Tag Archive for: California

Biden Admin Weighs California’s Latest Green Gambit That Could Set Off Chain Reaction Of Economic Pain

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The Biden administration could allow California to implement a rule designed to push green locomotives, but a growing list of stakeholders are warning that the regulation would severely impact the state’s economy and the national rail industry.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) could soon determine whether it will allow the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to move forward with a state regulation that would ban the use of locomotives that are more than 23 years past their manufacturing date unless they run using zero-emissions technology, according to Progressive Railroading.

The rule could disrupt supply chains and saddle the state’s railway industry with huge new costs that would flow to consumers, with the effects of the rule potentially spilling out in other parts of the country, according to numerous trade groups, lawmakers and policy experts who believe the Biden administration should reject CARB’s request.

CARB passed the locomotive rule in April 2023, but the agency must first receive the EPA’s permission before it enacts a regulation that goes above and beyond federal rules, according to the EPA’s Federal Register entry on the request. Monday was the last day to file comments with the EPA about the matter, signaling that a final determination could be coming soon.

“When you look at regulations in California, they’re being promulgated by people who don’t really understand the ramifications of what they’re requiring,” Edward Ring, a veteran of the railroad industry who is now the director of water and energy policy for the California Policy Center, told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “CARB is asking for something — zero-emissions locomotives — that do not yet exist. And what’s going to happen is it’s going to dramatically raise the cost of shipping anywhere in California, and that’s going to have a ripple effect across the country. This is another example of California’s environmentalist regulations raising the cost of living.”

The rule for locomotives would take effect in 2030, assuming EPA allows CARB to proceed. Some of the rule’s critics say that timeline is too tight to meet given the current lack of dependable, affordable zero-emissions technology available for locomotives on the market.

Moreover, the rule also would require locomotive operators to pay into their own trust accounts to fund the acquisition of zero-emissions locomotives and related infrastructure, according to CARB. The payment structure requires operators to contribute more into the accounts for operating dirtier locomotives than they have to put up for running cleaner ones.

Because many other states adhere to CARB guidelines, the EPA’s approval could set off a chain reaction expanding the impact of the rule well beyond California’s borders, according to Ted Greener, vice president of public affairs for the Association of American Railroads (AAR).

“If EPA approves the waiver the rule becomes a national matter on the first day. Roughly 65% of the locomotive fleet goes in and out of California and almost all of the freight rail traffic that moves in the state of California traverses state lines,” Ted Greener, vice president of public affairs for the Association of American Railroads (AAR), told the DCNF. “Moreover, EPA granting the waiver enables other states to opt-in and replicate the regulation in full – including the phase out dates and the spending accounts. Such a balkanized system would be unspeakably costly, but also disruptive to the flow of goods.”

A “large number” of locomotives would be impacted by the rule, Greener told the DCNF. Typically, locomotives have a lifespan ranging from 30 to 50 years, and they are regularly upgraded or otherwise modified to be more fuel-efficient, Greener added.

Other rail industry interest groups, such as the American Short Line and Railroad Association (ASLRRA), have also opposed the rule.

“While the spirit behind this rule is consistent with short lines’ environmental commitment, the rule itself is impractical, unworkable, and simply not feasible for most short lines,” Chuck Baker, president of ASLRRA, said of CARB’s rule in May 2023. “In addition, this rulemaking does not acknowledge the impact of the elimination of some short line rail service to Californians … Short lines would not in fact be able to pass on these costs to their customers and some of them would be eliminated by this rule.”

For its part, CARB downplays most of these criticisms and concerns.

“Despite the availability of cleaner options, railroad companies have failed to make investments to replace their outdated, dirty locomotives that contribute to the state’s air quality problems and endanger the lives and health of Californians,” a CARB spokesperson told the DCNF. “Passenger vehicles, heavy-duty trucks, ocean-going vessels, heavy off-road equipment, small off-road engines used in landscaping, among other emissions sectors are all doing their part. It’s time for the rail industry to join and work with us to become part of the solution rather than focusing their efforts on litigation and PR campaigns.”

“In addition, under CARB’s Locomotive Regulation, railroads need not purchase new locomotives, but instead have many options available to them, including the use of zero-emission tender cars, rail electrification, or retrofitting of their existing locomotive fleet to ensure zero-emission operation while operating within California,” the spokesperson continued.

Labor unions, including the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers, have filed comments with EPA making their opposition to CARB’s rule clear.

Moreover, a diverse coalition of more than 60 trade groups — including the National Association of Manufacturers, the Beer Institute and the Aluminum Association — wrote a letter Friday to Karl Simon, the director of EPA’s Transportation and Climate Division, expressing significant concerns with the rule should CARB be allowed to proceed.

“This regulation from CARB has the potential to create significant disruptions in the supply chain for all sectors of the U.S. economy, especially manufacturers and shippers who rely on consistent, reliable rail service,” the letter reads. “This rule could lead to delays for businesses and increased costs for both shippers and consumers that could ultimately lead to a massive supply chain crisis. If railroads are forced to spend large amounts of money to ensure compliance with this rule, those costs will be passed along the entire supply chain and could inhibit rail service at facilities across the country – not just in California.”

“The issue is that no viable technology exists today to move freight beyond yards on a zero-emissions basis,” the letter continues. “Despite aggressive [research and development] and innovation in the rail sector and significant private investments, the technologies to achieve this rule simply do not exist at this point.”

Democratic West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin and 11 Republican Senators also wrote their own letter expressing concern about the CARB rule to EPA Administrator Michael Reagan on April 16. In addition to raising questions about the legality of CARB’s rule, the lawmakers urged the EPA to “carefully consider the environmental, supply chain, and modal shift implications that EPA approving CARB’s waiver request would have.”

The EPA did not respond immediately to a request for comment.

AUTHOR

NICK POPE

Contributor.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.

‘No Tech For Apartheid’: Google Workers Protest Company’s Services To Israel

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A group of Google employees protested Tuesday in California and New York against the information technology corporation’s provision of cloud computing services to Israel, according to reports.

The protesters in Google’s Sunnyvale, California location entered the office of Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian Tuesday morning and said they would leave only if Google would withdraw from Project Nimbus, a $1.2 billion joint contract with Amazon to provide cloud services and data centers to the Israeli government, the Washington Post reported.

A similar protest took place in a common space within Google’s New York office, Zelda Montes, one of the protesters, told the outlet. A banner reading “Google Worker Sit-In”, “Against Project Nimbus”, and “No Tech for Genocide” hung above the common space, the outlet revealed.

A protester wore a T-shirt sporting the slogans “Googler against Genocide” and “No Tech for Apartheid” according to Gizmodo.

The provision of public cloud services to the Israeli government is the first of five “central layers” of the “multi-year, large-scale flagship project” that started in 2019, according to Israel’s Government Procurement Administration. Google and Amazon shrugged off Microsoft, Oracle and IBM, the other tenderers who also bid for the contract, in Apr. 2021, Reuters reported.

Protests from within Google and Amazon have erupted in various forms since then. More than 90 Google employees and more than 300 Amazon employees collectively signed an anonymous Oct. 2021 letter accusing the companies of “aggressively” pursuing military and law enforcement contracts that “are part of a disturbing pattern of militarization, lack of transparency and avoidance of oversight.” They called on both companies to “pull out of Project Nimbus and cut all ties with the Israeli military.”

Two months after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 terror attack on Israel, workers staged a “die-in” at Google’s downtown San Francisco offices to protest against Israel’s reported use of what appeared to be a separate artificial intelligence program—termed “the Gospel”—in its military response to Hamas, according to the San Francisco (SF) Chronicle.

Google fired an employee who heckled the corporation’s top executive in Israel during a conference in New York in March, leading Montes to contemplate the possibility of being fired, too, according to the Washington Post report. “I have been waiting for months for people to be in the same position as me and be ready to put their job on the line,” Montes told the outlet in part.

