The Chronicle's MELODY GUTIERREZ: "California lawmakers will hold a series of hearings next month to assess the rise of white supremacy in the state and to determine if there are any laws needed to help control violent outbreaks at public rallies."
"State Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León, D-Los Angeles, called for the hearings Monday as lawmakers returned to the state Capitol after a monthlong recess. He said University of California and California State University officials will be asked to testify at the hearings about how they are handling requests to have neo-Nazi and far-right groups or speakers appear for events on campus."
LA Times' LAURA KING/MATT PEARCE: "Millions of sky-watchers gazed heavenward Monday as the moon’s shadow raced eastward along a slender corridor bisecting the mainland United States, blotting out the sun in a grand celestial show that had not been visible all across America in nearly a century."
"As if by the machinations of some great astral clock, the magic of the total solar eclipse began right on schedule, with the moon taking its first “bites” from the sun, to the enthrallment of watchers in the Pacific Northwest and swiftly beyond."
"Utter darkness descended. The air cooled. Birds fell silent. Cicadas burst into buzzing night music. Watchers erupted in cheers."
The Chronicle's DAVID R. BAKER: "Monday’s partial eclipse statewide took a sharp, sudden bite out of solar power production in California."
"And the electricity grid survived just fine."
READ MORE related to Environment/2017 North American Totality Eclipse: Court in SF reinstates environmental suit against US military base -- The Chronicle's BOB EGELKO; Shadows ended up being the most delightful thing about the solar eclipse -- Daily News' SAMANTHA V BUSH; Eclipse a thrilling celestial show -- for those who could see it -- The Chronicle's LIZZIE JOHNSON/PETER FIMRITE/JILL TUCKER/KURTIS ALEXANDER; State bills seek to cut children's exposure to lead -- The Chronicle's ELIZABETH AGUILERA
LA Jury hits Johnson & Johnson with $417 million verdict over cancer link to its talcum powder.
LA Times' RICHARD WINTON: "Los Angeles jury issued a $417 million verdict Monday against Johnson & Johnson, finding the company liable for failing to warn a 63-year-old woman diagnosed with terminal ovarian cancer about the risks of using its talcum products."
"The verdict marks the largest award yet in a number of suits claiming that the company’s talc powder causes ovarian cancer. More than 300 lawsuits are pending in California and more than 4,500 claims in the rest of the country, alleging that the healthcare giant ignored studies linking its Johnson's Baby Powder and Shower to Shower products to cancer."
"The plaintiff, Eva Echeverria, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2007. A surgeon removed a softball-sized tumor, but Echeverria is now near death and was unable to attend the trial, one of her attorneys said."
Donald Trump, who once backed withdrawal from Afghanistan, offers a plan for deeper involvement.
LA Times' BRIAN BENNETT/NOAH BIERMAN: "President Trump, admitting he came into office wanting to pull all U.S. troops out of Afghanistan, said Monday he had changed his mind and had approved what amounted to an open-ended military commitment to prevent terrorist safe havens there."
"My original instinct was to pull out, and historically I like following my instincts. But all of my life I heard that decisions are much different when you sit behind the desk in the Oval Office,” Trump said, in a rare acknowledgment of the unique pressures and vantage of his office."
"The consequences of a rapid exit are both predictable and unacceptable,” Trump said, adopting the rationale that his predecessors, Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, had used to justify 16 years of U.S. military involvement in Afghanistan."
READ MORE related to Beltway: On eve of Trump's Arizona rally, GOP Sen. Jeff Flake -- a vocal critic -- isn't worried about blowback -- LA Times' KURTIS LEE
Speaking fo Trump's Afghanistan policy, an Oakland congresswoman wages lonely battle over the president's war authority.
The Chronicle's CAROLYN LOCHHEAD: "Sixteen years ago, Rep. Barbara Lee was the sole member of Congress to vote against authorizing the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan. She warned at the time that granting President George W. Bush open-ended approval to use military force would lead to “war without end."
"In seeming fulfillment of the Oakland Democrat’s prophecy, President Trump announced Monday night that the United States must continue fighting in Afghanistan to avoid the “predictable and unacceptable” results of a rapid withdrawal from the country. Congressional officials said the administration has told them it will add about 4,000 troops to the Afghanistan force, although Trump did not specify a number in his speech."
From global warming to redistricting: Is Arnold Schwarzenegger making a comeback?
Capitol Weekly's CHUCK MCFADDEN: "It was ‘way back in 1984 when Arnold Schwarzenegger first uttered the movie catchwords “I’ll be back” in The Terminator."
"Today, Arnold is back."
"Sort of."
Governors step forward as Trump's popularity wanes.
The Chronicle's JOHN WILDERMUTH: "When GOP Sen. John McCain of Arizona was asked last month about his stand on the Republicans’ controversial health care reform plan, he said that he’d do whatever Republican Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey wanted."
"When President Trump said in June he would pull the U.S. out of the Paris Climate Agreement, California Gov. Jerry Brown and the governors of 11 other states said they wouldn’t go along."
USC's dean drug scandal could take a costly toll on the school's legal battle with the UC system.
LA Times' HARRIET RYAN: "Six months after Dr. Carmen Puliafito stepped down as dean of USC’s medical school, he was called by the university to give sworn testimony as a witness in a lawsuit the institution was facing."
"It was a sensitive matter with hundreds of millions of dollars potentially at stake, and two attorneys for the university sat with him as he answered questions."
"Almost immediately, the opposing lawyer hit on a topic that was a closely guarded secret at USC: The circumstances of Puliafito’s abrupt resignation in March 2016."
READ MORE related to Education: At Cal, many teams might pay for stadium debt -- The Chronicle's ANN KILLION
Runway safety improvements have finished at LAX.
Daily News: "All four runways at Los Angeles International Airport are operating at full strength following completion of mandatory safety improvements, an airport official said Monday."
"Congress required all of the nation’s airports to undertake Runway Safety Area improvements to provide an extra buffer zone if an aircraft overshoots, overruns or veers off a runway."
"After more than two years of work, Los Angeles International Airport is proud to announce that we have finished the fourth and final Runway Safety Area project, which creates additional safeguards for all of our passengers and ensures that the planes of today — and the future — will have the space to take off and land safely and within Federal Aviation Administration guidelines,” said Keith Wilschetz, deputy executive director of operations and emergency management at Los Angeles World Airports."
Man charged with murder and attempted murder in shooting of off-duty Oakland firefighters.
The Chronicle's VIVIAN HO: "A man accused of fatally shooting a probationary Oakland firefighter and injuring another outside a brewery in San Jose was charged with murder and attempted murder, prosecutors said Monday."
"Oliver Juinio, 27, of San Jose, is scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday on charges connected to the attack that killed 30-year-old Jake P. Walter and wounded his colleague."