‘A brilliant move’: How the Newsom-DeSantis debate offers major upsides for the governors
LA Times, TARYN LUNA: "Gavin Newsom and Ron DeSantis took parallel paths from opposite ends of America’s political spectrum to the front lines of the high-stakes battle between progressives and conservatives over the future of the nation.
But when they finally meet on stage Thursday in Georgia, the stakes are low for both politicians in a debate about their vastly different visions for the country."
READ MORE -- California vs. Florida: What you need to know before the Newsom-DeSantis debate -- CALMatters; Tonight's the Night: Gavin Newsom and Ron DeSantis are set to battle each other on live TV. Here’s how to watch -- Sacramento Bee, LINDSEY HOLDEN
Henry Kissinger, one of the most influential and controversial foreign policy figures in U.S. history, dies
LA Times, NORMAN KEMPSTER: "Henry A. Kissinger, the architect of U.S. foreign policy at the apex of the Cold War and a towering intellectual force in world affairs for more than half a century, has died at his Connecticut home.
Kissinger died Wednesday, according to his consulting firm, Kissinger Associates. He was 100."
California Supreme Court agrees to consider pulling tax measure from 2024 ballot
The Chronicle, BOB EGELKO: "In a rare action, the state Supreme Court granted a hearing Wednesday on a request by Gov. Gavin Newsom and Democratic legislators to remove an initiative from the November 2024 state ballot that would require voter approval for any increase in state or local taxes or fees.
The justices denied their request to immediately cancel the vote on the ballot measure, but told its sponsors and state election officials to “show cause before this court” why the measure should go before the voters. Written arguments are due by mid-February, with a hearing to follow. All seven justices signed the order."
Amidst morale ‘crisis,’ CA stem cell agency could take months to find new president
Capitol Weekly, DAVID JENSEN: "California’s $12 billion stem cell and gene therapy program could be treading water for the next 12 months in the view of at least one of its leaders as it searches for a new president of the 19-year-old enterprise.
The prediction came earlier this week at a meeting of the 35-member governing board of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), as the agency is officially known. It is the largest regenerative medicine institution in the world and the largest state stem cell research program in the nation."
San Francisco city commissioner heads to trial in rape, sodomy case
The Chronicle, NORA MISHANEC: "A member of two key oversight bodies in San Francisco’s criminal justice system is heading to trial for allegedly raping a woman after offering her a ride.
William Monroe “Tariq” Palmer II, 53, pleaded not guilty to assault with force, sexual battery by restraint, sodomy by use of force and false imprisonment. The charges stem from an alleged incident in late August when prosecutors said Palmer offered a ride to a woman who was walking to a BART station, took the woman to his home and assaulted her."
‘Everything’s like a gamble’: U.S. immigration policies leave lives in limbo
LA Times, KEVIN BAXTER: "One day.
For Judith Ortiz, whose parents brought her to this country from Durango, Mexico, when she was 2, a mere 24 hours have made the difference between a life of freedom and opportunity and one constrained by limits and obstacles."
Fewer undocumented students have DACA. California’s colleges want to help, even if the options are limited
CALMatters, ADAM ECHELMAN: "Eduardo Posadas, 22, and Auner Barrios Vasquez, 21, are both undocumented students, but their paths diverged when they turned 15. Soon after his birthday, Posadas became eligible for a federal program known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, which offers benefits for undocumented youth who have pursued an education or served in the military.
By the time Barrios Vasquez turned 15 just a few months later, Donald Trump was president, and the window for new DACA applications was closing. In the years that followed their 15th birthdays, DACA faced a number of legal challenges that have effectively kept the program alive for anyone who applied before 2017 — while barring almost all new applicants, including Barrios Vasquez."
Cal State faculty plans to strike as officials reject a 12% salary increase
CALMatters, MIKHAIL ZINSHTEYN: "Barring a breakthrough in negotiations, the California State University faculty will go on one-day strikes at four campuses next week as they fight for 12% wage hikes this academic year plus other key concessions — increases that the system of nearly 460,000 students says it cannot afford.
