Reaction to Biden’s remarks on Ukraine and COVID-19 ‘test to treat’ plan

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Strong support for Ukraine in the State of the Union address.
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When the history of this air is written , Putin's war in Ukraine will have left Russia weaker than the rest of the world stronger.
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I'm Maureen Cavanaugh with Jade Heinemann.
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This is KPBS midday edition.
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A new COVID test to treat initiative is announced by the Biden administration.
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This is great.
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It will be for high risk people.
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Obviously , we'd also like it to be available right at home , were delivered to the person's home without having to go to the pharmacy.
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The county funds dollars to help new black mothers and no Padres home opener this month as the major league contract dispute continues.
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That's ahead on midday edition.
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Ukrainians in San Diego watched with the rest of the nation as President Joe Biden delivered a rousing State of the Union address last night and the invasion of Ukraine was the first topic on his agenda.
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He said Russian President Vladimir Putin was to blame for war and said Putin had left his country more isolated than ever.
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When the history of this air is written , Putin's war in Ukraine will have left Russia weaker and the rest of the world stronger.
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Many of the president's comments on Ukraine were met with rare , bipartisan applause.
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Biden framed the conflict as a battle between democracy and tyranny and said the U.S. and Western Europe are united in facing the threat.
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Putin's latest attack on Ukraine was premeditated and totally unprovoked.
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He rejected repeated repeated efforts at diplomacy.
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He thought the West tornado wouldn't respond.
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He thought he could divide us at home in this chamber , in this nation.
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He thought he could divide us in Europe as well.
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But Putin was wrong.
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KPBS reporter Kitty Alvarado spoke with several San Diegans who watched the speech , including political experts and politicians , and she joins us now.
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Kitty , welcome.
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Thank you so much , Maureen.
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People who are native to Ukraine or have relatives there were especially interested in what President Biden would say about the Russian invasion.
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What kind of reaction did you hear considering this time has been unbelievably stressful for people with loved ones in Ukraine ? I did speak with Nadia.
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He was she has family and friends there.
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Some very close , some in Kiev and some a little bit further to the West.
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But she says that it's been so stressful and watching the speech was both hopeful , but also that some of the things that were said should have been said a long time ago.
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Ukraine is fighting this war for all of Europe.
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It's not fair.
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All of Ukraine is grateful for all the military support , but I think it's it's going to need some more personnel.
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Did Nadia say she'd been in touch with her relatives in Ukraine ? She did.
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She has been in touch.
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I mean , they have been working around the clock to stay in touch and to find out what her family needs.
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But all of them are staying put.
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They don't want to leave , including their 80 year old cousin , who is a professor at a university there in Kiev.
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And she said , I'm not leaving.
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She was recently hospitalized.
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She's set to be released on on Friday , but she doesn't know how she's going to get to her sister's home in leave.
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So it's very stressful for them just trying to figure out and just not knowing if their loved ones are going to be safe.
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Now , the president announced last night that the Russian economy has already declined by 40 percent because of sanctions , and the U.S. Department of Justice is going after what he says are ill gotten gains.
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The yachts , the luxury apartments , the private jets of Russian oligarchs.
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What does not do you think about the tough sanctions that have already been introduced ? She says she's really happy this is happening , but she just feels this group , these this group of oligarchs have gotten away with so much for so long , and she just feels that all of this tough action should have been taken a whole lot sooner because maybe all of this could have been prevented.
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And she says she feels that Americans should not buy one more drop of Russian oil.
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She feels that should have been added , as well as the airspace above Ukraine should be shut down.
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And she just really feel so strongly that the Naito allies should send troops.
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She says Ukraine has been left to fight the the world's bully all by themselves.
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What about the message that President Biden sent ? Do experts say he hit the right note on Ukraine ? Well , the professor I spoke with , the professor Korean horror , who specializes in White House communications , said the president had the perfect balance of toughness , resolve and compassion for the people of Ukraine and for Americans here at home , she said.
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The State of the Union was geared towards an international audience and specifically for Putin himself and any of his ilk who are thinking that this is a good idea.
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And the difficult thing is now , she says , will be how Putin will react to these sanctions and this these words , these tough words.
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But will it make this , you know , man who seems already off the rails do something worse ? She says there's no telling , but she feels that the president did do his job last night , and she says he did it well.
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Now , one aspect of the State of the Union noted by almost everyone was the outburst of bipartisan applause for the U.S. support of Ukraine.
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Republicans gave.
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Biden , a standing ovation , something that is almost unheard of these days.
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What was the reaction within the San Diego congressional delegation , in particular for Congresswoman Sara Jacobs ? This was her first State of the Union address , and she was there during the insurrection of Jan. six.
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Then she had so many things on her mind.
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She had to be ushered out of that exact same location.
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She sat near where she sat on January 6th.
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And she said that so many things were going through her mind.
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So being there for her was about overcoming trauma , being proud to represent San Diegans.
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And she said the atmosphere there and the love and support for Ukraine was absolutely beautiful.
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And she said it felt good for because for so long , so many people have been so divided and to feel that unity for the Ukrainian people.
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For that moment , she said , it was really special.
