Free Republic

California announced last week that it has added Iowa to the list of states on its ever-expanding “travel ban” list because of that state’s new prohibition against funding gender-transition surgeries under Medicaid. The announcement by state Attorney General Xavier Becerra means that as of Oct. 4, California will no longer offer taxpayer-funded trips to Iowa for any public employee or student at a state-run university. Becerra’s authority came from a 2016 California law signed by then-Gov. Jerry Brown that bars state-funded travel to other states that undercut LGBT rights. The blacklist already included Alabama, Kentucky, North Carolina, Texas, Oklahoma and...

California will reconsider life sentences for up to 4,000 nonviolent third-strike criminals by allowing them to seek parole under a ballot measure approved by voters two years ago, according to court documents obtained by The Associated Press on Thursday. The state will craft new regulations by January to include the repeat offenders in early release provisions. Gov. Jerry Brown also will not appeal a court ruling that the state is illegally excluding the nonviolent career criminals from parole under the 2016 ballot measure he championed to reduce the prison population and encourage rehabilitation. The state parole board estimates between 3,000...

Randall Marquis has lived in California for 31 years, but he knew it was a mistake when he received a notice last month that said he was newly registered to vote. He may have a state driver’s license, but he’s a citizen of Canada. “When I saw that card, I just threw it out,” Marquis said. “I know I’m not going to vote. I’m not allowed to vote, it’s stupid that I should be registered to vote.” The Newport Beach resident, who has a green card and is married to a U.S. citizen, was one of some 1,500 people who...

California Gov. Jerry Brown ramped up his criticism of President Trump in an interview that aired Monday – calling the president a “saboteur” in the fight to combat climate change and saying that “something’s got to happen to this guy.” Speaking to MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell at an environmental summit in San Francisco last week, Brown tore into Trump for the president’s controversial tweets about the death toll in Puerto Rico from last year’s Hurricane Maria and urged voters to vote for Democrats in November’s midterm elections in an effort to thwart Trump’s agenda. “We never had a president who was...

"We're going to launch our own satellite — our own damn satellite to figure out where the pollution is and how we’re going to end it," Brown told the audience at the Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco..."In California, with science under attack, in fact we’re under attack by a lot of people, including Donald Trump, but the climate threat still keeps growing," Brown added. "So, we want to know, what the hell is going on all over the world, all the time?"..."If Trump turns off the satellites, California will launch its own damn satellite," Brown said back in...

A net neutrality bill that would prohibit internet providers from a host of discriminatory practices cleared the California Assembly on Thursday, setting up a potential showdown with the Trump administration over the rules of the road for the internet. The legislation, which passed in a 59-18 vote, will now go to the Senate, where a vote is expected next week. It would then go to Governor Jerry Brown. California is also the largest state to pass net neutrality legislation in response to the Republican-led FCC’s move late last year to dismantle many of the existing rules. Democrats have seized on...

One major part of the President’s recent shutdown showdown announcement was a dispute over funding to continue construction of the border wall. And the word “continue” is important here because portions of the project are already underway, in addition to the previous submissions of wall design samples. Much of that work took place in Southern California and now the city of San Diego has a message for all of the construction contractors who have taken part in the effort. Don’t bother applying for any more city contracts because you’re going to be on their blacklist. (Free Beacon) As President...

California Governor Jerry Brown blamed “low-life politicians” for a growing backlash against the “sanctuary state” policies he has enacted in his state during an appearance at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, on Tuesday.

San Francisco is experiencing a “mass exodus” as tens of thousands of residents leave the Bay Area while an influx of immigrants flood the sanctuary city, according to KPIX-TV. What’s going on? For the first time in decades, more people are leaving San Francisco than there are new people moving to the city. The mass exodus has propelled the Bay Area to the nation’s leading city for “out-migration.” One of the reasons for the exodus is the cost of living in San Francisco. According to the Mercury News, the median price for homes in Silicon Valley fall anywhere between $800,000...

Devastating wildfires fueled by climate change are “the new normal”, California’s governor has said. Jerry Brown said vast fires, such as the ones that have ravaged southern California in recent days, “could happen every year or every few years”. “We’re facing a new reality in this state,” he said. Mr Brown made the comments after surveying the damage in Ventura County, north of Los Angeles. Thousands of firefighters have been battling the fires since Monday. Mr. Brown, a Democrat who has attacked the Trump administration’s stance on climate change, said: “We’re facing a new reality in this state, where fires...

