Latest news with #CaliforniaHouse
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Newsom takes the heat for an ‘unfair' trans policy
SACRAMENTO, California — Gov. Gavin Newsom tried to take a stand on transgender kids competing in sports. Instead, he's walked himself and the state into a national maelstrom. A few months after the Democratic governor broke ranks with progressive allies by declaring it 'unfair' to let trans athletes compete on girls' teams, Newsom now finds himself in the awkward role of fending off threats and barbs from President Donald Trump, who is angered over the state's permissive laws. Some of the governor's supporters have said he was merely expressing a long-held belief. But his stance has satisfied neither progressive allies, who experienced the governor's comments as a betrayal, nor conservative critics, who accuse Newsom of failing to take meaningful action. And with the blowup again turning a glaring spotlight on California, some Democrats have been frustrated with Newsom for bumbling into what they think should have been an obvious trap. A transgender girl's victories at a state track and field championships last weekend have further fueled a standoff between California and a hostile White House. Trump has repeatedly threatened California with unspecified financial pain for its law which allows students to compete on the teams matching their gender identities. And the U.S. Department of Justice has warned California schools they could face legal repercussions if they don't relent. The president hasn't missed the opportunity to make the skirmish particularly uncomfortable for Newsom, invoking the governor's prior comments about fairness to bolster his screeds. In a social media post late Monday, Trump doubled down, lamenting that the transgender athlete had placed first in the girls' high jump and the triple jump at the championships over the weekend despite his earlier calls for the high school junior to be banned from the competition. 'As Governor Gavin Newscum fully understands, large scale fines will be imposed!!!' Trump posted, using a favorite epithet. The backlash has highlighted the precarious political position Newsom has staked out. When Newsom hosted conservative pundit Charlie Kirk on his podcast in March, Kirk pointedly asked about a transgender girl who was poised to win a track championship and told Newsom he had 'opportunity to run to the middle' by speaking out. By aligning with Kirk, Newsom drew both furious criticism and praise for breaking with progressive orthodoxy as Democrats regrouped from a stinging 2024 election. 'This isn't part of a smart, masterful tack-to-the-middle play — this is sloppy,' said a Democratic consultant with experience in LGBTQ politics granted anonymity to speak candidly. 'Anyone with a few working brain cells left could've seen this was going to lead to the president using his words against him.' The issue has driven conservative media coverage, prompted national Republican attacks on vulnerable California House Democrats, and permeated California's burgeoning race to replace Newsom after he exits next year. Republican candidate Steve Hilton campaigned outside the track meet this weekend in the Fresno suburb of Clovis, vowing to undo the 2013 state law that lets students compete on the teams matching their gender identities. 'One way or another this cruelty, this absurdity, this unfairness will end when I am governor of California,' Hilton said, flanked by supporters hoisting 'save girls sports' signs. Newsom has done little to change the status quo after speaking out against it. He remained on the sidelines earlier this year as Democratic state lawmakers derailed Republican legislation that would have undone that statute. Last week, a Newsom representative praised the California Interscholastic Federation's 'reasonable' 11th-hour rule change that allows more girls to compete in events when a trans opponent is involved. The state regulator tweaked its rules in response to a social media screed by Trump last week after the same trans athlete qualified for state championships. But that change did not mollify federal critics. The Department of Justice sent a letter to the California Interscholastic Federation, which governs high school sports, demanding that school districts break with the state's policy on trans athletes by next week or face legal action. The letter, sent by Harmeet K. Dhillon, the assistant attorney general for civil rights and a former California Republican Party official, claimed California was in violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex. 'Knowingly depriving female students of athletic opportunities and benefits on the basis of their sex would constitute unconstitutional sex discrimination under the Equal Protection Clause,' Dhillon wrote. 'Scientific evidence shows that upsetting the historical status quo and forcing girls to compete against males would deprive them of athletic opportunities and benefits because of their sex.' A Newsom official declined to comment further. A representative for California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a statement the office was 'very concerned with the Trump Administration's ongoing threats to California schools' and vowed to defend 'the rights of students — including transgender students — to be free from discrimination and harassment.' State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond encouraged school districts to hold the line. In an official guidance sent to superintendents on Tuesday, Thurmond cast doubt on the assertion California's policies violated federal law and could endanger funding. 'Let's be clear: sending a letter does not change the law,' Thurmond, who is running for governor, said in a statement. 'The DOJ's letter to school districts does not announce any new federal law, and state law on this issue has remained unchanged since 2013.' Newsom has a long history of supporting LGBTQ rights. He famously defied federal law and issued same-sex marriage licenses when he was mayor of San Francisco. As governor, he has both energized and disappointed advocates for transgender Californians. He signed a law barring schools from requiring parents to be notified about students' gender identities — drawing a threat from Elon Musk — and vetoed a bill that would have let kids' gender identities be factored into custody decisions. Members of the Legislature's LGBTQ caucus were reluctant to criticize Newsom publicly, even if they were not happy with his attention-grabbing comments. 'His podcast career is his podcast career,' said Assemblymember Alex Lee. 'Whatever he wants to do with Steve Bannon and Charlie Kirk, whatever. But he hasn't changed his policies. He's not done anything differently. He said bullshit on a stupid podcast.' Lee said while Newsom has a long history of being 'usually on the right side,' his recent maneuvers are not politically savvy unless he 'wants to run in the Republican primary, I guess, where all they do is talk about culture wars.' LGBTQ Victory Fund President Evan Low, a former California state lawmaker, said Republicans were continuing to hammer trans rights to distract from their unpopular policy positions. He praised Newsom's record on LGBTQ issues and cautioned against playing into Republicans' playbook. 'No one can tear down his track record,' said Low. 'At the same time, I urge caution to many in our ecosystem to not fall into the trap of this false narrative being an issue.'
