise ahead for the nation now that President Trump is in the White House.

“I can tell you how Donald Trump won this election. Donald Trump believes in America’s greatness. He had the gall to say, ‘Let’s make American great again,’” Issa said.

Afterward, while talking with reporters, Issa repeated his call for a special prosecutor to investigate Russian interference in the 2016 election, which could include any communications between Russian officials and the Trump administration. Issa first called for the independent investigation Friday night when he appeared on HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher.”

“That’s historically the right way to deal with this,” Issa said Saturday.

Issa also said he supports a robust, bipartisan investigation by the House and Senate intelligence committees.

“Republicans and Democrats who have special access in the select intelligence committees, they do need to know what Russia was doing and how they were doing it,” Issa said. “We are dealing with an evil, smaller empire.”

Issa added that Trump’s national security advisor and secretaries of Defense and Homeland Security all believe that “Russia is evil and that we need to have checks against them.”

He predicted that Republican attempts to replace the Affordable Care Act will be an arduous process.

“This is hard and I hope Republicans don’t accept anyone’s easy answer,” Issa said.

Finally, when asked if he has any interest in possibly running for California governor or the U.S. Senate, he mostly sidestepped the question.

“I’ve got a big job right now,” he said. “I’m going to be very busy.”

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Trump’s California supporters celebrate victory and turn to 2018

Nancy Neff of Palo Alto poses with a cardboard replica of President Trump at the California Republican Party's organizing convention, which kicks off Friday in Sacramento.
Nancy Neff of Palo Alto poses with a cardboard replica of President Trump at the California Republican Party’s organizing convention, which kicks off Friday in Sacramento.
(Phil Willon / Los Angeles Times)

Hundreds of California supporters who worked to get Donald Trump elected president gathered Saturday afternoon to celebrate their victory — and to try to turn their energies toward improving the GOP’s relevance in their home state.

“Our job is to build a structure that wins elections and wins elections right here,” said Tim Clark, Trump’s California campaign manager who is now serving as a liaison between the White House and the Department of Health and Human Services. “We’ve done our job nationally. Now we have to focus on our state in 2018.”

No Republican has won statewide office in California since 2006, and the party’s voter registration is at a historic low. But Trump had more than 300,000 volunteers and donors in the state. Tens of thousands of them called voters in battleground states.

“There was a lot of criticism from some that we as a party didn’t do enough to win our state in November. You don’t understand, we did,” Clark said, pointing to victories in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Florida, Wisconsin and North Carolina that were critical to winning the White House. “We won our states.”

Clark said many of the donors and volunteers are “fresh faces” who were not previously engaged with politics. They and the pro-Trump organizations that have sprung up around California could be integrated with state party efforts to work on the 2018 election, when every statewide office will be on the ballot and Sen. Dianne Feinstein will either run for reelection or leave her Senate seat open.

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After being removed from state Senate floor, Orange County legislator becomes folk hero of the California GOP convention

State Senator Janet Nguyen (R-San Jose), center, speaks to a reporter at the California Republican Party convention in Sacramento.
(Christine Mai-Duc / Los Angeles Times)

When Republican Sen. Janet Nguyen of Garden Grove was removed from the state Senate floor Thursday after she tried to make a statement about the late Tom Hayden and his opposition to the Vietnam War, many predicted it was just a matter of time before California Republicans highlighted the incident at their convention this weekend.

They were quickly proven right.

On Friday, a lunch for party leaders, Central Valley Republican Marcelino Valdez referred in a speech to an unnamed young Vietnamese refugee girl seeking freedom, an obvious reference to Nguyen.

By Saturday morning, attendees were sporting hastily printed stickers that read “I Stand with Janet Nguyen.” The phrase was a play on the hashtag #IStandWithLiz, spawned after Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren was silenced by Republicans on the floor of the U.S. Senate.

At a luncheon headlined by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista), Nguyen was introduced with a video highlighting the incident and her personal story of fleeing communist Vietnam.

“We have to stand strong and protect everybody’s 1st Amendment rights, freedom of speech, freedom of religion and freedom to have a different perspective. Because in the country I come from, that’s not allowed,” Nguyen told the crowd, shortly before leading them in the Pledge of Allegiance.

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Trump cut-out goes missing at California GOP convention

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How are California GOP delegates feeling about Trump’s first weeks in office?

Jim Shoemaker, a Republican delegate from San Joaquin county, displays his support for President Trump at the California Republican Party convention in Sacramento on Saturday
(Carl Costas/ For the Times)

A flurry of smartphone snapshots with a cardboard Donald Trump and blazing red “Make California Great Again” hats signaled that many of the GOP delegates at the California Republican Party convention this weekend have embraced the new president and his aggressive tactics to shift the nation to the right.

But a fair number of Republicans at the event said they still harbored concerns about Trump’s divisive rhetoric, abrupt governing style and doubts about his allegiance to conservative ideals. Those voices were largely drowned out by praise from Trump loyalists and delegates, however, who said they have been impressed by the president’s policy agenda and conservative Cabinet appointments.

“I don’t know about you, but Donald Trump’s just rockin’ my socks,” state GOP Chairman Jim Brulte told the party leadership on Friday.

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Jim Brulte likely to secure third term as state GOP chairman

California Republican Party Chairman Jim Brulte.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Jim Brulte’s bid for a third term as chairman of the California Republican Party appears to be a lock.

GOP delegates gathered in Sacramento for the party’s three-day convention on Sunday will cast the deciding vote, but thus far Brulte doesn’t face a challenge to extending his job as party leader for another two years.

“I think Brulte is the most phenomenal state chairman we’ve had in memory, including my own tenure,” said Republican National Committee member Shawn Steel, who served as state party chairman from 2001 to 2003. “He’s enthusiastic. He’s the best strategist in either party. He raising phenomenal amounts of money. He’s really the linchpin of our party.”

Brulte, a former state Senate Republican leader from Rancho Cucamonga, took over as chairman in 2013 at a time when the party was in disarray and in massive debt. He is largely credited with helping turn around the party’s finances and plotting a course for the depleted GOP to become relevant again in California.

Despite the GOP’s lack of success in statewide races in recent years, and decline in registered voters, Republicans praised Brulte’s continuing efforts to revive the party — including the GOP’s successes in city council races and other local government posts.

At the party convention last year, Republican delegates voted to extend the term limits for the GOP chair. The change was written in a way to make it apply only to Brulte, so it will not affect future party chiefs.

Prior to that, party rules limited state Republican chairs to two two-year terms.

Tea Party California Caucus chairman Randall Jordan, who has been critical of party leadership, considers Brulte to be a friend. But he plans to abstain when delegates vote on Sunday.

“I think the party is severely lacking when it comes to having grassroots activists in leadership positions,” said Jordan, who also serves as vice chairman of the Republican Party of San Luis Obispo County. “Unless you’re part of the machine that runs the runs the [California Republican Party], then you’re not accepted to run for leadership.”

Still, Jordan praised Brulte for “bending over backwards” to ensure that the tea party movement has a strong voice in the party.

“I think Jim plays the game, but I think Jim is also a very staunch conservative,” Jordan said. “I think he’s conflicted.”

GOP delegates on Saturday are scheduled to officially nominate candidates for chairman and other party leadership posts. The vote on those nominations will be Sunday morning.

FOR THE RECORD

12:13 p.m.: An earlier version of this article gave the name of the Tea Party California Caucus chairman as Randall Jones. He is Randall Jordan.

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At Republican state convention, conservative radio host and former Trump critic Hugh Hewitt accentuates the positive

Conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt speaks at a dinner banquet at the California Republican Party
(Christine Mai-Duc / Los Angeles Times)

Conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt, who called on Donald Trump to step aside as the Republican presidential nominee late in the campaign, spent much of his speech praising the president’s policies and appointees that he agrees with.

Speaking at a dinner banquet on the first night of the California Republican Party’s convention, Hewitt had high praise for Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Neil M. Gorsuch, saying, “The best three things about the Trump administration are named Gorsuch, Gorsuch, Gorsuch.”

Hewitt also focused on Trump’s pick to head the Environmental Protection Agency, Scott Pruitt, saying he gave a speech upon arriving in Washington that “would make everyone in this room stand up and cheer.” He praised the president’s stated goal to slash federal regulations.

But Hewitt also acknowledged where he — and even top national party leaders — disagree with Trump.

He described Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul D. Ryan as Trump’s “most important allies,” but said they are “from different parties.”

“We have two parties in this room,” Hewitt continued, referencing the rift Trump has created among California Republicans, “and the question is whether those two parties are going to work together for the next four years.”

The radio host also pointed out some differences he had with some of Trump’s policies. He said he believes any immigrant in the country illegally “who wants to just stay and work” and has not broken any other laws should be allowed to stay, a statement in contrast with the Trump administration’s latest signals that deportation efforts could be dramatically expanded.

“I would never send a kid home under” Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, Hewitt added, referring to the Obama-era program that shields from deportation some young people who were brought illegally into the country as children.

If immigrants in the U.S. illegally want to vote, however, they should leave the country and apply to enter legally, Hewitt said.

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Rep. Adam Schiff hosts packed town hall in Glendale on President Trump’s travel ban

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GOP Rep. Darrell Issa tells Bill Maher a special prosecutor should investigate Russian election interference

San Diego County Republican Rep. Darrell Issa said Friday night that a special prosecutor should be tapped to investigate Russian interference in the 2016 election, a stance that mirrors the calls of congressional Democrats to sideline the U.S attorney general from such inquiries.

Appearing on HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher,” Issa was prodded by Maher, the program’s liberal host, on how the congressman, who used to lead the House Oversight Committee, would’ve acted if Democrats were suspected of improper ties to a foreign government in the 2012 presidential race.

“Say the Russians hacked only Mitt Romney and there was a lot of contact between the Obama administration and Russia,” said Maher. “You going to let that slide?

“No,” Issa responded.

“Oh, so you’re not going to let this slide?” Maher asked of the current controversy facing the Trump administration.

“No,” Issa responded again.

“We’re going to ask the intelligence committees of the House and Senate to investigate within the special areas they oversee,” he added.

That didn’t appear to satisfy Maher, who pressed the congressman on whether he favored recusal for Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions, President Trump’s appointee to lead the Justice Department and an early campaign backer.

“You’re right that you cannot have somebody — a friend of mine, Jeff Sessions — who was on the campaign and who is an appointee,” Issa said. “You’re going to need to use the special prosecutor’s statute and office,” adding it would be insufficient to hand the job off to the deputy attorney general, another political appointee.

Issa then pivoted his attention to Russia, arguing that its president, Vladimir Putin, is a “bad guy” who murders his political enemies.

“We have to work with [the Russians]; we don’t have to trust them,” Issa said. “We need to investigate their activities and we need to do it because they are bad people.”

The rhetoric was notably harsher than that used by the president to describe his Russian counterpart. Trump has denied any past connections to Putin or his allies, but has often said it would be a good thing for the United States to improve its relationship with Russia.

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California Republicans to consider resolutions on ‘sanctuary cities,’ Obamacare at state convention

California Republicans meeting for their annual convention will vote Sunday on resolutions supporting President Trump’s efforts to crack down on so-called sanctuary cities, increase vetting of immigrants from certain Muslim-majority countries and repeal Obamacare.

Such matters are typically aired at committee hearings during the convention, but these resolutions, along with one opposing higher gas and vehicle taxes, were approved by the state party’s resolution committee during a conference call this week.

The immigration proposal once again places a spotlight on an issue that has increasingly vexed the state GOP: Although cracking down on illegal immigration is popular with many of the party’s base voters, such views have alienated the state’s fast-growing bloc of Latino voters.

In 2015, the state party voted to soften its stance on immigration, revising its platform to say that Republicans “hold diverse views” on “what to do with the millions of people who are currently here illegally.”

The new proposed resolution, submitted by the co-founder of the state’s Tea Party caucus, notes that many jurisdictions in California decline to cooperate with federal immigration authorities and some spend taxpayer money to defend those in the country illegally. It calls for the state party to support Trump’s efforts to enforce immigration law.

Immigration was a primary focus of Trump’s presidential campaign, as he notably promised to build an wall along the southern border of the U.S. and to make Mexico pay for it.

Within days of taking office, Trump signed an executive order promising to withhold federal money from so-called sanctuary cities that shield those in the country illegally from deportation.

The other resolutions concerning taxes, Obamacare and vetting of immigrants were also backed by the Tea Party Caucus of California. The resolution urging support for Trump’s travel ban stated that “at least 72 individuals” from the seven Muslim-majority countries affected were convicted of terrorism or terrorist plots, a figure disputed by media organizations.

The tax resolution cites an increased gas tax floated in Gov. Jerry Brown’s budget proposal, saying it would give government “more money to use for special interests.” Another resolution called on Congress to repeal and replace former President Obama’s healthcare law “within the first 100 days of the Trump administration.”

The party’s delegates will vote Sunday on whether to accept the committee’s recommendations.

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The Republicans who made Reagan president mourn the party they once knew

Stuart K. Spencer
(Steve Lopez / Los Angeles Times)

It was a cool and rainy day when elders of the Republican tribe recently gathered to honor one of their own.

The honoree, Stuart K. Spencer, was unmistakable in his white duck pants and a lime-green sport coat so bright it almost hurt to see. A reformed chain-smoker, he snapped merrily away on a wad of chewing gum.

The event marked Spencer’s 90th birthday, but the mood beneath the surface conviviality was unsettled and gray, like the clouds fringing the mountains outside.

If the occasion was intended as a personal celebration, it also had the feel of a wake for a time in politics long passed.

Along with former Vice President Dick Cheney and former California Gov. Pete Wilson, veterans of the Reagan years turned out in force. It was Spencer, more than anyone, who took a political long shot and washed-up B-movie actor and helped transform him into the Reagan of legend.

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Ronald Reagan is the star attraction at the new California Republican Party headquarters

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Activists chastise Democratic members of Congress for a lack of town halls in their districts

Though the majority of protests during Congress’ week back home have focused on California’s 14 Republican members, some activists are voicing frustration with Democrats who didn’t hold town halls while they were in their districts.

Some of the ire in recent weeks has focused on Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.). Protesters have appeared outside her home and offices, pleading with her not to support President Trump’s cabinet nominees.

This weekend, protesters are focusing on the fact that she did not hold a town hall during the break as dozens of House members did.

When asked about her next town hall, Feinstein’s staff pointed to an event at the Public Policy Institute of California on Friday, during which the senator answered questions that had been submitted online in advance. The event, part of the institute’s speaker series, was streamed live on the Web. Tickets were limited but free.

Feinstein also answered audience questions for 20 minutes at the end of the event.

Several people inside the room clapped or booed at Feinstein’s responses, prompting the moderator to intervene. A crowd also gathered outside the venue demanding that Feinstein hold a more open town hall.

Feinstein’s staff wouldn’t say whether she has a town hall planned for the next lengthy recess, which begins April 10.

Activist group Indivisible East Bay has scheduled an “empty chair” town hall in Oakland on Sunday, where constituents will have a chance to tell stories and pose questions that will be forwarded to the senator.

“The senator has chosen not to hold an open town hall during this recess, but that doesn’t mean we have to be silent,” the event description says.

Feinstein said during Friday’s event that she cannot attend because she is returning to Washington on Sunday ahead of next week’s votes. She was then asked to commit to holding town halls during the next recess, with the questioner saying constituents need reassurance that what they tell the senator’s staff is being relayed to her.

“I pretty much know how people feel,” Feinstein said, pausing when the crowd began to murmur and gasp. “But perhaps I don’t know how you feel.... I should provide that opportunity, and I will.”

The Sacramento/Elk Grove chapter of The Resistance is holding a similar event Sunday for constituents of Rep. Ami Bera (D-Elk Grove), which members of the group say is making up for a town hall he canceled.

“In his absence, we are holding the town hall as scheduled, to let our congressman know that we are concerned by his lack of accountability. We are also concerned by the direction of this administration and we need to be assured that Dr. Bera is our advocate and will stand up to the undermining of American liberties and values,” organizer Dennessa Atiles said in a statement.

Spokeswoman Annie Ellison said Bera held a town hall Jan. 28 and had started to plan an event for Sunday, but it wasn’t finalized. Another town hall will be held March 11 in Sacramento, she said.

“Feb. 26 was one day that we looked at. As it turned out that date didn’t work for our venue,” she said. “I think there was a miscommunication. Nothing was canceled.”

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Rep. Steve Knight will ask attendees at his town hall next week to provide ID to prove they live in his district

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

Rep. Steve Knight (R-Lancaster) will hold a town hall meeting in Palmdale next Saturday after weeks of pressure from constituents and protesters for an in-person meeting with the congressman.

Knight, whose sprawling district includes Simi Valley, Santa Clarita and the Antelope Valley, will take questions from the first 275 people who line up outside Palmdale’s Chimbole Cultural Center.

Check-in begins at 7:45 a.m., and the town hall will start at 8:30 a.m. and last an hour. Attendees will have to provide identification to prove they are residents of the district to get into the town hall, Knight’s office said.

Daniel Outlaw, a spokesman for Knight, said the office doesn’t want the concerns of constituents “crowded out” by those who live outside the district.

“Our goal is to serve the people of the 25th [Congressional District],” he said.

Hundreds of protesters descended on Knight’s offices this month to urge him not to vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

Knight’s office took cards from protesters and told them to call into telephone town halls. Others protesters targeted a house they believed belonged to Knight.

Recent congressional town halls around the country have been packed with attendees asking pointed questions of their representatives about the Trump administration’s healthcare and immigration policies.

“This town hall meeting is another great opportunity to make your voice heard and have your questions answered,” Knight said in a statement.

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‘I beg you, keep flexing your power’: Rep. Linda Sanchez gives Democrats’ weekly speech

House Democratic Caucus Vice-chairwoman Linda Sanchez (D-Whittier) in the caucus’ weekly speech urged Americans protesting, calling their members of Congress and turning out in droves at town halls to keep it up.

“I beg you, keep flexing your power,” she said. “The fight we are in right now is not a fight over politics. It is a fight for the future of our country. And we are in this fight together.”

The former union organizer told the story of her parents, who immigrated to the United States from Mexico and worked to put seven children through college. Sanchez and her sister, former Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Orange), are the only pair of sisters to serve in Congress.

“My mother and father saved and sacrificed to achieve the American dream for our family. They weren’t handed their success — they earned it,” Sanchez said. “Immigrants like my parents are working and contributing to the success of our country every day. They are starting businesses which create jobs, caring for our children and aging parents, serving in our military and they harvest and prepare the food we eat.”

The weekly address is delivered by a different member of the minority party each week and is meant as a response to the president’s weekly speech. This is the first time Sanchez, who recently became the first Latina in House leadership, has given the speech. It was released in Spanish and English.

“If you share our commitment to the success of working men and women all across our nation, stay with us in this fight,” she said. “Do not give up hope. Do not give in to anger and fear. Do not stop fighting for what you think is best for our country. If we keep up the fight — we will win.”

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Los Angeles RNC member says Democrats fighting Trump’s ‘sanctuary cities’ policy will pay ‘a terrible, terrible price’

Nancy Neff of Palo Alto poses with a cardboard replica of President Trump at the California Republican Party's organizing convention, which kicks off Friday in Sacramento.
(Phil Willon / Los Angeles Times)

Republican National Committee member Shawn Steel is bullish on President Trump and, despite some skepticism about his rocky start, thinks his tenure in the White House will pay dividends for the California Republican Party.

“He knows he has 100 or 200 days to make these changes. I say you embrace him because there’s a lot more beneficial things he can do for California than vice versa,” said Steele, a former state GOP chairman who was in Sacramento on Friday for the kickoff of the party’s annual convention.

Steele also believes California Democrats fighting Trump’s new policies may face serious consequences, especially in areas defending so-called sanctuary city policies.

“They’re going to pay a terrible, terrible price,” said Steel, an attorney who works in Los Angeles County.

But while Trump has Steel’s support, he said he remains a little wary about the president’s leadership style during his first weeks in office.

“That’s the beauty of having a Trump presidency,” Steel quipped. “You’ve got to look at the Drudge Report every morning: Who did he insult? What changes is he making and what the hell is he doing inside the White House?”

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Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom asks Trump for cooperation with California on marijuana regulation

Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks at an event in Los Angeles last year.
Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks at an event in Los Angeles last year.
(Nick Ut / Associated Press)

Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, a leading supporter of Proposition 64, sent a letter to President Trump on Friday, urging him not to carry through with threats to launch a federal enforcement effort against recreational marijuana firms that will be legalized in California.

The letter, which was copied to Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions, came a day after White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer told reporters, “I do believe that you’ll see greater enforcement” against recreational-use marijuana.

Newsom’s letter attempts to persuade the president that a regulated market for adult-use marijuana is preferable to what has existed in the past.

“The war on marijuana has failed,” Newsom wrote. “It did not, and will not, keep marijuana out of kids’ hands.”

Proposition 64, approved by voters last November, allows state residents who are at least 21 years old to grow, transport and possess an ounce of marijuana for recreational use. The state expects to issue licenses to growers and sellers early next year.

“The government must not strip the legal and publicly supported industry of its business and hand it back to drug cartels and criminals,” Newsom wrote to Trump. “Dealers don’t card kids. I urge you and your administration to work in partnership with California and the other eight states that have legalized recreational marijuana for adult use in a way that will let us enforce our state laws that protect the public and our children, while targeting the bad actors.”

Newsom also took issue with comments by Spicer likening marijuana to opioids.

“Unlike marijuana, opioids represent an addictive and harmful substance, and I would welcome your administration’s focused efforts on tacking this particular public health crisis,” he wrote.

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Conflict or cooperation with President Trump? Gov. Jerry Brown sees an opportunity for both

(Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

Gov. Jerry Brown’s press conference on Friday wasn’t just a chance to talk about the problems plaguing an increasingly soggy California. It was also a window into the complicated dance between the governor and and President Trump.

Brown leads one of the country’s most diverse and Democratic states, with a large population of immigrants in the U.S. illegally who have concerns about the new president. He also has sharp disagreements with Trump on climate change, which the governor views as an existential threat.

But Brown is also counting on help from Washington on other issues, such as financing the bullet train from Los Angeles to San Francisco. On Friday he asked Trump to expedite environmental reviews for repairs to the Oroville Dam spillway, as well as several other highway and public transit projects.

“I welcome the opportunity to work with you in improving America’s infrastructure,” Brown wrote.

It’s a different tone than has been struck by top Democrats in the state Legislature, who have clamored for high-profile opportunities to denounce Trump and use state law to block his agenda here.

Asked if he was concerned about adversarial relationships jeopardizing access to federal help, Brown said he was seeking the right balance.

“We have to walk a very thoughtful line here, seeking help that we need, but also calling attention to those things we object to, and fighting vigorously when required,” he said.

Brown said he would handle the relationship with Washington “in very discrete, sequential steps, based on the needs of the hour.”

Trump has talked about a potential $1-trillion plan for nationwide spending on infrastructure. With roughly one-eighth of the country’s population, Brown said California should get a proportional amount of the money.

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Gov. Jerry Brown proposes speeding up water and flood-protection projects after the winter’s big storms

Gov. Jerry Brown unveils flood and water proposals at the state Capitol.
(John Myers/Los Angeles Times)

Gov. Jerry Brown on Friday unveiled a $437-million plan for shoring up some of California’s most pressing water and flood-control needs, saying the storms of January and February have made clear the state has substantial needs that have gone unmet for years.

“We have our aging infrastructure and it’s maxed out,” Brown said during a news conference at the state Capitol.

The plan, largely an acceleration of existing plans to fund infrastructure needs, requires approval of the Legislature. In addition, Brown asked President Trump for expedited environmental review of a handful of repair projects, including fixes to the spillway system at the Oroville Dam.

“These liabilities are a serious cloud, and we have to take them seriously,” Brown said.

The governor’s actions come on the heels of a winter storm season that has left thousands of Californians scrambling from fast-moving floods and two incidents — in Oroville and at Lake Don Pedro — of swollen dams forcing emergency releases of water.

The centerpiece of his proposal unveiled on Friday is the acceleration of $387 million in bond borrowing approved by voters in 2014. Those dollars would go primarily to providing new flood protection in the Central Valley and the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. The specific projects have yet to be identified. Brown’s advisors say the goal is to spend the money over a two-year period, instead of previous plans to do so over five years.

Brown took pains to point out that state officials were unlikely to have known what else was needed in places such as Oroville without the real-world test provided by the winter storms.

“There will be problems, we will not live a trouble-free existence,” the governor said.

Even so, Brown admitted the new effort is only a small down payment on the state’s infrastructure to-do list. Officials pegged that long-term price tag at $187 billion, a list that includes deferred maintenance on California highways as well as repairs to local streets and roads.

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Gov. Jerry Brown proposes $437-million fix for flood control and emergency response needs

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California Republicans are looking for a comeback in 2018. Here’s the chairman’s game plan for getting there

As the California Republican Party looks ahead to a high-stakes governor’s race and midterm elections in 2018, it faces a grim reality: A Republican hasn’t been elected to statewide office here in more than a decade, and the Democrats hold a powerful supermajority in the state Legislature. The GOP’s share of registered voters in California is just 27.3%, its lowest since 1980, and it has yet to field a prominent candidate in the 2018 governor’s race.

State GOP Chairman Jim Brulte vows that the party’s fortunes will improve in the 2018 election, including one or two top-shelf candidates running for governor.

Donald Trump’s election provides an opening, Brulte said. California’s Democratic leadership is so focused on battling the new Trump administration that they are ignoring growing concerns at home over the state’s crumbling infrastructure and rising poverty, he said.

“We are looking for opportunities where Democrats are out of step with the districts they represent because they are bowing down to a liberal Washington Democrat establishment that is fundamentally out of touch with where the country is, and where California is,” Brulte said in a recent interview.

The difficulty will be convincing Californians that Republicans have the answers, especially as GOP leaders in Washington dismantle the Affordable Care Act, crack down on immigrants in the country illegally and strip away environmental protections — moves that are popular with a conservative base, but don’t play well out West.

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Protesters dodge sprinklers at Rep. Dana Rohrabacher’s Costa Mesa house

A group of activists who went to Republican Rep. Dana Rohrabacher’s home Thursday night asking for a meeting say they found a closed door and, soon after, the sprinklers turned on.

