Free Republic

California officials blasted the Trump administration’s plans to launch a full-sale investigation into unemployment fraud as ”purely political” — and blamed lost money on the feds. The US Department of Labor intends to send a “strike team” to dig into COVID-19 pandemic-era fraud involving California’s Employment Development Department, The Post exclusively reported Wednesday. California is believed to have lost as much as tens of billions of dollars in fraudulent unemployment payouts. Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer said the Biden administration “turned a blind eye” to stolen money and vowed to fully examine the scope of theft that occurred early in the...

Since California made it easier for sexual abuse survivors to sue government agencies, victims have brought forth more than $3 billion in claims. But even agencies that haven’t been sued are facing financial hardship as a result of the law — through skyrocketing insurance premiums. School districts, counties and other public agencies in every corner of California have seen their liability insurance premiums soar, in large part because of that law, which passed in 2019. Some districts have seen their yearly insurance costs jump by $1 million or more.

(Bloomberg) — US supplies of gasoline are being shipped out of the country to travel thousands of miles via the Bahamas before finally ending up in California, a state battling shrinking fuelmaking capacity and high pump prices. Shipments on the circuitous route are increasing. California imported more gasoline in November than ever before, with more than 40% coming from the Bahamas.

Yesterday, the Colgate powerhouse pentock failed dramatically off of the Bullards Bar Reservoir right there in Yubi County, not very far from the Blanco Global Headquarters, kind of halfway between Grass Valley and the Orville Reservoir.

A pair of women's rights groups is making waves in California with an eye-catching campaign to raise awareness about men being housed in women's prisons. The statewide billboard truck campaign is calling attention to the upcoming rape trial of a man accused of assaulting two women in the female prison that he was allowed to transfer into. NTD's Daniel Monaghan spoke with the director of Women to Women about the campaign. This week, advocacy groups Women Are Real and Woman to Woman launched a statewide billboard truck campaign across California to raise awareness about men being housed in women's prisons...

New regulations will bar cardrooms from offering blackjack and other player-dealer games — a move opponents say will devastate the industry in California. Under one of the two new rules, cardrooms cannot offer blackjack, the world’s most popular casino card game. Players would no longer “bust” by exceeding 21 points, and cardrooms may not use the name “blackjack” or include the number 21.

The Seattle Seahawks dominated their way to a Lombardi Trophy on Sunday, defeating the New England Patriots 29-13 behind a strong defensive performance, a clean game from quarterback Sam Darnold and multiple big plays from Super Bowl MVP running back Kenneth Walker. You’d think that with a Super Bowl win, most players would be in line for a hefty game check — plus possible bonuses. However, that's not the case in California. Despite the victory, Darnold actually ended up losing out on roughly $249,000 due to the state’s “jock tax,” which is calculated based on duty days. For Darnold, that...

The state can require federal agents to display identification, the judge said. The Trump administration had asked the court to block both laws, which were designed to help identify federal agents. A federal judge on Monday said that California could not prohibit federal law enforcement agents from wearing face masks unless it amended the law to also apply to state agents. But the judge did allow the state to require federal agents to display identification. Judge Christina A. Snyder of the Federal District Court in Los Angeles issued a preliminary injunction against the mask ban, ruling that California’s new law...

California Gov. Gavin Newsom unleashed a vulgar tirade against Louisiana’s female attorney general yesterday as he defending allowing illegal abortion pills to flow into pro-life states. Newsom told a female Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill to “go ---- yourself” as he defended his state’s refusal to extradite abortionists accused of illegally mailing abortion pills to Louisiana residents, a move pro-life advocates say endangers women and unborn babies by circumventing state laws designed to protect life. The exchange erupted on social media after Newsom posted about Louisiana’s plans to sue him and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul for blocking extradition requests....

California Democrats know how to manipulate the field of candidates to produce the governor’s race they want. That’s what I learned in the 2021 California gubernatorial recall election against Gov. Gavin Newsom. It is not a loss that gives me sleepless nights. It is, however, annoying that people, including veteran political analysts and pundits, get wrong exactly what happened. Why? Because the truth is instructive as to how Democrats maneuver, and what could be happening in the gubernatorial race in 2026.

Scott Bessent left Democrats fuming on Capitol Hill on Wednesday as he refused to bend to their furious yelling, including requests for him to 'shut up' and repeated direct attacks on his work. Donald Trump's Treasury Secretary went toe to toe with California Democrat Maxine Waters over the President's tariffs at a House Financial Services Committee hearing. Waters, in an astonishing outburst as Bessent attempted to answer her, asked the committee chair: 'Can you shut him up?' Bessent fired back a withering response: 'Can you maintain some level of dignity?' Congressman Greg Meeks, another Democrat on the committee, pressed Bessent...

An appeals court overturned the conviction of a disgraced former UCLA gynecologist serving 11 years in prison for sexually abusing patients, after determining the trial judge failed to disclose that jurors had concerns that one of their own barely spoke English. James Heaps, 69, will be retried on the charges involving the two patients he was convicted of abusing in 2022, a three-judge panel of the California 2nd District Court of Appeal ordered on Monday, the Los Angeles Times reported. John Manly, who represented more than 200 former Heaps patients in a lawsuit that resulted in a $243.6 million settlement,...

California drivers and Republican legislators are furious over a Democrat-led proposal that could see motorists taxed for each mile they drive. With the state staring down a budget deficit in the billions and more Californians switching to electric vehicles, Democratic lawmakers are searching for new ways to shore up declining gas tax revenue. Californians pay the second-highest gas price in the nation behind only Hawaii. In January, the average price was $4.23 per gallon, according to the American Automobile Association. On Thursday, state legislators advanced Democrat Lori Wilson’s bill, AB 1421, which would direct the California Transportation Commission and the...

Steven Tyler's attorneys can claim partial victory in a new court ruling as arguments continue in a child sex-abuse lawsuit brought by the former Julia Holcomb. Los Angeles County Judge Patricia A. Young has dismissed claims of alleged abuse in Oregon, Washington and Massachusetts, citing laws governing the age of consent and the statute of limitations. Crucially, however, the California-based charges against Aerosmith's frontman can go forward. In terminating the other claims, Judge Young would apparently stop them from being refiled again. She promised a written decision soon. "I have clearly signaled how I intend" to rule, Young said from...