Montes also reportedly alleged that Google lied to its employees about Project Nimbus.

A Google spokesperson reportedly told the SF Chronicle that Project Nimbus was a public service program, not a military one.

AUTHOR

JOHN OYEWALE

Contributor.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

‘Hammered From All Sides’: Minority Truckers Say California’s Green Regs Are Destroying Their American Dream

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Minority truckers are struggling to stay afloat as the state of California levies stringent green regulations on their businesses, according to some of those affected who spoke with the Daily Caller News Foundation.

The California Air Resources Board (CARB), California’s environmental regulatory agency, will ban the sale of new diesel heavy-duty trucks starting in 2036, a policy partially motivated by a desire to improve health outcomes for minority populations. That requirement is the latest in a string of similar requirements imposed in recent years, all of which have made it excessively difficult for minorities to operate their own trucking enterprises and pursue the American dream, some of those small business owners told the DCNF.

“Many California neighborhoods, especially Black and Brown, low-income and vulnerable communities, live, work, play and attend schools adjacent to the ports, railyards, distribution centers and freight corridors and experience the heaviest truck traffic,” CARB said in 2020 after proposing its most recent “clean truck” rule. That particular rule for trucks was motivated in part to address the “disproportionate risks and health and pollution burdens affecting these communities,” the agency said at the time.

While bureaucrats writing the rules pitch them as a way to reduce respiratory and health ailments in minority communities that live in and around frequently-trafficked trucking routes, some minority truckers told the DCNF that the rules are squeezing them financially in ways that render any purported health benefits moot.

“A lot of our members are minority-owned small businesses,” Joe Rajkovacz, the director of governmental affairs and communications for the Western States Trucking Association, told the DCNF. “Here in California, there is a decided indifference to small business trucking by both politicians and bureaucrats.”

Randy Thomas, a black man, grew up in South Central Los Angeles as the son of a World War II veteran and a lifelong resident of California. He ran his trucking firm for many decades, growing his business from a one-man operation to a company that employed 15 drivers and provided enough income to send all of his children to college, making them the first in his family to get the chance to do so.

By 2009, the regulatory environment left him no choice to shut down his business, as it did not make financial sense for him to purchase new and expensive trucks to meet new mandates.

“I did my first trip when I was 20. Everything was going great from 1971 up until around the time that (former President Barack) Obama got into office,” Thomas told the DCNF. “By 2008, we come up with this clean truck program here. We were having all these meetings. I’m looking at the division between the environmentalists, telling us about CO2 and gases …  I’m looking at the charts of what our engines that we had at that time, which were made mainly mechanical diesel, and they had no idea what engine was gonna be the engine they were writing into prospective goals.”

“Guys are going out of business like you wouldn’t believe,” Thomas told the DCNF about other Californian truckers he knows.

After closing his business, Jackson moved on to a different company, and he still drives truck routes delivering medical supplies and other time-sensitive loads. But, as he explained to the DCNF, “it wasn’t my company anymore.”

Bill Aboudi, a Palestinian-American who still owns his own small trucking company operating out of the Port of Oakland, touched on some of the same themes in an interview with the DCNF.

Aboudi was born in 1966, and his father went missing in action during the Six Day War between Israel and a coalition of Arab states in 1967. Aboudi immigrated to the U.S. when he was 14 years old, and started helping his brother out with his trucking business in 1989 after he got out of the California National Guard and never left the industry.

“I live in the middle of getting hammered from all sides. One of the first things that CARB always makes it out to be, is if you’re in the trucking business, you’re a polluter. I always try and explain to them, I’ve got an organic garden, I have about three fruit trees in my backyard. I used to keep bees … I’ve got 12 chickens. I love the environment, and I want to get the best technology for my operation,” Aboudi told the DCNF. “It seems like the regulators have no clue. They want to be able to turn on a switch and have everybody switch directionally right away … They end up reducing our company size and stunting our growth.”

Assembly Bill 5, which reclassified California’s 70,000 independent owner-operators as employees of shipping companies rather than independent contractors, was another policy that hurt the workers politicians purported to help, Aboudi said.

“This kills the liberty of being a trucker and kills the American dream,” Miguel Ramirez, a Los Angeles-based trucker, told the DCNF in July 2022.

It’s not just truckers who are impacted by regulations and their impacts on California’s trucking operators, Aboudi explained to the DCNF. There are many thousands of blue-collar workers — including immigrants like him — whose jobs rely on California’s busy ports, providing parts for trucks and other closely-related trades.

“I am still paying for trucks that I upgraded on the last round, and I can’t use them,” Aboudi continued, referencing older regulations. “Now I’m paying for the newer trucks that I upgraded to. And I’m being told I’m gonna have to go to zero-emission trucks that are still in the first stage of development … We’ve already had to downsize our company from 13 trucks to eight trucks.”

While bureaucrats in Sacramento and the supporters of their political superiors in Los Angeles and San Francisco may think that their progressive approach to environmental policy is benefiting minority communities, the opposite is true in many cases, according to Donna Jackson, the director of membership development for the National Center for Public Policy Research’s Project 21.

“California leads the country in enacting climate change policies that are increasingly leading to tiered social classes, the rich and the poor,” Jackson told the DCNF. “Like the Biden administration, California has ignored the real needs of underserved communities. Its climate change policies are destroying minority businesses and creating needless barriers to upward economic mobility. The result of all of this is not just job losses, but lost role models, financially unstable families, declining home ownership rates and a loss of community pride.”

CARB did not respond immediately to a request for comment.

AUTHOR

NICK POPE

Contributor.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.

REPORT: Apple Initiates First Major Post-Pandemic Layoffs

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Apple is laying off over 600 employees in California, ABC News reported Friday.

Apple is initiating its first significant job reduction since the pandemic, letting go of over 600 employees in California, according to ABC News. This move is part of a wider trend of downsizing within the tech sector. The tech giant reportedly informed 614 workers across several locations March 28 that they would be laid off by May 27, as disclosed in documents filed with regional authorities, ABC News stated.

These layoffs impact eight offices in Santa Clara Valley, although specific departments or projects affected remain unspecified. Apple’s headquarters is located in California, and had previously avoided the workforce reductions seen by its competitors over the last two years, the outlet reported. Despite a hiring boom during the COVID-19 pandemic driven by increased online activity, the slowdown in growth has led many in the tech industry, including Apple, to reassess and trim their operational costs. 

A report shows Apple has about 161,000 employees, even with the job cuts, according to ABC News. This move by Apple follows a trend of layoffs at other big tech firms. Amazon announced more layoffs in its AWS cloud division. Companies like Electronic Arts, Sony’s PlayStation, Cisco Systems, and Snapchat’s parent company, Snap, also reported significant job reductions, ABC News reported.

AUTHOR

MARIANE ANGELA

Contributor.

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California Raises Minimum Wage to $20 Per Hour, Massive Layoffs Ensue, Businesses Close

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This week, California raised the minimum wage for fast food workers to $20/hour.

The bloodbath has already begun.

Pizza Hut, Mods Pizza closed five of their CA branches, Fosters Freeze shut down and laid off all their employees. Vitality Bowls cut their staff in half and hiked their menu prices by 10%.

California: New $20 Minimum Wage Law For Fast Food Employees Scheduled To Take Effect On April 1st

By: Elizabeth Volberding, One America News, April 2024;

The minimum wage for fast food employees in California will increase to $20 per hour under a new law in the state, and employers claim that having to pay their employees more will now affect their customers as they are planning to raise prices and lay off workers.

On Monday, the minimum wage for fast food workers in California will increase to $20 per hour, providing many with a 25% pay increase from just the past week.

However, chains that “bake and prepare bread in-house to sell as a stand-alone menu item” are excluded from the new regulation.

Some of the largest food chains are impacted by the ruling, including McDonald’s, Pizza Hut, KFC, Subway, and Starbucks. Local franchisees are now concerned about the rise in labor expenses.

