latimes--2020-11-06--In Trump-loving Newport Beach, the faithful make no apologies

Karina Veliz knelt on the ground and carefully posed her tiny white dog , Coqueta La Diva , next to a “ Vote ” sign in the grass and snapped photos for her pet ’ s Instagram .
“ Mommy and Daughter Voting to Make America Great Again , ” she captioned a photo of herself outside the Newport Beach Civic Center on Tuesday with Coqueta , an 11-year-old Maltese wearing a seersucker skirt , red toenail polish and an “ I Voted ” sticker .
Like many residents of mega-rich Newport Beach , Veliz , a real estate agent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the polls , voted for Trump because she is delighted by what his policies have meant for her wallet .
“ Business owners want to pay less in taxes .
They work hard , ” said Veliz , who is soon opening a luxury pet boutique .
“ We had a great economy ” before the pandemic , she said .
“ Everything was growing.
” It is a sentiment widely felt in this coastal cradle of wealth where Trump ’ s well-heeled supporters have clung to hope this week with the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ On Tuesday , they thrilled as the president seemed headed toward a polls-busting victory .
By Wednesday , uncertainty crept in .
By Thursday , optimism waned .
But by and large , their faith in the president remained unshaken .
And after four years in the intensely divisive Trump era , no amount of fact-checking , presentations on Trump ’ s many dishonest statements or concerns about his character seemed to hold sway .
For all the talk about Trump ’ s rural base and the disaffected , working-class white voters who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the president has long counted on a foundational support among very rich people , even in urban , coastal California , the heart of the so-called liberal resistance and a time-honored bogeyman for the right .
It is , after all , easier for politicians of all stripes to squeeze fundraising money from the upper echelons .
And conservative rich people tend to like a government that keeps its paws off their wallets to the greatest extent possible .
Joe Biden has said he will raise taxes for people making more than $ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as Newport Beach , where a cash-strapped Trump hosted a high-dollar fundraiser featuring the Beach Boys last month .
“ Many wealthy people support Trump because he cut taxes and they benefited from that , ” said Fred Smoller , an associate professor of political science at Chapman University in Orange .
“ Many of them own a substantial amount of stock , and they ’ ve seen their portfolios soar.
” “ If you start throwing around the word ‘ socialist ’ enough , people in Newport Beach will call that a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ They don ’ t want to share ... .
They have a lot to lose , so they supported Trump.
” Newport Beach — the home of John Wayne , whose yacht the Wild Goose has long been a fixture on Newport Bay , and the setting for the TV teen drama “ The O.C.
” — is both whiter and richer than the country as a whole .
It is 80 % white , compared with 40 % of Orange County and 60 % of the United States .
The typical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Beach , according to Zillow , is nearly $ 2.9 million — 10 times the typical U.S. single-family home value of $ 298,000 .
Orange County , the birthplace of Richard Nixon and the longtime GOP citadel that Ronald Reagan called the place where “ all the good Republicans go to die , ” has swung blue in recent years .
As of Thursday , Biden was leading Trump 54 % to 44 % with a margin of more than 124,000 votes , according to the Orange County registrar of voters office .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ first Democratic presidential candidate to carry Orange County since the Great Depression , beating Trump by nearly 9 percentage points .
But in Newport Beach , Trump beat Clinton by 14 percentage points .
Outside the Newport Beach Civic Center Tuesday morning , Jennifer Rotellini , a 49-year-old real estate broker , said she cast a ballot for Trump largely because of the economy and the stock market .
The child of Democrats , she said the party has moved too far left in recent years and that she is alarmed by what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ assistance such as welfare and food stamps .
“ People get too comfortable , ” she said .
“ People need to get up and work hard.
” Of Trump , she said , “ We all cringe a little with how he speaks .
I don ’ t have to like the guy .
But I like his policies .
I love that he ’ s not a politician .
It ’ s a breath of fresh air.
” On Tuesday afternoon , Jesse Spence , who described his surname as “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ outside the local GOP headquarters on Pacific Coast Highway in a red MAGA hat .
He waved an enormous Trump flag and smiled at passing motorists — including a man in a black Jeep with a flag depicting Trump as a muscly , machine-gun toting Rambo .
“ There ’ s a lot of wealth in Newport Beach , ” the 26-year-old Spence said , “ and Trump is very good with business.
” Spence , a surfer who works at Trader Joe ’ s , said he never believed pollsters who predicted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said the mainstream media have lied about Trump ’ s character and not paid enough attention to the business dealings of Biden ’ s son , Hunter , whom Trump ’ s allies have sought to portray as corrupt .
Standing beside Spence , a woman named Amber said she lined up on Via Lido last month to wave to the presidential motorcade before Trump ’ s fundraiser and that she was joined by “ people of all races , colors , creeds , sexual identities.
” “ It ’ s not the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the 40-something who declined to give her last name said of Trump ’ s supporters .
“ We ’ re all Americans.
” She added that Trump is “ not racist , ” noting that his Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach , Fla. , accepted Jewish and Black members when other clubs in the affluent city did not .
Inside the GOP headquarters , people perused Trump merchandise , including MAGA masks and a tank top that said , “ Ew , Liberals.
” Another shirt had the iconic skull of the Marvel @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the words : “ Punishing Liberals Since 2016.
” Wearing a Hawaiian shirt and waving a huge red Trump flag outside , Erle Halliburton III — whose grandfather founded the oil and gas giant Halliburton — said he was confident that in the end a “ major undercurrent of Trump support ” would lead to a Trump victory .
( By late Thursday , it appeared the president would need successful lawsuits more than anything else ) .
Trump , he said , “ looks at us , the American people , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s going to give to us what he said he was going to.
” Halliburton , a 78-year-old Air Force veteran with homes in Newport Beach , Georgia and Tennessee , said that “ once you live in a country that ’ s somewhat socialist or hardcore socialist , you realize how valuable and wonderful this country is.
” As the sun set in Newport Beach Tuesday , Randy Duarte sat on his front porch across the street from his polling place , the Marina Park Community Center .
His street-level home featured @ @ @ @ @ @ @ depicting Trump as a poop emoji with the words “ Dump the Turd November 3rd.
” The tenant above him — his neighbor for two decades — flew a red Trump flag .
Duarte ’ s father came to the U.S. from Michoacán , Mexico , as a 15-year-old with a first-grade education , raised seven children on a landscaper ’ s salary and eventually became an American citizen .
Duarte , a 54-year-old insurance agent , grew up in a mostly white Orange County neighborhood and said he let a lot of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump era ?
No longer .
He ’ s become more outspoken , hanging a flag for a presidential candidate for the first time ever this year .
In recent days , passersby have screamed obscenities about Biden and President Obama and yelled at Duarte : “ Go back to Mexico !
” On election night 2016 , Duarte wept in his living room after Trump won because “ I knew it was going to be hard on people that look like me .
And , unfortunately , I was right.
” After @ @ @ @ @ @ @ streets of Newport Beach were ghostly quiet .
Outdoor tables set up amid the COVID-19 pandemic were mostly deserted .
Giant television screens were visible inside homes all along Balboa Boulevard ; each showed an election night map .
As an uncertain Wednesday dawned , Trump flags gently swayed from the balconies of tightly clustered homes on exclusive Lido Isle , where narrow streets were lined with Land Rovers , Porsches and BMWs .
A sign outside one home read : “ No Biden — Socialism — Communism.
” Just across the bridge @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Newport Beach , a homeless Black woman sat on a bench overlooking the yachts in Newport Bay , her belongings in a bag beside her .
She muttered to herself .
Three young white men , one in a Bass Pro Shops shirt , laughed at her as they walked past .
They repeatedly yelled an expletive at her .
On Wednesday , Spence kept a casual eye on Fox News and was “ just chilling ” at home , trying not to stress .
He had stayed up until about midnight @ @ @ @ @ @ @ where we win.
” “ I ’ m putting it in God ’ s hands , ” he said .
Rotellini kept busy with clients all day and was catching snippets about the tightening election on Fox whenever she could .
“ I ’ ve got a knot in my stomach and it ’ s not the good kind , ” she said in a text message .
“ Haven ’ t really wrapped my head around anything yet.
” Halliburton said he had enough faith in the country to not be anxious @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Fox on Wednesday .
His wife flipped between that and CNN .
“ If Biden is the one , we then need to support Biden over the next four years ” and start planning for 2024 , knowing Biden is likely too old to seek a second term , he said .
“ I think this country ’ s got enough of a solid footing that it ’ s not the end of the world , ” he said .
Duarte and his wife spent election night watching MSNBC , checking Twitter , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wine .
There were no tears .
By Thursday , as the election tilted more toward Biden , Duarte was getting giddy .
“ Confident Joe will win !
” he said in a text message .
“ Preparing ‘ You ’ re Fired ’ memes for the big celebration !
” On Thursday afternoon , Veliz was watching Fox and constantly refreshing her electoral college maps on her phone while Coqueta sat next to her in a sweater .
She worried about riots and violence as the election dragged on and planned @ @ @ @ @ @ @ essentials , just in case something bad happened .
“ I ’ m very anxiously waiting to hear , ” she said .
“ I don ’ t think there will be normality in the next few weeks or months .
”

