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California Policy and Politics Sunday
California ICE shooting: Family says detainee bounced through jails, hindering recovery -- Relatives of a 36-year-old man shot by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers this month accused the agency of shuttling him through a slew of jails over a four-day period, actions they said endangered his health and prevented him from speaking to an attorney. St. John Barned-Smith in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/19/26
Eric Swalwell Thought He Was Untouchable — Until He Wasn’t -- They describe a man with considerable talents, including a dogged work ethic, a natural camera presence fit for cable news and persuasion skills honed from his early days as a prosecutor. He projected a certainty that bordered on invincibility — and in some cases, imbued that sense in others. Melanie Mason, Jeremy B. White, Daniel Lippman and Riley Rogerson Politico -- 4/19/26
Money is pouring into the race to succeed Nancy Pelosi. Here’s who has the most -- For the first time since 1987, San Francisco voters are faced with an open seat for Congress with the imminent departure of Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi. Hanna Zakharenko and Joe Garofoli in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/19/26
Workplace
California’s gas prices push Uber and Lyft drivers off the road -- While Uber and Lyft drivers have concocted clever ways to cut gas consumption, they say that without some relief they will be forced to leave the ride-hailing business. Queenie Wong in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/19/26
How high gas prices have given used EV sales a jump start -- As gas prices soared in California last month, Irvine resident Marc Tan realized his Mercedes SUV was getting too expensive to refuel. Caroline Petrow-Cohen in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/19/26
California eases plan to ban most plants within 5 feet of homes in wildfire zones -- And for nearly six years, as the wildfire crisis continued to unfold, a little-known state agency has been trying to roll out rules meant to make homes safer — and potentially transform the look and feel of neighborhoods in the most fire-prone areas of California. Julie Johnson in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/19/26
Bay Area construction company illegally polluted river, lawsuit alleges -- A huge quarry owned by one of the Bay Area’s most prominent construction companies is illegally pumping polluted water into a river that flows into the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, according to a lawsuit filed this week in federal court in San Jose. Paul Rogers in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 4/19/26
Street
Mayor Bass orders extra police patrols after rash of home burglaries in the Valley -- Police say organized burglary crews from South L.A. and South America are systematically targeting homes for luxury goods and pre-surveilling properties with hidden cameras. Rong-Gong Lin II in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/19/26
Also
S.F. marks 1906 earthquake anniversary with early morning sirens, vintage attire -- Before dawn, San Francisco’s streets seemed to ripple. Brick walls collapsed, crushing horses and deliverymen. Church bells clanged as steeples swayed. On April 18, 1906, a 7.9 magnitude earthquake, dozens of aftershocks and the fires that followed killed 3,000 people, destroying some 60,000 buildings and leaving at least 200,000 homeless. Brooke Park in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/19/26
Lopez: She’s a Hollywood housekeeper with a side job: cleaning the trashed streets of her own neighborhood -- The first stop on Sabine Phillips’ three-hour inspection of her neighborhood was at Fountain Avenue and St. Andrew’s Place, where detached pieces of a sofa had been plopped onto the sidewalk as if this were an outdoor living room. Steve Lopez in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/19/26
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Iran Declares Strait of Hormuz Closed Again as Ships Report Attacks -- Conditions in the Strait of Hormuz remained volatile early Sunday after Iran said it was once again closing the vital waterway and two ships reported coming under attack. Lynsey Chutel, Euan Ward, Leily Nikounazar and Somini Sengupta in the New York Times$ Susannah George in the Washington Post$ -- 4/19/26
Iran’s Hard-Liners Flex Their Muscle With a U-Turn Over Hormuz -- Iran’s quick reversal of the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz has laid bare a rift between the country’s political leaders and the military hard-liners who have deepened their hold on the government since the war began. Benoit Faucon in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 4/19/26
For Iran, Flexing Control Over Waterway Is New Deterrent -- Iran’s government could emerge from the conflict with a blueprint to keep adversaries at bay, regardless of any restrictions on its nuclear program. Mark Mazzetti, Adam Entous and Julian E. Barnes in the New York Times$ -- 4/19/26
California Policy and Politics Saturday
Trump administration takes emergency step to sustain key Colorado River reservoir -- As the Colorado River shrinks in an extremely dry year, the Trump administration is moving water from one reservoir to another, and will cut the water flowing into Lake Mead, a key reservoir for California, Arizona and Nevada. The emergency measures will temporarily boost the level of Lake Powell, the nation’s second largest reservoir, providing additional time for western states to negotiate plans to cut water use. Ian James in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/18/26
Californians are pouring money into Democrats’ Senate races in other states -- Texas Democrat James Talarico is a favorite among Californians, who gave nearly $1.2 million to his Senate bid. MAGA Inc., a pro-Trump super PAC, had a stunning $312 million in the bank at the end of February. Ben Wieder and Gabrielle LaMarr LeMee in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/18/26