Regarding the United States’ economy, fast food professions are among the lowest-paying, notwithstanding recent wage growth following decades of stagnation. Many of these workers are below the poverty line.

In order to cover the necessary wage rise, fast food restaurants such as Jack in the Box, Chipotle Mexican Grill, and McDonald’s stated that they intend to increase menu prices. Representatives stated that it is necessary for other business owners to do so as well in order to stay competitive.

“Even the tater tots, everything, the price is going to increase on that,” explained Brady Farmer, Chef Bradley Cook’s Catering Owner.

Although Farmer is not required to raise his minimum salary as a small business owner, he stated that he wants to treat his employees well and does not want them to quit. He went on to say that it will add up to cover that additional ground.

“Imagine the guy who has to go out and do that ten-hour job of all your shopping, organizing, driving around,” he said. “You get into an extra $20, $40 or $50, $100, or $200 dollars a day.”

McDonald’s employee Jaylene Loubett, who is based in Los Angeles, highlighted that her city is among the most costly in the state of California, which is also one of the most expensive states overall to live in.

“Even though it’s a big help, people need to realize that $20 compared to the cost of living in Los Angeles, it’s still not enough to feel secure,” said Loubett, 25, who has worked at McDonald’s for six years.

Continue reading

This is what will happen:

AUTHOR

Pamela Geller

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EDITORS NOTE: This Geller Report is republished with permission. All rights reserved.

California Restaurants Closing Fast — Communism Does Not Work!

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The Communist government operating out of Sacramento California is following the Hugo Chavez/Maduro playbook the former and current installed presidents of Communist controlled Venezuela.

My beautiful Venezuelan wife left Venezuela and was granted asylum in Colombia before relocating to the United States as a permanent legal resident.

She has watched her former country slowly succumb to the intentional collapse of its once thriving capitalist free market economy.

She commented to me that the Government of California and the current installed Marxist occupying the White House are no different in ideology than that of Maduro and Chavez.

She warns all freedom loving Americans to pay close attention to the unconstitutional Marxist actions of Governor Newson and his intentional destruction of free markets in California.

First the restaurants in Caracas Venezuela went out of business after government interference in the wages and Venezuelan labor market.

In Los Angeles and Beverly Hills like Caracas Venezuela restaurants are closing and laying off its workers. As 2023 ended and 2024 commenced the following restaurants went out of business.

West Third Street gastropub and wine bar 3rd Stop in Los Angeles closed its doors after 29 years in business.

The famous music venue Conga Room closed after 25 years in business in Los Angeles due to massive inflation and government interference in running its operation.

The famous restaurant El Torito’s in Santa Monica frequented by Hollywood movie stars closed permanently on March 9th 2024.

A popular daytime restaurant the Farm Of Beverly Hills closed on March 3 2024 after 26 years of business.

The Mezcal bar and taco cantina Mezcalero closed permanently on Broadway in Downtown Los Angeles in early March 2024.

Nic’s on Beverly a plant based restaurant closed permanently on March 31st due to massive inflation on the rent and the mandatory $20 an hour minimum wage unconstitutional mandated by Governor Newsom’s Marxist government.

The Culver City bar closed permanently on March 16 2024 after 18 years of operation due to razor thin operating costs created by Governor Newsom’s anti capitalist idealism.

Ten Seven rolls a Vietnamese eatery in San Gabriel California that served delicious food like chả giò, bánh xèo, rice rolls, and smoked brisket pho went out of business on March 17th 2024.

Western City Bagel in Redondo Beach California closed permanently on March 31st 2024 in order to protect itself from the $20 an hour minimum wage debacle. It was in business for 30 years.

All of the following restaurants have also permanently closed in response to the Marxist ideology of Governor Newsom.

Josiah Citrin’s West Hollywood location of restaurant Charcoal permanently on February 17th 2024.

All the restaurants inside Downtown’s historic Hotel Figueroa closed permanently in February 2024 including Bar Magnolia, Cafe Fig, the Cafeteria, La Casita at Driftwood, and Sparrow Italia.

For 45 years, Caffe Roma has been a go to place for Italian food and coffee in the Golden Triangle of Beverly Hills.

It was frequently patronized by Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger. The restaurant announced its closure on January 1, 2024.

My friend, an immigrant from Germany moved to Venice California 30 years ago and he made his fortune there.

He walked around Beverly Hills yesterday April 2nd 2024 and he commented to me the town is slowly becoming an empty “For lease” town going bankrupt.

Beverly Hills Stores are closing and some entrepreneurs posted notices on doors and windows stating they have relocated to Nevada and Texas or they have permanently closed.

LA Eater’s Matthew Kang, Mona Holmes, and Rebecca Roland reported, “Los Angeles’s restaurants continue to face difficult headwinds that picked up in the second half of 2023 and led to an industry-wide slowdown. From the lingering impacts of the Hollywood strikes to adverse weather and increased costs (labor, rent, ingredients, etc.), a plethora of variables continue to batter restaurant owners who operate on razor-thin margins.”

Here is LA Eater’s running list of restaurant closures beginning from the last days of 2023 to March 2024.

March

3rd Stop – Beverly Grove

West Third Street gastropub and wine bar 3rd Stop told its workers this past Monday that it would be closing at the end of the month. Originally opened in 2006, the all-day restaurant served an array of American food, like grilled chicken nachos, burgers, pizza, and sandwiches.

Conga Room – Downtown LA

Legendary music venue Conga Room, which was instrumental in bringing Latin music acts and other performers to L.A. Live, closed after 25 years. The venue was originally located in Mid-Wilshire but moved to Downtown in 2008. Founder Brad Gluckstein told Billboard that inflation, high interest rates, and a drop in Convention Center traffic led to a changing business model. March 27 was the club’s final night.

El Muelle 8 – Downey

Celebrated Sinaloan seafood spot El Muelle 8 opened last February with pristine shellfish, ceviches, and tacos in a small Downey strip mall. The restaurant quietly closed earlier this year, likely in late January, without much notice. However, its new owners have reached out to Eater and confirmed that El Muelle 8 is plotting a comeback.

El Torito – Santa Monica

El Torito’s expansive restaurant in Santa Monica, which was originally branded as Acapulco and operated by Xperience Restaurant Group, closed on March 9, reports the Santa Monica Sun. Santa Monica mayor Phil Brock said on social media that it had been operating month-to-month for a while and that the property had likely been leased to another operator.

The Farm of Beverly Hills

Daytime eatery the Farm of Beverly Hills closed on March 3 after 26 years of business. Founder and owner Kelli Cotton thanked customers and bid farewell in a note, recognizing past and present staff for their dedication and passion. The reliable breakfast and lunch spot was a reasonably-priced, family-friendly eatery in the heart of the Golden Triangle.

Mezcalero – Downtown

Mezcal bar and taco cantina Mezcalero closed on Broadway in Downtown Los Angeles in early March, with a simple announcement that it would be closed for the weekend. However, Mezcalero never reopened and a note on its Instagram profile confirms it is closed. Originally opened in December 2016, the restaurant was opened by Jay Krymis, who also owned Padre in Long Beach and Fubar in West Hollywood, according to DTLA Weekly.

A lush outdoor patio at Nic’s on Beverly.

The patio of Nic’s on Beverly, a plant-based restaurant that closes March 31, 2024. Nic’s on Beverly

Nic’s – Beverly Grove

Plant-based restaurant Nic’s on Beverly opened five years ago in the former Terrine space from restaurateur Nic Adler, who also owns Monty’s Good Burger. Nic’s was going to close last June, blaming increased rent, but was able to make an arrangement with the landlord to stay open for another year. Its last day will be March 31 for Easter brunch.

Mandrake – Culver City

Culver City bar Mandrake closed on March 16 after 18 years of operation, according to the Los Angeles Times. Owners Flora Wiegmann, Drew Heitzler and Justin Beal cited life changes as the reason for closing, with Beal and Wiegman moving out of the state and Heitzler becoming a recent father. Mandrake represented the art scene in Culver City and greater Los Angeles, with a famous art curator coming up with the name for the bar.