Karina Veliz knelt on the ground and carefully posed her tiny white dog, Coqueta La Diva, next to a “Vote” sign in the grass and snapped photos for her pet’s Instagram.
“Mommy and Daughter Voting to Make America Great Again,” she captioned a photo of herself outside the Newport Beach Civic Center on Tuesday with Coqueta, an 11-year-old Maltese wearing a seersucker skirt, red toenail polish and an “I Voted” sticker.
Like many residents of mega-rich Newport Beach, Veliz, a real estate agent who wore a black Chanel face mask to the polls, voted for Trump because she is delighted by what his policies have meant for her wallet.
“Business owners want to pay less in taxes. They work hard,” said Veliz, who is soon opening a luxury pet boutique. “We had a great economy” before the pandemic, she said. “Everything was growing.”
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President Trump’s supporters Nasro Mohamed and Mohamed Sabul, both of Irvine, join fellow supporters cheering on passing motorists in front of the Republican Party headquarters on election day in Newport Beach. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
It is a sentiment widely felt in this coastal cradle of wealth where Trump’s well-heeled supporters have clung to hope this week with the election results up in the air. On Tuesday, they thrilled as the president seemed headed toward a polls-busting victory. By Wednesday, uncertainty crept in. By Thursday, optimism waned.
But by and large, their faith in the president remained unshaken. And after four years in the intensely divisive Trump era, no amount of fact-checking, presentations on Trump’s many dishonest statements or concerns about his character seemed to hold sway.
For all the talk about Trump’s rural base and the disaffected, working-class white voters who sent him to the White House, the president has long counted on a foundational support among very rich people, even in urban, coastal California, the heart of the so-called liberal resistance and a time-honored bogeyman for the right.
It is, after all, easier for politicians of all stripes to squeeze fundraising money from the upper echelons. And conservative rich people tend to like a government that keeps its paws off their wallets to the greatest extent possible.
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Joe Biden has said he will raise taxes for people making more than $400,000 — unnerving voters in places such as Newport Beach, where a cash-strapped Trump hosted a high-dollar fundraiser featuring the Beach Boys last month.
Trump supporter Pam Kelly of Newport Coast, and her dog, Max, join fellow supporters cheering on passing motorists in front of the Republican Party headquarters Tuesday in Newport Beach. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
“Many wealthy people support Trump because he cut taxes and they benefited from that,” said Fred Smoller, an associate professor of political science at Chapman University in Orange. “Many of them own a substantial amount of stock, and they’ve seen their portfolios soar.”
“If you start throwing around the word ‘socialist’ enough, people in Newport Beach will call that a dangerous leveling,” Smoller added. “They don’t want to share.... They have a lot to lose, so they supported Trump.”
Newport Beach — the home of John Wayne, whose yacht the Wild Goose has long been a fixture on Newport Bay, and the setting for the TV teen drama “The O.C.” — is both whiter and richer than the country as a whole. It is 80% white, compared with 40% of Orange County and 60% of the United States. The typical value of a single-family home in Newport Beach, according to Zillow, is nearly $2.9 million — 10 times the typical U.S. single-family home value of $298,000.
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Orange County, the birthplace of Richard Nixon and the longtime GOP citadel that Ronald Reagan called the place where “all the good Republicans go to die,” has swung blue in recent years. As of Thursday, Biden was leading Trump 54% to 44% with a margin of more than 124,000 votes, according to the Orange County registrar of voters office.
In 2016, Hillary Clinton became the first Democratic presidential candidate to carry Orange County since the Great Depression, beating Trump by nearly 9 percentage points. But in Newport Beach, Trump beat Clinton by 14 percentage points.
Outside the Newport Beach Civic Center Tuesday morning, Jennifer Rotellini, a 49-year-old real estate broker, said she cast a ballot for Trump largely because of the economy and the stock market. The child of Democrats, she said the party has moved too far left in recent years and that she is alarmed by what she called a growing reliance on government assistance such as welfare and food stamps.
“People get too comfortable,” she said. “People need to get up and work hard.”
Of Trump, she said, “We all cringe a little with how he speaks. I don’t have to like the guy. But I like his policies. I love that he’s not a politician. It’s a breath of fresh air.”
On Tuesday afternoon, Jesse Spence, who described his surname as “Spence, like Pence,” stood outside the local GOP headquarters on Pacific Coast Highway in a red MAGA hat. He waved an enormous Trump flag and smiled at passing motorists — including a man in a black Jeep with a flag depicting Trump as a muscly, machine-gun toting Rambo.
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“There’s a lot of wealth in Newport Beach,” the 26-year-old Spence said, “and Trump is very good with business.”
Spence, a surfer who works at Trader Joe’s, said he never believed pollsters who predicted a blowout win for Biden. He said the mainstream media have lied about Trump’s character and not paid enough attention to the business dealings of Biden’s son, Hunter, whom Trump’s allies have sought to portray as corrupt.
Standing beside Spence, a woman named Amber said she lined up on Via Lido last month to wave to the presidential motorcade before Trump’s fundraiser and that she was joined by “people of all races, colors, creeds, sexual identities.”
Steve Martin of Westminster dances and cheers on passing motorists. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
“It’s not the way it’s portrayed,” the 40-something who declined to give her last name said of Trump’s supporters. “We’re all Americans.” She added that Trump is “not racist,” noting that his Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Fla., accepted Jewish and Black members when other clubs in the affluent city did not.
Inside the GOP headquarters, people perused Trump merchandise, including MAGA masks and a tank top that said, “Ew, Liberals.” Another shirt had the iconic skull of the Marvel character the Punisher with Trumpian blond hair and the words: “Punishing Liberals Since 2016.”
Wearing a Hawaiian shirt and waving a huge red Trump flag outside, Erle Halliburton III — whose grandfather founded the oil and gas giant Halliburton — said he was confident that in the end a “major undercurrent of Trump support” would lead to a Trump victory. (By late Thursday, it appeared the president would need successful lawsuits more than anything else).
Trump, he said, “looks at us, the American people, as his stockholders, and he’s going to give to us what he said he was going to.”
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Halliburton, a 78-year-old Air Force veteran with homes in Newport Beach, Georgia and Tennessee, said that “once you live in a country that’s somewhat socialist or hardcore socialist, you realize how valuable and wonderful this country is.”
As the sun set in Newport Beach Tuesday, Randy Duarte sat on his front porch across the street from his polling place, the Marina Park Community Center. His street-level home featured a blue Biden flag and a sign depicting Trump as a poop emoji with the words “Dump the Turd November 3rd.” The tenant above him — his neighbor for two decades — flew a red Trump flag.
Duarte’s father came to the U.S. from Michoacán, Mexico, as a 15-year-old with a first-grade education, raised seven children on a landscaper’s salary and eventually became an American citizen. Duarte, a 54-year-old insurance agent, grew up in a mostly white Orange County neighborhood and said he let a lot of casual racism slide.
But in the Trump era? No longer. He’s become more outspoken, hanging a flag for a presidential candidate for the first time ever this year. In recent days, passersby have screamed obscenities about Biden and President Obama and yelled at Duarte: “Go back to Mexico!”
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On election night 2016, Duarte wept in his living room after Trump won because “I knew it was going to be hard on people that look like me. And, unfortunately, I was right.”
After the polls closed on Tuesday, the streets of Newport Beach were ghostly quiet. Outdoor tables set up amid the COVID-19 pandemic were mostly deserted. Giant television screens were visible inside homes all along Balboa Boulevard; each showed an election night map.
Randy Duarte, a Joe Biden supporter, in Newport Beach. His upstairs tenant is a supporter of President Trump. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
As an uncertain Wednesday dawned, Trump flags gently swayed from the balconies of tightly clustered homes on exclusive Lido Isle, where narrow streets were lined with Land Rovers, Porsches and BMWs. A sign outside one home read: “No Biden — Socialism — Communism.”
Just across the bridge connecting the man-made island to the rest of Newport Beach, a homeless Black woman sat on a bench overlooking the yachts in Newport Bay, her belongings in a bag beside her. She muttered to herself. Three young white men, one in a Bass Pro Shops shirt, laughed at her as they walked past. They repeatedly yelled an expletive at her.
On Wednesday, Spence kept a casual eye on Fox News and was “just chilling” at home, trying not to stress. He had stayed up until about midnight, “praying and hoping something happens where we win.”
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“I’m putting it in God’s hands,” he said.
Rotellini kept busy with clients all day and was catching snippets about the tightening election on Fox whenever she could.
“I’ve got a knot in my stomach and it’s not the good kind,” she said in a text message. “Haven’t really wrapped my head around anything yet.”
Halliburton said he had enough faith in the country to not be anxious as the race tightened. He watched Fox on Wednesday. His wife flipped between that and CNN.
“If Biden is the one, we then need to support Biden over the next four years” and start planning for 2024, knowing Biden is likely too old to seek a second term, he said.
“I think this country’s got enough of a solid footing that it’s not the end of the world,” he said.
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Duarte and his wife spent election night watching MSNBC, checking Twitter, eating pizza and drinking three bottles of wine. There were no tears. By Thursday, as the election tilted more toward Biden, Duarte was getting giddy.
“Confident Joe will win!” he said in a text message. “Preparing ‘You’re Fired’ memes for the big celebration!”
On Thursday afternoon, Veliz was watching Fox and constantly refreshing her electoral college maps on her phone while Coqueta sat next to her in a sweater. She worried about riots and violence as the election dragged on and planned to stock up on groceries and household essentials, just in case something bad happened.
“I’m very anxiously waiting to hear,” she said. “I don’t think there will be normality in the next few weeks or months.”


latimes--2020-11-06--L.A. jolted by progressive political shakeup this week. Is it just the beginning?

