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  • Obstructive sleep apnea may be linked to microbleeds in the brain

    Maybe you know you snore like a bear, but you don’t feel much urgency to look into it. Or maybe you have been told to wear a continuous positive airway pressure, or CPAP, machine for sleep apnea, but it is just so cumbersome.A new study shows that it is important to take obstructive sleep apnea seriously now –– it could impact your risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease later.Moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea is associated with a greater risk for new microbleeds in the brain, according to the study.”Cerebral microbleeds are a common finding in the aging brain,” said Dr. Jonathan Graff-Radford, professor of neurology at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine in Rochester, Minnesota. He was not involved in the research.Microbleeds increase with age, and people who have them have a slightly higher risk of future strokes and faster cognitive decline, Graff-Radford said. “Anything that increases microbleeds is relevant to brain aging,” he added.More evidence you need to treat sleep apneaObstructive sleep apnea is a condition in which a blockage of airways by weak, heavy or relaxed soft tissues disrupts breathing during sleep. The condition is different from central sleep apnea, in which the brain occasionally skips telling the body to breathe.There are a few ways to treat obstructive sleep apnea, including relying on oral devices that keep the throat open during sleep, regularly using a CPAP or similar machine, and having surgeries.The study has a strong methodology and should stress the importance of screening for sleep apnea to clinicians and treatment to patients, said Dr. Rudy Tanzi, professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School and director of the Genetics and Aging Research Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. He was not involved in the research.”Don’t ignore it. Do something about it,” he said. “It’s not just the immediate risk for down the road for bleeds, but also later down the road for Alzheimer’s disease as well.”Not addressing obstructive sleep apnea is a double whammy, Tanzi said. Not getting enough good-quality sleep –– which can be hard to do when your breathing is impaired during the night –– has been associated with brain aging, but the microbleeds that could result may increase the risk for dementia down the line.The study, which was published in the journal JAMA Network Open Tuesday, is observational, which means that it can only establish that obstructive sleep apnea and microbleeds are associated, not that one definitively causes the other. Further studies will need to examine if treating sleep apnea can prevent microbleeds.Know the signsWhen is it time to ask your doctor about obstructive sleep apnea?Loud, frequent snoring is a good indicator, Tanzi said. If your partner notices pauses in your breathing while you sleep or gasping and choking, that’s another sign you should look into sleep apnea.Problems during the day can be a good indicator, too. Sleepiness, trouble concentrating, irritability and increased hunger are signs you may not be getting quality sleep and that it may be time to get assessed for sleep apnea.Night sweats might also be a sign of sleep apnea, as research has shown that about 30% of people with obstructive sleep apnea have reported night sweats.Waking up at least two times in the night, teeth grinding, and morning headaches might also indicate a problem.The latest study “urges (people) to take it more seriously, because the damage that can come from obstructive sleep apnea can definitely be more severe than you think,” Tanzi said.

    CNN —

    Maybe you know you snore like a bear, but you don’t feel much urgency to look into it. Or maybe you have been told to wear a continuous positive airway pressure, or CPAP, machine for sleep apnea, but it is just so cumbersome.

    A new study shows that it is important to take obstructive sleep apnea seriously now –– it could impact your risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease later.

    Moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea is associated with a greater risk for new microbleeds in the brain, according to the study.

    “Cerebral microbleeds are a common finding in the aging brain,” said Dr. Jonathan Graff-Radford, professor of neurology at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine in Rochester, Minnesota. He was not involved in the research.

    Microbleeds increase with age, and people who have them have a slightly higher risk of future strokes and faster cognitive decline, Graff-Radford said. “Anything that increases microbleeds is relevant to brain aging,” he added.

    More evidence you need to treat sleep apnea

    Obstructive sleep apnea is a condition in which a blockage of airways by weak, heavy or relaxed soft tissues disrupts breathing during sleep. The condition is different from central sleep apnea, in which the brain occasionally skips telling the body to breathe.

    There are a few ways to treat obstructive sleep apnea, including relying on oral devices that keep the throat open during sleep, regularly using a CPAP or similar machine, and having surgeries.

    The study has a strong methodology and should stress the importance of screening for sleep apnea to clinicians and treatment to patients, said Dr. Rudy Tanzi, professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School and director of the Genetics and Aging Research Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. He was not involved in the research.

    “Don’t ignore it. Do something about it,” he said. “It’s not just the immediate risk for down the road for bleeds, but also later down the road for Alzheimer’s disease as well.”

    Not addressing obstructive sleep apnea is a double whammy, Tanzi said. Not getting enough good-quality sleep –– which can be hard to do when your breathing is impaired during the night –– has been associated with brain aging, but the microbleeds that could result may increase the risk for dementia down the line.

    The study, which was published in the journal JAMA Network Open Tuesday, is observational, which means that it can only establish that obstructive sleep apnea and microbleeds are associated, not that one definitively causes the other. Further studies will need to examine if treating sleep apnea can prevent microbleeds.

    Know the signs

    When is it time to ask your doctor about obstructive sleep apnea?

    Loud, frequent snoring is a good indicator, Tanzi said. If your partner notices pauses in your breathing while you sleep or gasping and choking, that’s another sign you should look into sleep apnea.

    Problems during the day can be a good indicator, too. Sleepiness, trouble concentrating, irritability and increased hunger are signs you may not be getting quality sleep and that it may be time to get assessed for sleep apnea.

    Night sweats might also be a sign of sleep apnea, as research has shown that about 30% of people with obstructive sleep apnea have reported night sweats.

    Waking up at least two times in the night, teeth grinding, and morning headaches might also indicate a problem.

    The latest study “urges (people) to take it more seriously, because the damage that can come from obstructive sleep apnea can definitely be more severe than you think,” Tanzi said.

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  • 10 people hospitalized after London-bound train stabbing attack

    British police said Sunday that two people remain in life-threatening condition after a mass stabbing attack on a London-bound train the previous evening. Police also said they do not consider the attack to be a terrorist incident.Overnight, police said nine of the 10 people injured were in a life-threatening condition. British Transport Police Superintendent John Loveless said four of those have now been discharged and that one other person had arrived at the hospital on their own, taking the number injured in the attack to 11.He also said that the two people arrested remain in custody and confirmed that they were born in the United Kingdom. One is a 32-year-old Black British man, the other is a 35-year-old man of Caribbean descent, he said.“There is nothing to suggest this is a terrorist incident,” Loveless said.On Saturday night, bloodied passengers had spilled out of the long-distance train when it made an emergency stop in the town of Huntingdon, 120 kilometers (75 miles) north of London, where dozens of police waited, soon after multiple stabbings were reported onboard.The police force said that “Plato,” the national code word used by police and emergency services when responding to what could be a “marauding terror attack,” was initiated. That declaration was later rescinded but no motive for the attack was disclosed.The attack took place as the train from Doncaster in northern England to London’s King’s Cross station was about halfway through its 2-hour journey and approaching Huntingdon, a market town a few miles northwest of the university city of Cambridge.Passenger Olly Foster told the BBC he heard people shouting “run, run, there’s a guy literally stabbing everyone,” and initially thought it might have been a Halloween prank. But as passengers pushed past him to get away, he noticed his hand was covered in blood from a chair he had leaned on.Emergency services, including armed police and air ambulances, responded quickly as the train drew into Huntingdon. The attack appears to have been contained swiftly after the train arrived at the station, and police officers wearing forensic suits, with a police dog, could be seen on the platform.British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said his “thoughts are with all those affected” after the “appalling incident.”Paul Bristow, the mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, said he had heard of “horrendous scenes” on the train.London North Eastern Railway, or LNER, which operates the East Coast Mainline services in the U.K., confirmed the incident had happened on one of its trains and said there would be major disruption on the route until Monday.

    British police said Sunday that two people remain in life-threatening condition after a mass stabbing attack on a London-bound train the previous evening. Police also said they do not consider the attack to be a terrorist incident.

    Overnight, police said nine of the 10 people injured were in a life-threatening condition. British Transport Police Superintendent John Loveless said four of those have now been discharged and that one other person had arrived at the hospital on their own, taking the number injured in the attack to 11.

    He also said that the two people arrested remain in custody and confirmed that they were born in the United Kingdom. One is a 32-year-old Black British man, the other is a 35-year-old man of Caribbean descent, he said.

    “There is nothing to suggest this is a terrorist incident,” Loveless said.

    CHRIS RADBURN

    Emergency personnel inspect a train at the Huntingdon, England, train station in Cambridgeshire after people were stabbed Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025.

    On Saturday night, bloodied passengers had spilled out of the long-distance train when it made an emergency stop in the town of Huntingdon, 120 kilometers (75 miles) north of London, where dozens of police waited, soon after multiple stabbings were reported onboard.

    The police force said that “Plato,” the national code word used by police and emergency services when responding to what could be a “marauding terror attack,” was initiated. That declaration was later rescinded but no motive for the attack was disclosed.

    The attack took place as the train from Doncaster in northern England to London’s King’s Cross station was about halfway through its 2-hour journey and approaching Huntingdon, a market town a few miles northwest of the university city of Cambridge.

    Passenger Olly Foster told the BBC he heard people shouting “run, run, there’s a guy literally stabbing everyone,” and initially thought it might have been a Halloween prank. But as passengers pushed past him to get away, he noticed his hand was covered in blood from a chair he had leaned on.

    Emergency services, including armed police and air ambulances, responded quickly as the train drew into Huntingdon. The attack appears to have been contained swiftly after the train arrived at the station, and police officers wearing forensic suits, with a police dog, could be seen on the platform.

    British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said his “thoughts are with all those affected” after the “appalling incident.”

    Paul Bristow, the mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, said he had heard of “horrendous scenes” on the train.

    London North Eastern Railway, or LNER, which operates the East Coast Mainline services in the U.K., confirmed the incident had happened on one of its trains and said there would be major disruption on the route until Monday.

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  • As SNAP benefits lapse, thousands show up to Southern California food banks

    On Saturday morning, Genaro Alfonzo pulled up to the Kia Forum in Inglewood wearing his Dodgers hat and jersey, with a flag for his Boys in Blue flapping from a Toyota pickup truck.

    But the morning after his beloved Dodgers won Game 6 of the World Series against the Toronto Blue Jays, Alfonzo was not happy. It was nearly 11 a.m., and the 70-year-old had not yet eaten.

    “Just this,” he said, tearing up as he held up a blue plastic coffee cup, half empty. “I’m not working. My wife’s not working — there’s no work. The market is expensive.”

    Alfonzo was among thousands of people who showed up to a drive-through food distribution event Saturday at the Kia Forum put on by the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank on the first day of a lapse in funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP.

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    It was the first day of the month — the first day of a pause in federal food assistance for millions of low-income Americans, including 5.5 million Californians, because of the government shutdown that began Oct. 1.

    On Friday, two federal judges, in separate rulings, ordered the U.S. Department of Agriculture to begin using more than $5 billion in contingency funds for SNAP during the government shutdown. But they gave the agency until Monday to figure out how to do so.

