Levi Sumagaysay

Steve Bannon says ICE will ‘surround the polls’ as Trump doubles down on taking over elections Trump doubled down on his comments to nationalize voting Tuesday during an Oval Office press conference. “If you think about it, a state is an agent for the federal government in elections,” Trump sai...

Steve Bannon says the federal government is planning to send ICE officers to patrol polling stations during the midterms.

"We're going to have ICE surround the polls come November."

"We're not going to sit here and allow you to steal the country again." www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/...

Department of Health Care Services headquarters in Sacramento on Sept. 15, 2022. Photo by Rahul Lal, CalMatters

Close to four thousand employees of the California Department of Public Health were told they must use the federal E-Verify system to keep federal funding. Unions are pushing back. bit.ly/49Mp8V8

📸 Rahul Lal

Statement from FPF Chief of Advocacy Seth Stern: “The government’s arrests of journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort are naked attacks on freedom of the press. Two federal courts flatly rejected prosecuting Lemon because the evidence for these vindictive and unconstitutional charges was insufficient, and Lemon has every right to document news and inform the public. Instead of accepting that humiliating defeat, the government has now doubled down. “These arrests, under bogus legal theories for obviously constitutionally protected reporting, are clear warning shots aimed at other journalists. The unmistakable message is that journalists must tread cautiously because the government is looking for any way to target them. Fort’s arrest is meant to instill the same fear in local independent journalists as big names like Lemon. “The answer to this outrageous attack is not fear or self-censorship. It’s an even stronger commitment to journalism, the truth, and the First Amendment. If the Trump administration thinks it can bully journalists into submission, it is wrong. We’ve recently seen that even in the Trump era, public pressure still can work. It’s time to do it again. News outlets across the political spectrum need to loudly defend Lemon’s and Fort’s rights. Journalists are not making themselves the story, Trump is.”

The government’s arrests of journalists @donlemonofficial.bsky.social and @bygeorgiafort.bsky.social are attacks on freedom of the press.

Two federal courts flatly rejected prosecuting Lemon, but instead of accepting that humiliating defeat, the government has now doubled down.

Read our statement:

CN The FBl's arrest of our former CNN colleague Don Lemon raises profoundly concerning questions about press freedom and the First Amendment. The Department of Justice already failed twice to get an arrest warrant for Don and several other journalists in Minnesota, where a chief judge of the Minnesota Federal District Court found there was "no evidence" that there was any criminal behavior involved in their work. The First Amendment in the United States protects journalists who bear witness to news and events as they unfold, ensuring they can report freely in the public interest, and the DO's attempts to violate those rights is unacceptable. We will be following this case closely.

Statement from CNN on the Don Lemon arrest:

Members of Unión del Barrio gather by flashlight in the predawn hours before patrolling the Linda Vista neighborhood in San Diego on Jan. 13, 2026. The group by alerts residents to the presence of ICE agents in the community. Photo by John Gastaldo for CalMatters. Hed: Immigration arrests quietly surge by 1,500% in San Diego: ‘I feel the temperature rising’

While the Trump administration’s immigration blitz hit Midwestern cities like Chicago and Minneapolis, a quieter escalation unfolded in San Diego late last year with agents making thousands of arrests in and around the city. bit.ly/3NEmCrw

📸 John Gastaldo

Tesla’s ‘unsupervised’ Robotaxis vanish a week after pre-earnings announcement A week ago, Elon Musk announced that Tesla had started Robotaxi rides in Austin “with no safety monitor in the car.” The stock jumped 4%. Headlines celebrated the milestone. But since then, not a single rider has reported actually getting one of these unsupervised rides. The announcement came on January 22, just days before a major ice storm hit Austin and, conveniently, less than a week before Tesla’s Q4 2025 earnings report today. The service has started back since then, but no one is getting the “unsupervised” rides. more…

Tesla’s ‘unsupervised’ Robotaxis vanish a week after pre-earnings announcement

Trump, GOP leaders ramp up attacks over Palisades Fire as California wildfire aid sits in limbo The partisan feud over the deadly Los Angeles wildfires intensifies, with President Trump and congressional Republicans ramping up attacks on California and local response.

