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California Policy and Politics Wednesday

Newsom’s populist act: Oppose state billionaire tax, embrace federal one -- With proposals to tax the rich, Gavin Newsom is playing to a 2028 national audience anxious about artificial intelligence. As governor, he’s walked a fine line on taxes for years. Jeanne Kuang Calmatters -- 7/22/26

Steve Hilton embraces his Trump endorsement. But in new ad, he asks voters to ignore it -- Republican Steve Hilton is trying to overcome one of his biggest challenges to becoming governor of California: his allegiance to President Donald Trump. Joe Garofoli in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Ben Paviour in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 7/22/26

California Democrats blast FCC in KABC, KGO license reviews -- More than a dozen California Democrats are confronting the FCC over its rare early review of Disney’s ABC station licenses, calling the process ideologically tainted and aimed at punishing critical media coverage. Meg James in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/22/26

 

Trump’s new immigration strategy revealed in purchase of 2 ICE detention centers in California -- The Trump administration is trying to lock down immigration detention capacity in California despite opposition from the state’s Democratic leaders. Wendy Fry and Nigel Duara Calmatters -- 7/22/26

HHS withholds $867 million in Medicaid payments to California as part of ‘crackdown on fraud’ -- The Trump administration is blocking $867 million in Medidaid funds to California and $199 million to Minnesota, citing suspected fraud in in-home care and immigrant eligibility. Gov. Gavin Newsom denounced the freeze as a political stunt. Ben Wieder and Dakota Smith in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/22/26

Super pollutants — California sues Trump administration for ignoring climate-changing fridge chemicals -- California and 19 other attorneys generals are suing the Environmental Protection Agency for reversing action on high-polluting refrigerants. Blanca Begert in the Los Angeles Times$ Liz Essley Whyte in the Wall Street Journal$ Sarah Kliff in the New York Times$ -- 7/22/26

 

Wildfire survivors angered as utility-funded group claims to represent them -- A group claiming to represent California fire survivors began paying for social media ads this spring, calling on lawmakers to take action to reduce the rising cost of wildfires. The group was created by utilities that have ignited six of the state’s most destructive fires. Melody Petersen in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/22/26

S.F. approves city’s largest budget ever while closing $642 million deficit -- The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted on Tuesday to approve a $16.9 billion budget deal, closing a deficit of more than $640 million while avoiding many of the most painful cuts labor groups and nonprofits had feared. Alyce McFadden in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/22/26

‘The money is just obscene’: Inside Mayor Lurie's funding machine reshaping S.F. politics -- Well-heeled donors aligned with the mayor have been eager to support him financially, both at the ballot and at City Hall. J.D. Morris in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/22/26

Adam Schiff pushes federal judicial reform. ‘Americans deserve nothing less’ -- Schiff said years of reporting detailing undisclosed gifts, financial conflicts of interest and controversies involving Supreme Court justices have undermined public confidence in the federal judiciary and prompted the legislative package. Naomi Taxay in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 7/22/26

Foreclosure Tax

Oakland could tap its distressed downtown real estate for revenue with ‘foreclosure tax’ -- A rule of thumb for city finances: if the real estate market is doing well, so are city coffers. But now, as a number of Oakland apartment and office buildings face foreclosure, city leaders are looking to capture revenue from a downturn too. Kate Talerico in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/22/26

Marketplace

California wouldn’t be the right place to launch California Pizza Kitchen today, co-founder says -- One of the founders of California Pizza Kitchen says that if he were to open the once-hot gourmet chain today, he would choose Florida over California. Lily Wright in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/22/26

Workplace

Pixar and National Geographic hit in latest round of Disney layoffs -- Walt Disney Co. is laying off several hundred employees, including at Pixar Animation Studios and National Geographic, a company spokesperson said Tuesday. Samantha Masunaga in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/22/26

This coastal city promised farmworkers affordable housing. Now, opponents are lining up against it -- In the YIMBY vs. NIMBY world of state housing politics, all eyes will be on Half Moon Bay Tuesday night. J.K. Dineen in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/22/26

