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Krugman: California represents the worst of current U.S. economic crisis -- The budget pain facing California this year is not California’s fault, said Paul Krugman, the Nobel Prize-winning economist who has been among the most outspoken writers critiquing the government’s response to what he calls an economic “depression.” Shawn Gaynor SF Public Press -- 7/13/12 How Insider Politics Saved California's Train to Nowhere -- Environmentalism may be religion to some on the left, but its high priests aren't all pure and righteous. Consider the not-so-immaculate conception of California's bullet train. ALLYSIA FINLEY in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 7/13/12 Stanford's George Shultz on energy: It's personal -- George Shultz leads a group preparing to propose a federal tax on carbon to slash U.S. greenhouse gas emissions and oil consumption, a seemingly unlikely policy from a Republican Party statesman. MARK GOLDEN and MARK SHWARTZ Stanford Report -- 7/13/12 Gov. Jerry Brown doubles fines for bear, bull and rooster fighting -- Gov. Jerry Brown on Friday doubled the fines for people convicted of causing bears, bulls and roosters to fight with other animals or with people. Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/13/12 Jane Harman finds life pretty good after Congress -- Is there life after Capitol Hill? That’s the question more than a half-dozen California members of Congress will discover next year as they leave lawmaking because of retirement or election defeats. But for one former South Bay congresswoman, that life is just fine. Kitty Felde KPCC LA -- 7/13/12 Chalk protesters accuse LAPD of intimidation, overreaction -- Occupy L.A. activists and their supporters accused Los Angeles police of overreacting Thursday to chalk protesters during downtown's monthly ArtWalk, which set the stage for the violent run-in that resulted in 17 arrests. Rosanna Xia and Richard Winton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/13/12 After missteps, Romney adds to communications team -- Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney added two Washington veterans to his media relations team on Friday after weeks of criticism that he didn't respond strongly enough to a barrage of attacks from the Obama campaign. Sam Youngman Reuters -- 7/13/12 San Onofre’s Steam Generators Worse Off Than Other U.S. Nuclear Plants -- San Onofre's Nuclear Generating Station's new steam generators are the most troublesome in the country and tube damage is more extensive than Southern California Edison has admitted publicly, according to a new report based in part on a leaked Edison document. Amita Sharma KPBS -- 7/13/12 San Onofre nuclear plant operator says some tube wear not unusual -- The operator of the San Onofre nuclear power plant said Friday that some of the steam generator tube wear is not unexpected. Ed Joyce KPCC LA -- 7/13/12 Jeffe: Mayberry Doesn't Live Here Anymore; Never Did -- On the same day that the passing of Andy Griffith, the beloved TV sheriff of fictional Mayberry -- that perfect epitome of small-town values -- made front page news, the above-the-fold, page A1 headline in the Los Angeles Times read: "Office Seekers Recall Cudahy Intimidation." Sherry Bebitch Jeffe NBC LA Prop Zero -- 7/13/12 Law pushed by grieving San Diego dad -- When Bobby Ellsworth of San Diego was killed in an accident in 2003, not only did the lifesaving air bag in the truck fail to deploy — it wasn’t even installed. Michael Gardner UT San Diego -- 7/13/12 California has nation's worst credit rating, Pew study finds -- California has the worst credit rating of any state now and the nation's worst credit rating record over the past 11 years, according to a new nationwide compilation by the Pew Center on the States. Dan Walters SacBee Capitol Alert -- 7/13/12 Disputes over redevelopment money could entangle state budget -- It's something of an annual tradition for the California budget -- the lawsuits and red tape that trip up the state's spending plan. In the fiscal year that just ended, judges and the federal government blocked hundreds of millions of dollars in spending cuts to healthcare programs for the poor. Chris Megerian in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/13/12 'Hands-free' texting while driving gets OK from Gov. Jerry Brown -- Three years after the state banned motorists from texting while driving, Gov. Jerry Brown on Friday approved an exemption to the rule in recognition of improved voice-operated technology. Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times$ Jim Sanders SacBee Capitol Alert -- 7/13/12 Fox: Tax Solutions to Bankruptcy Limited and Controversial -- Like canaries in the coal mine, the bankruptcy declarations of Stockton and San Bernardino should be a warning to the leadership in the legislature and local governments – fix the finances before it’s too late. Joel Fox Fox & Hounds -- 7/13/12 Chalk art: At center of ArtWalk protest, free speech or vandalism? -- Protesters organized a "Chalk Walk" during Thursday's monthly ArtWalk in downtown Los Angeles to "celebrate our right to free speech and remind the LAPD and the city of Los Angeles that chalking is NOT a crime." Richard Winton and Melissa Leu in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/13/12 Yahoo, HP, PG&E showered departing execs with millions -- Call it the golden goodbye. Four of the Bay Area's biggest companies handed out $67 million to five chief executives who retired under pressure or were shown the door this year and last. Pete Carey in the San Jose Mercury -- 7/13/12 Oakland protests U.S. attorney's crackdown on large medical marijuana dispensary -- City leaders say Harborside Health Center follows state and local laws and that its closure would have serious economic consequences. Lee Romney in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/13/12 Apple gives in to backlash, returns to environmentally friendly registry EPEAT -- After immense criticism from consumers and observers, Apple announced Friday that it would reverse its withdrawal from a prominent "green" product registry, just a week after making the decision. Jeremy C. Owens in the San Jose Mercury -- 7/13/12 Lesbian couple files federal suit in California to solve immigration plight -- A lesbian couple filed a federal lawsuit in California on Thursday seeking to solve their immigration woes and put a stop to the deportation of same-sex spouses. AMY TAXIN Associated Press -- 7/13/12 Westminster pays $9 milion to state 'under protest' -- The City Council, acting as the successor agency to its redevelopment agency, agreed during a special meeting to pay nearly $9 million to the state "under protest." The check was hand-delivered to the Orange County Auditor-Controller's Office on Thursday, which was the deadline. ROXANA KOPETMAN in the Orange County Register -- 7/13/12 Romney, Obama and lots of protesters -- Bay Area residents can expect a double-whammy of presidential fundraising, and a bevy of protests to go along with it. Josh Richman Political Blotter -- 7/13/12 Glendale bear returns for a poolside escape from the heat -- The meatball-loving bear that was spotted Monday in La Crescenta returned to his roots in Glendale early Friday but left trash cans untouched. Matt Stevens in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/13/12
Criminal investigation into San Bernardino city government launched -- Authorities have announced an ongoing criminal investigation into San Bernardino city government, but Sheriff Rod Hoops said he believes it is unrelated to allegations made by the city attorney in the wake of the city’s bankruptcy decision about falsified financial documents. JOHN ASBURY, CASSIE MacDUFF and JEFF HORSEMAN in the Riverside Press -- 7/13/12 New officials discovered money mess -- San Bernardino has faced financial difficulties for years but it wasn’t until a couple of weeks ago that city officials realized how bad the problem was, Mayor Pat Morris said. IMRAN GHORI, JEFF HORSEMAN and DUG BEGLEY in the Riverside Press -- 7/13/12 California City Facing Bankruptcy Depleted Reserve Funds -- San Bernardino’s near-bankrupt position came to light when a new finance director and city manager discovered that the California community had almost depleted special funds to prop up its budget. James Nash Bloomberg -- 7/13/12 Plenty of blame on long road to San Bernardino bankruptcy -- Politics, labor and the stalled economy are among factors cited for city's woes. Phil Willon and Abby Sewell in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/13/12 Walters: California just as insolvent as bankrupt cities -- So far this summer, three California cities have moved toward bankruptcy and several others are distressed enough that the b-word has left the lips of their elected and appointed officials – including those in the two largest, Los Angeles and San Diego. Dan Walters in the Sacramento Bee -- 7/13/12 Millions in health care district deals involve firms with ties to officials -- A financial review of more than 20 health care districts in California found millions of dollars in transactions involving companies and nonprofits with ties to top district officials. JENNIFER GOLLAN