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Presented by Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids: Jeremy B. White’s must-read briefing on politics and government in the Golden State | | | | |  | | By Jeremy B. White, Chris Ramirez, Juhi Doshi and Graph Massara | Presented by Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids | THE BUZZ — CTRL, ALT, DEL: In Silicon Valley’s home state, the techlash is complicated. California Attorney General Rob Bonta sued TikTok on Wednesday, uniting with other state prosecutors to probe whether and how the video-sharing app could be undermining young peoples’ health. Those children-centric concerns were also the theme of a House hearing this week — another example of the boiling, bipartisan backlash against tech companies’ outsize influence over young Americans and consumers in general. It’s not the first time California has swung a legal hammer against its innovation engines. Bonta launched an investigation into Meta-née-Facebook’s impact on kids last year, and he has joined a multi-state lawsuit accusing Facebook of anticompetitive behavior. California sued Google for alleged antitrust violations back in 2021. (On the other hand, Bonta’s office is defending the constitutionality of Proposition 22, gig work companies’ gambit to avoid reclassifying their workers as employees under a state law that then-Assembly member Bonta supported.) Sacramento has also been increasingly eager to rein in social media companies. Although state lawmakers have posted a mixed record so far, the bipartisan interest in imposing buffers around “Big Tech” reflects a broader public mood shift. Kids are in the spotlight on this front as well, as lawmakers look to beef up online privacy rules, building on 2018 legislation to restrict data collection and a 2020 ballot initiative to do the same. Their federal counterparts have been busy, too — but California lawmakers have lately been standing athwart some tech policy hearings, shouting “not so fast.” A bill to loosen Google and Apple’s grips on their respective app stores is advancing despite the tech companies’ protestations — but Sen. Dianne Feinstein has been warning about the bill’s security and privacy implications, saying she is “concerned” the bill will target California companies. Californian House members have been similarly wary about an antitrust trackdown. The appetite among California’s elected class to tighten the rules for these companies may be growing, but it’s not bottomless. BUENOS DÍAS, good Thursday morning. Public safety experts, law enforcement figures and criminal justice activists will gather with Bonta for a Capitol Weekly conference on crime in California today. You can register to watch here. Got a tip or story idea for California Playbook? Hit jwhite@politico.com or follow me on Twitter @jeremybwhite. QUOTE OF THE DAY: “Our children are growing up in the age of social media – and many feel like they need to measure up to the filtered versions of reality that they see on their screens. We know this takes a devastating toll on children's mental health and well-being.” Bonta announcing he’s investigating TikTok’s effects on kids, via POLITICO’s Susannah Luthi. TWEET OF THE DAY: LA Times housing reporter @dillonliam: “Some goalposts officially moved today. In 2018, California Gov. @GavinNewsom campaigned on the CONSTRUCTION of 3.5m new homes by 2025. Today, four years later, his administration put out a report on a ZONING PLAN to support the building of 2.5m new homes by 2030.” BONUS TOTD: Rep. Eric Swalwell @RepSwalwell on a video of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis scolding “ridiculous” mask-wearing students : “I don’t understand this. Why be an asshole to kids? I hate masks and stopped wearing it as soon as the restriction was lifted. But who cares if someone else wants to wear one for their own reason? Isn’t that freedom?” WHERE’S GAVIN? Visiting a mental health clinic in Santa Clara County to announce a framework to provide health care for Californians with mental illnesses and substance use disorders. Press conference begins at 11:30 a.m. Stream via Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.
