SCOTUS labor ruling could change political dynamic in California
The Chronicle's MATIER & ROSS: "California Democrats have good reason to be worried over the U.S. Supreme Court ruling barring public employee unions from extracting dues from workers who don’t want to be in the union to help pay for collective bargaining."
"If union membership shrinks, it could seriously change the election dynamic in the heavily blue state."
"An analysis by Berkeley-based MapLight, the nonpartisan organization that tracks money in politics, shows three of the Democrats’ biggest union allies — the California Teachers Association, the California Nurses Association and the Service Employees International Union — have spent more than $294 million on statewide and legislative candidates and initiatives over the past 10 years."
County Fire grows to 32,500 acres, crosses into Napa County as evacuations are ordered
Sacramento Bee's MICHAEL MCCOUGH/CLAIRE MORGAN/CASSIE DICKMAN/JORDAN CUTLER-TIETJEN: "The huge blaze that sparked Saturday in Yolo County grew substantially overnight Saturday and throughout the day Sunday, now at 32,500 acres with 2 percent containment, according to Cal Fire."
"Firefighters have worked throughout the day to establish control lines. Fire weather conditions remain critical," according to CalFire. "Extreme fire behavior has been observed. Shifting winds have created numerous active portions of the fire that have the potential to increase fire spread."
"The County Fire sparked about 2:12 p.m. Saturday and has exploded in magnitude, with more than 100 fire engines and a dozen helicopters responding."
READ MORE related to Energy & Environment: Yolo, Solano and Bay Area issue air quality warning as wind carries County Fire smoke -- Sacramento Bee's CLAIRE MORGAN/CASSIE DICKMAN; Bay Area residents wake up to ashfall from the County Fire, about 75 miles away -- Sacramento Bee's MICHAEL MCGOUGH
Rents climb faster in Sacramento than in any other major US metro
Sacramento Bee's PHILLIP REESE: "Median rent rose faster in Sacramento during the past 12 months than in any other major U.S. metro, according to Hotpads, a subsidiary of tracking firm Zillow.com."
"Monthly median rent for a two-bedroom apartment in the four-county region was $1,695 during the last three months, up 8.2 percent from the same period last year. That's roughly triple the rate of rental growth seen nationwide."
"Rents are jumping fast in Sacramento due to lack of housing stock and an influx of residents from the Bay Area. However, the Capital City still costs less than many other California metros. Median rent for a two-bedroom in San Francisco and San Jose is more than $3,000."
READ MORE related to Development & Economy: 'Not all machines are evil,' and other thoughts on California's changing economy -- Sacramento Bee's AMY CHANCE; Canada pushes back, slaps tariffs on US goods from ketchup to pizza -- AP; Latest minimum wage hike comes as some employers launch bidding wars for scarce workers -- LA Times's ANDREW KHOURI
With one final signature, Gov. Jerry Brown closes the chapter on his quest to reshape California's budget
LA Times's JOHN MYERS: "From the first time decades ago he was lampooned as a quirky upstart until now, the final stretch of his unprecedented fourth term as California’s governor, Jerry Brown has reveled in his reputation as a cheapskate."
"Nobody is tougher with a buck than I am,” he boasted during the 2010 campaign that sent him back to Sacramento."
SF mayor's incoming chief of staff gets "spoofed" by phone hacker
The Chronicle's MATIER & ROSS: "Jennifer Elsbernd, wife of San Francisco mayoral chief of staff designate Sean Elsbernd, got quite a shock when a pair of cops from Ingleside Station showed up at the family home in the predawn hours of Father’s Day."
“Is this the home of Sean Elsbernd,” they asked. “Is he here?"
"Elsbernd, who is a former San Francisco supervisor and top aide to U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, was out on his usual early morning run."
Proposition 47 is working, despite glitches
Capitol Weekly's DYLAN SVOBODA: "Proposition 47, the voter-approved ballot initiative aimed at easing prison overcrowding by releasing non-violent offenders, has generally succeeded in its goal."
"But the controversial measure also has run into some glitches."
'Conversion therapy' for gays would be sharply limited under California bill
The Chronicle's ROBBIE SHORT: "Choking up as he began to speak to a panel of fellow lawmakers, Assemblyman Evan Low paused to collect himself. The room had just quieted after a conservative advocate who opposed his bill heckled the committee — and Low — for not hearing his side out, causing a brief shouting match."
"It was very difficult to present this bill,” said Low, a Democrat from Campbell who is gay. “Because when thinking about childhood and that it would not be OK to be yourself — you heard testimony about suicidal thoughts. I have also had that."
"This strikingly personal revelation reflects the emotional debate surrounding Low’s proposal to make California the first state in the country to outlaw the advertising and sale of sexual orientation change services — better known as “conversion therapy.” On one side are scientists and LGBT advocates who say California must protect its residents from a harmful, prejudice-driven practice. On the other are First Amendment advocates and a group of religious conservatives who argue that a ban curtails personal liberty."
The Trump administration says it's a 'myth' that families that ask for asylum at ports of entry are separated. It happens frequently, records show
LA Times's PALOMA ESQUIVEL/BRITTNY MEJIA: "A woman named Mirian and her 18-month-old son reached Brownsville, Texas, early this year after fleeing Honduras, where the military had teargassed their home. She made her way to a port of entry and asked for asylum, according to court records."
"Mirian had her identification, her son’s birth certificate, which listed her as his mother, his hospital birth record and his vaccination records."
Legacy of '93 SF rampage
The Chornicle's RACHEL SWAN: "Lying with her face pressed against an office floor, Michelle Scully squinted and saw the gunman’s shoe. Then, a flash of metal, the stench of barrel oil, and the steady sputter of a semiautomatic pistol. She closed her eyes."
"Twenty-five years later, Scully — now Michelle Scully Hobus — remembers the massacre at 101 California St. in crisp fragments. How her husband, John Scully, pulled her to the floor and shielded her with his rangy, 6-foot-4 body. How she dialed 911 with her left hand because her right arm and hand were limp from a bullet wound. How Scully gazed at her as blood ran from his nose and chest."
"Michelle,” he said, “I’m dying. I love you."
How Democrats can win by losing a SCOTUS fight with Trump
WILLIE BROWN in The Chronicle: "Democrats are going to lose the short-term battle over the Supreme Court’s future in the aftermath of Justice Anthony Kennedy’s retirement. But in the end, they might just win."
"The naming of Kennedy’s replacement is about more than the Democratic-Republican divide. It’s about the future of Roe vs. Wade and a woman’s right to choice."
"That’s an issue that crosses party lines. It’s not just Democratic women who value that right — many Republican women recoil at the religious right’s push to outlaw abortions."
Heading into Putin meeting, Trump again bashes allies and avoids election-meddling issue
LA Times's LAURA KING: "National security advisor John Bolton said Sunday that President Trump would raise the question of Russian interference in the 2016 election when he meets with Vladimir Putin later this month, even as Trump himself sidestepped a question as to whether he would do so."
"Looking ahead to a Trump-Putin encounter, Bolton also brushed aside questions as to whether Trump had been too eager to accept the word of Kim Jong Un when he met with the North Korean leader last month, seeking to quell North Korea’s nuclear ambitions. Trump tweeted after that encounter that there no longer was a nuclear threat from North Korea, an assessment that many diplomatic and nuclear experts dispute."
