California’s coronavirus numbers rising as U.S. passes 10 million total cases
PETER FIMRITE, Chronicle: The predicted fall surge in coronavirus infections is sweeping across the United States, topping 10 million total cases on Monday with almost a million Californians getting sick since the pandemic began. Infections also appear to be rising even in the comparatively composed Bay Area.
More than 237,000 of the 10 million infected Americans have died from COVID-19 since the pandemic began. In California, the infection rate over the past two weeks went up 7.4% compared with the previous 14 days.
“This has to be concerning,” said Dr. George Rutherford, a UCSF epidemiologist. “California is starting to look like the rest of the country when things took off in mid-September.”
READ MORE related to Pandemic: Here's how Biden's victory will change pandemic strategy -- The Chronicle's ERIN ALLDAY; Mass vaccines still months away despite promising new data from Pfizer -- Sac Bee's SOPHIA BOLLAG; Household gatherings, Halloween are driving California coronavirus rates higher -- Sac Bee's ANDREW SHEELER;
Coronavirus cases top 10 million in the US -- DON SWEENEY, SacBee; HUD Secretary Ben Carson tests positive for coronavirus; aide says he’s in ‘good spirits’ -- AP, via LA Times;
Utah governor issues statewide mask mandate amid coronavirus surge -- AP, via LA Times.
ACA challenge before SCOTUS could stripo health insurance from millions
The Chronicle's BOB EGELKO: "As the Supreme Court hears a challenge Tuesday to the Affordable Care Act, the stakes are enormous: insurance coverage for more than 20 million Americans during a disastrous pandemic. Medicaid coverage for more than 15 million with low incomes. About $27 billion a year in federal funding for California.
And, arguably, the public standing of the court, particularly its newest justice, Amy Coney Barrett.
The law, signed by President Barack Obama in 2010, was intended to provide coverage to the tens of millions of uninsured and under-insured Americans through federal assistance and regulation."
READ MORE on SCOTUS: Biden defends Obamacare as Supreme Court mulls its fate -- AP, via LA Times
Orange County will conduct audit of 2020 presidential election ballots
HAYLEY SMITH, LA Times: "Orange County has announced that it will conduct a voluntary audit of its 2020 presidential election ballots to ensure the integrity of results.
The risk-limiting audit is not required under California law, the Orange County registrar of voters said, but the procedure is meant to provide “strong statistical evidence” that the outcome of the election is correct.
“Conducting a risk-limiting audit is an excellent way to audit elections and provide an important check on the integrity of the election process,” Registrar Neal Kelley said in a news release. “This is a valuable opportunity to utilize the enhanced auditing capability of Orange County’s voting system, while at the same time ensuring that the outcomes are true and correct.”
California's climate agenda likely to get big boost from Biden -- look for reversal of Trump policies
The Chronicle's KURTIS ALEXANDER: "California’s war with Washington over the environment will soon come to an end.
The legal wrangling that sparked 57 environmental lawsuits against the Trump administration — for loosening policies on everything from automobile pollution to pesticide use and salmon conservation — should turn to consensus and cooperation.
President-elect Joe Biden has pledged to act quickly to restore and strengthen dozens of protections on public lands, water and wildlife. In addition, California’s efforts to fight climate change will no longer face hurdles put up by the White House, which has downplayed the global threat."
What Biden's victory means for California in Washington
Sac Bee's DAVID LIGHTMAN/SOPHIA BOLLAG: "California’s relationship with the federal government appears poised to shift dramatically, a change that could mean more federal money for coronavirus response and unemployment backlogs as well as legal victories on greenhouse gas emissions.
While President Donald Trump is suing to challenge the results in key states, Gov. Gavin Newsom is likely to find a chief executive fond of bashing California replaced with an ally come January.
“It goes from headwinds to tailwinds,” Newsom said at a Monday news conference. From the environment to education, he said, the Biden platform essentially is “a California agenda.”"
READ MORE related to POTUS46: Biden's victory: Newspaper front pages from around the world -- Sac Bee's SOHAIL AL-JAMEA
Here's what Kamala Harris is likely to take on as Biden's VP
The Chronicle's TAL KOPAN: "The vice presidency may be the most loosely defined job in American politics. But all indications point to Sen. Kamala Harris being a consequential second in the White House.
Mockery of the role of America’s vice president abounds. John Nance Garner, Franklin D. Roosevelt’s first vice president, famously called the job “the spare tire on the automobile of government” and “not worth a bucket of warm spit.” HBO built a hit show, “Veep,” around Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ comical portrayal of a hapless, irrelevant and power-hungry vice president.