Tenseven Rolls – San Gabriel

Tenseven Rolls, a bánh cuốn specialist inside Blossom Market Hall in San Gabriel, announced it would close on March 17. The Vietnamese snack spot also served chả giò, bánh xèo, rice rolls, and smoked brisket pho in the mostly Asian American vendor food hall in the heart of SGV. The stall originally opened in December 2022. The Klaude family said on Instagram that it hopes to appear at another venue in the future, with plans to serve at community events in the meantime.

Western City Bagel – Redondo Beach

Not to be confused with the much larger and still-in-operation Western Bagel, Western City Bagel in Redondo Beach announced that it will close on March 31 after 30 years. “While this chapter may be coming to a close, the memories we’ve shared and the connections we’ve made will forever remain close to our hearts,” the shop wrote on Instagram.

Bicyclette and Manzke – Pico Robertson

Manzke and its sister restaurant Bicyclette will close on March 1. Manzke opened in 2022 as a bastion for fine dining in the former Picca space serving a $225 10-course tasting menu and earning a Michelin star; Bicyclette transformed Sotto into a French bistro in 2021. With these latest closures, acclaimed chefs Walter and Margarita Manzke operate only one LA restaurant: the powerhouse République. Previously, the Manzkes closed Petty Cash Taquería after 10 years in October 2023, followed by the abrupt shutter of Sari Sari Store after seven years of business inside Grand Central Market in December 2023.

Banh Oui – Hollywood

Hollywood banh mi spot, Banh Oui, closed on February 13. The restaurant, which started as a pop-up, moved into the space in 2018. Over the years, it was known for its non-traditional takes on the Vietnamese sandwich, as well as its burger, fried chicken sandwich, and more.

Charcoal Sunset – West Hollywood

Josiah Citrin’s West Hollywood location of Charcoal suddenly closed on February 17 after less than a year in operation. Citrin attributed the closure to a rise in the costs of business in the neighborhood, and in a statement to Eater said that it was “a real bummer, to say the least.”

Flore – Silver Lake

Silver Lake’s 16-year-old plant-based restaurant Flore closed for good in late December and announced the closure via Instagram. Owner Miranda Megill opened the restaurant when Silver Lake’s was full of mostly independent businesses. After facing eviction from its original location in Sunset Junction in 2019, Megill moved the business into the shuttered Local space in 2020. Flore’s original location now houses mostly retail shops including clothing brand Maison Kitsune.

Hotel Figueroa (restaurants and bar) – Downtown

All the restaurants and bar inside Downtown’s historic Hotel Figueroa will close in February including Bar Magnolia, Cafe Fig, the Cafeteria, La Casita at Driftwood, and Sparrow Italia. The Los Angeles Times reported that Noble 33 (Casa Madera, Taco Madera), the third-party restaurant group that operates the hotel’s bar and restaurants, announced the closures in December, six days after its workers notified management that they intended to form a union.

Hyperion Public – Silver Lake

Silver Lake pub Hyperion Public closed on January 26. The owners shared via an Instagram post that the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control shut down the bar on January 16 and that they were unaware that the business was operating illegally.

Pearl River Deli – Chinatown

Chinatown’s modern Cantonese spot Pearl River Deli is no longer serving its beloved Hainan chicken rice, char siu pork belly, and Macau pork-chop bun. After opening in January 2020 in Far East Plaza and relocating to Chinatown Central Plaza, chef and owner Johnny Lee announced that Pearl River Deli will be on hiatus indefinitely and possibly forever.

Sakai Ramen Bar – Central LA

After nearly five years in business, Sakai Ramen closed on February 19. The restaurant announced the closure in an Instagram post and shared that the owners would be taking a break for the time being.

Shin – Hollywood

Hollywood’s decade-old Shin restaurant closed on February 4. Though best known for its ramen, the restaurant also prepared sushi and yakitori, including a $175 omakase option with cocktails.

Tokki – Koreatown

After 15 months inside Koreatown’s Chapman Plaza, Tokki closed on February 18. The modern Korean tapas restaurant opened in 2021 with chef Sunny Chang (Quince SF) at the helm, but she departed after just a few months. A part of the team then went on to open Liu’s café, which will remain open.

January

Atrium – Los Feliz

A dimly lit modern restaurant with pattered walls and dark green banquettes with some foliage.

Los Feliz restaurant Atrium, which opened in 2018 from Beau Laughlin and Jay Milliken, closed without warning on December 23, 2023. The stylish Los Feliz restaurant offered versatile dishes with international flavors in a high-ceiling space in a neighborhood that sorely lacks quality dining. Staff was notified of the closure just a few days before Christmas though outwardly Atrium hinted that it would reopen in the new year. Atrium has not reopened though its sister lounge space Pinky’s continues to operate.

Caffe Roma – Beverly Hills

For 45 years, Caffe Roma has been a streetside destination for Italian food and coffee in the Golden Triangle of Beverly Hills. The restaurant announced its closure on January 1, 2024, though its sister restaurant Café Amici will continue to operate, which means longtime fans will still have a place to get eggplant parmigiana and lasagna with beef ragu. Eater spoke with a representative from Caffe Roma who said the landlord had doubled the rent, which made it more challenging to operate despite nearly half a century of history in the neighborhood.

ETA – Highland Park

Jazz bar and cocktail lounge ETA, which is a sister restaurant to the Greyhound sports bar, closed on December 30, 2023 after initially opening in 2016. Owner Mateo Glassman said part of the reason for the closure was that his partners James and Ryan had moved farther away and that Glassman’s recent addition to the family had made it difficult to sustain operations. Glassman said the Highland Park and jazz community were a huge part of ETA’s success and was thankful for both.

Jeni’s Ice Cream – Venice

Rose Avenue ice cream parlor Jeni’s has closed since around the end of December, though word is that the artisan scoop shop has reopened as a stand on Windward Avenue closer to the Venice Boardwalk. Jeni’s still has locations in Larchmont, Beverly Hills, the Runway in Playa Vista, Calabasas, Los Feliz, and Highland Park within the LA area.

Skylight Gardens – Westwood

Westwood Italian restaurant Skylight Gardens had just celebrated its 12th anniversary when it quietly closed in recent weeks (it originally opened in 2012). A tipster says the signage was taken down and that multiple Yelpers have reported it closed, though the restaurant’s website — which announced the restaurant’s 10th anniversary — is still up at the time of publication.

Spartina LA – Melrose Avenue

A wood-burning grill at a LA restaurant. Spartina LA, which opened in 2015 by chef Stephen Kalt, announced on social media last week that it would close on January 28. Kalt has had a nearly four-decade-long career in restaurants spanning New York City, Atlantic City, and Las Vegas. Spartina was originally named for a restaurant he helped open in the early 1990s in Tribeca before that neighborhood had become one of the hottest in Manhattan.

Spartina in LA was his ode to California Italian food, preparing shareable pizzas, handmade pastas, and seasonal produce. Kalt told Eater that from Memorial Day onwards, sales had dropped off about 40 percent from expected, blaming the writer’s and actor’s strikes. “In 40 years in this business, I’ve never seen anything like it before,” said Kalt. The last day of operations will be this coming Sunday.

Wine House Kitchen — West LA

Located on a West LA rooftop blocks away from the bustling Sawtelle Japantown, Wine House Kitchen closed late last year after more than a year in business. Maiki Le’s Vietnamese French and California menu was a favorite among Eater’s editors with dishes like bún bò Huế spiced elk strip loin, which combines different meat with a central Vietnamese beef noodle soup.

When Governor Newsom and his Marxist thugs finally bankrupt California and collapse its economy as they grasp the handle of socialism and poverty perhaps then the citizens will remove this cockroach parasite from the state government and hire free market capitalists to save what’s left of this crumbling dumpster fire.

©2024. Geoff Ross. All rights reserved.

