The one issue where ‘26 Dems all agree

Politico

2 days ago

CHORUS OF COMPETITORS — The major Democratic candidates for governor have all quickly lined up behind their party in supporting efforts to redraw California's congressional districts mid-decade to counter Texas Republicans' attempts to do the same.
Former Biden administration cabinet member Xavier Becerra told POLITICO that 'Politically, we must do it.' Toni Atkins, the former legislative leader, told Playbook that 'California has always led the way — and now we must because the fate of our democracy and the country's future depend on us stopping this Republican power grab.'
A visible standout … The one notable exception has been billionaire mall magnate Rick Caruso, who has not entered the field but has been floated as a possible moderate Democratic candidate. Through a spokesperson, he declined to comment on whether he supported California's power play.
BIG PICTURE: The near uniform response from others in the 2026 field has not afforded any of them a chance to stand out, much less a viral soundbite chewing out the president and Texas Republicans. But it has allowed them to stay in their party's good graces and cast themselves as leaders of the resistance as they seek a fundraising surge following former Vice President Kamala Harris' decision not to run.
Key incentive … When former Rep. Katie Porter came out in support of California Democrats' redistricting play, she almost explicitly explained why Democratic candidates for governor stand to benefit from backing their party's redraw. It's a chance to bash President Donald Trump to anti-Trump voters.
'This is what I hear from Californians all the time as I'm running for governor: They want a fighter. They want someone who's going to stand up to Donald Trump and stand up to the Republican shenanigans,' Porter said on CNN last week. 'I think that Trump and Texas — Texas Republicans — are leaving us no choice. They are tinkering with the rules of our democracy.'
Billionaire entrepreneur Stephen J. Cloobeck has taken his redistricting arguments in a similar anti-Trump direction, distributing a campaign ad comparing Trump's untrue claims that he won the 2020 election to his support for Texas redistricting. 'Cheaters gonna cheat. That's what he's doing in Texas,' a narrator says over clips of Trump speaking, 'changing the rules so that he can't lose.'
Changing course … Even Democratic candidates including former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who backed the creation of California's independent redistricting commission, have called for the commission's map to be tossed out early. Villaraigosa in an interview said he wouldn't support the California Legislature unilaterally redrawing the state's lines, but he got on board once Democrats settled on putting the map that would be used before voters.
'We have to stand up to these efforts to rig an election,' Villaraigosa told Playbook, while railing against the GOP and president's agenda. 'We have to stand up because Californians are being disproportionately targeted here, on health care, on taxes, on tariffs, on education, and these raids.'
Or as state Superintendent Tony Thurmond framed the state's process in a video address: 'California is fighting fire with fire, but because we're California, we're doing it in an open, transparent and responsible way.'
Family ties … By falling into line, the candidates are also doing their party a solid. They may not be able to secure enough Democratic delegates to get a statewide party endorsement in the primary — especially if the field remains so sprawling — but maintaining relationships with Democratic insiders who have a more direct stake in redistricting could help with courting donors and endorsements.
'I won't stand by and watch a Texas takeover that ultimately gives Congress the green light to strip away more of our civil rights and harm Californians with even deeper program cuts,' former state Controller Betty Yee said in a statement supporting California's response.
The Republican response … Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and conservative media personality Steve Hilton have also gone the way of their national party, stridently opposing California's redistricting gambit. Hilton issued a threat to sue the state over it, calling the maneuver 'a blatant, unconstitutional and illegal power grab designed to cement one‑party rule.'
The redistricting play has given Bianco and Hilton a prime chance to rail against partisan line drawing not just now but through the 2026 election, knowing that if one of them makes it to the run-off, they'll likely be running against someone who supported Democrats' gerrymander.
'Dictator Gavin Newsom believes he has to destroy democracy in order to 'save it,'' Bianco said on social media, offering a flavor of the attacks he could launch at Democratic opponents on the issue. 'We're going to fight back, just like we did when he unlawfully banned people from going to church and opening their small businesses.'
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MORE ON REDISTRICTING
DIFFERENT TIMES — Common Cause, a good government watchdog that had previously been opposed to mid-cycle redistricting, is changing course. As POLITICO's Aaron Pellish reports, the group released a new policy statement Tuesday, stating that it will not condemn California's redistricting effort — which it called a 'counterbalancing measure' to Trump's push to draw several new Republican-leaning seats in Texas and around the country.
In the statement, Common Cause said it will not endorse partisan gerrymandering in any case but is deciding now to not condemn actions taken by states like California given the context of Trump's efforts to 'lock in unaccountable power and silence voters.'
'We will not endorse partisan gerrymandering even when its motive is to offset more extreme gerrymandering by a different party,' Common Cause said. 'But a blanket condemnation in this moment would amount to a call for unilateral political disarmament in the face of authoritarian efforts to undermine fair representation and people-powered democracy.'
EDUCATION
UCLA'S PARTIAL REPRIEVE — A federal judge ordered the Trump administration Tuesday to restore some of the funding it cut from UCLA in late July, handing a partial victory to the UC system as it faces a $1 billion settlement demand from the White House over alleged antisemitism on campus.
