Jeremy B. White and Lara Korte’s must-read briefing on politics and government in the Golden State

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By JEREMY B. WHITE, LARA KORTE and SAKURA CANNESTRA 

THE BUZZ: Speaker Nancy Pelosi stepped off a plane, onto a Taipei tarmac, and into one of the world’s most volatile geopolitical standoffs.

The San Franciscan’s Taiwan touchdown on Tuesday was historic. Pelosi became the highest-ranking U.S. official to visit in a quarter century, defying Chinese bellicosity and White House warnings to lend ringing support to a democracy increasingly threatened by Chinese encroachment. “We must stand by Taiwan, which is an island of resilience” that is "under threat,” Pelosi wrote in the Washington Post, additionally framing the visit as part of the world’s “choice between autocracy and democracy.” The image of Pelosi’s pink suit gleaming on the runaway looks like one we may see again.

Another striking picture from Pelosi’s visit: the rare spectacle of Republicans praising a woman who they prefer to vilify as the embodiment of Democratic wrongheadedness. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell joined 25 other Senate Republicans in signing a statement of support and calling Pelosi’s visit consistent with U.S. foreign policy. Hawkish former Trump and Bush official John Boltonwas on board, as was Trump’s secretary of state. After all, the last U.S. official of Pelosi’s stature to visit was Republican then-Speaker Newt Gingrich in 1997.

That rare bipartisan comity aside, there are real concerns about the implications of Pelosi’s visit. Provoking China could carry consequences, even if Beijing’s military deployments and threats via state media figures amount to no more than saber-rattling. Pelosi’s paeans to democracy are stacked against realpolitik warnings that angering China could, for instance, undercut America’s efforts to isolate an expansionist Russia.

Whatever the repercussions, this visit is now an indelible part of Pelosi’s legacy. It stands to bracket a long congressional career that’s proceeding through its final phases as retirement speculation swirls. Pelosi was a relative House neophyte when she joined a bipartisan visit to Tiananmen Square in 1989 and lofted a pre-democracy banner. She has since served sixteen terms and ascended to a position that ensured her Taiwan visit reverberated across the globe.

ADDITIONAL READING: Pelosi’s foreign policy legacy includes a marked hawkishness on democracy and human rights issues that has frequently made her a China antagonist, POLITICO’s Andrew Desiderio wrote.

BUENOS DÍAS, good Wednesday morning. Enjoy Juan Soto, Padres fans — he’s a once-in-a-generation talent. Jeremy is trying to not be too bitter about it. He may even start rooting for San Diego, occasionally.

Got a tip or story idea for California Playbook? Hit us up: [email protected] and [email protected] or follow us on Twitter @JeremyBWhite and @Lara_Korte. 

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “It's just about money. It's just about corporations making money, and there is no shame. There is no care to our young peoples’ health. The whole process just saddens me, so let’s all work really hard to pass Proposition 31.” Sen. Connie Leyva blasts a tobacco-industry-funded referendum to overturn a 2019 law banning flavored tobacco.

TWEET OF THE DAY: Former Taiwanese diplomat Vincent Chao @vyctw argues in a thread that Pelosi’s visit fits into “essential” support against China: “To summarize: We cannot allow the PRC to rollback decades of progress in the TW-US relationship. This is not in Taiwan's ntl interests, nor is it consistent with shared interests in region. Opposing Pelosi's trip would create new risks, rather than mitigate existing ones.”

WHERE’S GAVIN? Nothing official announced.

A message from SEIU California:

Multi-billion dollar fast-food corporations like McDonald’s, Jack in the Box and Burger King are making massive profits off of a rigged model that pressures small business franchisees to cut corners, often at the expense of workers. California has an opportunity to give a voice to fast-food workers and local franchisee operators with AB 257 and reform an industry that puts working families, small business franchisees, and taxpayers at the mercy of global fast food corporations.

GOV’S GREEN PEP TALK: Both Democratic caucuses in the Capitol got a special guest yesterday: Gov. Gavin Newsom, who sought to rally lawmakers to more ambitious environmental goals during the final end-of-session stretch. Sources said Newsom did not advocate for specific bills but emphasized policy areas like setting back oil wells from homes and schools and codifying 2045 carbon neutrality goals. This follows Newsom writing the Air Resources Board two weeks ago, urging it to establish various climate goals.

Environmentalists view Newsom with a skeptical eye these days. He has issued some sweeping executive orders and allocated billions for green causes. But he has also declined to intervene and support tentpole bills — like setbacks legislation, or a fracking ban that he asked the Legislature to send him — and his budget request for a backup electricity supply that could sustain polluting power plants has spurred frustration. He also alienated green allies recently when he fiercely opposed a ballot measure that would fund low-emission vehicles by taxing the rich.

VILLANUEVA BRUSHBACK — “Should L.A. County supervisors have the power to boot a sheriff? Voters will decide,” by the Los Angeles Times’ Alene Tchekmedyian: “The proposal, which stems from supervisors’ long-running feud with Sheriff Alex Villanueva, would severely undercut the autonomy sheriffs in L.A. County have always been granted and hand an extraordinary level of authority to the already powerful supervisors.”

MONEY DOWN THE DRINK — “Worsening Drought Drives California Water Prices to All-Time High,” by Bloomberg’s Mark Chediak and Kim Chipman: “The price of water on the Nasdaq Veles California Water Index touched $1,144.14 an acre-foot on June 27 — up 56% since the start of the year. The index tracks the average price of water-rights transactions in five markets in the state.”