Activists with the Service Employees International Union, Courage Campaign and other groups tried to visit the California homes of half a dozen Republican members of Congress that night.

A group of about 100 Costa Mesa residents met at the Newport Public Library and held candles as they walked to Rohrabacher’s home. Costa Mesa police partially stopped traffic in front of Rohrabacher’s home, and the group held a candlelight vigil outside.

After an SEIU organizer went to knock on the front door, the sprinklers were turned on, Courage Campaign organizer Darcie Olson of Costa Mesa said.

After a while, Olson said, she walked through the sprinklers to knock on the front door. Two men answered and told her she was trespassing on private property, Olson said.

“They told me to get off his property, and I was like, ‘OK. I not going to fight with you about that,’” Olson said.

No other participants walked onto Rohrabacher’s property after that, she said.

Rohrabacher’s spokesman, Ken Grubbs, said in an email that the lawmaker was holding a barbecue with friends after a day of meeting with constituents.

“The watering ban now over, he turned on his sprinklers during the evening hours, as many Southern Californians do. When he did so, he noticed no protesters in the vicinity. If any protesters thought he turned the sprinklers on them, it would be in keeping with their self-conception of the world revolving around nobody else but them,” Grubbs said.

Olson laughed upon hearing the explanation. Photos show dozens or people outside the home, with at least one holding a bullhorn.

“Somehow that’s so appropriate that Dana would do that. There he goes again, an inappropriate response,” she said. “I don’t know why he’s fighting so hard just not to sit down with his constituents.”

Grubbs said there are more productive ways for the congressman to reach constituents.

“When people show up at his door with signs and bullhorns, he is perfectly aware that the incivility springs from Indivisible guidelines to disrupt rather than engage in dialogue. He chooses not to take their disingenuous bait. He reaches vastly more constituents and hears their concerns by far more productive means,” he said.

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California Republicans are gathering in Sacramento this weekend. Here’s what’s on the agenda

Chairman Jim Brulte leads a meeting at the California Republican Party convention in Burlingame in May.
Chairman Jim Brulte leads a meeting at the California Republican Party convention in Burlingame in May.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)

California Republican activists and state party leaders have descended on Sacramento for their annual convention, which runs Friday to Sunday.

While it’s not expected to be quite as eventful as last year’s event in Burlingame, when an appearance by Donald Trump was met with protests, there are a few key things on the state GOP’s agenda as the party looks to rebound in 2018.

Party delegates will decide on their top party leaders, including whether chairman Jim Brulte should be granted a third term. Members will also consider proposed party rules and a slate of resolutions, including one supporting the repeal of the Affordable Care Act and another condemning sanctuary cities.

Conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt will speak at a dinner tonight, while Central Valley Republican Rep. Devin Nunes will headline the Saturday night banquet.

Citing concerns about protests, convention organizers have spent thousands of dollars to beef up security around the convention taking place at the Hyatt Regency and Sacramento Convention Center in downtown.

You can follow all the latest updates from the GOP convention here.

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Fear of disruptions prompts heavy security at California GOP convention

Bracing for protests, the California Republican Party is spending thousands of dollars to heighten security at its annual convention that begins Friday.

On the opening day of the three-day event, at least a half-dozen Sacramento police officers and four private security guards milled around the Hyatt Regency and the Convention Center, the two venues where most of the convention events are scheduled to take place. Four patrol cars were parked near the two facilities.

“The security at this convention is unprecedented — even tighter than when we have had presidential candidates attend,” said former state party chairman Ron Nehring.

In recent history, the sole time there was a greater show of force was at the party’s 2016 gathering in Burlingame because of large, raucous protests prompted by the appearance of then-presumptive GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump.

In a letter to attendees sent earlier this week, state party officials said this year’s measures were being implemented “in light of the current political climate.”

But in a letter between state party officials, the heavy security was attributed to “strong security concerns” raised by the Sacramento Police Department as well as unrest at recent congressional town halls and rumors of potential protests.

“There is information that a protest is being organized on Friday, and there are rumors of another, more militant, group protesting on Saturday, although that information” is unconfirmed, GOP executive director Cynthia Bryant wrote in an email to state party leaders. “… I do not want to cause a panic or create unnecessary concern, but I also want to make sure that we have taken every appropriate precaution to ensure the safety of our attendees.”

The state party is urging convention-goers not to wear their credentials in public and is not posting information about meeting locations on its website, Bryant wrote.

Signs reminding attendees to take off their credentials when leaving the convention were posted on doors at the Hyatt.

Bryant wrote that the hotel and the center would be locked down, meaning delegates, elected officials and their guests would need to show their credentials or appear on a registration list to enter either facility. But Friday morning, people appeared to be moving freely at both facilities.

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Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra tells Democratic leaders in Atlanta that California will continue battling Trump’s policies

California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra.
( (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times))

Taking the national stage as a leading foe of President Trump’s policies, California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra on Friday told a meeting of the Democratic National Committee in Atlanta that his state is fighting federal efforts to roll back protections for immigrants and the environment.

The large audience at the DNC’s winter meeting cheered as Becerra verbally attacked Trump, using a baseball metaphor to say the Republican president will strike out if he continues to try to undermine important policies of the states.

“Sooner or later the imposters strike out,” Becerra said. “When you play fast and loose with the Constitution and you call for a Muslim ban, the umpire calls you out.”

Becerra also accused Trump of hypocrisy for his own business practices.

“How can a guy who put his name on products manufactured abroad claim to be the one who is going to bring back jobs to America?” Becerra asked. “How do you allow a guy who let Putin into our elections be the safe-keeper of our nuclear codes.”

Becerra was a keynote speaker at the committee’s winter meeting, which includes an election of new leadership on Saturday.

As California’s top attorney, Becerra has joined with attorneys general in other states to file three amicus briefs supporting court cases that challenge Trump’s travel ban, including a lawsuit that led to it being put on hold.

Becerra, who was appointed by Gov. Jerry Brown, has been thrust into the national limelight in part because California is the state with the largest number of immigrants in the country illegally and has been the destination of many refugees from countries targeted by the president’s stalled ban.

The state has policies that provide immigrants with drivers’ licenses, college financial aid and legal assistance to fight deportations. Becerra and others are concerned that Trump will challenge such policies.

The attorney general said California has “seen this movie before” when former Republican Gov. Pete Wilson pushed Proposition 187, which would have denied access to government services to immigrants in the country illegally.

Becerra noted the measure was struck down by the courts and today no Republican holds a statewide office in California.

“In California, Pete Wilson and the Republican Party struck out,” Becerra said. “And California has no intention of being fooled by another imposter. California is not looking back. If there is a state in America that is leaning forward, it’s California.”

Becerra said immigrants should be welcomed as long as they contribute to the country.

“In America its not where you hail from, it’s how hard you work,” Becerra said. “You can be from Indiana or India, Kansas or Kenya, Michigan or Mexico. What counts is, are you a hitter for America.”

The attorney general said he is prepared to fight to keep Obamacare coverage for Californians and to protect other policies.

“In California, we are going to defend every action we have taken to improve the air our children breathe and the water they drink,” he said. “We will fight for everyone in California regardless of their status.”

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Candlelight vigil outside home protesters believe belongs to Rep. Steve Knight

Darren Parker, California chairman of the Democratic Party’s African American Caucus. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)

Darren Parker, civil rights activist and chair of the California Democratic Party’s African American Caucus

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Protesters seek out California’s Republican members of Congress at their homes

From left, Doryce Caballero, 59, Dwyn Valdriz, 35, and Carole Lynn Valdriz, 35, take part in a candlelight vigil in Lancaster.
From left, Doryce Caballero, 59, Dwyn Valdriz, 35, and Carole Lynn Valdriz, 35, take part in a candlelight vigil in Lancaster.
(Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times)

A couple of dozen activists came out to a suburban cul-de-sac in Lancaster on Thursday night, planning to hold a candlelight vigil outside Rep. Steve Knight’s house, part of a statewide effort targeting seven GOP representatives.

The protesters were there in large part to demand a town hall meeting with Knight to discuss the Trump administration’s immigration and healthcare policies.

A problem quickly emerged as protesters neared a home they believed belonged to Knight: Two neighbors said the congressman and his family moved out in the last few months.

Minutes later, a Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy asked the protesters to get off the home’s driveway, and the activists shuffled back to their cars.

Lilia Galindo, who hosts a bilingual radio show in the Antelope Valley aimed at the region’s growing Latino population, said she was frustrated Knight had not had a town hall since the election.

“He shouldn’t be afraid of us,” she said. “He should meet with us.”

About 200 people held a similar demonstration outside Rep. Darrell Issa’s home in Vista, north of San Diego. He was at another event, but his staff handed out cookies.

Darren Parker, a local civil rights activist and the chair of the state Democratic Party’s African American Caucus, said organizers with the Service Employees International Union believed Knight lived at the Lancaster house.

Despite that, Parker said, there was still merit in the protesters bringing their message to Knight’s former community.

“There is so much uncertainty and fear for what is coming next,” he said.

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Rep. Duncan Hunter’s office says he will no longer meet with protest groups

Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Alpine) will no longer meet with constituent activist groups that have peppered his offices in recent weeks, according to a letter Deputy Chief of Staff Mike Harrison sent to a local Indivisible group.

Indivisible San Diego spokeswoman Tahra Ludwig of Alpine said the group has met with Harrison for the last few weeks. She said the meetings have involved six people at a time entering the congressman’s district office to discuss their various concerns. The larger group of up to 150 people have waited outside the building with signs, she said.

“We had been going in and peacefully having a discussion,” Ludwig said. “We’re not shouting at him or anything like that.”

The letter was emailed to Ludwig and two other organizers Wednesday afternoon and began circulating on social media Thursday.

“While protests are obviously allowed on public areas in accordance with local code, it should be noted that visitors who do not leave the congressional office when asked to do so are trespassing,” the letter says.

Harrison says in the letter that Hunter’s El Cajon and Temecula staffs have tried to be accommodating and meet with members of the protest groups.

“We have accommodated every request, regardless of size, and the subject of these discussions has been directly conveyed to Congressman Hunter on a regular basis,” the letter says. “Despite repeated requests to the leaders of these groups for cooperation, our office has consistently experienced protest participants filming in the office against our policy. Constituents visiting the office for assistance, including refugees and immigrants, found their way impeded and were in some cases intimidated to enter. Our neighbors have had their businesses disrupted and we have witnessed local law enforcement being disrespected, which is unacceptable. As a result, Congressman Hunter has made the decision that his office will no longer be accepting meeting requests with these groups or their representatives.”

Harrison said by phone that while the small group would come into the office for a cordial conversation, the large group that remains in the parking lot is blocking traffic and bothering nearby businesses. On Tuesday, Harrison spoke to the larger group outside the office for more than an hour.

“We cannot have six people come into the office and 150 people outside, it’s not working,” Harrison said. “It was just coming to the point where it was becoming unsafe. We just don’t have the space for this kind of dialogue.”

He said constituents were nervous about entering the office with such a large group protesting outside, and that meetings with the Indivisible group often lasted more than an hour.

“We do everything that we can to make sure that people are [heard] but our district office is also there to provide constituent services,” he said. “Obviously there are certain limitations in terms of certain sizes.”

Ludwig said the first time Harrison mentioned the group should refrain from filming in the office was last week.

“I’m really not sure where this is all coming from,” Ludwig said.

The letter isn’t keeping Indivisible San Diego from holding a scheduled protest outside Hunter’s El Cajon office at 4:30 p.m. today, she said.

“We are a law-abiding, all-volunteer citizens movement demanding that our elected officials speak to us and hear our concerns. The more they hide, the louder we will get,” Indivisible organizer Kathy Stadler of Claremont said in a statement.

Harrison said Hunter will hold a town hall meeting in the coming weeks, but could not say when.

Updated at 5:25 p.m.: This post has been updated with response from Harrison and a comment from an Indivisible organizer.

This post was originally published at 3:59 p.m.

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A state senator is removed from the chamber for her comments about Tom Hayden and Vietnam

State Sen. Janet Nguyen (R-Garden Grove).
(Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

After trying to make a statement about the late Tom Hayden and his opposition to the Vietnam War, Sen. Janet Nguyen (R-Garden Grove) was removed from the floor of the state Senate on Thursday, a tense scene that ended in a slew of angry accusations from both Republicans and Democrats.

Nguyen, who was brought to the United States as a Vietnamese refugee when she was a child, said she wanted to offer “a different historical perspective” on what Hayden and his opposition to the war had meant to her and other refugees.

Hayden, the former state legislator who died last October, was remembered in a Senate ceremony Tuesday.

Nguyen’s comments were interrupted by the Senate’s majority leader, Sen. Bill Monning (D-Carmel), who said she was “out of order.” Nguyen, however, refused to stop talking. The presiding officer for the day, Sen. Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens), then instructed the Senate’s sergeants-at-arms to remove the Republican lawmaker from the floor.

“I’m very sad because the very people who elected me to represent them and be their voice on the Senate floor, I wasn’t allowed to speak on their behalf,” Nguyen said later in an interview with The Times.

Democrats insisted that the incident was caused by Nguyen’s choice to use what’s known as a “point of personal privilege” to close the session — a choice they said was inappropriate. Dan Reeves, chief of staff to Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles), told reporters that Nguyen had been offered the chance to speak at a different time.

“She got exactly what she wanted, which wasn’t to speak,” Reeves said. “She wanted to cause a scene for her district.”

Nguyen said she was told by Democratic leaders of the Senate to post her statement online, and not offer it during Thursday’s floor session. Later, they suggested she speak after the adjournment motions, but Nguyen said she was told by parliamentary rules officials she could not do so.

“I was told I cannot speak on the issue at all,” she said.

Hayden was an outspoken critic of the Vietnam War and made celebrated trips to North Vietnam and Cambodia, offering to help broker a peaceful end. Nguyen, who did not speak during the remembrance of Hayden earlier in the week, said the late Democratic activist’s efforts were seen differently by refugees and “all those who fought in Vietnam for freedom and democracy.”

In the statement which she later posted on her official Senate website, Nguyen criticized Hayden for siding “with a communist government that enslaved and/or killed millions of Vietnamese, including members of my own family.”

At an unrelated event after the Senate session, De León told reporters he planned to speak with Nguyen and take a closer look at the circumstances surrounding the unusual event.

Update 4:40 p.m. This story has been updated with additional information about the statement the senator was attempting to read when she was removed from the Senate chamber.

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California’s gay and lesbian lawmakers condemn Trump’s action on transgender students

California’s gay and lesbian state legislators lambasted President Trump’s decision to rescind federal guidelines protecting transgender students as an “egregious attack” on Thursday.

“The Trump administration is the real bully here, and they are putting our LGBTQ community and progress at risk,” Sen. Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens) said.

Lawmakers and advocates made a point to emphasize that the Trump administration’s action does not change existing protections in California. The Obama administration determined that Title IX, which forbids federally funded schools from discriminating on the basis of sex, protected the gender identities of transgender students.

A 2013 California law made clear that transgender students can use bathrooms and other facilities that correspond to their gender identity, even if it does not match their biological sex.

Assemblyman Evan Low (D-Campbell), the chair of the legislative LGBT Caucus, said that when it comes to safeguarding rights for transgender people, “we will leave no stone unturned. We will ensure that we have the types of protections in this state for the most vulnerable in our communities.”

He did not specify any specific legislation that would be introduced in the wake of the Trump administrations action, but said the caucus was “exploring all options.”

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Assemblyman Jimmy Gomez scores an endorsement from a labor heavyweight in the congressional race to replace Becerra

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Cities and counties tell legislators they’re struggling to keep up with the legalized marijuana industry

Customers buy products at a medical marijuana dispensary in San Francisco in April.
Customers buy products at a medical marijuana dispensary in San Francisco in April.
(Haven Daley / Associated Press)

As state officials scramble to begin licensing marijuana sales by the end of the year, cities and counties have already begun issuing their own permits for medical pot and putting local regulations and taxes in place, officials said Wednesday.

City and county officials throughout California testified during a hearing of the Assembly Local Government Committee and said problems are already cropping up. They include skyrocketing property prices in popular growing areas that are keeping out farms that don’t grow pot, large sums of cash handled outside of banks and inadequate staffing that has slowed the process of issuing and enforcing local licenses.

Because marijuana remains illegal under federal law, banks will not handle revenue from sellers, so dispensary operators brought $4.6 million in cash to Sacramento City Hall to pay taxes and fees last year, according to Randi Knott, director of government affairs for the city.

“It is literally folks coming in with duffel bags full of cash,” Knott said.

Humboldt County has issued dozens of growing permits and is processing more than 1,000 applications that have been filed, according to county Supervisor Rex Bohn.

“We’ve made some mistakes,” Bohn told a legislative panel. “We are inundated. We are bringing in people left and right to implement this. We want to get a control on it. We want to get it out of the shadows.”

Humboldt already has a tracking system that allows the county to follow marijuana from farm to sale.

Yolo County has so far licensed 32 growing operations with rules prohibiting the farms from being within 1,000 feet of schools or becoming a nuisance to neighboring residents, according to John Young, a county agricultural commissioner. The skyrocketing land prices are making it hard for new, conventional farmers to move into parts of the county, he said.

Monterey County has adopted a zoning ordinance keeping medical pot operations out of residential areas, requiring growing to be done indoors, and requiring a permit fee and tax, according to Mary Zeeb, the county treasurer-tax collector.

She said the Sheriff’s Department has seen its services strained to keep an eye on marijuana growers, which she said face “high potential for theft and criminal activity.”

Zeeb said taxes are expected to bring the county $22.5 million. But the county has “serious concerns” about the lack of banking to handle the cash, she said.

Arcata City Councilman Mark Wheetley said at one point that 20% of the small college town’s 5,000 residential units had become grow houses for marijuana, so the city had to set limits and step up enforcement.

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This California gubernatorial candidate wants state-funded ‘universal basic income’ for everyone

Zoltan Istvan, whose long-shot presidential campaign in 2016 included a campaign bus shaped like a coffin, says he’s jumping into California’s 2018 race for governor.

Istvan will run as a Libertarian and said his campaign will focus on the radical economic and lifestyle transformations being brought about by new technology and science, from the impacts of driverless cars to genetic engineering.

“Someone has to step forward with more radical policies than are being put forth so far,” he said during a telephone interview from his home in Mill Valley.

Istvan, whose full name is Zoltan Istvan Gyurko, said he also supports providing a state-funded “universal basic income” for all Californians. The income would help sustain the poor and sick and provide a cushion for those displaced in the high-tech economy, he said, such as truck drivers who may lose their jobs due to the advent of autonomous big-rigs.

Istvan, a writer, said he made a small fortune fixing up and selling homes in California and Oregon. His wife is a doctor, and the couple have two young daughters.

During his run for president, Istvan, 43, campaigned on a platform that advocated for advances in science, health and technology to extend human lifespan and intellect.

To draw attention to his cause, Istvan fashioned his campaign’s “immortality bus” into the shape of a wooden coffin.

It worked. His campaign drew a fair amount of coverage for an independent candidate, and earlier this month he was featured in a New York Times Magazine article.

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Activists plan vigils and ‘search parties’ Thursday near the homes of California’s Republican members of Congress

After weeks of protests outside the offices of Republican members of Congress failed to persuade them to hold town halls meetings, activists are planning “search parties” and candlelight vigils outside the homes of seven California representatives Thursday evening.

The rallies, largely centered around immigration and healthcare concerns, will focus on the homes of Reps. Jeff Denham (R-Turlock), Devin Nunes (R-Tulare), Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield), Dana Rohrabacher (R-Costa Mesa), Ed Royce (R-Fullerton) and Steve Knight (R-Lancaster). Activists also plan to demonstrate outside the office of Rep. David Valadao (R-Hanford) at noon.

Members of Congress are back in their districts for the week, and more than a dozen Democrats scheduled town halls while they are home. So far, Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Elk Grove) is the only one of California’s 14 Republican members to hold a town hall this week. Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista) met with protesters outside his office.

Members of several Service Employees International Union chapters and the California-based Courage Campaign are participating in Thursday’s events along with other activists.

“With Congress poised to take action on issues that literally have life-and-death consequences — including access to affordable healthcare and the protection of undocumented Americans from unjust detention and family destruction — it is frankly pathetic that California Republicans are too afraid to meet with their constituents and discuss their concerns,” Eddie Kurtz, executive director of the Courage Campaign, said in a statement. “If our democratically elected representatives don’t have the guts to stand face to face with their constituents and explain their decisions — then they shouldn’t be voting to destroy our access to affordable healthcare or launch a war against against our immigrant communities.”

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California’s air regulator welcomes two lawmakers to its board

Mary Nichols, chair of the California Air Resources Board, has welcomed two lawmakers to the panel.
(Carl Costas / For The Times)

Over the years, lawmakers have repeatedly complained that the California Air Resources Board hasn’t heeded their concerns about the state’s environmental policies.

Now two lawmakers, state Sen. Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens) and Assemblyman Eduardo Garcia (D-Coachella) will have positions on the board, a step authorized under legislation passed last year.

Neither of them will be able to cast votes, but lawmakers hope they’ll have a voice on how regulators pursue programs on climate change and air quality.

They’ve both said state officials should find new ways to apply climate policies to local concerns about public health and job growth.

“The residents of my district who live in the industrial heart of Southeast Los Angeles County and alongside the nation’s busiest port and trade corridors breathe some of the most polluted air in the nation, and too many suffer from poor health and lowered life expectancy,” Lara said in a statement when he joined the board earlier this month.

Garcia was sworn in to his position Wednesday by Air Resources Board Chairwoman Mary Nichols.

“This is an excellent opportunity to increase collaboration between the Legislature and the agency,” he said in a statement.

Adding lawmakers to the board is only one part of the additional oversight that’s supposed to take place under last year’s measure, AB 197, which was authored by Garcia.

Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Paramount) named four members to the committee on Friday. It’s unclear if Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles) has done the same; his spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This story has been updated with revised information on committee appointments.

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Fearing President Trump’s next steps, California lawmakers review their options under Clean Air Act

Sen. Bob Wieckowski (left) held a hearing on the Clean Air Act on Wednesday.
(Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

In a sign of uneasiness over President Trump’s environmental agenda, state lawmakers hosted a hearing Wednesday to discuss how California’s air quality policies rely on federal regulations.

Although the state is allowed to pursue stricter rules than federal standards under the nearly five-decade-old Clean Air Act, such steps require a waiver from the federal government. Trump’s choice to lead the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, former Oklahoma Atty. Gen. Scott Pruitt, has signaled he may be more skeptical of the state’s requests than previous administrators, who granted requests nearly every time they were submitted.

“Nothing in the law has changed to justify the EPA withholding our waiver,” said Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles), who testified at the hearing. “The only thing that has changed is the balance of political power in Washington, D.C.”

The waivers have been an important tool for California’s efforts to improve air quality in polluted areas and tackle global warming. Other states also can choose to follow California’s lead, meaning waiver requests made from Sacramento can have nationwide implications.

“If Washington doesn’t want to lead on cleaning up our air or fighting climate change, it should stay out of our way,” De León said.

In an interview after the hearing, Sen. Bob Wieckowski (D-Fremont) said it may be more difficult for California to hit its ambitious target for slashing greenhouse gas emissions without new waivers, particularly when it comes to requiring more zero emission vehicles in the state.

“I don’t know if we have any other choice if we’re going to meet these air quality standards,” he said.

But absent a “good healthy relationship” with Washington, he said, “it’s probably better to delay” asking for additional waivers.

Although new requests may be tougher under the Trump administration, state regulators are less worried about legal threats to waivers that already have been granted.

“The state may not receive the same level of cooperation, but we anticipate that our existing waivers ... will not be significantly compromised,” said Kurt Karperos, deputy executive officer at the California Air Resources Board.

However, the state could be in a bind if the federal government loosens rules under the Clean Air Act but refuses to grant California a waiver to keep the previous, higher standards.

“Then we’re stuck,” said Richard Frank, director of the California Environmental Law and Policy Center at the UC Davis.

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With Obamacare’s future uncertain, hundreds rally at state Capitol for single-payer healthcare in California

The details of their plan are still hazy, but proponents of a single-payer healthcare system in California are already ramping up pressure on lawmakers to back publicly funded universal coverage.

Hundreds rallied at the state Capitol on Wednesday to back SB 562, a measure introduced last week that would establish a single-payer system in California.

The rally was organized by the California Nurses Assn., a union that has long backed universal healthcare and was an ardent supporter of Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders in his 2016 run. Sanders (I-Vt.) ran on a “Medicare for all” platform, a cause that the nurses have continued to back now that Republicans in Washington are seeking to repeal or overhaul the Affordable Care Act.

Among those in attendance were the bill’s authors, state Sens. Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens) and Toni Atkins (D-San Diego). Lara, addressing the crowd, said the “core values” behind the proposal include coverage for everyone in California, regardless of immigration status, and a clamp-down on prescription drug prices.

The bill itself is, for the moment, short on specifics, including how the new system would be paid for.

Single-payer proposals have surfaced in the Legislature before. In 2006, one such bill made it to then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s desk but was vetoed.

RoseAnn DeMoro, executive director of National Nurses United and its California affiliate, said lawmakers would need to grasp “the sea change in the politics of our country.”

DeMoro trained most of her focus on Democratic legislators, whom she said were being pressured by insurers and other industry players to shy away from single-payer.

As for Gov. Jerry Brown, who often preaches fiscal caution, DeMoro said the governor “is not ideologically opposed to single-payer. He’s a pragmatist.” But, she added, supporters must prove such a plan would be viable.

Rally attendees walked a fine line in defending the existing healthcare law — the Affordable Care Act, now under threat — while also arguing it did not go far enough.

“We’re not attacking the Affordable Care Act. It brought some good things. But even if it works perfectly, there’s still 28 million people uninsured,” said Don Behcler, chairman of the San Francisco-based group Single Payer Now.

“Instead of having a second-class healthcare system, we could have a first-class healthcare system in state or national single-payer. If you leave 28 million people out of healthcare, you can’t call it first class,” he said.

Lara, the bill’s coauthor, said the uncertainty over Obamacare’s future offered an opportunity to think about alternatives.

“The important thing is for us to have that discussion now,” he said. “If not now, when?”