North America’s largest mushroom producer to cut 253 jobs in Bay Area -- The Watsonville-based company said it’s transitioning from a mushroom farm and packing facility at 642 Hale Ave. into solely a packing facility. The company was founded in 1971 and is North America’s largest mushroom producer, according to analyst reports. Roland Li in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/22/26

AI

OpenAI Models Escaped and Hacked a Company in Cybersecurity Test Gone Wrong -- Before they could penetrate Hugging Face’s defenses, the models needed a way onto the internet. They found one. It’s the stuff of cybersecurity nightmares. On Tuesday, OpenAI said two artificial intelligence systems it was testing broke out of their test environment, hacked their way onto the internet and broke into another company. Robert McMillan and Amrith Ramkumar in the Wall Street Journal$ Matt O’Brien Associated Press Gerrit De Vynck in the Washington Post$ -- 7/22/26

They built AI. Now Silicon Valley workers protest its threat to jobs and humanity -- In the heart of Silicon Valley, tech workers are turning against the AI boom they helped create, staging protests over job losses, runaway algorithms and fears that powerful systems could imperil humanity. Queenie Wong in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/22/26

Sony Music Entertainment files new lawsuit against AI startup Udio -- Sony Music has filed a new lawsuit accusing AI music startup Udio of infringing on more than 30,000 recordings allegedly scraped from YouTube to train its song‑generating technology. Wendy Lee in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/22/26

ChatGPT Led to a Man’s Near-Fatal Health Crisis, Lawsuit Claims -- The case appears to be the first to argue that a chatbot’s advice harmed someone seeking guidance about a medical condition. Teddy Rosenbluth in the New York Times$ -- 7/22/26

Water

‘A five-alarm fire’: Western reservoirs that supply California fall to record low levels -- The Colorado River’s largest reservoirs, Lake Mead and Lake Powell, have declined to their lowest combined levels on record. Researchers say the new low underscores the urgent need to cut water use in the seven states that depend on the river. Ian James in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/22/26

Homeless

Over 3 years, homeless nonprofit paid more than $1.7 million to companies owned by its chief executive -- Once a small nonprofit, A Step to Freedom rapidly expanded on taxpayer funding while paying more than $1.7 million to companies owned by its chief executive. Andrew Khouri and Alene Tchekmedyian in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/22/26

Housing

S.F. cuts millions in funding to troubled housing nonprofit after Chronicle investigation -- The move away from HomeRise represents a critical challenge for the city and Mayor Daniel Lurie, who now must seek new providers to serve more than 400 of the city’s most vulnerable residents. Matthew Mitchell, Susie Neilson in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/22/26

Education

If your degree doesn’t pay enough, you can’t borrow. Federal loans cut for low-wage programs -- A new Trump administration rule will cut off federal student loans for college programs whose graduates consistently earn low incomes. Cosmetology, arts and some mental health programs face the highest risk. Andrew Khouri and Francesca Pinney in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/22/26

Also

The dark side of making daylight saving time permanent in California: How late would our sunrises get? -- Were Congress to adopt permanent daylight saving time year-round, eliminating the need to change the clocks twice a year, Los Angeles would see its latest sunrise of the year at 8 a.m. Sacramento would see sunrise as late as 8:24 a.m., and San Francisco, 8:25 a.m. Crescent City, on the northwestern tip of California? A sunrise of 8:44 a.m. Rong-Gong Lin II in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/22/26

Iconic Beachfront Estates Are on Discount in Malibu’s Sluggish Post-Fire Recovery -- One of the most desirable, celebrity-packed coastal stretches of California has a glut of luxury homes on the market. Nicholas G. Miller and Paul Kiernan in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 7/22/26

POTUS 47

‘A politically impossible situation’: New poll shows Trump voters losing patience with Iran war -- The share of MAGA voters who think the war is worth the economic cost has fallen to roughly over a third, down from 50 percent in May, the Politico Poll found. Megan Messerly Politico -- 7/22/26