BIG CATCH FOR BASS: Rep. Karen Bass demonstrated yesterday that it’s good to have friends in high places, announcing that President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris had endorsed her Los Angeles mayoral bid. Bass was on Biden’s VP short-list, and a Biden-Harris statement praised “her leadership in Congress on crime prevention strategies, effective and fair policing, and the welfare of children and families.”

— “Wealthy Bay Area residents help Gavin Newsom maintain massive fundraising advantage in governor race,” by the San Francisco Chronicle’s Sophia Bollag: “Newsom has reported more than $11 million in contributions from more than 5,400 donors in the past two years. At the end of June, he reported nearly $24 million in cash on hand.”

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— “Breed wants S.F. board president to apologize to cadet he is accused of berating. He’s firing back,” by the San Francisco Chronicle’s J.D. Morris and Mallory Moench: “The incident has inflamed tensions between [San Francisco Mayor London] Breed and [Board of Supervisors President Shamann] Walton, a progressive who leads a board majority that has at times been at odds with the mayor over how to address San Francisco’s most pressing concerns: homelessness, housing and public safety.”

ENCAMPMENT WOES — “L.A. cracks down on homeless encampments near schools, over protesters’ jeers,” by the Los Angeles Times’ David Zahniser and Benjamin Oreskes: “Audience members repeatedly chanted “shut it down” as Councilmember Joe Buscaino, a longtime proponent of increased enforcement, attempted to speak in favor of the restrictions. Council President Nury Martinez then stopped the meeting for more than an hour so police could clear the room.”

— California's megadrought is worse than you think, by E&E’s Anne C. Mulkern: When Maria Regalado Garcia tried to wash the dishes in her California home one recent morning, only a trickle of water emerged from the kitchen faucet. Other taps in her Tooleville house in rural Tulare County ran similarly dry.

— “How McKinney fire became an unstoppable monster: Extreme heat, death, destruction,” by the Los Angeles Times’ Ales Wigglesworth and Hayley Smith: “It was the perfect storm of factors for a deadly wildfire, experts say — extreme heat, dense and dry vegetation, and erratic winds and lightning brought on by persistent thunderstorms.”

— “‘We just keep punishing.’ Californians with criminal records still face housing barriers,” by the Los Angeles Times’ Hannah Wiley and Mackenzie Mays: “As Gov. Gavin Newsom has pushed criminal justice reform — vowing to close prisons, signing laws to shorten some sentences and calling for the abolishment of death row — housing for those with criminal records often remains out of reach, compounding the state’s homelessness crisis.”

— “When employers steal wages from workers,” by CalMatters’ Alejandro Lazo, Jeanne Kuang, Lil Kalish, Agnes Lee and Erica Yee: “Most often the victims of wage theft are women, immigrants and people of color, researchers say; many work in restaurants, construction, hotels, car washes, garment businesses, farms, warehouses, and nail salons.”

A message from SEIU California:

DRIVING UP — “Uber revenue soars; Wall Street looks past $2.6 billion loss,” by Associated Press’ Michelle Chapman and Michael Liedtke: “Revenue at the San Francisco company more than doubled to $8.07 billion, bolstered by a change in the business model for its UK mobility business and the acquisition of Transplace by Uber Freight.”

CAN’T SEARCH THAT — “Russia has hit Google with more than $380 million in fines this month,” by Business Insider’s Isobel Asher Hamilton: “Russia appears to be stepping up pressure on the company, which is is one of the few US Big Tech companies to still operate a service in Russia since the war in Ukraine began — although it stopped selling ads in the region in March and blocked Russian state media apps from its European app store.”

— “Diane Warren questioned why Beyoncé has 24 writers on one song. She found out real fast,” by the Los Angeles Times’ Nardine Saad: “The Hall of Fame songwriter, best known for writing iconic ballads and film songs, took to Twitter to ask: ‘How can there be 24 writers on a song?’ with an eye-roll emoji. Then she added, ‘This isn’t meant as shade, I’m just curious.’”

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— “Police detained a Black child at the California State Fair. His mother says they targeted him,” by Cap Radio’s Kristin Lam.

— "S.F. school board unanimously admonishes commissioner Ann Hsu over racist remarks," by the San Francisco Chronicle's Jill Tucker.

— “Marin County residents speak out against small homeless encampment of two people,” by the San Francisco Chronicle’s Annie Vainshtein.

— “Oracle, once headquartered in Bay Area, reportedly undergoing mass layoffs,” by SFGate’s Joshua Bote.

— “'Love triangle': Bizarre story alleged at Bay Area baby kidnapping trial,” by the SFGate’s Amy Graff.

— “LACMA’s 2022 Art + Film Gala to honor Helen Pashgian, Park Chan-wook,” by the Los Angeles Times’ Jessica Gelt.

RISE OF THE CONDO — “These Beverly Hills condos chase record prices with private pools, butlers and a five-star restaurant,” by the Los Angeles Times’ Roger Vincent.

— “Vin Scully, forever the voice of the Dodgers, dead at 94,” by the Los Angeles Times’ David Wharton.

A message from SEIU California:

Raising standards in the fast food industry matters for all Californians. Despite working for global corporations that earn billions of dollars in profits, fast food workers are more than twice as likely to live in poverty as other workers in the state. More than two-thirds of California fast-food workers are on safety net programs at a cost to taxpayers of $4 billion a year. AB 257 comes at a critical time as income inequality soars and the disparate impact of the pandemic have put women and workers of color further behind. The choice couldn’t be any clearer for Democrats: stand with fast-food workers and working families over corporations. Create a more just and more equitable economy with AB 257.

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