    Although the orders were a win for people who rely on SNAP, they did not mean that recipients would be spared a lapse in food aid. Over the weekend, state and local food banks scrambled to prepare for a deluge of need.

    People pick up food distributed by Noel Community Organization

    People pick up food distributed by Noel Community Organization at the Lily of the Valley Church of God In Christ Saturday in Long Beach.

    (Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)

    California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta — whose office helped bring about a lawsuit by a coalition of Democrat-led states against the Trump administration over the food aid cutoff — said Thursday that a ruling in the states’ favor would not mean SNAP funds would immediately be loaded onto CalFresh and other benefit cards.

    “Our best estimates are that [SNAP benefit] cards could be loaded and used in about a week,” he said, adding that “there could be about a week where people are hungry and need food.” For new program applicants, he said, the delay could be even longer.

    On Saturday, amid gray skies and fog, scores of volunteers for the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank gathered outside the Forum to serve Angelenos looking to stock their shelves and refrigerators for what could become the longest shutdown since 2018, when the government was shut down for 35 days.

    Volunteers disbursed food containers for about 5,000 vehicles, according to the food bank. Each offering had items for about 40 meals, with whole grains, fresh produce, tortillas, canned tuna, yogurt and frozen chicken.

    “This is what large-scale disaster relief looks like,” said Michael Flood, chief executive of the food bank. “It’s about getting as much as possible out to as many people as possible — safely and in a short time.”

    Fueled by bins of snacks — chips, oranges and bottled water — many volunteers expressed enthusiasm for the long day ahead.

    “I’m just happy to be here — it’s a great opportunity to help people,” said Jordan Diaz, 35.

    Ron Del Rio, 54, said he was happy to help but angry about the circumstances.

    “It’s frustrating and heartbreaking to see people who are hungry,” he said. “It’s just so unsettling that it has to be this way. Why are there 5,000 cars coming through here in a country that is so rich?”

    Norma White gives Dario Medina a free haircut

    Norma White gives Dario Medina a free haircut as people wait to pick up food distributed by Noel Community Organization at the Lily of the Valley Church of God In Christ Saturday in Long Beach.

    (Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)

    About 600,000 SNAP recipients live in Los Angeles, according to Mayor Karen Bass, who said in a statement Friday that “no one in Los Angeles should have to worry about putting food on the table because of circumstances beyond their control.”

    For volunteer Diane Jackson, 72, loading up cars with boxes of fresh produce hit close to home. Her son had been in line to receive food earlier that morning.

    “He has 7 children!” she said. “He made sure to come out here. I’m so glad they’re here — it feels good.”

    Volunteers were greeted with fist bumps, air kisses and shouted thank yous.

    As she waited in line, Maxx Bush, 79, who lives near the Forum, said she was angry because people’s incomes are not increasing, even as groceries, housing, insurance, medication, gasoline and other necessities are becoming more expensive.

    “Our elected officials are letting us down because we vote and put these people in office, and they tend to get a personal vendetta going with each other and forget about the main thing, which is the people.”

    In their opposition to states’ request for a temporary restraining order requiring the disbursement of contingency funds, attorneys for the USDA argued that the $5.25 billion is reserved “in the event of natural disasters and other uncontrollable catastrophes” and could cause more disruptions later. The emergency funds will not cover the roughly $9 billion required for all November benefits, according to the USDA.

    Last week, Gov. Gavin Newsom activated the National Guard to help package food and directed $80 million to food banks to stock up. More than 63% of SNAP recipients in California are children or elderly people, Newsom’s office said.

    “I have instructed our lawyers to ask the Court to clarify how we can legally fund SNAP as soon as possible,” President Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Friday. “It is already delayed enough due to the Democrats keeping the Government closed … it will BE MY HONOR to provide the funding.”

    On Saturday, Bonta snapped back.

    “The Trump Admin CHOSE to withhold food assistance from people in need. They CHOSE to let people go hungry and now are only changing their tune thanks to lawsuits,” Bonta said on X. “It should have never gotten this far in the first place.”

    Two people leave a food distribution site Saturday in Long Beach.

    Two people leave a food distribution site Saturday in Long Beach.

    (Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)

    Around noon on Saturday, the parking lot at the Forum was a cacophony of sound: car engines rumbling, car stereos blasting music, fire engines blaring in the distance, children shrieking, airplanes roaring en route to nearby LAX.

    Rayvone Douthard, 51, picked up food in a white Nissan truck with his windows down and stereo blaring a cover by the band Tierra of the 1967 song “Together.” Douthard, a DJ who wore a brightly colored tie-dye T-shirt, said he received federal food aid and was concerned about the delay in funding.

    “It’s not right,” he said. “Donald Trump needs to stop what he’s doing. Everyone needs food.”

    Then he turned his music up again.

    “But I feel positive about this,” he said, gesturing at the bustling parking lot. “Everybody working together. Like the song says!”

    Deborah Vankin, Jasmine Mendez

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  • Investigation underway into suspected intentional explosion at Harvard University medical campus

    Overnight explosion at Harvard University’s medical campus believed to be intentional, police say

    Updated: 12:56 PM PDT Nov 1, 2025

    Editorial Standards ⓘ

    The Harvard University Police Department is investigating what it is calling an intentional explosion inside a building on the medical campus early Saturday morning.Police say the explosion occurred around 2:48 a.m. on the fourth floor of the Goldenson Building at 220 Longwood Ave.There were no reports of any injuries.A responding officer saw two people fleeing the scene and tried stopping them, but was unsuccessful, according to police.Investigators from the Boston Fire Department Arson Unit made an initial assessment that the explosion appeared to be intentional.Boston police officers conducted a sweep of the building to check for additional devices.The Harvard University Police Department is actively investigating the incident, as well as the FBI and other law enforcement agencies. No further information was immediately available.

    The Harvard University Police Department is investigating what it is calling an intentional explosion inside a building on the medical campus early Saturday morning.

    Police say the explosion occurred around 2:48 a.m. on the fourth floor of the Goldenson Building at 220 Longwood Ave.

    There were no reports of any injuries.

    A responding officer saw two people fleeing the scene and tried stopping them, but was unsuccessful, according to police.

    Investigators from the Boston Fire Department Arson Unit made an initial assessment that the explosion appeared to be intentional.

    Boston police officers conducted a sweep of the building to check for additional devices.

    The Harvard University Police Department is actively investigating the incident, as well as the FBI and other law enforcement agencies.

    No further information was immediately available.

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  • Commentary: A fence might deter MacArthur Park crime and homelessness, but is it enough?

    My first reaction, when I heard about the proposed $2.3-million fence around MacArthur Park, was skepticism.

    Yeah, the park and the immediate neighborhood have long dealt with a nasty web of urban nightmares, including homelessness, crime and a rather astonishing open-air drug scene, all of which I spent a few months looking into not long ago.

    But what would a fence accomplish?

    Well, after looking into it, maybe it’s not the worst idea.

    Skepticism, I should note, is generally a fallback position for me. It’s something of an occupational duty, and how can you not be cynical about promises and plans in Los Angeles, where each time you open the newspaper, you have to scratch your head?

    I’m still having trouble understanding how county supervisors approved another $828 million in child sexual abuse payments, on top of an earlier settlement this year of $4 billion, even after Times reporter Rebecca Ellis found nine cases in which people said they were told to fabricate abuse allegations.

    The same supes, while wrestling with a budget crisis, agreed to pay $2 million to appease the county’s chief executive officer because she felt wronged by a ballot measure proposing that the job be an elected rather than appointed post. Scratching your head doesn’t help in this case; you’re tempted instead to bang it into a wall.

    Drone view of MacArthur Park looking toward downtown Los Angeles.

    (Ted Soqui/For The Times)

    Or maybe a $2.3-million fence.

    The city of L.A. is primarily responsible for taking on the problems of MacArthur Park, although the county has a role too in the areas of housing, public health and addiction services. I made two visits to the area in the last week, and while there are signs of progress and slightly less of a sense of chaos — the children’s playground hit last year by an arsonist has been fully rebuilt — there’s a long way to go.

    In a story about the fence by my colleague Nathan Solis, one service provider said it would further criminalize homelessness and another said the money “could be better used by funding … services to the people in the park, rather than just moving them out.”

    The vast majority of people who spoke at the Oct. 16 meeting of the Recreation and Parks Commission, which voted unanimously to move forward with the fence, were adamantly opposed despite claims that enclosing the space would be a step toward upgrading and making the park more welcoming.

    “Nothing is more unwelcoming than a fence around a public space,” one critic said.

    “A fence can not solve homelessness,” another said.

    The LAPD underwater dive unit investigates activity in MacArthur Park Lake.

    The LAPD underwater dive unit investigates activity in MacArthur Park Lake.

    (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)

    Others argued that locking up the park, which is surrounded by a predominantly immigrant community, recalls the ridiculous stunt that played out in June, when President Trump’s uniformed posse showed up in armored vehicles and on horseback in what looked like an all-out invasion of Westlake.

    But another speaker, Raul Claros — who is running against Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez in the 1st District — said he’d spoken to residents and merchants who support the fence, as long as it’s part of a greater effort to address the community’s needs.

    Claros said he has three questions: “What’s the plan? What’s the timeline? Who’s in charge?”

    Hernandez, by the way, is not opposed to the fence. A staffer told me there’s a fence around nearby Lafayette Park. Other fenced parks in Los Angeles include Robert Burns Park, adjacent to Hancock Park, and the L.A. State Historic Park on the edge of Chinatown, which is locked at sunset.

    As for the long-range plan, the Hernandez staffer said the councilwoman has secured and is investing millions of dollars in what she calls a care-first approach that aims to address drug addiction and homelessness in and around the park.

    Eduardo Aguirre, who lives a couple of blocks from the park and serves on the West Pico Neighborhood Council, told me he’s OK with the fence but worried about the possible consequences. If the people who use the park at night or sleep there are forced out, he said, where will they go?

    “To the streets? To the alleys? You know what’s going to happen. It’s a game,” Aguirre said.

    Last fall I walked with Aguirre and his wife as they led their daughter to her elementary school. They often have to step around homeless people and past areas where dealing and drug use, along with violence, are anything but infrequent.

    Families and others should be able to feel safe in the park and the neighborhood, said Norm Langer, owner of the iconic Langer’s deli on the edge of the park.

    A visitor takes in the view at MacArthur Park.

    A visitor takes in the view at MacArthur Park.

    (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)

    “I completely understand why you’re skeptical,” Langer told me, but he said he’s seen improvements in the last year, particularly after fences were installed along Alvarado Street and vendors were shut down. Police say some of the vendors were involved in the drug trade and the resale of stolen merchandise.

    “The point isn’t to limit access,” Langer said. “The fence is intended to improve safety and quality of life for the people who live, work, and spend time here. It gives park staff a fighting chance to maintain and restore the place, especially at night, when they can finally clean and repair without the constant chaos that made upkeep nearly impossible before.”