Democratic candidate who supported Republicans leads fundraising race in bid for Swalwell seat -- The race to fill embattled former Congressman Eric Swalwell’s seat is getting expensive, with Democratic candidate and nonprofit attorney Rakhi Israni, who previously donated to Republicans and right-wing figures such as Laura Loomer, reporting a fundraising haul in the millions. Kyle Martin in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 4/18/26
S.F. power broker Ron Conway says he has rare form of cancer -- Ron Conway, the influential Silicon Valley investor and longtime San Francisco political force, said Friday that he has been diagnosed with a rare form of cancer and will begin treatment immediately. Aldo Toledo, Aidin Vaziri in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/18/26
Workplace
S.F. restaurants and hotels add thousands of jobs to city — thanks in part to this major event -- The Super Bowl helped boost local hotels and restaurants in February, generating up to an estimated $440 million in spending in San Francisco. Roland Li in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/18/26
Meta layoffs: Tech giant to cut about 8,000 jobs in May, report says -- Meta is preparing to begin another major round of layoffs on May 20, cutting about 10% of its global workforce — or nearly 8,000 employees — in an initial wave, according to a Reuters report published Friday. Aidin Vaziri in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/18/26
Tesla widens regional footprint with deals in San Jose, Fremont -- Tesla struck deals to lease two industrial buildings as the electric vehicle maker widens its footprint in the Bay Area, commercial real estate firm Colliers reported. George Avalos in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 4/18/26
Hiring picks up for higher paid San Diego jobs. Here’s where they are -- San Diego’s jobless rate fell in February, led by hiring in the typically high-paying professional and business services sector. The region’s unemployment rate was 4.5%, state labor officials said Friday, down from a revised 4.7% in January. That compares to California’s average 5.5% rate and 4.7% for the nation. Phillip Molnar in the San Diego Union Tribune -- 4/18/26
Marketplace
Study says a San Diego municipal utility to replace SDG&E could work -- SDG&E officials disputed the projections, saying the study vastly undercounts total costs the city would incur to acquire its assets, and the union representing many of SDG&E’s workers remains dead-set against a municipal utility. Rob Nikolewski in the San Diego Union Tribune -- 4/18/26
Judge blocks Nexstar-Tegna deal, throwing $6.2-billion merger into doubt -- U.S. District Court Chief Judge Troy L. Nunley on Friday issued a preliminary injunction that forbids Nexstar, which owns KTLA-TV Channel 5 in Los Angeles, and its takeover-target, Tegna Inc., from combining operations amid a legal dispute with California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta and seven other state attorneys general. Meg James in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/18/26
Street
How gangs connected to India are terrorizing a California immigrant community -- The Lawrence Bishnoi gang, directed by its imprisoned leader through contraband phones, coordinates violence and extortion across California, India and Canada using encrypted messaging apps. Gagandeep Singh in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 4/18/26
Also
One of Tahoe’s biggest ski areas will reopen this weekend -- In a Friday announcement, Heavenly called it “an unexpected encore” to the season and described the event as “a rare reopening and a final chance for a thank-you lap to celebrate Heavenly’s 70th anniversary season.” Gregory Thomas in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/18/26
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Poll: Trump’s immigration message changed. Voters' opinions have not -- A new POLITICO poll finds half of Americans — including one quarter of Trump’s 2024 voters — said his mass deportations campaign is too aggressive. Myah Ward, Samuel Benson and Erin Doherty Politico -- 4/18/26
Iran disputes claims of new agreements with Trump -- Tehran put limits on the Strait of Hormuz’s opening, as the United States issued a new sanctions exemption on the sale of Russian oil. Karen DeYoung, Susannah George, Evan Halper and John Hudson in the Washington Post$ -- 4/18/26
Trump’s Efforts to Strong-Arm Iran Into Deal Spark Optimism—and Confusion -- The president insisted that Iran had agreed to give up its enriched uranium, although the details of such a deal remained unclear. Robbie Gramer, Summer Said and Meridith McGraw in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 4/18/26
Trump keeps claiming victory in Iran. Our new poll shows voters aren’t buying it -- A majority say the war is not in the national interest, and many lack confidence in the president’s goals — including some 2024 supporters. Erin Doherty Politico -- 4/18/26
Diplomatic cables show Iran war is damaging US on multiple fronts across the world -- The Iran war is risking America’s global security ties and damaging its reputation, especially among the world’s Muslims, according to a set of State Department cables obtained by Politico. Nahal Toosi Politico -- 4/18/26
Pete Hegseth cites ‘Pulp Fiction’ line as Bible verse at Pentagon prayer service -- Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth offered a prayer during a Pentagon worship service that quoted a fake Bible verse written by Quentin Tarantino. G. Allen Johnson in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 4/18/26
Trump to release reading of scripture days after angering many Christians -- President Donald Trump is making a dramatic show of religiosity just days after he posted an image on social media that many Christians found offensive. Sophia Cai Politico -- 4/18/26
The Inside Story of Five Days That Remade the Supreme Court -- Secret memos obtained by The New York Times illuminate the origins of the court’s now-routine “shadow docket” rulings on presidential power. Jodi Kantor and Adam Liptak in the New York Times$ -- 4/18/26