California Policy and Politics Sunday

L.A. federal prosecutors resign over plea deal for convicted sheriff’s deputy, sources say -- Several federal prosecutors — including the chief of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section — have submitted their resignations following a plea deal offered by the new U.S. attorney in Los Angeles to a sheriff’s deputy who had already been found guilty of using excessive force. Brittny Mejia, James Queally and Keri Blakinger in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/4/25

Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries rips Trump budget cuts at desert town hall -- Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on Saturday vowed that his party is unified in their opposition to cuts to Medicaid, Social Security, veterans’ services and other safety net programs for vulnerable Americans. Seema Mehta in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/4/25

How San Diego County farms are getting squeezed by funding freezes and tariffs -- Local farms sell their fresh produce to local food banks through a federally funded program. But federal cuts to food aid mean the farms will need to find new customers, and food banks will have to find other sources of funding. Roxana Popescu in the San Diego Union Tribune -- 5/4/25

No Country for Old Politicians? Some California Democrats Want an Age Cap -- As Democrats grapple with how to recover from their losses in November, an uncomfortable question has emerged in California, the state that has long set trends for the party. Are their leaders simply too old? Heather Knight and Laurel Rosenhall in the New York Times$ -- 5/4/25

1,000 protesters march in San Diego to deride Trump’s view on climate change -- Chanting “This is what democracy looks like,” roughly 1,000 protesters marched through downtown San Diego on Saturday to deride President Donald Trump’s environmental policies, including his recent efforts to prevent California from phasing out gasoline-powered cars by 2035. Gary Robbins in the San Diego Union Tribune -- 5/4/25

S.F.’s population drops again as city struggles to retain residents -- San Francisco’s population dipped again last year, a persistent post-pandemic trend that sets the city apart from California overall, whose population grew in 2024. Christian Leonard in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 5/4/25

HSR

A Scenic Tour of Red Tape: Tracking the Slowest High-Speed Train in the Country -- Can America still build big things? A long ride through California’s Central Valley tells a gloomy story. John Branch in the New York Times$ -- 5/4/25

Toxic soil

When FEMA failed to test soil for toxic substances after the L.A. fires, The Times had it done. The results were alarming -- The federal government decided not to test the soil of L.A.’s burn areas for hazardous substances. A Times investigation found high levels of lead and other heavy metals. Tony Briscoe, Noah Haggerty and Hayley Smith in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/4/25

How we tested the soil in Altadena and Pacific Palisades -- Over three days in late March, four Los Angeles Times environment reporters and an editor fanned out across the Eaton and Palisades burn scars to collect 40 soil samples from residential properties: 10 in each burn area from properties where debris removal was completed by the Army Corps of Engineers and 10 in each burn area from the yards of standing homes. Tony Briscoe, Noah Haggerty and Hayley Smith in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/4/25

Workplace

California job market flops as it lands near bottom among US states -- While California officials boast about the state’s ranking as the world’s fourth-largest economy, the statewide job market continues to be one of the nation’s weakest. George Avalos in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 5/4/25

Apple has made splashy bets in Hollywood. Are they paying off? -- Apple TV+ has been on a run of critical success with shows such as “Severance,” “The Studio” and “Your Friends & Neighbors.” Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook said in a call with investors on Thursday that Apple TV+ “has become a must-see destination” and posted record viewership in the quarter. But analysts say its subscriber counts are lower than many rivals. Wendy Lee in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/4/25

UPS and U.S. Postal Service announce significant job cuts. What you need to know -- Jobs for thousands of letter and package delivery workers at the U.S. Postal Service and UPS could be cut this year, with both looking to slash costs and streamline operations as the effects of President Trump’s tariffs and digital innovation ripple through the economy. Karen Garcia in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/4/25

Valley Fever

Dog data may help track ballooning cases of Valley fever -- New research shows that knowing when dogs get sick with Valley fever could help us help humans. Luis Melecio-Zambrano in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 5/4/25

Also

It Was Just a Rumor on Facebook. Then a Militia Showed Up -- Residents of Oakdale, Calif., have abandoned traditional media outlets for a mishmash of online sources. These days, they’re often not sure what information to trust. Eli Tan, Ulysses Ortega in the New York Times$ -- 5/4/25

POTUS 47

Trump Says ‘I Don’t’ Know’ When Asked if He Must Uphold the Constitution -- The president also questioned whether noncitizens are entitled to due process as his deportation efforts stoke conflict with federal courts Jess Bravin in the Wall Street Journal Jonathan Swan in the New York Times$ -- 5/4/25

Mexican president rejects Trump’s proposal to send U.S. troops to fight drug cartels -- Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum says she told Trump that “our territory is inalienable, sovereignty is inalienable.” Trump has charged that Mexico is “essentially run by the cartels” and that the United States should “wage war” against them. Kate Linthicum in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 5/4/25

Trump’s 48-hour scramble to fly migrants to a Salvadoran prison -- The administration rounded up some of the Venezuelans two days before the flights took off, pressing forward even as Venezuela agreed to accept deportees. Sarah Blaskey, Samantha Schmidt, Silvia Foster-Frau, Ana Vanessa Herrero, Arelis R. Hernández, María Luisa Paúl and Karen DeYoung in the Washington Post$ -- 5/4/25

Trump Posts an Image of Himself as Pope -- President Trump on Tuesday had a ready answer when reporters asked who he would like to see become the next supreme pontiff. “I’d like to be pope,” he joked to reporters at the White House. “That would be my number one choice.” Isabella Kwai in the New York Times$ -- 5/4/25

Trump proposes eliminating the NEA and NEH as arts grants are canceled -- President Donald Trump’s budget proposal would eliminate the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities, reviving his failed first-term attempts to scrap the grantmaking agencies as he moves to reshape the nation’s artistic and cultural landscape. Samantha Chery in the Washington Post$ -- 5/4/25

Scientist who was part of covid treatment controversy returns to HHS -- Steven Hatfill promoted hydroxychloroquine during the pandemic. Decades earlier he was wrongly connected with the anthrax attacks that killed five people. Lena H. Sun, Lisa Rein and Carolyn Y. Johnson in the Washington Post$ -- 5/4/25