Politics

Gov. Gavin Newsom, left, and Sen.-elect Adam B. Schiff are among a growing number of fellow Democrats who have criticized President Biden’s pardon of his son Hunter. (Associated Press) Two of California’s most prominent Democrats sharply criticized President Biden’s controversial pardon of his son Hunter, with Sen.-elect Adam B. Schiff and Gov. Gavin Newsom both … Read more

President-elect Donald Trump speaks at meeting of the House GOP conference on Nov. 13. (Alex Brandon / Associated Press) Chad Chronister, Donald Trump’s pick to run the Drug Enforcement Administration, said Tuesday he was withdrawing his name from consideration, becoming the second person selected by the president-elect to bow out quickly after being nominated for … Read more

The son of Westside lawyer and prominent Democratic activist Mickey Kantor was killed along with three friends in a fiery auto crash in Santa Monica Friday night. The four teen-agers died when their car veered out of control, struck a large tree and exploded into flames, police said. The identity of the victims, three boys … Read more

Rep. Adam B. Schiff addresses a crowd gathered at a campaign event at the UA Union Hall in Orange in March. (Paul Rodriguez / For The Times) Sen.-elect Adam B. Schiff will be sworn in as California’s next U.S. senator on Monday, replacing Sen. Laphonza Butler, according to sources familiar with the arrangements. Butler, a … Read more

First Lady Jill Biden at an event with military families in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington. (Susan Walsh / Associated Press) Jill Biden was departing Tuesday on her final solo foreign trip as first lady, a six-day, four-country jaunt through Italy, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar that wraps with … Read more

Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate, shown in 2020, is seeking information from the federal government about the citizenship status of more than 2,000 registered voters whose eligibility was challenged by state elections officials in the weeks leading up to the 2024 election. (Charlie Neibergall / Associated Press) Iowa officials on Tuesday sued the Biden … Read more

President Biden shakes hands with Angola President João Lourenço at the presidential palace in Luanda, Angola, on Tuesday. (Ben Curtis / Associated Press) Joe Biden on Tuesday used the first visit to Angola by a U.S. president to promote billions of dollars of commitments to the sub-Saharan African nation and speak at a slavery museum, … Read more

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger approved a package of legislation Wednesday intended to crack down on slave rings that force people — often poor and illegal immigrants — to perform menial and sometimes debasing work in sweatshops, construction and prostitution. “The practice of trafficking in human beings — modern-day slavery — is a horrific crime that our … Read more

Former Assemblyman Pat Nolan at the Capitol in Sacramento in 2007. (Rich Pedroncelli / For The Times) President Trump has pardoned Pat Nolan, a former Republican state legislative leader who spent years in prison after being convicted in the “Shrimpscam” FBI sting in the 1990s and later became a high-profile conservative apostle for criminal justice … Read more

President-elect Donald Trump meets with President Biden in the Oval Office of the White House on Nov. 13. (Evan Vucci / Associated Press) In the final weeks before President Biden leaves office, federal officials and climate advocates are scrambling to secure as much progress as they can before President Trump returns to the White House. … Read more