Category: Election

By JW August

President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice, as reported by the Associated Press, is asking 15 states, including California, for copies of voter registration lists from election administrators for 2020 and 2024.  The Department of Justice is leading the effort to pursue what it’s calling “widespread” voter fraud. It’s a reversal of the department’s longtime policy of protecting access to the ballot box.

These debunked claims of fraud have long been perpetuated by Trump and his allies.

My Feb. 1 story published by the OB Rag now appears to have been just the beginning — a small reveal inside the Pandora’s box of this president’s politics. 

by Ernie McCray

That shit ICE pulled in my old neighborhood
still sits with me,
all that rushing into town,
spraying gasses
and snatching people around,
ridiculously and literally laying siege on
a community,
fueled by a sick man’s
hatefulness and insanity.

And I can’t help but take it personally
because I spent 30 of the most wonderful years of my life
on the very block
this incredibly wicked abuse
took place –
a neighborhood as good as any to be found
any place.

When a majority rules without offering a rationale, we can’t know if they are following the law.

By Erwin Chemerinksy / Contributing writer Los Angeles Times / July 23, 2025

“Because I said so” never is persuasive or satisfying. And it certainly should not be regarded as acceptable when it is the Supreme Court resolving important issues — up to and including matters of life and death — without the slightest explanation. Yet, that has been the pattern in recent weeks, as in a series of significant cases the court has handed down rulings without opinions or explanation.

For example, on June 23, in Department of Homeland Security vs. D.V.D., the court majority lifted a district court order that prevented individuals from Venezuela and Cuba who were in the U.S. from being deported to South Sudan. The district court had issued a preliminary injunction against so-called third country deportation, finding that the individuals were not given due process: They were not provided sufficient notice or a meaningful opportunity to challenge their deportation based on their fears for their safety. The judge was understandably concerned the individuals could be subjected to torture or death upon arrival. Federal law is specific on where people can be deported to, and there is a strong argument that the Trump administration would violate the law in sending these individuals to a country where they had no prior contacts.

By Kate Callen / July 28, 2025

This Thursday, July 31, YIMBY Democrats of San Diego are holding a “Summer Soiree” fundraiser at 6:30 p.m. at the Town and Country Resort. YIMBY politicians like Congressman Scott Peters and Assemblymember Chris Ward will be there, along with developers, lobbyists, law firms, and … representatives of Airbnb.

The event flyer gives a big shout-out to the vacation rental conglomerate: “We would like to extend a special thank you to Airbnb, our presenting sponsor this year.”

Come again? Why would a local group dedicated to boosting the housing supply embrace a global conglomerate that shrinks that supply by converting residential units into vacation units?

Airbnb may rightly believe that more housing production will deliver more opportunities for future vacation rentals. And YIMBYs are understandably happy to take the corporate money.

The short-term rental behemoth has been courting density advocates since at least January 2024, when it launched the Airbnb Housing Council. Like its new YIMBY allies, Airbnb expressed concern about the shortage of affordable housing.

By Martha Abraham

It’s hardly a coincidence that Council Member Henry Foster appeared jubilant immediately after the vote to approve the Klauber Project. His two close allies, Vivin Moreno and Sean Elo-Riviera, were the ones who proposed and seconded the motion to move the Klauber Project forward, Henry did not object. When it was Henry’s turn to speak, he didn’t plea to stop the project, nor did he call for a new motion.

Instead, he merely expressed a vague hope that, next time, the developer would engage more meaningfully with the community.

Henry Foster himself has been largely unengaged, attempting to govern District 4 as if he’s the ruler rather than a representative. His approach has been dismissive, consistently limiting access for his constituents and ignoring our voices. If Foster truly supported our community’s interests, his social media posts and public comments following Tuesday’s meeting would have echoed disappointment or frustration with the council’s decision. Instead, we’ve heard nothing. His silence speaks for itself.

by Jack Lee /  San Francisco Tribune – MSN /July 9, 2025

Storm and surf forecasts in California will become less accurate this year when federal funding for a network of ocean buoys disappears in September.

Federal support for the Coastal Data Information Program, operated by UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography, was drastically cut by nearly 70%. The drop in funding, set to take effect Sept. 1, will force some ocean buoys offline, scientists say, making weather forecasts less reliable, compromise public safety and hamper ship operations.

“If you lined up a hundred meteorologists and asked them, ‘Are buoy observations important to the forecast process and important to the mission of saving lives?’ every one of them will say, ‘Yes, absolutely,’” said Troy Nicolini, the meteorologist-in-charge at the National Weather Service Eureka office.