In an interview with 60 Minutes set to air on Sunday, California liberal Governor Jerry Brown carried his crusade as the voice of the Christian left, reports the Washington Times.Areas of California have recently been badly scorched by wildfires, something Gov. Brown attributes to climate change. But, he says that President Donald J. Trump’s ego and lack of humility before God has led to inadequate policy to properly address these environmental disasters.  “I don’t think President Trump has a fear of the Lord, the fear of the wrath of God, which leads one to more humility … and this is...

On a recent weeknight, writing instructor Ellen Tara James-Penny sits with a student in a parking lot near San José State University for more than an hour, explaining the perils of “hasty generalizations” and other pitfalls in college-level writing. Then, James-Penny and her husband get into their aging Volvo sedan and drive a few blocks to a local church, where she sleeps in their car with one dog and he sleeps in a tent a few feet away with the other.Despite the four college courses she teaches, and the master’s degree she earned a few years ago, James-Penny is homeless....

On October 12, 2017, Governor Jerry Brown of California signed into law a state-wide ban on employer inquiries into an individual’s salary history. The new law (AB 168) will apply to all employers, including state and local governments, and will take effect on January 1, 2018. The new law continues the expansion of equal pay protection in California. California’s Equal Pay law has been on the books since 1949, requiring equal pay, regardless of gender, for equal work. It remained largely unchanged until 2016, when it was amended to require equal pay for “substantially similar” work.

Of all the candidates for utopia, Stockton, California would be on the bottom of my list. But a 27-year-old mayor, with the backing of a foundation, is trying for utopia, as seen by supporters of the Mommy State: Universal Basic Income. Futurism.com writes: Stockton, California, is about to become the first city to test government-supported universal basic income in the U.S. The program is the idea of the city's 27-year-old mayor and will be primarily funded by the basic income advocacy group Economic Security Project.

SACRAMENTO (CBS SF) — California Gov. Jerry Brown warns that catastrophic wildfires will keep ripping through the state as the climate warms. **SNIP** He said a warming climate has contributed to catastrophic wildfires. “That’s the way it is with a warming climate, dry weather and reducing moisture.” said Brown. “These kind of catastrophes have happened and they’ll continue to happen, and we have to be prepared to do everything we can to mitigate.” The governor has positioned himself as a leader in the fight against climate change.

SACRAMENTO — California will beef up protections for undocumented immigrants beginning in January under a controversial new law Gov. Jerry Brown signed Thursday to create a statewide sanctuary policy. Brown signed the bill and 10 other immigration-related bills on the same day as a critical deadline for immigrants aided by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, who must file by Thursday for a final two-year extension before the program is phased out.

California on Friday expanded its market for buying and trading permits to emit greenhouse gases to include the Canadian province of Ontario. The market is the centerpiece of California’s cap-and-trade program, which aims to reduce carbon pollution over time by capping emissions and requiring companies to obtain permits to pollute. Quebec is already part of the market. California is aiming to reduce emissions by 40 percent from 1990 levels by 2030. The two Canadian provinces have similar or stricter goals. California Gov. Jerry Brown signed the agreement Friday in Quebec at a meeting with officials of both provinces, capping off...

It really gives you a good feeling when your leader, the guy in charge of the whole shebang, reacts to a near catastrophe that could have killed thousands, displaced millions and cost billions by saying, “Stuff happens.” He didn’t even show up to take a look at the disaster scene. In fact, he doesn't even plan to. But that’s Jerry Brown for you, the governor of the state of California. He’s not known as “Governor Moonbeam” for nothing.....That’s all bad enough, but now Californians face the reality that many of the state’s more than 1,500 dams and reservoirs might fail,...

Tensions between the Trump administration and California leaders are escalating into an all-out political war, as Gov. Jerry Brown and his allies vow to fight the president tooth-and-nail over everything from sanctuary cities to environmental policies. President Trump fired the latest shot when he threatened to “defund” unspecified programs over California’s push to become a “sanctuary state.” In an interview with Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly, he criticized California lawmakers for pursuing a statewide law to limit local law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration authorities. “I think it’s ridiculous,” Trump said, adding that sanctuary cities “breed crime.” “We will certainly...

Californians are rushing to purchase the evil AR15 semi-automatic "assault" rifle before a new ban goes into effect on January 1, 2017. Governor Jerry Brown signed the gun-control measure into law back in July and with a 10-day waiting period for all gun sales, time is running out to purchase the gun and take possession before next year. All of these newly purchased guns must be registered with the state before the deadline kicks in on Wednesday, December 21.