Longtime poverty fighter Jess Bartholow surprised many when she left her longtime gig with the Western Center on Law and Poverty in 2020 to become East Bay Senator Nancy Skinner's Chief of Staff. The move made sense: Skinner has long been an outspoken advocate for California's poor, and was a personal inspiration for Bartholow. But with the senator terming out at the end of this year, Bartholow recently opted for a new post: Director of Govt. Relations for SEIU California, one of the most powerful labor unions in the state and across the country. Bartholow joined us to talk about her journey from a childhood in poverty to the capitol, and gave us a preview of how she plans to tackle her new role.

Plus: Who had the Worst Week in CA Politics.

:23 Introducing Jess Bartholow

1:35 The new gig

3:19 Origin story

4:36 Welfare reform started in California

7:36 "The best way to end poverty is with a good job..."

8:13 Going into the building

9:56 Getting people to understand poverty

13:16 Barbara Lee on food stamps

14:47 Meet them where they are: Don Wagner edition

16:38 What would gender parity mean in the legislature?

19:58 The Women's Caucus is the largest caucus in #caleg

20:58 What are some of SEIU California's priorities?

25:29 Minimum wage laws

28:56 San Francisco is drug testing welfare recipients

32:23 What's it like to work with Tia Orr?

35:26 #WWCA

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We're joined today by longtime journalist, and co-founder of CalMatters, David Lesher. Last year David stepped down as editor-in-chief to direct a new project at CalMatters: Digital Democracy. Using the latest technology, including AI, Digital Democracy will gather a tremendous amount of data from California's state government: "every word uttered in public hearings, every dollar given to a politician, every bill introduced, every vote taken and more."

After more than a year of development, Digital Democracy launched this month. David tells us how the system works, how it can be used by journalists, and ultimately by anyone interested in public policy, and how he hopes it will change the legislative process.

Plus, Who Had the Worst Week in California Politics.

1:14 What is Digital Democracy?

3:56 "Phenoms"

5:46 The three pieces

7:17 Where can people find it?

7:26 The AI component

10:25 The fingerprint analogy

11:40 The scale of the project and the infrastructure

13:38 How will it work for reporters?

17:33 The challenge of tracking donations

19:25 Reaction from lawmakers

20:51 The three goals for Digital Democracy

22:52 "The Nastyness Scale"

27:26 The State of the State speech

30:06 #WWCA

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This Special Episode of the Capitol Weekly Podcast was recorded live at Capitol Weekly’s Conference on Crime which was held in Sacramento on Thursday, March 21, 2024

This is PANEL 3 – THE LEGACY AND FUTURE OF PROP. 47

Panelists: Asm. Kevin McCarty; Lenore Anderson, Alliance for Safety and Justice; Marc Beaart, Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office; Sheriff Jim Cooper

Moderated by Emily Hoeven, San Francisco Chronicle

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Capitol Weekly Podcast theme is "Pickin' My Way" by Eddie Lang

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This Special Episode of the Capitol Weekly Podcast was recorded live at Capitol Weekly’s Conference on Crime which was held in Sacramento on Thursday, March 21, 2024

This is PANEL 2 – THE FENTANYL CRISIS

Panelists: Sen. Dave Cortese; Sen. Kelly Seyarto; Gretchen Burns Bergman,Parents for Addiction Treatment & Healing; Lt. Diane Goldstein (Ret.), Law Enforcement Action Partnership

Moderated by Ashley Zavala, KCRA 3

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Capitol Weekly Podcast theme is "Pickin' My Way" by Eddie Lang

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This Special Episode of the Capitol Weekly Podcast was recorded live at Capitol Weekly’s Conference on Crime which was held in Sacramento on Thursday, March 21, 2024

This is PANEL 1 – RETAIL THEFT

Panelists: Asm. Rick Zbur; Eric Brown, Office of Governor Newsom; Cristine Soto DeBerry, Prosecutors Alliance; Rachel Michelin, California Retailers Association

Moderated by Lindsey Holden, Sacramento Bee

Full transcript here: https://capitolweekly.net/special-episode-a-conference-on-crime-panel-1-retail-theft/

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Capitol Weekly Podcast theme is "Pickin' My Way" by Eddie Lang

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This Special Episode of the Capitol Weekly Podcast was recorded live at Capitol Weekly’s Conference on Crime which was held in Sacramento on Thursday, March 21, 2024

This is the KEYNOTE – SAN FRANCISCO DISTRICT ATTORNEY BROOKE JENKINS

Introduction by Rich Ehisen, Capitol Weekly

Find a full transcript here: https://capitolweekly.net/special-episode-a-conference-on-crime-keynote-brooke-jenkins/

Want to support the Capitol Weekly Podcast? Make your tax deductible donation here: capitolweekly.net/donations/

Capitol Weekly Podcast theme is "Pickin' My Way" by Eddie Lang

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Our guest today, Larissa May, has become one of the leading voices in California and across the country in the quest for young people to have a healthier relationship with social media and the digital world in general. May came to this work through her own traumatic experiences as a young person overwhelmed by social media. Mays is the founder of #halfthestory, which works with schools, state and federal governments, and Fortune 500 companies to create new standards for digital use and to educate young people on the dangers inherent to obsessing over social media.

