California smashes record for hospitalizations as fears mount concerning facility-overcrowding
The Chronicle's TATIANA SANCHEZ/SAM WHITING/VANESSA ARREDONDO: "California reported a record number of COVID-19 hospitalizations, reaching a somber milestone that shows the virus is more widespread than ever.
State officials reported 7,415 virus hospitalizations on Saturday, the latest data available, smashing California’s previous record of 7,170 in July. It was a dramatic leap from Friday’s figure of 6,972.
Hospitalizations in California have more than doubled in two weeks. The number of people in intensive care units due to the coronavirus is also near a record."
READ MORE related to Pandemic: Fauci: US may see 'surge upon surge' of virus in weeks ahead -- AP's TAMARA LUSH
Could hydrogen-electric cars be crucial to meeting California's climate goals?
The Chronicle's DUSTIN GARDINER: "As California pushes to end the sale of gas-powered cars by 2035, a rivalry over which types of green vehicles will replace the internal combustion engine is playing out.
The dominant player is clearly battery-powered electric cars like Teslas and Chevy Bolts. That’s for obvious reasons: California already has about 450,000 plug-in electric cars on the road and more than 67,300 charging ports.
But some legislators and energy experts say the state must not forget to invest in another technology in its infancy, hydrogen fuel-cell cars, which could help serve drivers who cannot easily charge at home."
Moderna to ask FDA to OK emergency use of its COVID-19 vaccine
AP: "Moderna said it would ask U.S. and European regulators Monday to allow emergency use of its COVID-19 vaccine as new study results confirm that the shots offer strong protection.
The announcement ramps up the race to begin limited vaccinations as the pandemic continues to worsen in the U.S. and other global hot spots.
Moderna is just behind Pfizer and its German partner, BioNTech, in seeking to begin vaccinations in the U.S. in December. Across the Atlantic, British regulators also are assessing the Pfizer shot and another from AstraZeneca and Oxford University."
Federal tax hit could take many unemployed people by surprise
The Chronicle's KATHLEEN PENDER: "The Internal Revenue Service has been warning people that unemployment benefits are taxable at the federal level, but some people could still get hit with an unexpected tax bill when they file their Form 1040 next year.
State employment agencies, including the California Employment Development Department, give people the option of having 10% of their base unemployment payment withheld for federal taxes. But most people don’t, and even if they do, it might not be enough to cover what they actually owe if they have other income. California does not tax unemployment benefits, although some states do.
One problem this year is that even when people opted for withholding, EDD withheld nothing from the extra $600 per week that everyone on unemployment got from April through July, nor from the extra $300 added to benefits for six more weeks. Those extra federal benefits alone amounted to as much as $12,000."
The lobbyist who led Newsom to the French Laundry has a history of controversy
Sac Bee's LARA KORTE/SOPHIA BOLLAG: "When photos circulated earlier this month of Gov. Gavin Newsom dining at the swanky French Laundry restaurant for a birthday party, Californians got a glimpse of the well-known but rarely observed coziness between lobbyists and politicians.
The dinner gave fuel to critics of the governor’s coronavirus restrictions, who pointed to the hypocrisy of Newsom mingling in a 12-person group as he told the rest of the state to avoid seeing family and friends for Thanksgiving.
It also thrust into the spotlight Newsom’s longtime relationship with Jason Kinney, the California lobbyist who hosted the party to celebrate his 50th birthday."
Democrats recalibrate ambitions in Congress amid election setbacks
LA Times's JENNIFER HABERKORN: "Rep. Zoe Lofgren spent her summer doing “a very nerd-like” line-by-line reading of the 55-year-old law that governs U.S. immigration policy in anticipation of widespread Democratic election wins that would give her party the ability to enact a massive immigration overhaul next year.
But in the face of unexpected Democratic losses, Lofgren (D-San Jose) and other Democrats are now in the process of recalibrating their expectations on a wide variety of issues, such as immigration, healthcare and climate change.
“I believed the pollsters when they said that the Republicans had only a 25% chance of keeping the Senate and that Democrats would pick up seats” in the House, Lofgren said. Now “I don’t know that we’re going to have the opportunity to do that with the very thin margins.”"
For these unemployed Bay Area hospitality workers, free time meant helping Biden with Nevada
The Chronicle's JUSTIN PHILLIPS: "An endless number of things ran through Oakland native Tony Evans’ mind when he felt his body tiring during a long day of canvassing in Reno, Nevada the week before the 2020 presidential election.
The 66-year-old thought about his three daughters and 10 grandchildren. He thought about losing his job as a bartender at the Warriors’ Chase Center and at the Oakland A’s Coliseum due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He thought about being Black in America, about police brutality, and most of all, about how he wanted President Donald Trump out of office.
In the week leading up to the 2020 election, Evans was among 75 newly laid-off Bay Area food industry workers who traveled to the swing state of Nevada as part of the largest union-led door-to-door canvassing operation in the country. The effort was orchestrated by Unite Here, a labor organization in the U.S. and Canada with around 300,000 active members who mostly work in the food service, hotel and casino gaming industries."