Politico
3 hours ago
- Health
- Politico
Newsom takes the heat for an ‘unfair' trans policy
SACRAMENTO, California — SACRAMENTO, California — Gov. Gavin Newsom tried to take a stand on transgender kids competing in sports. Instead, he's walked himself and the state into a national maelstrom. A few months after the Democratic governor broke ranks with progressive allies by declaring it 'unfair' to let trans athletes compete on girls' teams, Newsom now finds himself in the awkward role of fending off threats and barbs from President Donald Trump, who is angered over the state's permissive laws. Some of the governor's supporters have said he was merely expressing a long-held belief. But his stance has satisfied neither progressive allies, who experienced the governor's comments as a betrayal, nor conservative critics, who accuse Newsom of failing to take meaningful action. And with the blowup again turning a glaring spotlight on California, some Democrats have been frustrated with Newsom for bumbling into what they think should have been an obvious trap. A transgender girl's victories at a state track and field championships last weekend have further fueled a standoff between California and a hostile White House. Trump has repeatedly threatened California with unspecified financial pain for its law which allows students to compete on the teams matching their gender identities. And the U.S. Department of Justice has warned California schools they could face legal repercussions if they don't relent. The president hasn't missed the opportunity to make the skirmish particularly uncomfortable for Newsom, invoking the governor's prior comments about fairness to bolster his screeds. In a social media post late Monday, Trump doubled down, lamenting that the transgender athlete had placed first in the girls' high jump and the triple jump at the championships over the weekend despite his earlier calls for the high school junior to be banned from the competition. 'As Governor Gavin Newscum fully understands, large scale fines will be imposed!!!' Trump posted, using a favorite epithet. The backlash has highlighted the precarious political position Newsom has staked out. When Newsom hosted conservative pundit Charlie Kirk on his podcast in March, Kirk pointedly asked about a transgender girl who was poised to win a track championship and told Newsom he had 'opportunity to run to the middle' by speaking out. By aligning with Kirk, Newsom drew both furious criticism and praise for breaking with progressive orthodoxy as Democrats regrouped from a stinging 2024 election. 'This isn't part of a smart, masterful tack-to-the-middle play — this is sloppy,' said a Democratic consultant with experience in LGBTQ politics granted anonymity to speak candidly. 'Anyone with a few working brain cells left could've seen this was going to lead to the president using his words against him.' The issue has driven conservative media coverage, prompted national Republican attacks on vulnerable California House Democrats, and permeated California's burgeoning race to replace Newsom after he exits next year. Republican candidate Steve Hilton campaigned outside the track meet this weekend in the Fresno suburb of Clovis, vowing to undo the 2013 state law that lets students compete on the teams matching their gender identities. 'One way or another this cruelty, this absurdity, this unfairness will end when I am governor of California,' Hilton said, flanked by supporters hoisting 'save girls sports' signs. Newsom has done little to change the status quo after speaking out against it. He remained on the sidelines earlier this year as Democratic state lawmakers derailed Republican legislation that would have undone that statute. Last week, a Newsom representative praised the California Interscholastic Federation's 'reasonable' 11th-hour rule change that allows more girls to compete in events when a trans opponent is involved. The state regulator tweaked its rules in response to a social media screed by Trump last week after the same trans athlete qualified for state championships. But that change did not mollify federal critics. The Department of Justice sent a letter to the California Interscholastic Federation, which governs high school sports, demanding that school districts break with the state's policy on trans athletes by next week or face legal action. The letter, sent by Harmeet K. Dhillon, the assistant attorney general for civil rights and a former California Republican Party official, claimed California was in violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex. 'Knowingly depriving female students of athletic opportunities and benefits on the basis of their sex would constitute unconstitutional sex discrimination under the Equal Protection Clause,' Dhillon wrote. 'Scientific evidence shows that upsetting the historical status quo and forcing girls to compete against males would deprive them of athletic opportunities and benefits because of their sex.' A Newsom official declined to comment further. A representative for California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a statement the office was 'very concerned with the Trump Administration's ongoing threats to California schools' and vowed to defend 'the rights of students — including transgender students — to be free from discrimination and harassment.' State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond encouraged school districts to hold the line. In an official guidance sent to superintendents on Tuesday, Thurmond cast doubt on the assertion California's policies violated federal law and could endanger funding. 