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For me , it was really important to have President Biden addressed the situation at the top show his clear and steady leadership through this crisis , and also that what we're doing here is not only about Ukraine , it's about standing up for democracy against autocracy.
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I've been speaking with KPBS reporter Kitty Alvarado and Kitty.
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Thank you so much.
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Thank you so much.
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Staying with the State of the Union last night , President Joe Biden announced a new test to treat plan for COVID 19 using Pfizer antiviral pills , and now we're launching the Test to Treat initiative so people can get tested at a pharmacy and if they prove positive , receive the antiviral pills on the spot at no cost.
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Joining me to talk about this and more of the latest issues around the COVID 19 pandemic is our regular guest , Dr. Eric Topol , director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute in La Hoya.
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Welcome back to the program.
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Thanks , Jake.
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Great to be with you again.
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So let's start with this announcement from President Biden.
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Why is a test to treat plan like this needed ? Well , this is a significant part of a new 96 page plan released today.
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It is certainly something we need that is Paxil that is in short supply.
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It is a very potent pill that's safe.
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It has a new 90 percent reduction in hospitalization.
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But when it gets into a better supply , the plan is later this month at CVS and Walgreens.
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At least some of the stores to have this test and to treat available so that if you had symptoms of COVID , you could get a quick , rapid test and a prescription for the five day treatment.
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This is great.
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It will be for high risk people.
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Obviously , we'd also like it to be available right at home , were delivered to the person's home without having to go to the pharmacy.
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But it's a definite step in the right direction.
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It does require coordination with pharmacies because this medicine , while highly effective and safe , has some significant interactions with common medicines that the pharmacist and physician will need to be aware of when that occurs.
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So you mentioned that coordination.
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How well do you think this plan will work ? It's something we want to do.
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It's a really innovative plan.
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It's one of the best things that has been initiated by the administration since the pandemic began.
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Its only real limitation is that the supply of the pills is so limited right now.
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As you mentioned , the test to treat plan is just one of the strategies the Biden administration is announcing as part of the National COVID 19 Preparedness Plan.
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What else are you seeing in the plan that you think will address unmet needs ? Well , there's many components things like countering misinformation , which is never been taken seriously by our administration and has led to a very limited vaccination that is where fifty seven boosters and sixty fourth in the world in countries for primary vaccination that we have to get that markedly improved.
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There's better digital capture and surveillance that's planned things like a pan coronavirus vaccine that we're working on at Scripps Research and many other academic centers in the country.
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These are some of the priorities laid out in the plan , and they're really important ones.
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Hmm.
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Also this week , masking in the state is now recommended for everyone , regardless of vaccination status.
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CDC guidance on masking says to wear a mask indoors in public , in communities with high rates of transmission like we have in San Diego and imperial counties , from your perspective , is recommending masks enough at this point.
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Well , Jane , you you really nailed it because we are a high transmission place right now in San Diego County.
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So the recommendation may not be strong enough , but hopefully people will have their own good sense to wear a mask indoors , particularly people who are vulnerable of advanced age.
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Obviously , if they are immunocompromised , are very sensitive to this issue.
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But we're not at a point to abandon masks.
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Not in San Diego or not until the circulating virus is much lower than it is today.
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In California , officials are touting a new plan for living with the pandemic.
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We've heard from local officials that we will prepare for COVID 19 the same way we prepare for cold and flu.
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Does the science on COVID 19 support this guidance ? Well , I recently wrote in the L.A. Times that this is not really what we should be thinking about.
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Not only is there an enormous toll of long COVID , but that still is the threat of infections , whether it's Amazon or whatever the next variant that we'll see.
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So living with it , yeah , we'd like to move on and get to some kind of semblance of pre-COVID life , but we need to continue to respect this virus that it has been unpredictable in two years and the last chapter of this virus still lies before us.
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So yes , it's good that we can make some adjustment , but we're looking at a quiescent phase , likely maybe a couple few months.
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But there's too many things , including animal reservoirs , immunocompromised people , lack of containment of the virus throughout the world.
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All these things lead to the generation of of a new and significant variant in the months ahead.
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Can you talk a bit more about what's different between COVID compared to cold and flu ? Oh , gosh , well , so much.
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I mean , the point is , I mean , just yesterday we saw from Northwestern the an important paper on invasion of email general tracked through non-human primates through the testes and the penis , and that that's the mechanism where erectile dysfunction occurs.
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We have penetration of every organ through COVID , like what we can see with myocarditis , the kidneys , the damage.
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The long COVID story is nothing like we ever seen with a prior pathogen in terms of the millions of people who have been infected , affected.
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And we just saw evidence of the heart and vascular complications at one year in a very devastating report from the VA administration.
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Washington University.
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So this is unlike the pathogens that you mentioned , the other corona virus , a cold , common cold or the flu.
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This is entirely different.
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Let's turn to vaccine news.
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According to a study out this week , the lower dose of the Pfizer vaccine doesn't protect five to 11 year olds from infection , as well as the full dose.
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What are the details from this study that you're paying attention to ? And how should parents of young children be thinking about this new information ? Right , well , this is an important CDC report that actually counters the New York state that came out the day before , at least as it has , it was reported.
