Scary time for California Democrats (OPINION)
LOS ANGELES TIMES, GEORGE SKELTON: "The race for California governor couldn’t be much closer. And that’s scary for Democrats. Only the top two vote-getters in the June 2 primary — regardless of their party — will advance to the November election. And although still unlikely, it’s increasingly conceivable that both could be Republicans.
“Scare tactics,” claim naysaying Democrats of such speculation. But Democrats should have heeded scary rumblings 10 years ago when long shot Donald Trump was first running for president — and not buried their heads in the sand again two years ago when Joe Biden was feebly seeking reelection."
Measles is back in California. Health departments are fighting it with less
CalMATTERS, KRISTEN HWANG: "When a possible measles case is identified in California, a phone rings at the local health department and the clock starts ticking.
Laboratory workers need to process samples as soon as possible to confirm the case. And a public health nurse must call the patient to find out where they’ve been and who they’ve been in contact with recently."
Voter ID appears headed for California’s November ballot. What you should know
LOS ANGELES TIMES, PHIL WILLON: "A proposed initiative to require Californians to show identification every time they vote, and election officials to verify registered voters are U.S. citizens, appears to have enough support to qualify for the November ballot.
Proponents say they have collected more than 1.3 million voter signatures on petitions supporting the ballot measure, far more than required under California law, and plan to submit them to county elections officials Monday for verification."
‘We reject this’: Hundreds in S.F. march against U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran
CHRONICLE, LUCY HODGMAN: "Less than 24 hours after the United States and Israel launched a wave of missile strikes against Iran, hundreds of protesters blocked off a downtown San Francisco street Saturday to demonstrate against escalation abroad.
Tensions between the U.S. and Iran have risen sharply in recent weeks, culminating in President Donald Trump’s Saturday announcement that the latest attacks had killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Democratic Party leaders, while also sharply critical of Khamenei’s regime, were quick to condemn the intervention as an illegal overstep."
The Push for 875,000 People to Help Get California Billionaire Tax on the Ballot
WALL STREET JOURNAL, PAUL KIERNAN: "Inside an art deco theater on the edge of Koreatown, Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello took the stage to cheers from a packed house. He wasn’t the main act. That was Sen. Bernie Sanders, who was there to rage against California’s billionaires.
“You know what the most significant addiction crisis in America is today? It is the greed of the billionaire class,” the Vermont independent said."
Thousands rally in Westwood as U.S.-Iran war escalates, calling for a ‘free Iran’
LOS ANGELES TIMES, MATTHEW ORMSETH: Thousands from L.A.’s massive Persian diaspora rallied in Westwood celebrating Iran’s supreme leader’s death as U.S.-Israel military operations intensified.
Demonstrators, draped in traditional Iranian flags, called for a “free Iran” and expressed hope that regime change could bring increased freedom to their homeland.
The widening conflict has killed at least three U.S. service members and hundreds in Iran, including civilians, as attacks intensify across the Middle East. Thousands gathered outside the Westwood Federal Building on Sunday afternoon celebrating the fall of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and dreaming of a “free Iran” as war continued to escalate between Iran and a united U.S. and Israel."
How long can you drive with expired registration in California? Here’s what the law says
CHRONICLE, AIDIN VAZIRI: "If your California vehicle registration has expired, you may have a short window before police can pull you over for that reason alone — but you do not have extra time to pay.
A state law that took effect July 1, 2024, limits when officers can stop a vehicle solely for expired registration tags. It does not waive late fees, and drivers can still be cited in many situations."
One early risk of Trump's Iran strategy is already emerging
POLITICO, BEN LEVEBVRE and JAMES BIKALES: "Oil prices jumped more than 10 percent Sunday night, underscoring the political risks of President Donald Trump’s military strikes against Iran.
The main U.S. crude oil market opened at $75 per barrel in the first trading activity since the United States and Israel attacked Iran on Saturday, killing Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and triggering retaliatory attacks on several oil tankers traversing the Strait of Hormuz, through which more than 20 percent of the world’s waterborne crude oil passes."
California GOP lawmakers are incensed over a gas tax study bill. Rural groups say they need it
CalMATTERS, YUE STELLA YU: "For more than a month, Republican lawmakers in California have blasted a legislative proposal to study alternatives to the state’s gas tax, declaring it a dishonest ploy by Democrats to hike taxes on drivers — a claim that’s gone viral on social media and is frequently repeated by conservatives nationally.
Ironically, though, several of California’s biggest conservative interest groups and rural Republican officials support the legislation, some from the very districts those critical GOP lawmakers represent."
UC president defends diplomacy, calling it the ‘better course’ amid Trump attacks
LOS ANGELES TIMES, JAWEED KALEEM: "University of California President James B. Milliken, in his first extensive interview since taking the helm of the nation’s premier public higher education system, defended UC’s diplomatic approach to President Trump’s fusillade of actions against the institution — contrasting it with the more aggressive fight Harvard is waging with the government.
UC has not repeatedly sued the federal government or publicly criticized Trump, while Harvard battles the administration in and outside court amid billions in White House funding freezes."
Californians are staying insured — but settling for health coverage they may not use
CalMATTERS, ANA B. IBARRA: "Despite the loss of federal subsidies that lowered costs for millions, California’s private health insurance marketplace held nearly steady this enrollment season. In all, 1.9 million Californians renewed their plan or selected one for the first time — a 2.7% drop compared to last year.
A closer look, however, shows that Californians are making concessions to afford staying insured."
San Francisco Ballet cancels Kennedy Center performances
CHRONICLE, AIDIN VAZIRI: "The San Francisco Ballet has canceled its planned performances at the Kennedy Center this spring.
“SF Ballet’s Board of Trustees has made the decision that the company’s performances that were scheduled at the Trump Kennedy Center May 27-31 will no longer take place,” a company representative said in a statement. “SF Ballet looks forward to performing for Washington, D.C. audiences in the future.”
Moscow gloats over potential oil price spike from Iran war
POLITICO, EVA HARTOG: "Russian President Vladimir Putin may have lost another close ally after the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, but an oil shock from conflict in Middle East spells potential good news for his war chest.
The U.S.-Israeli war against Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway giving access to the Persian Gulf and one of the world's key chokepoints for tankers carrying oil and liquefied natural gas. That is firing speculation that global crude prices could spike dramatically, boosting Russian revenues."
‘No breaks anywhere’ for San Diego-area restaurateurs — so many are opting to close up shop
TIMES of SAN DIEGO, FRANK SABATINI Jr: "First, the COVID-19 pandemic shut many restaurants down. Then came persistent supply shortages after kitchens reopened.
Fast forward to 2026, and mix in minimum-wage hikes, escalating rents and soaring food costs, spurred by tariffs and inflation.
It all adds up to this: Restaurateurs are battling their toughest survival challenge since the Great Depression."
Here’s how economists say California could tax billionaires — without losing them to Texas
CHRONICLE, CHRISTIAN LEONARD: "The proposed California wealth tax on billionaires is supposed to be about backfilling lost health care funding. But it taps into a long history of federal and state attempts to solve a persistent problem: How should the government collect taxes from a tiny handful of super-rich families — some of whom pay a lower effective tax rate than many ordinary professionals?
Sometimes, that history looks like a trillion-dollar game of cat-and-mouse."