    LAPD Capt. Ben Fernandes of the Rampart division told me police are “trying to make it not OK” to buy and use drugs along the Alvarado corridor. Drug users often gather in the northeast corner of the park, Fernandes said, and he thinks putting up a fence and keeping the park off limits at night will help “deflect” some of “the open-air usage.”

    The park has a nice soccer field and a lovely bandstand, among other popular attractions, but many parents told me they’re reluctant to visit with their children because of safety concerns. If a fence helps bring back families, many of whom live in apartments and have no yards, that’s a good thing.

    But as the city goes to work on design issues, questions about enforcement, opening and closing times and other details, it needs to keep in mind that all of that is the easy part.

    It took an unforgivably long time for L.A. Mayor Karen Bass and other elected officials to acknowledge a social, economic and humanitarian crisis in a place that’s home to thousands of low-income working people.

    The neighborhood needs much more than a fence.

    steve.lopez@latimes.com

    Steve Lopez

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  • Ramen instead of Reese’s? Looming SNAP cuts change what’s offered for Halloween trick-or-treaters

    When KC Neufeld announced on her Denver neighborhood’s Facebook page that her family would be handing out ramen and packs of macaroni and cheese in addition to candy this Halloween, she wasn’t expecting much of a response.The mother of twin 4-year-olds was just hoping to make a small difference in her working-class neighborhood as food aid funding for tens of millions of vulnerable Americans is expected to end Friday due to the government shutdown.Video above: Before the Candy, Think Safety: Halloween Tips Every Parent Should KnowWithin two days, nearly 3,000 people had reacted to Neufeld’s post, some thanking her and others announcing they would follow suit.”This post blew up way more than I ever anticipated and I’m severely unprepared,” said Neufeld, 33, explaining that she is heading back to the store to get more food despite her family hitting their grocery budget for the week.”I wish I could just buy out this whole aisle of Costco,” she added. “I can’t. But I’ll do what I can.”Neufeld is one of many people across the U.S. preparing to give out shelf-stable foods to trick-or-treaters this year to help fill the void left by looming cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, which helps about one in eight Americans buy groceries. A flurry of widely shared posts have popped up over the last several days as many people look for ways to help offset the surge in need. Some posts suggest foods to give out while others show recently acquired stocks of cheese sticks, mini cereals, canned soup or even diapers ready for trick-or-treaters. Video below: Homemade Halloween treats to be given to childrenPosts are often followed by a string of comments from people announcing similar plans, along with plenty of reminders not to forget the candy.Emily Archambault, 29, and her sister-in-law Taylor Martin, 29, in La Porte, Indiana, will be putting out pasta and sauce, peanut butter and jelly, cereal and other foods, along with diapers and wipes on Halloween. They’re also collecting donations from members of their church.Their plan is to set everything out on a table away from where they’re giving out candy, so families can take what they need without worrying about judgement.”It kind of takes a little bit of pressure off of the parents,” said Martin. “You’re out and about trick or treating and it’s there and your kids probably won’t even notice you’re taking it.”Archambault said she relied on the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, known as WIC, after her son’s medical complications forced her to stop working temporarily. Losing that assistance would have meant turning to food pantries. And while she said there are great ones in her area, she expects them to be overrun.”We have to band together,” she said. “I am grateful to have received benefits, and I am even more grateful to be able to give back now.”Erika Dutka, who depends on SNAP to feed herself and her three children in Archbald, Pennsylvania, went to a “trunk or treat” Sunday with people giving out candy from the trunks of cars. She said she was relieved to get packs of ramen, oatmeal, juice, pretzels and fruit snacks in addition to sweet treats.The 36-year-old — who works two jobs and goes to school full-time — said the food means she’ll have plenty of school snacks for her children the rest of the week and can save her last $100 of SNAP funds.”It buys me more time,” she said. “Maybe things will change. Maybe it’ll get turned back on.” Neufeld, the Denver mom stockpiling shelf-stable items for trick-or-treaters, said she relied on a food bank at her college to get through school. She said most people would never have known she was really struggling. And now, with SNAP drying up, she wants people to remember not to assume anything about others.”You truly don’t know what other people are going through,” she said. “So even if they don’t ‘look like they need help,’ it’s still important to just give when you can because it can make a huge difference.”

    When KC Neufeld announced on her Denver neighborhood’s Facebook page that her family would be handing out ramen and packs of macaroni and cheese in addition to candy this Halloween, she wasn’t expecting much of a response.

    The mother of twin 4-year-olds was just hoping to make a small difference in her working-class neighborhood as food aid funding for tens of millions of vulnerable Americans is expected to end Friday due to the government shutdown.

    Video above: Before the Candy, Think Safety: Halloween Tips Every Parent Should Know

    Within two days, nearly 3,000 people had reacted to Neufeld’s post, some thanking her and others announcing they would follow suit.

    “This post blew up way more than I ever anticipated and I’m severely unprepared,” said Neufeld, 33, explaining that she is heading back to the store to get more food despite her family hitting their grocery budget for the week.

    “I wish I could just buy out this whole aisle of Costco,” she added. “I can’t. But I’ll do what I can.”

    Neufeld is one of many people across the U.S. preparing to give out shelf-stable foods to trick-or-treaters this year to help fill the void left by looming cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, which helps about one in eight Americans buy groceries.

    A flurry of widely shared posts have popped up over the last several days as many people look for ways to help offset the surge in need. Some posts suggest foods to give out while others show recently acquired stocks of cheese sticks, mini cereals, canned soup or even diapers ready for trick-or-treaters.

    Video below: Homemade Halloween treats to be given to children

    Posts are often followed by a string of comments from people announcing similar plans, along with plenty of reminders not to forget the candy.

    Emily Archambault, 29, and her sister-in-law Taylor Martin, 29, in La Porte, Indiana, will be putting out pasta and sauce, peanut butter and jelly, cereal and other foods, along with diapers and wipes on Halloween. They’re also collecting donations from members of their church.

    Their plan is to set everything out on a table away from where they’re giving out candy, so families can take what they need without worrying about judgement.

    “It kind of takes a little bit of pressure off of the parents,” said Martin. “You’re out and about trick or treating and it’s there and your kids probably won’t even notice you’re taking it.”

    Archambault said she relied on the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, known as WIC, after her son’s medical complications forced her to stop working temporarily. Losing that assistance would have meant turning to food pantries. And while she said there are great ones in her area, she expects them to be overrun.

    “We have to band together,” she said. “I am grateful to have received benefits, and I am even more grateful to be able to give back now.”

    Erika Dutka, who depends on SNAP to feed herself and her three children in Archbald, Pennsylvania, went to a “trunk or treat” Sunday with people giving out candy from the trunks of cars. She said she was relieved to get packs of ramen, oatmeal, juice, pretzels and fruit snacks in addition to sweet treats.

    The 36-year-old — who works two jobs and goes to school full-time — said the food means she’ll have plenty of school snacks for her children the rest of the week and can save her last $100 of SNAP funds.

    “It buys me more time,” she said. “Maybe things will change. Maybe it’ll get turned back on.”

    Neufeld, the Denver mom stockpiling shelf-stable items for trick-or-treaters, said she relied on a food bank at her college to get through school. She said most people would never have known she was really struggling. And now, with SNAP drying up, she wants people to remember not to assume anything about others.

    “You truly don’t know what other people are going through,” she said. “So even if they don’t ‘look like they need help,’ it’s still important to just give when you can because it can make a huge difference.”

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  • Commentary: Bodies are stacking up in Trump’s deportation deluge. It’s going to get worse

    Like a teenager armed with their first smartphone, President Trump’s masked immigration enforcers love nothing more than to mug for friendly cameras.

    They gladly invite pseudo-filmmakers — some federal government workers, others conservative influencers or pro-Trump reporters — to embed during raids so they can capture every tamale lady agents slam onto the sidewalk, every protester they pelt with pepper balls, every tear gas canister used to clear away pesky activists. From that mayhem comes slickly produced videos that buttress the Trump administration’s claim that everyone involved in the push to boot illegal immigrants from the U.S. is a hero worthy of cinematic love.

    But not everything that Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Border Patrol and its sister agencies do shows up in their approved rivers of reels.

    Their propagandists aren’t highlighting the story of Jaime Alanís García, a Mexican farmworker who fell 30 feet to his death in Camarillo this summer while trying to escape one of the largest immigration raids in Southern California in decades.

    They’re not making videos about 39-year-old Ismael Ayala-Uribe, an Orange County resident who moved to this country from Mexico as a 4-year-old and died in a Victorville hospital in September after spending weeks in ICE custody complaining about his health.

    They’re not addressing how ICE raids led to the deaths of Josué Castro Rivera and Carlos Roberto Montoya, Central American nationals run over and killed by highway traffic in Virginia and Monrovia while fleeing in terror. Or what happened to Silverio Villegas González, shot dead in his car as he tried to speed away from two ICE agents in suburban Chicago.

    Those men are just some of the 20-plus people who have died in 2025 while caught up in ICE’s machine — the deadliest year for the agency in two decades, per NPR.

    Publicly, the Department of Homeland Security has described those incidents as “tragic” while assigning blame to everything but itself. For instance, a Homeland Security official told the Associated Press that Castro Rivera’s death was “a direct result of every politician, activist and reporter who continue to spread propaganda and misinformation about ICE’s mission and ways to avoid detention” — whatever the hell that means.

    An ICE spokesperson asked for more time to respond to my request for comment, said “Thank you Sir” when I extended my deadline, then never got back to me. Whatever the response would’ve been, Trump’s deportation Leviathan looks like it’s about to get deadlier.

    As reported by my colleagues Andrea Castillo and Rachel Uranga, his administration plans to get rid of more than half of ICE’s field office directors due to grumblings from the White House that the deportations that have swamped large swaths of the United States all year haven’t happened faster and in larger numbers.

    Asked for comment, Tricia McLaughlin, Homeland Security assistant secretary for public affairs, described The Times’ questions as “sensationalism” and added “only the media would describe standard agency personnel changes as a ‘massive shakeup.’”

    Agents are becoming more brazen as more of them get hired thanks to billions of dollars in new funds. In Oakland, one fired a chemical round into the face of a Christian pastor from just feet away. In Santa Ana, another pulled a gun from his waistband and pointed it at activists who had been trailing him from a distance in their car. In the Chicago area, a woman claimed a group of them fired pepper balls at her car even though her two young children were inside.

    La migra knows they can act with impunity because they have the full-throated backing of the White House. Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller crowed on Fox News recently, “To all ICE officers: You have federal immunity in the conduct of your duties.”

    That’s not actually true, but when have facts mattered to this presidency if it gets in the way of its apocalyptic goals?

    Greg Bovino, El Centro Border Patrol sector chief, center, walks with federal agents near an ICE detention facility in Broadview, Ill.