A short history of SF curfews, from WW2 to Rodney King and George Floyd
The Chronicle's TATIANA SANCHEZ/BILL VAN NIEKERKEN: "San Francisco residents, like those across most of the Bay Area and California, will be subject to a curfew starting Monday night as coronavirus cases surge. The restrictions kicked in after the city, along with San Mateo County, entered the state’s purple tier over the weekend. The curfew runs from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. nightly.
Curfews are unusual, but not unheard of. Here are some of the curfews the city has experienced through the decades, from restricting alcohol consumption during World War II to responding to civil unrest amid calls for racial justice.
Feb. 24, 1942: An estimated 100,000 Japanese immigrants throughout California — referred to in Chronicle reports at the time as “enemy aliens” — were subject to a curfew during the war, which required them to be home between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. At all other hours, they could only be within 5 miles of their home or at work or traveling to and from these places. Exceptions were approved by the U.S. attorney, and anyone who violated the restrictions was potentially placed in an internment camp until the end of the war. Many Japanese Americans were ultimately sent to internment camps throughout the West, a travesty that California apologized for this year."
Why biotech is a bright spot in the Bay Area's battered economy
The Chronicle's ROLAND LI: "In a year of upheaval, the Bay Area’s biotech industry remains a growth engine for the economy and real estate market.
As office workers stay home, researchers are allowed to continue to go to medical labs. And unlike most industries, the coronavirus pandemic has directly created business opportunities for local companies.Strong business is translating to more planned investment.
Genentech, which is working on 10 potential COVID-19 treatments, won local approval last week for a 15-year expansion plan to nearly double the size of its headquarters campus in South San Francisco. It currently has around 700 open positions and could add 4.3 million square feet in the city."
READ MORE related to Economy/Reopening: LA's outdoor dining ban came from the county. Garcetti is still facing heat for it -- LA Times's DAKOTA SMITH; Indoor dining banned at all Bay Area restaurants, just as weather gets colder -- The Chronicle's PETER FIMRITE
With high school sports on hold in California, athletes rally at Capitol
Sac Bee's JOE DAVIDSON: "Caelan Bonniksen is a spirited three-sport athlete without seasons to play, without teammates and with a lot of life experiences on hold.
The El Dorado High School senior is frustrated and pained, as are hundreds of thousands of his teenage peers across California due to how the coronavirus pandemic continues to cast a considerable shadow over education. This includes how schools operate in distance learning or in hybrid on-campus form, and those who embrace and need extra curricular activities such as sports to feel a part of something.
Bonniksen, 18, set out to do his part. He created an Instagram page on Nov. 21 called “CIF_LetUsPlay” and got the word out that he wanted to share the concerns of paused seasons and set up a rally of sorts on Sunday afternoon in front of the California Capitol in Sacramento. About 200 people — student-athletes, parents, coaches and more — showed up with signs reading, “Let Us Play,” “Kids Need Sports” and more."
49ers surrounded by uncertainty as franchise faces a month without being home
The Chronicle's ANN KILLION: "The 49ers won a game on Sunday afternoon, beating the Rams 23-20 on a last-second field goal and improving their record to 5-6.
And that’s about the only thing we know for certain about the team.
Because what happens next in the 49ers’ world is a complete unknown."
Mall Santas will look different this year. Here's what to expect in the Bay Area
The Chronicle's SHWANIKA NARAYAN: "He sees you when you’re sneezing, he knows when you’ve got aches, he knows if you’ve been bad or good so don’t go near for goodness’ sake.
This year, Santa Claus, who’s likely to be a part of the vulnerable, at-risk population for COVID-19, is as likely as not to be virtual — an ethereal presence who works from the North Pole and beams into your living room over a live stream.
Some malls are still planning to host the jolly old man, even as coronavirus restrictions tighten to extraordinary levels. Those Santas will be masked, sit on sanitized thrones, and wave at excited children from behind plexiglass. There will be no lap-sitting this year, even for well-behaved kids, and online reservations may be required to cut down on people waiting in line."
Some federal judges plan to retire when Trump exits. Will Biden be able to replace them?
LA Times's MAURA DOLAN: "For the last four years, some federal judges postponed retirement plans rather than give President Trump the opportunity to name more conservatives to the nation’s powerful appeals courts.
When Joe Biden assumes office, many of those judges are expected to step aside to allow the new Democratic president to appoint their successors, especially if Democrats regain the U.S. Senate.
The stakes are considerable, especially in the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which decides federal law for nine Western states. Trump’s 10 appointments to the court, more than a third of its active judges, have moved the 9th Circuit to the right. Biden could tilt it back again if his appointments win confirmation, affecting decisions on immigration, the environment, criminal justice and other issues."
Biden to wear walking boot after breaking foot during play time with dog
AP's ALEXANDRA JAFFE: "President-elect Joe Biden will likely wear a walking boot for the next several weeks as he recovers from breaking his right foot while playing with one of his dogs, his doctor said.
Biden suffered the injurxy on Saturday and visited an orthopedist in Newark, Delaware, on Sunday afternoon, his office said.
“Initial x-rays did not show any obvious fracture,” but medical staff ordered a more detailed CT scan, his doctor, Kevin O’Connor, said in a statement. The subsequent scan found tiny fractures of two small bones in the middle of his right foot, O’Connor said."
