Good morning. It’s Wednesday, March 15.
- Forecasts call for a few dry days before the next storm.
- San Francisco leaders back $5 million reparations payouts.
- And Shasta County cozies up to election truthers.
California storms
1.
Flooding from Shasta County to the Central Coast.
Mudslides in wine country and the Sierra foothills.
And toppled trees all over the place.
California’s latest atmospheric river caused havoc across much of the state Tuesday, leading to evacuation orders for nearly 27,000 people. The rainfall was moderate, but the wind was extreme. Crews scrambled to keep up with reports of fallen trees and power lines as gusts maxed out at nearly 100 mph at higher elevations. More than 370,000 customers lost power. In the Bay Area, glass rained down from a high-rise, a big rig tipped over, and San Francisco’s airport halted flights. But there was some good news: Forecasters said Californians could look forward to a few days of clear skies after the storm subsides on Wednesday. Mercury News | S.F. Chronicle | L.A. Times
2.
Other developments:
- “I feel helpless.” Weary residents lined up for aid on Tuesday in the flooded farmworker community of Pajaro, ground zero for the latest atmospheric river. They could be displaced for weeks or longer. L.A. Times | Mercury News
- Monterey County shared a drone’s-eye view of the work to repair the levee breach on the Pajaro River. @MontereyCoInfo
- “It caused a mini tsunami.” While on a walk along a tributary of the Eel River in Humboldt County on Tuesday, a couple captured dramatic video of a cliff wall collapse. Redheaded Blackbelt
- The snow level has risen so high at Tahoe’s ski resorts that some chairlifts, normally hanging overhead, are now buried in snow. See photos. 👉 @SnowBrains
Statewide
3.
During a radio interview in Boston in January, Sen. Elizabeth Warren stopped short of endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris as President Biden’s running mate in 2024. Since then, Warren called Harris twice to apologize. She hasn’t called back. It’s the latest sign of tension among top Democrats, as some say Harris has failed to live up to her pre-election promise and members of her inner circle complain that she has never gotten proper respect. CNN
4.
President Biden spent Tuesday afternoon consoling community members in Monterey Park, where a gunman killed 11 people in January. Speaking to a small audience in a Boys & Girls Club auditorium, he recited the names of the victims and announced a handful of steps meant to strengthen enforcement of existing gun laws. But he implored Congress to do more. “Let’s finish the job,” he said. “Ban assault weapons. Ban them again. Do it now. Enough. Do something. Do something big.” A.P. | Politico
Northern California
5.
A proposal from San Francisco’s reparations task force to give $5 million lump-sum payments to Black residents had led even some reparations advocates to scoff. But during a hearing Tuesday, county supervisors enthusiastically backed the proposal. If the dollar figure seems shocking, said Supervisor Dean Preston, addressing critics, “Ask what these numbers say about the society that we live in.” The board also endorsed other ideas, including guaranteed incomes of $97,000 for 250 years and San Francisco homes for $1. The Guardian | A.P.
6.
The courtship between MyPillow founder Mike Lindell and Shasta County appears to be getting more serious. Supervisor Kevin Crye said on Tuesday that he taken a “county-sponsored” flight to meet with the voter fraud conspiracy theorist. A subsequent meeting, held Monday in Shasta County, was attended by local election officials and Linda Rantz, a Lindell ally and election truther from Missouri. Shasta County recently ended its contract with Dominion Voting Systems, which became a target of conspiracy theories after former President Trump’s election loss. Redding Record Searchlight
7.
The reporter Maureen Farrell produced a fantastic account of Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse:
“The tale of Silicon Valley Bank is one of ambition and management mistakes, of a chief executive who talked so much about innovation and the future that he and his lieutenants didn’t pay enough attention to the mundane but enormously important work of managing risk and ensuring financial prudence. When the bank was caught flat-footed in a rapidly changing economic environment, it waited till the last minute to try to avert its fate.” N.Y. Times
- When Gov. Gavin Newsom cheered the Biden Administration’s move to protect Silicon Valley Bank depositors, he failed to mention that he is a client. The Intercept
8.
The latest campus free speech fracas has pitted Stanford against its own law school students. The controversy kicked off last Thursday when a talk by an invited judge, Kyle Duncan, was derailed by heckling from students who objected to his views on same-sex marriage and other issues. That prompted a written apology to the judge from Stanford’s president and law school dean. The days that followed have included a flurry of open letters, calls for firings, a Tucker Carlson segment, and a silent protest by students dressed in black. Bloomberg
Give something they’ll open every day.
Give the gift of the California Sun.
Southern California
9.
San Clemente leaders, eager to clear its beaches of homeless encampments, directed city staff earlier this month to talk with the county about establishing a shelter — just not in San Clemente. “We don’t want to become the manure pit that Democratic cities like San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego have become,” explained Councilman Gene James. “You even see it here in Orange County. I won’t name the cities, but you know what these cities are.” Voice of OC
10.
Los Angeles prosecutors announced felony charges on Tuesday against the operators of an upscale senior living facility in connection with 14 Covid-19 deaths in the early days of the pandemic. Prosecutors said Silverado Beverly Place admitted a new patient, who was untested for infection, in March of 2020 from a psychiatric unit in New York, which was then a coronavirus hot spot. The 32-year-old nurse who admitted the patient died first, followed by 13 residents. L.A. Times | NBC Los Angeles
11.
Janelle Huerta and Steve Morales built a business selling rave attire out of their home, offering items such as neon spandex and bedazzled cowboy hats. It went so well that in January they upgraded to a shop in Claremont, a college town just east of Los Angeles. The backlash was immediate. Five neighboring businesses appealed to block the store’s opening, arguing that it doesn’t fit in. “What type of element are we welcoming into the Claremont Village?” said Yvette Duchardin-Hart, the owner of a frame shop. “How can we believe they can be respectable neighbors?” San Gabriel Valley Tribune
12.
Mulholland Boulevard, winding 55 miles through the Hollywood Hills, is famous for some of the most dazzling overhead views of Los Angeles. But it also offers sights at closer range. A significant number of the region’s most celebrated architectural works are perched along the road or nearby. Spin around at the popular Jerome Daniel Overlook, and you’ll see the specimen pictured above, designed to look like a bird in 1974 by the architect Henry Gesner.
- The Los Angeles Conservancy has a searchable map of the city’s modern gems.
Get your California Sun T-shirts, phone cases, hoodies, and mugs.
Thanks for reading!
The California Sun is written by Mike McPhate, a former California correspondent for the New York Times.
Make a one-time contribution to the California Sun.
Get a California Sun mug, T-shirt, phone case, or hoodie.
Forward this email to a friend.
Click here to stop delivery, and here to update your billing information or cancel your support.
The California Sun, PO Box 6868, Los Osos, CA 93412
Wake up to must-read news from around the Golden State delivered to your inbox each morning.