In a year dominated by massive street protests over racial injustice and wrenching losses from the pandemic , Los Angeles voters upended the political status quo on Tuesday by backing a slate of progressive candidates and measures .
The question now is whether the leftward push is the beginning of a larger realignment of local politics or a unique moment brought about by extraordinary times .
Voters have the chance to dramatically reshape L.A. City Hall in 2022 when they cast ballots for mayor , eight City Council candidates , city attorney and city controller .
While L.A. has long @ @ @ @ @ @ @ establishment players are now being challenged from the left in a battle also playing out among Democrats at the national level .
Locally , voters on election day appeared to favor more progressive candidates and back stronger action on racial justice and a more humane approach to homelessness .
The large voter participation seen in L.A. County has been credited to the presidential race and a new election schedule that synchronizes local races with gubernatorial and presidential elections .
At the same time , issues including police reform were at the forefront of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be seen if progressives and reformers — groups probably helped by a larger turnout of younger , poorer and non-white voters on Tuesday — will also leave their stamp on the 2022 city election .
The electorate in local L.A. races has historically skewed toward older homeowners and generally been pretty white .
Skeptics note that L.A. 's finances are already reeling from pandemic-fueled tax losses and that City Hall may not have the money to carry out ambitious plans .
But others believe this week is just the beginning .
“ I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a one-off or some kind of fluke , ” said Isaac Bryan , who helped run the committee for Measure J , which voters backed Tuesday .
The measure will divert more county money to social services and jail diversion programs .
“ All of these races demonstrated the values of L.A. County are now going to be reflected in our elected officials .
We are tired of the corruption in City Hall , ” Bryan said .
“ We are tired of speaking only in rhetoric and not in policy.
” Activists @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the culmination of years of work , including regular protests held downtown in an effort to oust L.A. County Dist .
Atty .
Jackie Lacey , who appeared to be losing her race to challenger George Gascón , former San Francisco district attorney .
Political consultant Eric Hacopian expects many progressive candidates — and even those further to the left — will run for City Council in 2022 , inspired by the apparent victory of newcomer Nithya Raman in a Hollywood , Silver Lake and Los Feliz City Council district race .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ galore next cycle , ” Hacopian said .
“ There ’ s no question about it.
” Raman ’ s campaign relied on both grass-roots support and a big war chest to pull ahead of City Councilman David Ryu — a formula that will be difficult to replicate , said Hacopian , who ran an outside committee supporting Ryu in the primary election .
Raman was one of three candidates who challenged establishment figures in Tuesday ’ s election , a group that included Gascón and state Sen. Holly Mitchell .
Gascón , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , was ahead of Lacey , according to results updated Thursday .
The Times ’ analysis that showed Gascón generally performed stronger on the Westside and in South Los Angeles than Lacey .
Lacey pulled in more votes on the edges of Los Angeles County and the western San Fernando Valley , areas that have typically skewed more conservative , the data show .
Donna Bojarsky , a longtime Democratic political consultant and founder of a nonprofit dedicated to building civic engagement in L.A. , said she would be cautious about calling the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could also say there was an anti-incumbent vote , ” Bojarsky said , characterizing anti-incumbency as a “ major factor ” in several races .
That sentiment is a far cry from what ’ s typically expected in L.A. politics , where incumbency has historically carried an enormous political advantage .
“ We have to know that ‘ progressive , ’ in the context of a city like Los Angeles , has to mean more than just a title , ” Bojarsky said .
“ We have to look beyond labels and take @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are.
” She cited the example of L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva , who ran as a progressive reformer in a long-shot bid to unseat then-incumbent Sheriff Jim McDonnell in 2018 .
Villanueva ’ s tenure has been deeply controversial and brought rebukes from the groups that once endorsed him .
Raphael J. Sonenshein , a local government expert who runs the Edmund G. “ Pat ” Brown Institute of Public Affairs at Cal State L.A. , said Tuesday ’ s election shows incumbents will probably have to recalibrate in coming elections .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ is going to have some problems , partly because of the strength of the progressive movement that has its own issues that it really wants to see , ” Sonenshein said .
“ Also , establishment candidates can ’ t win just with endorsements from major players.
” Still , progressives have fallen short in recent years in some districts .
In the northwest San Fernando Valley — an area with a reputation as a relatively conservative part of L.A. , despite having more Democrats than Republicans — City Councilman John Lee has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the last two years .
Stuart Waldman , president of the Valley Industry and Commerce Assn.
, challenged the notion that City Hall was suddenly going to enact sweeping changes sought by some activists after Tuesday .
“ There are candidates with bold ideas and then there are elected officials who have to be in touch with reality , ” Waldman said .
“ You can ’ t start giving away free rent , you can ’ t start giving away free utilities .
You have to be reasonable.
” Mark Ryavec , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said it ’ s his view that if Ryu and Lacey lose , it ’ s because neither is a particularly strong politician .
He doesn ’ t see those losses as a bellwether for how residents will vote in 2022 .
In some sections of Venice , there is long-standing unhappiness with City Hall over the city ’ s handling of homelessness and more recently , the increase in crime .
Ryavec predicted that the rise in crime will lead to “ law and order ” candidates on the ballot in two @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and host of the local issues podcast `` Órale Boyle Heights , ” sees Tuesday ’ s results far differently .
He described the success of progressive candidates — Raman as well as Sasha Renée Pérez , a young community organizer who ’ ll be the next mayor of Alhambra — as part of the same momentum that drove New York Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez ’ s insurgent bid for Congress in 2018 .
He characterized anger at the Trump presidency as a pivotal driver of political engagement at the local level .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ that some of the ferocity of that energy might dim in L.A. if the country sees a Biden presidency , with “ some folks taking the back seat ” as the national situation registers as less of an emergency in liberal L.A .

State Sen. Holly Mitchell (D-Los Angeles), right, and campaign manager Lenee Richards watch election results Tuesday night. Mitchell defeated longtime City Councilman Herb Wesson for a seat on the county Board of Supervisors.
In a year dominated by massive street protests over racial injustice and wrenching losses from the pandemic, Los Angeles voters upended the political status quo on Tuesday by backing a slate of progressive candidates and measures.
The question now is whether the leftward push is the beginning of a larger realignment of local politics or a unique moment brought about by extraordinary times.
Voters have the chance to dramatically reshape L.A. City Hall in 2022 when they cast ballots for mayor, eight City Council candidates, city attorney and city controller.
Advertisement
While L.A. has long been dominated by Democrats, the more establishment players are now being challenged from the left in a battle also playing out among Democrats at the national level.
Locally, voters on election day appeared to favor more progressive candidates and back stronger action on racial justice and a more humane approach to homelessness.
The large voter participation seen in L.A. County has been credited to the presidential race and a new election schedule that synchronizes local races with gubernatorial and presidential elections. At the same time, issues including police reform were at the forefront of voters’ minds.
It remains to be seen if progressives and reformers — groups probably helped by a larger turnout of younger, poorer and non-white voters on Tuesday — will also leave their stamp on the 2022 city election. The electorate in local L.A. races has historically skewed toward older homeowners and generally been pretty white.
Skeptics note that L.A.’s finances are already reeling from pandemic-fueled tax losses and that City Hall may not have the money to carry out ambitious plans.
But others believe this week is just the beginning.
“I don’t think that this is a one-off or some kind of fluke,” said Isaac Bryan, who helped run the committee for Measure J, which voters backed Tuesday. The measure will divert more county money to social services and jail diversion programs.
Advertisement
“All of these races demonstrated the values of L.A. County are now going to be reflected in our elected officials. We are tired of the corruption in City Hall,” Bryan said. “We are tired of speaking only in rhetoric and not in policy.”
Former San Francisco Dist. Atty. George Gascon holds a lead over L.A. County Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey. (Damian Dovarganes / Associated Press)
Activists argued that Tuesday’s results were the culmination of years of work, including regular protests held downtown in an effort to oust L.A. County Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey, who appeared to be losing her race to challenger George Gascón, former San Francisco district attorney.
Political consultant Eric Hacopian expects many progressive candidates — and even those further to the left — will run for City Council in 2022, inspired by the apparent victory of newcomer Nithya Raman in a Hollywood, Silver Lake and Los Feliz City Council district race.
“There’s going to be challengers galore next cycle,” Hacopian said. “There’s no question about it.”
Raman’s campaign relied on both grass-roots support and a big war chest to pull ahead of City Councilman David Ryu — a formula that will be difficult to replicate, said Hacopian, who ran an outside committee supporting Ryu in the primary election.
Raman was one of three candidates who challenged establishment figures in Tuesday’s election, a group that included Gascón and state Sen. Holly Mitchell.
Gascón, seen as a reformer on police issues, was ahead of Lacey, according to results updated Thursday.
The Times’ analysis that showed Gascón generally performed stronger on the Westside and in South Los Angeles than Lacey. Lacey pulled in more votes on the edges of Los Angeles County and the western San Fernando Valley, areas that have typically skewed more conservative, the data show.
Donna Bojarsky, a longtime Democratic political consultant and founder of a nonprofit dedicated to building civic engagement in L.A., said she would be cautious about calling the results a progressive wave.
“You could also say there was an anti-incumbent vote,” Bojarsky said, characterizing anti-incumbency as a “major factor” in several races.
That sentiment is a far cry from what’s typically expected in L.A. politics, where incumbency has historically carried an enormous political advantage.
“We have to know that ‘progressive,’ in the context of a city like Los Angeles, has to mean more than just a title,” Bojarsky said. “We have to look beyond labels and take enough interest that we know who people are.”
She cited the example of L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva, who ran as a progressive reformer in a long-shot bid to unseat then-incumbent Sheriff Jim McDonnell in 2018. Villanueva’s tenure has been deeply controversial and brought rebukes from the groups that once endorsed him.
Raphael J. Sonenshein, a local government expert who runs the Edmund G. “Pat” Brown Institute of Public Affairs at Cal State L.A., said Tuesday’s election shows incumbents will probably have to recalibrate in coming elections.
“Any [City Hall] incumbent is going to have some problems, partly because of the strength of the progressive movement that has its own issues that it really wants to see,” Sonenshein said. “Also, establishment candidates can’t win just with endorsements from major players.”
Still, progressives have fallen short in recent years in some districts.
In the northwest San Fernando Valley — an area with a reputation as a relatively conservative part of L.A., despite having more Democrats than Republicans — City Councilman John Lee has twice defeated a more progressive candidate in the last two years.
Stuart Waldman, president of the Valley Industry and Commerce Assn., challenged the notion that City Hall was suddenly going to enact sweeping changes sought by some activists after Tuesday.
“There are candidates with bold ideas and then there are elected officials who have to be in touch with reality,” Waldman said. “You can’t start giving away free rent, you can’t start giving away free utilities. You have to be reasonable.”
Mark Ryavec, president of the Venice Stakeholders Assn., said it’s his view that if Ryu and Lacey lose, it’s because neither is a particularly strong politician. He doesn’t see those losses as a bellwether for how residents will vote in 2022.
In some sections of Venice, there is long-standing unhappiness with City Hall over the city’s handling of homelessness and more recently, the increase in crime.
Ryavec predicted that the rise in crime will lead to “law and order” candidates on the ballot in two years.
Erick Huerta, an activist and host of the local issues podcast “Órale Boyle Heights,” sees Tuesday’s results far differently.
He described the success of progressive candidates — Raman as well as Sasha Renée Pérez, a young community organizer who’ll be the next mayor of Alhambra — as part of the same momentum that drove New York Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s insurgent bid for Congress in 2018.
He characterized anger at the Trump presidency as a pivotal driver of political engagement at the local level.
Looking to the future, Huerta speculated that some of the ferocity of that energy might dim in L.A. if the country sees a Biden presidency, with “some folks taking the back seat” as the national situation registers as less of an emergency in liberal L.A.
Times staff writer Ben Welsh contributed to this report.