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Republican lawmaker wants California voters to deport felons released from prison who are in the U.S. illegally

(Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

New legislation in the state Senate would ask voters whether violent felons who are in the country illegally should be deported once they are released from prison.

The bill by state Sen. Tom Berryhill (R-Modesto) would place the issue on the ballot in 2018 and would enshrine the mandate in the California Constitution.

”We’re concerned about the public’s safety in California,” Berryhill said Wednesday.

The proposal would apply only to those felons serving time for one of the state’s 23 violent crimes. While current procedures generally include an effort at deportation for those without legal status once they’re released from prison, the new bill goes further. It would deny any public assistance for any ex-felon immigrant who came back to California.

“We take away any privileges if they ever come back,” Berryhill said.

The veteran Republican lawmaker said he doesn’t have data on how many prisoners to which the proposal might apply, though he admitted it was likely a small number. Berryhill also rejected any notion that the effort is politically motivated, though he said the issue is timely given national events.

“With the Trump administration doing what they’re doing, the timing seems to be good,” he said. “It’s on the forefront of everybody’s mind.”

The proposal, a constitutional amendment, would need strong bipartisan support in both houses of the Legislature. Democrats have been largely critical of Trump’s efforts on immigration.

Berryhill, who said he supports immigration reform efforts that would create a path toward citizenship, said he thinks there has been “a little bit of overreaching” by the president.

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California voters could make it easier to raise taxes to build transit and low-income housing under new legislation

A Sacramento-area assemblywoman wants Californians to decide if it should be easier to raise taxes or issue bonds to finance transit, water, parks and low-income housing projects.

Assemblywoman Cecilia Aguiar-Curry (D-Winters) has proposed a constitutional amendment that would lower the margin needed for local governments to pass a tax hike or bond measure to pay for such efforts from a two-thirds supermajority to 55%.

“Local communities know their priorities best,” Aguiar-Curry said in a release. “This constitutional amendment will offer an important tool for local leaders to support projects and determine how to pay for them.”

Because the measure is a constitutional amendment, it will require a two-thirds supermajority vote of the Legislature to pass. If that happens, state voters will decide whether to lower the threshold to pass these tax hikes in 2018.

Nearly 80% of two-thirds supermajority measures put before local voters since 2001 garnered more than 55% “yes” votes, but ultimately failed because they fell short of the two-thirds threshold, according to Aguilar-Curry’s office.

Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) has proposed a similar constitutional amendment to lower the threshold for passage, but only for transportation projects.

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Killing with kindness, GOP’s McClintock faces down hostile questioners as town hall goes into overtime

(Mark Z. Barabak / Los Angeles Times)

The last time Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Elk Grove) held a town hall meeting, earlier this month in the Sacramento suburbs, he left under police escort.

His session Tuesday night in Mariposa, a small tourist way station on the road to Yosemite, drew plenty of barbed questions, criticizing the five-term GOP congressman and attacking President Trump.

But the more than half-dozen California Highway Patrol officers arrayed around the auditorium at the fairground hardly seemed necessary.

McClintock ceded no ground on his deeply conservative beliefs and staunchly and repeatedly defended the president — often to jeers and catcalls.

But even some of the harshest questions McClintock faced were prefaced with thanks for his willingness to show up early and stay late. Many of his GOP colleagues have ducked such confrontations, refusing their constituents’ requests to meet with them.

“God bless all of you for being here,” he said at one point, after a woman in the audience said the huge turnout — about 900 people — was a show of resistance to Trump. (In fact, about a third or so of the crowd appeared strongly supportive of the president.)

It is highly doubtful if any minds were changed during the session, which went more than an hour over schedule.

But in the end, McClintock managed to outlast many of his inquisitors. By the time he took his last question, after more than two hours and 20 minutes, the hall was close to half empty.

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At Rep. Tony Cárdenas’ town hall, Democrats worry about what President Trump may do

(Kurtis Lee / Los Angeles Times)

They arrived with soggy jackets, hats and umbrellas.

The topic was supposed to be the Affordable Care Act. But many who attended Democratic Rep. Tony Cárdenas’ town hall meeting Tuesday night in a crammed auditorium at the Cesar E. Chavez Learning Academies came with a question: What can we — as Democrats — do to help you?

“Show up and vote,” said Cárdenas, who represents a slice of the staunchly liberal San Fernando Valley. (Hillary Clinton defeated Donald Trump in this district by nearly 60 percentage points in the fall election.)

“Sign people up, get people involved,” he said.

At times the meeting had the feel of a therapy session for Democrats, wondering aloud how to function under a Trump administration.

“Where is the anger among Democrats?” asked one man. “I want to see more anger.”

Cárdenas, standing at a lectern on an elevated stage, offered a stern look and nodded in agreement as rain could be heard splattering on the roof above.

The complaints included Republicans’ efforts to repeal Obamacare and Trump’s new immigration mandates.

“Trust me, I’m pissed. I’m upset,” Cárdenas said. “But we have to act constructively. We have to be responsible.”

Last month, Trump signed executive orders directing the Department of Homeland Security to prioritize the removal of people in the U.S. illegally who have criminal convictions.

In addition to speeding up the deportation of convicts, Trump’s orders also call for quick removal of people in the country illegally who are charged with crimes and waiting for adjudication.

And in recent days, a handful of people who have received protection under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy have been arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents nationwide.

Cárdenas said that for him, the issue is personal. His parents were immigrants from Mexico who lived in the San Fernando Valley for decades, raising 11 children, he said. Today, his district is nearly 70% Latino.

“I’m going to fight for you,” he said. “I’m going to fight for the people who are my immigrant father.”

When a young man, a DACA recipient, asked him, via Twitter, if he’ll be safe in the weeks ahead, Cárdenas seemed at a loss.

“I pray that [Trump] doesn’t go after you,” he said.

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Retailers and law enforcement officials want lawmakers to increase penalties for repeated theft on businesses

Inside Los Angeles County Men's Central Jail.
(Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

Retailers and law enforcement officials want lawmakers to amend parts of a 2014 voter initiative that reduced drug possession and some theft crimes to misdemeanors in order to increase penalties for repeated theft on businesses.

Assemblyman Jim Cooper (D-Elk Grove) says the measure, Proposition 47, has spurred organized crime rings to target retailers and hurt consumers.

His legislation would make it a felony to steal $950 worth of property in a year. Currently, under Proposition 47, a theft crime would have to involve $950 worth of property in a single incident to rise to the level of a felony.

The bill is sponsored by the California Grocers Assn., the California Police Chiefs Assn. and Crime Victims United California. If approved by the Legislature, it would have to head to the ballot for approval by voters as it seeks to amend the state Constitution.

The reduction in theft crimes “has emboldened and encouraged a culture among career criminals to participate in coordinated and deliberate acts of repeated theft,” Cooper said in a news conference Tuesday. “To put it another way, a repeated offender could steal $950 [worth of] property in one day and come back the next day, and do it again, again and again.”

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Sen. Kamala Harris meets with people affected by the travel ban, calls Trump’s approach ‘extreme’ and ‘outrageous’

Sen. Kamala Harris (D-California), left, listens as Nael Zaino, center, describes how he was barred from traveling to the United States to reunite with his family because of Trump's ban.
(Christine Mai-Duc / Los Angeles Times)

U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris sat down to lunch Tuesday with two men who weren’t sure a few weeks ago whether they’d be able to step foot into the U.S.

Harris, flanked by immigration attorneys and aides, broke bread with Nael Zaino, a Syrian national, and Abdullah Attaee, an Afghani citizen, both of whom were barred from entering the country shortly after Trump signed an executive order barring travel from seven predominantly Muslim countries.

As they dined on tabouleh and hummus, Zaino told Harris that he was stopped from boarding a flight from Istanbul to Los Angeles “without explanation” on Jan. 29, two days after the order came down.

“To have everyone be separated, it’s not a life,” Zaino said, adding that he had been waiting to join his wife and 18-month-old son for more than two years.

Harris’ office said Attaee, who is not from one of the seven countries impacted by the ban, was detained with his wife and four children at Los Angeles International Airport for more than seven hours, despite having a valid visa.

In remarks to reporters after the meeting, Harris said the Trump administration’s policies were “inciting fear where none needs to exist.”

“We should be cautious...but when we are talking about people who have gone through a two-year vetting process and have been found to be qualified for refuge, is that where we’re going to put our resources?”

An updated version of the travel ban, which was put on hold by the courts after its rollout, is expected to be released as soon as this week.

Harris also reacted to two new memos released by the Trump administration, which signal a major expansion in the federal government’s deportation priorities.

“Let’s be clear, they’re lowering the bar and suggesting that anything, even that someone may have committed a crime, might qualify them for deportation. That’s just extreme.” Harris said, adding that she believes immigration officials will have too much discretion in applying the laws.

“There is a tone and a language that is being used that is vilifying them because they are immigrants...It’s outrageous.”

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California Senate leader says federal officials are ‘speaking out of two sides of their mouth’ on immigration

Kevin de León
Kevin de León
(Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

California Senate leader Kevin de León on Tuesday said the Trump administration was downplaying its directive on immigrants targeted for removal from the country, which he said signaled the beginning of mass deportations.

“They are right: the law is the law,” he told CNN anchor Erin Burnett Tuesday. “But the reality is this — that it has never been the custom and practice to go after mothers and fathers, hardworking, law-abiding, tax-paying residents.”

He said new enforcement policies were an “extraordinary departure” from those of the previous administration, when the main focus was on criminal felons.

“I think they are speaking out of two sides of their mouth,” he said of the federal government. “On one end they are really pushing the narrative of the criminal felon, the murderer, but at the same time they have really broadened the criteria to include, without a doubt, nannies, housekeepers, busboys.”

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Rep. Darrell Issa appears at morning rally and addresses supporters and critics

Telling supporters and protesters gathered outside his Vista office that calm and civil discourse is what America needs now more than ever, Rep. Darrell Issa spent nearly 90 minutes Tuesday morning answering a wide range of questions about the controversial policies of President Trump.

The San Diego Union-Tribune reported that Issa’s impromptu appearance came after weeks of public criticism from many constituents who have held protests outside his office each Tuesday. They accused him of failing to hear their concerns about Trump’s immigration policies and the repeal of Obamacare, among other things, and demanded a face-to-face meeting.

Issa said this was his first Tuesday in town since the weekly protests began.

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California Senate memorializes one of its own, former state Sen. Tom Hayden

Tom Hayden in 1973.
Tom Hayden in 1973.
(George Brich/Associated Press)

The California Senate on Tuesday remembered one of its own, late former state Sen. Tom Hayden, who spent nearly two decades in the state Legislature after serving as a leading voice in the campaign to end the Vietnam War.

Hayden, who died Oct. 23 in Santa Monica at age 76, is perhaps best known as a counterculture figure who led civil rights and antiwar protests in the 1960s.

But he later served 10 years in the state Assembly and eight years in the Senate, representing a district that included much of West Los Angeles County.

More than a dozen of Hayden’s legislative colleagues, including former Senate President Pro Tem John Burton, attended the ceremony in the packed Senate chambers, which included a lone Irish bagpiper.

“He was one of the great visionaries. He was a guy with a lot of courage,” Burton, the California Democratic Party Chairman, said Tuesday.

Burton recalled one bill of Hayden’s that he said originally seemed “wacky,” but that turned out to help young juvenile offenders get out of a life of crime by providing them with tattoo removal.

Burton has previously described Hayden as a “saint of long shots and hard cases” for taking on legislation that was difficult politically. Hayden said in a self-chronicle of his legislative career that he “tried to push important but controversial issues from the margin into the mainstream.”

Colleagues recalled that Hayden’s approach, which included disdain for trading favors, alienated some Democrats, including former Assembly Speaker Willie Brown, who removed Hayden from a committee chairmanship and transferred him to a smaller office.

“He was a maverick. He was an independent thinker. He was an intellectual. He was a true progressive,” said current Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles). “He dedicated his life to the betterment of our state and our great country through the pursuit of peace, justice and equity.”

Legislation introduced by Hayden toughened the laws against child labor, domestic violence and the use of date-rape drugs. He also took on major institutions, requiring a new ethics code at the Metropolitan Water District, expanding conflict-of-interest laws at the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority and giving subpoena power to the inspector general of the Los Angeles Unified School District.

Those in attendance at Tuesday’s remembrance ceremony included Hayden’s widow, Barbara Williams, and Troy Garity, Hayden’s son from his previous marriage to actress Jane Fonda, who was also an activist against the Vietnam War. Fonda was not present Tuesday, but attended another memorial Sunday in Los Angeles.

Former colleagues present included former state Sens. Patrick Johnston (D-Stockton) and Liz Figueroa (D-Fremont) and former Assemblyman Charles Calderon (D-Whittier).

Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson (D-Santa Barbara) said Hayden consulted with her on some of her bills long after she admired him for his street activism against the war.

“He was a rabble-rouser,” she said. “He was raising hell about this war.”

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California lawmakers say new state agency rules do little to guarantee family visits for jail inmates

The inmate visitation area at the North Facility of the Pitchess Detention Center in Castaic
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

California lawmakers on Tuesday scrutinized new state agency regulations that will allow more county jails across the state to prevent inmates from visiting with their families in person.

The new rules come come almost five months after Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed a bipartisan bill that would have required all county jails in California to provide inmates with the option.

At a joint legislative oversight hearing, public safety subcommittee members suggested the agency regulations went against the governor’s directive and the state’s rehabilitation goals. Allowing more jails to maintain their ban on personal visits, lawmakers said, places a financial burden on inmates and can tear families apart.

“A quarter of our counties will have no in-person visitation is basically what we are saying,” Assemblywoman Shirley Weber (D-San Diego) said. “It is difficult to digest the fact that we would have facilities that have space, and yet refuse to have in-person visitation.”

Over the last five years, an increasing number of jails and prisons across California and nationwide have moved to offer Skype-like video visits through phone and computer screens. But some jails have used the video systems to replace on-site meetings that have traditionally occurred face to face through a glass window.

Sheriffs say the move reduces costs, cuts back on contraband trafficking and increases public safety. Prison advocates and lawyers counter there is no evidence that attests to those benefits.

In rejecting last year’s legislation, Brown said the bill imposed a strict mandate on counties to provide in-person visitation that he could not support. But he directed the Board of State and Community Corrections to develop regulations that local agencies would have to follow to ensure personal visits would not be banned.

It released the rules last week, saying they balanced the need to provide access for families with the need to control costs for local law enforcement agencies.

“The board simply landed at the best compromise landing spot that it could,” Kathleen Howard, the board’s executive director, said at Tuesday’s hearing.

But subcommittee members said the number of counties with at least one institution that provides video-only visitation has increased from 11 to 14 under the new rules. Another nine jails under construction don’t have any space for face-to-face visits.

Some lawmakers considered the possibility of withholding state funding from the building projects that had not broken ground — six facilities — until local officials could guarantee they would have places where inmates would be able to see their families.

Holly Mitchell (D-Los Angeles) said Howard’s statement that the regulations were in keeping with the focus of the vetoed legislation were “curious at best.”

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California Senate leader puts 100% renewable energy on the table in new legislation

(David Butow / For The Times)

It wasn’t just talk — Senate leader Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles) is proposing legislation that would require California to generate all of its electricity from renewable sources.

The measure, SB 584, was introduced without fanfare before last week’s deadline for new proposals in the Capitol.

If approved, 100% of the state’s electricity would need to come from clean sources such as solar and wind by 2045. De León first suggested the idea in a conversation with The Times last month.

The measure would also accelerate the state’s goal of reaching 50% renewable energy. Legislation approved two years ago set a deadline of 2030, but the new proposal would move that up to 2025.

Hitting those targets would keep California a few steps ahead of New York, which wants 50% renewable energy by 2030, and on par with Hawaii, which is seeking 100% renewable energy by 2045.

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It’s time for an independent commission on Russian election interference, California Rep. Eric Swalwell says

The United States needs an independent investigation of Russian attempts to influence the 2016 election before voters return to the polls for a national election in 2018, Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Dublin) said Tuesday.

“We’re getting too close to sweeping this under the rug and losing the opportunity to do something about it,” Swalwell told The Times. “We’re rolling into a midterm election season that’s going to get kicked off pretty soon, and it would be very unfortunate if we started to see more Russian-style influence campaigns start to take place. We owe the American people a report of what happened and recommendations to make sure that it never happens again.”

A report from the U.S. intelligence community in early January found that Russian President Vladimir Putin personally ordered an intelligence operation against the U.S. presidential race and ultimately sought to help Donald Trump win the White House. The Trump administration vehemently denies there was any collusion between the campaign and Russia.

Trump’s national security advisor, Michael Flynn, resigned last week amid revelations he misled Vice President Pence and others in the Trump administration about potentially illegal conversations he had with the Russian ambassador to the U.S. ahead of the president’s inauguration.

Swalwell and Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.) have filed legislation to create a 12-person panel evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats to investigate any attempts by the Russian government or by people in Russia to influence the election.

The bill is supported by every member of the House Democratic Caucus. Over the weekend, North Carolina Rep. Walter B. Jones became the first Republican to sign on to the effort.

Swalwell said every House Republican has been asked to join the effort.

“It would be very shortsighted for Republicans to think Russia wouldn’t try to do this again, or that other countries wouldn’t look at this as a opportunity and that our elections are now open season for the most aggressive meddlers,” he said.

The House and Senate intelligence committees are both reviewing Russian interference in the election and what role the campaigns may have played, but Swalwell, who serves on the House committee, said all or some of the results will likely remain classified.

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes (R-Tulare) and other Republicans have said they think the committee’s review will be sufficient.

But Swalwell said a commission could dedicate itself full time to a broad and nonpartisan investigation similar to the one done by the 9/11 commission after the 2001 attack.

“Until we take it out of Congress and look at it in an independent way that can also make recommendations on securing election systems across the country, we are shirking our duty to make sure our democracy functions the next time an election comes around,” he said.

Swalwell said he met with Lee Hamilton, co-chairman of the 9/11 commission, when drafting the legislation. He said Hamilton urged him to keep the wording broad and nonpartisan so that the commission could follow the evidence, not a preconceived expectation.

“We wrote it in a way to give Republicans every opportunity to come on board and not make it a relitigation of the results of the 2016 election,” Swalwell said. “Donald Trump is our president, but if we are concerned about the future we have to say, [as] Republicans and Democrats, we are not going to tolerate this.”

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California’s voice on campaign money in Washington is packing her bags and heading home

Ann Ravel, who is resigning her seat on the Federal Election Commission, led the state's campaign finance watchdog agency from 2011 to 2013.
(Rich Pedroncelli/Associated Press)

Ann Ravel is headed back home to California, tired of fighting Republicans at the nation’s campaign finance agency and conceding control of the Federal Election Commission to President Trump.

“I compromised, but the other side never would,” the FEC commissioner said in an interview on Tuesday.

Ravel announced her resignation from the FEC over the holiday weekend, posting online a copy of the letter she sent to Trump. She said she has not received any response from the White House, and will leave her post on March 1.

Ravel is the only one of the six FEC commissioners still in an active appointment, with the rest of the bipartisan group still serving until replaced by the president. By law, the commission can’t have more than three members from the same party.

After serving almost three years as chair of the state’s Fair Political Practices Commission, Ravel was tapped by President Obama for the FEC post in the fall of 2013. She said she had hoped to use the national post to apply the lessons learned in Sacramento, including the FPPC’s high-profile case against donations secretly funneled into 2012 statewide ballot measure campaigns.

But the federal commission refused to fairly or consistently enforce the law, she said.

“There are things that are so stark, and so improper, that I was just kind of stunned,” Ravel said.

Ravel plans to teach at the UC Berkeley School of Law in the fall, and said she will be looking for ways to remain engaged on campaign finance issues in California.

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Will Bernie Sanders endorse his former campaign aide in the race to replace Xavier Becerra in Congress?

Sen. Bernie Sanders, right, is interviewed by Times political cartoonist David Horsey at the Theatre at Ace Hotel over the weekend.
(Michael Owen Baker / For The Times)

In an appearance at the Theatre at Ace Hotel over the weekend, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders spoke about the “totally new political world” as chants of “Bernie 2020” rang out in the soldout event.

But at least one audience member was interested to know Sanders’ thoughts on the 34th Congressional District, where former Sanders campaign aide Arturo Carmona is running to replace former Rep. Xavier Becerra, who is California’s new attorney general.

“What about 34?” came the shout from the audience as Sanders was being interviewed by Los Angeles Times political cartoonist David Horsey as part of the Times’ Ideas Exchange series.

Horsey picked up the question, asking if Sanders was getting involved in the crowded race, in which 23 candidates are vying. Neither Sanders nor Our Revolution, the political group he helped start, has indicated whether it will endorse.

“Arturo is a good friend of ours,” Sanders said. “He helped me during the campaign, and he and I just chatted tonight, so we’lll see where we go with that.”

Carmona has often talked about his connection with Sanders on the campaign trail, and often posts photos and quotes from the senator on social media.

Carmona is not the only candidate claiming to represent the progressive movement started by Sanders.

Wendy Carrillo, an activist and former journalist who spent weeks at the Standing Rock pipeline protest, and Kenneth Mejia, an accountant who said he was inspired to register to vote for the first time last year by Sanders, have also invoked his name in their campaigns.

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If Republicans in Washington scrap the estate tax, one California state lawmaker wants to bring it back

(Jeffrey Hamilton / Getty)

New legislation at the state Capitol seeks to ensure that the heirs of California’s wealthiest residents pay taxes on estates they inherit, even if the federal law is scrapped by President Trump and Congress.

The bill, introduced by state Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), would ask California voters to keep in place an estate tax that generated $4.5 billion in 2015. The proposal would have to go to voters because a state-level estate tax was prohibited in a pair of 1982 ballot measures.

But Wiener insists that his tax would take effect only if GOP leaders in Washington repeal the federal law.

“If Donald Trump and congressional Republicans are hell-bent on cutting taxes for our wealthiest residents, we should counter-balance those tax cuts by recapturing the lost funds and investing them here at home in our schools, our healthcare system, and our roads and public transportation systems,” Wiener said in a written statement.

The tax applies only to estates valued at $5.5 million or above. The money currently goes to the U.S. treasury — part of the federal-state relationship that’s been the focus of discussion and criticism since Trump assumed office last month. If the money went to California instead, it could provide substantial new dollars to state programs.

Two separate bills to repeal the federal tax are pending on Capitol Hill.

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After picking up California support, Rep. Keith Ellison gets more Western Democrats to back him for party chair

Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) speaking at a Democratic conference in San Diego earlier this year.
Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) speaking at a Democratic conference in San Diego earlier this year.
(Phil Willon / Los Angeles Times)

Democratic National Committee chair candidate Rep. Keith Ellison is trying to build on his support in California by rallying other Democrats in Western states.

Tina Podlodowski, chair of the Washington State Democratic Party, will formally announce on Monday she’s backing Elllison, who is from Minnesota.

“Not only is he committed to competing in every county, providing the resources we need, and focusing on turning out the vote, he has a proven track record of doing each of those things in Minnesota,” she said.

With less than a week until Democrats gather in Atlanta to choose their next national party chairman, leading candidates are angling for an edge in the campaign.

Also on board is Alexis Tameron, the Democratic chair in Arizona, a traditionally Republican state that has long been on the party’s wish list as demographics there change.

The race will be decided by only 447 members of the Democratic National Committee, but it could have long-term consequences. Whoever wins will be in charge of rebuilding the party while President Trump is in the White House.

Ellison is backed by Sen. Bernie Sanders and is viewed as the more progressive candidate in the race, while Tom Perez has garnered some significant establishment support. The former Labor secretary under President Obama is backed by former Vice President Joe Biden.

Although the AFL-CIO endorsed Ellison, several affiliates of the union are backing Perez. The latest is the the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, Iron Ship Builders, Blacksmiths, Forgers and Helpers.

Perez has also been endorsed by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti.

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Bernie Sanders in Los Angeles: ‘We can defeat Trump and Trumpism’

(Michael Owen Baker / For The Times)

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders got a rock star’s welcome when he spoke in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday in what was theoretically a book tour stop but amounted to more of a political rally, urging progressives to play by new rules as they resist President Trump’s administration.

“We are looking at a totally new political world,” he said. “If we play by the old rules, we will lose and they will win. Our job is not to play by the old rules.”

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Bernie Sanders thanks his California supporters and says Donald Trump has a ‘mandate for nothing’

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders spoke Sunday at the Theatre at the Ace Hotel as part of Los Angeles Times Ideas Exchange in what quickly became a political rally reminiscent of his primary campaign through California last year.

Sanders was met with applause from the audience as well as occasional chants of “Bernie 2020.”

There was even a fake Bernie Sanders in the audience.

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Uber would have to allow drivers to collect tips from credit cards under a new California bill

Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher (D-San Diego).
(Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

Uber drivers will be allowed to receive tips from passengers through the company’s credit-card-based app through new state legislation introduced Friday.

Assembly Bill 1099 from Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher (D-San Diego) would force companies, such as Uber, that accept payments with credit cards to allow users of the service to tip workers with credit cards as well. Currently, Uber only allows its drivers to receive tips in cash.

“To only accept tips by cash is tough on the driver,” Gonzalez Fletcher said in an interview.

The legislation wouldn’t only apply to the ride-hailing industry — Uber’s rival Lyft already allows drivers to receive tips through its app — but also nail salons, spas and all other businesses accepting credit card payments.

Gonzalez Fletcher said her measure was the first step in what could ultimately be a broader bill that would allow workers in the so-called gig economy to organize. Negotiations between the ride-hailing industry and labor unions were ongoing, she said, and she hoped an agreement could be reached on issues such as workers compensation, unemployment and Social Security benefits.

Last year, Gonzalez Fletcher pulled a bill that would have allowed gig economy workers to collectively bargain, saying the matter needed more study. She still plans to advance collective bargaining rules to Gov. Jerry Brown prior to his leaving office in 2018.

“It’s one hurdle at a time,” she said.

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California’s top elections officer finds his critique of Trump’s voter fraud accusations blocked at national meeting

(Damian Dovarganes / Associated Press)

Secretary of State Alex Padilla, one of the most vocal critics of President Trump’s unproved accusations of voter fraud, lost in an effort Friday to convince other elections officials to take a stand on the issue.

Padilla, attending a conference of the National Assn. of Secretaries of State, had drafted a resolution calling Trump’s repeated allegations of widespread illegal voting “without merit” and urging the president to “cease his baseless allegations about voter fraud.”