| | | | A message from Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids: Big Tobacco uses sweet candy flavors to hook kids on their dangerous products. Learn more. | | | |  | Top Talkers | | FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — BURKE WORK: From the moment former Assemblymember Autumn Burke abruptly resigned her Los Angeles seat last month, rumors swirled about her next landing spot: Was she going to run for L.A. city council, or perhaps head to the Third House? Wonder no more: Burke will be a principal at Axiom Advisors, the powerhouse firm co-founded by longtime Democratic operative Jason Kinney that collected some $7 million in lobbying lucre last year while repping prominent clients like the California Building Industry Association, Marathon Petroleum and Facebook. Burke, who built a reputation as a business-friendly Democrat while running the Revenue and Taxation Committee, will have a broad portfolio that encompasses issues like housing, energy and reproductive health. Meanwhile, Burke is spending leftover campaign funds to make district director Robert Pullen-Miles her successor. CALIFORNIA COURT ACTION — Jan. 6 committee says Trump violated multiple laws in effort to overturn election , by POLITICO’s Kyle Cheney and Nicholas Wu: In a major release of its findings, filed in federal court late Wednesday, the committee suggested that its evidence supported findings that Trump himself violated multiple laws by attempting to prevent Congress from certifying his defeat. ACROSS THE BOARD — “ Violent Crime Soared During the Pandemic. But Does the Political Debate Reflect the Data?” by KQED’s Marisa Lagos: “While this is often framed as a red-versus-blue debate, the data shows much broader trends — like the increase in murders — playing out across the nation, regardless of the political makeup or the individual policies of a particular city, county or state.” UP AND COMING — “ California legislators propose new slate of COVID-19 vaccine laws,” by CalMatters’ Elizabeth Aguilera: “The vaccine working group of Democratic legislators behind the proposals say their aim is to increase vaccination rates across all age groups, improve the state vaccine registration database and crack down on misinformation about the virus and the vaccine.” — “Church massacre highlights how California lets abusers keep guns despite restraining orders,” by the Sac Bee’s Jason Pohl, Ryan Sabalow and Ariane Lange: “Experts on the intersection of gun violence and family abuse say there is another simple but hard truth: The domestic violence restraining order system relies too heavily on a potential abuser obeying a court order and voluntarily handing over weapons.” | | | | BECOME A GLOBAL INSIDER: The world is more connected than ever. It has never been more essential to identify, unpack and analyze important news, trends and decisions shaping our future — and we’ve got you covered! Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, Global Insider author Ryan Heath navigates the global news maze and connects you to power players and events changing our world. Don’t miss out on this influential global community. Subscribe now. | | | | | | | CAMPAIGN MODE | | BY A HAIR — “Bass narrowly leads De León in new LA mayoral poll,” by POLITICO’s Alex Nieves: It points to a much closer race than a recent UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll that showed Karen Bass with a 24-point advantage over fellow Democrats Kevin De León and billionaire real estate developer Rick Caruso. CRIME IS KEY — “Why crime is at the center of California elections this year, ” by the LA Times’ Phil Willon and Hannah Wiley: “Republican political consultant David Gilliard said crime is an issue that California Democrats ‘own’ after convincing voters to expand options for the early release of tens of thousands of incarcerated people and reduce the punishment for many convicted of theft and other nonviolent offenses.” TOP PICKS — “ Why Donald Trump could help determine who becomes a new Sacramento-area congressman,” by the Sac Bee’s David Lightman: “The Democrats’ congressional campaign committee is bringing Trump into the race, saying both Kiley and Jones have histories of being cozy with, or at least sympathetic to, the former president as well as people Democrats call right-wing extremists. NEVERMIND … “ Mayor Breed, Peskin Yank Ballot Measures in Ongoing Battle over SF Police Surveillance,” by the SF Standard’s Michael Barba: “In January, Breed also introduced legislation to the board alongside Supervisor Catherine Stefani that mirrored her ballot measure. That option is still in play.” | | CALIFORNIA AND THE CAPITOL CORRIDOR | |
HARDEST HIT — “‘Alarming’ disparities leave parts of L.A. County hit hard by COVID-19,” by the LA Times’ Rong-Gong Lin and Luke Money: “The findings underscore how much poorer and largely Black and Latino neighborhoods of L.A. County could suffer should the improvement in pandemic trends suddenly reverse as mask mandates ease, or the need for quick action comes if a new variant emerges.”
FOLLOW THE MONEY — “California counted its homeless population, but can it track the money? ” by CalMatters’ Manuela Tobias: “The result of California’s tally is very likely to be an undercount, in part because the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which orders the count, excludes people who are couch-surfing or staying in cheap motels in their definition of homelessness.” OLD DATA, NEW PROBLEMS — “ Old data? CDC apparently misjudged California’s COVID risks,” by CalMatters’ Kristen Hwang and Ana B. Ibarra: “At stake is whether counties considered high risk should keep indoor masking requirements under new guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or follow the state’s lead in removing nearly all mask requirements.” THE ROAD AHEAD — “ ‘It’s going to be bumpy’: CalPERS is in its best shape in years, but sees tough times ahead,” by the Sac Bee’s Wes Venteicher: “The uncertainty has renewed questions about when the next slide is coming and how bad it will be for the retirement system, which administers pensions for about 2 million people.” WHAT’S THE HOLDUP? — “Why has this housing for homeless Oaklanders been sitting empty for months?” by the Mercury News’ Marisa Kendall: “Lisa Gray-Garcia, co-founder of Poor Magazine, says Oakland’s rules make it all but impossible for small nonprofits without code expertise or deep pockets to build the affordable housing the city so desperately needs.” — “Protests intensify as disability rights case nears deadline for Supreme Court petition,” by the LA Times’ Colleen Shalby: “Disability rights advocates have not wanted to risk a showdown with a conservative-leaning Supreme Court. If the high court were to take up the issue and side with LACCD, disability rights protections could be weakened in a precedent-setting case, they said.”
| | | | A message from Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids:   | | | | | BIDEN, HARRIS AND THE HILL | |
STANDING YOUR GROUND — “How two of the House’s biggest opponents of military intervention are contemplating the crisis in Ukraine,” by the SF Chronicle's Tal Kopan: “As Russia has invaded Ukraine in an unprovoked assault, Democratic Reps. Barbara Lee of Oakland and Ro Khanna of Fremont both say the lessons of past U.S. entanglements are more important than ever. They say they intend to keep President Biden to his word that American troops will not be sent to Ukraine to fight Russia.”
