Republicans want to prevent wildfires. But GOP leaders are making it hard to get disaster aid
DAVID LIGHTMAN, SacBee: "Southern California has been devastated by unprecedented wildfires that have sent tens of thousand thousands fleeing from their homes and 27 people dead—and while the worst danger appears to have passed, blazes are still raging.
continent away, Congress is engaged in a political, very public brawl over how to help pay the billions of dollars that will be needed to restore and rebuild. Republican leaders insist that before California can get sorely-needed disaster aid for wildfire victims, there will be conditions attached."
Newsom has 11-word response — with a four-letter word — to Trump’s climate moves
JULIE JOHNSON, The Chronicle: "Gov. Gavin Newsom shot a concise rebuttal to President Donald Trump’s early executive actions to reverse federal policies focused on combating climate change, which Trump has previously called “a hoax.”
“If you don’t believe in science, believe your own damn eyes,” Newsom said."
L.A. fire updates: Red flag warning extended to Thursday, but rain on the horizon (LIVE UPDATES)
RONG-GONG LIN II, LAT: "Amid firestorms and extended red flag warnings, the idea of a weekend rainstorm is a balm for Southern California’s soul. And the rain could help with the firefight, but forecasters say it probably will not end what has been a devastating fire season.
The storm will bring “a very beneficial wetting rain,” but “it will not end the fire season,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Alex Tardy."
This reservoir was built to save Pacific Palisades. It was empty when the flames came
MATT HAMILTON/DAVID ZAHNISER, LAT: "After flames leveled nearly 500 homes in Bel-Air and Brentwood in 1961, Los Angeles had a reckoning over firefighting.
By 1964, city leaders had added 13 fire stations, mapped out fire hydrants, purchased helicopters and dispatched more crews to the Santa Monica Mountains. To accommodate growth in Pacific Palisades, they built a reservoir in Santa Ynez Canyon, as well as a pumping station “to increase fire protection,” as the L.A. Department of Water and Power’s then-chief water engineer, Gerald W. Jones, told The Times in 1972."
On Trump’s first day, both parties made moves that could offend their core supporters
JOE GAROFOLI, The Chronicle: "Congressional Democrats and President Donald Trump have both made moves early in Trump’s presidency that could offend their core constituencies.
But it’s only Democrats likely to pay a price for helping pass the draconian Laken Riley Act cracking down on immigration. Meanwhile, Trump, who promised to restore “law and order,” faces little criticism from law enforcement for pardoning Jan. 6 demonstrators who committed violent acts, including attacking police officers."
Elon Musk has endorsed changes that could hit hard in California. Here’s what he could do
SOPHIA BOLLAG, The Chronicle: "As his profile within the Trump administration has grown, Elon Musk has endorsed many ideas that, if enacted, could affect California.
Musk has deep ties to the state where he grew his most successful businesses. And he’s been drawing on his allies in Silicon Valley to gather ideas on how to dramatically shrink the size of government."
BRIAN JOSEPH, Capitol Weekly: "Adam Gray may very well owe his seat in Congress to a 2018 decision on an ACLU lawsuit over vote-by-mail ballots.
On election night in November, the Central Valley Democrat found himself in a painfully familiar spot, trailing Republican John Duarte in the race for California’s 13th Congressional District. In 2022, Gray lost to Duarte in that same race by just 564 votes."
RUBEN VIVES/JESSICA GARRISON/RACHEL URANGA/REBECCA PLEVIN, LAT: "Leticia Jimenez expects to graduate from Cal State San Bernardino this spring with a degree in business administration.
She came to the country without authorization when she was 2 years old and grew up working the fields of the Coachella Valley with her parents when school was out."
Trump’s Department of Education pick has a history of stepping down from Sacramento jobs
JENNAH PENDLETON, SacBee: "President Donald Trump’s pick for deputy secretary of education, Penny Schwinn, was once a prominent figure in Sacramento’s education scene. During her six years in Sacramento, Schwinn established a charter school and had several brief runs in local school leadership positions before taking roles in other states.
Trump announced his choice in a Truth Social post Friday, repeatedly misidentifying Schwinn as “Peggy.” He wrote that “Peggy” has a “has a strong record of delivering results for children and families” and that she is “committed to delivering the American Dream to the next Generation by returning Education BACK TO THE STATES.” Schwinn would work under Linda McMahon, Trump’s choice for the Secretary of Education."
CAROLYN JONES, CALMatters: "It’ll be a while before Los Angeles can fully assess the damage to its schools from this recent spate of fires, but a few things already seem certain: rebuilding will take a long time, it will be expensive, and it may sap the statewide fund for school repairs.
At least a dozen schools in the Los Angeles area have been damaged in the fires, including at least five that were destroyed completely. Thousands of students and school staff have lost their homes, and countless families are grappling with major disruptions to their day-to-day lives."
UCLA hires LAPD Cmdr. Steve Lurie to lead safety overhaul following protest violence
JAWEED KALEEM/RICHARD WINTON, LAT: "UCLA has hired a 27-year LAPD veteran and top commanding officer to lead its eight-month-old Office of Campus Safety created in the wake of a violent melee last spring at a pro-Palestinian encampment, which was among the university’s darkest chapters.
LAPD Cmdr. Steve Lurie, who previously oversaw the department’s West Bureau, will begin his role as an associate vice chancellor on Feb. 1."
Former UC Davis Fire Department executive assistant accused of embezzlement appears in court
ROSALIO AHUMADA, SacBee: "A former executive assistant at UC Davis accused of embezzlement while working for the campus fire department made her first appearance Tuesday in Yolo Superior Court.
Meagan Emily McFadden faces felony charges of misappropriating public money, embezzlement, along with an enhancement alleging aggravating circumstances. She also is accused of perjury. Thomas Johnson, McFadden’s attorney, entered not guilty pleas on behalf of his client."
‘The day I lost my house:’ School communities reel from Eaton, Palisades fires
MALLIKA SESHADRI, EdSource: "Tanya Reyes, a teacher in the Los Angeles Unified School District, initially tried to befriend her reality.
But when her husband sent her a video of her Altadena home up in flames, and she heard him cry, she had to press pause."
Prison company retaliated against detained immigrants, labor board says
SUHAUNA HUSSAIN, LAT: "Private prison company GEO Group has been accused by the National Labor Relations Board of retaliating against immigrant detainees who protested working conditions inside a California facility.
GEO Group punished detainees housed at its detention center in Bakersfield who signed a petition and participated in a work stoppage to protest wages and other working conditions, federal labor regulators alleged in a Jan. 6 complaint by a regional NLRB office in Los Angeles. Protesters had commissary privileges revoked, were placed in solitary confinement and faced disciplinary write-ups, the complaint alleges."
California is one of the worst states in the nation for drivers, WalletHub says. Here’s why
CAMILA PEDROSA, SacBee: "California’s notorious rush hour traffic and soaring gas prices have established the state as one of the worst for drivers, according to WalletHub. The personal finance website released the 2025 edition of its list of Best and Worst States to Drive in on Tuesday, Jan. 21.
WalletHub scored each state on factors that impact the affordability and quality of driving, such as auto repair shops and car washes per capita and rates of car theft and larceny."