But he was blocked at the last minute from introducing the resolution at the Washington gathering, even though the bipartisan organization issued a statement last month disputing Trump’s comments. The president’s assertions, never backed up with any specific information, have included the election results certified in California.

”It’s shocking that secretaries of state from both sides of the aisle don’t want to stand up and defend our credibility,” Padilla said in a phone interview Friday.

A majority of the members of the association are Republicans, and Padilla’s resolution sparked the circulation of an alternative and unsigned proposal that claimed “overwhelming” evidence of illegal voting. It urged Trump to “establish a voter fraud task force to root out fraud where it exists in some states.” The president said earlier this month that Vice President Mike Pence will lead such an effort.

Neither resolution was ultimately heard or endorsed.

Padilla said he had been willing to modify his resolution if Republicans didn’t want to directly criticize the president, but he was rebuffed.

”Clearly they didn’t want to go on record by casting a vote on our resolution,” he said.

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New legislation will call for more inspections at Oroville Dam

California game wardens view the damaged Oroville Dam spillway on Monday.
(Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

A Bay Area lawmaker said Friday he plans to introduce new legislation to require more detailed inspections of all state-run dams in California in the wake of a crisis at the Oroville Dam that caused last week’s evacuations over flood concerns.

Assembly Bill 884 from Assemblyman Marc Levine (D-San Rafael) will mandate annual inspections of all spillways at dams, and require the California Department of Water Resources to update all its operations manuals and procedures.The Oroville Dam has been using manuals that haven’t been revised since 1970, two years after the dam’s construction, and do not take into account climate change and other new information, according to Levine’s office.

“Visual inspections and outdated manuals are not good enough when the potential failure put people’s lives in danger, causes the evacuation of 200,000 people and places California’s water supply at risk,” Levine said in a statement. “As California’s water infrastructure ages, the Department of Water Resources must take annual inspections of vital infrastructure seriously because people’s lives are at risk.”

Last weekend, the Oroville reservoir exceeded its capacity, sending water down an emergency spillway for the first time in the dam’s history. Erosion fears at the spillway prompted regulators to order evacuations for Oroville and surrounding cities and prompt emergency repairs.

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State Senate leader calls new EPA chief ‘profoundly unfit’ for office

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California lawmaker proposes bill that would create a single-payer healthcare system in the state

State Sen. Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens)
State Sen. Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens)
( Katie Falkenberg / Los Angeles Times)

State Sen. Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens) on Friday introduced a bill that would create a single-payer healthcare system in California.

Lara said that although the federal Affordable Care Act expanded health coverage, medical care is still too expensive, even for those with insurance, and the law excludes immigrants in the country illegally.

“We have reached a pivotal moment where there’s a threat to healthcare,” Lara said. “I felt it was important that we create a different narrative here in California.”

A single-payer system would be a complete overhaul of the healthcare system. In such a system, one state agency would manage the financing of everyone’s healthcare. Most likely, employees and employers would be taxed and the state agency would combine that money with the funds California currently has for Medicaid, Medicare and other health programs. When people would seek medical care, the state would cover the bill.

Single-payer legislation has been introduced many times in the state. The Legislature became the first in the country to pass a single-payer bill in 2006, but it was vetoed by then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

RoseAnn DeMoro, head of the California Nurses Assn. and a longtime supporter of a single-payer system, said she thinks the disarray in Washington around the proposed repeal of the Affordable Care Act makes now the perfect time to switch to a single-payer system.

“We’re hoping it sails through and we can introduce the same healthcare system to America,” she said.

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Republicans in the California Assembly propose bills they say will limit voter fraud — including showing a photo ID

(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

Republicans in the state Assembly introduced a variety of bills on Thursday that they said would limit instances of voter fraud in California, weeks after President Trump’s unproven accusations of widespread problems in the state and elsewhere.

The most high-profile effort is a bill to require that Californians show a photo ID card before casting a ballot at the polls.

“Any time a vote is fraudulently cast, it negates a legitimate vote by an honest citizen,” said Assemblyman Travis Allen (R-Huntington Beach), the author of the bill. “This legislation is a common-sense measure to ensure that every citizen’s vote is protected.”

A survey by the National Conference of State Legislatures found that 32 states had voter ID laws in place for last year’s election. California’s current law hinges on providing a signature to check voter identification at the polls.

Another bill introduced this week seeks to increase the penalties against people who illegally vote by mail. The proposal by Assemblyman Matthew Harper (R-Huntington Beach) would raise the fine for a fraudulent signature to $10,000, a tenfold increase.

The legislative efforts come on the heels of Trump’s continued assertions of widespread voter fraud in California and other states. Elections officials have rejected the president’s accusations.

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Sen. Dianne Feinstein to raise money in Los Angeles for her reelection bid

(Mark Wilson / Getty Images)

Sen. Dianne Feinstein will raise money on March 17 in Los Angeles for her 2018 reelection campaign.

Donors are being asked to contribute or raise up to $10,000 to attend the luncheon at the Hancock Park home of Jon Vein, the co-founder of a software company and a former Hollywood executive who was a member of Hillary Clinton’s national finance committee during her unsuccessful 2016 presidential campaign.

Among the hosts of the fundraiser are former U.S. Commerce Secretary Mickey Kantor; former Reps. Mel Levine and Howard Berman; former U.S. ambassadors John Emerson and Nancy Rubin; former Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky and former Los Angeles City Councilwoman Roz Wyman.

Feinstein, 83, has not officially announced that she will seek a fifth term. She recently had a pacemaker installed, leading to speculation among California Democrats eyeing her seat. But she hinted that she does plan to seek reelection in a recent radio interview.

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California joins brief challenging travel ban to support Iraqi pair who worked for the U.S. government

California has joined a third amicus brief in support of a lawsuit challenging President Trump’s travel ban, this time backing two Iraqi visa holders who were detained by officers at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport despite having done work for the U.S. government.

State Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra joined the friend-of-the-court brief filed in federal court in New York supporting the lawsuit by Hameed Khalid Darweesh and Haider Sameer Abdulkhaleq Alshawi.

The two men had been threatened with violence in Iraq due to work they and their families did for the U.S. government, Becerra said. Darweesh was denied entry while holding an Iraqi Special Immigrant Visa for which he was eligible due to his work as an interpreter and engineer for the U.S. in Iraq from 2003 to 2011.

Alshawi was denied entry despite holding a “Follow to Join” visa in order to join his spouse and child, who are lawful permanent U.S. residents living in Houston.

“People who risked their lives by helping us in Iraq — and have undergone extensive vetting to come to the United States — deserve better,” Becerra said in a statement after joining 14 other states in filing supportive briefs in the case.

“When individuals stick their neck out for the United States, we should reward them by showing them that we have their back,” he added. “No patriotic American would expect anything less.”

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After clamoring for answers from immigration officials, Democrats say they were told arrests will be broad

Democrats in Congress say Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials told them Thursday the agency plans to employ a broader brush in making immigration arrests, armed with a new executive order from President Trump.

“They said that we can and should expect many more arrests and removals this year,” House Democratic Caucus vice chairwoman Linda Sanchez (D-Whittier) said Thursday. “I wish I had better news for our communities in this country, but unfortunately the administration has taken a turn from where our past commitment to immigrant communities has been.”

The Times reported last week that up to 8 million people could be deported under Trump’s immigration orders.

Democrats and Republicans in House leadership met in a closed-door meeting with Acting ICE Director Thomas Homan to talk about last week’s immigration raids in Los Angeles and other cities, which netted nearly 700 people across the country last week.

Democrats have complained about getting little or conflicting information about who was targeted in the raids that have panicked many in the immigrant community. Still unclear, they say, is exactly how the Department of Homeland Security will enforce Trump’s executive order, which allows almost any immigrant living in the U.S. illegally to be targeted for deportation. Though deportations rose under President Obama, previous administrations have focused on removing people who had committed violent crimes.

Sanchez said she left the meeting believing “they are only constrained by the resources that they have in terms of who the priority is.”

The agency characterized last week’s raids as routine, but immigrant advocacy groups say they went beyond the norm by arresting people without a violent criminal history.

According to a description of the meeting provided by an ICE spokeswoman, Homan told members the agency is targeting people based on law enforcement tips. But they’ll also sweep up immigrants in the country illegally if they encounter them while making the targeted arrests.

Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose) said some of the crimes arrested immigrants had committed included trespassing and traffic violations, along with serious felonies. ICE also provided a list of 112 people who were arrested but had no criminal history.

House Speaker Paul Ryan’s office hosted the meeting. His spokeswoman said it was “limited to members with jurisdictional interests in immigration enforcement” at the Homeland Security Department’s request.

Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D-N.M.) was allowed to attend to represent the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, which she chairs, but was told other members weren’t invited. The caucus had a meeting scheduled with Homan on Tuesday that was abruptly canceled.

Several California members who could not get into Thursday’s closed meeting said it was unacceptable and waited outside. California’s Rep. Norma Torres (D-Pomona), who emigrated from Guatemala as a child, said she knew she wasn’t invited but came anyway. She was asked to leave by Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (D-Va.).

Homan said he would have an additional meeting with the entire caucus, Lujan Grisham said, but it hasn’t been scheduled.

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California lawmaker raises possibility of delaying licensing of recreational marijuana sales

State Sen. Holly Mitchell (D-Los Angeles) says she's concerned about banks being unwilling to handle marijuana sales revenue because the drug is still illegal under federal law.
( Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

Amid concerns that California may not be ready to issue licenses for the sale of marijuana by next year, one state lawmaker raised the possibility Thursday of the Legislature stepping in to delay taxes and permits.

At a hearing Thursday, the Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee heard testimony from Legislative Analyst’s Office representatives who said it is unclear whether the Trump administration will enforce federal laws that designate pot as an illegal drug, complicating California’s rollout of Proposition 64, which legalized the sale of marijuana for recreational use.

State Sen. Holly Mitchell (D-Los Angeles), chairwoman of the committee, said she was concerned about banks being unwilling to handle marijuana sales revenue because the drug is still illegal under federal law, which could require license holders to transport large amounts of cash to pay state taxes and fees.

“Does the Legislature have the authority to delay implementation of either the tax collection or the Jan. 1 due date with regard to licensing?” Mitchell asked attorneys at the hearing. “Do we have the authority to pause this process given its complexity, given the lack of clear sense of direction from the federal government at this point?”

Proposition 64 sets an excise tax at 15% for the sale of marijuana, but the state can delay collection of the tax while it puts in place a secure system for handling large amounts of revenue, according to Richard Miadich, an attorney who helped write the initiative.

The initiative requires the state to issue licenses for the sale of marijuana for recreational use by Jan. 1, 2018. But the state could decide to issue provisional licenses until it is ready to implement the detailed process for background checks and issuing more permanent licenses, Miadich said.

The panel took no action Thursday.

State finance officials estimate 4.8 million Californians will buy pot at the start of the new legalization system, with taxes to the state growing from $600 million in two years to nearly $1 billion by fiscal year 2021-22.

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California legislators propose a $2-billion bond for higher education facilities for the 2018 ballot

A proposal introduced Thursday by Democratic state senators would chip away at the billions of dollars’ worth of facility upgrades at UC and Cal State campuses — if voters approve it.

The measure, by Sens. Steve Glazer (D-Orinda) and Ben Allen (D-Santa Monica), would authorize the sale of $2 billion in general obligation bonds specifically meant for higher education facilities. If the legislation passes, the bonds would go before the voters in the 2018 general election.

“For many generations, California taxpayers have been proud supporters of the greatest higher education system in America,” Glazer said in a statement. “Unfortunately, we have allowed classrooms and libraries to deteriorate, affecting our ability to educate our students. Without public support, the burden of financing facilities will be borne by students and their families through higher tuition and fees.”

Californians approved a $9-billion school bond last year, which will go toward new construction and modernization of K-12 facilities. That bond did not include money for higher education institutions.

Under the bill, SB 483, the governing boards of the Cal State and UC systems will recommend how to spend the bond funds.

“The state has failed to provide the funds needed for public higher education faculty, student services and infrastructure,” Mel Levine, co-chairman of the California Coalition for Public Higher Education, said in a statement. “We can’t take in more California students without restoring and improving our classrooms and labs.”

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Antonio Villaraigosa scoops up contribution from fellow former L.A. Mayor Richard Riordan

Former Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan has chipped in to boost the gubernatorial bid of a fellow Angeleno ex-mayor, Antonio Villaraigosa.

Riordan, a Republican who served as mayor from 1993 to 2001, gave $14,100 to Villaraigosa’s 2018 campaign committee last week.

Villaraigosa, a Democrat, was mayor from 2005 to 2013. The two will appear at an event at UCLA on Thursday evening, along with fellow former Mayor James Hahn, to discuss the city’s political present and future.

Villaraigosa is not the only gubernatorial hopeful benefiting from Riordan’s largesse. Riordan also contributed $14,100 to Democrat John Chiang, the current state treasurer, in December.

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Lawmakers consider making election day a paid holiday in California

(Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)

Californians would get a day off from work, some with pay, on election day under a proposed law introduced this week at the state Capitol.

Assembly Bill 674 would add each November’s election to the list of holidays celebrated under state law.

“Too many people who want to vote face barriers due to work and school obligations,” said Assemblyman Evan Low (D-Campbell) in a written statement.

State law currently allows Californians to take up to two hours off from work, without any loss of pay, to cast a ballot. Low’s bill would expand that option, though it would not make a full day off from work mandatory for the private sector.

Low said he hopes the bill would broaden the ability of low-income communities to participate in elections.

California currently celebrates only one holiday in addition to those marked by the federal government, a state holiday in honor of the late farm labor leader Cesar Chavez. The state Department of Industrial Relations’ website says that state holidays are generally honored at the “discretion” of an employer.

Efforts to create a federal holiday for elections have been supported in the past by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and others who argue it would increase voter turnout.

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California lawmaker wants to bar the state from compelling landlords to disclose a tenant’s immigration status

(Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times)

A state Assembly member wants to ensure that no state office or entity in California would be able to compel a landlord to obtain and disclose information on a tenant’s immigration status.

Assembly Majority Leader Ian Calderon (D-Whittier) has filed a bill that would prohibit any public entity from requiring landlords, rental property owners and managers to compile, disclose or report information on tenants’ or prospective tenants’ immigration or citizenship status.

Current law bars cities and counties from requiring rental property owners to collect that information. Calderon’s legislation would expand the provisions to state entities, including the California State University system and any state bureau or division, board or public utility.

“It’s not a landlord’s job to be an immigration agent,” Calderon said in a statement.

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Last call at California bars could be 4 a.m. under proposed law

Closing time might get a little later at your favorite drinking spot thanks to a state senator who has proposed legislation to allow cities to decide how late alcohol can be served.

The Let Our Communities Adjust Late Night Act, which was proposed Tuesday, would allow municipalities to set their own last-call times. Currently, last call is at 2 a.m. across the state. Under the bill by state Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), urban centers with active bar scenes could move last call back as late as 4 a.m., while less nightlife-heavy areas could keep things the way they are.

Wiener said on his Facebook page that it was time to fix the “one-size-fits-all” limit.

“Nightlife matters a lot, culturally and economically, and it’s time to allow local communities more flexibility,” he wrote.

The last person to attempt to give cities flexibility in setting last call times was Wiener’s predecessor in the Legislature, former Sen. Mark Leno, in 2013. The bill failed to get enough votes to move out of committee.

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It’s official: Here are the 23 candidates who will be on the ballot for the 34th Congressional District

California Secretary of State Alex Padilla has released the certified list of candidates in the race to replace Xavier Becerra in the 34th Congressional District.

Here are the 23 candidates who will appear on the ballot, their party preferences and ballot designations:

  • Robert Lee Ahn, Democrat, public interest attorney
  • Vanessa L. Aramayo, Democrat, anti-poverty nonprofit advisor
  • Maria Cabildo, Democrat, economic development director
  • Alejandra Campoverdi, Democrat, multicultural community advocate
  • Arturo Carmona, Democrat, presidential campaign advisor
  • Wendy Carrillo, Democrat, journalist/community advocate
  • Ricardo “Ricky” De La Fuente, Democrat, businessman
  • Adrienne Nicole Edwards, Democrat, community organizer
  • Yolie Flores, Democrat, education nonprofit director
  • Melissa “Sharkie” Garza, businesswoman/entrepreneur/producer
  • Jimmy Gomez, Democrat, California Assemblyman
  • Sara Hernandez, Democrat, education nonprofit director
  • Steven Mac, Democrat, military officer/prosecutor
  • Angela McArdle, Libertarian, tenants’ rights paralegal
  • Kenneth Mejia, Green, certified public accountant
  • Sandra Mendoza, Democrat, educator/public administrator
  • Raymond Meza, Democrat, community organizer
  • William “Rodriguez” Morrison, Republican, business owner
  • Mark Edward Padilla, no party preference, immigration law administrator
  • Armando Sotomayor, Democrat, community volunteer
  • Richard Joseph Sullivan, Democrat, attorney
  • Tracy Van Houten, Democrat, aerospace engineer
  • Tenaya Wallace, Democrat, civic engagement strategist

Other congressional hopefuls may still run as write-in candidates. The deadline for write-in candidates is March 21, and a certified list of write-in candidates will be released later.

The primary election, from which the top two finishers will advance regardless of party affiliation, is on April 4. If no candidate receives more than 50% of the vote, a general election will be held on June 6 between the two top candidates.

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Becerra says he is ‘very concerned’ about immigration officials detaining man in deferred action program

California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra.
California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra.
((Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) )

State Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra said Wednesday he is concerned about federal immigration agents detaining a 23-year-old man in Washington state who came to the U.S. illegally as a 7-year-old and later received protection under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.

Becerra made his comments to reporters at the Sutter Club in Sacramento after he spoke to 5th Annual California Business Roundtable’s Business Leaders Luncheon.

The attorney general’s office is trying to gather the facts of the case of Daniel Ramirez Medina, who was arrested at his father’s home south of Seattle on Friday, Becerra said when asked about the case.

“A lot of us are very concerned if people who voluntarily came forward and relied to their detriment [on DACA] in providing information to our government, that they should find themselves all of a sudden in this very scary circumstance,” Becerra said. “It should trouble a lot of people.”

Becerra also said he is meeting with other state officials to make sure tough safety standards are applied to repair of the Oroville dam after problems with an emergency spillway triggered mass evacuations Sunday.

“I don’t know that there is any need to start ascribing blame to anybody on this,” he said, when asked if an investigation was in order.

“I certainly think it’s a fact that it’s been out there that we could have done more to shore up the spillway and the need to have the integrity of the dam remain constant,” he added. “I think what you are going to find is that state leaders will do what they must to make sure that, moving forward, we are protecting lives as we try to stabilize the dam.”

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Here’s a politician with puppies

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was on Capitol Hill on Tuesday with some local adoptable dogs for members of Congress and their staff to play with, and possibly take home. Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-Downey) was among the members who jumped at the chance for a snuggle.

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Senate panel supports confirmation of Lori Ajax as California pot czar

A state Senate panel recommended confirmation of Lori Ajax as California’s chief of marijuana regulation on Wednesday after she promised equal opportunity in making licenses available.

The move came after Alice Huffman, president of the California NAACP, initially opposed the appointment of Ajax based on concerns that the strict rules she is developing might disproportionately exclude people of color from getting licenses to legally grow and sell pot.

But Huffman said she and Ajax met and agreed to work together to address the concerns.

“We can make sure people of color and low-income people are included as the law requires,” Huffman told the Senate Rules Committee.

Ajax was appointed chief of the Bureau of Medical Cannabis Regulation by Gov. Jerry Brown. The bureau is developing regulations for the sale of marijuana for recreational use, as allowed by the voter-approved Proposition 64. It will also license medical marijuana firms starting Jan. 1, 2018.

Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles), the committee’s chairman, supported Ajax after she agreed to his request that she “even the playing field for access.”

De León noted that African Americans have been disproportionately arrested on marijuana charges, which could disqualify them at a greater rate than other ethnic groups from getting licenses to legally grow, transport or sell pot.

“We don’t want to exclude anybody,” Ajax told the panel.

She said her office is developing regulations that would allow people with drug convictions to go through a rehabilitation process that allows them to apply for licenses.

Her office, she said, is “making sure we are not barring people from entry for things that are currently legal now.”

The confirmation next goes to the full Senate for a vote.

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The price tag for winter storm damage to California highways? More than $400 million

Rough weather this winter has taken a toll on California’s vast network of roads and highways, and state officials calculated the cost Wednesday at $401 million.

“Our roadways have been pounded this winter by the severe weather conditions,” Caltrans Director Malcolm Dougherty said in a written statement.

A number of simultaneous hits have taken place in Northern California over the last few weeks. Last weekend, portions of both main routes into Nevada — Interstate 80 and Highway 50 — were closed due to mudslides.

Highway 50, which accesses the south shore of Lake Tahoe from Sacramento, remained completely closed Wednesday. Officials hoped to reopen the road within 24 hours.

Those closures came on the heels of Sierra Nevada storms that have resulted in long hours for crews clearing the roads of several feet of snow. And the transportation agency’s social media feed has been a constant deluge of weather-related roadway collapses.

Caltrans reported that 190 separate locations have seen winter storm road damage over the season.

Gov. Jerry Brown’s budget advisors said on Wednesday that the $401 million in estimated damage is initially paid out of the state’s highway operations account. But the bulk of the expense would normally be repaid by the federal government as emergency funding.

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Three Californians are on the Republicans’ list of their most vulnerable members of Congress

Rep. Steve Knight (R-Palmdale) is one of three California congressmen Republicans consider most vulnerable in 2018.
(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

The Republicans have named their top 10 most vulnerable incumbents in Congress, and three Californians are among them.

The National Republican Congressional Committee added Reps. David Valadao of Hanford, Steve Knight of Palmdale and Darrell Issa of Vista to its list of “patriots,” or those believed to be most vulnerable to Democratic challenges in 2018.

In a statement, NRCC Chairman Steve Stivers called those on the list “battle-tested members” who are “ready to win once again.”

All three Californians on the list have already been identified as targets by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. All three also won in districts where Hillary Clinton outperformed President Trump in the presidential election. In Valadao’s district, Clinton beat Trump by more than 15 percentage points.

Issa is thought to be one of the most vulnerable members of California’s delegation. His 2016 opponent, Doug Applegate, has announced he’ll challenge him again after losing by just 1,600 votes.

Knight, who at one point last year was considered one of the most endangered incumbents, won reelection by more than six percentage points. He has been targeted by protesters in recent weeks.

For the record, Feb. 16, 12:52 p.m.: An earlier version of this post said Hillary Clinton had outpolled President Trump by more than 15 points in Rep. Steve Knight’s district. Clinton won the district by 7 points over Trump.

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Rep. Dana Rohrabacher is angry a staffer was hurt during a protest at his office, but protesters dispute the account

Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Costa Mesa) said he is “outraged beyond words” that a 71-year-old staff member was knocked down Tuesday while protesters were outside his Southern California office.

Rohrabacher said in a statement that his longtime district director, Kathleen Staunton, fell and hit her head when a protester yanked open the office door as she was leaving. She lost consciousness and had to be hospitalized, he said.

“Deliberate or not, the incident came as part of a mob action that not only intimidates but coerces. Though the protesters think of themselves as idealists, they engaged in political thuggery, pure and simple,” he said.

The group, Indivisible 48, has visited Rohrabacher’s office for the last four Tuesdays to ask the congressman to hold a town hall meeting. The group said it was delivering valentines to Rohrabacher’s office when the door opened from the inside into a 2-year old girl named Lola, who was sliding a valentine underneath the door.

“Rep. Rohrabacher’s disdain for visiting constituents led to Lola sliding her card under his door, which led to a staffer, Kathleen Staunton, accidentally opening the door on Lola’s head and Ms. Staunton’s unfortunate fall. Police were present and no arrests were made,” the group said in a statement.

The statement said the protesters only grabbed the door to keep it from hitting the child again.

Video of the incident appears to show the door opening into a hallway from inside the office and hitting the child, but does not show the staff member’s fall or a struggle over control of the door.

Rohrabacher spokesman Kenneth Grubbs said the video ends before one of the men in the hallway started tugging on the door handle. Staunton hit her head on the door frame during the tussle, he said.

“What he was doing was attempted forced entry,” Grubbs said.

The Orange County Register reported there was tugging on both sides of the door, and activists, including the child’s mother, helped Staunton up from the ground.

Staunton was treated by paramedics and taken to a hospital after losing consciousness, Grubbs said. He said the office is considering asking for charges to be filed against the protester who tugged on the door.

Staunton did not immediately return a phone call Wednesday.

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California state senator proposes banning prescriptions of powerful painkiller oxycodone for those under 21

(Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times)

Seeking to stem the growing opioid abuse crisis, a California state senator is proposing to prohibit prescriptions of the painkiller oxycodone for anyone under the age of 21.

Sen. Anthony Portantino (D-La Cañada Flintridge) said his measure, SB 419, would stop younger people from getting early exposure to the highly addictive pain drug, commonly known by its brand name, OxyContin.

“The abuse of this drug is a national epidemic and we need to protect our children from being prescribed this highly addictive substance,” Portantino said in a statement. “Lawmakers, regulators and medical professionals have been wrestling with how best to control this synthetic heroin and I’m saying, while we’re looking for solutions, let’s make sure we keep it away from our most vulnerable population.”

A Los Angeles Times investigation last year detailed how OxyContin has become one of the most abused drugs in the nation, in part because the medication wears off hours earlier than the advertised 12-hour dose.

OxyContin is a chemical cousin of heroin and a recent study indicated that efforts to clamp down on painkiller abuse have led to a resurgence in heroin, as addicts seek out a cheaper substitute.

“We should not be giving our young people a gateway drug that can lead to illicit drug abuse such as heroin,” Portantino said. “What we all need is a time-out and pause for the health and well-being of our children.”

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Progressive group calls for Rep. Devin Nunes to resign post over comments about Trump’s former national security advisor

A California progressive group says it will demand Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Tulare) step down as chairman of the House Select Intelligence Committee during a protest at his Clovis office Wednesday.

The Los Angeles-based Courage Campaign in a news release criticized comments Nunes made Tuesday that the committee won’t investigate conversations between former national security advisor Michael Flynn and President Trump. Local activists and constituents affiliated with the group plan to protest outside Nunes’ office.