She joined us today to share her story and to talk about a new bill – SB 1504, authored by Sen. Henry Stern – that would require social media platforms to change the way they deal with online bullying.  Plus, as always,we tell you who had the worst week in California Politics.

Episode Notes

1:31 #halfthestory

4:09 Cyberbullying and SB 1504

7:45 The bully in our back pocket

9:09 A world of misinformation

10:49 Background on the bill

12:10 How does #halfthestory teach Digital Wellness?

16:46 "How do you build speed bumps into the digital world?"

19:16 Doomscrolling

22:15 KOSA and other legisation

24:59 #WWCA: Golden Shower of Hits

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California has set ambitious climate goals, including phasing out the use of fossil fuels and becoming carbon neutral by 2045. Our guest today is here to talk about the role nature can play in meeting those goals. 

Laurie Wayburn is the co-founder and president of the Pacific Forest Trust and the chair of the California Natural and Working Lands Expert Advisory Committee. She was also the lead author of a recent report suggesting the state should invest “as much in nature-based climate solutions as it has in clean energy and transportation.” With proper forest management, California could capture 400 million tons of carbon each year, lower wildfire risk and vastly improve flood protection in the state. But, the $10 Billion price tag may be a hard sell in a down budget, even in climate-conscious California.

Plus - Who Had the Worst Week in CA Politics?

Episode Notes

1:13 AB 1757

2:39 Offsets

4:22 How to keep 400 million tons of carbon out of the atmosphere each year

6:05 "The older a tree is, the more carbon it stores"

6:31 "Working Forest"

8:03 Reducing wildfire risk

11:37 Federal lands vs. State lands

14:15 Easements, private ownership and beavers

19:06 Funding/costs

23:08 Origin story: how did you come to this work?

26:49 "That tree-hugging tree-cutting organization"

30:38 #WWCA Sore loser

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Our guest today is Assembly Speaker Emeritus Anthony Rendon. Rendon joined us for a fascinating conversation that looked back over his seven year tenure as Speaker, through some of the most turbulent times in the state's history, and forward, as he outlined his goals for the remainder of his time in office. In an in-depth and roaming conversation that ranged from the Water Bond to Waiting for Godot, Rendon spoke plainly about the joys and challenges of creating meaningful policy, in contrast to what he called "Fashion Show Politics" - i.e. SB 562, the unfunded Single Payer bill he derailed in 2017.\

Plus, as always,  we tell you who had the Worst Week in California Politics.

Show Notes

:55 Expanding a homeless services pilot program, AB 1948

5:40 The deficit

7:20 "Our rainy day fund is larger than the budget of 33 states"

7:35 Spending time on The Arts

15:55 Looking back on seven years as Speaker

19:21 "Nobody can say we don't do anything in California"

22:31 The death of SB 562

24:49 "Fashion Show Politics"

25:23 More cynical, or more optimistic about politics?

28:21 The Recall

30:30 #WWCA - How is a governor like a quarterback?

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Capitol Weekly Podcast theme is "Pickin' My Way" by Eddie Lang

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Everyone's favorite California politics data guru Paul Mitchell joins us to talk about California's March 5 Primary. With the Presidential primaries all but wrapped, what was expected to be a high-stakes, high profile March election appears to generating yawns from CA voters. Based on the pace of returned ballots, experts are predicting a historically low turnout: What does that mean for the four main candidates vying to make it into the Top Two for California's open US Senate seat?

Next, we welcome Ron Hughes, Deputy Director of EDD’s newest organizational branch, the EDDNext Modernization and Innovation Branch. Ron brings a wealth of experience to bear as he heads up one of the largest IT projects in the state's history.  The agency faced deep criticism over fraud and other failures during the COVID emergency; Ron spoke with us about how EDDNext will improve the user experience for the public and add needed security to the system.

Plus, as always, we tell you who had the Worst Week in California Politics.

Show Notes:

1:01 What's up with this Primary?

2:30 "What's interesting about low turnout..."

3:34 Impact on the Senate race

6:54 Prop. 1

8:19 What else stands out?

9:24 The race to replace Kevin McCarthy

11:38 Ron Hughes: welcome

12:18 EDDNext

15:45 What is "Frictionless?"

16:33 California has not always had the best record with technology upgrades

18:53 How did this project land in your lap?

21:35 What is the public response?

24:38 You don't think about EDD until you need it

28:43 WWCA - Another social media fail

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Capitol Weekly Podcast theme is "Pickin' My Way" by Eddie Lang

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