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NEWSOM on doing business with SINGLE-PAYER — SF bans FACIAL RECOGNITION tech — ARAMBULA takes the stand — LA SCHOOLS initiative dollars surge as TEACHERS influence PRESIDENTIAL — FEDS break with CA again on GIG WORKERS – Politico


THE BUZZ: APPEAL ‘’OUTSIDE OF YOUR BASE” — Gov. Gavin Newsom had some stark advice Tuesday for 2020 presidential candidates backing “Medicare for All,’’ saying a conversation with America’s small business owners about the costs and impacts of such a plan is “long overdue.”

“You’ve got to convince people outside of your ideological spectrum … outside of your base,’’ said Newsom, who on Tuesday launched what he dubbed his “California for All” health care tour in Sacramento, where he was surrounded by a group of small business owners who detailed their troubles with health care costs.

During his hour-long conversation with business owners, Newsom heard a variety of concerns about impacts on family enterprises, and warned that it may be time for 2020 Democratic candidates — many of whom have backed calls for single payer health care — to “get in this space.” He said more frank conversations with business leaders — including the estimated 3.9 million small business owners in California — may be crucial to the goal of reaching 2020 voters with the Democratic message.

In the current Democratic presidential field, candidates including Sens. Kamala Harris and Bernie Sanders, former HUD Secretary Julian Castro and Reps. Eric Swalwell and Tulsi Gabbard have backed Medicare for All, though they have differed on maintaining private insurance, and few have substantively discussed effects on the business community as part of the conversation.

Newsom argued that “one of the most compelling arguments for a single payer financing system is how it completely unleashes the burden on small businesses” by freeing them from huge costs that can come with providing health care for employees.

CALIFORNIA CONTEXT: While single-payer advocates like the California Nurses Association have seen Newsom as a champion on the issue, POLITICO’s Angela Hart reports there are still significant political obstacles to getting it done — including a rift between Newsom and legislative leadership on the best route forward. And legislators will spend this budget season working to convince the governor (Pro content) of their more expansive approach to insuring undocumented immigrants.

BUENOS DIAS, Good Wednesday morning. A fight over e-cigarettes in San Francisco is heating up as an industry group looks to forestall a potential ban by going to the ballot.

— QUOTE OF THE DAY: “Thanks for not mentioning our tax rate.” Gov. Gavin Newsom, during a roundtable on health care costs, to businessman Scott Halvorson, owner of Weddings by Scott and Dana, who relocated to California.

— TWEET OF THE DAY: Assembly Appropriations chair Lorena Gonzalez @LorenaSGonzalez on a do-or-die week for fiscal bills: “In about 54 hours … I’ll be better.”

— WHERE’S GAVIN? Nothing official announced.

— FACING PRIVACY: San Francisco yesterday became the first American city to ban facial recognition tools, the latest manifestation of growing desire among elected officials to rein in privacy-compromising technologies. POLITICO Pro tech correspondent Alexandra Levine has some context:

The bigger picture: The passage of the first-of-its-kind ordinance could set a precedent for municipal, state and federal governments in other American cities grappling with where to make use of artificial intelligence technology and how to do it ethically and democratically without raising privacy and civil liberties concerns.

Where big tech fits in: Amazon’s facial recognition product Rekognition (often marketed for law enforcement purposes) and similar software from other tech companies had come under scrutiny long before San Francisco took up the ordinance. Last summer, for example, lawmakers called on the DOJ to launch an investigation into allegations that the software was racially biased and violating federal discrimination law.

But proponents of facial recognition tech say San Francisco is taking a step in the wrong direction. “Critics are worried that the U.S. government will use facial recognition for mass surveillance, as the Chinese government is doing,” Daniel Castro, vice president of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, said in a statement. “In reality, San Francisco is more at risk of becoming Cuba than China — a ban on facial recognition will make it frozen in time with outdated technology.”

— ARAMBULA TRIAL: “California Assemblyman Arambula takes stand, denies ever hitting his children,” by the Fresno Bee’s Rory Appleton: Story.

— “Devin Nunes violated agreement to file lawsuits against Twitter in California, Twitter says,” by McClatchy’s Kate Irby: “Twitter and political strategist Liz Mair have filed to dismiss the lawsuit Rep. Devin Nunes filed against them, arguing Virginia does not have jurisdiction over the case and an agreement Nunes signed that said he had to file disputes against the company in San Francisco.” Story.

— FOX FACEOFF: After Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s fiery statement on why she is refusing to do a Fox town hall, California Rep. Ted Lieu tweeted a defense of Democrats appearing on the conservative conduit “.@FoxNews is not all the same. Today Cavuto said it was ‘we’ who pay Trump’s tariffs, not China. Smith ran segment saying increase in CO2 is ‘not normal’ & our energy use is ‘unsustainable.’ Both contradicted views of @POTUS. That’s why we at @HouseDPCC urge Dems to go on Fox.”