latimes--2020-11-06--Column: With Trump we lost the democratic system envisioned by our founders. With Biden we could get

Column: With Trump we lost the democratic system envisioned by our founders. With Biden we could get it back

If Joe Biden really has been elected president , then we truly can begin to “ Make America Great Again.
” This country was great until President Trump was elected , running on a once-inconceivable demagogic message that the USA ’ s days of greatness were behind her .
He then steadily proceeded to prove his claim , fracturing the nation and sullying its image overseas .
One of the best things about the election — regardless of whether Biden is victorious — is that a majority of American voters decided that incivility , bullying and lying were not acceptable @ @ @ @ @ @ @ decency and , at minimum , a passable role model that our children can look up to , regardless of politics .
The worst thing about the election — only to be outdone if Trump somehow manages to triumph — is that the majority is slim .
More than 69 million Americans at last count — including more than 4 million Californians — apparently decided that the president ’ s abhorrent behavior was not very important to them and was tolerable .
“ Seeing this guy in action for four years lying , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ [ disabilities ] how could nearly half the American voters say , ‘ That ’ s fine with me ?
’ ” asks Democratic consultant Garry South .
“ A lot of people don ’ t like the way he behaves , but they believe he is better for them , ” answers Bob Shrum , a former Democratic strategist who now directs the Center for the Political Future at USC .
“ They are willing to tolerate him because their stock portfolios keep going up .
“ They think he ’ ll @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” That ’ s certainly what I constantly hear from Trump supporters .
But , come on .
At one of the most sacred times in our democratic system — election night — this president goes on TV and calls the vote counting “ a fraud on the American public…an embarrassment to our country.
” America ’ s authoritarian adversaries must have been celebrating .
Even if Trump is ousted from the Oval Office , it was not the exhilarating election night that many Democrats had anticipated .
They had envisioned a Biden @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the Senate and add seats to the party ’ s House majority .
But Republicans could retain Senate control and chip away at Speaker Nancy Pelosi ’ s slim House majority .
The GOP also seems on the verge of winning back two or three House seats in California that it lost two years ago .
Democrats , however , have apparently added to their massive majority in the state Senate .
But how did Trump add to his rock-solid base , debunking the Democratic thesis that his support couldn ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump was able to identify supporters and get them out to vote in sort of an old-fashioned way , ” Democratic strategist Bill Carrick says .
Those big campaign rallies with all the unmasked Trump zealots that many Democrats belittled as no longer needed in the era of social media ?
They worked by energizing voters .
Shrum believes that many people polled were “ shy voters who didn ’ t think it was socially correct to say they were for Trump.
” “ In retrospect , ” South says , “ it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ across the board to make this election all about health insurance .
About 92 % of Americans already have health insurance — about 68 % through their employers .
Democrats act as if half the American population is uninsured .
They ’ re preaching to a crowd that is already insured .
People ask , ‘ What does that have to do with me ?
’ ” In 2018 , running on healthcare worked for Democrats .
But campaign consultants , like generals , often make the mistake of fighting the last war @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic did seem to work .
During the presidential primaries , however , the Democratic candidates ’ liberal yacking — although not by Biden — about “ Medicare for all ” probably scared off voters , especially when Trump bellowed “ socialism.
” In California , the national hesitation to side with Democrats was reflected in the outcome of five ballot propositions .
Two measures placed on the ballot by the Democrat-dominated Legislature were rejected .
One was Proposition 16 , which would have repealed the ban on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or employment based on race , ethnicity or gender .
The second , Proposition 18 , would have allowed many 17-year-olds to vote .
Voters passed Proposition 22 , which repealed the major part of a bill the Legislature passed to require many companies to reclassify independent contractors as employees .
The measure will allow ride-hail and delivery drivers to keep working independently , a major defeat for labor .
In rejecting Proposition 25 , voters scuttled legislation that eliminated the requirement of cash bail for release from jail before trial .
Proposition @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and was trailing by roughly 3.6 percentage points at last count .
It was sponsored by labor unions and strongly supported by Democratic leaders including Gov .
Gavin Newsom .
“ Sacramento Democrats ought to be asking themselves whether they ’ re out of step with Californians , ” says Republican consultant Rob Stutzman , a “ never Trumper.
” “ On policy stuff , California is not as liberal as some of the California leaders , ” asserts moderate GOP consultant Ray McNally .
Regardless of the Democrats ’ weaker than expected @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by roughly 2 to 1 in deep blue California .
But one-party rule can be dangerous .
In Sacramento , Democrats need to discipline themselves against veering too far left of the electorate — as they did with those ballot measures .
For America to become great again , we need to revive the democratic system envisioned by our founders .
That system encourages politicians to compromise , gradually improving our opportunities and conditions while being a beacon of freedom to the world .
We lost that with Trump .

If Joe Biden really has been elected president, then we truly can begin to “Make America Great Again.”
This country was great until President Trump was elected, running on a once-inconceivable demagogic message that the USA’s days of greatness were behind her. He then steadily proceeded to prove his claim, fracturing the nation and sullying its image overseas.
One of the best things about the election — regardless of whether Biden is victorious — is that a majority of American voters decided that incivility, bullying and lying were not acceptable in their president. We demand common decency and, at minimum, a passable role model that our children can look up to, regardless of politics.
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The worst thing about the election — only to be outdone if Trump somehow manages to triumph — is that the majority is slim. More than 69 million Americans at last count — including more than 4 million Californians — apparently decided that the president’s abhorrent behavior was not very important to them and was tolerable.
“Seeing this guy in action for four years lying, verbally brutalizing people, mocking people with [disabilities] how could nearly half the American voters say, ‘That’s fine with me?’” asks Democratic consultant Garry South.
“A lot of people don’t like the way he behaves, but they believe he is better for them,” answers Bob Shrum, a former Democratic strategist who now directs the Center for the Political Future at USC. “They are willing to tolerate him because their stock portfolios keep going up.
“They think he’ll be a better steward of the economy.”
That’s certainly what I constantly hear from Trump supporters.
But, come on. At one of the most sacred times in our democratic system — election night — this president goes on TV and calls the vote counting “a fraud on the American public…an embarrassment to our country.”
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America’s authoritarian adversaries must have been celebrating.
Even if Trump is ousted from the Oval Office, it was not the exhilarating election night that many Democrats had anticipated. They had envisioned a Biden landslide that would sweep in Democratic control of the Senate and add seats to the party’s House majority.
But Republicans could retain Senate control and chip away at Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s slim House majority.
The GOP also seems on the verge of winning back two or three House seats in California that it lost two years ago. Democrats, however, have apparently added to their massive majority in the state Senate.
But how did Trump add to his rock-solid base, debunking the Democratic thesis that his support couldn’t grow beyond its 2016 level?
“Trump was able to identify supporters and get them out to vote in sort of an old-fashioned way,” Democratic strategist Bill Carrick says.
Those big campaign rallies with all the unmasked Trump zealots that many Democrats belittled as no longer needed in the era of social media? They worked by energizing voters.
But national polling didn’t show it.
Shrum believes that many people polled were “shy voters who didn’t think it was socially correct to say they were for Trump.”
“In retrospect,” South says, “it may have been a mistake for Democrats across the board to make this election all about health insurance. About 92% of Americans already have health insurance — about 68% through their employers. Democrats act as if half the American population is uninsured. They’re preaching to a crowd that is already insured. People ask, ‘What does that have to do with me?’”
In 2018, running on healthcare worked for Democrats. But campaign consultants, like generals, often make the mistake of fighting the last war.
The Democrats running against Trump’s mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic did seem to work.
During the presidential primaries, however, the Democratic candidates’ liberal yacking — although not by Biden — about “Medicare for all” probably scared off voters, especially when Trump bellowed “socialism.”
In California, the national hesitation to side with Democrats was reflected in the outcome of five ballot propositions.
Two measures placed on the ballot by the Democrat-dominated Legislature were rejected. One was Proposition 16, which would have repealed the ban on affirmative action in public education, contracting or employment based on race, ethnicity or gender. The second, Proposition 18, would have allowed many 17-year-olds to vote.
Voters passed Proposition 22, which repealed the major part of a bill the Legislature passed to require many companies to reclassify independent contractors as employees. The measure will allow ride-hail and delivery drivers to keep working independently, a major defeat for labor.
In rejecting Proposition 25, voters scuttled legislation that eliminated the requirement of cash bail for release from jail before trial.
Proposition 15 would have raised commercial property taxes and was trailing by roughly 3.6 percentage points at last count. It was sponsored by labor unions and strongly supported by Democratic leaders including Gov. Gavin Newsom.
“Sacramento Democrats ought to be asking themselves whether they’re out of step with Californians,” says Republican consultant Rob Stutzman, a “never Trumper.”
“On policy stuff, California is not as liberal as some of the California leaders,” asserts moderate GOP consultant Ray McNally.
Regardless of the Democrats’ weaker than expected showing nationally, Biden still beat Trump by roughly 2 to 1 in deep blue California.
But one-party rule can be dangerous. In Sacramento, Democrats need to discipline themselves against veering too far left of the electorate — as they did with those ballot measures.
For America to become great again, we need to revive the democratic system envisioned by our founders. That system encourages politicians to compromise, gradually improving our opportunities and conditions while being a beacon of freedom to the world.
We lost that with Trump.


