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Good morning. It’s Monday, March 4.
- Vice President Kamala Harris calls for Gaza cease-fire.
- Poll shows Steve Garvey surging to lead in Senate race.
- Sierra expected to face another pulse of snow Monday.
Statewide
1.
Vice President Kamala Harris on Sunday called for an “immediate cease-fire” in Gaza, putting the onus on Hamas to agree to the release of hostages in exchange for a temporary truce. “Hamas claims it wants a cease-fire,” Harris said during a speech in Selma, Alabama. “Well, there is a deal on the table.” The Bay Area politician also delivered one of the administration’s sharpest rebukes of Israel’s bombardment of Gaza, describing conditions in the besieged enclave as a “humanitarian catastrophe.” Washington Post | Wall Street Journal
- Thousands of people marched in Los Angeles and San Francisco on Saturday to demand a cease-fire in Gaza. On Sunday, another march in San Francisco denounced antisemitism. L.A. Times | SF Standard | Mercury News
2.
Republican Steve Garvey has now surged into the lead ahead of Tuesday’s primary election for U.S. Senate in California, according to the latest UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll. The survey conducted between between Feb. 22 and 27 found that 27% of likely voters favored the former Dodger, followed by 25% for Rep. Adam Schiff and 19% for Rep. Katie Porter. California’s primary system, which advances the top two vote getters regardless of party, has helped Garvey by splitting Democratic votes. Still, analysts marveled at the rise of a political novice who barely campaigned. L.A. Times
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- See what’s on your ballot.
- Find your polling location.
- And explore local voter guides: San Diego County | Orange County | Los Angeles | San Joaquin Valley | San Francisco Bay Area | Sacramento County
3.
The blizzard that arrived in the Sierra Nevada late Thursday gained force over the weekend, knocking out power to a quarter of a million customers and paralyzing travel, until Sunday, when the wind and snow began to lessen. Highway officials shut down 100 miles of Interstate 80, a major east-west artery, north of Lake Tahoe, as billowing snow piled up in the lanes and stranded dozens of vehicles. By Sunday, at least 7 feet of snow had fallen on the highest mountain peaks. Get ready for more: Another pulse of snow was expected to arrive Monday through Tuesday. Fox Weather | Accuweather
4.
Video highlights from the severe weather:
- Funnel clouds formed in the San Joaquin Valley. @KMPHFOX26 | @danncianca
- Semis sat abandoned along Interstate 80. @US_Stormwatch
- Ferocious winds whipped Palisades Tahoe. @palisadesops
- Homes around Donner Lake were buried in snow. @US_Stormwatch
- Powerful snow plows cleared roads. @CaltransDist3 | @JenCarfagno
- A pair of dogs frolicked in the Tahoe Basin snow. @DavidNBraun
Northern California
5.
Hundreds of thousands of salmon released into the Klamath River last week are believed to have died, wildlife officials said. The release of hatchery fish was part of an effort to restore the Klamath’s salmon runs as work proceeds to remove aging hydroelectric dams along the river. Biologists believe the fish experienced a fatal change in pressure as they swam through a tunnel at the base of one of the dams, which had been opened to drain a reservoir ahead of demolition. “We’re going to learn from it,” said Jason Roberts, a wildlife agency official. S.F. Chronicle
6.
Alameda County’s district attorney, Pamela Price, “constantly and openly” made derogatory comments against Asian Americans and referred to them as “enemies,” a former spokeswoman said in a letter alleging wrongful termination. Patti Lee served in Price’s office for six months last year before being fired in what she said was retaliation for complaining about public records violations. Price has faced charges of anti-Asian bias before. Last May, an Asian American prosecutor resigned from her office over what she said was Price’s “condescending and disrespectful” treatment of the Asian community. Berkeley Scanner
7.
A California prisoner who goes by the name Hamza donated his entire earnings from janitorial work in the month of October to help civilians in Gaza. At 13 cents an hour for 136.5 hours worked, the donation amounted to $17.74. When a filmmaker who corresponds with Hamza posted about the giving on social media, there was an outpouring of good will toward Hamza. As of Sunday, a GoFundMe had raised $102,000 for him. Incarcerated for nearly 40 years, he’s set to be paroled this month. Washington Post
8.
A tunnel of Monterey cypress trees in Point Reyes leads to a graceful Art Deco building, the home of a Morse-code radio station that once watched over the Pacific Ocean. In 1999, Morse code ceased being the standard for maritime communication. But rather than let the station fall into disrepair, a group of hobbyists convinced the National Park Service to let them restore it. For a few hours every Saturday they still fire up the equipment and trade messages with ships that call in. The photographer Ann Hermes visited the “radio squirrels” manning the last operational Morse-code radio station in North America. The Atlantic
- See more pictures at Hermes’ website. 👉 AnnhermesPhoto.com
9.
Dronme Davis, a plus-size model in Mendocino, attracted a wide following on Instagram as an advocate of the so-called body positive movement, criticizing diet culture and proudly posting pictures of her belly rolls. Then, without explanation, she dropped the weight. Her silence felt like a betrayal to some of her followers. “It made me feel like she was being dishonest,” said Tianna James, a 22-year-old who had been inspired by James. Reporter Katie J. M. Baker took a fascinating look at disruption in the body positive movement as extremely effective weight loss drugs become widespread. N.Y. Times
Southern California
10.
Huntington Beach has long been a conservative outpost along California’s liberal coast. But the City Council’s rightward lurch over the last couple years has troubled residents who say it has gone full MAGA at the expense of local governance. Tuesday’s primary — featuring local measures on voter ID and Pride flags — could amount to a referendum on the city’s culture war priorities. “We’re living in a state that’s not welcoming to us; conservative values are not really welcomed,” said Mayor Gracey Van Der Mark. “We just want a safe space for people who share our values. And why shouldn’t we have that?” Washington Post
11.
“Maybe it is the irony of a city desperate for housing. Or maybe it is a statement about greed and wasted opulence. Perhaps emblematic of a Los Angeles spiraling into chaos. Most would agree that the takeover was cunningly bold.”
A New York Times piece on the graffiti artist takeover of abandoned skyscrapers in Los Angeles includes some excellent prose and video camera work.
12.
Red-crowned and lilac-crowned parrots have been driven to the brink of extinction in their native Mexico. Yet in Los Angeles, where the birds were introduced decades ago via the pet trade, they have curiously thrived, squawking like mad in parks and backyards. A new study offered a potential answer to how the birds adapted to an ecosystem so different from the forested regions they evolved in. In the 1950s and 1960s, Los Angeles developers turned up their noses at native oaks and sycamores, choosing instead sweet gums, camphor, carrotwood, fig, and ficus trees — all favored by parrots. L.A. Times
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