Latest news with #TennesseeHoller
San Francisco Chronicle
5 days ago
- Politics
- San Francisco Chronicle
Gavin Newsom teased a redistricting fight with Texas. Can he even do that?
SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gavin Newsom suggested he's contemplating a response to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's efforts to redraw congressional maps to favor Republicans, but California's laws will make any counter moves by Newsom difficult — if not impossible. Newsom began making comments last week after Abbott announced plans for the Republican-dominated Texas Legislature to draw new congressional maps in a special legislative session. Texas, like other states, redrew its maps after the 2020 census. New map-drawing normally wouldn't happen until the next census in 2030 absent a successful lawsuit forcing a state to redo them. But the New York Times has reported Trump's political advisers are pushing for Texas to redraw its maps ahead of the midterms to be more favorable to Republicans. The California Legislature, where Democrats hold supermajorities in both chambers, 'could gerrymander like no other state,' Newsom told liberal news outlet the Tennessee Holler in an interview that published Thursday, referring to the practice of redrawing districts to favor a certain political party. 'I saw what Gov. Abbott did today … These guys are not f---ing around,' Newsom said. 'They're playing by a different set of rules … We've been playing fair but it made me question that entire program. These guys are going to do everything in their power to maintain their power.' Newsom added that it's imperative for his party to take back control of the House of Representatives. Currently, Republicans hold 220 seats in the House compared to Democrats' 212, a number that shrunk in recent months after three Democrats died in office, leaving vacancies. But that majority will be tough for the GOP to hold in the midterms, when a president's party typically has trouble holding onto seats. Newsom has become more aggressively political in recent weeks. After trying to play nice with Trump in the first months of his second presidency, Newsom abandoned those efforts last month when the president deployed National Guard troops to the streets of Los Angeles in response to protests. Since then, he has given a primetime address accusing Trump of assaulting democracy; launched a social media onslaught against the president and other Republican officials; and gone on a tour through parts of South Carolina he billed as an effort to challenge the GOP on its home turf. In a post where he included a video of his comments to the Holler, Newsom wrote: 'Texas is using a special session about emergency disaster aid to redistrict their state and cheat their way into more Congressional seats. These guys have no shame. CA is watching — and you can bet we won't stand idly by.' But California's laws constrain Newsom from responding in kind to any efforts in Texas to redraw maps to favor Republicans. Voters in California took that power from the state Legislature in 2008 and handed it to an independent redistricting commission, which draws the lines for California's congressional and state legislative districts. Though Newsom is correct that Democrats dominate the Legislature, they do not dominate the redistricting commission. By law, the commission comprises five Democrats, five Republicans and four commissioners not affiliated with either party. Sara Sadhwani, a politics professor at Pomona College who serves as one of the Democratic commissioners, said the governor doesn't have any power over the commission's activities and can't force it to draw new maps in Democrats' favor. 'In this national context, I can understand the governor's inclination to want to retaliate,' she said. 'However the people of California have made it clear at the ballot that the governor does not have that power.' California's system is somewhat unusual — in most states, the parties can wield significant influence over the redistricting process, especially in places where one party controls state government. 'I certainly understand and recognize that the balance of power hinges on redistricting, and when all states are not playing fair, the fact that California does puts Democrats at a disadvantage,' Sadhwani said.
Int'l Business Times
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Int'l Business Times
WATCH: Woman Shot by Police at Point Blank Range With Rubber Bullet While Trying to Get Home During LA Protests
A woman was caught on camera being shot at point black range by officers during the Los Angeles anti-ICE protests, despite just trying to make it back to her home. The incident was captured by a woman named Alexandria ( @labyrinthlore ) and shared to TikTok, where a woman can be seen slowly approaching police as they block off a street, including the sidewalk. Officers can be heard shouting and saying, "Clear the area," as Alexandria says, "They're telling her to move." Then a shot sounds, and the woman who was standing just feet away from the officers bends over in pain before turning around and slowly walking away. Alexandria then crossed the street to run over and help the woman, who can be heard sobbing as she arrives. She then sets her phone down to open her backpack to give the woman first aid, when police shout at them to move and honk their horns. "We're moving! We're moving, stop! She's injured," Alexandria shouts, before ushering the woman across the street. "I live here, I live here," the woman insists while crying. The woman was reportedly shot by a rubber bullet, the Tennessee Holler reported. The outlet reposted the video to Instagram , where one user claiming to be her friend commented that the woman was "okay, but absolutely stunned." The video sparked outrage online, with several users commending Alexandria for helping the woman while also criticizing the police's use of force. "How do you shoot someone point blank when you are blocking their way home?" one user wrote. Another added, "Btw, you can kill somebody with a rubber bullet. Apparently, LAPD are okay with murdering residents down there." "This makes me so ill. AN INNOCENT GIRL! Be so for glad that lady was there to record and help her," one user commented. Dozens of people have been arrested over the last several days in Los Angeles after large numbers turned out to protest against ICE's immigration enforcement. President Donald Trump deployed thousands of National Guard troops to assist local law enforcement with the protests, which has been heavily criticized by California officials. @emrata ♬ original sound - Angie Originally published on Latin Times
Yahoo
14-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump's Response To Tariffs Question Flagged As 'Very Revealing Moment'
President Donald Trump seems to expect Americans to take his word for it that his tariffs plan will work out well for them. Trump on Thursday announced he was imposing reciprocal tariffs on trade partners, a plan that could easily backfire and drive up prices for American consumers. The president was asked during a press conference if he would direct agencies to study the impact these tariffs would have on prices in the U.S. 'No, there's nothing to study,' Trump replied. 'It's gonna go well.' 'The United States is going to become a very very strong economic, economically, country,' he added. It was reminiscent of his repeated claims in 2020 that COVID-19 was just 'going to go away.' A clip of Thursday's moment posted on X was viewed more than a million times and attracted substantial backlash. 'This exchange is going to slip by and go undercovered but this is a very revealing moment,' the Tennessee Holler, a progressive news site, said of the comment on X. 'Trump's government won't study anything, they will just tell us everything is going great no matter who gets hurt. '1984' is upon us.' Tahra Jirari, the director of economic analysis at the Chamber of Progress tech industry coalition, had a more blunt take: Trump argues that tariffs are a way for the country to push back against top trade partners that he claims are ripping the U.S. off 'with regard to TRADE, CRIME, AND POISONOUS DRUGS.' Earlier this month, he announced that he would impose a 25% tariff on goods from Canada and Mexico and 10% on those from China, prompting those countries to declare retaliatory tariffs. The tariffs against the two U.S. neighbors are on pause for 30 days amid negotiations and could take effect in March. Thursday's announcement applies more broadly to other countries globally. He said his advisers would come up with new tariff levels for trade partners based on the taxes and levies they charge, which he deems unfair. Economists worry the plan could worsen inflation and set off a costly trade war. Trump's lack of interest in looking into the plan's potential impact was not received well on social media.