latimes--2020-11-07--California sizzled with three straight months of record heat and raging fires

In the midst of the state ’ s most destructive wildfire season , California shattered temperature records in August , September and October .
All three months were the state ’ s warmest on record , according to a new report by UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain .
“ The long-term warming trend during the peak of fire season in California has been especially pronounced , ” Swain said on Twitter , “ and 2020 really puts an exclamation point on that.
” In August , a ferocious heat wave saw temperatures in Death Valley reach a blistering 130 degrees @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on Earth in nearly a century , if not ever .
Temperatures in September and October , too , skyrocketed to new heights .
Over Labor Day weekend , Woodland Hills clocked the hottest official temperature on record in Los Angeles County , 121 degrees .
In October , a heat wave prompted a statewide flex alert as Southern California saw temperatures as much as .
“ There were nearly 400 daily high temperature records broken across California in September , ” said Karin Gleason , a meteorologist with the National Centers for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Atmospheric Administration .
“ In October , approximately 300 daily high temperature records were set.
” Gleason attributed the warming trend to a persistent ridge of high pressure across the Western U.S. that allowed for scant cloud cover , little to no rainfall and plenty of sunshine .
She said it ’ s a trend that is likely to continue in years to come .
“ In a warming climate , we expect to see more record warm temperatures broken than we may have seen in the past , ” she said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ commonplace.
” Similar records were set in Nevada , Arizona , Utah and Oregon , Swain said .
The sizzling heat was met with dangerous dryness .
Precipitation was close to zero across California in September and October , and two-thirds of the state is in moderate to extreme drought conditions , Gleason said .
Experts say the combination of the two extreme factors — dryness and heat — helped pave the way for an unprecedented wildfire season in the state .
More than 4 million acres have burned in California , fed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ acted as fuel for hungry flames .
Christine McMorrow , spokeswoman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection , said increasing global temperatures also created an earlier spring , which has resulted in a fire season that is about 75 days longer than it was 50 years ago .
“ We ’ ve got a longer period of time that our vegetation starts to grow and dry out , ” McMorrow said .
“ By the time we get to ... August , September and October , which are the height @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had that much more time to dry.
” Six of the 20 largest wildfires in California history have burned this year , according to Cal Fire , and at least 31 people have died in the blazes .
Record heat and dryness in the late summer and early fall were also factors in poor air quality , as wildfires spewed smoke and ash into California ’ s atmosphere .
Residents up and down the West Coast experienced Martian-red skies , layers of ash and soot and health advisories urging people to stay inside @ @ @ @ @ @ @ particular challenge for a pandemic-stricken population desperate for time outside .
In August , wildfires created a plume of smoke that spanned more than 1,000 miles , large enough to be seen from space and forceful enough to reach all the way to Europe .
And in October , gusty winds carried residue from wildfire burn scars into the L.A. region , creating , at one point , the worst air quality in the nation .
The months-long sauna of heat , smoke and dryness was enough to push some Californians to rethink @ @ @ @ @ @ @ My teens are now sending me homes on Zillow out of the area , ” said one Santa Rosa resident during the Sonoma County fires in September .
“ We are all in some form of therapy .
My 6-year-old needs me to hold her when she smells smoke.
” The National Weather Service said conditions are expected to change this weekend , when Southern California will experience a and its first chance at rain in several months .
Although the forecast may offer some relief , experts said Californians shouldn ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if you were going to say the next 10 years are going to be warmer than the last 10 years , you ’ d probably have a decent shot [ at being right ] , ” said Mike Halpert , deputy director of NOAA ’ s Climate Prediction Center .
Halpert said this year ’ s winter outlook favors “ a continuation of above-average temperatures and also general below-average precipitation.
” But he said that while overall trends are pointing toward warming , seasonal and sub-seasonal variability can allow for fluctuations that make @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ The easiest forecast I can make for sure is that the 2021 annual global temperature will be above average , ” he said .
“ That ’ s certainly going to be correct.
” Some Californians don ’ t know how much more they can take .
“ Summer ’ s become increasingly miserable , and if I am ever lucky enough to afford a house , it might just burn down , ” said Cassie Elliott , an El Sereno resident who grew up in Burbank .
Elliott said the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a future in California seem like a poor investment .
She is considering relocating to Washington or Oregon .
“ Thinking of moving makes me very sad , because I love Los Angeles and California in general , ” Elliott said , “ but fleeing to locations with more stable water supplies and cooler temperatures seems necessary .
”

Firefighters conduct a backfire operation on brush at Chino Hills State Park in Octobner during the Blue Ridge fire.
In the midst of the state’s most destructive wildfire season, California shattered temperature records in August, September and October.
All three months were the state’s warmest on record, according to a new report by UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain.
“The long-term warming trend during the peak of fire season in California has been especially pronounced,” Swain said on Twitter, “and 2020 really puts an exclamation point on that.”
In August, a ferocious heat wave saw temperatures in Death Valley reach a blistering 130 degrees — thought to be the highest temperature on Earth in nearly a century, if not ever. Temperatures in September and October, too, skyrocketed to new heights. Over Labor Day weekend, Woodland Hills clocked the hottest official temperature on record in Los Angeles County, 121 degrees.
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In October, a heat wave prompted a statewide flex alert as Southern California saw temperatures as much as 25 degrees above normal .
“There were nearly 400 daily high temperature records broken across California in September,” said Karin Gleason, a meteorologist with the National Centers for Environmental Information at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. “In October, approximately 300 daily high temperature records were set.”
Gleason attributed the warming trend to a persistent ridge of high pressure across the Western U.S. that allowed for scant cloud cover, little to no rainfall and plenty of sunshine. She said it’s a trend that is likely to continue in years to come.
“In a warming climate, we expect to see more record warm temperatures broken than we may have seen in the past,” she said. “It is expected to become more commonplace.”
Similar records were set in Nevada, Arizona, Utah and Oregon, Swain said.
Well, it's official: Oct 2020 was the warmest October on record in California. That follows warmest September and warmest August on record--meaning that peak of fire season 2020 (Aug-Oct) was also warmest on record in CA--as well as in NV, AZ, UT, and OR. Wow. #CAwx #CAfire pic.twitter.com/HTydP9u5mG — Daniel Swain (@Weather_West) November 6, 2020
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The sizzling heat was met with dangerous dryness. Precipitation was close to zero across California in September and October, and two-thirds of the state is in moderate to extreme drought conditions, Gleason said.
Experts say the combination of the two extreme factors — dryness and heat — helped pave the way for an unprecedented wildfire season in the state. More than 4 million acres have burned in California, fed by large swaths of bone-dry vegetation that acted as fuel for hungry flames.
Christine McMorrow, spokeswoman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, said increasing global temperatures also created an earlier spring, which has resulted in a fire season that is about 75 days longer than it was 50 years ago.
“We’ve got a longer period of time that our vegetation starts to grow and dry out,” McMorrow said. “By the time we get to ... August, September and October, which are the height of fire season, the fuels have had that much more time to dry.”
Six of the 20 largest wildfires in California history have burned this year, according to Cal Fire, and at least 31 people have died in the blazes.
Record heat and dryness in the late summer and early fall were also factors in poor air quality, as wildfires spewed smoke and ash into California’s atmosphere. Residents up and down the West Coast experienced Martian-red skies, layers of ash and soot and health advisories urging people to stay inside with doors and windows shut — a particular challenge for a pandemic-stricken population desperate for time outside.
In August, wildfires created a plume of smoke that spanned more than 1,000 miles, large enough to be seen from space and forceful enough to reach all the way to Europe.
And in October, gusty winds carried residue from wildfire burn scars into the L.A. region, creating, at one point, the worst air quality in the nation.
The months-long sauna of heat, smoke and dryness was enough to push some Californians to rethink their future in the state.
“My teens are now sending me homes on Zillow out of the area,” said one Santa Rosa resident during the Sonoma County fires in September. “We are all in some form of therapy. My 6-year-old needs me to hold her when she smells smoke.”
The National Weather Service said conditions are expected to change this weekend, when Southern California will experience a notable cooldown and its first chance at rain in several months.
Although the forecast may offer some relief, experts said Californians shouldn’t get too comfortable.
“Certainly, if you were going to say the next 10 years are going to be warmer than the last 10 years, you’d probably have a decent shot [at being right],” said Mike Halpert, deputy director of NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center.
Halpert said this year’s winter outlook favors “a continuation of above-average temperatures and also general below-average precipitation.”
But he said that while overall trends are pointing toward warming, seasonal and sub-seasonal variability can allow for fluctuations that make it challenging to speak in finite terms.
“The easiest forecast I can make for sure is that the 2021 annual global temperature will be above average,” he said. “That’s certainly going to be correct.”
Some Californians don’t know how much more they can take.
“Summer’s become increasingly miserable, and if I am ever lucky enough to afford a house, it might just burn down,” said Cassie Elliott, an El Sereno resident who grew up in Burbank.
Elliott said the state’s increasing extreme weather makes a future in California seem like a poor investment. She is considering relocating to Washington or Oregon.
“Thinking of moving makes me very sad, because I love Los Angeles and California in general,” Elliott said, “but fleeing to locations with more stable water supplies and cooler temperatures seems necessary.”


latimes--2020-11-07--Orange County backed Biden, but Republicans poised for dramatic comeback after 'blue wave'