— “ New transparency bills would force teachers to post instructional materials,” by the WaPo’s Laura Meckler: “Transparency legislation also is pending in Congress, with House Republicans, led by Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), promising to pass it as part of a ‘parents bill of rights’ if they take control after the November midterm elections.”
| | SILICON VALLEYLAND | | — A hesitant tech industry wields its power against Putin, by POLITICO’s Mark Scott and Rebecca Kern: The rekindling of tensions between the West and Russia has left the companies stumbling to respond — despite years of increasing scrutiny over how domestic and international actors are using their platforms to peddle falsehoods. BACK TO BUSINESS — “Google tells employees in Bay Area and other U.S. locations to return to offices in April, ” by CNBC’s Jennifer Elias: “Google said it expects most workers to come into the office three days a week and have two days of remote work.” VIBE CHECK — “This Social Club Runs on Crypto Tokens and Vibes, ” by the New York Times’ Erin Woo and Kevin Roose: “Friends With Benefits is what’s known as a decentralized autonomous organization, or DAO — a kind of digital co-op that uses cryptocurrency tokens to coordinate access, make payments and vote on group decisions.” ICYMI —“Trapped in Silicon Valley’s Hidden Caste System, ” by WIRED’s Sonia Paul: “In Silicon Valley, it’s routine for people from India to land high-paying jobs; they make up a full quarter of the technical workforce. Yet those successes have, almost exclusively, come from historically privileged castes.” | | HOLLYWOODLAND | | — “Kanye West Has Vowed To Speed Up Officially Ending His And Kim Kardashian’s Marriage In Court Today After Denying Her Request To Become Legally Single Last Month,” by BuzzFeed’s Stephanie Soteriou: “Despite Ye being romantically linked to Irina Shayk in the months after Kim’s filing, he did not acknowledge their divorce until November of last year, where he claimed that he’d ‘never seen the divorce papers.’”
| | | | SUBSCRIBE TO NATIONAL SECURITY DAILY : Keep up with the latest critical developments from Ukraine and across Europe in our daily newsletter, National Security Daily. The Russian invasion of Ukraine could disrupt the established world order and result in a refugee crisis, increased cyberattacks, rising energy costs and additional disruption to global supply chains. Go inside the top national security and foreign-policymaking shops for insight on the global threats faced by the U.S. and its allies and what actions world leaders are taking to address them. Subscribe today. | | | | | | | MEDIA MATTERS | | — “WNYC sought change. It got turmoil,” by Columbia Journalism Review’s Savannah Jacobson: “In interviews with eighteen current and former WNYC staffers, a picture emerges of [former SF Chronicle editor in chief] Cooper as an energetic and ambitious leader, but also one who is occasionally vengeful and inspires fear rather than trust.” | | MIXTAPE | | — “Filipino Americans hope for more recognition with new arch in L.A.’s Historic Filipinotown,” by the LA Times’ Jonah Valdez. — “Teachers, students struggle with Sacramento church shooting that took classmates,” by the Sac Bee’s Darrell Smith. — “ Who is actually going to UC schools amid record application numbers?” by the SF Chronicle’s Nami Sumida. — “‘Mission Plan’ targets fires, street vending, homelessness, trash, ” by Mission Local’s Annika Hom. — “The Legacy Of LA's Black-Owned Restaurants,” by the LAist’s Hadley Meares. — “For 15 Years, Valero’s Benicia Refinery Released Toxic Chemicals — And No One Knew,” by KQED’s Ericka Cruz Guevarra, Ted Goldberg, Maria Esquinca and Alan Montecillo. — “ S.F. Mayor Breed scrapped a request to fund $7.9 million in police overtime. Here’s why,” by the SF Chronicle’s Megan Cassidy. — “ California ‘poverty penalty’ fee disproportionately impacts poor and non-white residents, report finds,” by the SF Chronicle’s Bob Egelko. | | WEEKEND WEDDINGS | | — Rebecca Mark, senior director of marketing at Cloudera, and Trent Edwards, a VP at TechNet, got married Saturday in an intimate ceremony at a beachfront villa in Sayulita, Mexico.
| | IN MEMORIAM | |
— “Alan Ladd Jr. dies; Oscar-winning producer and studio boss greenlighted ‘Star Wars,’” by the LA Times’ Dennis McLellan.
— “Stanford women's soccer player Katie Meyer dies at 22; cause of death not provided,” by ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura.
| | BIRTHDAYS | | Former Rep. Paul Cook (R-Calif.) … Freddi Goldstein
| | | | A message from Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids: It’s time for Los Angeles lawmakers to step up and put our kids’ health above Big Tobacco’s profits. End the sale of all flavored tobacco products. Learn more. | | |
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