and KATHARINE MIESZKOWSKI Bay Citizen -- 7/13/12 Brown's allies form committee to oppose Munger measure -- The likelihood of open warfare between Gov. Jerry Brown and civil rights attorney Molly Munger, who have rival tax increase measures on the November ballot, has increased with the formation by Brown's supporters of a committee to oppose Munger. Dan Walters SacBee Capitol Alert Anthony York in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/13/12 California tobacco tax backers seek recount after razor-thin loss -- Weeks after conceding defeat in the June 5 primary, supporters of an initiative to increase the tobacco tax to fund cancer research have requested a recount in parts of Los Angeles County. Torey Van Oot SacBee Capitol Alert Phil Willon in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/13/12 Voters receptive to sports betting, split on online poker -- Most California voters are ready to add sports betting to the portfolio of legalized gambling in the Golden State, a new poll shows, but they are split on whether the state should allow residents to play poker over the Internet. JIM MILLER and BEN GOAD in the Riverside Press Jim Sanders in the Sacramento Bee -- 7/13/12 Redistricting measure backers throw in the towel, won't seek passage -- Leaders of a Republican-led drive that qualified a referendum for the November ballot to overturn California's newly drawn state Senate districts have decided not to seek its passage. Jim Sanders SacBee Capitol Alert Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times$ BRIAN JOSEPH in the Orange County Register -- 7/13/12 Expensive errors plague state hospital bond program, auditor says -- A state agency responsible for $1.7 billion in bonds for children’s hospitals has made costly mistakes in deciding when to sell bonds, the state auditor found in a report Thursday. Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/13/12 Ex-Rep. Ellen Tauscher backs Stark's foe -- The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, one of the nation's top antiterrorism, energy and nuclear weapons research facilities, became the focus of an East Bay congressional race this week when former Rep. Ellen Tauscher called her longtime House colleague Pete Stark "hostile" to the facility - and endorsed his challenger. Carla Marinucci in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 7/13/12 Feds detail scale of graft in Cudahy -- Allegations of trashed ballots, drug abuse at City Hall and other crimes are outlined in prosecutors' papers. Jeff Gottlieb, Hector Becerra and Ruben Vives in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/13/12
UCLA study of Japan's bullet train raises questions about California project -- A UCLA analysis of Japan's Shinkansen bullet train and its impact on the growth of cities along its route calls into question claims by state officials that California's high-speed rail project will create up to 400,000 jobs. Ralph Vartabedian in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/13/12
Air Force preps to end C-17 line at Boeing's Long Beach plant -- As Boeing Co.'s beleaguered cargo jet-making complex in Long Beach faces dwindling orders for its huge planes, the Air Force has issued a $500-million contract to begin planning the shutdown of the assembly line. W.J. Hennigan in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/13/12 Local market for office space is on the mend, numbers suggest -- Three years after the Great Recession, the San Fernando Valley area's office real estate sector has finally hit bottom and is poised for the long slog up, market watchers say. Gregory J. Wilcox in the Los Angeles Daily News -- 7/13/12 Wells Fargo to pay $175 million to settle lending bias case -- No 1. home lender Wells Fargo & Co. has agreed to pay at least $175 million to settle federal allegations that it systematically overcharged minorities during the frenzied housing boom, including steering African Americans and Latinos into more expensive subprime mortgages. E. Scott Reckard in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/13/12
Amended versions of key discipline bills move forward -- Three key bills aimed at changing school discipline policies were approved in the state Assembly before the summer recess and will be ready for a final vote on the Senate floor when legislators return from their recess in August. Susan Frey EdSource -- 7/13/12 LAUSD moving to better review teachers -- It's got more depth, more breadth and, certainly, more heft. At 30 pages, the performance evaluation that Los Angeles Unified wants to use to rate its teachers is 27 pages longer than the one that's been in place for years. Barbara Jones in the Los Angeles Daily News -- 7/13/12 CSU mulls pay raises for 3 new presidents despite budget troubles -- At the same time the California State University Board of Trustees is discussing a possible tuition increase and across-the-board pay cuts, it will also consider pay raises for three new campus presidents using foundation funds. ERICA PEREZ Bay Citizen -- 7/13/12