RELATED ARTICLE: California Ice Cream Parlor Forced to Close Over Minimum Wage Hike

Hundreds Of Illegal Migrants Released On The Side Of The Road After Aid Money Runs Out

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Hundreds of migrants were dropped off on the side of the road in San Diego, California, on Friday after funding for a reception center ran dry, according to The Associated Press.

Border Patrol buses dropped off hundreds of migrants from places like China, Kazakhstan, Ecuador and Rwanda, among other countries, at a San Diego bus stop instead of a county-funded reception center that closed down Thursday after running out of funds, the AP reported. The reception center was run by SBCS, a local nonprofit formerly known as South Bay Community Services, which San Diego County gave $6 million to provide migrants with food, phone charging stations and travel advice, alongside other services.

San Diego, like other major cities, is facing strain amid the country’s ongoing migrant crisis.

The city saw a daily average of 800 illegal-crossing-related arrests in January, including an average of over 100 Chinese migrants a day, according to AP.

SBCS served 81,000 migrants in the county since Oct. 11, the group said, according to the AP. With SBCS’ reception center now closed, Border Patrol said to expect roughly 350 migrants to be released on the streets Friday.

Nora Vargas, chair of the San Diego County board of supervisors, defended the performance of the migrant reception center, which was supposed to stay open until March.

“Nobody is perfect, especially when you’re trying to fill a gap from the federal government,” Vargas said. She recently petitioned the Biden administration for increased support, according to AP.

Vargas isn’t the only official seeking increased federal support as large cities struggle to cope with the influx of migrants. The mayors of New York City and Chicago have asked the Biden administration for financial resources to aid them in handling the migrant crisis.

The San Diego mayor’s office and SBCS did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s requests for comment.

AUTHOR

ROBERT SCHMAD

Contributor.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.

Five Marines Dead After Helicopter Crash, Military Confirms

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Five Marines missing since early Wednesday morning died in a helicopter crash during training, the military confirmed in an emailed statement on Thursday.

Authorities located the remains of a CH-53E Super Stallion heavy lift helicopter near Pine Valley, California, on Wednesday after initiating a search when the aircraft did not arrive at its destination on time. Recovery efforts are still underway for the remains of the five Marines and equipment lost in the crash Tuesday night, the Marine Corps’ 3 Marine Aircraft Wing said in the statement.

“It is with a heavy heart and profound sadness that I share the loss of five outstanding Marines from 3d Marine Aircraft Wing and the ‘Flying Tigers’ while conducting a training flight last night,” Maj. Gen. Michael J. Borgschulte, the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing’s commanding general, said in the statement.

“These pilots and crewmembers were serving a calling greater than self and were proud to do so. We will forever be grateful for their call to duty and selfless service,” Borgschulte said.

The deceased Marines were assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 361, Marine Aircraft Group 16 with the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, according to the statement. The service will not release the names of the fallen troops until 24 hours after notifying their closest family members, the statement read, citing the military’s usual policy.

The service has initiated an investigation into the incident, the statement read.

The accident “is yet another reminder that across our nation and the world our selfless service members put their lives on the line every day to keep our country safe,” Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said in a statement mourning the loss.

A CH-53E Super Stallion heavy lift helicopter departing from Creech Air Force Base in Clark County, Nevada, on Tuesday was overdue on Wednesday morning at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego, the Marine Corps said in a statement Wednesday.

The Marine Corps requested help from local officials around 2 a.m. Wednesday, saying the aircraft’s last known location was Cleveland National Forest near Pine Valley, California, according to local news outlet ABC 10.

Authorities found the helicopter in Pine Valley, California, at 9:08 a.m. Pacific Standard Time.

President Joe Biden said he was “heartbroken” by the news and thanked local, state and federal agencies, including the Civil Air Patrol and San Diego County Sheriff’s department, for assisting in the search.

“As the Department of Defense continues to assess what occurred, we extend our deepest condolences to their families, their squadron, and the U.S. Marine Corps as we grieve the loss of five of our nation’s finest warriors,” Biden said in the statement.

Poor weather conditions limited the search, ABC 10 reported. Heavy rain bombarded the area overnight from a massive storm passing through the area, and San Diego remains under a flood warning , according to the National Weather Service.

AUTHOR

MICAELA BURROW

Investigative reporter, defense.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.

Terrorist Caught Illegally Crossing The Border Was Allowed To Roam Free For Nearly A Year, Memo Says

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Federal authorities caught a terrorist at the U.S. southern border and released him into the country, where he roamed freely for nearly a year before being arrested in Minnesota just days ago, according to an internal federal memo exclusively obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation.

The unnamed individual, who the memo only identifies as a member of the Somali terror group al-Shabaab, was released shortly after being caught illegally crossing the southern border near San Ysidro, California on March 13, 2023, according to the memo, which the DCNF is not publishing in order to protect the identity of a confidential source. The Terrorist Screening Center “deemed him a ‘mismatch’” after running his name through the terror watchlist, according to the memo, which was sent to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials.

However, on January 18, 2024, the Terrorist Screening Center “made a redetermination” that the individual was “a confirmed member of al-Shabaab” and was involved in the use, manufacture or transport of explosives or firearms, the memo states. Two days later, ICE nabbed the al-Shabaab member in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Border Patrol caught 172 terror watchlist suspects attempting to enter the U.S. illegally during fiscal year 2023. Former homeland security officials say the constant deluge of illegal immigrants hitting the southern border is making it easier for bad actors to slip into the country.

“Many within the Biden administration, including Secretary Mayorkas, have repeatedly assured us that the vetting process at the border is comprehensive and complete,” John Fabbricatore, a retired ICE field director who now sits on the National Immigration Center for Enforcement’s (NICE) board, told the DCNF. “However, we continue to witness alarming instances where terrorists are able to freely roam the United States for months after being released at the border before their criminal and terrorist histories come to light.”

The number of suspected terrorists caught trying to illegally cross the southern border continues to grow. Border Patrol agents apprehended 50 illegal immigrants on the terror watchlist between October and December of last year, according to federal data. For comparison, there were a total of 30 such encounters between fiscal years 2017 and 2020.

“This situation is greatly endangering our nation, and it is clear that our safety is dependent on enforcing our immigration laws and securing the border,” said Fabbricatore, who’s also running for Congress.

Mass releases of illegal migrants under the Biden administration have placed immense pressure on federal authorities to move people through the system quickly.

“People have been released prior to completed records checks being returned on a subject. Which would not allow proper processing and placement of a potential terrorist once those results were known,” an ICE official, who previously served as a Border Patrol agent, told the DCNF on the condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly.

Border Patrol can only hold migrants in custody for up to 72 hours, but it often takes much longer to receive information from background checks, Fabbricatore said.

“The overburdening of the Border Patrol with the excessive amounts of illegal border crossers has forced faster processing times, which doesn’t allow for a more vigorous initial investigation into a migrants background. The background checks currently being run only initially search out criminal history in the United States, not outside its borders. It could take days, weeks, or months to connect derogatory information coming from other databases,” Fabbricatore said.

There were 860,000 individuals who are known to have snuck into the country illegally without apprehension in 2023.

“Many within the Biden administration, including Secretary Mayorkas, have repeatedly assured us that the vetting process at the border is comprehensive and complete,” Fabbricatore, who is also running for Congress, said. “However, we continue to witness alarming instances where terrorists are able to freely roam the United States for months after being released at the border before their criminal and terrorist histories come to light. This situation is greatly endangering our nation, and it is clear that our safety is dependent on enforcing our immigration laws and securing the border,” Fabbricatore said.

The U.S. government has considered Al-Shabaab a foreign terrorist organization since 2008. The terrorist group operates in Somalia and has also committed attacks in Kenya and Uganda, according to the National Counterterrorism Center.