Trump Says U.S. Will Bomb Iran’s Power Plants, Bridges if Tehran Strikes Ships -- President Trump threatened to destroy an Iranian bridge or power plant for every attack Iran makes on vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. Lara Seligman in the Wall Street Journal$ Edward Wong, Yan Zhuang, Leo Sands and Alan Yuhas in the New York Times$ -- 7/22/26

Judge says Trump must hand over financial records to BBC -- A federal magistrate judge ruled Tuesday that President Donald Trump must turn over detailed financial information in connection with his defamation lawsuit against the BBC. Josh Gerstein Politico -- 7/22/26

Trump Approves Landmark Nuclear Deal With Saudi Arabia in Big Win for Kingdom -- The deal could mean large profits for American companies but also is likely to raise concerns about nuclear proliferation in Middle East. Michael R. Gordon and Stephen Kalin in the Wall Street Journal$ David E. Sanger, Edward Wong and William J. Broad in the New York Times$ -- 7/22/26

 

California Policy and Politics Tuesday

Trump administration freezes Medicaid funding to California over ‘suspected fraud’ -- Kennedy, alongside Medicare and Medicaid Administrator Mehmet Oz, did not provide specific examples or evidence of fraud when they announced the move but said the administration paused reimbursements because of “questionable spending.” Sara DiNatale in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Ali Swenson Associated Press -- 7/21/26

California fights Trump administration, again, over Santa Barbara oil pipeline: The coast is ‘not for sale’ -- California has filed another lawsuit against the Trump administration over the oil operation off the Santa Barbara County coastline, asserting in a petition Monday that the federal government — again — improperly permitted continued pipeline use. Grace Toohey in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/21/26

Bonta says Paramount litigation isn’t ‘anti-Trump’ -- California Attorney General Rob Bonta insisted Monday that his antitrust challenge to Paramount Skydance’s purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery is about competition, not politics, pushing back on conservatives who argue the lawsuit is motivated by opposition to Donald Trump. Daniel Miller Politico -- 7/21/26

Republicans can’t stop talking about a California dog who voted. Here’s what really happened -- It’s a tale Republicans cannot resist telling: California mailed a ballot to a dog in Orange County and the dog successfully voted in the 2021 statewide recall election. Sara Libby in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 7/21/26

 

13 carmakers sign up for California EV rebate initiative -- Thirteen automakers have agreed to participate in California’s new electric vehicle rebate program that will roll out later this summer, including Tesla, which manufactures the top-selling model in the Golden State. Rob Nikolewski in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 7/21/26

Medicaid funding is restored to Planned Parenthood, but the pause cost California clinics -- Planned Parenthood clinics can bill Medicaid this month after a yearlong ban on covering its services put in place by congressional Republicans and President Donald Trump expired — but not before the health provider permanently closed four centers in the Bay Area because of the policy, officials said. Grant Stringer in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 7/21/26

Workplace

Gavin Newsom’s return-to-office rules are stricter than many states, including Texas -- California state workers must report to the office four days a week under an executive order from Gov. Gavin Newsom. Other states allow more remote work. Lynn La Calmatters -- 7/21/26

Gov. Gavin Newsom orders state agencies to shore up anti-trafficking protections -- California state agencies will draft new solutions for identifying and connecting victims of human trafficking to resources within the next two months, according to an executive order Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Monday. Lia Russell in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 7/21/26

Senior Living Facility in Distress as Immigrant Caregivers Are Forced Out -- Channing House, a senior living community just a mile from Stanford University, is home to pioneering scientists, tech executives and inventors. But during a recent meeting, its residents confronted a problem they felt powerless to fix: the sudden loss of their caregivers to immigration policies. Miriam Jordan in the New York Times$ -- 7/21/26

Marketplace

Armed robots are on the horizon, as Silicon Valley pitches new military tech -- Looking for his next business, San Francisco entrepreneur Sankaet Pathak sought an idea that might change the future. He settled on building humanlike robots with weapons. Ian Duncan in the Washington Post$ -- 7/21/26

California’s Anduril and Archer Aviation join forces to build muscular attack drones -- Anduril Industries, a military technology company based in Costa Mesa, approached the San José-based air taxi venture Archer Aviation two years ago with a concept for a dual-use, self-flying rotorcraft. Caroline Petrow-Cohen in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/21/26