Hospital surgery prices vary widely -- A group of public-interest researchers took on the veiled, confounding world of hospital pricing Thursday in a report that questioned why a common surgery cost $40,000 at one hospital in the Sacramento region and $17,000 at another. Cynthia H. Craft in the Sacramento Bee -- 7/13/12 Medi-Cal compensation inadequate, doctors say, as enrollment boom looms -- When Dr. Jerold Kaplan made a home visit last year to a man with a foot wound, he billed Medi-Cal -- the state's health care program for the poor and disabled -- what he thought was a modest $90. His payment: $8.96. The Berkeley wound surgeon received a bit more for his home visit to a quadriplegic last year: $13.44. Sandy Kleffman in the Contra Costa Times -- 7/13/12
San Diego County's Wildlife Killers -- A little-known federal agency is leaving a trail of death in San Diego County, exacting a body count large enough to stock the San Diego Zoo five times over. ROB DAVIS Voiceofsandiego.org -- 7/13/12
LAPD officers, Occupy L.A. protesters clash during ArtWalk downtown -- A confrontation in downtown Los Angeles late Thursday between police and Occupy L.A. protesters appeared to have stemmed from a sidewalk chalk-drawing demonstration, witnesses said. At least two officers were injured and several arrests had been made. Melissa Leu and Stephen Ceasar in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/13/12
Federal crackdown targets Oakland marijuana "superstore" -- The Harborside Health Center reveled in its boast of being the world's largest pot dispensary. It was featured in a hit reality series on the Discovery Channel last year. Peter Hecht in the Sacramento Bee -- 7/13/12 Orange County‘birther’ sues to block primary election results -- Laguna Niguel attorney Orly Taitz has filed suit to block California’s 2012 primary election results, alleging “rampant election fraud” in general and “identity fraud” by candidate Barack Obama specifically. Martin Wisckol in the Orange County Register -- 7/13/12 Man cleared in Stow beating sues LAPD and Beck for defamation -- A man arrested but then cleared in the beating of San Francisco Giants fan Bryan Stow outside Dodger Stadium last year has sued Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck and the department for defamation. The item is in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 7/13/12
Obama reflects on first term: Mistake to put policy before story of hope, change -- Reflecting on his first term in office Thursday, President Obama said the biggest gaffe he's made was in putting policy before giving Americans a sense of "unity and purpose and optimism." Amie Parnes The Hill -- 7/13/12 As Obama goes on trail in military-rich Va., GOP points to proposed defense cuts -- Republicans are launching an aggressive effort to blame President Obama for deep cuts due to hit the Pentagon next year, spotlighting a potentially dangerous issue for the president a day ahead of a two-day campaign swing through military-rich Virginia. Amy Gardner in the Washington Post -- 7/13/12
Cheney gives Romney his endorsement -- But on the evening when the divisive former vice president opened his home at the foot of Wyoming’s majestic Teton Range to host a $4 million fundraiser for the presumptive Republican nominee, Romney’s campaign labored to avoid any photos or videos of the two men together. Philip Rucker in the Washington Post -- 7/13/12 Mitt Romney faces new round of calls to release tax returns -- Six months after Mitt Romney’s reluctance to release his tax returns tripped him up in the South Carolina Republican presidential primary, the now-presumptive nominee is once again grappling with whether to disclose more information about his personal finances amid mounting pressure from his opponents. Philip Rucker in the Washington Post -- 7/13/12 Democrats Renew Push For DISCLOSE Act -- A day after ripping Republicans for the political theater of holding a health care repeal vote, Democrats rolled out their own bit of campaign messaging: a new push for legislation to force disclosure of political spending. Jonathan Strong and Eliza Newlin Carney Roll Call -- 7/13/12 |
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