    (Erin Hooley / Associated Press)

    Tasked with turning up the terror dial to 11 is Gregory Bovino, a longtime Border Patrol sector chief based out of El Centro, Calif., who started the year with a raid in Kern County so egregious that a federal judge slammed it as agents “walk[ing] up to people with brown skin and say[ing], ‘Give me your papers.’” A federal judge ordered him to check in with her every day for the foreseeable future after the Border Patrol tear-gassed a neighborhood in a Chicago suburb that was about to host its annual Halloween children’s parade (an appeals court has temporarily blocked the move).

    Bovino now reports directly to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and is expected to pick most of the ICE field office directors from Customs and Border Protection, the arm of the federal government that the Border Patrol belongs to. It logged 180 immigrant deaths under its purview for the 2023 fiscal year, the last year for which stats are publicly available and the third straight year that the number had increased.

    To put someone like Bovino in charge of executing Trump’s deportation plans is like gifting a gas refinery to an arsonist.

    He’s constantly trying to channel the conquering ethos of Wild West, complete with a strutting posse of agents — some with cowboy hats — following him everywhere, white horses trailed by American flags for photo ops and constant shout-outs to “Ma and Pa America” when speaking to the media. When asked by a CBS News reporter recently when his self-titled “Mean Green Machine” would end its Chicago campaign — one that has seen armed troops march through downtown and man boats on the Chicago River like they were patrolling Baghdad — Bovino replied, “When all the illegal aliens [self-deport] and/or we arrest ‘em all.”

    Such scorched-earth jibber-jabber underlines a deportation policy under which the possibility of death for those it pursues is baked into its foundation. ICE plans to hire dozens of healthcare workers — doctors, nurses, psychiatrists — in anticipation of Trump’s plans to build more detention camps, many slated for inhospitable locations like the so-called Alligator Alcatraz camp in the Florida Everglades. That was announced to the world on social media with an AI-generated image of grinning alligators wearing MAGA caps — as if the White House was salivating at the prospect of desperate people trying to escape only to find certain carnage.

    In his CBS News interview, Bovino described the force his team has used in Chicago — where someone was shot and killed, a pastors got hit with pepper balls from high above and the sound of windshields broken by immigration agents looking to snatch someone from their cars is now part of the Windy City’s soundtrack — as “exemplary.” The Border Patrol’s peewee Patton added he felt his guys used “the least amount of force necessary to accomplish the mission. If someone strays into a pepper ball, then that’s on them.”

    One shudders to think what Bovino thinks is excessive for la migra. With his powers now radically expanded, we’re about to find out.

    Gustavo Arellano

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  • ICE officials replaced with Border Patrol, cementing hard tactics that originated in California

    WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is initiating a leadership shakeup at a dozen or so offices of Immigration and Customs Enforcement to bring more aggressive enforcement operations across the U.S.

    Some of the outgoing field office directors at ICE are anticipated to be replaced with leaders from Customs and Border Protection, according to news reports. Among the leaders targeted for replacement are Los Angeles Field Office Director Ernesto Santacruz and San Diego Field Office Director Patrick Divver, the Washington Examiner reported Monday.

    The stepped up role of Border Patrol leaders in interior enforcement — which has historically been ICE territory — marks an evolution of tactics that originated in California.

    In late December, Gregory Bovino, who heads the Border Patrol’s El Centro region, led a three-day raid in rural Kern County, nabbing day laborers more than 300 miles from his typical territory. Former Biden administration officials said Bovino had gone “rogue” and that no agency leaders knew about the operation beforehand.

    Bovino leveraged the spectacle to become the on-the-ground point person for the Trump Administration’s signature issue.

    The three-decade veteran of Border Patrol, who has used slick social media videos to promote the agency’s heavy-handed tactics, brought militarized operations once primarily used at the border into America’s largest cities.

    In Los Angeles this summer, contingents of heavily armed, masked agents began chasing down and arresting day laborers, street vendors and car wash workers. Tensions grew as the administration ordered in the National Guard.

    The efforts seem to have become more aggressive after a Supreme Court order allowed authorities to stop people based on factors such as race or ethnicity, employment and speaking Spanish.

    Bovino moved operations to Chicago and escalated his approach. Immigration agents launched an overnight raid in a crowded apartment, shot gas into crowds of protesters and fatally shot one man.

    Now Bovino is expected to hand-pick some of the replacements at ICE field offices, according to Fox News.

    Tom Wong, who directs the U.S. Immigration Policy Center at UC San Diego, said the leadership changes are unsurprising, given Bovino’s strategies in Los Angeles and Chicago.

    “The Trump administration is blurring the distinction between Border Patrol and ICE,” he said. “The border is no longer just the external boundaries of the United States, but the border is everywhere.”

    Former Homeland Security officials said the large-scale replacement of executives from one agency with those from another agency is unprecedented.

    The two agencies have similar authorities but very different approaches, said Daniel Altman, former head of internal oversight investigations at U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

    ICE officers operate largely inside the country, lean heavily on investigations and typically know when they set out for the day who they are targeting.

    Border Patrol, on the other hand, patrols the borderlands for anyone they encounter and suspect of entering illegally. Amid the rugged terrain and isolation, Border Patrol built a do-it-yourself ethos within the century-old organization, Altman said.

    “Culturally, the Border Patrol prides itself on solving problems, and that means that whatever the current administration needs or wants with respect to immigration enforcement, they’re usually very willing and able to do that,” said Altman.

    White House leadership has not been happy with arrest numbers. Stephen Miller, President Trump’s deputy chief of staff who is heading his immigration initiatives, set a goal of 3,000 immigration arrests per day, which the agency has not been able to meet.

    DHS says it expects to deport 600,000 people by January, a figure that includes people who were turned back at the border or at airports.

    Tricia McLaughlin, assistant public affairs secretary for the Homeland Security department, didn’t confirm or deny the changes but described immigration officials as united.

    “Talk about sensationalism,” she said. “Only the media would describe standard agency personnel changes as a ‘massive shakeup.’ If and when we have specific personnel moves to announce, we’ll do that.”

    White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said, “The President’s entire team is working in lockstep to implement the President’s policy agenda, and the tremendous results from securing the border to deporting criminal illegal aliens speak for themselves.”

    On Fox News on Tuesday, Trump’s border czar Tom Homan said the administration is dedicated to achieving record deportations of primarily immigrants with criminal records.

    “As far as personnel changes, that’s under the purview of the Secretary of Homeland Security,” he said. “I’m at the White House working with people like Stephen Miller, one of the most brilliant people I’ve ever met, to come up with strategic policies and plans — how to get success, how to maintain success, and how to get the numbers ever higher.”

    Deborah Fleischaker, a former ICE and DHS official under the Biden administration, said the personnel moves appear to be an “attempt to migrate a Border Patrol ethos over to ICE.”

    “ICE’s job has historically focused on targeting and enforcing against public safety threats,” she said. “Border Patrol has a much more highly militarized job of securing the border, protecting against transnational crime and drug trafficking and smuggling. That sort of approach doesn’t belong in our cities and is quite dangerous.”

    Fleischaker said it would be difficult to increase deportations, even with Border Patrol leaders at the helm, because of the complexities around securing travel documents and negotiating with countries that are reticent to accept deportees.

    In the meantime, she said, shunting well-liked leaders will sink morale.

    “For the folks who are still there, everybody knows you comply or you risk losing your job,” she said. “Dissent, failure to meet targets or even ask questions aren’t really tolerated.”

    On Tuesday, DHS posted a video montage of Bovino on its Instagram page set to Coldplay’s song “Viva la vida.” The caption read, “WE WILL NOT BE STOPPED.”

    Staff writer Brittny Mejia contributed to this report.

    Andrea Castillo, Rachel Uranga

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  • As concerns loom over sex abuse payouts, L.A. County finalizes $828-million settlement

    L.A. County supervisors have unanimously approved an $828-million settlement for alleged victims of childhood sexual abuse, finalizing the deal while questions mount over the legitimacy of some claims in a separate multibillion-dollar payout that they agreed to this spring.

    The settlement approved Tuesday brings the county’s spending on sex abuse litigation this year to nearly $5 billion, with the bulk of that total coming from a $4-billion deal made in April to resolve thousands of claims filed by people who said they were abused decades ago in county-run juvenile detention centers and foster homes.

    The latest settlement involves similar claims brought by 414 clients of three law firms who opted to negotiate separately from the rest. The $4-billion settlement initially covered roughly 6,800 claims, but has ballooned to more than 11,000.

    The larger settlement has come under scrutiny after The Times found nine people who said they were paid to sue. Four said they were told to fabricate the claims. All had lawsuits filed by Downtown LA Law Group, which represents more than 2,700 clients in the first settlement.

    The firm has denied paying clients to sue and said it has “systems in place to help weed out false or exaggerated allegations.” The firm has asked the court to dismiss three claims on behalf of allegedly fraudulent plaintiffs this month.

    Downtown LA Law Group will be required to detail any claims that came to it through recruiters, the county’s top attorney said Tuesday. The firm has denied any wrongdoing.

    (Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)

    The settlement approved Tuesday involves cases only from Arias Sanguinetti Wang & Team, Manly, Stewart & Finaldi, and Panish Shea Ravipudi and has no cases from DTLA. But the firm nevertheless took center stage Tuesday as the supervisors pressed their top attorney on how the lawsuits were vetted.

    “What were we doing prior to this article?” said Supervisor Kathryn Barger, referencing The Times’ reporting from earlier this month.

    The county was in a tough spot, county counsel Dawyn Harrison explained. Many plaintiff attorneys didn’t want the county interviewing their clients, she said. And a judge had temporarily paused the discovery process, providing the county little insight into the identities of the thousands of people suing.

    Harrison said Tuesday that DTLA cases now will be required to go through a “completely new level of review” beyond the standard vetting that was already underway by retired Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Louis Meisinger. In addition to having a new retired Superior Court judge vet all their cases, DTLA must provide the county with information on plaintiffs acquired through “a recruiter or vendor,” she said.

    “DTLA is required to identify every recruiter it used, a list of each plaintiff brought in per recruiter, information about any funds that changed hands, and a declaration under oath by each recruiter identifying what was done, what was said, and any monies paid,” Harrison said.

    It’s an unusual request.

    California law bans a practice known as capping, in which non-attorneys directly solicit or procure clients to sign up for lawsuits with a law firm.

    DTLA has denied knowledge of any of its clients receiving payments to sue and said the firm wants “justice for real victims” of sexual abuse.

    “If we ever became aware that anyone associated with us, in any capacity, did such a thing, we would end our relationship with them immediately,” the firm said.

    The rush of lawsuits was kicked off by a now-controversial bill known as AB 218, which changed the statute of limitations for victims of sexual abuse and created a new window to sue. The county, which is responsible for the safety of children inside juvenile carceral facilities and foster care, has seen more than 12,000 claims and counting since the law took effect in 2020.

    The allegations of fraud that now hover over these cases was the fault of “an unmanageable law,” not the county’s vetting process, Harrison said.

    “AB 218 erased those guardrails and allowed decades-old claims that no one can meaningfully vet,” she said.