After President Trump issued his permitting EO yesterday, I asked the White House if he would support supplement disaster aid for the Los Angeles fires.

“Newscum doesn’t need more money, Californians need relief,” a spokesperson said.

www.sfchronicle.com/politics/art...

Gravel covers a five-foot non-combustible buffer in front of a model home in the Dixon Trail neighborhood of Escondido on April 24, 2025. The buffer zone helps reduce the chances of a home being ignited by the embers from a wildfire. Developer KB Home is marketing Dixon Trail as the first “wildfire resilient neighborhood” in the U.S., constructed using fire-resistant materials and methods. Photo by Adriana Heldiz, CalMatters

As fire survivors continue to navigate life after disaster, California lawmakers roll out new bills attempting to further regulate insurance companies like State Farm.

📸 Adriana Heldiz

ICE agent asked why he's taking pictures of a legal observer's car, replies: "Cuz we have a nice little database and now you're considered a domestic terrorist. So have fun with that."

This week I wrote about how small businesses in Altadena are faring one year after the Eaton Fire as they deal with insurance, red tape and varying levels of support from the government. Some are striving to rebuild, while others just don't have it in them.

A teenage boy with dark hair and a black and gold football jersey holds his helmet, standing on the side line of a green football field

I’m one of the ProPublica reporters who has been documenting the aggressive tactics federal agents are using against immigrants & U.S. citizens

All eyes are on Minnesota right now, but I want to tell you about Arnoldo Bazan, a 16-YO citizen in Houston who was choked by immigration agents in October

Attorney General Rob Bonta during the swearing-in ceremony for Senate President pro Tempore Monique Limón in the Senate chambers at the state Capitol in Sacramento on Jan. 5, 2026. Photo by Miguel Gutierrez Jr., CalMatters/Pool. Hed: ‘They’re escalating’: A Q&A with Rob Bonta on Trump’s immigration crackdown

California Attorney General Rob Bonta has sued the Trump administration more than 50 times. CalMatters spoke with Bonta this week about those cases and how he views the Trump administration’s current focus on Minneapolis. bit.ly/45LulKl

📸 Miguel Gutierrez Jr.

The Supreme Court only cleared the way for Kavanaugh Stops four months ago and ICE now openly engages in violent racial profiling, snatching anyone who looks non-white and treating them as presumptively guilty of a crime. Remarkable how quickly our liberties can be crushed when courts go along.

The mainstream media believes the only opinion that counts is conservative. When a democrat wins the presidency they talk to conservative voters, when a republican wins they… talk to conservatives.

F.B.I. Searches Home of Washington Post Journalist for Classified Documents

This is an outrage. www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...

Read @hannahnatanson.bsky.social's work:

* www.washingtonpost.com/politics/int...
* www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...
* www.washingtonpost.com/politics/int...

GoFundMe Ignores Own Rules by Hosting a Legal-Defense Fund for the ICE Agent Who Killed Renee Good The fundraiser for the ICE agent in the Renee Good killing has stayed online in seeming breach of GoFundMe’s own terms of service, prompting questions about selective enforcement.

NEW: GoFundMe strictly bans fundraisers for “the legal defense of financial and violent crimes,” yet is currently running one “to help pay for any legal services” for the ICE agent who killed Renee Nicole Good. Its conflict is not even the least bit contestable.

When Bay Area PG&E substations caught fire, inspectors had already raised red flags The utility, which serves 16 million customers from Eureka to Bakersfield and made a record profit of $2.47 billion last year, has faced accusations for years that it has prioritized paying billion…

Two recent fires at PG&E substations cut power to thousands, drew condemnation from members of Congress, and spotlighted a year full of safety and maintenance violations at the utility giant’s substations throughout the region. www.mercurynews.com/2026/01/06/f...

