Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez addressing lawmakers about her labor bill, AB 5. (Photo: Rich Pedroncelli/APAssemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez wrapped up this legislative year feeling pretty good about her accomplishments. Despite often fierce opposition, the San Diego Democrat was able to pass 11 pieces of legislation, including those that protect child sexual abuse survivors and workers.
Donald Trump speaks to California supporters during a 2015 campaign rally aboard the USS Iowa in San Pedro. (Photo: Joseph Sohm, via Shutterstock)President Donald Trump threatened—again—to withhold federal dollars from California as the state copes with the aftermath of wildfires. But the president’s action is on shaky legal ground. That’s because there are clear guidelines governing how federal funding is administered and under what circumstances it can be cut off.
A correctional facility in Salinas operated by The GEO Group. ((Photo: GEO Group website)So you think privately run prisons are a Republican thing? Perhaps in Texas and Tennessee. But in deep blue California, it is the Democrats who take in the most contributions from for-profit correctional corporations, primarily Florida’s The GEO Group and the Tennessee-based CoreCivic, formerly Corrections Corporation of America.