The Coastal Data Information Program network comprises about 90 buoys, not just along the West Coast, but also off the Gulf and East coasts and in the Pacific Islands. The buoys measure ocean waves, providing data used by scientists, meteorologists, boat captains, surfers and more.

July 4, 2025

We, the undersigned, former members of New York’s Gay Liberation Front, condemn the Trump administration and its supporters in all levels of government for their vicious attacks on our community and on other marginalized communities.

The Gay Liberation Front was the first and most radical LGBTQ+ organization formed directly after the Stonewall Uprising in June, 1969. Our guiding message, equal inclusion of all people into society and the body politic, is even more urgent today.

One of the administration’s first targets was the transgender community. It is attempting to eject them from the military. Trans people seeking to renew their passports are now faced with the indignity of having their pre-transition gender stamped on the documents. Ten states now deny them appropriate medical care. The administration is encouraging a climate of hatred that has led to increased violence against trans people.

The Trump administration has cut funds for HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention, both in the United States and abroad. This will result in a worldwide increase in disease and death— an increase that will not stop at our borders.

By Andrew Solender / Axios / July 7, 2025

At town halls in their districts and in one-on-one meetings with constituents and activists, Democratic members of Congress are facing a growing thrum of demands to break the rules, fight dirty — and not be afraid to get hurt.

Why it matters: House Democrats told Axios they see a growing anger among their base that has, in some cases, morphed into a disregard for American institutions, political traditions and even the rule of law.

“This idea that we’re going to save every norm and that we’re not going to play [Republicans’] game … I don’t think that’s resonating with voters anymore,” said one House Democrat.

Another told Axios that a “sense of fear and despair and anger” among voters “puts us in a different position where … we can’t keep following norms of decorum.”
Axios spoke to more than two dozen House Democrats for this story, with many requesting anonymity to offer candid insights about their interactions with constituents and activists.

Here are a few articles about ICE in San Diego.

ICE increasingly arresting San Diegans with no criminal record, data shows

Starting in May, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials dramatically ramped up arrests in the San Diego area and increasingly targeted immigrants without existing criminal histories, according to an inewsource analysis of arrest data.

ICE raids in San Diego foreshadowed the roundups, protests now spreading across California

Days before President Donald Trump unleashed federal immigration agents to raid sites spanning from California’s biggest cities to its agricultural heartland, sparking protests in L.A. and elsewhere, San Diego’s quaint South Park neighborhood was targeted. Two popular Italian restaurants were swarmed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on May 30, prompting a remarkable response from neighbors who rallied to the scene and forced a retreat under shouts of “shame.”

2 San Diego Women Charged with Assaulting ICE Agents

Two San Diego women have been charged with assaulting ICE agents during a July 2 immigration raid at a Linda Vista apartment complex.
According to the federal complaints, obtained by CBS 8, 46-year-old Trina Rupley and 55-year-old Jeane Wong were each charged with one felony count of assaulting, resisting, or impeding federal officers.

A was is raging within America — between the people and immigrants versus ICE and its enablers. Here is a collection of recent articles about ICE:

ICE Budget Makes It Larger than Most of World’s Militaries — and Largest Law Enforcement Agency in U.S.

The House and Senate have now passed a bill making Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) the United States’ largest interior law enforcement agency, with funding for Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement agenda higher than most of the world’s militaries, including Israel’s.Trump’s bill means a massive increase in ICE funding as part of an immigration enforcement agenda worth $150 billion over four years.

Will ICE Be Building Labor Camps in America?

One aspect of the Republicans’ big, ugly bill that didn’t get enough attention until Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez elevated it over the last few days is the massive amounts of money it directs to the apprehension and detention of immigrants. On Thursday, right after the bill passed the House, AOC posted on Bluesky:

This is not a simple budget increase. It is an explosion – making ICE bigger than the FBI, US Bureau of Prisons, DEA,& others combined. It is setting up to make what’s happening now look like child’s play. And people are disappearing.

Vice President JD Vance was met with a chorus of vigorous boos and jeers as his motorcade departed a University Heights sushi restaurant over the Fourth of July weekend.

A crowd of protesters gathered outside Soichi Sushi on Adams Avenue Sunday, July 6 to show contempt for the vice president and criticize recent policy decisions.

“I hope your Michelin-star sushi was worth it with 82 people dead in Texas. Thanks for cutting the National Weather Service,” one protester shouted.

Videos posted online show Vance’s motorcade being escorted out of the neighborhood by police as demonstrators lined the sidewalk, some flipping the bird.