    The county’s lawyers and politicians have become increasingly loud critics of the law, which they say has left them facing a deluge of decades-old claims with no records. Supervisor Hilda Solis said she felt the county had become the “guinea pig” for the bill.

    Joe Nicchitta, the county’s acting chief executive officer, estimated that anywhere between $1 billion to $2 billion in county taxpayer money from the settlements will go to attorneys.

    “The law had some very noble intentions but it has been … and I’m just going to say what I think, hijacked by the plaintiff’s bar,” he said. “They do all of the vetting, they do all of the intake, they advertise extensively. They’re incentivized to bring as many cases as possible.”

    Nicchitta said he’d heard rumors that venture capitalists were poking around Sacramento to find out “whether or not we have enough cash to pay for another settlement, so that they can finance a law firm to bring another round of settlements against us.”

    “It’s clear to me the system is ruptured,” he said.

    Courtney Thom, who was the lead attorney on cases from Manly, Stewart & Finaldi, said she believed the county was blaming the new state law for the failures of its own lawyers.

    “To blame AB 218 and say that’s what enabled the fraud is just a pathetic attempt to deflect responsibility,” Thom said. “Our firm has been saying for two years we’re concerned about fraud.”

    Mike Arias, who represents clients in the latest settlement as a partner with Arias Sanguinetti Wang & Team, said the three firms involved stopped adding clients more than a year ago.

    “That’s a big distinction,” Arias said. “We said, at the time, the number of plaintiffs would not change. Ethically, my view was that’s who we represent and who we’re going to negotiate for.”

    Arias said the allocation for the second settlement will be done by retired Orange County Superior Court Judge Gail Andler, who specializes in overseeing sexual abuse litigation. Potential payouts will range between $750,000 and $3.25 million, he said.

    Victims say the money represents a sliver of justice for the abuse they say they suffered while confined in county custody — little of which has been criminally prosecuted.

    One man, who is part of the settlement and asked not to be identified, said he has no idea what happened to the probation official who he alleges raped him at around 16 while he was asleep in his cell at Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall, knocked out on sleep medication.

    “I had no control in that place,” said the man, now 34. “My body hasn’t ever felt the same since.”

    The county has launched an "AB 218 Fraud hotline"

    The county has launched an “AB 218 fraud hotline” where tipsters can report misconduct related to the flood of sex abuse claims.

    (Rebecca Ellis / Los Angeles Times)

    The county recently launched an “AB 218 fraud hotline” where tipsters can report misconduct related to the flood of claims. The county says it also plans to start a hotline for victims to safely report allegations of sex abuse in its facilities.

    “It is illegal for anyone to file, pay for, or receive payments for making fake claims of childhood sexual abuse,” states a banner now running atop the county website with a hand doling out hundred-dollar bills.

    The county also has launched a website that asks people to report if they were offered cash to sue, which law firms were involved, and whether they were coached, among other questions.

    Supervisor Holly Mitchell, whose district includes the South Central social services office where seven people told The Times they were paid to sue, said she wanted to see the hotlines advertised as aggressively as the plaintiff attorneys advertised for their cases.

    “You couldn’t turn on an urban radio station without hearing a commercial advertising these cases,” Mitchell said. “I certainly hope whatever we use, as we talk about our outreach, that we lean in as hard.”

    Rebecca Ellis

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  • Commentary: A youth movement is roiling Democrats. Does age equal obsolescence?

    Barbara Boxer decided she was done. Entering her 70s, fresh off reelection to the U.S. Senate, she determined her fourth term would be her last.

    “I just felt it was time,” Boxer said. “I wanted to do other things.”

    Besides, she knew the Democratic bench was amply stocked with many bright prospects, including California’s then-attorney general, Kamala Harris, who succeeded Boxer in Washington en route to her selection as Joe Biden’s vice president.

    When Boxer retired in 2017, after serving 24 years in the Senate, she walked away from one of the most powerful and privileged positions in American politics, a job many have clung to until their last, rattling breath.

    (Boxer tried to gently nudge her fellow Democrat and former Senate colleague, Dianne Feinstein, whose mental and physical decline were widely chronicled during her final, difficult years in office. Ignoring calls to step aside, Feinstein died at age 90, hours after voting on a procedural matter on the Senate floor.)

    Now an effort is underway among Democrats, from Hawaii to Massachusetts, to force other senior lawmakers to yield, as Boxer did, to a new and younger generation of leaders. The movement is driven by the usual roiling ambition, along with revulsion at Donald Trump and the existential angst that visits a political party every time it loses a dispiriting election like the one Democrats faced in 2024.

    Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has become the highest profile target.

    Last week, she drew a second significant challenger to her reelection, state Sen. Scott Wiener, who jumped into the contest alongside tech millionaire Saikat Chakrabarti, who’s been campaigning against the incumbent for the better part of a year.

    Pelosi — who is 85 and hasn’t faced a serious election fight in San Francisco since Ronald Reagan was in the White House — is expected to announce sometime after California’s Nov. 4 special election whether she’ll run again in 2026.

    Boxer, who turns 85 next month, offered no counsel to Pelosi, though she pushed back against the notion that age necessarily equates with infirmity, or political obsolescence. She pointed to Ted Kennedy and John McCain, two of the senators she served with, who remained vital and influential in Congress well into their 70s.

    On the other hand, Boxer said, “Some people don’t deserve to be there for five minutes, let alone five years … They’re 50. Does that make it good? No. There are people who are old and out of ideas at 60.”

    There is, Boxer said, “no one-size-fits-all” measure of when a lawmaker has passed his or her expiration date. Better, she suggested, for voters to look at what’s motivating someone to stay in office. Are they driven by purpose — and still capable of doing the job — “or is it a personal ego thing or psychological thing?”

    “My last six years were my most prolific,” said Boxer, who opposes both term limits and a mandatory retirement age for members of Congress. “And if they’d said 65 and out, I wouldn’t have been there.”

    Art Agnos didn’t choose to leave office.

    He was 53 — in the blush of youth, compared to some of today’s Democratic elders — when he lost his reelection bid after a single term as San Francisco mayor.

    “I was in the middle of my prime, which is why I ran for reelection,” he said. “And, frankly,” he added with a laugh, “I still feel like I’m in my prime at 87.”

    A friend and longtime Pelosi ally, Agnos bristled at the ageism he sees aimed at lawmakers of a certain vintage. Why, he asked, is that acceptable in politics when it’s deplored in just about every other field of endeavor?

    “What profession do we say we want bright young people who have never done this before to take over because they’re bright, young and say the right things?” Agnos asked rhetorically. “Would you go and say, ‘Let me find a brain surgeon who’s never done this before, but he’s bright and young and has great promise.’ We don’t do that. Do we?

    “Give me somebody who’s got experience, “ Agnos said, “who’s been through this and knows how to handle a crisis, or a particular issue.”

    Pete Wilson also left office sooner than he would have like, but that’s because term limits pushed him out after eight years as California governor. (Before that, he served eight years in the Senate and 11 as San Diego mayor.)

    “I thought that I had done a good job … and a number of people said, ‘Gee, it’s a pity that you can’t run for a third term,’ ” Wilson said as he headed to New Haven, Conn., for his college reunion, Yale class of ’55. “As a matter of fact, I agreed with them.”

    Still, unlike Boxer, Wilson supports term limits, as a way to infuse fresh blood into the political system and prevent too many over-the-hill incumbents from heedlessly overstaying their time in office.

    Not that he’s blind to the impetus to hang on. The power. The perks. And, perhaps above all, the desire to get things done.

    At age 92, Wilson maintains an active law practice in Century City and didn’t hesitate — “Yes!” he exclaimed — when asked if he considered himself capable of serving today as governor, even as he wends his way through a tenth decade on Earth.

    His wife, Gayle, could be heard chuckling in the background.

    “She’s laughing,” Wilson said dryly, “because she knows she’s not in any danger of my doing so.”

    Mark Z. Barabak

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  • Man fatally shot in Long Beach, suspect flees

    A man was fatally shot in Long Beach early Saturday after getting into a fight with a group of people at a local bar, police said.

    The shooting happened in the 100 block of La Verne Avenue before 1:39 a.m. following an altercation earlier in the evening, according to a news release from the Long Beach Police Department. The man suspected of shooting the victim during the confrontation fled the scene in a vehicle.

    Officers responded to the report of a shooting and provided medical aid until the Long Beach Fire Department arrived, but the victim died at the scene. It’s unknown whether the suspect knew the victim.

    The identity of the victim has not been released because the County of Los Angeles Medical Examiner is notifying the man’s next of kin, police said.

    Anyone with information about the shootingis asked to contact homicide detectives at (562) 570-7244. Anonymous tips can be sent to “LA Crime Stoppers” by calling 800-222-TIPS (8477), downloading the “P3 Tips” app on a smartphone or by visiting www.LACrimeStoppers.org.

    Queenie Wong

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  • Commentary: As Trump blows up supposed narco boats, he uses an old, corrupt playbook on Latin America

    Consumer confidence is dropping. The national debt is $38 trillion and climbing like the yodeling mountain climber in that “The Price is Right” game. Donald Trump’s approval ratings are falling and the U.S. is getting more and more restless as 2025 comes to a close.

    What’s a wannabe strongman to do to prop up his regime?

    Attack Latin America, of course!

    U.S. war planes have bombed small ships in international waters off the coast of Venezuela and Colombia since September with extrajudicial zeal. The Trump administration has claimed those vessels were packed with drugs manned by “narco-terrorists” and have released videos for each of the 10 boats-and-counting it has incinerated to make the actions seem as normal as a mission in “Call of Duty.”

    “Narco-terrorists intending to bring poison to our shores, will find no safe harbor anywhere in our hemisphere,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth posted on social media and who just ordered an aircraft carrier currently stationed in the Mediterranean to set up shop in the Caribbean. It’ll meet up with 10,000 troops stationed there as part of one of the area’s biggest U.S. deployments in decades, all in the name of stopping a drug epidemic that has ravaged red America for the past quarter century.

    This week, Trump authorized covert CIA actions in Venezuela and revealed he wants to launch strikes against land targets where his people say Latin American cartels operate. Who cares whether the host countries will give permission? Who cares about American laws that state only Congress — not the president — can declare war against our enemies?

    It’s Latin America, after all.

    The military buildup, bombing and threat of more in the name of liberty is one of the oldest moves in the American foreign policy playbook. For more than two centuries, the United States has treated Latin America as its personal piñata, bashing it silly for goods and not caring about the ugly aftermath.

    “It is known to all that we derive [our blessings] from the excellence of our institutions,” James Monroe concluded in the 1823 speech that set forth what became known as the Monroe Doctrine, which essentially told the rest of the world to leave the Western Hemisphere to us. “Ought we not, then, to adopt every measure which may be necessary to perpetuate them?”

    Our 19th century wars of expansion, official and not, won us territories where Latin Americans lived — Panamanians, Puerto Ricans, but especially Mexicans — that we ended up treating as little better than serfs. We have occupied nations for years and imposed sanctions on others. We have propped up puppets and despots and taken down democratically elected governments with the regularity of the seasons.