Flynn resigned late Monday after news outlets reported that he had misled administration officials about the content of conversations he had with the Russian ambassador to the U.S. before Trump took office.

Before Flynn resigned, Nunes said, “It just seems like there’s a lot of nothing there.” Afterward, Nunes said he wanted to know why the FBI was recording a then-private citizen’s phone calls.

Nunes and the ranking Democrat on the committee, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank), announced last month that the committee would investigate Russian attempts to influence the 2016 elections, and communications between the Trump campaign and Russia.

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California’s secretary of state vows to spread the word on duties, responsibilities of private immigration consultants

California Secretary of State Alex Padilla in a December meeting with the Los Angeles Times editorial board.
(John Myers / Los Angeles Times)

Fueled by what he called “fear and anxiety” over Trump administration actions, California’s secretary of state launched a new effort on Wednesday to provide consumers with more information about private immigration consultants.

“We want to make sure that people aren’t taking unnecessary risks and falling into the wrong hands,” said Secretary of State Alex Padilla, whose office has a role in overseeing for-profit advocates of those seeking legal immigration status.

State law allows immigration consultants to perform tasks like translation services and assistance filling out forms and collecting documents. Consultants are not allowed to provide legal advice unless they are also attorneys.

Padilla’s new effort includes an website where consumers can check the registration status of an immigration consultant. His office will also send out information to consultants across the state that details their responsibilities.

The Los Angeles Democrat, who has voiced his opposition to recent immigration actions by the president, said that private consultants are used often by immigrants across California.

“The early days of the Trump administration has underscored the urgency of putting helpful information out there,” Padilla said.

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Laguna Beach real estate broker who hopes to unseat Rep. Dana Rohrabacher launches Impeach Trump PAC

A Laguna Beach real estate broker is launching a campaign to challenge longtime Republican Orange County Rep. Dana Rohrabacher in 2018, and he says his campaign will rest in large part on attacking the congressman’s friendly views toward Russia.

The Democratic candidate, Boyd Roberts, 57, is also vowing to work to impeach President Trump and has registered a federal political committee that he says will raise money to support other congressional candidates who back Trump’s impeachment.

News of Roberts’ candidacy and the creation of his Impeach Trump Leadership PAC was first reported by the Hill and comes after Trump’s national security advisor, Michael Flynn, resigned after admitting that he misled members of the administration, including Vice President Mike Pence, about conversations he’d had with Russia’s ambassador to Washington.

“The district will vote [Rohrabacher] out because i think there is something with the Russia thing,” Roberts said in an interview with The Times. “I think I can raise money off it.”

Roberts is relatively new to politics. He launched and later aborted a campaign to challenge Inland Empire Rep. Ken Calvert in 2014. He says he never raised more than $5,000 in that bid.

In 2012, he finished last among a field of five candidates running for a seat on the Hemet Unified School District board.

But Roberts said Rohrabacher’s sympathetic views of Russia will provide a big enough liability to give him a shot at unseating him.

Roberts noted that Politico labeled Rohrabacher “Putin’s favorite congressman” in a story last year and that Sen. John McCain implied that the congressman is a part of the GOP’s “lunatic fringe” after Rohrabacher said he was planning a trip to Russia.

“Dana Rohrabacher is the best candidate to go up against in the nation right now,” Roberts said.

Some political insiders think Rohrabacher may retire. He does not have as much campaign cash in the bank as Scott Baugh, the former chairman of the Republican Party of Orange County, who said he is waiting to step in should Rohrabacher bow out. Baugh has $548,428 in cash on hand for a potential campaign.

Roberts said he will begin fundraising on the Democratic online platform Act Blue today. His said he has not been in contact with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which named Rohrabacher as one of the seven California Republicans they plan to unseat in 2018.

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California members of Congress say they aren’t getting answers on immigration raids: ‘My constituents are freaked out’

Several Democratic members of California’s congressional delegation said Tuesday they still don’t have details about who in their districts was arrested in last week’s immigration raids, and why they were targeted.

Members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus were scheduled to meet Tuesday afternoon with Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials to discuss the raids, but the meeting was abruptly canceled. And they’re pretty unhappy about it.

Caucus Chairwoman Michelle Lujan Grisham (D-N.M.) said acting ICE Director Thomas Homan told her the meeting was canceled so Republicans could be invited. She said they are trying to reschedule for Thursday, but details have not been finalized.

When a reporter asked about an ICE official who said the meeting was canceled because it had grown so large it had to be bipartisan, Rep. Grace F. Napolitano (D-Norwalk) loudly exclaimed, “Bullshit!”

Lujan Grisham said the number of attendees did increase, but nothing requires a heavily attended meeting with a government agency to be bipartisan. A spokesman for ICE did not return a phone call Tuesday.

Last week, 680 immigrants were arrested nationally in sweeps the agency characterized as routine but immigrant advocacy groups say went beyond the norm by including people without a violent criminal history. Of the 161 arrests that occurred in the L.A. area, only 10 of those deported did not have a criminal conviction, ICE said.

Rep. Judy Chu (D-Monterey Park) said she isn’t getting consistent answers from ICE officials in Los Angeles about who was swept up in the raids and why they were targeted, a frustration echoed by Rep. Nanette Barragán (D-San Pedro) and other members.

“My constituents are freaked out,” Chu said. “We have serious questions, we want to know what is going on, and we want answers.”

Barragán said ICE officials told her there were no instructions provided by the Department of Homeland Security about how to enforce the executive order President Trump signed that allowed almost any immigrant living in the U.S. illegally to be targeted for deportation. Other members said they were told ICE did get instructions.

Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose), a former immigration attorney, said members want to see what ICE told field offices about whom to arrest and how that differs from immigration policies under President Obama.

“There is tremendous concern across the country about what is going to happen next,” she said. “This is a nation of laws, and we think the public should know what’s in that memo.”

Napolitano said ICE officials still won’t tell her how many people were arrested in her district, or what crimes they committed. Local mayors and police departments told her ICE wasn’t giving them details about the operation either, she said.

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Colorado governor says California faces challenges in legalizing pot

Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper
(David Zalubowski / Associated Press)

Five years after Colorado voters approved a measure to legalize marijuana, Gov. John Hickenlooper warned California officials Tuesday that they face challenges now that voters have approved recreational use in the Golden State.

Legalization requires urgent attention to multiple public health issues that include preventing impaired driving and making sure edible pot products are not made to be attractive to minors, Hickenlooper told California lawmakers Tuesday at a legislative hearing at the Capitol.

California voters followed Colorado’s lead in November by approving Proposition 64, which allows the sale of marijuana for recreational use.

“We made an awful lot of mistakes as we were trying to wrestle with some of these issues,” Hickenlooper told the California legislators.

Hickenlooper was elected after Colorado approved legalization and initially opposed it, but has since come around to believe a regulatory system can work.

It took Colorado officials a year to reach an agreement to set a standard for what constitutes impaired driving, the governor said. The standard is met if a blood test finds 5 nanograms of THC per milliliter of blood, but the governor warned that it may be difficult for Californians to agree on a standard because people may argue that a particular level is too high or too low.

“We think 5 nanograms is the right number,” he said. “We went through a lot of testing.”

Proposition 64 does not set a standard, and California’s police chiefs have called on the Legislature to adopt a 5-nanograms standard, but marijuana activists say the measurement is not a good way of determining impaired driving.

Hickenlooper also said that Colorado initially did not require proper labeling of edibles, so brownies containing up to eight doses of THC were being sold without the consumer knowing the levels. He also said some edibles were made to look like popular candies, but that the state has since adopted labeling and marketing rules.

California lawmakers asked Hickenlooper about the election of President Trump and whether that has led to more federal enforcement, given that marijuana remains an illegal drug according to federal law.

Hickenlooper said there has been some federal enforcement against illegal growers and gangs, but he thinks Trump will not order a crackdown in states where it has been legalized.

“We’re optimistic that he is going to let the experiment continue,” the governor said.

One of the most difficult challenges for California will be to put a system of regulations, taxes and licensing in place by a Jan. 1, 2018, deadline. Colorado also had a year to put something in place.

‘It’s one of the hardest things we have ever done,” Hickenlooper said.

The governor’s comments were helpful to California’s work to put a regulatory system in place, said Sen. Mike McGuire (D-San Rafael), chairman of the Senate Governance and Finance Committee, which held the hearing.

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Nunes and Schiff both call for investigations into the Flynn scandal, just different kinds

House Select Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes (R-Tulare) told Bloomberg on Monday afternoon he expected President Trump’s then-national security advisor Michael Flynn to keep his job and “it just seems like there’s a lot of nothing there.” At the same time, the ranking Democrat on the committee, Burbank’s Rep. Adam Schiff, was calling for Flynn to step aside, at least temporarily.

Flynn resigned late Monday amid revelations he misled Vice President Pence and others in the Trump administration about potentially illegal conversations he had with the Russian ambassador ahead of the president’s inauguration.

Now the two leaders of the House Intelligence Committee are calling for more investigation into Flynn’s contact with Russia, but different kinds.

After Flynn resigned, Nunes praised his military service in a brief statement that didn’t mention why the former general quit.

“Washington, D.C. can be a rough town for honorable people, and Flynn—who has always been a soldier, not a politician—deserves America’s gratitude and respect for dedicating so much of his life to strengthening our national security,” said Nunes, who served on Trump’s transition committee.

The Washington Post reported last week that Flynn may have talked with Russian officials about sanctions the Obama administration intended as a response to alleged Russian attempts to influence the election, and mischaracterized the conversations when concerns were raised.

Multiple media outlets have reported the FBI is investigating contacts between Flynn and Russia, and Nunes told the Post he wants to investigate why the FBI was recording conversations between Flynn and the Russian ambassador. When the conversations were recorded, Flynn was a private citizen.

Nunes and Schiff issued a joint statement in January to announce the Intelligence Committee would examine allegations the Russian government tried to influence the 2016 election, and look into contact between presidential campaign staff and Russia.

On Monday, Schiff said Flynn’s resignation shouldn’t stop questions about his previous contact with Russian officials or how much the administration knew about his conversations with the Russian ambassador given the administration has said it knew for weeks that Flynn had not been truthful about them.

”... the Trump Administration has yet to be forthcoming about who was aware of Flynn’s conversations with the Ambassador and whether he was acting on the instructions of the President or any other officials, or with their knowledge,” Schiff said in a statement Monday night. At least one Republican senator is also demanding to know whether Flynn was directed by others.

But Nunes told CNN on Tuesday the committee won’t look into discussions between Trump and Flynn, citing the president’s executive privilege.

Schiff also responded to Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan’s reluctance to support a full investigation into Flynn’s contact with Russia, saying Tuesday, “If the Speaker is unwilling to support a full congressional investigation, then he should get out of the way and allow an independent commission to look into the matter.”

Democrats, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, have repeatedly called for an independent, bipartisan investigation of Russian interference in the election. Many Republicans, including Nunes, have said existing House and Senate Committees can handle it.

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State analyst warns about uncertainty over size of California’s pot industry and a possible federal crackdown

Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposal to merge regulations of medical and recreational marijuana sales in California is a wise move, but officials should be careful in allocating large amounts of money to the new system, the state Legislative Analyst’s Office concluded Tuesday.

The analyst urged caution, saying it is difficult to estimate how many marijuana businesses will pop up, and there is a chance the new Trump administration may choose to start enforcing federal laws that classify marijuana as an illegal drug.

“We find that determining the level of resources needed in 2017-18 and beyond is complicated by the significant uncertainty caused by other issues, such as the future size of the cannabis industry and potential federal actions,” the analyst’s report said.

The report endorsed merging a system for regulating medical marijuana approved by the Legislature in 2015 and one for recreational pot approved by voters when they passed Proposition 64 in November. Having one system will save money, reduce duplication and create less confusion for the industry, the report said.

The legislative analyst noted that there is disagreement on how large California’s regulated industry will be.

The State Board of Equalization estimates there will be 1,700 dispensaries and retailers paying taxes, but the Department of Consumer Affairs, which will oversee the businesses, expects 6,000 pot shops, based on experience in Colorado.

It is also uncertain whether a system to tax and license sales will be ready by the voter-approved deadline of Jan. 1.

“This uncertainty is reflected in the administration’s estimate that there will be no excise tax revenue from cannabis in 2017‑18,” the analyst’s report says.

It recommends less money be budgeted for future years and a reduction in the governor’s $62.7-million loan to help create the regulatory system during the fiscal year beginning July 1.

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Hemorrhoids and Nickelback are more popular than Congress, Schwarzenegger says in call for redistricting reform

Former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Tuesday noted the deep unpopularity of members of Congress as he pushed for redistricting reform across the nation.

“Here are some of the things that are more popular than Congress: hemorrhoids, Nickelback, traffic jams, root canals, colonoscopies, herpes. Even herpes, they couldn’t beat herpes in the polls,” Schwarzenegger says in a video posted on attn:, a video sharing site aimed at millennials.

The former governor, who championed redistricting reform in California, said the politicians keep getting reelected because in most of the nation, they draw their district boundaries.

“Gerrymandering has created an absurd reality where politicians now pick their voters instead of the voters picking their politicians,” he said, pointing to California.

In the state, there were 265 congressional elections between 2002 and 2010, before the drawing of district boundaries was handed over to an independent commission. In that time, only one district saw a change in its representative’s political party, Schwarzenegger said.

In 2012, the first election after the lines were drawn by the independent commission, four districts changed party hands. Fourteen incumbents either chose not to run or lost reelection.

“We’ve proven that gerrymandering can be permanently terminated,” he said, before a clip plays of him in “Terminator 2: Judgment Day.”

Redistricting reform is a pet cause of the former governor, and one of the focuses of his institute at USC.

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Gov. Jerry Brown says he’s not worried that Trump’s criticism of California will stifle help on Oroville’s dam emergency

Gov. Jerry Brown at the state's emergency operations center.
(John Myers/Los Angeles Times)

Gov. Jerry Brown, who asked President Trump for federal disaster assistance in the wake of the emergency at the Oroville Dam, said Monday that he’s not worried about the recent rancor between the president and California.

“I’m sure that California and Washington will work in a constructive way, that’s my attitude,” said Brown in a brief discussion with reporters after the governor met with advisors at the state’s emergency operations center near Sacramento.

Brown earlier sent Trump a letter requesting a federal disaster declaration in response to the damaged spillway of the Oroville Dam. The governor’s letter said the severity of the problems were likely to be more than local and state officials can handle.

Although he declined to say which member of Trump’s Cabinet he had spoken with on Monday, Brown nonetheless dismissed any concern over the president’s recent comments suggesting California was “out of control” and possibly not deserving of federal funds.

“I wouldn’t try to pick any one comment out of the last three weeks,” he said. “There will be different points of view, but we’re all one America. And we all have challenges that we share in common.”

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Proposal would block release of police body camera footage showing victims of rape and domestic violence

Assemblyman Ed Chau (D-Arcadia)
(Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

A new bill in the California Legislature would prohibit the public release of police body camera footage depicting victims of rape, incest, child abuse or domestic violence.

Assembly Bill 459 from Assemblyman Ed Chau (D-Arcadia) says the privacy of victims outweighs any public interest in body camera footage and should be protected. Under his proposal, video could be released if the victim allows it.

Local police departments already block most body camera footage from public disclosure, including in the circumstances outlined in Chau’s bill, by arguing it is part of a criminal investigation and therefore exempt from release under existing laws.

Even as departments up and down the state have adopted body cameras, state lawmakers have struggled to pass legislation either to increase the transparency or to further restrict access to footage.

Last year, all four major body camera bills offered failed, including one that would have blocked the release of footage depicting officer deaths. Chau’s bill is the first this year to address the issue.

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Donald Trump is the bad guy in the first TV ad of Los Angeles’ congressional race

The first television ad of the race for the 34th Congressional District is out, and President Trump stars as the bully.

In the ad for Sara Hernandez for Congress, Trump is the first and last image viewers see.

“How do you stand up to a bully?” a female narrator asks. “It takes a classroom teacher.”

Hernandez, a former aide to L.A. City Councilman Jose Huizar, taught middle school as part of the Teach for America program between 2005 and 2008. She most recently served as executive director for Coro Southern California, a public affairs training institute.

The 30-second ad, which began running on TV and cable channels Monday, ends by urging voters to elect Hernandez and “take Trump back to school.”

Hernandez is one of 23 candidates vying for the congressional seat left empty when Xavier Becerra was sworn in as attorney general.

With seven weeks to go before the April 4 primary, it’s relatively early for expensive broadcast ads to be on air, even with the compressed timeline of the special election.

But Hernandez likely has money to burn: In the last three weeks of December, she raised more than $200,000, second in place behind Assemblyman Jimmy Gomez, who raised more than $300,000.

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California Assembly rejects Trump’s executive order on refugees and immigrants

President Trump signs an executive order on Jan. 27 banning people in seven predominantly Muslim nations from traveling to the United States. Federal judges have since blocked the order.
(Mandel Ngan / AFP/Getty Images)

In a debate that both sides agreed was largely symbolic, the California Assembly on Monday ratified a resolution criticizing President Trump’s contentious executive order imposing new limits on refugees and other immigrants.

“I believe that this executive order does not improve our national security, but actually weakens it,” said Assemblyman Jimmy Gomez (D-Los Angeles), the resolution’s author.

The non-binding proposal, approved on a 53-8 vote, urges Trump to rescind the Jan. 27 order barring people from seven nations from traveling to the United States. The order was subsequently blocked by federal judges.

Republicans who voted against the measure called it a distraction from the Legislature’s pressing business, and insisted Trump’s order did not amount to a ban on Muslims.

“This is a righteous executive order, it keeps us safe,” said Assemblyman Travis Allen (R-Huntington Beach).

Democrats, meanwhile, insisted that Trump’s proposal undermined core American principles.

“This executive order tramples our values and makes us less safe,” said Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Paramount).

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Snide valentines from constituents delivered to California congresswoman: ‘Roses are red. Our District is Blue’

Constituents of Reps. Mimi Walters and Dana Rohrabacher are hoping a few snide “love” notes might help open the door to a meeting with the Republican members of Congress.

Children delivered hundreds of valentines and cookies to Walters’ Irvine office after school Monday as part of an event organized by a group calling itself the 45th Congressional District of California Constituents.

Some of the valentines remind the members that they can be replaced and include rhymes like, “Roses are red. Our District is Blue. We demand a town hall but a new rep will do.”

“Any food brought to our Irvine office will be donated to Orange County residents in need,” Walters’ spokeswoman Abigail Sigler said when asked for a response.

It’s just one of the unusual ways activists are trying to get their message across to Republicans in the California delegation.

Protests and demonstrations have taken place at members’ offices for the last three weeks, with much of the most vocal attention focused on the seven Republicans who represent districts Hillary Clinton won, including Walters and Rohrabacher.

The Laguna Beach Democratic Club is planning a similar event at Rohrabacher’s Huntington Beach office on Tuesday, where protesters will hold valentine-themed signs.

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California’s new attorney general is latest to back state Sen. Ed Hernandez for lieutenant governor

Xavier Becerra is shown at his first confirmation hearing for California attorney general on Jan. 10.
(Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

Just weeks after being sworn in as California’s attorney general, Xavier Becerra is flexing his political muscles.

Becerra on Monday endorsed state Sen. Ed Hernandez (D-West Covina) in the 2018 race for lieutenant governor, the latest in a long line of state Democratic leaders backing Hernandez.

“He’s a fighter for everyone who works hard to have a chance to get ahead,” Becerra said in a statement released by the Hernandez campaign.

Becerra, a Los Angeles Democrat, served in Congress for more than two decades before Gov. Jerry Brown appointed him to replace Kamala Harris as attorney general after she won election to the U.S. Senate in November.

Last week, Becerra formally announced his bid for state attorney general in 2018.

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Lawmakers should flex their muscles when approving key climate change program, legislative analyst says

Gov. Jerry Brown and state legislators celebrate the passage of legislation to increase climate change goals in Los Angeles in 2016.
(Liz O. Baylen / Los Angeles Times)

State lawmakers should take more control over California’s signature program to combat climate change, the state’s nonpartisan legislative analyst said in a new report Monday.

The analyst recommended the Legislature vote to extend the cap-and-trade program, an auction system where companies purchase credits to pollute, as the primary mechanism to meet the state’s aggressive goal of reducing emissions to 40% below 1990 levels by 2030.

Right now by law, all revenue from cap-and-trade has to go toward programs directly related to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. But the analyst said lawmakers should broaden their authority to allow spending on efforts to offset increased costs for residents and businesses to meet the environmental targets. To do so, the Legislature should secure a supermajority vote on extending the program to ensure that effort is insulated from legal challenge, the state legislative analyst said.

In his January budget proposal, Gov. Jerry Brown said he wanted such a supermajority vote to extend cap-and-trade beyond 2020 and didn’t want to spend existing revenue from the program unless lawmakers signed off on the extension. The legislative analyst said that proposal unnecessarily tied legislators’’ hands.

“If a decision is not made about the future of cap-and-trade by the time the 2017-18 budget is passed, the Legislature should still consider allocating auction revenues based on its spending priorities,” the analyst’s report said.

Debate over funding for the climate program is expected to be one of the top issues at the Capitol this year. Aside from Brown’s plans, two bills have emerged so far that aim to extend cap and trade or otherwise provide money to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

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Nancy Pelosi calls on Trump to fire national security advisor Michael Flynn

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) on Monday joined other California Democrats who have called for President Trump to fire his national security advisor, retired Gen. Michael T. Flynn.

Flynn has been in hot water since the Washington Post reported he misled Vice President Mike Pence and others in the administration about conversations he had with Russia’s ambassador about U.S. sanctions prior to the inauguration.

The FBI is looking at Flynn’s contacts with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak to determine whether Flynn tried to undermine the Obama administration’s move to toughen sanctions against Moscow after concluding that Russia had tried to influence the outcome of the U.S. election, according to multiple news reports.

Several California Democrats have called for Flynn to be suspended during the investigation, and fired if the allegations are true.

So far, the White House has been silent on whether Flynn will stay or go, with key administration official Stephen Miller saying Sunday he couldn’t speak to whether the president still has confidence in Flynn.

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Assemblyman Jimmy Gomez held a campaign kickoff for his congressional race today, and L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti showed up

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California Politics Podcast: Trump’s threat to grab cash that’s sent to the Golden State

For both President Trump and Democratic lawmakers in California, there didn’t seem to be much political peril in his suggestion to possibly “defund” state programs subsidized with federal dollars.

After all, it played well with the passionate base supporters on both sides.

On this week’s California Politics Podcast, we take a look at both the rhetoric and reality of any attempt to cut federal funds.

We also take a close look at new poll numbers showing strong support for California going its own way when it comes to assistance for those who are in the U.S. illegally.

And there was a big, early endorsement this week in the 2018 race for governor. But will it make a difference?

I’m joined by Times reporter Melanie Mason, as well as Marisa Lagos of KQED News and Anthony York of the Grizzly Bear Project.

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Gov. Jerry Brown asks President Trump for a disaster declaration after winter storms

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23 candidates have filed to run to replace Xavier Becerra in the 34th Congressional District

Nearly two dozen people submitted paperwork to run in the 34th Congressional District before 5 p.m. on Thursday, the deadline for candidates to file with the L.A. County Registrar.

The final certified list of candidates is expected to be released next week.

In the meantime, California Secretary of State Alex Padilla released the results of the “random alphabet drawing” — a ritual that occurs for every election in which the agency’s staff literally pulls letters from a bingo-style cage. See this example from last year’s election season:

Officials do this to make the ballot order (and any potential advantages or disadvantages) random. Some have argued in the past that ballot order may have played a role in election outcomes, such as the surprise victory of Patty Lopez over then-incumbent Raul Bocanegra in 2014.

If all the candidates who filed to run for Becerra’s old seat qualify, that would make Mark Edward Padilla, a nonpartisan candidate, the first to appear on the ballot. Adrienne Nicole Edwards, a Democrat who challenged Becerra in 2016, would be last — but only on the ballots in the portion of the district that overlaps with Assembly District 51.

That’s because officials randomize the ballot order further, switching it up by state Assembly district within each congressional district. In Assembly District 53, which makes up the other half of the district, Democrat Robert Lee Ahn’s name would appear first, while Padilla’s would be moved to the bottom of the ballot.

Need a refresher on who’s who in the race? Read more about each candidate (and those who have dropped out).

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Senate leader criticizes Trump administration for errors in information about Southern California immigration raids

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California expands its legal attack on federal immigration policy in new amicus brief

Xavier Becerra at his first confirmation hearing for state attorney general on Jan. 10.
Xavier Becerra at his first confirmation hearing for state attorney general on Jan. 10.
((Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) )

California expanded its legal attack on federal immigration policy Friday, for the first time challenging practices not part of President Trump’s travel ban.

California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra joined an amicus brief Friday supporting a lawsuit pending in the U.S. Supreme Court that challenges the authority of federal immigration officials to detain noncitizens without providing them a hearing on their removal from the U.S.

Two previous friend-of-the-court filings supported lawsuits challenging Trump’s travel ban order. The new case, joined by seven states, does not involve that order.

In the latest case, Jennings vs. Rodriguez, the plaintiffs are noncitizens who were detained by federal authorities in Southern California for longer than six months. The lawsuit argues that the Constitution mandates that they receive a hearing on whether their detention is justified.

The class action is filed on behalf of plaintiffs including a Mexican immigrant who was detained for removal because of a drug conviction, even though he is a lawful permanent resident. Another plaintiff is an asylum seeker from Ethiopia who was detained for removal because of insufficient proof of identity.

The plaintiffs in the case want to be released on bond if the government cannot show they are a danger to the public or a flight risk, Becerra said.

“No one should be detained for months without being assessed first for his or her actual flight risk or dangerousness,” Becerra said in a statement. “Mothers and fathers are detained who cannot return home to their children; others are simply missing work. Their absences could have long-term impact on families, communities, states and the country.”

The states joining California in filing the amicus brief are Massachusetts, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.

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California Senate leader calls on immigration officials to be ‘transparent and accountable’

California Senate leader Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles) on Friday called on federal immigration officials to release more information about a series of recent raids that authorities called routine, but have left immigrant advocates feeling rattled.