'Let's be clear: sending a letter does not change the law,' Thurmond, who is running for governor, said in a statement. 'The DOJ's letter to school districts does not announce any new federal law, and state law on this issue has remained unchanged since 2013.' Newsom has a long history of supporting LGBTQ rights. He famously defied federal law and issued same-sex marriage licenses when he was mayor of San Francisco. As governor, he has both energized and disappointed advocates for transgender Californians. He signed a law barring schools from requiring parents to be notified about students' gender identities — drawing a threat from Elon Musk — and vetoed a bill that would have let kids' gender identities be factored into custody decisions. Members of the Legislature's LGBTQ caucus were reluctant to criticize Newsom publicly, even if they were not happy with his attention-grabbing comments. 'His podcast career is his podcast career,' said Assemblymember Alex Lee. 'Whatever he wants to do with Steve Bannon and Charlie Kirk, whatever. But he hasn't changed his policies. He's not done anything differently. He said bullshit on a stupid podcast.' Lee said while Newsom has a long history of being 'usually on the right side,' his recent maneuvers are not politically savvy unless he 'wants to run in the Republican primary, I guess, where all they do is talk about culture wars.' LGBTQ Victory Fund President Evan Low, a former California state lawmaker, said Republicans were continuing to hammer trans rights to distract from their unpopular policy positions. He praised Newsom's record on LGBTQ issues and cautioned against playing into Republicans' playbook. 'No one can tear down his track record,' said Low. 'At the same time, I urge caution to many in our ecosystem to not fall into the trap of this false narrative being an issue.'
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
California Democrats call for reinstatement of National Weather Service staff
California House Democrats on Friday demanded that the National Weather Service restore some terminated workers and begin hiring new forecasters after it halted around-the-clock operations at its Sacramento and Hanford weather forecasting offices, among others. In a letter to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Laura Grimm, the acting administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 23 congressional Democrats decried recent cuts to the weather service, saying they represented the 'beginning of a public safety crisis with potentially catastrophic consequences.' The weather service is a division of NOAA, which is overseen by the Commerce Department. 'We demand that you immediately reinstate all terminated workers at these offices, lift the federal hiring freeze for NWS, and ensure that the Sacramento and Hanford weather forecast offices are adequately staffed to maintain 24/7 operations,' the congressional members wrote. More than 500 weather service staffers have left the agency since January, after the Trump administration fired probationary workers en masse and offered early retirements to an aging workforce of forecasters. The cuts left about 43% of the nation's 122 weather forecasting offices with staffing vacancies above 20%. Independent meteorologists have said cuts could lead to less effective forecasting and slower severe weather warnings. The public safety concerns have become a political pressure point for the administration. The California members of Congress wrote that the weather forecasting offices in Hanford and Sacramento were particularly hit hard, leaving them no longer able to provide 24/7 staffing. 'The Sacramento office currently has seven vacancies for meteorologists, out of 16 positions, while the Hanford office has eight vacancies out of 13 positions — leaving both offices operating at half strength as we approach the peak of wildfire season,' the letter says. 'If the NWS weather forecast offices in Sacramento and Hanford, together covering the entire Central Valley, cannot monitor overnight conditions, that puts our constituents in danger.' The weather service often supplies meteorologists to support fire crews during wildfire season, the letter notes. 'This is a reckless and unnecessary risk that offers no benefit to the American public,' the letter says. 'Slashing staffing in half at the offices responsible for predicting wildfires, atmospheric rivers, and natural disasters is unacceptable, puts thousands of lives at risk, and does nothing to increase government efficiency.' NOAA, the weather service and the Commerce Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The weather service's Hanford office is located in the San Joaquin Valley, and is not far from where the long-dormant Tulare Lake re-formed in 2023, after a historic series of atmospheric river storms flooded the southern portion of California's Central Valley. The Central Valley produces about 40% of the nation's fruits and nuts, according to the United States Geological Survey. Central Valley farmers rely on forecasts to make decisions about planting, irrigation and harvest. Meanwhile, forecasters in Sacramento are predicting triple-digit heat and elevated wildfire risk this weekend, as the region faces an early start to the wildfire season. Rep. Jim Costa, who represents part of the San Joaquin Valley that receives forecasting from the Hanford office, organized the letter to NOAA. Reps. Nancy Pelosi, Eric Swalwell and Zoe Lofgren are among 22 other signatories. Pressure has been intensifying on the administration over cuts to the weather service for several months. Outside meteorologists decried cuts to weather balloon releases at about a dozen short-staffed offices and, in one instance, said a missed balloon launch could have helped forecasters better understand the risk of tornadoes in a thunderstorm event near Omaha, Nebraska. After the incident, Rep. Mike Flood, R-Neb., took steps to intervene with the administration and got additional forecasters temporarily assigned to the office near Omaha. Earlier this month, five former directors of the weather service warned that additional cuts to the agency's staffing could lead to unnecessary deaths. 