    The culmination of all these actions were the mass migrations from Latin America that forever altered the demographics of the United States. And when those people — like my parents — came here, they were immediately subjected to a racism hard-wired into the American psyche, which then justified a Latin American foreign policy bent on domination, not friendship.

    Nothing rallies this country historically like sticking it to Latinos, whether in their ancestral countries or here. We’re this country’s perpetual scapegoats and eternal invaders, with harming gringos — whether by stealing their jobs, moving into their neighborhoods, marrying their daughters or smuggling drugs — supposedly the only thing on our mind.

    That’s why when Trump ran on an isolationist platform last year, he never meant the region — of course not. The border between the U.S. and Latin America has never been the fence that divides the U.S. from Mexico or our shores. It’s wherever the hell we say it is.

    Colombian President Gustavo Petro Urrego addresses the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly on Sept. 23 at U.N. headquarters.

    (Pamela Smith / Associated Press)

    That’s why the Trump administration is banking on the idea that it can get away with its boat bombings and is salivating to escalate. To them, the 43 people American missile strikes have slaughtered on the open sea so far aren’t humans — and anyone who might have an iota of sympathy or doubt deserves aggression as well.

    That’s why when Colombian President Gustavo Petro accused the U.S. of murder because one of the strikes killed a Colombian fisherman with no ties to cartels, Trump went on social media to lambaste Petro’s “fresh mouth,” accuse him of being a “drug leader” and warn the head of a longtime American ally he “better close up these killing fields [cartel bases] immediately, or the United States will close them up for him, and it won’t be done nicely.”

    The only person who can turn down the proverbial temperature on this issue is Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who should know all the bad that American imperialism has wrought on Latin America. The U.S. treated his parents’ homeland of Cuba like a playground for decades, propping up one dictator after another until Cubans revolted and Fidel Castro took power. A decades-long embargo that Trump tightened upon assuming office the second time has done nothing to free the Cuban people and instead made things worse.

    Instead, Rubio is the instigator. He’s pushing for regime change in Venezuela, chumming it up with self-proclaimed “world’s coolest dictator” Nayib Bukele of El Salvador and cheering on Trump’s missile attacks.

    “Bottom line, these are drug boats,” Rubio told reporters recently with Trump by his side. “If people want to stop seeing drug boats blow up, stop sending drugs to the United States.”

    You might ask: Who cares? Cartels are bad, drugs are bad, aren’t they? Of course. But every American should oppose every time a suspected drug boat launching from Latin America is destroyed with no questions asked and no proof offered. Because every time Trump violates yet another law or norm in the name of defending the U.S. and no one stops him, democracy erodes just a little bit more.

    This is a president, after all, who seems to dream of treating his enemies, including American cities, like drug boats.

    Few will care, alas. It’s Latin America, after all.

    Gustavo Arellano

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  • U.S. sanctions Colombia’s president, deploys aircraft carrier in new escalation in Latin America

    MEXICO CITY — The United States slapped sanctions on Colombian President Gustavo Petro on Friday and said it was sending a massive aircraft carrier to the waters off South America, a new escalation of what the White House has described as a war against drug traffickers in the region. Also Friday, the U.S. military conducted its 10th strike on a suspected drug-running boat, killing six people in the Caribbean Sea.

    The Treasury Department said it was sanctioning Petro, his wife, his son and a political associate for failing to stop the flow of cocaine to the United States, noting that cocaine production in Colombia has risen in recent years. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent accused Petro of “poisoning Americans.”

    Petro denied those claims in a statement on X, saying he has fought to combat drug trafficking for decades. He said it was “quite a paradox” to be sanctioned by a country with high rates of cocaine consumption.

    The sanctions put Petro in the same category as the leaders of Russia and North Korea and limit his ability to travel to the United States. They mark a new low for relations between Colombia and the United States, which until recently were strong allies, sharing military intelligence, a robust trade relationship and a multibillion-dollar fight against drug trafficking.

    Elizabeth Dickinson, a senior analyst for the Andes region at the International Crisis Group, a think tank, said that while Petro and the U.S. government have had disagreements over how to tackle trafficking — with the Americans more interested in eradicating coca fields and Colombians focused on cocaine seizures — the two countries have been working for decades toward the same goal.

    “To suggest that Colombia is not trying is false and disingenuous,” Dickinson said. “If the U.S. has a partner in counternarcotics in Latin America, it’s Colombia. Colombian forces have been working hand in hand with the Americans for literally four decades. They are the best, most capable and frankly most willing partner the U.S. has in the region.

    “If the U.S. were to cut this relationship, it would really be the U.S. shooting themselves in the foot.”

    Many viewed the sanctions as punishment for Petro’s criticism of Trump. In recent days, Petro has accused the U.S. of murder, saying American strikes on alleged drug boats lack legal justification and have killed civilians. He has also accused the U.S. of building up its military in South America in an attempt to topple Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

    The quickened pace of U.S. airstrikes in the region and the unusually large buildup of military force in the Caribbean Sea have fueled those speculations.

    On Friday, a Pentagon official said the U.S. ordered the USS Gerald R. Ford and its strike group to deploy to U.S. Southern Command to “bolster U.S. capacity to detect, monitor, and disrupt illicit actors and activities that compromise the safety and prosperity of the United States.”

    The USS Ford is currently deployed to the Mediterranean Sea along with three destroyers. It would probably take several days for the ships to make the journey to South America.

    The White House has increasingly drawn a direct comparison between the war on terrorism that the U.S. declared after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and the Trump administration’s crackdown on drug traffickers.

    Trump this month declared drug cartels to be unlawful combatants and said the U.S. was in an “armed conflict” with them, relying on the same legal authority used by the Bush administration after 9/11.

    When reporters asked Trump on Thursday whether he would request that Congress issue a declaration of war against the cartels, he said that wasn’t the plan.

    “I think we’re just going to kill people that are bringing drugs into our country, OK? We’re going to kill them, you know? They’re going to be like, dead,” Trump said during a roundtable at the White House with Homeland Security officials.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report.

    Kate Linthicum

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  • Column: Trump is in his Louis XIV era, and it’s not a good look

    To say that President Trump is unfazed by Saturday’s nationwide “No Kings” rally, which vies for bragging rights as perhaps the largest single-day protest in U.S. history, is the sort of understatement too typical when describing his monarchical outrages.

    Leave aside Trump’s grotesque mockery of the protests — his post that night of an AI-generated video depicting himself as a becrowned pilot in a fighter jet, dropping poop bombs on citizens protesting peacefully below. Consider instead two other post-rally actions: On Sunday and Wednesday, “Secretary of War” Pete Hegseth announced first that on Trump’s orders the military had struck a seventh boat off Venezuela and then an eighth vessel in the Pacific, bringing the number of people killed over two months to 34. The administration has provided no evidence to Congress or the American public for Trump’s claims that the unidentified dead were “narco-terrorists,” nor any credible legal rationale for the strikes. Then, on Monday, Trump began demolishing the White House’s East Wing to create the gilded ballroom of his dreams, which, at 90,000 square feet, would be nearly twice the size of the White House residence itself.

    As sickening as the sight was — heavy equipment ripping away at the historic property as high-powered hoses doused the dusty debris — Trump’s $250-million vanity project is small stuff compared to a policy of killing noncombatant civilian citizens of nations with which we are not at war (Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador). Yet together the actions reflect the spectrum of consequences of Trump’s utter sense of impunity as president, from the relatively symbolic to the murderous.

    “In America the law is king,” Thomas Paine wrote in 1776. Not in Trump’s America.

    Among the commentariat, the president’s desecration of the East Wing is getting at least as much criticism as his extralegal killings at sea. Many critics see in the bulldozing of the People’s House a metaphor for Trump’s destructive governance generally — his other teardowns of federal agencies, life-saving foreign aid, healthcare benefits and more. The metaphor is indeed apt.

    But what’s more striking is the sheer sense of impunity that Trump telegraphs, constantly, with the “je suis l’état” flare of a Louis XIV — complete (soon) with Trump’s Versailles. (Separately, Trump’s mimicry of French emperors now includes plans for a sort of Arc de Triomphe near Arlington Cemetery. A reporter asked who it would be for. “Me,” Trump said. Arc de Trump.)

    No law, domestic or international, constrains him, as far as the convicted felon is concerned. Neither does Congress, where Republicans bend the knee. Nor the Supreme Court, with its 6-3 right-wing majority, including three justices Trump chose in his first term.

    The court’s ruling last year in Trump vs. United States gives Trump virtual immunity from criminal prosecution, but U.S. servicemembers don’t have that protection when it comes to the deadly Caribbean Sea attacks or any other orders from the commander in chief that might one day be judged to have been illegal.

    The operation’s commander, Navy Adm. Alvin Holsey, reportedly expressed concerns about the strikes within the administration. Last week he announced his retirement after less than a year as head of the U.S. Southern Command. It could be a coincidence. But I’m hardly alone in counting Holsey as the latest casualty in Trump and Hegseth’s purge of perceived nonloyalists at the Pentagon.

    “When the president decides someone has to die, the military becomes his personal hit squad,” military analyst and former Republican Tom Nichols said Monday on MSNBC. Just like with kings and other autocrats: Off with their heads.

    Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, a rare maverick Republican, noted on Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that in years past, the Coast Guard would board foreign boats suspected of ferrying drugs and, if contraband were found, take it and suspected traffickers into custody, often gleaning information about higher-ups to make a real dent in the drug trade. But, Paul added, about one in four boats typically had no drugs. No matter nowadays — everyone’s a target for deadly force. “So,” Paul said, “all of these people have been blown up without us knowing their name, without any evidence of a crime.” (Paul was the only Republican senator not invited to lunch with Trump on Monday in the paved-over Rose Garden.)

    On Monday, Ecuador said no evidence connects a citizen who survived a recent U.S. strike to any crime. Colombian President Gustavo Petro accused the United States of murdering a fisherman in a September strike, provoking Trump to call Petro a “drug leader” and unilaterally yank U.S. foreign aid. A Venezuelan told the Washington Post that the 11 people killed in the first known U.S. strike were fishermen; national security officials told Congress the individuals were headed back to shore when hit. Meanwhile, the three countries and U.S. news reports contradict Trump’s claims that he’s destroying and seizing fentanyl — a drug that typically comes from Mexico and then is smuggled by land, usually by U.S. citizens.

    Again, no matter to America’s king, who said last week that he’s eyeing land incursions in Venezuela now “because we’ve got the sea very well under control.” Trump’s courtiers say he doesn’t need Congress’ authorization for any use of force. The Constitution suggests otherwise.

    Alas, neither it nor the law limits Trump’s White House makeover. He doesn’t have to submit to Congress because he’s tapping rich individuals and corporations for the cost. Past presidents, mindful that the house is a public treasure, not their palace, voluntarily sought input from various federal and nonprofit groups. After reports about the demolition, which put the lie to Trump’s promise in July that the ballroom “won’t interfere with the current building,” the American Institute of Architects urged its members to ask Congress to “investigate destruction of the White House.”

