California Politics & News
Stay updated with California news, including reporting, analysis, and commentary on state government, progressive overreach, and the conservative response to Golden State policies.
-
opinion
What Democrats Could Say, but Aren’t. What They Are Saying, but Shouldn’t.
Editor’s note: This is a lightly edited transcript of today’s video from Daily Signal Senior Contributor Victor Davis Hanson. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to see more of his videos. Hello, this is Victor Davis Hanson for the Daily Signal. The midterm elections are about five months away, and we’re having here in California a hotly contested governor’s race. And of course, everybody’s heard about… -
exclusive
Newsom Expanded Medi-Cal While California Kids Lost Local Pediatric Beds, Report Reveals
Despite Gov. Gavin Newsom expanding Medi-Cal to record levels, community hospitals across California have been closing pediatric inpatient units, according to a new report from Defend Forgotten America. Since Newsom took office, total Medi-Cal spending has roughly doubled and is now approaching $200 billion annually. Yet multiple community hospitals have eliminated their inpatient pediatric departments in recent years. In… -
news
New California Bill Aims to Close Loophole in Child Online Extortion Cases
A growing crime, where adults extort minors using other minors, has increased significantly in recent years, catching the attention of state Sen. Tony Strickland and Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes, and motivating them to introduce a bill to stop it. “This is a growing crime, in fact, it has grown over 125 percent—adults using minors… -
news
As Fires Spread, Sen. Alvarado-Gil Says California Is Unprepared
Fire season is ramping up across California, with the Sandy Fire in Ventura County and the Bain and Verona fires in Riverside County raising new concerns about wildfire preparedness and prevention. In Sacramento, the Daily Signal spoke with state Sen. Marie Alvarado-Gil about whether California is doing enough to prepare for another dangerous wildfire season…. -
opinion
Newsom’s Budget Houdini Act: All Smoke, Mirrors, and Wishful Thinking
Gavin Newsom has once again pulled off a dazzling feat of financial gymnastics. In his May 14 revised budget for fiscal year 2026-27, California’s governor stood tall and declared victory: no deficit this year, no deficit next year, and the dreaded structural deficit magically erased through July 2028. With general fund spending at $246.6 billion and a… -
news
California Gas Prices Could Surge to $10 a Gallon, Lawmaker Warns
California could see gas prices spike as high as $10 per gallon due to multiple refinery shutdowns and U.S. involvement in the Middle East, a state lawmaker is warning. “I believe we could very easily be around $10 gas. … It’s about to get worse if we don’t do anything about it,” Assemblyman David Tangipa,… -
opinion
San Diego Mosque Shooting Exposes the Left’s Two-Tiered Outrage Machine
Monday’s massacre at the Islamic Center of San Diego was pure evil. Two teenage suspects reportedly opened fire outside the mosque at 11:43 a.m., and a school with kindergarten through third-grade children was on the grounds. Three men are dead, including a heroic security guard who stood his ground to protect those little kids inside. The shooters… -
exclusive
California School District Spends $300K to Partner With LGBTQ Center
FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—A California school district spent $300,000 to partner with an LGBTQ+ center that provides “affirming programs, resources, and community care” to minors ages 12 and up. Pomona Unified School District in Pomona, California, signed a memorandum of understanding for the 2024-2025 school year for a “mentoring program” with Pomona Valley Pride. … -
opinion
Anarcho-Tyranny in LA: City Leaders Look to Crack Down on Barbecues, Ignore Encampment Fires
Summer is nearly here and a hard-left Los Angeles city councilmember has proposed something that the people have surely been yearning for: banning backyard barbecues. Yes, really. Los Angeles City Councilwoman Nithya Raman, who is also running for mayor, introduced a motion on Wednesday to ban backyard barbecues during certain high fire danger days in… -
news
$1.3 Billion Frozen in Sweeping California Hospice Fraud Crackdown
More than $1.3 billion in federal health care reimbursements have been halted, and 800 hospices have been suspended amid a sweeping crackdown on California hospice fraud. These efforts have been led by Vice President JD Vance and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz, who President Donald Trump selected to lead the… -
