California Policy and Politics Tuesday

Can San Francisco avoid Trump’s ire after National Guard deployments in D.C. and L.A.? -- Once again, President Donald Trump has brought his campaign of retribution against liberal jurisdictions to the streets of a major American city, ordering hundreds of National Guard troops to deploy to another Democratic stronghold. J.D. Morris in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 08/11/25

Hundreds boo GOP Rep. Doug LaMalfa at raucous Northern California town hall -- Rep. Doug LaMalfa faced the fury of his Northern California constituents during an early morning town hall in Chico Monday, making him the latest in a string of Republican members of Congress shouted down at district events over their support for President Donald Trump’s agenda. Nicole Nixon in the Sacramento Bee$ Maya C. Miller Calmatters -- 08/11/25

Agents detain student at gunpoint near school; safe zones to be expanded around LAUSD campuses -- Amid immigration enforcement, city and school officials will set up “safe zones” monitored by LAPD and community volunteers to protect undocumented families when school resumes at LAUSD. Howard Blume in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 08/11/25

Workplace

S.F. schools paid $20 million for a new payroll system. It’s already glitching -- The San Francisco school district’s new payroll system, which replaced a $34 million version that never worked, has left at least a hundred teachers frustrated with errors in their paychecks over the past months and prompted the teachers union Monday to file a state labor complaint. Jill Tucker in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 08/11/25

Lawsuit claims Tesla ousted HR managers who validated racism complaints at Fremont factory -- Electric car maker Tesla, facing lawsuits over what two judges have found to be pervasive, anti-Black racism at its Fremont factory, ousted human-resources managers who validated complaints of discrimination and retaliation, a lawsuit claims. Ethan Baron in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 08/11/25

Housing

L.A. is under the gun to add housing units. The hard part? Where and how many -- When presented with the problem in the past, builders and developers were able to turn lima bean fields and orange groves into row after row of homes. But the vast swaths of open land on the city’s fringes vanished decades ago. Liam Dillon, Doug Smith and Lorena Iñiguez Elebee in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 08/11/25

Wildfire

Scientists argue for stricter lead soil contamination standards. What fire survivors should know -- It’s a number thousands of Palisades and Eaton fire survivors have come to depend on: 80 milligrams of lead in each kilogram of soil. Noah Haggerty in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 08/11/25

Taxes

Why California’s wealthiest taxpayers could get less of a Trump tax break -- Californians with the top 1% of state incomes, or more than $1.08 million, rank 48th in tax cuts among the states, according to a new analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a progressive Washington research group. David Lightman in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 08/11/25

Education

Stanford to continue legacy admissions despite state ban -- Stanford University will continue considering legacy status in admissions through fall 2026, opting out of state financial aid assistance for students in order to comply with California’s ban on preferential treatment for applicants with alumni or donor ties. Ryan Macasero in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 08/11/25

Street

Wild L.A. pursuit: Carjackers steal 3 cars, drive big-rig wrong way on freeway, then escape -- Two armed thieves led authorities on a wild pursuit from Lancaster to downtown L.A. on Sunday night, authorities said, stealing three vehicles, driving a big rig in the wrong direction on the 10 Freeway — and still managing to escape. Clara Harter in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 08/11/25

4 arrested in break-in at Brad Pitt’s home, other residences, sources say -- Four people were arrested in a string of recent home break-ins that targeted upscale homes, one of which belonged to Brad Pitt, law enforcement sources said. Terry Castleman and Richard Winton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 08/11/25

Federal judge refuses to dismiss case against convicted L.A. County sheriff’s deputy -- Deputy Trevor Kirk was found guilty of a felony after he violently threw a woman to the ground and pepper-sprayed her outside a supermarket in Lancaster in 2023. Brittny Mejia and James Queally in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 08/11/25

POTUS 47

Trump-backed judge rules administration’s withholding of funds illegal -- The lawsuit by the National Endowment for Democracy is just one among dozens against the administration for frozen or withheld money previously approved by Congress. Katherine Tully-McManus Politico Chris Cameron in the New York Times$ -- 08/11/25

Judge denies DOJ bid to unseal grand jury material in Ghislaine Maxwell case -- The judge said the public would learn virtually nothing new from the documents and “would come away feeling disappointed and misled.” Erica Orden Politico Hurubie Meko in the New York Times$ -- 08/11/25

Russia Has High Hopes for Trump-Putin Summit. Peace Isn’t One of Them -- The meeting represents a victory for Putin, who seeks to end international isolation and separate Russian ties with the U.S. from the fate of Ukraine. Yaroslav Trofimov in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 08/11/25

China tariffs delayed again, hours before sharp increase was to take hold -- President Donald Trump’s sharper tariffs on goods from China were delayed again for 90 days, preventing taxes on the country’s imports from skyrocketing on Tuesday, according to an executive order the president signed Monday. Rachel Lerman, Jacob Bogage and Christian Shepherd in the Washington Post$ -- 08/11/25

How Trump Is Expanding the Role of the American Military on U.S. Soil -- Deployment of the National Guard in D.C. comes as president plans to broaden the use of U.S. military bases for immigrant detention centers. Michael R. Gordon, Vera Bergengruen and Lara Seligman in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 08/11/25

FEMA joins other federal agencies in canceling union contracts -- The cancellation of the contracts is part of a broad effort by the Trump administration to strip federal workers of union protections. Brianna Sacks, Jake Spring, Hannah Natanson and Meryl Kornfield in the Washington Post$ -- 08/11/25