Monday through Wednesday will follow a familiar late spring script: morning marine layer clouds, gusty onshore afternoon winds, and cool coastal temperatures, with inland areas gradually warming each day. But by midweek, that pattern will begin to shift. A broad ridge of high pressure will build over the West starting Wednesday, setting the stage for a sustained warmup that could bring some of the hottest weather of the year so far to central California."
U.S. attorney in L.A. moves to ‘neutralize’ California’s sanctuary rules
LA Times' RACHEL URANGA: "The top federal prosecutor in Los Angeles is ratcheting up immigration enforcement in jails as the Trump administration looks for more ways to remove more immigrants from sanctuary cities.
U.S. Atty. Bill Essayli announced this week a pilot program dubbed “Operation Guardian Angel” intended to “neutralize” sanctuary state laws. The office identifies individuals with criminal records who have been deported and charges them with illegally reentering the United States, a federal crime."
Now, the 38-year-old is struggling to find two loads a week, and is being paid less for them, following a sharp drop in imports into the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. Late one afternoon, he refueled at the Sunshine Truck Stop after dropping off a single empty container at the port. He figured he would be left with about $50 after deducting costs for truck rental, insurance and diesel and was considering giving up as a self-employed driver."
Rising from mudflats to world-class cargo hub, the ports of L.A. and Long Beach face a wave of Trump tariffs
LA Times' PATT MORRISON: "Where the Southern California land meets the Pacific waters, the beaches are the glamour-pusses, but it’s the ports that are the workhorses that bring in the heavyweight bucks.
Lately, maybe not quite so much."
Villaraigosa, despite climate credentials, pivots toward oil industry in run for governor
LA Times' SEEMA MEHTA and LAURA J. NELSON: "As California positions itself as a leader on climate change, former Los Angeles mayor and gubernatorial candidate Antonio Villaraigosa is pivoting away from his own track record as an environmental champion to defend the state’s struggling oil industry.
Villaraigosa’s work to expand mass transit, plant trees and reduce carbon emissions made him a favorite of the environmental movement, but the former state Assembly speaker also accepted more than $1 million in campaign contributions and other financial support from oil companies and other donors tied to the industry over more than three decades in public life, according to city and state fundraising disclosures reviewed by The Times."
Six Months Later, Democrats Are Still Searching for the Path Forward
NY Times' SHANE GOLDMACHER: "One longtime Democratic researcher has a technique she leans on when nudging voters to share their deepest, darkest feelings about politics. She asks them to compare America’s two major parties to animals.
After around 250 focus groups of swing voters, a few patterns have emerged, said the researcher, Anat Shenker-Osorio. Republicans are seen as “apex predators,” like lions, tigers and sharks — beasts that take what they want when they want it. Democrats are typically tagged as tortoises, slugs or sloths: slow, plodding, passive."
Democratic troubles revive debate over left-wing buzzwords
Washington Post's NAFTALI BENDAVID: "Maybe it’s using the word “oligarchs” instead of rich people. Or referring to “people experiencing food insecurity” rather than Americans going hungry. Or “equity” in place of “equality,” or “justice-involved populations” instead of prisoners.
As Democrats wrestle with who to be in the era of President Donald Trump, a growing group of party members — especially centrists — is reviving the argument that Democrats need to rethink the words they use to talk with the voters whose trust they need to regain."
A rescued California black bear cub being raised by humans dressed as bears
LA Times' SUMMER LIN: "A 2-month-old black bear cub recently rescued from the woods is now being raised by a new, faux fuzzy foster family: humans dressed as bears at the San Diego Humane Society’s Ramona Wildlife Center.
To keep the cub from forming bonds with people that could jeopardize his return to the wild, staff members charged with his care are dressing up in bear costumes, including a mask, fur coat and leather gloves."
The ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ is a big risk for House Republicans. Many of them hope otherwise.
Washington Post's DAN BALZ: "The 2026 midterm elections are still far into the future, but Republicans are placing a big and risky bet that they can survive the coming attacks on President Donald Trump’s spending and tax cut bill and the potential impact of his erratic tariff policies. History is not on their side.
That spending and tax cut bill, titled the One Big Beautiful Bill, still has significant hurdles ahead. It passed the House by a single vote early Thursday after lobbying by the president and late adjustments to accommodate both deficit hawks and blue-state moderates. Senate Republicans promise to rework it before it goes back to the House for what could be another “Perils of Pauline” episode before it reaches Trump’s desk."
Mob wreaks havoc in downtown L.A., tagging buildings and trains as someone breathes fire
LA Times' MATTHEW ORMSETH: "The crowd gathered at midnight at Washington Boulevard and Maple Avenue.
It’s unclear why dozens of people converged at the intersection just south of downtown Los Angeles, but some were dressed to party, wearing pink platform heels and cat ears, according to video shot by news outlet OnScene.TV. A man gulped from a jug filled with a flammable liquid that he spat onto a torch, throwing flames into the night sky."
5 creative ways California colleges are feeding students beyond food pantries
CalMatters' AMY ELISABETH MOORE: "Since 2022, California has been offering free lunches to all students in elementary through high school. But once they reach college, more than two-thirds of students who apply for financial aid experience food insecurity, according to a 2023 report by the California Student Aid Commission.
The federally funded CalFresh program feeds some college students, but the complicated application process and eligibility rules prevent many from accessing funds. More than 70% of eligible students don’t receive CalFresh, according to a 2024 California Policy Lab report."
California lawmakers reject hundreds of bills in rapid-fire hearings
CalMatters' JEANNE KUANG and YUE STELLA YU: "Tax credits for the parents of young children. A state-funded scientific research institute. Exempting service workers’ tips from state income tax.
Those are among the hundreds of proposals California lawmakers swiftly rejected Friday under the banner of cost savings, as they cited the state’s $12 billion budget deficit — a worsening figure due to the threat of unprecedented federal funding cuts and California’s ballooning spending on health care for low-income residents."
Goats are back fighting wildfire risk in Sacramento County. How it works
SacBee's EMMA HALL: "As temperatures rise and wildfire risk approaches again, the goats are back in Sacramento.
In partnership with Sacramento County Department of Regional Parks, thousands of goats and sheep will feast on acres of open spaces in the region to minimize wildfire risk. This year, the county is spending $400,000 for its grazing program which is partially covered by grants and other parts of Regional Parks’ budget."
Manhunt Underway for Former Police Chief Imprisoned for Murder and Rape
NY Times' ALI WATKINS: "A manhunt was underway in northern Arkansas after a former police chief convicted of first-degree murder and rape slipped out of a high-security prison, dressed in a fake law enforcement uniform.
Grant Hardin, 56, who had previously served as the police chief in Gateway, Ark., escaped from the Calico Rock North Central Unit around 2:50 p.m. on Sunday, county officials said. He is considered extremely dangerous."