opinion
The Newsom Nightmare: Why California’s Elites Refuse to Face Reality
Editor’s note: This is a lightly edited transcript of today’s video from Daily Signal Senior Contributor Victor Davis Hanson. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to see more of his videos. Hello, this is Victor Davis Hanson for The Daily Signal. We’ve had a series of debates on the future of California, at least in venues for the mayoral race in… -
opinion
Karen Bass Thinks Missing Teeth Are LA’s Biggest Problem
Last week, filmmaker Charles Curran posted a viral AI-generated video that now looks less like satire and more like prophecy. In the video—boosted by Los Angeles mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt—Mayor Karen Bass is transformed into a full Joker—green hair, purple suit, permanent grin—presiding over a burning, chaotic Los Angeles. Pratt swoops in as Batman to save… -
news
California Mayor Worked for Chinese Government, Exposing China’s Deep Influence in America
A Southern California mayor has pleaded guilty to acting as an illegal agent for China, according to an announcement by the Department of Justice. The 58-year-old Eileen Wang was elected to the five-person Arcadia City Council in November 2022, where the mayor is selected on a rotating basis. She resigned Monday. During her time in office,… -
opinion
Zombies, DEI, and the Fall of LA: Why Spencer Pratt Is on the Rise
Editor’s note: This is a lightly edited transcript of today’s edition of “Victor Davis Hanson: In His Own Words” from Daily Signal Senior Contributor Victor Davis Hanson. Subscribe to Victor Davis Hanson’s own YouTube channel to watch past episodes. Jack Fowler: Well, you know what’s not a beautiful place to live, Victor, segueing, is Los Angeles. And you talked with… -
opinion
Newsom to Struggling Parents: ‘Forget Rent and Groceries—Here’s a Box of Overpriced State Diapers’
California is the most unaffordable state in the union, where the cost of living is a punishing 11 percent above the national average. Rents for an ordinary two-bedroom apartment average $2,200–$2,700 monthly statewide. Gas prices flirt with $6.16 per gallon—the highest in the nation—while electricity rates hover at 33–35 cents per kilowatt-hour, nearly double the U.S. average. … -
analysis
Karen Bass Cancels Next Debate After Spencer Pratt Smackdown
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has decided to skip out on the upcoming mayoral debate scheduled for Wednesday, according to debate organizers who posted on social media over the weekend. Campaign spokesman Alex Stack said Bass will instead travel to Sacramento, where she will be “fighting for critical state funding for housing, homelessness, and Palisades… -
opinion
California’s ‘Billionaire Tax’ Could Reach Far Beyond Billionaires
Last week, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) announced it had gathered more than 1.5 million signatures—nearly double what it needed—to put a sweeping new wealth tax on California’s November ballot. The initiative is called the 2026 Billionaire Tax Act. The name is designed to make you stop reading. Don’t. SEIU has spent months positioning itself as… -
news
California Fights Back: Massive Sinaloa Cartel Drug Bust in Los Angeles
A two-month undercover Drug Enforcement Administration investigation exposed what federal authorities say is a Sinaloa Cartel-linked drug trafficking operation funneling fentanyl and methamphetamine into Los Angeles through MacArthur Park. On Wednesday, federal and local law enforcement officers raided the South Los Angeles park as part of “Operation Free MacArthur Park,” arresting 18 individuals, executing multiple… -
news
California Spends Over $20 Million to Save Endangered Trout—Then Sprays Poison in Their Creek
ORANGE COUNTY, Calif.—Thousands of gallons of herbicides have been sprayed into flood channels that flow straight into the ocean—right in the same creeks where more than $26 million in taxpayer dollars have already gone toward saving the endangered steelhead trout. For more than two decades, state and federal agencies have funneled millions into a fish… -
news
Spencer Pratt Rips Opponents During LA Mayoral Debate, Wins 88% Audience Approval
In a two-hour mayoral debate hosted by NBC 4 Los Angeles, three candidates shared their views on how the nation’s second-largest city should manage its growing list of crises. But a post-debate poll showed one candidate emerged as the clear winner. The debate stage on Wednesday night featured two familiar local politicians, Mayor Karen Bass…