Warren had anticipated that response, writing that “Hate-for-profit works only if there’s profit, so Fox News balances a mix of bigotry, racism, and outright lies with enough legit journalism to make the claim to advertisers that it’s a reputable news outlet.”

— COMMERCE DEPARTMENT: “Trade war with China could hit California hard. Here’s how,” by Sac Bee’s Phillip Reese: “California sent more exports to greater China last year than to any other country except Mexico.” Story and data.

— PELOSI’S TOP 10: “Here are the bills leading Democrats’ to-do list,” by SFChronicle’s Tal Kopan: “While not an exhaustive representation of Democrats’ agenda, the list is a powerful indicator of which bills Pelosi considers the emblems of her newly recaptured majority.” Story.

— Sen Dianne Feinstein @SenFeinstein: “Senate Republicans held a vote on a judicial nominee over the objection of BOTH home-state senators. Neither @SenKamalaHarris nor I have returned a blue slip on Kenneth Lee. A Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member’s blue slip has never been ignored before.”

— AFTER JOE: “‘When Biden announced, everything changed,’” by POLITICO‘s David Siders: “(Sen. Kamala) Harris shifted her approach earlier this month, not long after Biden entered the race with an attack on President Donald Trump’s response to white nationalist violence in Charlottesville, Va. The California senator, who had largely kept her criticism of Trump focused on policy, lit into the president as a purveyor of sexism and racism. Her advisers said that after several introductory stops in early-primary states, she is adopting a more full-throated critique of the Republican president. Story.

— TESTING CANDIDATES: “2020 Democrats court teachers galvanized by protest movement,” by POLITICO’s Kimberly Hefling: “‘Democrats have long claimed to be the party that stands up for public education,’ said Alex Caputo-Pearl, president of United Teachers Los Angeles, who helped his union wage a successful six-day strike earlier this year. ‘Now, we need to see them put their money where their mouth is’ …

Caputo-Pearl said the union is asking candidates to back a federal requirement that would curtail charter school growth. It also wants candidates to support two separate measures in California that would raise taxes to inject more funds into K-12 schools.” Story.

— THE GUN CONTROL PRIMARY: “Kamala Harris escalates gun control agenda,” by POLITICO’s Christopher Caelago: “Harris — a former career prosecutor who appears intent on owning the gun issue in the crowded primary — said if Congress fails to pass stricter gun laws in her first 100 days as president, she would take matters into her own hands.” Story.

— “Pete Buttigieg was Facebook’s 287th user. Now he says the company has too much power,” by the Merc’s Casey Tolan: “[Buttigieg] hasn’t endorsed breaking up the tech giants, instead suggesting “a spectrum” of regulation that could include fines, blocking new mergers or splitting up companies. That’s attracted criticism from some on the left who want the candidates to take a strong stance on issues of corporate power.” Story.

— FACT CHECK: “Eric Swalwell’s Tweet About Georgia’s New Abortion Restriction Only Slightly Off-Key, via Kaiser Health News: Story.

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — VAPING COUNTERPUNCH: As San Francisco officials mull a moratorium on e-cigarette sales, a coalition of vaping companies and convenience stores is floating a city ballot measure that would more tightly regulate sales — imposing new requirements for online sellers and limiting sales in a given transaction — but allow them to continue. “Keeping e-cigarettes out of the hands of anyone under 21 is what we all want. Banning e-cigarettes for all adults, however, isn’t the answer,” California Fuels & Convenience Alliance Executive Director Ryan Hanretty said in a statement.

— SCHOOL SPENDING: The ballot measure UTLA’s Alex Caputo-Pearl said he wants presidential contenders to back, Measure EE, is drawing some serious big-name bucks. Hollywood executive and Democratic mega-donor Jeffrey Katzenberg has chipped in $250,000, which comes days after Beverly Hills’ Bruce and Martha Karsh contributed a joint $250,000; tycoon Eli Broad has given $250,000; Clippers owner Steve Ballmer has added $500,000; and Bad Robot execs JJ Abrams and Kathleen McGrath channeled in $250,000 between them.

Organized labor has also poured in hundreds of thousands of dollars, and it hasn’t just been California: The National Education Association chipped in $250,000 and the American Federation of Teachers, whose leadership has lauded Sen. Kamala Harris’ educational platform, offered another $200,000.

— “Jackie Goldberg returns to L.A. school board with resounding election win,” by Sonali Kohli, Alexa DÍaz and Dorany Pineda in the LATimes: Story.

