Longtime labor leader and Democratic strategist Laphonza Butler will be California's new U.S. Senator. News of Butler's appointment -- confirmed by Governor Gavin Newsom's office Sunday night -- comes days after the death of Dianne Feinstein, which left the Senate seat vacant.

Reporter: Guy Marzorati, KQED

This week, seven California counties launch CARE Courts. They’re the new mental health courts required by the state that have the authority to mandate people with severe mental illness to receive treatment.  The implementation of CARE Court will be under particular scrutiny in San Francisco, as the city wrestles with both mental health and homelessness crises.

Guest: Rafael Mandelman, San Francisco Supervisor

When presidential candidates travel to places like Iowa and New Hampshire, they usually spend time praising the state they’re in. But that is not what Republicans making the pilgrimage to California are saying about the Golden State.

Reporter: Marisa Lagos, KQED 

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