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So the CDC report is about on record , and it spanned the age groups of five to 11 and then also the 12 to 17.
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And what it showed is that there was really excellent protection against hospitalizations for the young children.
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But we knew with Amichai our vaccines have not held up well for transmission and infection.
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And of course , that was what was seen.
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So it shouldn't be a surprise to anyone that children , particularly in the American phase , were not protected well by vaccines.
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But the good part is that there was very strong protection against hospitalization , and that's what we are after right now because American , unlike any version of the virus , previously was a workaround.
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With respect to its remarkable ability to evade our immune system and cause infections.
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So here we had to change what we expect from vaccines , which is protect from those infections getting severe , leading for children or any person to wind up in the hospital.
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And they work well for that.
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I've been speaking with Dr. Eric Topol , director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute in La Hoya.
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Dr. Topol , thank you very much for joining us.
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Thank you , Jake.
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You're listening to KPBS Midday Edition.
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I'm Jade Hindman with Maureen Cavanaugh.
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National data show black mothers die in childbirth at about three times the rate of white women , and black infants are more than twice as likely to die in their first year of life than white infants.
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Nationally , those numbers have been made worse by the pandemic in San Diego County.
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There is now a program to help address this crisis , and it starts with doulas someone who provides physical and emotional support during pregnancy , childbirth and postpartum.
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Yesterday , the County Board of Supervisors passed an initiative to provide doulas or birth attendants to black moms and other women of color.
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Nathan Fletcher , chair of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors , joins us to talk about the program.
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Chairman Fletcher , welcome.
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Thank you for having me.
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So for those who don't know what to do , la is.
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Can you tell us how they provide support and the benefits of having one ? Yeah , a dual is a trained health care provider who's really equipped to to support the mom during the pregnancy , during labor and then after birth.
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And we have a lot of evidence and data suggest this is a really important component for for women who want to choose this to be a part if it is available to really facilitate not only a healthy pregnancy , but a healthy birth and a healthy start to life.
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There's just not enough of them , and in particular , there's not enough of them in historically underserved communities.
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And it's a part of what contributes that shockingly high numbers we see around mortality for black women and infants.
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And tell us about the do the pilot program , what services would it provide ? Well , I want everyone in San Diego to have access to quality , affordable health care , and that's a big , broad national issue.
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But when the community came forward and said this is something you can fund , this is something you can do to provide a segment of the population that doesn't even have access to this better access.
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We jumped at the opportunity.
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And so the county is going to be developing what the pilot project will look like.
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But in essence , it will be funded for duelist services for pregnant women who are in underserved communities to be able to access the service that we know can have tremendous positive benefits.
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There just aren't enough folks out there.
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There's not enough traditional funding in the health care system.
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And so we're going to the program will now be designed because it's been approved.
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But the goal will be to get more dollars into more underserved communities to help more women who are going through the birth process.
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And so how long could someone get help from a doula ? Well , we're going to have to design the program.
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The first thing we had to do was was approved the funding and approve the broad contours of it.
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And now county staff will work very hard with community partners to to come up with the parameters of the program and then go through a procurement process to to award contracts to those who will step in and be able to do it.
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And so we've we've got a little bit of work left to do.
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But the first step was us as a board and it was unanimous bipartisan vote to say , Look , we think this is important.
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We're willing to dedicate resources to it and we want to get better health outcomes , particularly in communities that have less access to health care services.
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How does the program aim to address disparities in birth outcomes ? Well , I think you can look at the fact that black women are three times more likely to die in childbirth and see , well , that's I mean , that is a shocking disparity.
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Then you come in and say , Okay , well , now what do you do ? Well , what you do is provide a service that that has been shown to be effective at lowering that number , but is not presently available.
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So you go pull together some funding , you get your colleagues to get behind it , you get community support and you pass up a program and a policy to to go in and try and address that clear disparity we see.
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And I'll be particularly interested in how we assess once the program's designed its success.
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How much did this investment help us with the broader effort and aim to make sure people have access to quality , affordable health care ? And then what did we learn from it ? And perhaps it's something that comes back and gets funded at a much more significant level.
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Have black maternal and infant mortality rates in San Diego increased in recent years ? I don't know if it's increased.
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I mean , it's such a shockingly high number you would like to think it could get much worse.
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But absent intentional effort and program to tackle it , there's no reason to believe it would get better.
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And and you know , this idea came out of a lot of conversations that that myself and my office had with community leaders about what can we do because it's just not right.
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It's not fair that the segments of our population face this significantly worse outcomes for the same process and procedure.
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Why do you think these disparities exist ? Well , I think there's tremendous disparities in health care , which is who has access.
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I mean , the simple reality is the inequities in our society are often dominated and based by race.
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And it's not just economic , it's not just environmental , it's health care as well.
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And we've seen time and again studies around the negative impacts of of lower income folks and people.
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Of not having the same access to affordable health care , and , you know , we're one of the only industrialized nations that doesn't provide universal health care to all of our citizens , which I believe we should do.
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But in the absence of of of the federal government doing that , then we've got to step up here to to try to tackle these needs.
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But but there are significant gaps in people being able to afford quality access to health care.
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Part of it's based on class and how much money you have and part of it's based on the color of your skin.
