News
Gov. Gavin Newsom has embraced Silicon Valley tech companies and health care industry titans in response to the covid-19 pandemic like no other governor in America — routinely outsourcing life-or-death public health duties to his allies in the private sector. At least 30 tech and health care companies have received lucrative, no-bid government contracts, or helped fund and carry out critical public health activities during the state’s battle against the coronavirus, a KHN analysis has found.
Podcast
When we invited freshman Assemblymember Alex Lee (D – San Jose) to come on the podcast we planned to discuss his ambitious policy proposals, like Universal Health Care, a Wealth Tax, and a ban on corporate donations to political candidates. What we didn’t expect was that those discussions would all be in the past tense.
News
California’s impending loss of a congressional seat may set off vicious intraparty fights not seen in California for nearly a decade. The conflict may happen because the state’s congressional districts will be redrawn on the basis of population figures from the 2020 census.
News
The Census Bureau released total population numbers for California, suggesting a significant slowdown in the state’s population growth. But these numbers do not include the last half of 2020, and they do not tell us why population growth has slowed. We won’t have official census counts of this information for many months. But we do have population estimates from the California Department of Finance through the first few months of the pandemic.
News
A Republican-led effort to oust Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has gathered enough signatures to place the recall before voters on the statewide ballot. The announcement Monday by the secretary of state means that Newsom is likely to confront voters later this year.
News
California’s voter-approved redistricting commission, which will draw the political maps for the 2022 elections, is poised to meet amid heightened scrutiny over its personnel changes and severe deadline pressures.
Podcast
Veteran journalist and university professor Sigrid Bathen, who has written extensively about California’s mental health policies, joins Tim Foster and John Howard on the Capitol Weekly Podcast to chat about what is rapidly becoming a hot political issue — having mental health clinicians accompany police officers on some emergency calls, such as family disturbances. The “cops and clinicians” movement is capturing attention.
News
On March 23, about 80 people gathered on a Zoom call to launch Daybreak PAC, a political action committee aimed at moving the California Legislature to the left by supporting progressive candidates and policies. The PAC is headed by activist Jackie Fielder, an unsuccessful state Senate candidate who challenged incumbent Democrat Scott Wiener last year in San Francisco.
News
California is known across the country as a trendsetter in climate regulations, with tough emissions standards and sweeping environmental protections. Freshman state Sen. Dave Cortese (D-San Jose), however, is pushing for more ambitious carbon-neutral rules that could move California further ahead of the rest of the nation. The effort, praised by environmentalists, has drawn fire from utility workers and gas companies.
Podcast
We’re joined today by Matt Rexroad, redistricting expert and the former mayor of Woodland and member of the Yolo County Board of Supervisors. Rexroad offers his thoughts on the upcoming congressional reapportionment, the abrupt resignation of Daniel Claypool, the executive director of the Redistricting Commission and the likelihood of success for the attempt to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom.
An illustration of several Big Tech companies on a cell phone display. (Photo: Koshiro K, via Shutterstock)