Like many conservative voters in Orange County , Carolyn Ehret , a longtime Republican in Laguna Niguel , could not stomach voting for Donald Trump a second time .
So she split her ticket to support Joe Biden and her district ’ s Republican congressional candidate , Michelle Steel .
“ Trump ’ s just gutted me , he ’ s not a good example for any of us , ” said Ehret .
“ We need to become civilized again.
” Her vote reflects a lot about where Orange County , once a bastion of right-wing conservatism , stands @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and blue .
Biden appears headed to victory , and so does Steel .
Democrats have made inroads over the last 30 years and now have a 3.5 % advantage in voter registration that is likely to continue to grow .
But the GOP is still a potent force in Orange County , with Republicans running the county power structure , thus controlling key entry points into politics .
“ The Republican party is very strong at getting people appointed to boards and commissions , ” said Karthick Ramakrishnan , a professor of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Riverside .
Those appointees , he says , then already have critical name recognition when they run for office .
He said the county ’ s GOP stuck to an extensive plan — largely abandoned by the national party under Trump — that the Republican National Committee came up with in 2013 , to become more inclusive through aggressive outreach to Black , Asian American , Latino , female and LGBTQ voters .
“ Trump essentially shredded that playbook , but those efforts continued in Orange County , ” said Ramakrishnan .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ first two Korean American women in Congress .
In the 48th District , Steel , a county supervisor , leads Democratic incumbent Harley Rouda , 50.8 % to 49.2 % .
Challenger Young Kim , a former state assemblywoman , has opened a similarly slim lead over incumbent Gil Cisneros in their rematch for the 39th District , 52.3 % to 47.7 % .
Both Rouda and Cisneros were elected as part of the 2018 “ blue wave ” that saw Democrats sweep the county ’ s seven congressional seats .
That year @ @ @ @ @ @ @ percentage points and Rouda prevailed by more than seven percentage points over longtime incumbent Dana Rohrabacher in the most conservative part of the county .
But no one took Rouda ’ s victory to mean the 48th District — the heart of John Wayne country , with Huntington Beach and Newport Beach at its core — had turned liberal .
Rohrabacher was a quirky figure .
A pro-marijuana maverick prone to strange , off-the-cuff statements , he vilified communists and undocumented immigrants as Orange County politicos of yore had done , at a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ grown past that .
And his close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin became a significant liability after the Russian interference in the 2016 election .
“ Michelle Steel is a far stronger candidate than Dana Rohrabacher , who had his own issues , ” said Fred Smoller , an associate professor of political science at Chapman University .
Biden , meanwhile , has maintained a healthy lead over Trump countywide — 53.7 % to 44.4 % , a gap of roughly 131,000 votes as ballots are still being counted .
Hillary Clinton @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ago by a margin of 50.9 % to 42.3 % .
In 2012 , Republican candidate Mitt Romney prevailed over then-President Barack Obama by more than 6 percentage points .
Trump has struggled across the country in diverse suburbs with large numbers of college-educated residents like this one .
Orange County is 34 % Latino and 21.7 % Asian .
But Romney ’ s easy win here in 2012 suggests that a more traditional Republican could still prevail .
The fact that the GOP could make gains at the congressional level , even @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sizable margin overall , shows that “ the Republican Party is not dead ” in the region , according to Smoller .
“ It always used to be red , it wasn ’ t even worth talking about because everything was red , ” Smoller said .
“ But now you ’ re going to see competitive races : Some are going to go to Democrats , some to Republicans and several of them are going to be very , very close.
” They might not be as red hot as this election @ @ @ @ @ @ @ drive a “ remarkable turnout , ” with 77 % of registered voters casting ballots , said Louis DeSipio , a professor of political science and Chicano/Latino studies at UC Irvine .
“ He ’ s a very polarizing figure and that sort of polarization , at least when it sort of attaches to Orange County , advantaged the Democrats — because even sort of Republican-leaning voters here are more alienated by his immigration message ” and his response to the COVID-19 pandemic , DeSipio said .
But , DeSipio added , in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” with voters over taxes .
Steel ’ s main line of attack , for instance , was to claim that Rouda wanted to raise taxes , which he denied .
Another reason Orange County ’ s bluer tint may not be uniform up and down the ballot , DeSipio said , is that old habits die hard .
“ That reflects that some of the sort of long-term legacies in the community remain , ” he said .
“ People don ’ t just sort of flip overnight from being a Republican @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to a Democrat.
” Sarah Stanley , 24 , of Aliso Viejo still sees her community as a bastion of conservatism .
She takes pride in her family ’ s military background .
Stanley voted for Trump and voted along party lines down her ballot .
Her boyfriend is currently enlisted in the Army but might not reenlist if Biden is elected .
“ We ’ re quite scared for our future if Biden ends up winning , because if [ my boyfriend ] doesn ’ t reenlist , we ’ re going @ @ @ @ @ @ @ benefits we currently get , ” Stanley said .
Tracy Drivas , a 62-year-old real estate agent in Irvine , voted for Trump in 2016 and is still a registered Republican who voted for the 45th-district Republican congressional candidate Greg Raths in this election .
But she couldn ’ t fill in the Trump bubble .
“ The way Trump handled COVID was a travesty , ” she said .
“ He ’ s just a vile human being.
” On Ortega Highway in San Juan Capistrano , Robert Hunt , a registered @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump merchandise pop-up shop Friday .
The 60-year-old didn ’ t care for Trump ’ s campaign , and explained that he ran the pop-up only to make money because his professional sports company went out of business due to the pandemic .
“ Trump is an idiot and Biden is useless , ” he said .
But his passions were still high enough to vote for president .
He wrote in the name of someone who wasn ’ t even running , former U.S. Sen. and 2000 vice presidential nominee Joe Lieberman @

Like many conservative voters in Orange County, Carolyn Ehret, a longtime Republican in Laguna Niguel, could not stomach voting for Donald Trump a second time. So she split her ticket to support Joe Biden and her district’s Republican congressional candidate, Michelle Steel.
“Trump’s just gutted me, he’s not a good example for any of us,” said Ehret. “We need to become civilized again.”
For the record: The Times incorrectly reported that Young Kim was leading Rep. Gil Cisneros in California’s 39th Congressional District 52.3% to 47.7%. Those numbers are only accurate for Orange County voters. She leads the entire district, which includes parts of Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties, by 50.5% to 49.5%.
Her vote reflects a lot about where Orange County, once a bastion of right-wing conservatism, stands politically these days, teetering between red and blue. Biden appears headed to victory, and so does Steel.
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Democrats have made inroads over the last 30 years and now have a 3.5% advantage in voter registration that is likely to continue to grow. But the GOP is still a potent force in Orange County, with Republicans running the county power structure, thus controlling key entry points into politics.
“The Republican party is very strong at getting people appointed to boards and commissions,” said Karthick Ramakrishnan, a professor of political science and public policy at UC Riverside. Those appointees, he says, then already have critical name recognition when they run for office.
He said the county’s GOP stuck to an extensive plan — largely abandoned by the national party under Trump — that the Republican National Committee came up with in 2013, to become more inclusive through aggressive outreach to Black, Asian American, Latino, female and LGBTQ voters.
“Trump essentially shredded that playbook, but those efforts continued in Orange County,” said Ramakrishnan.
The result could be the election of the first two Korean American women in Congress. In the 48th District, Steel, a county supervisor, leads Democratic incumbent Harley Rouda, 50.8% to 49.2%. Challenger Young Kim, a former state assemblywoman, has opened a similarly slim lead over incumbent Gil Cisneros in their rematch for the 39th District, 50.5% to 49.5%.
California Republicans may take back two congressional seats in key Orange County races Republican candidates lead two of California’s most competitive races in Orange County, taking back lost ground from 2018. The candidates, Young Kim and Michelle Steel, could be the first Korean American women in Congress.
Both Rouda and Cisneros were elected as part of the 2018 “blue wave” that saw Democrats sweep the county’s seven congressional seats. That year, Cisneros beat Kim by about three percentage points and Rouda prevailed by more than seven percentage points over longtime incumbent Dana Rohrabacher in the most conservative part of the county.
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But no one took Rouda’s victory to mean the 48th District — the heart of John Wayne country, with Huntington Beach and Newport Beach at its core — had turned liberal. Rohrabacher was a quirky figure. A pro-marijuana maverick prone to strange, off-the-cuff statements, he vilified communists and undocumented immigrants as Orange County politicos of yore had done, at a time when much of the county had grown past that. And his close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin became a significant liability after the Russian interference in the 2016 election.
“Michelle Steel is a far stronger candidate than Dana Rohrabacher, who had his own issues,” said Fred Smoller, an associate professor of political science at Chapman University.
Biden, meanwhile, has maintained a healthy lead over Trump countywide — 53.7% to 44.4%, a gap of roughly 131,000 votes as ballots are still being counted. Hillary Clinton beat Trump in the county four years ago by a margin of 50.9% to 42.3%. In 2012, Republican candidate Mitt Romney prevailed over then-President Barack Obama by more than 6 percentage points.
Trump has struggled across the country in diverse suburbs with large numbers of college-educated residents like this one. Orange County is 34% Latino and 21.7% Asian. But Romney’s easy win here in 2012 suggests that a more traditional Republican could still prevail.
The fact that the GOP could make gains at the congressional level, even if Trump loses the county by a sizable margin overall, shows that “the Republican Party is not dead” in the region, according to Smoller.
“It always used to be red, it wasn’t even worth talking about because everything was red,” Smoller said. “But now you’re going to see competitive races: Some are going to go to Democrats, some to Republicans and several of them are going to be very, very close.”
They might not be as red hot as this election. Passions for and against Trump helped drive a “remarkable turnout,” with 77% of registered voters casting ballots, said Louis DeSipio, a professor of political science and Chicano/Latino studies at UC Irvine.
“He’s a very polarizing figure and that sort of polarization, at least when it sort of attaches to Orange County, advantaged the Democrats — because even sort of Republican-leaning voters here are more alienated by his immigration message” and his response to the COVID-19 pandemic, DeSipio said.
But, DeSipio added, in general Republicans have a “rhetorical advantage” with voters over taxes. Steel’s main line of attack, for instance, was to claim that Rouda wanted to raise taxes, which he denied.
Another reason Orange County’s bluer tint may not be uniform up and down the ballot, DeSipio said, is that old habits die hard.
“That reflects that some of the sort of long-term legacies in the community remain,” he said. “People don’t just sort of flip overnight from being a Republican to being a Democrat or an independent to a Democrat.”
Sarah Stanley, 24, of Aliso Viejo still sees her community as a bastion of conservatism. She takes pride in her family’s military background. Stanley voted for Trump and voted along party lines down her ballot.
Her boyfriend is currently enlisted in the Army but might not reenlist if Biden is elected.
“We’re quite scared for our future if Biden ends up winning, because if [my boyfriend] doesn’t reenlist, we’re going to miss out on all of the benefits we currently get,” Stanley said.
Tracy Drivas, a 62-year-old real estate agent in Irvine, voted for Trump in 2016 and is still a registered Republican who voted for the 45th-district Republican congressional candidate Greg Raths in this election. But she couldn’t fill in the Trump bubble. “The way Trump handled COVID was a travesty,” she said. “He’s just a vile human being.”
She voted for Biden.
On Ortega Highway in San Juan Capistrano, Robert Hunt, a registered independent from Laguna Niguel, monitored a Trump merchandise pop-up shop Friday. The 60-year-old didn’t care for Trump’s campaign, and explained that he ran the pop-up only to make money because his professional sports company went out of business due to the pandemic.
“Trump is an idiot and Biden is useless,” he said. But his passions were still high enough to vote for president. He wrote in the name of someone who wasn’t even running, former U.S. Sen. and 2000 vice presidential nominee Joe Lieberman.