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And even when you account for socioeconomic status and education , these disparities still exist.
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What accounts for that ? Well , that structural racism , I mean , that is the structural racism that is baked in to our society at all levels.
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I mean , look at the study about how much less people of color are prescribed pain medications by doctors because there's a sense that they don't feel pain the same way.
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Why do black women a black woman who's a surgeon ? Why does she make less than the white man who's a surgeon with the same training and same expertise ? I mean , this is not unique to health care.
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This is prevalent throughout our society , and I think it manifests itself here in health care.
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But it has its roots in the founding of the original Senate , the founding of our country in redlining , a child born in southeast San Diego today will give 10 years less than a child born in La Hoya today.
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That's not a function of geography that is a function of race , and those are irrefutable facts.
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And what we have to do is step in and recognize that intentional government policies created these inequities , and it will take intentional government policies to try and address them and get us on that path to a more perfect union and just give people a fair shot for a better life.
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What are the next steps in getting the new County Dula program underway ? And how can people sign up for the program ? So the county is in the process now of designing the contours of the program.
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What it will look like , then what ? They will go out through open and transparent procurement process with community providers and do what providers can bid on being able to do this work.
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Then the contract will be awarded and the services will begin to be administered.
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So we've got to we've got a little a little bit , we've got a little little ways to go until we get to the point of of this up and running.
00:23:39.220 --> 00:23:45.280
But we took the most important first step , which was the board saying we're going to commit the funding and we're going to move forward with this program.
00:23:45.550 --> 00:23:49.990
I've been speaking with Nathan Fletcher , chair of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors.
00:23:50.350 --> 00:23:52.000
Chairman Fletcher , thank you very much.
00:23:52.240 --> 00:23:52.870
Absolutely.
00:23:52.870 --> 00:23:53.290
Thank you.
00:23:58.030 --> 00:24:05.020
California could become the first state in the country to expand health coverage to all low income immigrants in the state.
00:24:05.410 --> 00:24:10.000
Right now , most undocumented adults still aren't eligible for medical coverage.
00:24:10.300 --> 00:24:13.780
And it's forcing some families to make life and death decisions.
00:24:14.140 --> 00:24:19.300
Valley Public Radio's Mattie Bologna's spoke to one of those families in Fresno County.
00:24:20.350 --> 00:24:24.820
Maria Guadalupe , Toledo mayor , is rounding a all of Masa in her hands.
00:24:25.000 --> 00:24:27.550
She's making ballads for her husband , Sergio.
00:24:27.700 --> 00:24:42.250
They moved their family here to Fresno County three years ago from Honduras , said Hill says they work in the fields , principalmente and olaparib properties , primarily picking grapes , he says , but also wherever they send them , wherever there's work.
00:24:42.820 --> 00:24:44.650
But recently , they stopped working.
00:24:44.950 --> 00:24:48.400
In late December , 42 year old said he was rushed to the hospital.
00:24:48.700 --> 00:24:49.780
He couldn't breathe.
00:24:50.320 --> 00:24:57.940
Doctors did a series of tests and told him he had to have open heart surgery as soon as possible , but said he'll said no.
00:24:58.420 --> 00:25:01.330
He's undocumented and uninsured Americans.
00:25:01.330 --> 00:25:02.260
Makeover let you go.
00:25:02.260 --> 00:25:05.110
You told the doctor he had no money for surgery.
00:25:05.740 --> 00:25:07.240
He told them to send him home.
00:25:07.510 --> 00:25:09.130
He'd rather die in his house.
00:25:09.340 --> 00:25:19.030
Today , Mikasa lawmakers say that he has experience as a prime example of why the state needs to expand Medi-Cal to all Californians , regardless of immigration status.
00:25:19.330 --> 00:25:23.980
Assembly member Joaquin Aran Beulah was an emergency room doctor before he took office.
00:25:24.250 --> 00:25:35.590
Many people in our immigrant communities are fearful of seeking out health care if they do not have Typekit , and when they put off care , their conditions get worse and worse.
00:25:35.890 --> 00:25:44.050
They end up in the E.R. when disease is harder to treat and where care is the most expensive , and it's costing you the taxpayer a fortune.
00:25:44.230 --> 00:25:48.760
Gov. Gavin Newsom says expanding Medi-Cal coverage will save money in the long run.
00:25:48.880 --> 00:26:04.300
If you care not just about values and principles of morality , but if your only values and principles are advanced through economics , then that alone should be an argument in favor of universal health care.
00:26:04.510 --> 00:26:11.080
The campaign to expand Medi-Cal to all low income undocumented residents started nearly a decade ago.
00:26:11.230 --> 00:26:18.970
The state began by covering undocumented kids , then young adults , and this year , people aged 50 and older will be able to sign up.
00:26:19.420 --> 00:26:26.230
Covering adults aged 27 to 49 would be the last step toward expanding insurance to all Californians.
00:26:26.680 --> 00:26:36.940
The California Republican Party did not approve of Newsom's overall budget proposal , describing it as woefully short on solutions for the problems plaguing Californians.
00:26:40.000 --> 00:26:45.010
Back in Fresno County , Lupita washes her hands before cleaning the wounds on said hills chest.