Appearing at a Los Angeles news conference, De León denounced the raids as actions that “tear apart at the fabric of who are are as a nation and as a state.”

Federal authorities have said the raids were routine and not reflective of a new, more aggressive enforcement strategy under the new Trump administration.

But De León, who has struck a combative posture against the new president, implied that under Trump, he would not give immigration officials the benefit of the doubt, absent more information. He said the interactions under the administration of former President Obama, whom immigration activists labeled “deporter-in-chief,” were more honest.

“As of January 20 with the new president, that dialogue, that sense of trust has been eroded,” he said. “It’s not good for our communities. … It sets off paranoia, anxiety, angst and high levels of stress.”

Advocates have said they have been unable to get more details on the identities of those detained and if the targets had committed crimes that would make them high priorities for deportation.

Law enforcement officials say the extent of the action has been exaggerated.

“We do understand that the federal government’s jurisdiction is that of immigration. No one is questioning that. No one is attempting to undermine the current laws of the United States government,” De León said. “But they do have a major responsibility to make sure they are transparent and accountable to their actions.”

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California Democrats: Trump’s security advisor should be fired if allegations of Russia sanctions talks are true

The ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank), said President Trump’s national security advisor, Michael Flynn, should be fired if he warned Russian officials about the details of U.S. sanctions against the country related to their attempts to influence the 2016 election.

“The allegation that General Flynn, while President Obama was still in office, secretly discussed with Russia’s ambassador ways to undermine the sanctions levied against Russia for its interference in the Presidential election on Donald Trump’s behalf, raises serious questions of legality and fitness for office,” Schiff said in a statement about the former Army lieutenant general. “If he did so, and then he and other administration officials misled the American people, his conduct would be all the more pernicious, and he should no longer serve in this administration or any other.”

The report that Flynn discussed the sanctions with the Russian ambassador, and may have indicated that Trump would lift them, while Obama was still in office came from the Washington Post on Thursday. The report directly conflicts with statements made by Trump administration officials who characterized the conversations as cordial holiday greetings or normal administrative calls between government aides.

Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Dublin), the ranking Democrat on the Intelligence Committee’s CIA subcommittee, said Flynn should be suspended until the allegations are investigated. He told The Times that investigation would be done by the FBI.

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California Republicans think they’ve found the ideal candidate for governor. So why isn’t Kevin Faulconer interested?

As a young man and a lover of literature, Kevin Faulconer channeled his inner Hemingway and ran with the bulls in Pamplona.

It was “probably one of the most exciting, terrifying 45 seconds that I can remember,” said the mayor of San Diego, throwing his head back and releasing a long, rollicking laugh.

It was also an experience, filled with recklessness and danger, he’s not eager to replicate anytime soon.

At age 50, comfortably ensconced in his second term, Faulconer has emerged as the fair-haired favorite of California Republicans desperate for a serious candidate to run for governor in 2018, when term limits finally end the Jerry Brown era.

In many ways, the leader of California’s second-most-populous city seems an ideal prospect.

There’s just one problem: Faulconer insists he’s not interested.

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1 in 3 Californians likes Trump in a new statewide poll

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Statewide survey finds Californians want state and local governments to protect immigrants who are here illegally

Supporters of Santa Ana becoming a so-called sanctuary city for immigrants at a rally in December.
(Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times)

A solid majority of Californians believe their state and local governments should make their own policies and take action to protect the rights of immigrants illegally in the state, according to a new statewide survey released Tuesday.

The study by the Public Policy Institute of California also found that an overwhelming majority of state residents, from across party and ethnic lines, believe there should be a way for immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally to stay in the country if they meet certain requirements.

Researchers said the poll results stand in sharp contrast to the position of President Trump both during and after last year’s campaign, but are rooted in views long held in California.

“Overwhelmingly and consistently, Californians have been saying there ought to be a path to citizenship,” said Mark Baldassare, president and survey director of the public policy institute.

The survey is based on 21-minute interviews with 1,702 California adult residents, including 681 conversations on landline telephones and 1,021 on cellphones. The calls took place on weekend days and weekday nights over nearly two weeks in late January.

Researchers found 65% of all adults and 58% of likely voters favor state and local action on immigration. A majority of Californians from different ethnic groups and in regions across the state were in favor, including in Los Angeles, where 73% of respondents were in support.

But opinions varied widely across political lines: While 80% of Democrats said they wanted to see local and state governments develop their own measures, 69% of Republicans opposed the move.

Consistent with other surveys from the institute over the last year, an overwhelming majority of Californians, or 85%, said there should be a path to remain in the country for immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally, depending on whether they meet certain requirements.

Overwhelming numbers of Latinos, African Americans, Asian Americans and white residents said immigrants should be allowed to stay in the U.S., and support also came from strong majorities across political parties, including 93% of Democrats and 65% of Republicans.

Of those who said they voted for Trump, 61% said immigrants in the U.S. illegally should be allowed to stay, while 34% said they should not.

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On reported immigration raids, California Senate leader tells constituents, ‘know your rights’

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California politicians react strongly to the 9th Circuit decision to block Trump’s travel ban

California’s Democratic and Republican politicians issued immediate reactions to the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals decision to uphold a temporary block on President Trump’s order to ban entry to the U.S. from seven predominantly Muslim countries.

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Sen. Kamala Harris pushes to guarantee access to legal counsel for those detained upon entry to the U.S.

(Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)

Sen. Kamala Harris filed legislation Thursday that would guarantee access to legal counsel for those detained while attempting to enter the United States.

Hundreds of people were detained at U.S. airports after President Trump issued an order banning entry into the United States for people from seven predominantly Muslim countries. Many were held for more than 10 hours without access to phones or to the flood of attorneys who joined protesters at the airports.

The bill is about “when these individuals ask to speak to the lawyer [who] is literally on the other side of the door waiting to talk to them, they are not denied that request,” Harris told the Times.

She stressed that the bill does not say there is a legal right to a public defender or taxpayer funded attorney, but that if a person detained at the border asks to speak to their attorney they can.

The bill would have broader implications than just the travel ban in Trump’s executive order, including potentially increasing access to attorneys for unaccompanied children fleeing violence in Central and South America.

The legislation, the first the former California attorney general has filed as a senator, would also require that people detained at the border or another point of entry have the opportunity to access an attorney before they can relinquish their legal status. Several people caught up in the travel ban allege they were pressured by Customs and Border Patrol officials to sign forms invalidating their visas or green cards before they boarded planes out of the country.

“There are so many cases where people are being asked to sign something and they don’t know what it means. That’s not due process,” Harris said. “We should want to make sure they knew what they were signing, that’s just a fair system.”

The ban has been placed on hold nationally as the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals weighs if states have standing to challenge its legality.

The bill also requires that people be held for as short a time as possible, and have access to food, water and toilets while they are held. It also requires that if an attorney is not physically available there is an option to speak to them by phone or video.

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) filed similar legislation in the House. It is co-sponsored by California Reps. Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose), Judy Chu (D-Monterey Park), Eric Swalwell (D-Dublin) and Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-Downey).

Harris’ bill is co-sponsored by six Democratic senators. With only support from Democrats, the bill is likely to face an uphill battle to be approved in the Republican-controlled Congress, but Harris said she hopes the bill will be seen as a fairness issue, rather than a partisan one.

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Rep. Duncan Hunter says he won’t support federal funds for ‘sanctuary cities’

Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Alpine) won’t request federal funds in the coming fiscal year for states, cities and universities that have a policy to not comply with enforcement of federal immigration laws, he said in a statement Thursday.

So-called sanctuary policies limit local efforts in enforcing federal immigration laws, arguing that the threat of deportation keeps immigrants from reporting crime. Opponents, though, say it’s a willful disregard of federal law.

As one of the only Republicans representing the San Diego area, Hunter’s support -- or objection -- to funding requests could have a major effect on whether federal money is available for local needs.

“The submission of a federal funding request for sanctuaries is irresponsible and rewards disregard for the law— and I can’t support that,” Hunter said in a statement.

No cities in San Diego County explicitly identify themselves as sanctuary cities, a tactic that’s been used to avoid federal retribution. But some do have policies that limit how long a person can be held for suspected immigration violations. San Francisco and other California cities have more enthusiastically embraced the term.

Several cities, along with state Attny. Gen. Xavier Becerra, have pledged to challenge the legality of a recent order from President Trump to withhold funding from sanctuary cities.

Leaders of the University of California and California State University systems have said their campus’ will not help deport students who are in the country illegally.

Earlier this year, Hunter filed the No Funding for Sanctuary Campuses Act, which would deny Title IV education funding to campuses that violate immigration laws.

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California lawmakers hope new climate change proposal will help low-income communities harmed by pollution

Assemblyman Eduardo Garcia (at podium) and Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia (second from left) announced new legislation on climate change on Thursday.
(Chris Megerian / Los Angeles Times)

California lawmakers on Thursday announced a new effort to address climate change with an increased focus on finding ways to help communities harmed by pollution and poverty.

As reported earlier, the legislation, AB 378, represents an opening bid in the conversation about how to handle the state’s cap-and-trade program, which requires companies to buy permits to release greenhouse gas emissions.

Although Gov. Jerry Brown has asked lawmakers to extend the program, Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia (D-Bell Gardens) said they’re not ready to commit to that.

“Before we get there, we need to make sure social justice, environmental justice is addressed,” she said.

The measure will likely be fleshed out more as negotiations continue. At this point, it directs state regulators to center climate programs around public health goals and other local issues.

The announcement drew some notable supporters, including representatives from national environmental groups, environmental justice advocates and trade unions.

Given divergent opinions about cap and trade, keeping all parties at the table will be a challenge. And the hurdle will only be more difficult if lawmakers push for a two-thirds vote, the threshold needed to safeguard cap-and-trade revenue from legal challenges.

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California’s brand new Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra announces he’ll run for the post in 2018

Xavier Becerra
Xavier Becerra
(Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)

California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra on Thursday formally announced his bid to run for election to the post in 2018, telling supporters he is ready to continue to battle the Trump administration when he thinks the president is trampling on rights.

“The stakes could not be higher,” Becerra wrote in an email to supporters. “Only a few days after I took the oath of office as California Attorney General, the White House began issuing unconstitutional and un-American executive orders that shouldn’t see the light of day.”

Becerra, 59, was appointed by Gov. Jerry Brown to fill the last two years of Kamala Harris’ term after she was elected to the U.S. Senate. Becerra has already filed friend-of-the-court briefs in two lawsuits challenging Trump’s travel bans.

“I want to fight for your rights from start to finish — until we put every dangerous idea and policy six feet under ground,” Becerra wrote.

The incumbent will face challengers in 2018, with announced candidates so far including Democratic Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones and Republican San Bernardino County Dist. Atty. Mike Ramos.

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Can Congress swiftly kill the landmark retirement program California spent years designing?

Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles)
Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles)
(Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

An ambitious California law intended to help create retirement security for low-income workers is in the crosshairs of the Trump-era Congress, which is moving to block the state and others from launching programs to automatically enroll millions of people in IRA-type savings plans.

The push is one of the most direct confrontations yet with California and other liberal states by a GOP-led Congress emboldened by President Trump’s election.

And it is intensifying the debate about whether conservatives who now control Washington will honor their pledge to respect states’ rights, even when states pursue policies out of step with the Republican agenda.

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Californians keep the phones ringing on Capitol Hill over Trump

Constituents are ringing Capitol Hill phones off the hook as they try to reach members of Congress to talk about President Trump’s potential agenda and what might happen to the Affordable Care Act.

California members of Congress say their staffs are answering two or three times as many phone calls as they normally would.

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Sen. Dianne Feinstein will vote against Rep. Tom Price for Health secretary

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California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra joins amicus brief in second lawsuit challenging Trump’s travel ban

Xavier Becerra at his first confirmation hearing for state attorney general on Jan. 10.
Xavier Becerra at his first confirmation hearing for state attorney general on Jan. 10.
((Rich Pedroncelli / AP) )

For the second time this week, California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra on Wednesday joined counterparts in 16 other states in filing a friend-of-the-court brief challenging President Trump’s travel ban as unconstitutional, this time intervening in a Virginia case.

The lawsuit filed by three Yemeni holders of U.S. visas alleges that when they flew into Washington Dulles International Airport, they were improperly handcuffed and detained and then sent on an airplane to Ethiopia.

The complaint alleges that plaintiffs Tareq Aqel, Mohammed Aziz and Ammar Aqel Mohammed Aziz were forced to sign papers that they neither read nor understood and consequently were coerced into surrendering their visas.

“There is nothing in our Constitution or laws that grants anyone, including the President of the United States, the power to disregard the Bill of Rights,” Becerra said in a statement Wednesday. “By detaining people who had a lawful right to be here from entering the United States, denying them legal counsel and cancelling their visas simply because of their religion or national origin, the Trump Administration exceeded its authority and violated the Constitution.”

He said the state Department of Justice is working in California to initiate similar cases.

The latest filing comes just days after Becerra joined other states in filing an amicus brief in the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to support Washington state’s lawsuit alleging the travel ban is unconstitutional.

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California submits a $100-billion wish list of infrastructure projects to Trump for federal funding

With President Trump pledging $1 trillion for infrastructure, California officials on Wednesday took a break from their feud with the new administration to propose a list of $100 billion in projects for possible federal funding to help rebuild the Golden State’s system of crumbling roads and bridges and improve transit and water storage.

Any federal money for the 51 projects would be in addition to money California is hoping to raise for its aging infrastructure, wrote Nancy McFadden, the governor’s executive secretary, in a letter to the National Governors Assn.

“In the short-term, these projects will benefit businesses up and down the state and put thousands to work — many in communities with the highest rates of unemployment,” McFadden wrote. “Long-term, this investment will have lasting, expansive economic benefits by moving goods and people faster, protecting vulnerable communities from flooding, bolstering emergency response capabilities, saving and storing more water and improving energy reliability.”

The list of priority projects includes roads, levees, bridges, ports, train and public transit systems, water storage and recycling projects, and energy, military, veterans and emergency operations facilities and services.

The state faces a $136-billion backlog of necessary repairs on state highways and local roads, and Gov. Jerry Brown has proposed in his new budget to increase spending on transportation $4.3 billion a year for the next decade.

Gov. Brown’s office said Wednesday it had agreed with legislative leaders to an April 6 deadline for any transportation funding deal.

“To prepare for the future — and complement federal investments — California is doing its part by working on legislation to ensure a permanent and sustainable funding stream is in place to further support road, highway and other critical infrastructure construction and improvements — part of a 10-year transportation investment plan,” McFadden wrote.

While California Democrats have feuded with Trump over issues including immigration, state officials have voiced encouragement about his pledge to put $1 trillion dollars into infrastructure projects.

“We will build new roads and highways and bridges and airports and tunnels and railways all across our wonderful nation,” Trump said during his inauguration.

In his State of the State address last month, Brown welcomed the president’s attention.

“And I say, ‘Amen to that, man. Amen to that, brother.’ We’re there with you!” he said.

State Transportation Agency Secretary Brian Kelly told reporters he plans to meet soon with new federal Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao to discuss the wish list.

Asked about whether tensions between California and Trump over other issues might hurt the state’s requests, Kelly said the state has had a “very functional and good relationship” with federal officials. “We expect that continue and we are going to work hard towards making that continue,” he said.

Kelly also defended the inclusion of high-speed rail projects on the list, despite opposition from 14 Republican members of Congress. He said the high-speed rail proposal is “important and transformative,” which is the standard used to decide which projects to put on the list..

Projects on the priority list released Wednesday include:

— Widen and replace interchanges of the 710 Freeway serving the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

— Strengthen the Otay Mesa Mexican border security with a new port of entry for efficient crossings.

— Construct 16 miles of express lanes along major commute corridors on the 405 Freeway in Orange County.

— Build express lanes along the 15 Freeway in Riverside County and the 10 Freeway in San Bernardino County.

— Replace the Gerald Desmond Bridge in Long Beach.

— Expand and improve the Los Angeles Metro Transit system, including the Purple and Orange lines, to benefit commuters and the 2024 Olympic bid.

— Modernize and replace the Los Angeles Metro rail fleet.

— Expand the ongoing Central Valley high-speed rail construction to include service from San Jose to San Francisco, and provide improvements for high-speed rail from Burbank to Anaheim.

— Construct a Los Angeles Regional Recycled Water project to purify water currently being discharged into the ocean for recharging groundwater basins.

— Build an early-warning earthquake system.

— Construct a Southern California Regional Emergency Operations Center at the Joint Forces Training Base in Los Alamitos to serve as the central operations base for the National Guard.

Updated at 2:49 pm to include comments from State Transportation Agency Secretary Brian Kelly.

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Watch: Kamala Harris speaks against Trump attorney general pick Jeff Sessions on Senate floor

Sen. Kamala Harris laid out her opposition to President Trump’s pick for attorney general, Sen. Jeff Sessions, Wednesday in a speech on the Senate floor.

Despite Democrats’ efforts, Sessions is expected to be approved by the Senate later Wednesday.

Joining colleagues in more than 20 hours of speeches on the floor, the former California attorney general argued that Sessions’ civil rights record shows he’s not qualified to be attorney general.

“The United States attorney general enforces the principles that are the founding of our country, but I have seen no evidence in his record or his testimony that Sen. Sessions will approach this office in furtherance of these noble ideals,” Harris said. “The gains that out country has made are not permanent, and it is incumbent on the attorney general of the United States to fight for the civil rights of all people.”

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) has also said she plans to vote no on Sessions’ confirmation.

Last night, Harris tried to stave off Republican efforts to use an infrequently deployed rule to stop Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) from reading a letter from Coretta Scott King that was critical of Sessions on the Senate floor.

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‘We are not taking part in this fear-mongering’: California lawmakers propose education assistance for refugees

Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher speaks at a news conference.
Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher speaks at a news conference.
(Jazmine Ulloa / Los Angeles Times)

Seeking to better integrate refugee families across the state, California lawmakers on Wednesday introduced a package of bills that would offer schools funding to hire translators and counselors, and provide new residents with in-state tuition at public colleges.

The legislation, filed by Assembly members Kevin McCarty (D-Sacramento), Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher (D-San Diego) and Adrin Nazarian (D-Sherman Oaks), aims to push back at what the lawmakers called religious and racially charged rhetoric at the federal level spurring fear and confusion in their districts’ refugee and immigrant communities.

“It’s nice to be able to be at the forefront of a state that is going to say, ‘No,’” Gonzalez Fletcher told reporters at a news conference. “We are going to say, ‘No, we are not taking part in this fear mongering and this hatred. And in fact, we are going to do just the opposite.’”

California received more than 725,000 refugees between 1975 and 2015. Nearly 8,000 arrived in 2016.

The bills introduced this week would provide refugees with in-state tuition and expand educational support and offer priority enrollment to those with Special Immigrant Visas, earned for serving in the U.S. Armed Forces or the U.S. State Department in Iraq or Afghanistan.

The legislation would also allow refugees to apply their foreign work experience toward a professional license.

The fiscal impact of the legislative package is still unknown. But one bill requests a one-time, $5-million budget allocation to provide grants to local education agencies in counties with large populations of refugee families. Those funds would allow schools to hire translators, counselors and other support staff to help integrate young refugee students.

Paula Villescaz, a board member with the San Juan Unified School District, said only seven counties with high refugee populations currently receive a total of $1 million in federal funding for refugee resettlement programs.

For her school district, the 11th largest in the state, the money goes to provide translators, welcome kits and extended learning opportunities for refugees, students seeking asylum and human trafficking victims. But the funding is not enough and is at risk from being discontinued, she said.

State funding would allow the district to continue its services, Villescaz said.

“These students arrive at our school doors with significant mental and health challenges, language barriers and many other needs,” she said.

5:15 p.m. update: An earlier version of this article misquoted Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher. She said: “It’s nice to be able to be at the forefront of a state that is going to say, ‘No.”

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Republicans hope to unseat four of California’s Democratic congressmen in 2018

U.S. Rep. Ami Bera votes in his home district in Elk Grove on election day 2014.
(Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

The campaign committee for congressional Republicans has named four Democratic congressmen from California as prime targets they plan to defeat in 2018 midterm elections.

The National Republican Congressional Committee said its “top offensive targets” in California are:

  • Rep. Ami Bera (D-Elk Grove)
  • Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara)
  • Rep. Scott Peters (D-San Diego)
  • Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-Palm Springs)

Though Bera has won three elections, they have all been expensive nail-biters. Bera and Hillary Clinton won 51% of the vote in his suburban Sacramento district in 2016.

Bera’s father was sentenced last year to a year in federal prison for illegally funneling money to his son’s congressional campaigns in 2010 and 2012, something Republicans are sure to revisit.

Carbajal, a freshman congressman, represents a large Central Coast district where Democrats held an eight-point advantage over Republicans among registered voters shortly before the election. But Republicans almost flipped the seat in 2014 during the last midterm elections, when Democrats tend to stay at home. Carbajal won his seat by six points, and starts off the 2018 cycle with a little more than $52,000 in the bank.

Clinton won Carbajal’s district by 20 points.

Peters and Ruiz were both elected in 2012 and each has more than $1 million in cash on hand to fend off any new challengers.

Ruiz crushed his Republican challenger in 2016 by 24 points, claiming 62% of the vote. He was much more popular than Clinton, who won the district with 52% of the vote.

Peters beat his Republican challenger in 2016 with 56.5% of the vote while Clinton won 58% of the vote.

Democrats released a list of eight California Republicans they will target last month.

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Planned Parenthood’s political arm endorses Jimmy Gomez in race to replace Xavier Becerra

(Randy Shropshire / Getty Images)

Planned Parenthood has endorsed Assemblyman Jimmy Gomez (D-Los Angeles) in his campaign for the 34th Congressional District.

The endorsement, made by the group’s political advocacy wing, comes two days after a kerfuffle over the endorsement Gomez received from the California Democratic Party over the weekend.

Gomez has been considered a major ally for Planned Parenthood in the Legislature: He received a perfect score on the group’s legislative score card and was honored last year as a “Champion of Choice” by the organization.

He also authored a bill last year that added penalties for distributing secret recordings. The law stemmed from the controversy surrounding videos secretly taped by David Daleiden and other anti-abortion activists purporting to show Planned Parenthood employees illegally trafficking fetal tissue.

“We are confident that Jimmy will continue to advocate for women and families in Congress, and be a strong ally in the fight for access to Planned Parenthood health centers across the country,” said Celinda Vazquez, vice president of public affairs for Planned Parenthood Advocacy Project Los Angeles.

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California lawmaker wants to protect immigrants from having their personal information disclosed by state agencies

A DMV office in Palmdale with lines of people waiting for services.
A DMV office in Palmdale with lines of people waiting for services.
( (Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times))

A state senator has introduced a bill that would prohibit state agencies, higher education institutions and public service providers in California from disclosing the personal information of any of their applicants.

Sen. Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens) has said his legislation aims to protect the data of immigrants who are in the country illegally, as President Trump’s administration has promised to identify and target a wider group of people for deportation.

Under the provisions of the bill, schools and government agencies would be allowed to release personal information only in response to a warrant issued by a state or federal court in an individual criminal case.

It is modeled after legislation passed in 2013 that allowed the state Department of Motor Vehicles to issue driver’s licenses to applicants unable to provide proof of legal residency in the U.S. That state law blocks the agency from disclosing personal information unless it is requested by law enforcement as part of an investigation.

Lawmakers in support of Lara’s bill say they want to expand safeguards for driver’s license information and implement new data protections for immigrants who use other government services, such as health insurance for children and state nutrition programs.

It comes as government agencies and service providers across California are already fielding questions, attempting to dispel rumors and struggling to reach out to residents amid the federal crackdown on immigration. Among those agencies has been the Department of Motor Vehicles.

“Contrary to debunked Internet claims, DMV does not maintain a separate or ‘secret’ database of AB 60 license holders,” said Melissa Figueroa, deputy secretary of the California State Transportation Agency. “DMV databases available to law enforcement do not indicate whether a driver license was issued under AB 60, nor do they include any of the identification documents used to obtain a driver license, AB 60 or otherwise.”

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California’s Rep. Tom McClintock pleads for civil discourse and says he’ll get a bigger space for his next town hall

Rep. Tom McClintock made a plea for civil discourse on the House floor Tuesday, days after he had to be escorted out of a town hall by local police because of a large protest.

“I have held more than a hundred town hall meetings in my district throughout the last eight years spanning the entire life of the tea party and Occupy Wall Street movements,” McClintock (R-Elk Grove) said. “Through all those heated debates, the police have never had to intervene. Until this weekend, in Roseville, when the Roseville Police Department determined that the size and temper of the crowd required a police escort to protect me as I left the venue.”

McClintock blamed a “well-organized element that came to disrupt,” and questioned why they were upset. He had previously blamed an “anarchist” element, which organizers denied, and police said the protest was peaceful.

“If your love of our Constitution is greater than your hatred of our president, I implore you to engage in a civil discussion with your fellow citizens. That is what true democracy looks like,” he said.

In a closed-door caucus meeting on Tuesday, House Republicans discussed how to handle the thousands of progressive activists that have protested at their offices and town halls in recent weeks. Republican leaders told them to have security plans in place, but to be receptive and hear protesters out, Politico reported.

McClintock said in an interview he would coordinate more with local police when he has his next town hall, and make sure the space is bigger so more people can get inside.

“We’re got three tentatively scheduled as soon as local law enforcement clears it,” he said.

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Irvine’s Rep. Mimi Walters got a petition with 1,000 signatures today asking her to hold a town hall

Activists held a rally and dropped off a petition signed by more than 1,000 people at Rep. Mimi Walters’ Irvine office today that asks the Republican congresswoman to hold a town hall.

Billing the event as the “Will We Be Locked Out Again? The Suspense Is Killing Us” rally, activists converged outside of Walters’ office for a third week to ask for a town hall.

The requested town hall would be on “time-sensitive questions related to the Trump agenda.”

Organizer Anna Athena Reyes said she faxed the petition to Walters’ offices and dropped off a printed copy in person, after trying to ensure that the signers were all actually Walters’ constituents through address searches and other means.

Walters won her district by a large margin, but hers is one of seven Republican-held congressional districts in California where Hillary Clinton received more votes than President Trump did. Democrats say they plan to target all seven in the 2018 election.