latimes--2020-11-07--LAPD to dramatically downsize special units, focus on patrol as budget cut shrinks force

The Los Angeles Police Department in coming months will downsize its specialized units and stop responding in person to traffic collisions and other minor incidents as part of a broad reorganization aimed at preserving patrol and community engagement functions amid new fiscal constraints .
Although specific figures weren ’ t available Friday , the reshuffling will reduce the size of the vaunted but troubled Metropolitan Division , as well as cut the air support , robbery and homicide and gang and narcotics divisions .
The department also will reduce desk hours at its stations , cut special deployments in popular @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and stop staffing teams that cover homelessness issues .
A total of 234 officers will move back into patrol .
Station desks will be manned only during weekday hours .
Victims of misdemeanor hit-and-run crashes and collisions with minor injuries will be advised to file a report online .
“ We need to offload a number of responsibilities , ” said LAPD Chief Michel Moore in an interview with The Times Friday .
The plans — which Moore said protect the department ’ s core patrol mission and its newly expanded Community Safety @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Council cut the department ’ s multibillion-dollar budget by $ 150 million in the face of widespread protests this summer , and amid a pandemic-driven fiscal crisis that could see funding for police and other city agencies dry up further as the year progresses .
They also come as homicides and shootings soar to levels not seen in the city in a decade , ratcheting up concerns in some communities that the changes could cost lives .
Homicides are up by about 25 % this year , compared with last , putting the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for the first time since 2009 .
More broadly , the cuts represent a new trajectory for one of the largest and most scrutinized police agencies in the country — and reflect how fully it has been forced to bend to the “ Defund Police ” movement , which garnered attention and momentum this summer when activists and other protesters rallied in massive numbers in the streets and barraged local elected officials with demands in person and during virtual Zoom meetings .
Moore said the $ 150-million budget cut — historic but far @ @ @ @ @ @ @ presented a “ tremendous challenge ” to the LAPD , forcing it to cut 350 sworn positions and reducing its ranks from about 10,110 sworn officers to an estimated 9,752 by March or April .
Many more civilian employees will be lost .
The reductions will come through retirements , not from closing out vacant positions , meaning they are “ a true cutback ” in force and not simply “ phantom vacancies ” remaining unfilled , Moore said .
In response , Moore requested input from commanders throughout the department on how @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the new budget , and with their input drafted the above plan .
He said he is now discussing the changes with the union that represents rank-and-file LAPD officers .
The city ’ s collective bargaining agreement with the Los Angeles Police Protective League may limit how Moore can shuffle officers , but Moore said the general thrust of his proposed shakeup is unlikely to change .
What the impact will be in Los Angeles is not immediately clear — and far from agreed upon .
Craig Lally , president of the police @ @ @ @ @ @ @ engage with Moore to make sure the cuts and transfers of officers are “ done in a fair and transparent way ” for officers — but that the changes will be a “ catastrophe for the safety ” of Angelenos at a time of intense violence .
“ These cuts can ’ t come at a worse time , and our neighbors will be less safe .
It ’ s going to be catastrophic , ” he said .
“ There ’ s nothing good that ’ s going to come out of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ going to get worse .
This is just the tip of the iceberg.
” Melina Abdullah , co-founder of the Los Angeles chapter of Black Lives Matter , said protesters and activist groups who fought for the LAPD budget reduction welcome having fewer officers on the streets , especially if it means fewer interactions between police and people suffering from mental illness or homelessness .
“ We do want to see cuts to LAPD , especially around those areas that they don ’ t have the expertise to handle , ” Abdullah said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said she viewed Moore ’ s plan as “ a first step ” that “ doesn ’ t go nearly far enough ” in redirecting police funding to “ the things that actually create safe communities , ” which she said include community-based intervention and prevention workers and recreation programs .
To date , Abdullah said she has not seen the city invest any of the money it saved by cutting the police budget back into the community , but her group intends to provide a list of things it would like to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Moskos , a former officer and professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York , said the impact of changes to policing in major cities can be hard to immediately detect in crime trends .
A recent analysis by The Times found that , of nearly 18 million calls logged by the LAPD since 2010 , less than 8 % — or about 1.4 million — were for reports of homicides , assaults with deadly weapons , robberies , batteries , shots fired and rape .
Police responded to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ minor disturbances.
” Still , “ there ’ s no way policing will get better with less money , ” Moskos said , and “ people should be concerned ” that the LAPD changes are coming at a time when violence has increased so dramatically .
If crime does increase , the impacts will “ reverberate ” across the city , he said , including as trauma suffered by victims of violence in communities most heavily impacted by it , which are disproportionately communities of color .
Moskos said the reduction in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a fiscal way if emergencies force the LAPD to call in — and therefore pay overtime to — a large number of officers .
That would undercut an effort by the department to rein in overtime as another cost-saving measure .
Moore said he agrees with protesters and local politicians that police should not be frontline responders in situations involving mental illness , homelessness or minor traffic incidents , and his intention is to start carving out more areas of crisis response in the city where the police play no role .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ in trying to find replacement agencies or organizations to handle those incidents , he said .
The transportation department , facing its own fiscal pressures , has rejected the idea of its personnel responding to collisions instead of police , Moore said .
A program backed by Mayor Eric Garcetti ’ s office and Los Angeles County officials in which unarmed crisis teams will be dispatched to some nonviolent 911 calls may help reduce the need for officers , but Moore said the overall shift of police duties to other entities is “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s not going deep enough.
” Moving forward , the LAPD will “ continue to identify calls that we are no longer going to respond to , ” as it looks for “ other agencies and organizations to hand that baton to , ” Moore said .
In the meantime , he said he hopes his efforts to protect patrol will empower commanders in each of the city ’ s 21 geographic areas to “ manage the most pressing public safety needs there ” with the resources they have .
Moore said that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and de-escalation training and internal affairs investigations , will not be impacted .
Alex Comisar , a spokesman for Garcetti , said the city is “ reimagining ” public safety along with community leaders , and Garcetti “ trusts the LAPD ’ s ability to make the operational changes necessary to keep our city safe , and help us meet this moment in partnership with all Angelenos .
”