But those who know President-elect Joe Biden and his running mate say Harris is poised to be a key piece of the new administration, with a healthy set of responsibilities and influence."
Singh-Allen defeats Ly, declares victory in historic bid for EG mayor
Sac Bee's MICHAEL FINCH II: "After mounting a swift campaign late this summer, Bobbie Singh-Allen will be the next mayor of Elk Grove and the first directly-elected Sikh woman to hold the office in the nation.
Singh-Allen declared victory early Monday after receiving a call from Mayor Steve Ly who she defeated after a contentious race, winning 46% of votes cast as Sacramento County election officials continue counting.
Ly, who has held the office since 2016, garnered 34%, according to the most recent figures available, while a third candidate, Brian Pastor, received 18% of the votes. The window for a potential win for Ly did not expand late Friday when the results were last updated."
Could California be the next state to decriminalize hard drugs?
Sac Bee's ANDREW SHEELER: "Oregon could be just the beginning.
Oregonians’ vote to decriminalize possession of small amounts of drugs including heroin, methamphetamine and LSD, provides a catalyst for other states, including California, to follow, said Jeannette Zanipatin, California state director for the Drug Policy Alliance.
The Drug Policy Alliance, through its political advocacy arm Drug Policy Action, was a major funder of the campaign to pass Oregon Measure 110, the decriminalization measure."
READ MORE related to Cannabis & Recreational Drugs: AUDIT: Over half of Sacramento's pot shops changed hands, despite ordinance to prevent it -- Sac Bee's THERESA CLIFT
Colleges commit to diversity goals despite affirmative action's failure at the polls
Sac Bee's KIM BOJORQUEZ: "After California voters rejected a measure to repeal the state’s ban on affirmative action last week, higher education leaders reiterated a commitment to diversify their student population by providing outreach and support to Latino and under-represented students.
Proposition 16 on the November ballot sought to repeal the 1996 law that bars the state from discriminating against or granting preferential treatment to any person or group based on race, gender, ethnicity or nationality in areas of college admissions and public employment.
Over the summer, the University of California Board of Regents endorsed the proposal to bring back affirmative action and called for universities and colleges to “represent the rich diversity” of the state, where Latinos make up 40% of the population."
READ MORE related to Education: Menlo Park school official resigns following wife's vulgar tweet about Kamala Harris -- The Chronicle's VANESSA ARREDONDO
Golden Gate Bridge district may raise tolls or lay off workers in pandemic financial crisis: 'It's quite brutal'
The Chronicle's MALLORY MOENCH: "The agency that operates the Golden Gate Bridge is in crisis: The transit district will run out of federal emergency funds it has been using to pay its employees at the end of this month, officials said Monday.
The Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District, which oversees the bridge, buses and ferries, must cut a quarter of its positions, raise tolls on drivers coming from Marin to San Francisco or a combination of both to avoid spending capital reserves and keep the agency afloat, the agency told its board of directors in a letter Monday. But even those measures won’t entirely fill its looming $48 million shortfall this fiscal year, with toll lanes less busy and ferries and buses still mostly empty as North Bay commuters work from home.
“All transit agencies all across the country are struggling, but we’re hitting the fiscal cliff much sooner than others,” the district’s general manager Denis Mulligan said Monday. “For us, it’s quite brutal.”"
Refusing to concede, Trump blocks cooperation on transition
AP's JONATHAN LEMIRE/ZEKE MILLER: "The Trump administration threw the presidential transition into tumult on Monday, with President Donald Trump blocking government officials from cooperating with President-elect Joe Biden’s team and Attorney General William Barr authorizing the Justice Department to probe unsubstantiated allegations of voter fraud.
Some Republicans, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, rallied behind Trump’s efforts to fight the election results. Few in the GOP acknowledged Biden’s victory or condemned Trump’s other concerning move on Monday: his firing of Defense Secretary Mark Esper.
The developments cast doubt on whether the nation would witness the same kind of smooth transition of power that has long anchored its democracy. The Electoral College is slated to formally confirm Biden’s victory on Dec. 14 and the Democrat will be sworn into office in late January."
Theta breaks record as 29th named Atlantic storm this hurricane season
AP: "Forecasters say a record-breaking 29th named storm has formed in the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said late Monday night that Subtropical Storm Theta has emerged in the open northeast Atlantic, but it poses no immediate threat to land.
The center said Theta broke a previous record of 28 named storms set in 2005. Its immediate predecessor, Eta, dumped torrential rain in South Florida and killed dozens of people in Central America."