Ben Affleck’s AI company is sold for more than $500 million -- Netflix has paid $587 million to acquire Ben Affleck’s AI film-tech startup InterPositive, a blockbuster bet on using generative tools to reshape how movies and series get made. Cerys Davies in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/21/26

Yosemite

Crushing crowds turn Yosemite into ‘Disneyland.’ Can visitors still have fun? -- Without a reservation system, thousands of people are flocking to Yosemite National Park each month. Visitors say if you want to avoid the crowds, either enter Yosemite early in the morning, later in the afternoon or wait until the peak season ends in October. Jaclyn Cosgrove in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/21/26

Cyclosporiasis

Cyclosporiasis cases climb; probe into Taylor Farms produce continues after false positive -- A recent sample of lettuce from Taylor Farms that detected the cyclosporiasis parasite was a false positive, federal officials say, but there is still “overwhelming” data to support the California-based company’s current recall of produce amid the outbreak. Karen Garcia in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/21/26

Water

Central Valley farmers reluctantly turn to solar as water supplies dry up -- Solar is exploding in the Central Valley as drought-stressed farmers look to alternatives. Blanca Begert and Ian James in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/21/26

Education

White House admits it used keywords to kill billions worth of California research grants -- Federal agencies that terminated more than a thousand research grants at the University of California last year admitted that they used keywords related to diversity, gender, vaccine hesitancy and COVID-19 to screen for projects that ran afoul of the Trump administration’s priorities. Mikhail Zinshteyn Calmatters -- 7/21/26

UC San Diego illegally uses race in admissions, Trump’s Justice Department alleges -- The Justice Department alleges the admissions process at UC San Diego’s medical school illegally favors Black and Latino applicants over white and Asian candidates. Federal civil rights officials say UCSD uses “hardship” questions as a proxy for race. Jaweed Kaleem in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/21/26

Amid LAUSD budget crisis, Supt. Chait touts gains, trades Carvalho’s flash for a quieter tone -- New LAUSD Supt. Andrés Chait delivers a calm first ‘state of the district’ address, stressing stability and community as the district faces financial crisis. Chait touts rising state test scores and ‘record-setting’ academic gains across English, math and science. Howard Blume in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/21/26

AI

Top American AI Execs Sound Alarm on Chinese Models -- Silicon Valley and Washington are debating a multibillion-dollar question: Should American companies be able to use Chinese artificial-intelligence models? Amrith Ramkumar and Tina Li in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 7/21/26

POTUS 47

The Pentagon, sinking billions into Iran war, is quickly running short on cash -- With some funds set to dry up within weeks, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is set to press lawmakers Tuesday to address the increasingly urgent shortfall. Noah Robertson, Riley Beggin and Jarrell Dillard in the Washington Post$ -- 7/21/26

 

The Man Who Runs the IRS Spied on Colleagues When He Worked at JPMorgan -- Frank Bisignano, head of the IRS and Social Security Administration, allegedly spied on fellow executives while co-COO of JPMorgan. Bisignano’s lawyer denied the allegations, stating he never directed anyone to engage in surveillance or look through employee communications. Alexander Saeedy in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 7/21/26

Trump to Impose 50% Tariff on Many Canadian Goods -- The administration will use an untested legal provision to put significant duties on Canadian exports, reigniting a clash with one of America’s biggest trading partners. Ana Swanson and Ian Austen in the New York Times$ David J. Lynch in the Washington Post$ -- 7/21/26

Nearly 100 U.S. troops injured in last two weeks of Iran war, Pentagon says -- The disclosure came as the U.S. military identified two U.S. soldiers who died following an attack in Jordan on Friday. Dan Lamothe, Joshua Yang and Mary Ilyushina in the Washington Post$ -- 7/21/26

18 U.S. service members have been killed during Iran war. Here’s where -- At least 18 U.S. service members have been killed supporting the United States during the now months-long war in Iran, including three killed since combat resumed a week ago. Sammy Westfall and Dylan Moriarty in the Washington Post$ -- 7/21/26