Politics

President Biden opted not to renew the ban on H-1B visas, which are used by technology companies to hire foreign coders and engineers. It was imposed last June. (Evan Vucci / Associated Press) President Biden plans to allow a pandemic-related ban on visas for certain temporary workers, enacted by former President Trump, to expire Wednesday, … Read more

For those who like a dash of irony in their daily news diet the June 21 Times carries a double ration. First, the editorial about Neil Bush, who used his privileged position to have his bank lend funds to business associates, deals that benefited him financially, loans that were not properly secured. For this caper … Read more

People wait to cross into the U.S. from Tijuana last year. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) The Biden administration is allocating $45 million to California programs that help migrants who have crossed the southern border. The money is part of a $300-million national effort announced Friday by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Most of … Read more

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) meets with reporters in Washington on Dec. 20 to discuss legislation to avoid a government shutdown. (Jose Luis Magana / Associated Press) President-elect Donald Trump is endorsing House Speaker Mike Johnson as he prepares to fight to keep his role leading Republicans in Congress. Trump said Monday in a post … Read more

President Carter and then-Sen. Joe Biden at 1978 fundraising event in Wilmington, Del. (Barry Thumma / Associated Press) History isn’t kind to one-term presidents, at least in the short run. For most of the last 40 years, Jimmy Carter’s presidency has been widely remembered as an epic failure, the cautionary tale of a politician who … Read more

“You have good genes,” President Trump told a mostly white crowd at a campaign rally Sept. 18 at a Bemidji, Minn., airport. (Evan Vucci / Associated Press) President Trump has alarmed Jewish leaders and others with remarks that appeared to endorse “racehorse theory” — the idea that selective breeding can improve a country’s performance, which … Read more

Does the 1st Amendment protect “hate speech?” Can health workers be forced to take AIDS tests? Is there a right to doctor-assisted suicide? Should the Constitution one day be expanded to guarantee jobs, housing and health care? The authors of the Bill of Rights–the name given the first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution–could hardly … Read more

Bottles of Clorox bleach sit on a shelf at a grocery store. (Justin Sullivan / Getty Images) A state assemblyman wants to create a new felony offense to penalize organized retail theft, a crime some have called an unintended consequence of a 2014 ballot initiative that reduced drug possession and some theft crimes to misdemeanors. … Read more

Two years after losing a spirited campaign to oust Jack O’Connell from his Assembly seat, Connie Los has joined forces with the Democratic assemblyman to push a proposed law that she believes could have saved the life of her only child. Los, a Santa Barbara Republican socialite, has teamed up with the influential Speaker pro … Read more

Kamala Harris made history when she was elected vice president, but since then has settled into a more traditional back-seat role. Whatever happened to Kamala Harris? She shattered all kinds of ceiling glass when Joe Biden made California’s junior senator his running mate and Harris was elected vice president. Since then, she’s largely receded from … Read more