WATER WARS: AG Xavier Becerra is taking on one of California’s most formidable political players, suing Westlands Water District over the supplier’s move to assist a Shasta Dam raise project. In Becerra’s camp is a coalition of environmental groups. POLITICO’s Debra Kahn has more in this Pro story.

— “Opioid prescriptions drop sharply among California state workers, CalPERS says,” by Marla Cone for California Healthline: “The agency that manages health care for California’s massive state workforce is reporting a major reduction in opioid prescriptions, reflecting a national trend of physicians cutting back on the addictive drugs.” Story.

— CENSUS STAKES: “The push is on to count every head in California. The stakes are huge,” by the OCRegister’s Roxana Kopetman: “Though the once-a-decade count is almost a year away, state workers and representatives from local governments – along with networks of non-profits, academia, corporate and multi-cultural organizations in Southern California – already are planning for it.” Story.

— “L.A. set up a system to protect renters. What happens when it’s used against them?” by LATimes’ Emily Alpert Reyes: “When L.A.’s Tenant Habitability Program was established 14 years ago through a city ordinance, it was envisioned as a way to protect tenants from ‘constructive eviction’ — housing conditions so miserable that residents feel pressure to leave…. Several years ago, tenants’ advocates started to complain about problems with the program.” Story.

— JOURNALIST RAID FALLOUT: “SF judges knew search warrants targeted member of the press in raid on journalist’s home,” by SFExaminer’s Michael Barba: “Whether the judges knew about [Bryan] Carmody’s line of work has been a key question for civil liberties attorneys who believe the warrants may have violated state law banning search warrants against journalists.” Story.

“The SFPD’s heavy-handed raid of a freelance cameraman is already backfiring,” by Joe Eskenazi for Mission Local: “This SFPD investigation deserves its own investigation.” Op-ed.

“In San Francisco, police target a journalist — and flout the law,” by the LATimes Editorial Board: Editorial.

— SLOW SHIFT: “California schools haven’t fully embraced laws protecting LGBTQ kids, study shows,” by CALMatters’ Ricardo Cano: “Notably, many of the local school systems identified as ‘priority’ districts are located in rural or conservative-leaning areas that have pushed back against the new requirements, specifically 2015’s California Healthy Youth Act that requires middle and high schools to teach ‘medically accurate’ comprehensive sexual health education.” Story.

— JOE MATHEWS DECLARES WAR: “UCLA beats UC Berkeley on every count,” by Joe Mathews in SFChronicle: Op-ed.

— GIG DISAGREEMENT: Even as California works to apply SCOCA’s landmark Dynamex ruling deeming app-summoned gig workers to be employees, the feds keep pulling in the opposite direction: A second federal opinion said those workers are employees (in this case, explicitly Uber drivers), Bloomberg reported yesterday, in yet another instance of DC and California landing on different pages: Story.

— “Google rolls out new data-reliant ad spots — including on its homepage — days after pledging more privacy,” by WaPo’s Greg Bensinger: “[T]he search engine giant on Tuesday rolled out several new ways for marketers to hawk their wares on Google’s products, all based on the reams of data it collects about users. And in a first, it is even putting personalized ads on its iconic white Google homepage.” Story.

— “Hollywood’s Dark Horse Pick Is a White Guy Named Steve,” by Hanna Trudo in the Daily Beast: “He’s caught the attention of a hodgepodge of elite donors who have been attracted to the Montana Democrat’s blend of progressive and pragmatic politics.” Story.

— “Disney takes over Hulu from Comcast as stream wars heat up,” by AP’s Tali Arbel: “The companies said Tuesday that Comcast, which owns a third of Hulu, can sell its stake to Disney starting in 2024, for a minimum of $5.8 billion…Having total control of Hulu gives Disney more power to support its own streaming efforts.” Story.

— “Man’s empty-box scheme cost Apple $1 million,” by the Merc’s Levi Sumagaysay: Story.

— “Dodgers pitcher Julio Urias arrested on suspicion of domestic battery,” by USA Today’s A.J. Perez: Story.

— “New shark study helps predict where young great whites will be near shore, experts say,” by Sac Bee’s Jared Gilmour: Story.

— “Man facing murder charge after California woman beaten with motorized scooter,” by NBC’s Phil Helsel: Story.

— “Uber driver, 23, ‘kidnapped and planned to rape two women forcing one to jump from his moving car to escape while another threatened to break out of his window after he locked the doors’,” via the Daily Mail: Story.

Jazmine Ulloa is departing the LATimes, where she’s covered California politics for the Sacramento bureau, for the Boston Globe’s Washington bureau.

Blanca Figueroa Nick Papas of Airbnb … Juan Altamirano … Alejandro Gonzalez-Stewart

Josie Duckett McSpadden, senior communications officer at the Gates Foundation, and Matthew McSpadden welcomed Rose Jean McSpadden. Pic.

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