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.
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news
Firefighters Say Karen Bass Failed Them—Now They’re Taking Their Case to Voters
Los Angeles firefighters are taking fire protection into their own hands after Mayor Karen Bass cut funding to the Los Angeles Fire Department. In June 2024, Mayor Karen Bass signed the city’s 2024-2025 budget, which cut the department’s funding by $17.6 million, according to data shared by Los Angeles City Controller Kenneth Mejia. The cuts… -
exclusive
EXCLUSIVE: EPA’s Zeldin Exposes China as Top Smuggler of Dangerous Pesticides at CA Ports
LONG BEACH, Calif.—Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin on Thursday put China on notice, naming it the No. 1 source of illegal pesticide smuggling attempts into California’s ports. Appearing at an undisclosed location near the Port of Long Beach and standing in front of a table full of the illegal pesticide DDVP, Zeldin said the… -
opinion
California Demands Proof You’re LGBTQ for Contracts—but Not Proof You’re a Citizen to Vote
California has achieved something almost impossible in the annals of bureaucratic absurdity: It has made citizenship easier to assert for voting than sexual orientation is to document for favored utility contracting. To register to vote, a person fills out a form, signs an affidavit, and attests under penalty of perjury that he is a U.S…. -
opinion
Victor Davis Hanson: The Law Has Finally Caught Up to Gavin Newsom
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 talked a lot about [Gov.] Gavin Newsom and California in particular. Apparently, Gavin Newsom will be running for president in 2028…. -
news
Can You Prove You’re Gay? Inside California’s LGBTQ Business Certification Program
How can you know for certain that someone is gay? Well, the National LGBTQ+ & Allied Chamber of Commerce says it has it all figured out. As of April 2022, under the Supplier Diversity Program managed by the California Public Utilities Commission, if you’re a large-scale utility company in California, you have the option to… -
opinion
Sacramento Dems Ban Glocks Before They’re Illegal—and Release Criminals After They Are
California’s Assembly Bill 1127 is sold as gun safety. In reality, it is the Sacramento Democrats engaging yet again in their favorite sport: punishing the law-abiding for the failures of the government. The bill bars licensed dealers, beginning July 1, 2026, from selling so-called machinegun-convertible pistols—Glock-style handguns that criminals can illegally alter with switches. But the switch… -
news
Solar-Covered Warehouse Fire Sparks Air Quality Fears in Los Angeles
A fire at a 500,000-square-foot Los Angeles warehouse covered in solar panels has blanketed nearby communities with smoke for days, prompting residents to ask a simple question: What exactly are we breathing? The frozen-food storage facility, operated by Michigan-based Lineage Logistics, has walls densely lined with insulation. According to firefighters, the insulation continued to smolder… -
opinion
Newsom’s 911 Debacle
While some problems caused by California’s one-party government get significant press, there’s one major issue that’s virtually ignored: The state’s 911 system is dangerously outdated, and the attempt to update it has already cost taxpayers $502 million with little to show for it. California has an analog emergency warning system from the 1970s. There is… -
opinion
Millionaire ‘Lilo’ Star Died Homeless—Progressive Compassion Is the Problem
A 35-year-old woman was found wasting away to skin and bones on Los Angeles’ Skid Row, barely conscious on the floor of a fetid tent, nodding in and out amid the fentanyl haze. She died on June 17, 2026, in a hospital bed of meningitis and sepsis triggered by terminal malnutrition. Her body surrendered. The woman was… -
news
Should Noncitizens Vote in LA Elections? Voters Will Decide This November
Los Angeles voters are set to decide whether noncitizens should have a say in city elections after the City Council on Wednesday voted 10-5 to place a controversial voting measure on the Nov. 3 ballot. If passed, the city would have the legal authority to create a program allowing certain noncitizens to vote in Los… -
news
California Received 80% of Funds for Illegal Immigrant Households While Americans Faced Stricter Rules
California accounted for more than 80% of all federal welfare cash assistance provided to households headed by illegal immigrants in 2024, according to a new report from the Department of Health and Human Services. The report found that $759 million in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families cash assistance was provided to 85,277 households nationwide in… -
opinion
The Wannabe Leftist Trump: How Gavin Newsom Is Playing the Persecution Card
Gavin Newsom would have you believe he is now the brave victim of a Trump-orchestrated reign of terror. In a self-pitying video released this week, the California governor melodramatically declared that he and his wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, had proudly joined “[President] Donald Trump’s hit list.” Federal agents, he wailed, have been knocking on the doors of… -
exclusive
California ‘Basically’ Decriminalized Voter Fraud, Top Federal Prosecutor Warns
A top federal prosecutor says California has “basically” decriminalized voter fraud by stripping away election safeguards used by other states. Bill Essayli, first assistant U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, told the Daily Signal that federal prosecutors are fighting for access to the state’s voter rolls in federal court and investigating election fraud… -
After Spencer Pratt’s Office Burned Down, He Declared, ‘It’s War’
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: Speaking of war, Victor, Spencer Pratt says it’s war. On Friday, two things happened. One is his business mysteriously… -
opinion
SNAP’s Updated Work Requirements: A Needed Makeover for Upward Mobility
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program’s new work requirements are now on display across all states as of June 1. California, the country’s last holdout, began implementing the updated work requirements set forth in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act passed last July. The work requirements were rolled out in waves across the country. Some politicians on the left and several media outlets claim the work requirements are harmful. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is among those sounding the alarm, with a recent X post stating: “Food stamp work requirements don’t create jobs, they create… -
news
Karen Bass’ Brother Joins Spencer Pratt in Lawsuit Against Los Angeles
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass is facing legal action from an unlikely source: her own brother, who has joined Spencer Pratt and thousands of other fire victims in a sweeping lawsuit against the city over its handling of the Palisades Fire. Kenneth Bass, 78, and his wife, who lost their Malibu home in January 2025, are… -
opinion
Newsom Calls Trump ‘Biggest Loser’ on 80th Birthday as President Negotiates Iran Deal
In ancient Athens at the height of the Peloponnesian War, the politician Cleon rose as the archetype of the demagogue. Thucydides, the great historian and fellow general, described him as a crude orator who first introduced shouting, vulgar abuse, thigh-slapping, and theatrical strutting into the Assembly—habits that lowered the tone of Athenian politics and encouraged… -
analysis
Federal Judge Warned of ‘Obvious Fraud.’ Karen Bass Still Wants the Status Quo.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass is pushing back after the Trump administration suspended federal funding for the city’s Homeless Services Authority and a federal judge stated the agency appeared to have committed “obvious fraud.” Instead of applauding the administration’s audit of the agency, Bass warned that pausing funding could ultimately cost lives. However, allegations of… -
news
‘Gross Misuse of Federal Funding’: Trump Admin Blocks Payments to ‘Obviously Fraudulent’ Los Angeles Homeless Agency
The Department of Housing and Urban Development under President Donald Trump announced an “immediate suspension” on all funding to the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, citing a “clear pattern of fraud.” “Year after year, hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars were funneled to LAHSA with little accountability,” HUD Secretary Scott Turner said in a statement… -
opinion
How California’s Election System Keeps Democrats in Power
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. Sami Winc: So, Victor, California polls or the California election results have come in, and I was wondering your…