Politics

From South Carolina to Arizona, Democrats are brawling noisily over whom their presidential candidate will be. But back in the capital, Republican strategists are already focused on the finish line — and quietly working on a new “ground war” plan to secure another four years in the White House for President Bush. So far ahead … Read more

For Patrick J. Buchanan, the brawls began early. As a toddler, he showed a gift for public speaking, quickly learning the “Hail Mary” while his young brothers stumbled through the Roman Catholic prayer. Soon, little Paddy Joe started reciting it over and over at bedtime. One night, hearing a scuffle, Buchanan’s father charged into the … Read more

Striking Writers Guild of America workers picket outside the Sunset Bronson Studios in May. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) Striking workers in California, potentially including writers and actors still picketing Hollywood studios, would be eligible for unemployment benefits under legislation state lawmakers passed on Thursday. Gov. Gavin Newsom now faces a critical decision on … Read more

Leaders of the National American Woman Suffrage Assn. were thrilled when William Howard Taft agreed to address their convention in 1910, the first U.S. president to do so. They were less thrilled, though, when he proceeded to compare women to Hottentots, and not in a good way. “The theory that Hottentots or any other uneducated, … Read more

A photo of state Sen. Susan Rubio and her sister, Assemblywoman Blanca Rubio, sits in Susan’s office in Sacramento. (Max Whittaker / For The Times) It was open house at Heron Elementary School, and inside a bustling auditorium, fifth-graders created a living wax museum of “Famous Americans,” decked out as pop icons, sports stars and … Read more

For most of the 19th and 20th centuries, residents of the rest of the country often saw California as the place their wacky or adventurous or beautiful cousin went to seek gold, celebrity, sunny beaches, sexual freedom, and maybe a new identity, away from the family and the baggage in St. Paul, Philadelphia or Levittown. … Read more

Actor Cheryl Hines introduces her husband, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., at a Los Angeles event in February. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) Hello, and happy Tuesday. There are 41 days until the election, and today we are talking scandals. I have become aware that various competitors may be sniffing around a story about yours … Read more

President-elect Donald Trump has planned a news conference Wednesday, his first since July. (Evan Vucci / Associated Press) Nearly every day, President-elect Donald Trump’s press aides are beseeched to clarify, tame or shed context on his torrent of tweets that have flustered congressional leaders, corporate chieftains and heads of state. The spin operation has settled … Read more

For the generation that grew up in the early years of television, memories of the banter between ventriloquist Paul Winchell and his wisecracking wooden buddy, Jerry Mahoney, are growing dim. And the magic of Winchell and Mahoney will not be replayed for today’s children. Winchell’s shows on NBC in the 1950s were performed live, and … Read more

WASHINGTON — Rep. Henry A. Waxman, whose legislative record has made him one of the country’s most influential liberal lawmakers for four decades, announced Thursday that he will retire from his Westside seat, the latest in a wave of departures that is remaking the state’s long-stable congressional delegation. During a congressional career that began when … Read more