    Disparate as they are, Trump’s ballroom project and his Caribbean killings were joined last week. At a White House dinner for ballroom donors, Trump joked about the sea strikes: “Nobody wants to go fishing anymore.” The pay-to-play titans laughed. Shame on them.

    Trump acts with impunity because he can; he’s a lame duck. But other Republicans must face the voters. Keep the “No Kings” protests coming — right through the elections this November and next.

    Bluesky: @jackiecalmes
    Threads: @jkcalmes
    X: @jackiekcalmes

    Jackie Calmes

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  • Commentary: She was highly qualified to be California governor. Why did her campaign fizzle?

    Among the small army of prospects who’ve eyed the California governorship, none seemed more qualified than Toni Atkins.

    After serving on the San Diego City Council, she moved on to Sacramento, where Atkins led both the Assembly and state Senate, one of just three people in history — and the first in 147 years — to head both houses of California’s Legislature.

    She negotiated eight state budgets with two governors and, among other achievements, passed major legislation on abortion rights, help for low-income families and a $7.5-billion water bond.

    You can disagree with her politics but, clearly, Atkins is someone who knows her way around the Capitol.

    She married that expertise with the kind of hardscrabble, up-by-her-bootstraps backstory that a calculating political consultant might have spun from whole cloth, had it not been so.

    Atkins grew up in rural Appalachia in a rented home with an outdoor privy. Her first pair of glasses was a gift from the local Lions Club. She didn’t visit a dentist until she was 24. Her family was too poor.

    Yet for all of that, Atkins’ gubernatorial campaign didn’t last even to 2026, when voters will elect a successor to the termed-out Gavin Newsom. She quit the race in September, more than eight months before the primary.

    She has no regrets.

    “It was a hard decision,” the Democrat said. “But I’m a pragmatic person.”

    She couldn’t and wouldn’t keep asking “supporters and people to contribute more and more if the outcome was not going to be what we hoped,” Atkins said. “I needed sort of a moonshot to do it, and I didn’t see that.”

    She spoke recently via Zoom from the den of her home in San Diego, where Atkins had just returned after spending several weeks back in Virginia, tending to a dying friend and mentor, one of her former college professors.

    “I was a first-generation college kid … a hillbilly,” Atkins said. She felt as though she had no place in the world “and this professor, Steve Fisher, basically helped turn me around and not be a victim. Learn to organize. Learn to work with people on common goals. … He was one of the first people that really helped me to understand how to be part of something bigger than myself.”

    Over the 22 months of her campaign — between the launch in January 2024 and its abandonment on Sept. 29 — Atkins traveled California from tip to toe, holding countless meetings and talking to innumerable voters. “It’s one thing to be the speaker or the [Senate leader],” she said. “People treat you differently when you’re a candidate. You’re appealing to them to support you, and it’s a different conversation.”

    What she heard was a lot of practicality.

    People lamenting the exorbitant cost of housing, energy and child care. Rural Californians worried about their dwindling access to healthcare. Parents and teachers concerned about wanton immigration raids and their effect on kids. “It wasn’t presented as a political thing,” Atkins said. “It was just fear for [their] neighbors.”

    She heard plenty from business owners and, especially, put-upon residents of red California, who griped about Sacramento and its seeming disconnection from their lives and livelihoods. “I heard in Tehama County … folks saying, ‘Look, we care about the environment, but we can’t have electric school buses here. We don’t have any infrastructure.’ ”

    Voters seemed to be of two — somewhat contradictory — minds about what they want in their next governor.

    First off, “Someone that’s going to be focused on California, California problems and California issues,” Atkins said. “They want a governor that’s not going to be performative, but really focused on the issues that California needs help on.”

    At the same, they see the damage that President Trump and his punitive policies have done to the state in a very short time, so “they also want to see a fighter.”

    The challenge, Atkins suggested, is “convincing people … you’re absolutely going to fight for California values and, at the same, that you’re going to be focused on fixing the roads.”

    Maybe California needs to elect a contortionist.

    Given her considerable know-how and compelling background, why did Atkins’ campaign fizzle?

    Here’s a clue: The word starts with “m” and ends with “y” and speaks to something pernicious about our political system.

    “I hoped my experience and my collaborative nature and my ability to work across party lines when I needed to … would gain traction,” Atkins said. “But I just didn’t have the name recognition.”

    Or, more pertinently, the huge pile of cash needed to build that name recognition and get elected to statewide office in California.

    While Atkins wasn’t a bad fundraiser, she simply couldn’t raise the many tens of millions of dollars needed to run a viable gubernatorial race.

    That could be seen as a referendum of sorts. If enough people wanted Atkins to be governor, she theoretically would have collected more cash. But who doubts that money has an unholy influence on our elections?

    (Other than Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell, who spent much of his career fighting campaign finance reform, and members of the Supreme Court who green-lit today’s unlimited geyser of campaign spending.)

    At age 63, Atkins is not certain what comes next.

    “I’ve lost parents, but it’s been decades,” she said. “And to lose Steve” — her beloved ex-college professor — “I think I’m going to take the rest of the year to reflect. I’m definitely going to stay engaged … but I’m going to focus on family” at least until January.

    Atkins remains optimistic about her adopted home state, notwithstanding her unsuccessful run for governor and the earful of criticisms she heard along the way,

    “California is the place where people dream,” she said. “We still have the ability to do big things … We’re the fourth-largest economy. We’re a nation-state. We need to remember that.”

    Without losing sight of the basics.

    Mark Z. Barabak

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  • Newsom warns Californians’ SNAP benefits could be delayed because of federal shutdown

    Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a stark warning Monday that food assistance benefits for millions of low-income Californians could be delayed starting Nov. 1 if the ongoing federal shutdown does not end by Thursday.

    The benefits, issued under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, and formerly called food stamps, include federally funded benefits loaded onto CalFresh cards. They support some 5.5 million Californians.

    Newsom blamed the potential SNAP disruption — and the shutdown more broadly — on President Trump and slammed the timing of the potential cutoff just as the Thanksgiving holiday approaches.

    “Trump’s failure to open the federal government is now endangering people’s lives and making basic needs like food more expensive — just as the holidays arrive,” Newsom said. “It is long past time for Republicans in Congress to grow a spine, stand up to Trump, and deliver for the American people.”

    The White House responded by blaming the shutdown on Democrats, as it has done before.

    Abigail Jackson, a White House spokeswoman, said the “Democrats’ decision to shut down the government is hurting Americans across the country,” and that Democrats “can choose to reopen the government at any point” by voting for a continuing resolution to fund the government as budget negotiations continue, which she said they repeatedly did during the Biden administration.

    “Newscum should urge his Democrat pals to stop hurting the American people,” Jackson said, using a favorite Trump insult for Newsom. “The Trump Administration is working day and night to mitigate the pain Democrats are causing, and even that is upsetting the Left, with many Democrats criticizing the President’s effort to pay the troops and fund food assistance for women and children.”

    Congressional Republicans also have blamed the shutdown and resulting interruptions to federal programs on Democrats, who are refusing to vote for a Republican-backed funding measure based in large part on Republican decisions to eliminate subsidies for healthcare plans relied on by millions of Americans.

    Newsom’s warning about SNAP benefits followed similar alerts from other states on both sides of the political aisle, after the U.S. Department of Agriculture warned state agencies in an Oct. 10 letter that the shutdown may interrupt funding for the benefits.

    States have to take action to issue November benefits before the month ends, so the shutdown would have to end sooner than Nov. 1 for the benefits to be available in time.

    Newsom’s office said Californians could see their benefits interrupted or delayed if the shutdown is not ended by Thursday. The Texas Health and Human Services Department warned that SNAP benefits for November “won’t be issued if the federal government shutdown continues past Oct. 27.”

    Newsom’s office said a cutoff of funds would affect federally funded CalFresh benefits, but also some other state-funded benefits. More than 63% of SNAP recipients in California are children or elderly people, Newsom’s office said.

    In her own statement, First Partner of California Jennifer Siebel Newsom said, “Government should be measured by how we protect people’s lives, their health, and their well-being. Parents and caregivers should not be forced to choose between buying groceries or paying bills.”

    States were already gearing up for other changes to SNAP eligibility based on the Republican-passed “Big Beautiful Bill,” which set new limits on SNAP benefits, including for nonworking adults. Republicans have argued that such restrictions will encourage more able-bodied adults to get back into the workforce to support their families themselves.

    Many Democrats and advocacy organizations that work to protect low-income families and children have argued that restricting SNAP benefits has a disproportionately large effect on some of the most vulnerable people in the country, including poor children.

    According to the USDA, about 41.7 million Americans were served by SNAP benefits per month in fiscal 2024, at an annual cost of nearly $100 billion. The USDA has some contingency funding it can utilize to continue benefits in the short term, but does not have enough to cover all monthly benefits, advocates said.

    Andrew Cheyne, managing director of public policy at the advocacy group End Child Poverty California, urged the USDA to utilize its contingency funding and any other funding stream possible to prevent a disruption to SNAP benefits, which he said would be “disastrous.”

    “CalFresh is a lifeline for 5.5 million Californians who rely on the program to eat. That includes 2 million children. It is unconscionable that we are only days away from children and families not knowing where their next meal is going to come from,” Cheyne said.

    He said the science is clear that “even a brief period of food insecurity has long-term consequences for children’s growth and development.”

    Ted Lempert, president of Children Now, said a disruption would be “horrific.”

    “We speak out for the needs of kids and families, and kids need food — basic support to live and function and go to school,” he said. “So this could be really devastating.”

    Times staff writer Jenny Gold contributed to this report.

    Kevin Rector

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  • Mohegan Parts Ways with CEO Ray Pineault

    Mohegan said that its president and chief executive officer, Ray Pineault, is set to step down after over two decades with the company. According to the official announcement, Pineault took this decision in order to spend more time with his family

    Pineault to Step Down on December 28

    In its announcement, Mohegan clarified that Pineault will step down on December 28, 2025, effectively ending 25 years of service to the Mohegan Tribe. He was appointed as CEO in 2021 when he had the important task of helping Mohegan recover from the devastating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Pineault originally joined Mohegan in 2001, first serving as senior attorney for the tribal government. He has since occupied a variety of noteworthy positions, such as president and general manager of the Mohegan Sun property and chief operating officer of Mohegan.

    Unfortunately, Pineault’s departure comes at a difficult time for the tribal gaming company, which was recently beset by trouble due to its difficulties in South Korea and Bain Capital’s takeover of the ambitious Mohegan INSPIRE resort.

    Pineault Is Confident in Mohegan’s Momentum

    Pineault released a statement on his departure and expressed confidence in Mohegan’s position, despite the setbacks. With that in mind, Pineault said that he believed that this was the perfect time to step down. He said that he was honored by the opportunity to serve the tribe for such a long period of time, but added that he was looking forward to focusing more on his family.