LAPD Chief Michel Moore says the department is downsizing its specialized units in an effort to preserve patrol and community engagement functions after a $150-million budget cut.
The Los Angeles Police Department in coming months will downsize its specialized units and stop responding in person to traffic collisions and other minor incidents as part of a broad reorganization aimed at preserving patrol and community engagement functions amid new fiscal constraints.
Although specific figures weren’t available Friday, the reshuffling will reduce the size of the vaunted but troubled Metropolitan Division, as well as cut the air support, robbery and homicide and gang and narcotics divisions. The department also will reduce desk hours at its stations, cut special deployments in popular areas such as Venice and Hollywood, and stop staffing teams that cover homelessness issues.
A total of 234 officers will move back into patrol. Station desks will be manned only during weekday hours. Victims of misdemeanor hit-and-run crashes and collisions with minor injuries will be advised to file a report online.
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“We need to offload a number of responsibilities,” said LAPD Chief Michel Moore in an interview with The Times Friday.
The plans — which Moore said protect the department’s core patrol mission and its newly expanded Community Safety Partnership program — come after the City Council cut the department’s multibillion-dollar budget by $150 million in the face of widespread protests this summer, and amid a pandemic-driven fiscal crisis that could see funding for police and other city agencies dry up further as the year progresses.
They also come as homicides and shootings soar to levels not seen in the city in a decade, ratcheting up concerns in some communities that the changes could cost lives. Homicides are up by about 25% this year, compared with last, putting the city on pace to surpass 300 killings for the first time since 2009.
More broadly, the cuts represent a new trajectory for one of the largest and most scrutinized police agencies in the country — and reflect how fully it has been forced to bend to the “Defund Police” movement, which garnered attention and momentum this summer when activists and other protesters rallied in massive numbers in the streets and barraged local elected officials with demands in person and during virtual Zoom meetings.
Moore said the $150-million budget cut — historic but far short of what activists had demanded — presented a “tremendous challenge” to the LAPD, forcing it to cut 350 sworn positions and reducing its ranks from about 10,110 sworn officers to an estimated 9,752 by March or April. Many more civilian employees will be lost.
The reductions will come through retirements, not from closing out vacant positions, meaning they are “a true cutback” in force and not simply “phantom vacancies” remaining unfilled, Moore said.
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In response, Moore requested input from commanders throughout the department on how to restructure the department in light of the new budget, and with their input drafted the above plan. He said he is now discussing the changes with the union that represents rank-and-file LAPD officers.
The city’s collective bargaining agreement with the Los Angeles Police Protective League may limit how Moore can shuffle officers, but Moore said the general thrust of his proposed shakeup is unlikely to change.
What the impact will be in Los Angeles is not immediately clear — and far from agreed upon.
Craig Lally, president of the police union, said his group plans to engage with Moore to make sure the cuts and transfers of officers are “done in a fair and transparent way” for officers — but that the changes will be a “catastrophe for the safety” of Angelenos at a time of intense violence.
“These cuts can’t come at a worse time, and our neighbors will be less safe. It’s going to be catastrophic,” he said. “There’s nothing good that’s going to come out of this, and it’s only going to get worse. This is just the tip of the iceberg.”
Melina Abdullah, co-founder of the Los Angeles chapter of Black Lives Matter, said protesters and activist groups who fought for the LAPD budget reduction welcome having fewer officers on the streets, especially if it means fewer interactions between police and people suffering from mental illness or homelessness.
“We do want to see cuts to LAPD, especially around those areas that they don’t have the expertise to handle,” Abdullah said.
At the same time, Abdullah said she viewed Moore’s plan as “a first step” that “doesn’t go nearly far enough” in redirecting police funding to “the things that actually create safe communities,” which she said include community-based intervention and prevention workers and recreation programs.
To date, Abdullah said she has not seen the city invest any of the money it saved by cutting the police budget back into the community, but her group intends to provide a list of things it would like to see funded in coming weeks.
Peter Moskos, a former officer and professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York, said the impact of changes to policing in major cities can be hard to immediately detect in crime trends.
A recent analysis by The Times found that, of nearly 18 million calls logged by the LAPD since 2010, less than 8% — or about 1.4 million — were for reports of homicides, assaults with deadly weapons, robberies, batteries, shots fired and rape. Police responded to a greater number of traffic accidents and “minor disturbances.”
Still, “there’s no way policing will get better with less money,” Moskos said, and “people should be concerned” that the LAPD changes are coming at a time when violence has increased so dramatically.
If crime does increase, the impacts will “reverberate” across the city, he said, including as trauma suffered by victims of violence in communities most heavily impacted by it, which are disproportionately communities of color.
Moskos said the reduction in the number of officers also could backfire in a fiscal way if emergencies force the LAPD to call in — and therefore pay overtime to — a large number of officers. That would undercut an effort by the department to rein in overtime as another cost-saving measure.
Moore said he agrees with protesters and local politicians that police should not be frontline responders in situations involving mental illness, homelessness or minor traffic incidents, and his intention is to start carving out more areas of crisis response in the city where the police play no role.
But he’s had mixed results in trying to find replacement agencies or organizations to handle those incidents, he said.
The transportation department, facing its own fiscal pressures, has rejected the idea of its personnel responding to collisions instead of police, Moore said. A program backed by Mayor Eric Garcetti’s office and Los Angeles County officials in which unarmed crisis teams will be dispatched to some nonviolent 911 calls may help reduce the need for officers, but Moore said the overall shift of police duties to other entities is “not going fast enough and it’s not going deep enough.”
Moving forward, the LAPD will “continue to identify calls that we are no longer going to respond to,” as it looks for “other agencies and organizations to hand that baton to,” Moore said.
In the meantime, he said he hopes his efforts to protect patrol will empower commanders in each of the city’s 21 geographic areas to “manage the most pressing public safety needs there” with the resources they have.
Moore said that officer education and oversight, including anti-bias and de-escalation training and internal affairs investigations, will not be impacted.
Alex Comisar, a spokesman for Garcetti, said the city is “reimagining” public safety along with community leaders, and Garcetti “trusts the LAPD’s ability to make the operational changes necessary to keep our city safe, and help us meet this moment in partnership with all Angelenos.”


latimes--2020-11-07--As holiday season nears, coronavirus cases spike in L.A. County

For the first time since mid-August , Los Angeles County on Friday announced more than 2,100 new coronavirus cases , @ @ @ @ @ the type of daily numbers it saw during the summer spike .
The Los Angeles @ @ @ @ @ said in a statement that Friday was the third day in a row the county @ @ @ @ @ cases ; over the past three days , 6,016 cases were reported .
The total @ @ @ @ @ the county is now 317,656 .
There were also 23 deaths reported Friday , for @ @ @ @ @ Officials urged the public to continue following safety measures and to minimize gatherings going into @ @ @ @ @ We have experienced increasing cases in L.A. County before and have demonstrated that we can @ @ @ @ @ spread of COVID-19 and saving lives when we are united in our efforts to minimize @ @ @ @ @ , director of the county public health department , said in a statement .

For the first time since mid-August, Los Angeles County on Friday announced more than 2,100 new coronavirus cases, bringing the county back to the type of daily numbers it saw during the summer spike.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health said in a statement that Friday was the third day in a row the county had seen more than 1,800 cases; over the past three days, 6,016 cases were reported. The total number of COVID-19 cases in the county is now 317,656.
There were also 23 deaths reported Friday, for a total of 7,157.
Officials urged the public to continue following safety measures and to minimize gatherings going into the holiday season.
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“We have experienced increasing cases in L.A. County before and have demonstrated that we can get back to slowing the spread of COVID-19 and saving lives when we are united in our efforts to minimize infections,” Barbara Ferrer, director of the county public health department, said in a statement.


latimes--2020-11-06--Teenager says Trump supporter assaulted her in South Pasadena

Police are investigating a teenager ’ s report that a Trump supporter assaulted her this week during a youth-led counterprotest .
The South Pasadena Police Department said in a statement that there was a “ physical altercation between two opposing political groups ” at Fair Oaks Avenue and Mission Street about 6 p.m. Sunday .
The Police Department didn ’ t provide details about what happened and said no one was arrested .
Both the teenager and the alleged attacker pressed claims against each other for battery , which will be presented to the Los Angeles County district attorney ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ police Sgt .
Spencer Louie said .
It ’ s unclear how many people are involved in each case .
Penny Aboud , 16 , said she was near two booths that were selling Trump merchandise on Sunday evening when a woman yanked her hair and pulled her to the ground .
“ She pulled my hair and jerked my head back and kind of drags me over to the side of the tents , ” Penny said .
“ It was really scary.
” Then , she said , the Trump supporters @ @ @ @ @ @ @ People had to pull them off of me , ” she said .
They “ lunged for me.
” Witnesses said they were shocked that the South Pasadena Police Department made no arrests after they saw the woman assault the girl .
Ixchel Carrizales , a 19-year-old protester , said the two groups were shouting and arguing throughout the day .
The Trump supporters were making comments about the children ’ s race , telling a little girl that she was not Black and calling a group the “ baby KKK , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Aboud ’ s friend .
Carrizales said someone called her an immigrant and told her “ go back to my country.
” She says she was born in the U.S. At one point , Carrizales saw Penny appear to get frustrated and knock over some MAGA caps from one of the Trump merchandise booths .
The woman behind the booth lunged toward Aboud , Carrizales said .
She and a group of other protesters intervened to separate the woman from the girl .
The group “ had to grab at the woman @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the girl and there was a struggle .
You could tell [ Penny ] was under a lot of distress , ” Carrizales said .
“ She was crying , she was scared.
” Carrizales said the counterprotesters did not attack the woman or man behind the booths .
Ava said she was upset about the way the South Pasadena Police Department handled the situation and would have expected an arrest .
Her mother , Nichole Dunville , said that when the people selling the Trump merchandise were packing up to leave , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ They got to pull the car up to the curb and fill their car with the police jovially helping them , almost , ” Nichole Dunville said .
“ They had a little police escort out of there.
” Said Ava : “ The fact they drove off was really surprising to everyone that was still standing there.
” Louie , the police official , said no arrests were made because “ that ’ s how we ’ ve chosen to handle this.
” He declined to comment further on the case @ @ @ @ @ @

Police are investigating a teenager’s report that a Trump supporter assaulted her this week during a youth-led counterprotest.
The South Pasadena Police Department said in a statement that there was a “physical altercation between two opposing political groups” at Fair Oaks Avenue and Mission Street about 6 p.m. Sunday.
The Police Department didn’t provide details about what happened and said no one was arrested. Both the teenager and the alleged attacker pressed claims against each other for battery, which will be presented to the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office for review, South Pasadena police Sgt. Spencer Louie said.
It’s unclear how many people are involved in each case.
Penny Aboud, 16, said she was near two booths that were selling Trump merchandise on Sunday evening when a woman yanked her hair and pulled her to the ground.
“She pulled my hair and jerked my head back and kind of drags me over to the side of the tents,” Penny said. “It was really scary.”
Then, she said, the Trump supporters in the area surrounded her.
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“People had to pull them off of me,” she said. They “lunged for me.”
Witnesses said they were shocked that the South Pasadena Police Department made no arrests after they saw the woman assault the girl.
Ixchel Carrizales, a 19-year-old protester, said the two groups were shouting and arguing throughout the day. The Trump supporters were making comments about the children’s race, telling a little girl that she was not Black and calling a group the “baby KKK,” said Ava Dunville, a 17-year-old protester and Aboud’s friend.
Carrizales said someone called her an immigrant and told her “go back to my country.” She says she was born in the U.S.
At one point, Carrizales saw Penny appear to get frustrated and knock over some MAGA caps from one of the Trump merchandise booths.
The woman behind the booth lunged toward Aboud, Carrizales said. She and a group of other protesters intervened to separate the woman from the girl.
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The group “had to grab at the woman’s hand to get her off the girl and there was a struggle. You could tell [Penny] was under a lot of distress,” Carrizales said. “She was crying, she was scared.”
Carrizales said the counterprotesters did not attack the woman or man behind the booths.
Ava said she was upset about the way the South Pasadena Police Department handled the situation and would have expected an arrest.
Her mother, Nichole Dunville, said that when the people selling the Trump merchandise were packing up to leave, the police appeared to protect them.
“They got to pull the car up to the curb and fill their car with the police jovially helping them, almost,” Nichole Dunville said. “They had a little police escort out of there.”
Said Ava: “The fact they drove off was really surprising to everyone that was still standing there.”
Louie, the police official, said no arrests were made because “that’s how we’ve chosen to handle this.”
He declined to comment further on the case, citing the ongoing investigation.