00:26:45.430 --> 00:26:53.050
He ended up going through with the heart surgery , but Lupita says they live in dread waiting for the medical bill , a wallet on offer.
00:26:53.560 --> 00:26:54.910
They're lost , she says.
00:26:55.120 --> 00:27:02.020
They don't know if or when they are going to be charged for the follow up appointments to see tha , although this will not have Ms.
00:27:02.500 --> 00:27:11.710
Pelosi notoriety the manual consultant working ever necessary at the mutism , while other criminal doctors say said Hill will be out of work for at least five months.
00:27:12.100 --> 00:27:17.710
He says he hopes the Medi-Cal expansion is approved so that others won't have to go through what he's been through.
00:27:18.310 --> 00:27:22.840
That was Marty Bolanos reporting for the California report in Fresno.
00:27:26.890 --> 00:27:37.450
The Padres will not be opening their season on March 31st at Petco Park and for the first time in 27 years , Major League Baseball is canceling games due to a labor dispute.
00:27:37.720 --> 00:27:45.970
Both the league and the players union say losing games was the last thing they wanted , but the latest round of contract talks broke down on Tuesday afternoon.
00:27:46.450 --> 00:27:54.490
Here's MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred announcement yesterday after the league and its players were unable to come to an agreement.
00:27:54.910 --> 00:28:06.370
I had hoped against hope that I would not have to have this particular press conference in which I am going to cancel some regular season games.
00:28:06.670 --> 00:28:09.700
The owners say talks won't start again until Thursday.
00:28:09.970 --> 00:28:13.450
The labor dispute and lockout has now lingered on for months.
00:28:13.720 --> 00:28:19.660
Disappointing fans and leaving a highly anticipated San Diego Padres season hanging in the balance.
00:28:19.930 --> 00:28:25.870
Here to tell us more is the Padres beat reporter for the San Diego Union Tribune , Kevin Acey and Kevin Welcome.
00:28:26.380 --> 00:28:27.250
Thank you for having me.
00:28:27.730 --> 00:28:31.620
Now there seem to be some optimism a deal was getting closer yesterday.
00:28:31.630 --> 00:28:34.670
Then it apparently turned into a war of words.
00:28:34.690 --> 00:28:38.620
What happened ? Well , they just got back to business as usual.
00:28:38.890 --> 00:28:42.220
These things tend to devolve into rhetoric now.
00:28:42.220 --> 00:28:49.960
Often that is a precursor or a sign that things are about to get resolved and people are about to compromise.
00:28:50.200 --> 00:28:52.780
But this just keeps going on and on and on.
00:28:52.990 --> 00:28:59.680
I do believe the owners we're negotiating and would have got a deal done , but far more on their terms than on players terms.
00:28:59.980 --> 00:29:03.100
And I do not believe that there is any way to interpret it.
00:29:03.100 --> 00:29:06.880
This is my educated speculation talking to a lot of people.
00:29:07.120 --> 00:29:20.650
There's no way to dispute that the owners that MLB was playing a public relations game , as they often do , trying to make it seem that they were trying to get something that they are losing the PR war throughout this.
00:29:21.070 --> 00:29:26.680
Well , here's what the MLB Players Association's executive director , Tony Clark had to say yesterday.
00:29:27.040 --> 00:29:27.970
Players want to play.
00:29:28.000 --> 00:29:29.140
We all know that.
00:29:29.560 --> 00:29:31.900
But the reason we're not playing is simple.
00:29:33.070 --> 00:29:38.770
A lockout is the ultimate economic weapon in a $10 million industry.
00:29:38.830 --> 00:29:45.940
The owners have made a conscious decision to use this weapon against the greatest asset later the players.
00:29:47.020 --> 00:29:49.770
So obviously money is at issue here.
00:29:49.780 --> 00:30:03.610
How far away are the parties and why don't we have a deal yet ? We don't have a deal because the owners have not budged on the competitive balance tax , and that is kind of a soft or a de facto salary cap , or at least the owners treat it that way.
00:30:03.610 --> 00:30:08.950
Major League Baseball is the only pro sport in North America of the major sports that does not have a salary cap.
00:30:09.190 --> 00:30:16.960
But there is a threshold at which you go over that and you are fined and more consecutive years that you're over it.
00:30:17.290 --> 00:30:25.810
The stiffer penalties last year , only the Padres by a little bit and the Dodgers by a lot went over that and five other teams came very close to it.
00:30:25.810 --> 00:30:33.910
It does seem anecdotally , at least , that the owners do treat it as salary cap and they have not budged on that number and the players insist that they do.
00:30:34.510 --> 00:30:38.080
I believe , you know , when it comes down to it , that's about it.
00:30:38.260 --> 00:30:48.970
Though this fight has always been for players about getting younger , inexperienced players more money and getting it sooner , and the owners have come up quite a bit on that.
00:30:48.970 --> 00:30:53.620
There's some small issues there , but basically that those are the two big sticking points.
00:30:54.070 --> 00:31:04.990
Now what exactly has been canceled so far or two series ? You know , you can't cancel one baseball game at a time , so it'll be a week at a time , perhaps two weeks at a time for now.