U.S. forces killed three al-Shabaab terrorists in a self defense air strike on Jan. 21 at the request of the Somali government

Al-Shabaab has carried out bombings, including suicide attacks, and the group has assassinated Somali peace activists, international aid workers, journalists and numerous civil society figures, according to the National Counterterrorism Center. The terror group carried out a 2013 attack on Westgate mall in Nairobi, killing 67 people, and in 2017 killed hundreds of civilians in Mogadishu through two suicide attacks.

After Hamas’ attack on Israeli civilians on Oct. 7, federal authorities warned Border Patrol to be on alert for Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hezbollah terrorists attempting to illegally cross the southern border, according to an internal memo exclusively obtained by the DCNF at the time.

“It is clear that our safety is dependent on enforcing our immigration laws and securing the border,” Fabbricatore said.

ICE didn’t respond to the DCNF’s request for comment.

AUTHOR

JENNIE TAER

Investigative reporter.

RELATED ARTICLE: Feds See Highest Ever Number Of Southern Border Crossings In A Single Month

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POST ON X:

EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.

LOS ANGELES, CA: Pro-Hamas savages spray ‘Free Gaza’ and ‘Intifada’ at Veteran’s National Cemetery, chant genocidal anti-Jewish slogan

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Erasing Israel “from the river to the sea” would mean its total eradication and the deaths of millions of Jews.

Anti-Israel protesters vandalize LA’s National Cemetery, where 90,000 veterans are buried

by Melissa Koenig, New York Post, January 10, 2024:

Anti-Israel protesters vandalized and defaced the Los Angeles National Cemetery, where nearly 90,000 veterans who served the country from World War I through Vietnam are buried.

Video posted online showed a demonstrator spray-painting “Free Gaza” with an upside-down red triangle on the entrance to the National Cemetery as a protest shut down a major boulevard outside the US Federal Building on Saturday.

Demonstrators wearing traditional Palestinian keffiyehs were seen waving Palestinian flags and holding signs accusing President Biden of being an enabler of genocide and Zionists of being Nazis.

They chanted, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” a slogan that the Anti-Defamation League has labeled antisemitic, saying it calls for the elimination of the state of Israel.

Protesters also shouted “Long live Palestine,” “Long live intifada” and “Biden, Biden you’re a liar, we demand a cease-fire.”

The word “intifada” was also spray-painted on the Los Angeles National Cemetery sign, as photos taken in the aftermath showed.

The original intifada was a Palestinian uprising against the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip beginning in 1987.

It is unclear whether any arrests were made for the vandalism at the national cemetery. The Post has reached out to the Los Angeles Police Department for more information….

Read more.

AUTHOR

ROBERT SPENCER

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EDITORS NOTE: This Jihad Watch column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

Communist California’s New Tyrannical Laws For 2024

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Communist California led by the Marxist dictatorship of Comrade Gavin (I love Beijing) Newsom signed close to 1000 new laws in 2023 that went into effect on January 1st 2024.

Let’s review and evaluate some of these new legislative tyrannical government policies and determine the overall effectiveness of them.

Take for example a new state law called “Ebony Alerts” for missing black children and youths. Law enforcement will now get Ebony Alerts if a black child goes missing.

The Daily Caller contributor Jake Smith reported,

California is enacting laws pushing LGBTQ issues on their residents, as well as various restrictions to residents’ behavior that attempt to limit emissions or damage to the environment. Blue states are also targeting gun rights and expanding protections for illegal aliens.  

California is initiating a new law on Jan. 1 that will fine major retailers if they don’t sell “gender-neutral” children’s toys in their stores. These items would have to be clearly marked and sectioned, and stores that refuse to comply will face a $250 penalty for the first violation and a $500 penalty for every subsequent offense.

This law also pertains to “any product designed or intended by the manufacturer to facilitate sleep, relaxation, or the feeding of children, or to help children with sucking or teething.”

“Let retailers decide what’s best for their customers and what their clientele want, but the last thing we need is for the state legislature in California to decide [what parents buy for their children],” Republican California Sen. Melissa Melendez told Fox News. “We don’t need the government trying to co-parent with us.”

Also starting in 2024, a new law in the Golden State will ban the sale of any gas-powered lawnmowers, leaf blowers, chainsaws or yard care equipment. Tens of thousands of workers in California who relied on such equipment for their businesses will be most affected by the new rule; concerns also exist over the efficacy and cost of electric-powered alternatives, according to The Sacramento Bee.

“The people most affected are going to be the Latinos that don’t have a big business,” Fulgencio Vazquez, a landscaping manager in Sacramento, told the Bee. Another landscaping small business owner, Rafael Guzman, told the Bee that big businesses would be the “only ones” to survive the new law, and noted that landscaping jobs with electric-powered equipment would take longer “because the machines don’t have the same potential.”

The law comes alongside a massive push in California to promote electric vehicles and the phase out gas-powered household appliances. California seeks to be completely reliant on green energy and 100% carbon neutral by 2045, according to Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office.

I’m not sure if this new law will also include “Ivory Alerts” for white children but let’s see what happens. If the demographics of California continue to favor illegal immigrants perhaps Comrade Governor Newsom should also consider the “Gringo Alert”

California also implemented new laws to increase easy access for the execution of pre-born babies in the womb, plus making insurance companies pay for contraception, and eliminating out-of-pocket costs for birth control. But this law only applies to women thus violating the equal protection clause of the Constitution.

No word yet if Catholic hospitals in California will be forced to provide these baby killing services in violation of the nuns 1st amendment rights and in violation of the pre born child’s constitutional right to life and liberty.

Communist California legislators have also opened up even more financial assistance aid to illegal immigrants in our republic who are in violation of U.S. Congressional immigration laws who are taking up space in Universities ahead of American citizens.

Illegals also now get access to free healthcare and other perks for being in our republic as criminal immigration violators. No other country in the world allows its sovereignty to be financially and economically raped by illegal invaders.

I’m not sure how an illegal immigrant can register for these American citizen or legal resident earned perks without a social security number and a picture ID or Green Card showing legal residency status, but Communist states like California shredded the constitutional rule of law years ago under weak Republican leadership allowing the Communists to take over.

Plus California has also implemented laws that also include hundreds of new roadside cameras to spy on citizens driving in their pitiful electric cars that need to recharged every 45 minutes.

California is the place to be if you like being in a nanny state with the government controlling your life and even your income through intrusive wage controls, mandatory solar panels on new home construction, the banning of gasoline powered cars, leaf blowers, and lawn mowers and don’t forget flat screen televisions.

California is a communist utopia septic tank even Muslims don’t want to live there. Good luck citizens of California in 10 years from now you will all be living in caves riding on donkeys to work.

©2023. Geoff Ross. All rights reserved.

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Blue States Prepare To Enact Slew Of Left-Wing Laws In 2024

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Democrat-run states are instituting a host of left-wing laws at the beginning of 2024 targeting several cultural and political issues.

States like California, Michigan, Illinois, Washington and Colorado are enacting laws pushing LGBTQ issues on their residents, as well as various restrictions to residents’ behavior that attempt to limit emissions or damage to the environment. Blue states are also targeting gun rights and expanding protections for illegal aliens.  

California is initiating a new law on Jan. 1 that will fine major retailers if they don’t sell “gender-neutral” children’s toys in their stores. These items would have to be clearly marked and sectioned, and stores that refuse to comply will face a $250 penalty for the first violation and a $500 penalty for every subsequent offense.

This law also pertains to “any product designed or intended by the manufacturer to facilitate sleep, relaxation, or the feeding of children, or to help children with sucking or teething.”

“Let retailers decide what’s best for their customers and what their clientele want, but the last thing we need is for the state legislature in California to decide [what parents buy for their children],” Republican California Sen. Melissa Melendez told Fox News. “We don’t need the government trying to co-parent with us.”

Also starting in 2024, a new law in the Golden State will ban the sale of any gas-powered lawnmowers, leaf blowers, chainsaws or yard care equipment. Tens of thousands of workers in California who relied on such equipment for their businesses will be most affected by the new rule; concerns also exist over the efficacy and cost of electric-powered alternatives, according to The Sacramento Bee.