    I am proud of the work we have been able to accomplish, including the successful refinancing earlier this year, and want to thank the Tribal Council and the Mohegan Tribe, who have entrusted me with this responsibility. Your trust is not something that has ever been taken lightly or for granted, as I know the direct impact our business successes have for Mohegans of today and future generations.

    Ray Pineault, outgoing CEO, Mohegan.

    Pineault extended a “thank you” to everyone who has supported him over the years, including his colleagues and the thousands of Mohegan team members across the US and Canada.

    Mohegan’s tribal council chair, James Gessner Jr., thanked Pineault for his incredible contributions over the last 25 years. He acknowledged the outgoing CEO’s extremely hard work ans sacrifices made for the betterment of the tribe.

    On behalf of the Board and our Tribe, we thank you for all you have done to protect every Mohegan for 13 generations to come. We wish happiness and blessings in the next part of your journey.

    James Gessner Jr., tribal council chair, Mohegan

    Mohegan added that it is currently taking “appropriate steps” to facilitate a smooth transition of responsibilities.

    Fiona Simmons

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  • CHP patrol car hit by shrapnel during Marines event attended by JD Vance near Camp Pendleton

    LOS ANGELES – California Highway Patrol says one of its cars got hit by flying shrapnel during a Marines celebration event attended by Vice President JD Vance.

    What we know:

    CHP said in its report that an artillery round from Camp Pendleton prematurely detonated midflight over I-5 Freeway – ending with the metal shrapnel hitting the patrol cruiser on Saturday, October 18.

    The incident left the patrol cruiser damaged, CHP said. CHP officers were at the celebration event to help coordinate traffic along I-5 near Camp Pendleton when the shrapnel incident happened.

    The incident happened in the area where CHP officers were supporting a traffic break along I-5 near Camp Pendleton during an exceptional U.S. Marine Corps live-fire training demonstration over the freeway, and where the CHP had elected to stop traffic during the live-fire exercise.

    In a note published by CHP, the department said it recommends an after-action review on “communications and coordination with federal and local government agencies.”

    No one was hurt in the incident.

    What they’re saying:

    In a statement, CHP Border Division Chief Tony Coronado called the incident an “unusual and concerning situation.”

    “It is highly uncommon for any live-fire or explosive training activity to occur over an active freeway. As a Marine myself, I have tremendous respect for our military partners, but my foremost responsibility is ensuring the safety of the people of California and the officers who protect them,” Coronado said in a statement.

    The Source: This report used information provided by the California Highway Patrol.

    CaliforniaJD VanceMilitaryNews

    KJ.Hiramoto@fox.com (KJ Hiramoto)

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  • Thirteen arrested in West Hollywood operation that raised concerns about ICE

    Thirteen people were arrested late Friday night during an operation in West Hollywood’s Rainbow District, but the presence of unmarked vehicles and recent immigration raids in the area sparked concerns of a possible ICE raid.

    On Sunday, Los Angeles County Sheriff officials confirmed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents did not take part in the arrests.

    Multiple social media posts late Friday night warned of ICE agents in the Rainbow District, particularly at the renowned gay bar The Abbey.

    Posts on Instagram, TikTok and X warned people about ICE in the area. One video circulating online showed people cursing at law enforcement officers inside an unmarked white van, hitting the vehicle as it drove away. A sheriff’s patrol car could be seen following behind the van.

    One person posted a video that showed security guards inside The Abbey closing its doors and windows as uniformed deputies walked the street outside. A separate post showed another bar that displayed on a screen, “ICE is at The Abbey!”

    On Sunday, officials confirmed it was not federal agents conducting immigration enforcement but local law enforcement officers.

    Officials said the Friday night operation by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department was in response to multiple reports of pickpocketing, drug sales and other criminal activity in the area.

    Sheriff officials did not immediately respond to questions on what charges were related to the arrests.

    The activity, said Deputy Alejandra Parra, may have been occurring at some of the establishments in the area or by unpermitted street vendors.

    Salvador Hernandez

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  • Commentary: This Las Vegas Republican had high hopes for Trump. But a ‘Trump slump’ made life worse

    LAS VEGAS — Aaron Mahan is a lifelong Republican who twice voted for Donald Trump.

    He had high hopes putting a businessman in the White House and, although he found the president’s monster ego grating, Mahan voted for his reelection. Mostly, he said, out of party loyalty.

    By 2024, however, he’d had enough.

    “I just saw more of the bad qualities, more of the ego,” said Mahan, who’s worked for decades as a food server on and off the Las Vegas Strip. “And I felt like he was at least partially running to stay out of jail.”

    Mahan couldn’t bring himself to support Kamala Harris. He’s never backed a Democrat for president. So when illness overtook him on election day, it was a good excuse to stay in bed and not vote.

    He’s no Trump hater, Mahan said. “I don’t think he’s evil.” Rather, the 52-year-old calls himself “a Trump realist,” seeing the good and the bad.

    Here’s Mahan’s reality: A big drop in pay. Depletion of his emergency savings. Stress every time he pulls into a gas station or visits the supermarket.

    Mahan used to blithely toss things in his grocery cart. “Now,” he said, “you have to look at prices, because everything is more expensive.”

    In short, he’s living through the worst combination of inflation and economic malaise he’s experienced since he began waiting tables after finishing high school.

    Views of the 47th president, from the ground up

    Las Vegas lives on tourism, the industry irrigated by rivers of disposable income. The decline of both has resulted in a painful downturn that hurts all the more after the pent-up demand and go-go years following the crippling COVID-19 shutdown.

    Over the last 12 months, the number of visitors has dropped significantly and those who do come to Las Vegas are spending less. Passenger arrivals at Harry Reid International Airport, a short hop from the Strip, have declined and room nights, a measure of hotel occupancy, have also fallen.

    Mahan, who works at the Virgin resort casino just off the Strip, blames the slowdown in large part on Trump’s failure to tame inflation, his tariffs and pugnacious immigration and foreign policies that have antagonized people — and prospective visitors — around the world.

    “His general attitude is, ‘I’m going to do what I’m going to do, and you’re going to like it or leave it.’ And they’re leaving it,” Mahan said. “The Canadians aren’t coming. The Mexicans aren’t coming. The Europeans aren’t coming in the way they did. But also the people from Southern California aren’t coming the way they did either.”

    Mahan has a way of describing the buckling blow to Las Vegas’ economy. He calls it “the Trump slump.”

    ::

    Mahan was an Air Force brat who lived throughout the United States and, for a time, in England before his father retired from the military and started looking for a place to settle.

    Mahan’s mother grew up in Sacramento and liked the mountains that ring Las Vegas. They reminded her of the Sierra Nevada. Mahan’s father had worked intermittently as a bartender. It was a skill of great utility in Nevada’s expansive hospitality industry.

    So the desert metropolis it was.

    Mahan was 15 when his family landed. After high school, he attended college for a time and started working in the coffee shop at the Barbary Coast hotel and casino. He then moved on to the upscale Gourmet Room. The money was good; Mahan had found his career.

    From there he moved to Circus Circus and then, in 2005, the Hard Rock hotel and casino, where he’s been ever since. (In 2018, Virgin Hotels purchased the Hard Rock.)

    Mahan, who’s single with no kids, learned to roll with the vicissitudes of the hospitality business. “As a food server, there’s always going to be slowdowns and takeoffs,” he said over lunch at a dim sum restaurant in a Las Vegas strip mall.

    Mahan socked money away during the summer months and hunkered down in the slow times, before things started picking up around the New Year. He weathered the Great Recession, from 2007 to 2009, when Nevada led the nation in foreclosures, bankruptcies soared and tumbleweeds blew through Las Vegas’ many overbuilt, financially underwater subdivisions.

    This economy feels worse.

    Vehicle traffic is seen along the Las Vegas Strip.

    Over the last 12 months, Las Vegas has drawn fewer visitors and those who have come are spending less.

    (David Becker / For The Times)

    With tourism off, the hotel where Mahan works changed from a full-service coffee shop to a limited-hour buffet. So he’s no longer waiting tables. Instead, he mans a to-go window, making drinks and handing food to guests, which brings him a lot less in tips. He estimates his income has fallen $2,000 a month.

    But it’s not just that his paychecks have grown considerably skinnier. They don’t go nearly as far.

    Gasoline. Eggs. Meat. “Everything,” Mahan said, “is costing more.”

    An admitted soda addict, he used to guzzle Dr Pepper. “You’d get three bottles for four bucks,” Mahan said. “Now they’re $3 each.”

    He’s cut back as a result.

    Worse, his air conditioner broke last month and the $14,000 that Mahan spent replacing it — along with a costly filter he needs for allergies — pretty much wiped out his emergency fund.

    It feels as though Mahan is just barely getting by and he’s not at all optimistic things will improve anytime soon.

    “I’m looking forward,” he said, to the day Trump leaves office.

    ::

    Mahan considers himself fairly apolitical. He’d rather knock a tennis ball around than debate the latest goings-on in Washington.

    He likes some of the things Trump has accomplished, such as securing the border with Mexico — though Mahan is not a fan of the zealous immigration raids scooping up landscapers and tamale vendors.

    He’s glad about the no-tax-on-tips provision in the massive legislative package passed last spring, though, “I’m still being taxed at the same rate and there’s no extra money coming in right now.” He’s waiting to see what happens when he files his tax return next year.

    He’s not counting on much. “I’m never convinced of anything,” Mahan said. “Until I see it.”

    Something else is poking around the back of his mind.

    Mahan is a shop steward with the Culinary Union, the powerhouse labor organization that’s helped make Las Vegas one of the few places in the country where a waiter, such as Mahan, can earn enough to buy a home in an upscale suburb like nearby Henderson. (He points out that he made the purchase in 2012 and probably couldn’t afford it in today’s economy.)

    Mahan worries that once Trump is done targeting immigrants, federal workers and Democratic-run cities, he’ll come after organized labor, undermining one of the foundational building blocks that helped him climb into the middle class.

    “He is a businessman and most businesspeople don’t like dealing with unions,” Mahan said.

    There are a few bright spots in Las Vegas’ economic picture. Convention bookings are up slightly for the year, and look to be strengthening. Gaming revenues have increased year-over-year. The workforce is still growing.

    “This community’s streets are not littered with people that have been laid off,” said Jeremy Aguero, a principal analyst with Applied Analysis, a firm that provides economic and fiscal policy counsel in Las Vegas.

    “The layoff trends, unemployment insurance, they’ve edged up,” Aguero said. “But they’re certainly not wildly elevated in comparison to other periods of instability.”

    That, however, offers small solace for Mahan as he makes drinks, hands over takeout food and carefully watches his wallet.

    If he knew then what he knows now, what would the Aaron of 2016 — the one so full of hope for a Trump presidency — say to the Aaron of today?

    Mahan paused, his chopsticks hovering over a custard dumpling.

    “Prepare,” he said, “for a bumpy ride.”

    Mark Z. Barabak

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