00:31:05.230 --> 00:31:11.170
They canceled two series for some teams that seven games for some it's six at the start of the season.
00:31:11.470 --> 00:31:14.340
And so for the Padres , it was the four games against the Giants.
00:31:14.350 --> 00:31:19.660
Then they had an off day and then two games against the Rockies , all of those at Petco Park.
00:31:19.840 --> 00:31:22.330
So as of right now , their season would begin.
00:31:22.570 --> 00:31:26.860
What is it on the 7th of April ? I don't think that's going to happen.
00:31:27.100 --> 00:31:34.280
I guess the teams or the two sides could get together tomorrow has something out here in a day or two and maybe that week.
00:31:34.330 --> 00:31:39.070
But that is not the projection that most people are talking about within the game right now.
00:31:39.370 --> 00:31:46.130
Hasn't the baseball season been shortened for a couple of years now ? In 2020 was shortened to 60 games due to COVID.
00:31:46.150 --> 00:31:48.700
That was very contentious between the two sides.
00:31:48.730 --> 00:31:50.950
Everybody lost a lot of money in that one.
00:31:51.220 --> 00:31:59.990
It was seen as a precursor to to this battle here and last year , no , there was obviously thought going into it.
00:32:00.010 --> 00:32:03.910
Spring training was somewhat shortened , but not really.
00:32:04.750 --> 00:32:11.380
And , you know , we knew that this was coming , and that's one of the real unfortunate things is it was so avoidable.
00:32:11.500 --> 00:32:19.180
Yet here we are , and it's really a sad thing , not just because we're losing games now , but as has happened before.
00:32:19.210 --> 00:32:20.920
I think they're going to lose some fans , too.
00:32:21.250 --> 00:32:25.990
Now is this anticipated as a promising season for the Padres ? It is the.
00:32:26.780 --> 00:32:41.300
Anyone who followed last year last year was highly anticipated , the Padres quote unquote won the off season , made a lot of trades , signed some players and they were anticipated to be one of the top two teams up to three teams in Major League Baseball.
00:32:41.300 --> 00:32:44.210
And they were for much of the season and then it sort of fell apart.
00:32:44.390 --> 00:32:46.850
So there are big questions about this year's team.
00:32:46.980 --> 00:32:51.690
There's some player positions that they need to be able to fill.
00:32:51.770 --> 00:32:56.300
But the thought is that they are going to be again , a good team.
00:32:56.660 --> 00:33:05.660
Now , other than the teams and the players , who else will be hurt financially by the loss of these games , certainly the people that work at stadiums.
00:33:06.230 --> 00:33:13.550
And honestly , you hear the deflation in my voice , they're the ones who've been hit the hardest by the last two years.
00:33:13.790 --> 00:33:15.650
So last year was a full season.
00:33:15.950 --> 00:33:30.380
But early on , the Padres first 34 games and most teams games to about the middle of the summer , there was a limited attendance which then meant you needed fewer people working concessions , fewer people taking tickets.
00:33:30.890 --> 00:33:32.660
There were people selling tickets.
00:33:32.660 --> 00:33:38.510
And so and then in 2020 , they only played 60 games and there were no fans.
00:33:38.690 --> 00:33:48.320
So here we are a third season where the lowest paid people in the whole baseball economy are again going to feel this the Bucks.
00:33:48.950 --> 00:34:02.750
And it impacts local businesses around Petco Park too , doesn't it ? Without a doubt , if you've been downtown in the Gaslamp when there's not a baseball game or when there is a baseball game , you can you can see the difference , especially on a weeknight.
00:34:03.110 --> 00:34:05.070
And that hurts people.
00:34:05.150 --> 00:34:10.520
There are also people in all the towns where there have been where spring training usually would be going on.
00:34:10.520 --> 00:34:17.270
No bill eventually get there three or four weeks , but they don't get there six weeks of fans making pilgrimages out there.
00:34:17.270 --> 00:34:27.740
And it's the time when everyone's having fun and in a good mood and people make days and weekends of it , and it is an influx to the economy of those cities as well.
00:34:28.130 --> 00:34:32.630
You said that there might be a loss of some fans due to this labor dispute.
00:34:32.930 --> 00:34:48.560
What are you hearing from Padres fans ? Overwhelmingly , people are angry and mostly it is that the owners , but regardless they're upset many and I've received dozens of emails today saying that they won't go back.
00:34:49.190 --> 00:34:54.290
History tells us that many of them will know it may take a while and some of them will not.
00:34:54.500 --> 00:35:18.380
There have only been spikes in which baseball a few times over the past twenty seven years since that disastrous strike that wiped out the 94 World Series , that baseball has reached that level of popularity and this time in twenty twenty two , there's even more for potential fans for patrons of baseball to be distracted by OK , so they're supposed to go back to the negotiating table tomorrow.
00:35:18.620 --> 00:35:22.250
What's the next shoe to drop here ? Well , some more rhetoric.
00:35:22.250 --> 00:35:23.930
We can almost always count on that.
00:35:24.410 --> 00:35:26.850
I've covered a few of these over the years.
00:35:26.930 --> 00:35:29.600
Look , it's going to be time to get down to business.