“Our staff is in the office, working on casework, on behalf of residents of California’s 45th District. Members of this protest group have repeatedly harassed the congresswoman’s staff and have personally targeted specific staff members. These disruptions prevent us from working for our constituents,” Walters spokeswoman Abigail Sigler said in a statement that was nearly identical to the statement provided to The Times the last time the group visited Walters’ office.

Reyes said the congresswoman shouldn’t characterize constituents who disagree with her as opponents.

“She has made it clear that she sees me, and the majority of her constituents who voted against Trump and his agenda, as opponents,” Reyes said. “If Walters sees constituents voicing their concerns and asking to have access to her as ‘harassment,’ then it seems she may need to review the definition of ‘harassment’ as well as what her congressional duty is to properly represent all of her constituents.”

Indivisible OC and other groups also organized rallies Tuesday at the offices of Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Costa Mesa) and Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista). They are part of a network of groups trying to use tea party-like tactics to fight Trump.

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California Democratic Party Chairman John Burton endorses Rep. Keith Ellison to lead national party

John Burton
(David Butow / For The Times)

John Burton, chairman of the California Democratic Party, announced Tuesday that he’s backing Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) to lead the Democratic National Committee.

“He is committed full time to organizing field efforts in key states, and I agree with him that Democrats must do a better job to motivate voters across the nation, including championing working families and their issues,” Burton said in a statement.

It’s a big endorsement for Ellison. Only members of the Democratic National Committee can vote on who the next chair will be, and California has the largest delegation with 38 members.

“I’ve received overwhelming feedback from activist Democrats across California who back Keith,” said Burton, who is stepping down from his position in May after a decades-long political career.

However, the California delegation isn’t completely unified. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti previously announced he’s supporting Tom Perez, who served as labor secretary under former President Obama.

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Former L.A. school board member Yolie Flores gets backing of school police association in race for Becerra’s seat

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California legislators meet with their lawyer: former U.S. Atty. Gen. Eric Holder

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Is John Chiang the ‘undervalued stock’ in California’s governor’s race?

((Invision / Associated Press)

John Chiang’s campaign for California governor may be gaining some steam.

Campaign finance reports released last week showed that Chiang, California’s treasurer, raised $4.2 million in 2016, almost matching the money raked in that year by Democratic rival Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom.

On Tuesday, Chiang snagged the early endorsement of Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Paramount). Rendon may not be a household name in California, but the speaker is one of the most powerful and influential politicians in the state.

“It makes John Chiang the candidate to watch in the race. Between an endorsement like this and the fundraising string that John Chiang has shown in the campaign, it’s clear that this is at least a two-person race — it’s probably going to be a three- or four-person race,” said Bay Area Democratic political consultant Katie Merrill. “There is no clear front-runner now.”

Newsom, who is also a former mayor of San Francisco, had seized the mantle of front-runner in January 2015, almost four years before the 2018 general election, when he was the first major candidate to declare he was running to succeed Gov. Jerry Brown. Newsom also leads the field in overall fundraising, and in December landed his first major endorsement in the race – the California Nurses Assn., a strong and very vocal backer of Bernie Sanders’ high-voltage presidential bid.

Newsom started getting company in May, when Chiang jumped into the race. Democrat Delaine Eastin, a former California superintendent of public instruction, announced she was running in early November. And less than two weeks later, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa launched his campaign for governor.

Villaraigosa quickly showed his political strength by raising $2.7 million in less than two months. A spokeswoman for the Villaraigosa campaign said it plans to release a list of endorsements next month.

Dan Schnur, a professor at USC’s Annenberg School for Communication, pointed out that both Newsom and Villaraigosa are well known statewide and became top contenders as soon as they entered the race. That was less true for Chiang, despite winning three statewide elections, one for treasurer and two earlier races for controller.

“Even though Chiang has had a lower profile than Newsom and Villaraigosa, his fundraising and endorsements like this make him an even bet in the field,” Schnur said. “He’s the undervalued stock in the governor’s race.”

Endorsements rarely are major factors in swaying voters in campaigns, short of receiving a nod from the president or the state party, but they do give credibility to candidates and can be a catalyst for fundraising.

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As filing deadline looms, two new candidates join race to succeed Xavier Becerra in Congress

Two new candidates have entered the race for the 34th Congressional District ahead of the candidate filing deadline Thursday.

Dr. Jason Ahn and Mark Edward Padilla are the latest candidates to file with the Federal Elections Commission, joining a long list of candidates hoping to succeed former Rep. Xavier Becerra.

Ahn, whose age could not be confirmed, is a doctor who is part of the National Clinician Scholar program at UCLA. He received his medical degree from Harvard University and also directed a documentary called “Divided Families,” which explores how the Korean War separated family members for decades. He is running as a Democrat.

Padilla, 52, is listed as having no party preference and works at an immigration law firm. A former Catholic school teacher, Padilla is also a member of the Knights of Columbus and sits on the board of Guadalupe Pregnancy Services in Montebello, whose mission is to provide “healthy alternatives to abortion.”

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Bill to provide immigration law resources for public defenders across California is advanced by Assembly committee

Public defender’s offices across California are in need of immigration law training and resources, a demand that a state lawmaker says has been made more pressing under President Donald Trump and his threat of massive deportations.

Speaking before members of the Assembly Public Safety Committee on Monday, Assemblyman Rob Bonta (D-Oakland) urged support for a bill that he said would provide critical immigration resources to criminal defense lawyers working on the front lines. His legislation seeks to create regional and statewide resource centers to provide immigration law training and advice for court-appointed criminal defense attorneys.

“We all know that sometimes worse than the criminal consequences for a defendant can be the immigration consequences,” he said. “Families can literally be torn apart.”

The bill moved out of the committee with a 4-0 vote. Assemblyman Tom Lackey (R-Palmdale) abstained.

No members or witnesses spoke in opposition.

Supporters of the bill pointed to a 2010 U.S. Supreme Court decision that found the 6th Amendment requires defense counsel to advise immigrant defendants who are in the country illegally about the immigration consequences of their criminal cases. But few criminal defense lawyers have the expertise in that area of law, which can be as nuanced and complex as tax law, they said, and immigration law resources vary widely across the state.

“So many counties did not have the resources,” Raha Jorjani, director of Immigration Representation Project, said of her work with public defenders. “So many counties were thrilled to have one immigration lawyer to answer one or two questions, and they would repeatedly, constantly tell me, ‘I am not sure what I am going to do next week.’”

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Crunching the numbers of California climate spending

Advocates study a map of low-income areas in California where new spending could be targeted to stem the causes of climate change.
Advocates study a map of low-income areas in California where new spending could be targeted to stem the causes of climate change.
(Chris Megerian / Los Angeles Times)

State environmental regulators are working on an updated series of guidelines to send cap-and-trade revenue to low-income neighborhoods, the result of new legislation passed last year.

They’ve been holding meetings around the state in an effort to garner community input. It’s one part of an ongoing push-and-pull among lawmakers and regulators intended to focus state climate programs on communities struggling with poverty and pollution.

The cap-and-trade program requires companies to buy permits to release greenhouse gas emissions, and state officials allocate the money to initiatives that are intended to further reduce emissions.

On Monday night in Oakland, representatives from advocacy groups, utilities and government agencies gathered around large maps to discuss challenges.

How can low-income people benefit if they don’t live in an area that’s predominantly low-income? Do transit lines passing through low-income areas count under the state guidelines?

John Blue, the climate program manager at the California Environmental Protection Agency, said the state is getting better at determining where money needs to go. Officials previously examined pollution issues in terms of broad regions; now they’re looking at individual census tracts.

“That’s the new frontier,” he said. “We can apply science and use that to drive policy.”

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Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon endorses John Chiang for California governor

State Treasurer John Chiang
(Irfan Kahn / Los Angeles Times)

California Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Paramount) has endorsed Democrat John Chiang in his 2018 bid for governor, praising Chiang for fighting for all Californians during his years in public office.

Rendon said he was confident that Chiang, the state treasurer, will stand up to the “intolerant and irresponsible agenda of the Trump administration,” according to a statement released by Chiang’s campaign Tuesday morning.

Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon
(Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

“As governor, Mr. Chiang will take a different road and make California a national model for progressive legislation providing a contrast to Trump’s dystopian society,” Rendon said.

Rendon’s endorsement comes in what could be a crowded governor’s race that already includes some high-profile Democrats: Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and former state Supt. of Public Instruction Delaine Eastin.

The only well-known Republican in the race thus far is former Los Angeles Rams football star Rosey Grier. On Monday, Republican venture capitalist John Cox of Rancho Santa Fe announced he was forming an exploratory committee to consider a bid for governor.

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Sen. Kamala Harris speaks out against Betsy DeVos as part of Democrats’ 24-hour blitz on Senate floor

California U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris is among the Democratic senators who participated in a planned all-night debate on the Senate floor to fight against President Trump’s nomination of Betsy DeVos for Education secretary.

Both Harris and California Sen. Dianne Feinstein have said they’ll vote against DeVos. It’s not clear if Feinstein will speak as part of 24 hours of speeches meant to draw attention to the vote on DeVos’ nomination.

Though two Republicans have defected and said they’ll vote against DeVos, opponents of the nomination still need one more vote against her to prevent Vice President Pence from breaking a tie and confirming DeVos.

A storm of tweets about DeVos came from Harris’ Twitter account as the senator spoke out about the nomination.

You can watch the speakers live below.

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The left is trying out tea party tactics with hopes of building a successful anti-Trump movement

A couple of years ago, Doug Todd went to a town hall meeting for Republican Rep. Tom McClintock in the Northern California town of Lincoln. It was a laid-back affair, with muffins and a small group of constituents asking the congressman questions.

But over the weekend, Todd helped organize some of the hundreds of people who showed up to another town hall McClintock was hosting, this time to protest the congressman’s support of President Trump’s executive actions.

McClintock was escorted out of the event by several police officers as hundreds of people rallied outside.

“I think the importance was to show Mr. McClintock that we are not going to stand for anyone who’s on board with the Trump agenda,” said Todd, who lives in McClintock’s district. “We weren’t just going to smile and nod the whole time.”

Like many of the volunteer organizers, Todd considers his group an affiliate of Indivisible, a group recently created by former congressional staffers trying to deploy the same strategies against Trump that made the tea party so successful in challenging then-President Obama.

Local affiliates of the group all over the state have begun showing up at the district offices of their members of Congress, all part of a strategy modeled after the tea party, focusing on local congressional representatives and just saying no to policy changes.

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San Diego venture capitalist John Cox says he’s considering a run for California governor

Republican and Rancho Santa Fe venture capitalist John Cox is considering a run for governor, a campaign he said would focus on combating government corruption in Sacramento.

Cox, an attorney and certified public accountant who moved to San Diego County from Chicago about nine years ago, said he plans to jump start his campaign with $1 million of his own money. But said he has no plans to self-fund his bid to succeed Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown in 2018. The Sacramento Bee was the first to report that Cox had formed an exploratory committee for governor.

Cox also is pushing a proposed ballot initiative to overhaul Sacramento by establishing a “neighborhood legislature,” which would add thousands of new “citizen legislators” to the 80 assembly members and 40 senators who currently make up the California Legislature. To pass, bills would require approval from all of those representatives.

“This campaign is going to be about the neighborhood legislature,” he said. “To take our government back from the funders, the cronies and the corrupt.”

In 2016, Cox also pushed for a short-lived ballot measure proposal that would have required state legislators to wear the logos of their top donors when they appeared at official functions – similar to emblems of sponsors worn by NASCAR drivers.

In 2003, Cox ran unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate in Illinois against Barack Obama. Cox, 61, is married and has four daughters.

Cox said it’s a “reasonable certainty” that he will run for governor, joining a field that already includes some well-known Democrats including: Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, state Treasurer John Chiang and former state superintendent of public instruction Delaine Eastin. The only well-known Republican in the race thus far is former Los Angeles Rams football star Rosey Grier.

Earlier Monday, a spokesman for PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel said he has no plans to run for governor. Thiel, a Republican, was one of the few Silicon Valley tech leaders to back Donald Trump’s presidential campaign.

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GOP assemblyman celebrates Ronald Reagan’s birthday with cookies for his colleagues

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Becerra vows to fight any effort by Trump to hold back money from California over ‘sanctuary cities’ dispute

Xavier Becerra at his first confirmation hearing for state attorney general on Jan. 10.
Xavier Becerra at his first confirmation hearing for state attorney general on Jan. 10.
(Rich Pedroncelli / AP)

Reacting to President Trump’s threat to hold back funds from California if it becomes a so-called sanctuary state, Atty. Gen Xavier Becerra said Monday that he is willing to do legal battle over the issue if necessary.

“There is no state that provides more funding to the federal Treasury than the state of California,” Becerra said at a press conference in Fresno. “We have a right to receive some of that funding back.”

Becerra said California will work with Congress and the federal government to properly serve citizens.

“But we will also fight, every way we can, to make sure that we get our fair share of money back,” Becerra said. “We will fight anyone who wants to take away dollars that we have earned and are qualified for simply because we are unwilling to violate the Constitution under these defective executive orders.”

Senate Republican leader Jean Fuller of Bakersfield urged cooperation between the two levels of government, noting the federal government plays a major role in the lives of Californians.

“The majority party needs to put Californians first and work constructively with our federal partners,” Fuller said in a statement. “I’ve offered Governor Brown my help in bridging the gap between Sacramento and Washington for constructive, ongoing dialogue.”

State Sen. Andy Vidak (R-Hanford) is among those who oppose legislation by Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León (D- Los Angeles) that would make California a sanctuary state.

De León’s bill would prohibit state and local law enforcement agencies from investigating, questioning, detaining or arresting people for immigration enforcement purposes. It also would require state agencies, public schools and contractors to keep confidential any data on people that might be used for immigration enforcement.

“SB 54 dangerously lumps violent, hardcore undocumented criminals in with millions of hard-working immigrant families,” Vidak said in a statement. “Families in the undocumented community are particularly scared that De León’s actions will protect predators who prey on their children, the elderly and other vulnerable folks in their neighborhoods.”

Updated at 4:30 pm to include comment from Senate Republican leader Jean Fuller.

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Candidates in race to replace Becerra complain of ‘dirty tricks’ in state party endorsement of assemblyman

Assemblyman Jimmy Gomez received the endorsement of the California Democratic Party in a vote by local party delegates over the weekend, and his opponents are not happy about it.

Several of the candidates competing against Gomez in the 34th Congressional District issued a joint statement Monday alleging “dirty tricks” by state party operatives.

“What the Democratic political establishment is telling us is, ‘We know best. We know what’s best for the people of Los Angeles. No debate, no discussion needed here,’” read the joint statement signed by Vanessa Aramayo, Arturo Carmona, Wendy Carrillo, Ricardo De La Fuente, Raymond Meza and Michelle “Hope” Walker.

The controversy centers on a meeting that took place Sunday at a youth center in El Sereno, where a select group of state party delegates who live in the district met to discuss and vote on the endorsement.

But only a couple of delegates actually showed up to hear from the candidates and vote in person, with the vast majority of ballots cast by mail before the meeting, according to the statement.

The fact that nearly half of the 103 eligible delegates didn’t turn out to vote highlights “the type of backroom corrupt deals that still dominate” the county and state parties, the statement said.

The candidates urged supporters to contact state party officials directly to object. The arguments echo the kind of anti-establishment fervor that supporters of Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders displayed last year.

State party rules allow members of an endorsing caucus to vote in person or by mail, and stipulate that more than 50% of eligible voters must vote to proceed with the endorsement.

Mike Shimpock, a consultant for Gomez, denied the accusations that his client received any unfair advantage.

“The rules on how these elections are conducted, just like any other election, are pretty clear and long-standing,” Shimpock said. “We worked hard, and they got outworked and they lost. It’s troubling that they would try to delegitimize the very party that they want to represent.”

In a regular election year, candidates would have the opportunity to challenge a state party endorsement if they gathered signatures from 20% of delegates in the district.

Because of the accelerated timeline of the April 4 election, however, Gomez’s endorsement can be challenged only if there’s concern that the party’s bylaws were violated, and only then if the state party receives letters from 20% of the local delegates within two days of the result.

Daraka Larimore-Hall, secretary of the California Democratic Party, defended the party rules.

“We have a process, it’s fair, it’s transparent. Some people win it and some people lose it, and those who lose it very often turn around and decry the process,” he said.

Larimore-Hall, who has endorsed Gomez in the race, said the party’s rules are the “product of decades of debate” among activists and party officials, and have “evolved to be more inclusive and more responsive.”

Updated at 5:15 p.m. to include a statement from Larimore-Hall.

For the record: A previous version of this post incorrectly stated the endorsement caucus occurred Saturday.

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Peter Thiel is not running for governor of California

(Alex Wong / Getty Image)

PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel, one of the few tech giants to back Trump’s presidential campaign, has no plans to join the 2018 race for California governor.

Speculation about Thiel joining the race initially surfaced in reports by Politico, exciting some California Republicans looking for candidates to challenge the big-name Democrats already in the race. But Thiel’s spokesman doused that idea on Monday.

“Peter is not running for governor,” Jeremiah Hall told The Times in an email.

Among the Democrats already in the running are Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, state Treasurer John Chiang and former state Superintendent of Public Instruction Delaine Eastin.

The only well-known Republican who has said he is running is former Los Angeles Rams football player Rosey Grier.

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California Democratic Party endorses Assemblyman Jimmy Gomez in race to replace Becerra in Congress

Assemblyman Jimmy Gomez (D-Los Angeles), right, received the endorsement from the California Democratic Party over the weekend.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Assemblyman Jimmy Gomez just got a big boost in the race for the 34th Congressional District.

Gomez won the California Democratic Party endorsement in a little-publicized meeting of local party activists over the weekend, with 56 of 58 votes going to him.

With nearly 60% of voters in the district registered as Democrats, the official stamp of approval from the state party could go a long way in the already crowded April 4 primary.

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California joins 15 other states going to court to challenge Trump’s immigration orders

Attorney Gen. Xavier Becerra speaks his confirmation hearing in Sacramento in January.
(Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)

California and 15 other states joined the growing legal challenge to President Trump’s immigration orders, filing an amicus brief Monday supporting Washington state’s lawsuit that argues the directives targeting people from Muslim-majority countries are unconstitutional.

State Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra announced the friend-of-the-court brief after a federal judge put a nationwide hold on the immigration moratorium and the case was appealed by the Trump administration.

“The state of California is today on the record opposing the Trump administration’s executive order banning travel for principally individuals of Muslim origin and faith,” Becerra said at a press conference in Fresno on Monday.

California was joined in filing the brief by Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, Vermont and the District of Columbia.

“On behalf of the nearly 40 million people of California, I stand shoulder-to-shoulder with [other] attorneys general ... to preserve the suspension of the Trump Administration’s travel ban,” Becerra said in a statement.

“The Administration’s reckless dismissal of the Constitution threatens to rip apart California families, risks their economic well-being and defies centuries of our American tradition,” he added.

The brief, co-written byBecerra’s office and its counterparts in New York, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts, argues that Trump’s order harms the state.

“If this court were to grant a stay, it would resurrect the chaos experienced in our airports beginning on the weekend of January 28 and 29, and cause harm to the States—including to state institutions such as public universities, to the businesses that sustain our economies, and to our residents,” said the 23-page brief.

The attorney general said medical school programs would “risk being without a sufficient number of medical residents to meet staffing needs.”

In addition, Becerra said “the process of admitting students to state colleges and universities would be disrupted” as more than 2,000 students would be affected.

“We in California will continue to coordinate with like-minded states in a concerted effort to fight the travel ban that denies the rights of law-abiding people to travel freely here and abroad,” he said.

A three-judge panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals is scheduled to receive written arguments from both sides today and may rule within a week.

The panel will rule on whether an emergency stay against Trump’s orders should remain in place until the constitutional issues are decided.

The federal judge who issued the restraining order decided that the states that challenged the immigration moratorium would suffer immediate and irreparable harm in employment, business, education, familial relations and freedom to travel.

Updated at 3:41 pm to include Becerra comment from Fresno press conference.

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California Democrats want answers about alleged coercion at LAX during Trump’s travel ban

Fourteen California congressional Democrats are asking for more information about how Customs and Border Protection implemented President Trump’s travel ban of all refugees, and of visa holders from seven predominantly Muslim countries.

The letter, led by Rep. Judy Chu (D-Monterey Park), specifically mentions reports that travelers at Los Angeles International Airport and other airports were forced to sign Form I-407, relinquishing their legal right to enter and remain in the United States.

The letter asks for what guidance the agency received from the Department of Homeland Security on implementing the order as well as any complaints about the implementation filed at Los Angeles International Airport. The letter also asks the agency to review all I-407’s signed since Trump’s order took effect and identify cases of coercion.

Chu and other members of Congress went to airports to make personal appeals for constituents and their families suddenly barred from entry to the United States in the hours after the ban went into effect. The letter notes instances of members of Congress and lawyers being blocked from speaking with those being detained by Customs and Border Protection officials.

A federal judge’s order temporarily put the travel ban on hold nationwide. The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals is expected to quickly review the Justice Department’s appeal this week and determine if the ban should stay in place while constitutional questions are determined, likely ultimately by the U.S. Supreme Court.

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California GOP committee faces $30,000 in fines for campaign finance violations

The California Republican Leadership Fund has agreed to pay $30,000 in fines to the state for causing six county central committees to make contributions in their names without identifying the fund as the true source of the contributions, according to records released Monday.

The fund was created to conduct fundraising for Republican county central committees in Alameda, Riverside, Sacramento, San Luis Obispo, Stanislaus and Tulare counties, according to a report by the state Fair Political Practices Commission enforcement staff.

Spending decisions are made by a panel that includes designees of Republican legislative leaders.

For the 2012 and 2014 statewide elections, the central committees made $10 million in contributions to about 70 state legislative candidates in their names, the report said. The committees did not disclose that the fund was the true source of those contributions because it solicited the contributions, maintained control of the money and made all decisions regarding contributions, the report added.

“Since the Fund caused contributions to be made in the names of the central committees rather than its own, one of the most serious violations of the Act, a substantial penalty is justified,” the report said.

The Fair Political Practices Commission is scheduled to meet Feb. 16 to consider the fines recommended by its staff.

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California political leaders say the state is far from being ‘out of control’ — it’s ahead on economic progress

(Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

Responding to President Donald Trump’s threat to withhold federal funding from California, state congressional leaders on Monday touted the state’s economic progress and job growth, saying any blow to California would have repercussions nationwide.

“If this is what Donald Trump thinks is ‘out of control,’ I’d suggest other states should be more like us,” Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon said in a statement. “California has the most manufacturing jobs in the nation. Our state grows a quarter of the nation’s food. Our minimum wage increase has not only helped our poorest workers, it has boosted the economy while unemployment continues to drop.”

Senate leader Kevin de León said the state was creating jobs faster than any state in the nation and paid more annually in federal taxes than it gets back.

“President Trump’s threat to weaponize federal funding is not only unconstitutional but emblematic of the cruelty he seeks to impose on our most vulnerable communities,” De León said in a statement. “Taking such irresponsible action would hurt our senior citizens, children, farmers, and veterans -- these are not political games, these are real lives the President is targeting.”

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Trump calls California ‘out of control,’ says withholding federal funds ‘would be a weapon’ against sanctuary cities

Declaring California to be “out of control,” President Trump threatened to withhold federal funding to the state if it votes to declare itself a sanctuary state.

A state Senate committee on Tuesday approved a billfrom State Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León that would prohibit state and local law enforcement agencies from using officers or jails to uphold federal immigration laws, effectively a statewide version of so-called sanctuary cities.

In an interview airing during Fox’s Super Bowl pregame show, Fox News Channel host Bill O’Reilly asked the president about the plan.

“I think it’s ridiculous,” Trump said, reiterating his opposition to sanctuary cities, which he said “breed crime.” He signed an executive order in his first week in office that threatened to withhold federal funding for cities that don’t cooperate with federal immigration officials.

“If we have to, we’ll defund,” Trump said. “We give tremendous amounts of money to California. California in many ways is out of control, as you know.”

Trump said it wasn’t his preference to do so, and that states and cities should get money they need “to properly operate.”

But, “if they’re going to have sanctuary cities, we may have to do that. Certainly that would be a weapon,” he said.

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Hundreds of people showed up for a town hall with California’s Rep. Tom McClintock, and things got intense

The scene inside and outside Rep. Tom McClintock’s town hall meeting Saturday morning was at times raucous, and the California congressman ultimately was escorted out by police.

KQED’s Katie Orr reported that the 200 seats for the town hall set up by the Republican in Roseville, Calif. were filled, and hundreds more people remained outside.

McClintock is one of many members of Congress who have been encountering protests at their district offices or town hall meetings since President Trump took office just over two weeks ago. Most protesters have been asking members to fight the possible repeal of the Affordable Care Act, Trump’s cabinet nominees and Trump’s temporary entry ban on immigrants from certain countries and all refugees.

The discussion grew raucous at times, according to Orr and other reports, and the many people left outside the venue shouted to be let in or for McClintock to come outside.

Afterward, McClintock was escorted from the building by police.

McClintock said that during the meeting, he was advised by staff that the situation outside was “deteriorating” and that it was the Roseville Police Department’s decision to provide a police escort out of the building.

In an interview, McClintock said he believes there was an “anarchist element” among organizers of the protest whose purpose was to “disrupt” the meeting.

“It’s the first time I’ve ever had an police department have to extract me from a town hall, and I’ve done well over 100 of them in Congress,” he said.

Doug Todd is an organizers of Indivisible Roseville, one of several progressive groups that organized members to show up to McClintock’s meeting, and called it an “overreaction” by the police department.

“These were families, and senior citizens and women. [The demonstration] was peaceful and it was American and it was supportive of our democracy,” he said. “Nobody was intruding on him.”

Citing other incidents, including Wednesday night’s violent protests at UC Berkeley, McClintock criticized the left’s approach to political demonstrating in recent weeks.

“The way to change the course of the country is not to shout people down, not to riot in the streets,” he said. “Talk with your friends and your neighbors and share your thoughts with them.”

Previous to the protest, McClintock told The Times he was expecting a big crowd at the meeting.

“There’s obviously a great deal of political ferment and I suspect we’ll see a much higher percentage of left leaning people at this one than we have in the past because the times are different, but I’m kind of curious to hear what they have to say,” McClintock said.