Good question.

Graphic of My Legislator logo, next to a collage of CA-elected assembly members and senators, the capitol building, and the state seal. Hed: My Legislator: CalMatters’ new accountability newsletter lets Californians track their state legislators

CalMatters is launching a free tool that helps Californians follow, engage and hold their Sacramento lawmakers accountable in a powerful new way. bit.ly/45vq1ig

Just seen Grok putting the body of the victim of the ICE shooting in Minneapolis into a bikini. Digital corpse desecration now available to the public.

Gov. Gavin Newsom outlines his proposed 2025-2026 state budget during a news conference at California State University, Stanislaus in Turlock, on Jan. 6, 2025. Photo by Rich Pedroncelli, AP Photo. Hed: Gavin Newsom joins Trump in blaming big investors for housing crisis

In his final year in office, Gov. Gavin Newsom plans to go after large investors buying and owning California housing — in the same week that President Donald Trump also took rhetorical aim at Big Landlord. bit.ly/3Z3BSAo

📸 Rich Pedroncelli, AP

A Florida senator wants answers on the Palisades Fire. What’s he really after? Why does a former Florida governor whose experience is mostly with hurricanes care so much about one fire that took place across the country?

On the anniversary of the Los Angeles fires, California's calls for more federal aid have stalled while a congressional investigation is gaining steam.

Just why does Florida's Sen. Rick Scott care so much about one fire that took place across the country? www.sfchronicle.com/politics/art...

Ray Farhang clears out mud from his driveway after heavy rainfall triggered multiple mudslides in the Eaton Fire burn scar area in Altadena on Feb. 14, 2025. Photo by Joel Angel Juarez for CalMatters. Hed: Many L.A. fire survivors face insurance delays and can’t return home a year later

A year after the deadly Los Angeles County fires, California’s property insurance market remains problematic; survivors are suing insurers over delayed or denied claims; and most of the state’s policyholders are likely to see their premiums rise. bit.ly/4jw4rQC

📸 Joel Angel Juarez

I'd love news organizations to get a comment from all the corporations, such as SPOTIFY, that continue running ICE ads on their platforms.

Do they support ICE murdering US citizens?

They still support ICE?

Let American consumers know!

How Many People Have Been Shot in ICE Raids? The Trace is tracking gun incidents connected to Trump’s immigration crackdown. Know of one? Please be in touch.

Update: As of January 7, The Trace has identified 28 incidents, including 14 shootings, in which federal agents shot someone or held them at gunpoint during an immigration enforcement action under Trump’s crackdown. At least four people have been killed and five others have been injured.

FOLKS IN MINNEAPOLIS:

SAVE all videos & photos from today. They will be valuable to prove the ICE agent --- who had time to move & re-position himself to the side of the victim's car to shoot into the driver's side window --- was not in reasonable fear of imminent serious physical injury or death.

Home construction on Hartzell Street in the Alphabet Streets neighborhood of Pacific Palisades, on Aug. 30, 2025. Photo by Myung J. Chun, Los Angeles Times via Getty Images. Hed: After devastating fires, L.A. made one part of rebuilding easy. There’s much more to do

As of this week, more than 2,600 residential permits have been issued between the Palisades and Altadena — roughly one for every five of the nearly 13,000 homes lost. Another 3,340 are under review. bit.ly/4qFnKsV

📸 Myung J. Chun, Getty

My latest look at how the tech industry's health is intertwined with the state's tax revenue, for better or for worse.

A compensation program from Southern California Edison related to the Eaton fire has had a slow start. A fireplace remains standing from a home that was burned down by the Eaton Fire on Jan. 8, 2025. Photo by Jules Hotz for CalMatters. Hed: Utility blamed for Eaton fire only compensated 82 victims two months into program

Southern California Edison received 1,500 applications for its Eaton fire compensation program and only paid out 82 after close to two months. bit.ly/49nP0oJ

📸 Jules Hotz