“The people most affected are going to be the Latinos that don’t have a big business,” Fulgencio Vazquez, a landscaping manager in Sacramento, told the Bee. Another landscaping small business owner, Rafael Guzman, told the Bee that big businesses would be the “only ones” to survive the new law, and noted that landscaping jobs with electric-powered equipment would take longer “because the machines don’t have the same potential.”

The law comes alongside a massive push in California to promote electric vehicles and the phase out gas-powered household appliances. California seeks to be completely reliant on green energy and 100% carbon neutral by 2045, according to Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office.

In 2024, Michigan will expand its civil rights act to prevent discrimination on the basis of “gender identity,” according to the bill text. The Michigan Supreme Court ruled that state justices must use the “preferred pronouns” of attorneys in their courtrooms starting on Jan. 1.

The judges who dissented against the ruling said that the courts should not intertwine politics with legal practices.

“This is a fluid political debate into which our judicial branch of state government should not wade, let alone dive headfirst and claim to have resolved,” Justice Brian Zahra wrote in his dissent. “Such hubris has no place within the operation of a judicial branch of state government.”

Michigan is also issuing multiple new restrictions on gun and firearm rights going into the new year. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and lawmakers signed legislation to expand background checks for gun sales, restrict gun ownership for individuals convicted of domestic violent misdemeanors and institute “red flag” policies that would allow courts to remove guns from individuals that the courts deem as a safety risk to themselves or others.

Similar to California lawmakers, Whitmer signed the Clean Energy and Climate Action Package Act in November which seeks to make the state 100% carbon neutral by 2040; the act goes into effect starting on Feb. 27, 2024.

The act would require all of the state’s utilities to increasingly source from green energy, like solar and wind power, or from nuclear, hydrogen, and natural gas. Whitmer claims that Michigan’s new green energy laws will save the state’s residents approximately $145 a year on utility expenses, but residents can actually expect to pay thousands more in supplemental energy costs per year under the green energy plan, according to think-tank Mackinac Center.

In Illinois, a new law going into effect on Jan. 1 will allow non-citizens to become police officers and sheriffs, so long as they are deemed “legally authorized” to work in the United States. This would include individuals who are in the U.S. under green card status as well as individuals on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) list, according to The Associated Press.

“To the Left, citizenship is meaningless,” Republican Presidential candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said in July during a criticism of Illinois’ new law. “No illegal alien should have authority over any American citizen. It is a sad commentary on the state of America that this is even a debate.”

Landlords in Illinois will be required under state law to rent or sell property to noncitizens and illegal aliens beginning on Jan. 1. Illegal immigrants will also be allowed to obtain a standard driver’s license starting in mid-2024, according to a separate bill.

Beginning on Jan. 1, Illinois will shut off state funding for public and school libraries that ban books for political reasons, including books that promote LGBTQ+ ideology, making it the first state to enact such a law, according to state Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s office. Parents and lawmakers alike have expressed concern that some of the books in question contain sexually explicit content that should not be promoted to children.

In Colorado, a new law will go into effect beginning on Jan. 1 banning certain single-use plastics, following in the footsteps of other blue states that have enacted similar legislation. These include plastic bags, such as those found at a grocery store, as well as Styrofoam cups and takeout containers, which are typically less expensive than paper or biodegradable alternatives, according to packaging company Swiftpak.

“The Democrat-led plastics ban, is an anti-business attack on the restaurant industry, schools, and struggling families,” the Colorado House GOP said of the law when it was initially introduced.

Washington state will add further restrictions to existing gun laws on Jan. 1 requiring potential buyers to wait 10 days before purchasing any class of firearm. Washington will also join California in banning employers from asking employees about cannabis use, or discriminating against them should they test positive for consumption.

The offices of Newsom, Whitmer, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis and Washington Gov. Jay Inslee did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

AUTHOR

JAKE SMITH

Contributor.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.

A Republican Of All People Is Throwing A Wrench Into California’s Senate Race

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A Republican candidate appears to be throwing a wrench into California’s Senate race where three prominent Democrats are running in the open primary that’s just months away, according to a Thursday poll.

Former baseball star Steve Garvey, the Republican, received 19% support in a Morning Consult/Politico survey among likely primary voters, placing in second behind only Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff with 28%. The Republican polled ahead of both Democratic Reps. Katie Porter and Barbara Lee, who garnered 17% and 14% support, respectively.

In the March 5 primary, the top two vote-getters will advance to the November general election. Garvey could effectively boot Porter and Lee from competing with Schiff in the general if he were to place in second for the open primary, which would likely mean that Schiff would win the Senate seat.

The Cook Political Report characterizes the seat as in the “Solid D” category. California went for President Joe Biden in 2020 by nearly 30 points.

With Biden at the top of the ticket in 2024, and California being a predominately blue state, Schiff is expected to win the general election. If the Republican places second in the primary, Schiff wouldn’t have to face another Democrat for a head-to-head matchup.

Schiff, Porter and Lee have been running for the seat for the majority of the year, while Garvey recently jumped in the race in early October. Most polls have found Schiff leading by several points, according to RealClearPolitics’ survey compilation.

While Garvey has yet to report fundraising totals, the Democrats have all brought in millions for the race so far, according to the Federal Election Commission filings. Porter and Schiff have totaled $22.1 million and $21.5 million for the race already, while Lee has brought in $3.4 million.

Garvey is aiming to run a “common sense” campaign in the blue state, while the Democrats largely cater to the left-wing sector of their party.

The candidates are running for the late Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s seat, which is currently occupied by Gov. Gavin Newsom’s appointee Laphonza Butler, who decided against running for a full term in 2024. If Butler, the former president of pro-abortion group EMILYs List, were to run, she would pose a serious threat to Schiff’s campaign, as she has an extensive political network, massive fundraising capabilities and would have an incumbency advantage.

The campaigns for Garvey, Schiff, Porter and Lee did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s requests for comment.

AUTHOR

MARY LOU MASTERS

Contributor.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.

NOT SATIRE: LAPD Swears in Police Officers Who are DACA Recipients and Entered the U.S. Illegally

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What could possibly go wrong? How long before they are swearing in convicts?

Not satire: LAPD swears in police officers who are DACA recipients and entered US illegally

by: Pat Droney, Law Enforcement TODAY, December 15, 2023;

LOS ANGELES, CA – If you set out to destroy a country, you couldn’t do any worse than what they’ve done in Los Angeles, where the first group of illegal aliens in the country are set to graduate from the Los Angeles Police Academy.

You read that correctly–people who entered the country illegally will be on the streets of LA enforcing the law. No, this is not satire from the Babylon Bee.

Worse yet, the group of DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) LAPD recruits are not, by virtue of their undocumented status, permitted to carry their city-issued firearms when they are off-duty, NBC Los Angeles reports.

Under federal law, DACA aliens are prohibited from possessing either guns or ammunition, but the LAPD has found a workaround for that little problem. They will simply consider off-duty hours part of the definition of “performance of their official duties or other law enforcement purpose,” which will allow these individuals to carry their issued firearms off-duty, a new police policy memo reads.

“We’ve sought information from our federal and state and City attorney to understand what does the policy needs [sic] to discuss to articulate the basis of which a DACA individual, now a police officer, can lawfully carry and possess a firearm and ammunition,” Chief Michel Moore told the outlet, channeling his best Kamala Harris word salad.

Keep reading.

AUTHOR

Pamela Geller

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Blue States Are Stripping Rural Counties Of Ability To Prevent Green Energy Takeover Of Their Communities

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Several blue states have deprived rural counties of the ability to reject the massive green energy projects that corporations want to site in their communities, while green industrial interests and environmentalist groups have poured money into state capitals.

