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Political Playback: California Capitol News You Might Have Missed
News You Might Have Missed
Stefi Mar November 5, 2024
News You Might Have Missed
With the general elections just a few days away, Black organizations and leaders, including Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA-43), are sounding the alarm about Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation’s controversial “policy bible.”
Assemblymember Mike Gipson (D-Carson), a member of the California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC) says he supports Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposal to expand the state’s Film and Television Tax Credit Program from its current $330 million annual budget allocation to $750 million.
In the final days of the campaign, stark disagreements between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump over the future of American health care are on display — in particular, in sober warnings about abortion access, the specter of future cuts to the Affordable Care Act, and bold pronouncements about empowering activists eager to change course and clean house.
As America elects a new President this week — and a slate of new elected officials at the local and state level — the voices of young voters in California are resounding as political campaigns and policy makers order their priorities and shape their messages to include their perspectives and respond to their concerns.
On the campaign trail, both former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are eager to portray themselves as guardians of Medicare. Each presidential candidate accuses the other of backing spending cuts and other policies that would damage the health insurance program for older Americans.
A group of researchers from Rutgers University and Michigan State University have launched a major study to examine the long-term effects of structural racism on cognitive aging, physical decline, and frailty—particularly in Black Americans. A five-year grant from the National Institute on Aging, a division of the National Institutes of Health, will support the study under the direction of Danielle L. Beatty Moody, an associate professor at Rutgers University, and Richard C. Sadler, an associate professor at Michigan State.
Usually, the Dead of the Dead, Dia De Los Muertos celebrations are held the first couple of days on November 1st and 2nd, 2024. The Annual Dia De Los Muertos Cultural Festival returned to the Inglewood Park Cemetery on Sunday, October 27, 2024.
News You Might Have Missed
The five men wrongfully convicted in the 1989 Central Park assault case, known as the “Exonerated Five,” have filed a defamation lawsuit against former President Donald Trump after he made false statements during a September 10, 2024, presidential debate. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Pennsylvania, claims that the 34-times convicted Trump falsely asserted they had “pleaded guilty” to the crime and falsely stated they “killed a person ultimately” during the assault, claims that have widely been debunked.
As a Nurse Practitioner, I’ve dedicated my career to advocating for Black women’s health, recognizing the systemic barriers that place us at risk. I’ve witnessed the dismissal of our pain, the neglect of our needs, and the tragic repercussions of a healthcare system that fails to recognize us. But nothing has shaken me as deeply as what happened to my niece, Tyler. It made the crisis personal in a way I never anticipated—and it nearly cost her life.
The study reveals that Black patients are 29% less likely than their white counterparts to receive multimodal analgesia, which utilizes various medications to improve pain control while reducing opioid use.
An investigation by ProPublica has uncovered that some of America’s most iconic gun manufacturers secretly shared sensitive personal information on hundreds of thousands of customers with political operatives—without their consent. The covert operation, spearheaded by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), aimed to bolster pro-gun politicians running for Congress and the White House. The intimate customer data, some of which date back to the 1970s, formed the backbone of a massive political database that influenced elections for over two decades.
As America moves toward the most consequential presidential election in recent memory, criminal justice reform has emerged as a potential game-changer, with a new poll revealing broad bipartisan support for reducing incarceration. The survey by BSG for FWD.us reveals that 81% of likely voters support criminal justice reform, including 85% of Democrats, 82% of Independents, and 76% of Republicans. Voters in key battleground states such as Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, and Pennsylvania overwhelmingly favor reform, positioning the issue as potentially a deciding factor in the 2024 presidential race.
Voting is one of our most fundamental rights. It’s not just about having a say in the future of our country, it’s about honoring the legacy of those who fought and sacrificed so that we could have a voice. As a voting rights lawyer, I’ve seen the impacts of voter suppression firsthand, and how deeply un-American it is when folks cannot vote because of arbitrary barriers put in place to make it harder.
When Pam McClure learned she’d save nearly $4,000 on her prescription drugs next year, she said, “it sounded too good to be true.” She and her husband are both retired and live on a “very strict” budget in central North Dakota.
Vice President Kamala Harris raised concerns about Donald Trump’s ongoing racist rhetoric during a virtual town hall with radio host Charlamagne tha God, suggesting the former president intends to use fear as a tool to target minority communities. Harris responded to a voter from Georgia who feared Trump would use the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to detain people of color. “Bobby,” the voter, expressed worry that Trump would “put anyone that doesn’t look white in camps.”
The 2024 presidential race between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump has underscored a profound clash on race and justice. Trump, the twice impeached Republican nominee who next month faces sentencing in New York for 34 felony convictions, has called for greater police authority and protections, stirring deep fears within African American and minority communities already grappling with systemic racism and violence. His recent statements, supporting qualified immunity and endorsing lethal force against perceived enemies, reveal a hardline stance that threatens the very fabric of civil rights gains in America.
Prop 3 would remove the ban on same-sex marriage from the California Constitution. The ban (Prop 8) was added by voters in 2008; however, the United States Supreme Court has blocked the enforcement of the ban since 2013. The amendment would remove current language in the state constitution stating that marriage “is only between a man and a woman” and change it to “the right to marry is a fundamental right.”
I’m incredibly proud to lead Minnesota Public Radio (MPR). I’m energized by expanding the circle of people who depend on our news, information, and music programming. Our ‘going deeper’ approach helps the public to bridge gaps and form connections through meaningful community engagement and listening experiences. My professional and learning journeys started with Head Start.