00:35:29.810 --> 00:35:40.400
Do not be surprised if they don't meet tomorrow or that there's nothing substantial that comes out of it and do not be surprised if this drags on for weeks , if not into April.
00:35:41.000 --> 00:35:41.500
Wow.
00:35:41.810 --> 00:35:46.880
I've been speaking with Kevin H-he's Padres beat reporter for the San Diego Union-Tribune.
00:35:47.150 --> 00:35:48.710
Kevin , thank you so much.
00:35:49.720 --> 00:35:50.450
It was a pleasure.
00:35:56.380 --> 00:35:58.820
You're listening to KPBS Midday Edition.
00:35:58.840 --> 00:36:01.050
I'm Jade Hindman with Maureen Cavanaugh.
00:36:01.420 --> 00:36:13.510
The San Diego Music Awards recently released its list of nominees for this year and topping that list with a record five nominations , including Song of the Year in San Diego jazz soloist Rebecca Jade.
00:36:13.900 --> 00:36:30.550
She's the winner of multiple San Diego Music Awards performs with her own band Rebecca Jade in the Cold Fact , and she's also a backup singer for Sheila E ! Today , we're bringing you an interview with Rebecca Jade that we first aired last year about her own musical influences.
00:36:30.760 --> 00:36:31.750
Here's that story.
00:36:32.290 --> 00:36:33.490
My mom's a jazz singer.
00:36:33.820 --> 00:36:35.200
Shout out to my beautiful mom.
00:36:35.590 --> 00:36:41.020
And growing up , she helped expose me to a lot of different musical styles.
00:36:41.620 --> 00:36:44.650
Billie Holiday was was one of the icons , you know.
00:36:47.410 --> 00:36:48.910
Good morning , Heidi.
00:36:49.960 --> 00:36:51.520
You all know me.
00:36:51.520 --> 00:36:55.150
Say Good morning , Heidi.
00:36:55.570 --> 00:36:58.300
Thought we said goodbye last night.
00:36:58.540 --> 00:36:59.170
Her voice.
00:36:59.170 --> 00:37:05.710
There was something just so haunting , and so I can't even explain what it is.
00:37:05.710 --> 00:37:10.750
I couldn't even tell you technically , but there was something about her voice when I was when I was first hearing her.
00:37:10.750 --> 00:37:12.890
That just drew me to her wish.
00:37:12.970 --> 00:37:13.420
I.
00:37:15.630 --> 00:37:17.880
But you are here to stay.
00:37:19.020 --> 00:37:21.930
It seems I met you when my.
00:37:25.630 --> 00:37:29.740
No , everyday , I start by saying.
00:37:32.580 --> 00:37:33.480
Good morning.
00:37:34.600 --> 00:37:52.870
What's new ? She lived a life , you know , there's there's such sorrow and sadness and yet power and vulnerability , and there's so many layers that I think I hear when I hear her , her voice , and it just draws me to her.
00:37:53.260 --> 00:38:03.540
And so it kind of reflects in my writing , I don't know why , but I just I always tend to write love songs or , you know , I try to write songs that are encouraging and empowering as well.
00:38:03.550 --> 00:38:09.100
But I also tend to have a lot of like love songs or heartbreak songs.
00:38:09.100 --> 00:38:23.950
And I think that being a fan of Billie Holiday almost gave me the permission to be comfortable to do that , you know ? Yeah , she was one of the first voices that that just really stuck into my ear , my soul and my heart.
00:38:24.730 --> 00:38:26.950
Good morning , honey.
00:38:27.070 --> 00:38:28.270
Sit down.
00:38:38.690 --> 00:38:44.570
Whitney Houston is definitely a big influence for me.
00:38:44.930 --> 00:38:59.120
I tried to sing like her , I was trying to learn her runs and she just had this pure voice , but it was undeniable all at once.
00:38:59.660 --> 00:39:02.590
I finally took a moment to.
00:39:05.100 --> 00:39:06.260
Doubt.
00:39:10.760 --> 00:39:15.770
And it finally hit me all at once.
00:39:16.400 --> 00:39:18.830
So all at once was just one of those songs.
00:39:18.830 --> 00:39:22.210
I just loved the melody and I just loved the way she sang.
00:39:22.220 --> 00:39:23.360
I love what she sang everything.
00:39:23.360 --> 00:39:31.870
I just remember that being one of the songs that was not really , you know , everybody knew I want to dance with somebody and greatest love of all.
00:39:31.920 --> 00:39:37.520
I think this one was just one of those that was not as popular , but was such a great song.
00:39:38.150 --> 00:39:42.830
When she passed , I remember going , you know , like a lot of people do oh to reminisce on.
00:39:43.190 --> 00:39:55.730
And I was like , Gosh , she had so many amazing songs and I knew so many of them , and she just really , really impacted me to be that voice , to try to to try to be like , I did try to sing like her.
00:39:55.740 --> 00:39:58.940
And that's how that's how much she meant to me to see.
00:39:59.750 --> 00:40:00.870
Wishing you.
00:40:01.850 --> 00:40:03.230
To me.
00:40:05.460 --> 00:40:06.990
It is now.
00:40:08.330 --> 00:40:11.360
It until they got.