Michigan, California, New York and Illinois have all passed legislation that consolidates authority over land use issues and rules with state-level bureaucrats at the expense of local governments that could have altered their own zoning codes to stem the tide of industrial green projects like solar and wind farms. These policies deprive rural residents in these states of their freedom and local autonomy, while also benefiting the corporate interests that line the pockets of the states’ Democratic governors, state policy experts and lawmakers told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

“Much of the renewables business and movement has been co-opted by big corporations,” which “are spending millions” on politics “because this is a matter of billions for them,” Edward Ring, a senior fellow for the California Policy Institute and the organization’s co-founder, told the DCNF. “What we are seeing, for example, with the ‘Inflation Reduction Act,’ is one of the biggest gifts of money to corporations that we have ever seen in this country,” Ring told the DCNF, referring to the IRA’s subsidies facilitating the rise of green energy.

Since 2020, there have been about 350 local restrictions or rejections of solar and wind projects across the country, according to energy expert Robert Bryce’s Renewable Rejection Database.

Michigan

Democratic Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer recently enacted her state’s green energy mandate, which sets a target for 100% green energy generation by 2040. The legislation has the state poised to significantly ramp up construction of solar and wind developments, as well as carbon capture pipelines that will be needed for the state’s natural gas plants to continue to operate in the future.

One of the bills Whitmer signed into law as part of the package, H.B. 5120, specifically allows the Michigan Public Services Commission, the state’s utility regulatory body overseen by officials appointed by the governor, to exercise permitting authority for large green energy projects rather than leaving zoning discretion to the municipal governments. Several local opposition campaigns in more rural locales across the state were able to hinder major green energy developments in their communities, but the new law could make similar grassroots success in the future effectively impossible.

Whitmer’s green energy package and the siting bill “very clearly advance the interests of monopoly utilities, big wind and solar developers and extreme environmental groups over the interests of local communities and rural Michiganders,” Jason Hayes, the director of energy and environmental policy for the Mackinac Center, a Michigan-based think tank, told the DCNF. “Put another way, these bills protect the profits of politically favored and heavily subsidized wind and solar developers, while sacrificing the rights and interests of the communities that will have to endure the wind turbines and solar arrays developers want to build… rural Michiganders will have to endure both the rising costs and the intrusions into their lives and environment as massive increases in wind and solar development begin to occur.”

A nonprofit organization linked to DTE Energy, a major utility company that Hayes told the DCNF stands to gain from the state’s green energy mandate, shelled out $2 million to help Michigan Democrats in 2022, according to The Detroit News. DTE Energy also gave $400,185 to organizations that spent, directly or indirectly, on Whitmer’s behalf before and after her victory in the 2018 gubernatorial race, according to the Michigan Capitol Confidential.

While DTE Energy also gives money to Republicans, Democrats received substantially more from the company in 2018 and 2022, according to the Michigan Capitol Confidential and The Detroit News.

Additionally, since 2021, Whitmer-affiliated political funds have raked in more than $100,000 in campaign cash from environmentalist organizations that support the green energy transition, like 314 Action and the Michigan League of Conservation Voters’ political action committee, according to state campaign finance records.

“Gov. Whitmer and Lansing Democrats are ignoring the concerns of Michigan families and forcibly imposing massive wind and solar projects on communities who have clearly stated that they do not want them,” Republican Michigan State Rep. Jaime Green, who represents a rural district and serves in Michigan’s House Energy, Communications and Technology Committee, told the DCNF. “Gov. Whitmer has sent a clear message: If there’s a disagreement between what local people want and what the environmental lobby wants, she’s siding with the lobbyists.”

While not directly related to the state’s consolidation of siting and permitting authority, the reaction of locals in rural Green Charter Township to a China-tied electric vehicle battery component manufacturer’s plans to set up shop in their community shows that local residents and state officials do not always agree on what is best for a given community. Whitmer, fellow Democrats and green energy advocates hailed Gotion’s plans to build subsidized facilities in the area as a major step forward for Michigan’s green economy, but many locals did not approve of the company because of its extensive connections to the Chinese Communist Party via its parent company, Gotion High-Tech.

Voters punished local officials who had supported the company in November at the ballot box, ousting five members of the township’s council, the township’s clerk and the township’s treasurer. Those officials had overseen and facilitated Gotion’s plans to operate in the area before their removal.

California

California, another state dominated by the Democratic Party, passed a law in June 2022 that enables state bureaucrats to bypass local restrictions in order to permit large-scale green energy projects. Similar to Michigan’s newly-enacted statute, the California law is specifically designed to facilitate the state’s pursuit of 100% zero-carbon energy generation by 2045.

“The Democratic lawmakers themselves, along with a lot of Republicans even in red states, are just getting so much money from these companies,” Ring told the DCNF regarding the green energy lobby’s influence in politics. “There is a reason we have eminent domain for some purposes, such as building pipelines and streets. Now, we have an abuse of eminent domain, and also an overriding of zoning—the problem is when you use it for something that relies on hype, without a proven and compelling public interest,” like fast-tracking solar and wind projects that often harm the environment while providing unreliable, intermittent power, Ring added.

Like Whitmer, Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a self-proclaimed environmentalist, has received considerable financial support from interests that ostensibly stand to benefit from a rapid buildout of green energy projects in the state. Between his 2018 and 2022 gubernatorial campaigns, Newsom received more than $340,000 from green energy trade groups, political action committees and executives, according to state campaign finance records reviewed by the DCNF.

“There is nothing wrong with being an environmentalist, per se. The issue is that the environmentalist movement has been hijacked by corporate interests,” Ring told the DCNF.

New York

New York state established the Office for Renewable Energy Siting (ORES) in April 2020, when former Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo was still in office before he resigned amid sexual harassment and COVID-19 scandals. ORES has the ability to not apply “any local law or ordinance” that is “unreasonably burdensome” for a proposed green energy facility in view of the state’s aggressive green energy goals or the perceived environmental benefits associated with a given project, according to the enabling statute’s text.

The bulk of new solar and wind projects are sited in upstate New York, a more rural region of the state that already receives most of its energy from carbon-free generation sources, Ken Girardin, the New York-based Empire Center’s research director, told the DCNF, citing data from the New York Independent System Operator.

“New York’s land-use policies and practices are far from perfect, but these are projects that wouldn’t be coming to areas if it weren’t for considerable public subsidies,” Girardin told the DCNF.

Cuomo and his successor, Democratic New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, each received considerable contributions from interest groups that ostensibly stand to gain from a green energy transition in the state. Green energy companies, trade groups and executives, as well as relevant unions and their political action committees, have contributed about $270,000 combined to the two politicians since 2018, according to state campaign finance records reviewed by the DCNF.

Unions are a major political force in the state, and they ostensibly could benefit from the scale of the many projects that will need to be built in order to meet the state’s longer-term green energy targets, Girardin told the DCNF.

Illinois

In February, Democratic Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker enacted H.B. 4412, which “prevents counties from enacting preemptive local ordinances that outright ban local wind and solar projects, hindering the state’s new climate goals.” Illinois is aiming to reach 100% green energy generation by 2050, and will need to build out a significant network of new solar and wind projects to get there.

“These new energy companies, many of which are owned by large, out-of-state venture capital firms receiving massive tax breaks, are now able to remove local control against the wishes of the community,” Republican Illinois State Sen. Terri Bryant told the DCNF about the policy. “This bill is especially dangerous in heavily agriculture counties that have limited zoning and large spaces of land used for crops… removing local control in favor of new energy companies, many of which are out of state and out of the country, is not just a threat to property rights, but to our national security and food supply chain.”

In his two terms as governor, Pritzker has pursued left-wing policies in numerous policy arenas, including imposing tight gun control measures, a $15 minimum wage and eliminating cash bail requirements for suspected criminals. These policies align with the left-wing agenda promulgated by other members of his family, one of the wealthiest in the country, according to the New York Post.

The offices of Whitmer, Newsom, Hochul and Pritzker did not respond immediately to requests for comment.

AUTHOR

NICK POPE

Contributor.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.