Magnitude 4.7 earthquake in Malibu rattles Southern California
RONG-GONG LIN II and KAREN GARCIA, LA Times: "A magnitude 4.6 earthquake in Malibu rattled Southern California on Thursday. The temblor struck around 7:30 a.m. and was felt across the region. Some residents were alerted by the state’s quake early warning system.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the quake was felt over a wide swath of L.A. and Ventura counties and as far away as Goleta and Indio."
SoCal fires burn 100,000 acres, destroy dozens of homes and injure 13
HANNAH FRY, NATHAN SOLIS, SUMMER LIN, ALEX WIGGLESWORTh and GINA FERAZZI, LA Times: "Three fast-moving wildfires have burned homes, caused injuries and scorched more than 100,000 acres across Southern California in a matter of days, prompting a state of emergency as firefighting crews attempt to assess damage and gain control over the blazes.
The largest of the three, the Bridge fire, broke out Sunday in Angeles National Forest and exploded from 4,000 acres to more than 50,000 acres between Tuesday and Wednesday evening.
READ MORE about California fires: Wrightwood stunned by Bridge fire destruction: ‘Never believed it would happen’, NATHAN SOLIS, HAYLEY SMITH and LILA SEIDMAN, LA Times; Norco man suspected of igniting the Line fire, which has raged through San Bernardino County, ASHLEY AHN, LA Times; Davis Fire evacuation map: Latest updates on blaze moving south of Reno, ANTHONY EDWARDS, SF Chronicle.
Project 2025 to California: Report abortion data or lose billions in Medicaid
MONIQUE O. MADAN, CalMatters: "Project 2025, the 900-page conservative playbook for the next Republican president, issues an ultimatum for California: track and report abortion data to the federal government or risk losing billions in Medicaid funding for reproductive health. California is one of only three states that do not report abortion data to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Project 2025’s proposed federal mandate directly conflicts with the state’s strong protections for patient privacy and could dismantle the legal and ethical foundations that have made California a refuge for those seeking reproductive care."
Trump Says He Had a Great Debate. His Allies Privately Say Otherwise
MAGGIE HABERMAN, NY Times: "Former President Donald J. Trump went into sales-pitch mode immediately after Tuesday night’s debate, walking into the spin room to extol his own performance, crowing on Fox News and going on a late-night posting spree to hype unscientific online polls that he said showed he had crushed Vice President Kamala Harris.
“That was my best Debate, EVER, especially since it was THREE ON ONE!” Mr. Trump posted on Truth Social, minutes after the debate ended, referring to the two ABC News moderators."
We Asked Undecided Voters Who Won the Trump-Harris Debate
SABRINA SIDDIQUI, Wall Street Journal: "Many undecided voters were hoping the debate Tuesday night between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump would help guide them on how to cast their ballots.
In interviews with The Wall Street Journal, a handful of voters in battleground states broadly agreed that Trump appeared rattled by Harris, who repeatedly goaded him into veering off course, including by saying that some people got bored at his rallies and left early."
Column: The allure of Trump among California Republicans remains despite his depravity
GEORGE SKELTON, LA Times: "Donald Trump finally met his match in a debate. Kamala Harris not only dominated and clobbered him, she goaded him into appearing unhinged.
It was arguably the best presidential debate performance since Ronald Reagan eviscerated President Carter in 1980 with his classic lines: “There you go again” and “Ask yourself, are you better off than you were four years ago?”
It’s conventional to say that debates don’t matter much in a race’s final outcome. But that’s bunk. There are many times when they have. And the Harris-Trump debate is potentially one."
No, Taylor Swift Did Not Coordinate Her Kamala Harris Endorsement With the Campaign
NEIL SHAH and KEN THOMAS, Wall Street Journal: "About an hour after Taylor Swift endorsed Kamala Harris for president, the Democratic candidate’s campaign had friendship bracelets for sale on the Harris campaign website.
It looked like a synchronized effort: Bracelets, after all, were a hallmark of Swift’s “Eras Tour.” People outside the campaign were encouraging an endorsement. But there was no direct coordination between Swift and the campaign, according to multiple people familiar with the matter. Swift has neither contacted the Harris campaign nor spoken with Harris herself, one of the people said. Harris aides say they weren’t given a head’s up."
California attorney general warns tech platforms to look out for voter deception ahead of election
LORA KOLODNY, CNBC: "California Attorney General Rob Bonta cautioned executives at social media and other tech companies to work harder to protect voters from “deception, intimidation, and dissuasion,” ahead of the November election.
“Millions of Californians rely on social media and artificial intelligence services to obtain news and information about upcoming elections, and it is paramount that the platforms, products, and services offered by your companies not be misused to deceive voters about their constitutional right to vote,” Bonta wrote in a letter Wednesday to the CEOs of Alphabet, Meta, Microsoft, OpenAI, Reddit, TikTok, X and YouTube."
Diamonds, pearls and 15th century art: Dianne Feinstein’s possessions will be auctioned in L.A.
LARA J. NELSON, LA Times: "The U.S. Senate has been described as a “millionaire’s club,” and the late California Sen. Dianne Feinstein was among its wealthiest members.
Some of the San Francisco Democrat’s jewelry, art and political memorabilia will be auctioned next month at Bonhams in Los Angeles County.
The items include diamond and emerald jewelry, artwork from the glassblower Dale Chihuly and the 15th century Italian painter Neri Di Bicci, and signed books and documents from famous Democrats, including several presidents."
California judge rules against school district’s ‘forced outing’ policy of transgender students
ANDREW SHEELER, SacBee: "Just over a year after California Attorney General Rob Bonta took the Chino Valley Unified School District to court over its parental notification policy, a San Bernardino Superior Court judge handed Bonta a victory in the case.
Judge Michael Sachs ruled that the district’s policy of notifying parents that their children are going by different pronouns or names at school, or accessing gender-segregated school facilities or activities for a sex other than what appears on their birth certificate, was permanently halted. The policy previously was subject to a preliminary injunction while the case worked its way through the legal system."
Supermoon will soon appear in sky over California — along with partial eclipse.
HANH TRUONG, SacBee: "Stargazers will be in for a special treat when the next full moon shines over California. A partial lunar eclipse will coincide with a harvest supermoon on Tuesday, Sept. 17.
During the celestial event, the moon will look “slightly larger-than-average,” according to Space.com."
Why this will be the most extraordinary season for college admissions in years
NANETTE ASIMOV, SF Chronicle: "This fall will be an extraordinary time for students applying to college, not only thanks to new admission opportunities but also because some barriers will be higher and some bottlenecks tighter.
An unusually large high school senior class this year will mean competing for admission with hundreds of thousands more students. The technical issues that plagued applications for federal Pell Grants last year are set to persist, complicating the hunt for financial aid. Some applicants across the country will face the absence of affirmative action for the first time since the early 1960s. And many must make a nail-biting choice of whether to take the SAT as more schools reinstate it."