Feb. 5, 11 a.m.: This post was updated with a comment from an organizer of the demonstration.

Feb. 4, 6:23 p.m.: This post was updated with comments from McClintock.

This post was originally published at 2:40 p.m.

Staff writer Christine Mai-Duc contributed to this report

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California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra says judge’s order will reunite California families

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California Politics Podcast: Democrats scramble to keep up with Trump’s early actions

For a city where the calendar nicely lays out a series of events each new year — a state budget proposal, a big speech by the governor — Sacramento has been frantic in 2017, constantly reacting to President Trump.

On this week’s California Politics Podcast, we look at the recent protests over Trump’s executive order on refugees and foreign citizens. And we discuss the road ahead for immigration bills from state Senate Democrats, three of which cleared their first statehouse hurdles this week.

We also take a quick look at the 2018 race for governor, with new campaign finance reports filed and all of the major candidates scrambling to react to events in Washington.

I’m joined by Los Angeles Times political writer Melanie Mason and Marisa Lagos of KQED News.

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No surprise: Way more Californians dislike Trump’s immigration orders

Protesters gather in front of the Tom Bradley International Terminal at Los Angeles International Airport after President Trump halted travel from seven majority-Muslim countries.
(Patrick T. Fallon / For The Times)

Two-thirds of Californians disapprove of President Donald Trump’s executive order banning citizens from seven predominately Muslim nations from entering the U.S. for 90 days, according to a new Survey Monkey poll.

Opposition to the order is much stronger in left-leaning California than in the rest of the nation.

Overall, 47% of those polled nationwide said they approved of Trump’s order, and 51% disapproved. Opinion was split along partisan lines, with nearly 9 out of 10 Republicans supporting the ban and almost an identical number of Democrats and independents disapproving of the policy.

When asked to assess Trump’s nomination of federal appeals court Judge Neil M. Gorsuch to the Supreme Court on Tuesday, 59% of Californians who took part in the poll said they disapproved of the choice, and 37% approved.

That also deviated from opinion nationwide, with 53% approving of Trump’s choice and 42% disapproving.

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This state lawmaker wants to stop California cities from taxing Netflix customers, at least for now

(Paul Sakuma / Associated Press)

Multiple California cities began exploring whether to tax consumers for watching Netflix and other streaming video services last year, and now a Los Angeles lawmaker wants to ban the idea.

Assemblyman Sebastian Ridley-Thomas, a Democrat, has introduced Assembly Bill 252, which would prohibit cities from implementing so-called “Netflix taxes.” Pasadena and other cities have been weighing whether to extend existing taxes on cable-television subscribers to those who used video-streaming services.

Cities had argued such taxes make sense as revenue sources, especially as more and more residents are cutting off their cable television subscriptions in favor of video streaming.

Ridley-Thomas’ bill, which he’s calling the Stream Act, would prohibit such taxes until 2023, enough time to allow the video-streaming industry to grow and understand its effects on local government revenues, the legislator said.

“The Stream Act takes an important step toward allowing streaming services to continue untaxed until stakeholders better evaluate the most appropriate levels of regulation,” Ridley-Thomas said in a statement.

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Why California lawmakers have yet to figure out Airbnb

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Battles over Airbnb and other short-term rentals are ongoing in city halls across California. But despite their efforts, state lawmakers have failed to pass legislation either to crack down on short-term rentals or make it easier for the industry to operate.

The reason: Neither Airbnb nor their opponents, chiefly those in the labor movement, have been able to out-muscle each other politically nor have legislators figured out how to address sticky tax issues between cities and the state.

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Hundreds of protesters at Rep. Steve Knight’s office ask him not to repeal Obamacare

(Javier Panzar / Los Angeles Times)

Kathy DeChellis, a 64-year-old retired school teacher, stood in the hallway outside Republican Rep. Steve Knight’s district office in Santa Clarita and recalled the last time she went to a political protest.

It was 1971, when she was a college student at the University of San Francisco and marched around Golden Gate Park to protest the Vietnam War.

DeChellis joined a crowd made up of retirees, young organizers and parents with toddlers who showed up at one of Knight’s three district offices to hand-deliver letters urging the Palmdale Republican not to vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare. The protests were among several that have popped up in recent days outside the district offices of members of Congress throughout the state.

“I decided it was time to get off my retired rear-end and do something,” DeChellis said. “We ought to take a lesson from the tea party; organize from the grass roots and get loud.”

Buzz Morgan, a 63-year-old from Newhall who owns a business selling chemical pumps for the oil and gas industry, chimed in: “I want Medicare to be there when I get to 65.”

The protesters formed a line that snaked out of Knight’s second-floor suite, along a hallway, down a staircase and out the door of the office park building.

The local Democratic club that organized the event said 173 people signed in with them at the Santa Clarita event. A spokesman for Knight said that altogether 300 people came to his three offices on Wednesday.

Protesters handed in their letters one by one and aired their grievances to Knight’s staffers while two Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies watched from across the room. Some demanded that funding for Planned Parenthood be maintained. One woman carrying two kids walked away in tears after describing her battle with multiple sclerosis.

Chad Kampbell, an organizer from the local group Democratic Alliance for Action, said their group took a page from a guide that has been making the rounds online among progressives called “Indivisible: A Practical Guide for Resisting the Trump Agenda.” He said the group wanted to be respectful but disruptive.

After an hour and a half of delivering letters, pleasantries were exchanged. Organizers wrote a thank-you note to Knight’s staffers, one of whom, Lisa Moulton, thanked the organizers for coming and being respectful.

Daniel Outlaw, a spokesman for Knight, said staffers are logging the messages they received so protesters’ concerns and comments can be shared with the congressman.

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The Clean Air Act could be another front in the battle between California and President Trump

Scott Pruitt is the Oklahoma attorney general chosen by President Trump to lead the Environmental Protection Agency.
(J. Scott Applewhite / Associated Press)

California leaders have taken great pride in the state’s environmental regulations, from tighter rules for vehicle emissions to new targets for renewable energy.

But although much of California’s agenda is rooted in state law, it also relies on permission from the federal government. The state has regularly sought and obtained waivers to the Clean Air Act that allow officials here to create regulations that are tougher than federal standards.

President Trump’s nominee to lead the Environmental Protection Agency, who is poised to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate, wouldn’t commit to continuing that tradition.

The result could be a messy and drawn-out battle between Sacramento and Washington.

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Schwarzenegger offers to swap jobs with Trump ‘so people can finally sleep comfortable’

Former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger took his strongest swipe yet at President Donald Trump on Thursday after his fellow Republican said people should pray for Schwarzenegger because of the low ratings on “Celebrity Apprentice.”

After Trump made the comments at the National Prayer Breakfast, a visibly frustrated Schwarzenegger tweeted a video in which he offered to switch jobs with Trump.

“You take over TV, because you’re such an expert in ratings, and I take over your job. And then people can finally sleep comfortable again. Hmm?” Schwarzenegger said.

Schwarzenegger, who replaced Trump as the host of the reality show, has long made clear that was he no fan of Trump. He voted for Ohio Gov. John Kasich in the California primary even after Kasich had dropped out and it was clear Trump would be the GOP nominee.

But until Thursday, he has criticized Trump by objecting to his policies, appointees or statements, such as the implementation of the temporary immigration ban on people from seven Muslim-majority nations, Trump’s statements questioning the impartiality of a Mexican American judge and Trump’s selection of Oklahoma Atty. Gen. Scott Pruitt to head the Environmental Protection Agency.

When Trump first criticized Schwarzenegger about the show’s ratings in January, the former governor responded by wishing him luck as president, hoping Trump would work as hard for all Americans as he did for his ratings, and by reading part of Abraham Lincoln’s first inaugural address that began, “We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies.”

Meanwhile, The Times’ Libby Hill exploreswhether the ratings on the current version of “Celebrity Apprentice” are really bad.

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This California lawmaker wants to limit use of those coupons people use for high-cost drugs

An example of a drug coupon
(Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)

Drug companies often offer coupons or vouchers to take the sting out of certain medications’ high price tags. But one Democratic lawmaker says such offers actually contribute to high healthcare costs — and is proposing legislation to limit their use.

Assemblyman Jim Wood (D-Healdsburg) has introduced a measure that would prohibit the use of coupons for medications when there are cheaper drug options available.

“Coupons may appear to help the consumer by reducing or eliminating their out-of-pocket costs but, in fact, are too often simply a marketing tool to drive patients to higher priced drugs that may not be a more effective treatment option for them, and eventually will result in an increase to their health care premiums,” Wood, who chairs the Assembly health committee, said in a statement.

Healthcare experts have warned that such coupons, while reducing consumer co-pays, lead to greater use of pricey drugs, increasing the cost to insurance plans and leading to higher premiums.

The bill, AB 265, is just the latest example of how high drug prices continue to be a hot-button issue in the Capitol. The chair of the Senate health panel, state Sen. Ed Hernandez (D-West Covina), is reviving his drug-pricing transparency measure, SB 17, after a similar bill was shelved last year.

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California’s members of Congress deride Trump idea to cut UC-Berkeley funding after violent protest

Several members of California’s congressional delegation derided a tweet from President Trump on Thursday morning that seemed to be a threat to cut federal funding to UC Berkeley because of a violent protest.

A speech by conservative firebrand Milo Yiannopoulos at the university was canceled Wednesday after protests against his appearance became violent.

“If U.C. Berkeley does not allow free speech and practices violence on innocent people with a different point of view - NO FEDERAL FUNDS?” Trump tweeted.

California’s members, including one Republican, quickly defended the flagship campus of the UC system, which receives billions of dollars from the federal government for things like research, student aid and healthcare programs.

Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Oakland), whose district includes the university, said in a statement that she was disappointed the protest turned violent, but cutting funding to a major U.S. university isn’t a valid response to protest.

“Berkeley has a proud history of dissent and students were fully within their rights to protest peacefully. However, I am disappointed by the unacceptable acts of violence last night which were counterproductive and dangerous,” she said. “President Donald Trump cannot bully our university into silence. Simply put, President Trump’s empty threat to cut funding from UC Berkeley is an abuse of power.”

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, who represents nearby San Francisco, defended UC Berkeley as well.

“Berkeley is the center of the free speech movement. I think that the protesters have a right to free speech as well. If there is an infiltration of the crowd by those that are less than peaceful, that should be addressed,” she said.

Fullerton Rep. Ed Royce was the first Republican in the delegation to address the president’s tweet, saying the university shouldn’t be punished because a protest became violent.

“Cal students on work-study or scholarships shouldn’t be punished for the actions of a select few, and I’ll push back against any move to do so. UC Berkeley was right to embrace a free exchange of ideas,” Royce said. “Those who destroyed campus property or committed acts of violence should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

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The Central Valley has felt like California’s ‘stepchild.’ Now it’s at the heart of the effort to save Obamacare

Demonstrators target House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy in a pro-Obamacare rally in Bakersfield
(Melanie Mason / Los Angeles Times)

The crowd of hundreds was ready to march, winding a circuitous route from a Bakersfield park to the nearby district office of Rep. Kevin McCarthy to rally in support of the Affordable Care Act. But before they hoisted their signs and joined in healthcare-themed chants, there was a quick geographic roll call.

“How many of you are from Bakersfield?” asked the emcee. About half the attendees cheered. The rest had come from farther-flung homes: Long Beach, Sacramento, Riverside. They had traveled via chartered bus, largely with labor unions or grass-roots liberal groups, to the heart of the California effort to save Obamacare.

A potent mix of politics and policy has drawn the Central Valley into the center of the debate around the future of the Affordable Care Act. It is the region in the state most transformed by the landmark healthcare law. It is also a rare Republican enclave in California, represented in Congress by members of the majority party that will determine the law’s fate — including McCarthy, who, as House majority leader, commands a top post in the GOP.

The spotlight on the region has captured the attention of California’s leading Democrats. The week before the rally, a gaggle of Democratic state legislators — mostly representing Bay Area and Los Angeles-area districts — convened in Bakersfield for a hearing on the potential effects of an Obamacare repeal. Other top party officials — from Gov. Jerry Brown to Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones — have pointedly made note of the region’s healthcare landscape in recent missives.

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California’s senators are both voting no on Betsy DeVos, Trump’s Education secretary pick

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This California member of Congress wants to keep presidents from spending federal money on family businesses

(Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)

Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-Palm Desert) wants to prevent candidates and elected officials from spending campaign or federal funds on family business.

The package of bills is a response to the millions of dollars President Trump’s campaign spent at businesses he owned, such as campaign events at his Florida resort or on copies of his own book. The bills will be filed this morning.

One bill would prohibit federal candidates from spending campaign money at businesses they or a family member owns.

Another would also prohibit the president, vice president and Cabinet members from spending federal cash on businesses they or a family member owns, and prohibit members of Congress from using their office funds on businesses owned or controlled by members or their immediate families.

“The public should have confidence that public servants are representing the people and not getting rich off the people,” Ruiz said.

Ruiz is also filing legislation to require candidates for president, vice president or any Cabinet position to make their last three years of tax returns public.

Several similar bills have been filed since President Trump became the first president in decades to refuse to release his tax returns.

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California’s teacher pension fund lowers its investment predictions, sending a bigger invoice to state lawmakers

Leaders of California’s pension fund for teachers lowered their official investment expectations on Wednesday, a shift that will raise costs for both state taxpayers and many teachers.

Directors of the California State Teachers Retirement Fund, CalSTRS, took action to cut the investment assumption by half a percentage point by the summer of 2018. The decision follows a similar move by the state’s largest pension fund, CalPERS, to lower its investment projection last December.

Board members, faced with a widening gap between investment returns and expectations, said they took action to lessen the likelihood that existing retirement promises made to teachers won’t be kept.

“I fear that waiting may put us, the fund, in a more precarious situation,” board member Joy Higa said during a public meeting in San Diego.

CalSTRS had previously assumed a 7.5% rate of return on its $196-billion portfolio. That rate will now be cut in two stages — first to 7.25%, then to a more conservative 7% assumption in 2018.

The teachers’ pension fund, unlike CalPERS, historically has had very little power to cut rates, given it needed legislation to increase pension costs covered by state government. But a 2014 pension overhaul championed by Gov. Jerry Brown gave CalSTRS additional leeway in making adjustments to shore up the pension fund’s long-term viability.

An analysis by CalSTRS staff concludes the rate change will increase the contribution by taxpayers, through the state budget, by $153 million in the coming fiscal year. The contributions paid by many teachers will also rise under the new investment assumption, and the 2014 overhaul legislation also raises annual payments made by local school districts.

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Asian American politicians accuse Trump of turning the nation into a ‘cauldron of intolerance’

California Treasurer John Chiang and Controller Betty Yee and 26 other Asian American politicians in California and around the nation have sent a letter to President Trump asking him to rescind his executive order banning citizens of Syria, Iraq, Iran, Sudan, Somalia, Yemen and Libya from entering the U.S. for 90 days.

The letter on Wednesday accused Trump of unconstitutionally targeting Muslims and said his order perverted “this nation’s melting pot into a boiling cauldron of intolerance, hate, and division.”

The letter noted that Asian Americans have been targeted with similar policies in America’s past, including the Chinese Exclusion Act in the 1880s, which was the nation’s first major law excluding specific immigrants from the county. During World War II, Japanese Americans were sent to internment camps.

“Your 2,800-word executive order drips with cruel irony as it turns away refugees trying to escape the same Islamic terrorism and violence that you naively claim will be repelled from our shores if we only embrace your bigoted and cowardly directive,” the letter stated.

Chiang, who is running for California governor, and Yee are among many California Democrats who have spoken out against Trump’s order since he issued it on Friday.

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California Supreme Court once more delays voter proposition meant to speed up executions

(Eric Risberg / Associated Press)

The California Supreme Court on Wednesday once more delayed the implementation of a voter-approved measure that seeks to speed up the state’s death penalty system, as it considers a pending lawsuit challenging the measure’s provisions.

Proposition 66, which voters approved in November, aims to hasten executions by designating trial courts to hear petitions challenging death row convictions, limiting successive petitions and expanding the pool of lawyers who could take on death penalty appeals.

But it was challenged in state’s highest court by former state Atty. Gen. John Van de Kamp and lawyer Ron Briggs before election officials even called the results.

Their petition says the initiative infringes on offenders’ rights and violates the separation of powers doctrine, impairing courts from exercising their constitutional functions. Named as defendants are Gov. Jerry Brown, former Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris, Secretary of State Alex Padilla and the Judicial Council, which is the policymaking body for California’s courts.

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California’s Rep. Scott Peters asks for a report on how Trump’s entry ban was written and implemented

Rep. Scott Peters (D-San Diego) is asking for a full accounting of who was consulted in the drafting of President Trump’s ban on travel and immigration to the U.S. by citizens of seven predominantly Muslim countries.

Peters and 70 House Democrats have asked for a report from the Government Accountability Office detailing what input was solicited from federal agencies before the order was issued, how the Department of Homeland Security was told to enforce it, and what kind of legal analysis was done before the order was signed by Trump on Friday afternoon. The report would also include communications about the administration, all of which could be used when the order is challenged in court, Peters said.

The order, which prohibits travelers from Iraq, Iran, Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Libya and Yemen from entering the U.S. for 90 days, threw airports into chaos over the weekend. Big protests sprouted up at airports as hundreds of people were detained in U.S. airports or suddenly prevented from getting onto planes headed to the U.S. The order also indefinitely blocks refugees from Syria and blocks refugees from all other countries for 120 days.

“Executive orders that immediately affect millions of families and the economic and security interests of the United States should be vetted by agency experts and counsel, not White House political staff,” Peters said. “If the true intent ... was to make our nation more secure, his own national security officials would have known how to enforce the order before it was signed.”

Seventeen California Democrats signed the letter.

The Government Accountability Office is the largest congressional support agency. It conducts nonpartisan investigations and audits of government spending, programs and policies at the request of individual members of Congress. It usually agrees to such requests.

Also related to the travel ban this week, Rep. Lou Correa (D-Santa Ana) is filing legislation on Thursday to create a national fund to pay for attorneys for refugees and green card holders caught up by the executive order. The administration has signaled that the ban could last longer, and Correa said he doesn’t believe it will be lifted after 90 days.

He said he believes the current vetting of refugees and visa holders is sufficient, but if the president is worried some people are slipping through the cracks, then they deserve due process.

“It’s very simple, let’s get to the bottom of this,” Correa said. “Let’s really look at the case and if this person is really a threat or not.”

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Former L.A. mayor Antonio Villaraigosa warns that Trump’s policies could be dire for California

Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa on Wednesday addressed the California Latino Economic Institute
(Phil Willon / Los Angeles Times)

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Antonio Villaraigosa on Wednesday warned that the Trump administration’s vow to repeal the Affordable Care Act and renegotiate the North American Free Trade agreement could devastate millions of Californians and plunge the state into recession.

The former Los Angeles mayor also took shots at President Trump’s immigration policies, including his promise to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, suggesting he was trying to divide the country for his own political gain.

“We embrace our Latino heritage as every bit a part of our American heritage,” Villaraigosa said. “Because blind-eye bigots don’t know what we know. Latinos stepping up to take leadership is not a threat to American values. It is an emphatic embrace of the American values of reveling in our diversity and welcoming our newcomers.”

Villaraigosa made his remarks during an address to the California Latino Economic Institute, a newly formed organization that aims to address the economic challenges facing the state’s Latinos. The institute was created by business and Latino legislative leaders

Most of Villaraigosa’s speech hewed toward the central themes of his campaign — improving public schools and good paying jobs to the millions of Californians who have been “left behind” during the economic recovery, especially in places such as the Central Valley and Inland Empire.

His speech was somewhat light on specific policy changes he would implement as governor, but he did called for easing regulations under the California Environmental Quality Act and reducing the cost of higher education, including making community colleges tuition free for Californians who cannot afford to attend.

At the event, held at the Sutter Club in Sacramento, political consultant Michael Madrid said Latinos in the state have been disproportionately affected by some of the most pressing issues in California: including housing affordability, subpar public schools and disappearing middle-class jobs.

But Latinos have largely been unrepresented in the state and local governments that decide public policy on those issues, Madrid said.

Villaraigosa launched his campaign for governor in November. Other Democrats in the race include Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, state Treasurer John Chiang and former state superintendent of public instruction Delaine Eastin.

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How much do California’s targeted House Republicans have in the bank?

The 2018 midterm House races are not for another 642 days, but that hasn’t stopped Democrats from circulating a list of the Republican-held seats they hope to capture, including seven in California.

New federal finance reports out this week reveal where those targeted candidates’ piggy banks stand as the new election cycle begins. Some are in strong shape, while others have to rebuild their war chests after costly campaigns in 2016.

  • In CA-25, Rep. Steve Knight (R-Palmdale) is starting off with $37,192 in his war chest.
  • In CA-21, Rep. David Valadao (R-Hanford) has $49,172 in the bank.
  • In CA-48, Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Costa Mesa) has $237,775.
  • In CA-10, Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Turlock) reports having a sizeable $326,702 on hand.
  • In CA-49, Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista) had $329,152 in the tank.
  • In CA-45, Rep. Mimi Walters (R-Irvine) reported $393,070 in the bank.
  • In CA-39, Rep. Ed Royce (R-Fullerton) has a robust $2.7 million at his disposal.

Though Knight has a tiny piggy bank, he got off to a slow start last cycle and still held on to his seat despite a well-financed opponent. And he has time to build his funds back up: No Democrat has emerged yet to challenge him in 2018.

Valadao doesn’t have much cash on hand, but he proved to be a strong fundraiser and he has easily defeated his last three challengers by double-digit margins.

Issa had $3.7 million in his campaign piggy bank at this point two years ago. But after a bitter and expensive reelection campaign, his reserves are down to $329,152.

Rohrabacher, who some insiders think may retire, does not have as much cash as Scott Baugh, former chair of the Republican Party of Orange County, who is waiting to step in should Rohrabacher bow out. Baugh has $548,428 in the bank.

The National Republican Congressional Committee has not released a list of targeted Democrats, but its press releases offer a hint at whom it is looking at.

“Last night on CNN, Nancy Pelosi argued that sanctuary cities make us safer. Do her California colleagues Ami Bera, Salud Carbajal, Raul Ruiz, & Scott Peters agree?”

Elk Grove congressman Bera had $132,911 on hand while Carbajal, a freshman House member from Santa Barbara, had $52,292.

San Diego congressman Peters and Ruiz, who represents Palm Desert, had more than $1 million each.

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Rep. Jim Costa asks Trump to let 12-year-old caught in immigration ban join her family in California

Rep. Jim Costa (D-Fresno) appealed to President Trump on the House floor Wednesday to reconsider his new immigration ban, which is preventing a 12-year-old girl from joining her family in Costa’s district.

Ahmed Ali, a U.S. citizen and resident of Los Banos, had been working with immigration officials for years to bring his daughter, Eman, to California. The pair were flying from Yemen to the U.S. when Eman was prevented from boarding a plane during a layover at a Djibouti airport because of her visa.

“President Trump’s executive order is preventing this legal process from taking place, and is putting Eman and her father in harm’s way while they wait in Djibouti,” Costa said. “In the past 48 hours, the Trump administration has been defending the executive order, saying it is not a travel ban or a ban on refugees. So I would like to ask the president, how is the executive order not a ban on refugees and on individuals who have been approved to enter the United States? And how is keeping a 12-year-old girl out of the United States making Americans safer?”

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Gov. Jerry Brown still has $15 million in campaign cash — and makes no promises how he’ll spend it

(Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

With no clear campaign left to run in his storied electoral career, Gov. Jerry Brown nonetheless owns a $15-million political war chest, one of the largest of any elected official in the state.

Few, though, suspect that Brown is out of ideas on what to do with it.

The governor’s new campaign finance report shows a little more than $15 million in his main political account, largely untouched during the 2016 election cycle that saw him victorious in two ballot measure efforts.

Brown’s initiative to make sweeping changes to California’s prison parole rules, Proposition 57, won handily on Nov. 8. And the governor was instrumental in helping raise $21.7 million to defeat Proposition 53, a ballot measure that sought to impose voter approval on large public works bond offerings.

So what now? Brown, who has a little less than two years left in office, could easily use his campaign cash on any number of efforts. That includes potentially asking California voters to extend or expand the state’s landmark climate change laws. The governor has asked lawmakers for a formal extension of the cap-and-trade program, which auctions off greenhouse gas pollution credits. If it fails to pass muster in the Legislature, the issue could be taken directly to voters in 2018.

For now, Brown is staying out of any speculation about what might happen.

“I think it’s safe to say he’s keeping his options open,” said Dana Williamson, the governor’s political strategist.

Still, the amount of money that could fund those options is impressive. Campaign finance reports filed this week show that Brown has more cash on hand than any of the three leading Democrats vying to replace him in 2018.

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California Sens. Feinstein and Harris are wary of Trump’s Supreme Court pick

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)
(Mark Wilson / Getty Images)

California Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris say they have concerns about Judge Neil Gorsuch, President Trump’s pick to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.

“I’ve repeatedly stated that the next justice must have respect for precedent, be within the mainstream and protect the fundamental rights guaranteed by our Constitution. Judge Gorsuch has a long record and it will take time to conduct a thorough review,” Feinstein said in a statement.

Feinstein is the highest ranking Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, and was in office when the Gorsuch was approved by unanimous consent to serve on the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in 2006. In a statement, she said Gorsuch should get a thorough and fair review.

Feinstein said she’s worried about Trump’s litmus test for a Supreme Court nominee and his claims during the campaign that he was focused on picking a justice who will overturn Roe vs. Wade, the case that made abortion legal nationwide.

“Then tonight, President Trump declared, ‘I am a man of my word.’ That’s exactly what I’m afraid of,” Feinstein said.

Harris said on Twitter that the next justice needs to uphold civil rights. She noted that whoever is confirmed will have a long-term effect on the country.

“I am troubled by the nomination of Judge Gorsuch and will fight to ensure the voice of the American people is heard in this process,” she said. “The next justice will have a profound impact on money in politics, voting rights, immigrant and women’s rights, and more.”

Neither senator has yet mentioned the possibility that Senate Democrats could use the filibuster to try to block Gorsuch’s confirmation.

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In the 2018 governor’s race, Gavin Newsom leads the pack in fundraising

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