As POLITICO's Eric He reports, it was not immediately clear how much money would be returned to the campus. Judge Rita F. Lin of the Northern District Court of California had already sided with the UC in June when she barred the National Science Foundation from terminating additional grants to UC researchers. In her ruling Tuesday, Lin said the foundation had violated that order by cutting off funding.
NEWSOM V. HARVARD — Newsom on Tuesday called for Harvard President Alan Garber to resign following a report from The New York Times that the university is nearing a potential $500 million settlement with the Trump administration. 'Looks like Harvard has chosen to surrender,' Newsom posted on X. 'An absolute failure of leadership that will have demonstrable impacts to higher education across our country. He should be ashamed.'
Newsom had blasted the Trump administration's demand of $1 billion from UCLA — a move that applied pressure to the public UC system not to capitulate as Ivy League institutions have after jousting with the president. He also said the state would sue.
The governor personally, and through staff, communicated with members of the UC Board of Regents, UC Office of the President and UCLA regarding the Trump administration's settlement demands, according to Newsom's office. 'The governor sees this as an undemocratic assault on a vital public institution and he's not giving an inch,' said spokesperson Bob Salladay. 'There is no wiggle room here for him — he's all in with this fight.'
SILICON VALLEY
MAHAN'S MOD MAJORITY — San Jose Councilmember Anthony Tordillos was sworn into office Tuesday — delivering Mayor Matt Mahan a solid bloc of moderate Democrats to help implement his policy agenda at City Hall.
Mahan, who backed Tordillos in a June special election, has irked Bay Area progressives and labor unions in recent years with his headline-grabbing moves, including a plan to tie the raises of some city employees to performance metrics and his vocal support for a ballot measure to increase prison sentences for drug- and theft-related offenses.
But Tordillos' win provides Mahan with a firewall against his critics on the left. The new councilmember defeated a progressive, labor-backed candidate, Gabby Chavez-Lopez, by double digits in an expensive runoff contest.
Mahan, in a recent interview with Playbook, seemed to bask in the outcome: 'Culturally, (Tordillos) and I are part of what … is going to be a majority bloc that focuses on what measurably improves outcomes, versus previous ideological commitments.'
He added, 'Two-thirds of the electorate is not for the hyper-ideological progressive' approach to city government.
CLIMATE AND ENERGY
DEAL OR NO DEAL — The Trump administration is taking away California's backstop Trump-proofing tactics to protect its climate regulations: its voluntary deals with industry. On Tuesday, the FTC announced an agreement with four heavy-duty truck manufacturers and their trade association, declaring California's agreement with them 'unenforceable.' Read more in last night's edition of California Climate.
TOP TALKERS
LA CORRUPTION CASE — Prosecutors filed additional charges against Los Angeles City Councilmember Curren Price this week, the LA Times reports. Price had already been charged with 10 felony counts, including grand theft and perjury over allegations that he voted to approve projects that would financially benefit his wife, Del Richardson. Her consulting firm allegedly received more $150,000 in payments from developers before he voted on their projects.
Price has denied any wrongdoing. Michael Schafler, Price's attorney, called the charges 'nothing more than an attempt to pile on to a weak case.' Price told the Times that 'there is no evidence whatsoever that Councilmember Price was aware of the alleged conflicts when he voted for the agenda items.'
FEINSTEIN'S TREASURES — Dozens of items from the estate of the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein and her husband, the late financier Richard Blum, are going up for auction later this week. The collection included antique European furniture, opulent jewelry, historic artifacts, rare paintings and Persian and Tibetan rugs that once decorated the couple's former mansion on Billionaires' Row in San Francisco.
Highlights of the collection, as SF Gate reports: 'a photograph of Feinstein posing with Queen Elizabeth II"; 'a German carved chest circa 1740 (valued from $800 to $1,200)"; and 'a Louis XV-style writing desk (valued from $500 to $700).' The most expensive item is a diamond and platinum solitaire ring valued from $40,000 to $60,000.
AROUND THE STATE
— Police departments eager to fill vacant jobs are increasingly hiring officers who were previously fired or dismissed from other agencies. (San Francisco Chronicle)
— Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel, who Trump recently suggested will have his show canceled next, revealed he recently secured Italian citizenship. (CNN)
— Treacherous rip currents are pummeling beaches in San Diego County, with swells reaching 6 to 7 feet in some locations. (The San Diego Union-Tribune)
— Trump's big spending bill includes a surprise boost for affordable housing developers in California: an increase to the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit. (CalMatters)
PLAYBOOKERS
SPOTTED: CARUSO MAKING ROUNDS — LA mega developer Rick Caruso, who's weighing a run for governor, was in Sacramento for a dinner and meetings — including a chat with POLITICO's Christopher Cadelago. Earlier in the day, he met at his home with Piers Morgan.
STORK ALERT — J. Baylor Myers, VP of corporate development at BitGo and a former top aide to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin in the first Trump administration, and Dakota Myers, a paralegal in San Francisco, on Aug. 4 welcomed John Baylor Myers Jr, who came in at 8 pounds and 13 ounces. Pic … Another pic
PEOPLE MOVES — Ivy Brittain is now regional director, state government affairs at the Plastics Industry Association. She was previously legislative affairs director at the Northern California Water Association.
— Seamus Garrity is joining Mercury Public Affairs as a managing director. He will continue to work between LA and Sacramento and was previously a partner at Lighthouse Public Affairs.
BIRTHDAYS — Margot Roosevelt … Chris Dhanaraj ... Emily Myerson … former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen …
BELATED B-DAY WISHES — (was Sunday): Ajita Talwalker Menon at Calbright College
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