'Our worst nightmare is that weather forecast offices will be so understaffed that there will be needless loss of life,' wrote the former directors, who served between 1988 and 2022. NOAA has temporarily reassigned some staffers to plug holes in its workforce and also attempted to ease shortages by advertising permanent reassignments within the agency. About two weeks ago, NOAA asked for 76 meteorologists and a total of 155 staffers to consider transferring to fill critical roles. This article was originally published on
NBC News
4 days ago
- Business
- NBC News
California Democrats call for reinstatement of National Weather Service staff
California House Democrats on Friday demanded that the National Weather Service restore some terminated workers and begin hiring new forecasters after it halted around-the-clock operations at its Sacramento and Hanford weather forecasting offices, among others. In a letter to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Laura Grimm, the acting administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 23 congressional Democrats decried recent cuts to the weather service, saying they represented the 'beginning of a public safety crisis with potentially catastrophic consequences.' The weather service is a division of NOAA, which is overseen by the Commerce Department. 'We demand that you immediately reinstate all terminated workers at these offices, lift the federal hiring freeze for NWS, and ensure that the Sacramento and Hanford weather forecast offices are adequately staffed to maintain 24/7 operations,' the congressional members wrote. More than 500 weather service staffers have left the agency since January, after the Trump administration fired probationary workers en masse and offered early retirements to an aging workforce of forecasters. The cuts left about 43% of the nation's 122 weather forecasting offices with staffing vacancies above 20%. Independent meteorologists have said cuts could lead to less effective forecasting and slower severe weather warnings. The public safety concerns have become a political pressure point for the administration. The California members of Congress wrote that the weather forecasting offices in Hanford and Sacramento were particularly hit hard, leaving them no longer able to provide 24/7 staffing. 'The Sacramento office currently has seven vacancies for meteorologists, out of 16 positions, while the Hanford office has eight vacancies out of 13 positions — leaving both offices operating at half strength as we approach the peak of wildfire season,' the letter says. 'If the NWS weather forecast offices in Sacramento and Hanford, together covering the entire Central Valley, cannot monitor overnight conditions, that puts our constituents in danger.' The weather service often supplies meteorologists to support fire crews during wildfire season, the letter notes. 'This is a reckless and unnecessary risk that offers no benefit to the American public,' the letter says. 'Slashing staffing in half at the offices responsible for predicting wildfires, atmospheric rivers, and natural disasters is unacceptable, puts thousands of lives at risk, and does nothing to increase government efficiency.' NOAA, the weather service and the Commerce Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The weather service's Hanford office is located in the San Joaquin Valley, and is not far from where the long-dormant Tulare Lake re-formed in 2023, after a historic series of atmospheric river storms flooded the southern portion of California's Central Valley. The Central Valley produces about 40% of the nation's fruits and nuts, according to the United States Geological Survey. Central Valley farmers rely on forecasts to make decisions about planting, irrigation and harvest. Meanwhile, forecasters in Sacramento are predicting triple-digit heat and elevated wildfire risk this weekend, as the region faces an early start to the wildfire season. Rep. Jim Costa, who represents part of the San Joaquin Valley that receives forecasting from the Hanford office, organized the letter to NOAA. Reps. Nancy Pelosi, Eric Swalwell and Zoe Lofgren are among 22 other signatories. Pressure has been intensifying on the administration over cuts to the weather service for several months. Outside meteorologists decried cuts to weather balloon releases at about a dozen short-staffed offices and, in one instance, said a missed balloon launch could have helped forecasters better understand the risk of tornadoes in a thunderstorm event near Omaha, Nebraska. After the incident, Rep. Mike Flood, R-Neb., took steps to intervene with the administration and got additional forecasters temporarily assigned to the office near Omaha. Earlier this month, five former directors of the weather service warned that additional cuts to the agency's staffing could lead to unnecessary deaths. 'Our worst nightmare is that weather forecast offices will be so understaffed that there will be needless loss of life,' wrote the former directors, who served between 1988 and 2022. NOAA has temporarily reassigned some staffers to plug holes in its workforce and also attempted to ease shortages by advertising permanent reassignments within the agency.
