Politics

A measles, mumps and rubella, or MMR, vaccine is at a pediatric clinic in Greenbrae, Calif. (Eric Risberg / Associated Press) Despite having some of the nation’s strictest school vaccination laws, California reported a decline last year in the share of kindergarten students who were immunized against measles, including in 16 counties where students no … Read more

Thrift store millionaire Ray Ellison leaned back in his office chair and laughed. He knows a liar when he sees one, he said. And he knows a liberal. He doesn’t like either. “I called him a slimeball, scum-sucking liar,” said Ellison, 65, reciting a description of then-Ventura Mayor Dennis Orrock that he painted on a … Read more

Attendees at the Ventura City Council meeting on March 18, 2025. Officials discussed the CARE Policy, which aimed to strengthen protections for LGBTQ+ people, immigrants and people seeking reproductive care. (Michael Owen Baker/For The Times) The proposal considered Tuesday night was meant to be a big stand by a small city, an effort to protect … Read more

House members, ignoring the public opposition that prevented them from taking a salary increase just 10 months ago, passed a pay and ethics package Thursday that would raise compensation for themselves, federal judges and top Administration officials to almost $125,000 a year over the next 13 months. The unusually wide margin of 252 to 174 … Read more

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs took office in January. (Ross D. Franklin / Associated Press) Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs has vowed not to allow an execution that the state Supreme Court scheduled over the objections of the state’s new attorney general. The Democratic governor’s promise Friday not to execute Aaron Gunches on April 6 for a … Read more

An embryologist views an embryo, visible on a monitor. The Alabama Supreme Court has ruled that frozen embryos can be considered children, creating sweeping implications for fertility treatments. (Richard Drew / Associated Press) Is a frozen embryo a child? The Alabama Supreme Court says yes. In a recent ruling that three couples who lost frozen … Read more

Pete Marocco, shown earlier this month, announced that Jeremy Lewin will become USAID’s deputy administrator for policy and programs and its chief operating officer. (J. Scott Applewhite / Associated Press) A senior official at Elon Musk’s White House advisory team is taking a leadership role at the U.S. Agency for International Development, giving Musk’s so-called … Read more

The federal money for the University of Pennsylvania was suspended in a separate review of discretionary federal money going to universities, the White House said. (Matt Rourke / Associated Press) The Trump administration has suspended approximately $175 million in federal funding for the University of Pennsylvania over the participation of a transgender athlete in its … Read more

Gov. Jerry Brown speaks at Tsinghua University in Beijing on Thursday. (Anthony York / Los Angeles Times) BEIJING — Gov. Jerry Brown used a stage at one of China’s most prestigious universities Thursday to make his pitch for environmental policies that he said could help reverse the global impacts of climate change and boost the … Read more

The Trump administration has waived dozens of environmental laws in order to build a border barrier through a nature preserve in Mission, Texas. (Suzanne Cordeiro / AFP/Getty Images) Over the last week, Marianna Treviño Wright has watched work crews drive through her butterfly sanctuary in Texas to a nearby site where brush is being cleared … Read more