California Policy and Politics Monday

Newsom typically relishes battling Trump. On letting undocumented college students work, not so much -- In vetoing a bill that would have made immigrant students eligible to work, Newsom cited worries about retaliation from Trump. Eric He Politico -- 10/12/26

Californians are ‘really losing sleep’ over this financial burden, survey says -- Medical bills have become Californians’ top financial worry, a new survey finds, with many saying health care costs are forcing them to delay care and make painful tradeoffs. Catherine Ho in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 10/12/26

Billionaires fund California ballot measure to make voters show ID at polls -- Billionaires across the US are spending vast sums to support California’s Proposition 39, a measure that would require voters to show identification before casting their ballots. Dani Anguiano in The Guardian -- 10/12/26

L.A. mayoral candidate Nithya Raman has strong opinions. But they often change -- ‘One day she’s yes, the other day she’s no,’ Councilmember Heather Hutt said of L.A. mayoral candidate Nithya Raman, who endorsed Mayor Karen Bass’ reelection campaign and then ran against her. David Zahniser in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 10/12/26

Skelton: Take a breath. Educate yourself. Then vote. -- The California Secretary of State has mailed a thick “Official Voter Information Guide” to every registered voter. It’s jam-packed with helpful material. But one bit should be totally ignored. George Skelton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 10/12/26

In race for Pelosi’s seat, Wiener and Chan court Chinese American voters -- Winning Chinese American voters is key to prevailing in San Francisco’s congressional race to succeed Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi. And both candidates in the Nov. 3 election, state Sen. Scott Wiener and Supervisor Connie Chan, know it. Ko Lyn Cheang in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 10/12/26

Bay Area officials are sounding the alarm over a lesser-known California ballot measure -- It’s not often that the supporters and opponents of a ballot measure agree on what exactly it would do, let alone describe it the same way. Yet both sides of the fight over Proposition 43 have been clear: It will make it harder to raise local taxes. What they don’t agree on is whether it’s a good idea. Kathryn Palmer in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 10/12/26

Republican Steve Hilton leans on cheeky ads, voter discontent in long-shot campaign for governor -- Hilton has tried to walk a fine line, appealing to the 6 million Californians who voted for Donald Trump in 2024 while avoiding the president’s brand. Hailey Branson-Potts in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 10/12/26

Climate

Heavy surf, red-tagged homes, a battered boardwalk: Long Beach confronts costly climate reality -- A trio of storms since early September has put considerable strain on the historic Long Beach boardwalk, which collapsed further between 64th and 65th Place on Seaside Walk during a weekend of heavy surf. Deborah Vankin in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 10/12/26

ICE

ICE arrests alarm California’s community colleges. How much can campus officials do? -- California community colleges are trying to discourage immigration enforcement on campuses, but they can’t do much to bar ICE agents from public spaces. Adam Echelman Calmatters -- 10/12/26

Workplace

What a Year of Free Money Meant: Softer Diapers, Clean Laundry, a Visit to Six Flags -- For more than a year, The New York Times followed recipients of universal basic income programs, which Elon Musk and other tech leaders have promoted as a solution to A.I.-fueled job losses. Eli Tan and Rachel Bujalski in the New York Times$ -- 10/12/26

S.F. sheriff’s overtime paid for pageants and festivals as understaffed jails hit ‘breaking point’ -- But payroll records and overtime logs show the department has devoted millions of overtime dollars to work that fell outside its core responsibilities: operating the city’s jails and providing security for several government buildings. Megan Cassidy, Emma Stiefel in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 10/12/26

Wildfire

How California Is Using A.I. and Cameras to Stop Wildfires -- A roving crew of California firefighters is installing cameras in some of the highest, craggiest sites in the state — all to get an early warning of a potentially deadly blaze. John Branch, Max Whittaker in the New York Times$ -- 10/12/26

AI

In the race for AI dominance, the U.S. relies on a surprising ally: China -- The Trump administration paints AI development as a winner-take-all contest, but U.S. data centers are full of made-in-China equipment, and many U.S. companies rely on Chinese AI. David J. Lynch in the Washington Post$ -- 10/12/26

In Silicon Valley, AI founders cheer Trump’s calls for the industry to police itself on safety -- Tech Week is in full bloom in San Francisco, packing the city’s restaurants this week with venture capitalists and AI founders ebullient about the White House’s stance on regulating artificial intelligence — namely, don’t do it. Garance Burke Associated Press -- 10/12/26

AI agents are going rogue — and the law can’t keep up -- There’s legal uncertainty over how to handle AI-powered hacking — and very few cases to use to find out. Hassan Ali Kanu Politico -- 10/12/26

Also

They came to Washington to dismantle government. Now, they’re profiting from it. -- DOGE alumni have leveraged their government experience, raising at least half a billion dollars for firms spanning cyberwarfare, AI and data centers, a Post analysis found. Faiz Siddiqui, Elizabeth Dwoskin and Meryl Kornfield in the Washington Post$ -- 10/12/26

If sports betting is banned in California, why is Kalshi allowed to operate here? -- Sports betting is banned in California, even at tribal casinos. Yet online companies such as Kalshi and Polymarket offer customers in the state the opportunity to wager on the outcome of professional athletic events using a brokerage system that critics say is the equivalent of gambling. Sharon Bernstein in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 10/12/26

POTUS 47

Judge orders immediate halt to taxpayer-funded pro-Trump ads -- A U.S. district judge ordered DHS to cancel ads set to run Sunday night — and barred the administration from resuming the campaign. Kyle Cheney Politico Gene Johnson Associated Press Brent Kendall in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 10/12/26

Trump could face a new threat in January: A Democratic Senate -- Republicans predict that Democrats will not confirm Supreme Court and Cabinet nominees if they retake the Senate in the midterm elections. Theodoric Meyer in the Washington Post$ -- 10/12/26

Justice probe into TV networks rests on thin legal grounds, legal experts say -- Justice's antitrust probe of TV networks was set off by their pause of White House pool coverage. Legal experts say calling that an illegal boycott is spurious. Miriam Waldvogel and Scott Nover in the Washington Post$ -- 10/12/26

Russia Pounds Ukrainian Energy Despite Trump’s Ceasefire Announcement -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russian strikes had hit energy infrastructure across his country hours after President Trump declared an energy ceasefire between the warring sides. Anastasiia Malenko in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 10/12/26