The action would dash hopes of a labor peace between the union of 29,000 professors, lecturers, librarians, counselors, and coaches on one end and management of the nation’s largest public four-year university system on the other. And it would only be the beginning: If Cal State leadership doesn’t meet faculty demands, union leadership is promising more labor unrest in 2024."
California lags behind other states in bilingual education for English learners
EdSource, ZAIDEE STAVELY: "California enrolls a far lower percentage of English learners in bilingual education programs than other states, according to a report released in October from The Century Foundation.
The authors also found that California is investing less than other states in bilingual education. They recommend the state significantly expand investment in multilingual instruction, particularly dual-language immersion programs; prioritize enrollment in those programs for English learners; and invest more in recruiting and preparing bilingual teachers."
As teen suicide spikes, school policies may be making things worse
LA Times, SONJA SHARP: "For her 17th birthday, Jeramie Naya Vives Osorio’s family showered her with gifts: a dozen pink roses, a stack of Beard Papa‘s cream puffs, a Strawberry Sweet cake from the Korean bakery Tous les Jours and a small silver necklace from Tiffany.
Michelle Vives knew her middle daughter — Jer to her friends, Mia to her family — would never wear the necklace. But she wanted Mia to have it all the same."
California is about to raise its minimum wage again. These retailers already have higher pay
Sacramento Bee/The Sum, CORTLYNN STARK: "California’s new minimum wage goes into effect in just over a month. But some retailers are already offering a higher starting pay.
The national average wage for cashiers is $13.81. The median hourly wage for cashiers is $13.58, or $28,240 annually, according to 2022 data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Tech layoffs have surged. Here’s what to expect in 2024
The Chronicle, CAROLYN SAID: "Oakland resident Jessie Norden was relieved when she got the email from her employer, Palo Alto’s VMWare, even though it said she was being laid off from her role as a senior product manager.
“At least I know I have a job until Jan. 31,” she said. “And I was quite pleased with the amount of severance they were giving, 6.25 months.”"
Futuristic kiosks are popping up in S.F. with one goal: Pay for new public toilets
The Chronicle, JOHN KING:: "One year after the prototype landed, San Francisco’s space-age toilets have yet to descend en masse. But there’s a new futuristic form beginning to appear downtown — 16-foot-tall advertising kiosks that look a bit like dappled metal cigars.
The kiosks have a function beyond displaying come-ons for consumer goods of various sorts: They will generate the revenues that make the free public toilets possible."
California exodus: A record number of people are fleeing the Golden State for Florida
RYAN LILLIS, SacBee: "Texas has long been the top landing spot in the United States for residents leaving California. Nevada and Arizona, two states that share a border with California, have also traditionally been among the top destinations.
There’s suddenly a new contender attracting people fleeing California: Ron DeSantis’s Florida.
Tahoe is at a ‘breaking point,’ says new lawsuit that seeks to block development plan
The Chronicle, GREGORY THOMAS: "A coalition of vocal Tahoe residents have filed suit to block newly approved updates to a development plan that lay the groundwork for more affordable housing, hotels and restaurants on the lake’s West Shore.
The lawsuit, filed in Placer County Superior Court on Wednesday, “is necessary to protect Lake Tahoe,” the coalition said in a statement."
Sacramento sergeant disciplined for arresting man for being drunk in public in his own garage
Sacramento Bee, THERESA CLIFT: "After receiving questions from The Sacramento Bee, the Sacramento Sheriff’s Office has released records revealing a series of events regarding the discipline of a sergeant who took down and arrested a man in his own garage for being drunk in public. In February 2020, Sheriff’s deputies responded to a call for family disturbance at a house in Antelope, according to a newly released 588-page disciplinary document. Neither the incident nor the disciplinary records related to the officers involved were previously publicly available."