00:40:14.730 --> 00:40:21.940
Last month , mesothelioma , Celia Cruz is one of gashes.
00:40:22.010 --> 00:40:28.550
She was just she's kind of more of a representation of the style of music that my , my mom and I listen to a lot.
00:40:29.000 --> 00:40:30.980
I was partly raised in Puerto Rico.
00:40:31.400 --> 00:40:33.680
Like I said , my mom was a a jazz singer.
00:40:33.680 --> 00:40:35.510
She was a jazz singer there in Puerto Rico.
00:40:35.810 --> 00:40:42.860
So Latin music that Puerto Rican Cuban was just flowing everywhere.
00:40:43.040 --> 00:40:43.820
It was part of.
00:40:43.820 --> 00:40:45.050
It was part of my upbringing.
00:40:45.340 --> 00:40:46.250
I won't go.
00:40:47.760 --> 00:40:51.540
Yeah , my , my , my my.
00:40:53.630 --> 00:41:06.380
When we moved to California , it was just one of those like we always still played that music a lot when it was time to do something , to make dinner , to get ready for something we were always playing.
00:41:06.980 --> 00:41:08.730
Celia Cruz and Tito Puente.
00:41:09.110 --> 00:41:14.660
And it was part of the catalog of my upbringing , my mom , my.
00:41:18.490 --> 00:41:18.690
I.
00:41:20.710 --> 00:41:22.480
Like body.
00:41:26.310 --> 00:41:26.890
Back in.
00:41:32.550 --> 00:41:41.430
But what ? So what my favorite top five movies is Amadeus.
00:41:41.700 --> 00:41:48.030
You know , that's the soundtrack is is all is Mozart's Requiem , and there's such a contrast.
00:41:48.060 --> 00:42:02.130
You know , you hear this wide array of instrumentation that is just powerful and you know , I can hear the melodies in my head and you just for me , physically like my head moves when it's like these like low and big sound.
00:42:04.610 --> 00:42:05.210
Oh.
00:42:15.820 --> 00:42:17.350
Oh , oh.
00:42:22.940 --> 00:42:37.550
And then the choir comes in and and then or there's a lead vocalist that that is takes this , you know , this part and it's just there's something that is just so moving and it's incredible to see it and feel it.
00:42:37.560 --> 00:42:39.150
I just I just love it.
00:42:50.220 --> 00:42:55.700
Doo doo doo doo doo doo doo doo doo doo doo.
00:42:56.610 --> 00:42:57.870
Tell us about the book.
00:42:58.500 --> 00:43:01.860
My mom really helped me a lot with vocal harmonies.
00:43:02.190 --> 00:43:07.120
Oftentimes it would be just the two of us singing , you know , she's kind of tired.
00:43:08.370 --> 00:43:18.480
As I got a little older , she started to share with me bands like Manhattan Transfer , where vocals are just almost instrumentation.
00:43:18.480 --> 00:43:19.500
You know they are.
00:43:19.500 --> 00:43:20.850
They are the main instrument.
00:43:24.610 --> 00:43:25.540
And just the way.
00:43:25.950 --> 00:43:29.040
Look down on me off my feet.
00:43:36.010 --> 00:43:36.700
Me.
00:43:39.730 --> 00:43:44.980
Any time we would go on car rides or if I go on car rides with my dad , I remember we drove.
00:43:45.220 --> 00:44:01.120
One time , I think to Texas home we were listening to Manhattan transfer and just it's just again a different style that like classical where , you know , you just have this wide range of instrumentation.
00:44:01.510 --> 00:44:13.600
I love how Manhattan transfer like how they take vocal and put a wide range within that scope , within that style , you know.
00:44:13.810 --> 00:44:23.080
I'm so blown away by it , and I love listening to vocal acrobatics like Manhattan St. Louis County.
00:44:24.690 --> 00:44:26.130
The brand new car.
00:44:31.500 --> 00:44:31.760
To.
00:44:34.460 --> 00:44:35.150
Every time.
00:44:38.050 --> 00:44:39.910
Makes me feel so fine.
00:44:42.040 --> 00:44:55.450
I truly believe that the Mozarts and take six and the in the Manhattan transfer , that all reflects still into the shows that I do , either with Sheila E. or my own stuff.
00:44:55.510 --> 00:44:59.980
Cold fact and it all relates 100 percent.
00:44:59.980 --> 00:45:02.440
So I encourage people to keep at it.
00:45:02.440 --> 00:45:11.620
If there's any doubts within yourself of , you know , Oh , I don't know how this is going to help or contribute , I truly believe it all contributes in some form or fashion.
00:45:11.620 --> 00:45:20.500
So to stick with it , and at some point it manifests itself to reveal that that it was it was part of your evolution.
00:45:26.310 --> 00:45:26.520
Yes.
00:45:27.490 --> 00:45:29.950
That was San Diego musician Rebecca Jade.
00:45:30.250 --> 00:45:33.910
This story was produced by Julia Dixon Evans and Brooke Ruth.
00:45:34.030 --> 00:45:42.070
You can find links to all the songs that influenced Rebecca Jade , as well as her own music on our website at KPBS Talk.