For her part, vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris in her acceptance speech highlighted the “excessive use of force by police” and the “injustice” of the “broader criminal justice system.”  But it’s doubtful that Attorney General Harris would have said those words.

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Based on court decisions and recent state education-funding overhauls, the rule in California has been that if a student moves from one school to another or enters the public school system, funding for that student follows the student to the new school and cannot be claimed by the student’s former school.

Such a rule makes logical sense, but logic is often the first victim in Sacramento.

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“A reasonably sensitive test administered daily would be effective at diagnosing cases more rapidly than current protocols,” Winegarden said. “People could also test daily at home, making it even easier and cheaper to diagnose (and isolate) people who have contracted the virus. If this type of technology were deployed in the fall (as is hoped), it would make a tremendous difference that could help spur the economic recovery while also helping control the pandemic.”

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The rolling blackouts struck a nerve with Governor Gavin Newsom, who called for an investigation into the cause of the blackouts Monday, Aug. 17 and declared a state of emergency over the extreme temperatures and wildfires on Tuesday, Aug. 18. Wildfires caused from lightning strikes and the dry California weather are also complicating the rolling blackout plan.

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In dealing with the Legislature, Gray Davis once infamously said that it was the job of the Legislature “to implement my vision.”  Naturally, lawmakers – who are also ambitious politicians – did not take kindly to Davis’ remarks and any era of cooperation between the two quickly dissipated. Gavin Newsom, while known for namechecking lawmakers and their legislative priorities in his budget press conferences, acted without a legislature in session for much of the early months of the COVID-19 crisis.

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Lawmakers, who make policy for a state government that apparently wasn’t as ready as it should have been to prepare for a deep recession, are scrambling to bridge a $54.3 billion budget deficit. Roughly 30,400 would be subject to the tax, which is projected to raise $7.5 billion for the general fund. 

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