Marines deploy to Los Angeles as state sues Trump

Good Morning, I’m Debbie Cruz….it’s Tuesday, June 10th

A Poway city council member is under investigation by the D-A.

More on that next. But first... the headlines….

Hundreds of Southern California Marines have deployed to Los Angeles in response to the weekend’s immigration raid protests.

According to U-S Northern Command, a battalion of 700 infantry Marines based at Twentynine Palms were sent to the city to support the 2 thousand California National Guard troops ordered in over the weekend by President Donald Trump.

The Pentagon says the Marines have been trained in de-escalation, crowd control and use-of-force rules.

The decision to send troops to the city over the objections of local and state officials raises questions about the legality of the decision.

Yesterday (Monday), Trump ordered an additional 2 thousand National Guard troops to Los Angeles.

As to those legal questions …

THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA IS SUING THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION over its decision to deploy the National Guard. THE LAWSUIT ASKS A JUDGE TO SET ASIDE THE ORDER. YESTERDAY (MONDAY) CALIFORNIA ATTORNEY GENERAL ROB BONTA SAID TRUMP’S ORDER WAS ILLEGAL, UNCONSTITUTIONAL AND IMMORAL. HE SAYS THE CONDITIONS TO DEPLOY THE GUARD DON’T EXIST - THAT IS TO PUT DOWN A REBELLION, TO RESPOND TO AN INVASION OF FOREIGN TROOPS, OR IF LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT CAN’T HANDLE A SITUATION.

“We think that the conditions required to invoke the statute here, 10 U.S.C. 12 406 were absolutely not present and thus the Trump Administration’s reliance on that section of the law was inappropriate.”

ON MONDAY MORNING, TRUMP SAID IT WOULD BE A GOOD THING FOR BORDER CZAR TOM HOMAN TO ARREST CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR GAVIN NEWSOM. NEWSOM CALLED THAT AN UNMISTAKABLE STEP TOWARD AUTHORITARIANISM.

The San Diego city council will meet today (tuesday) to approve next year’s budget.

The city’s facing a $350 million dollar deficit. Officials say to balance the budget they’ll need to cut recreation centers and library hours and raise revenue, in part by implementing trash pickup fees and charging for parking in certain areas.

Last week, the city’s independent budget analyst gave the council a 55-page report detailing options to vary the cuts by neighborhood and restore some funding.

The special meeting starts at 1 pm.

From KPBS, you’re listening to San Diego News Now.

Stay with me for more of the local news you need.

POWAY CITY COUNCILMEMBER TONY BLAIN IS UNDER INVESTIGATION BY THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY’S OFFICE … THAT'S ACCORDING TO THE POWAY SHERIFF’S STATION.

NORTH COUNTY REPORTER ALEXANDER NGUYEN HAS THE DETAILS.

In the video sent to KPBS by the group “Recall Tony Blain”, it appears to show Blain being searched by officers after last Tuesday’s city council meeting. It’s unclear in the video which agency was involved but Sheriff’s Lieutenant Colin Hebeler says it was the D-A’s office. Blain has been accused of vote trading, threatening recalls against colleagues and attempting to use law enforcement to silence critics. The D-A’s office says it’s unable to confirm any potential investigations. Blain sidestepped the issue in a statement to KPBS saying, in part, that he has been called up to active military duty and will not be attending any city council meetings until November He says he will be monitoring and responding to city emails. Alexander Nguyen, KPBS News.

FEDERAL GUIDELINES FOR COVID-19 VACCINE RECOMMENDATIONS ARE CHANGING TO EXCLUDE HEALTHY PEOPLE UNDER 65. HEALTH REPORTER HEIDI DE MARCO SAYS SOME HEALTH EXPERTS WARN IT COULD WORSEN HEALTH DISPARITIES, ESPECIALLY FOR LOW-INCOME COMMUNITIES OF COLOR.

Pediatrician Marsha Spitzer remembers what it was like before COVID vaccines were available. "It was awful. I don't ever want to go to that again." She says the pandemic exposed deep health inequities. "Our most marginalized or under-resourced communities are the ones that were hit hardest by Covid." The new vaccine policy could hurt marginalized communities even more, says UC San Diego public health expert Cheryl Anderson.  "We'll find that those who are in more vulnerable positions, whether it's economically or socially are the ones who will have the greatest hurt or the greatest impact based on lack of availability." Latinos make up 55% of California’s frontline workers putting them at higher risk of exposure. In San Diego County, they died from COVID at a higher rate than white residents. "And so all policies around vaccines really need to be thoughtful about the different environments that people have in the context of their lives that could then impact whether or not they're going to be likely to get an infection or not." She says the new policy should not leave anyone thinking COVID is no longer a public health concern. Heidi de Marco, KPBS News.

TRI-CITY HEALTHCARE DISTRICT HAS AGREED TO HAVE SHARP HEALTHCARE TAKE OVER ITS HOSPITAL OPERATIONS AND FINANCES.

NORTH COUNTY REPORTER ALEXANDER NGUYEN HAS MORE ON WHAT THIS MEANS FOR PATIENTS.

Tri-City has been looking for a partner for the past few years. Sharp and UCSD Health both submitted proposals in 2023, and the board chose UCSD. However, the deal fell through last year. This time around, both Sharp and UCSD submitted proposals again, but the board chose Sharp. Scott Evans is the chief strategy officer for Sharp Healthcare. “This time we were able to answer all of Tri-City’s requests in terms of what they were really looking for.” Tri-City serves Oceanside, Carlsbad, Vista and the surrounding areas. It closed its labor and delivery service two years ago. The expectation is that this deal with Sharp will bring that back. “Sharp Healthcare delivers more babies in San Diego than any other health care providers. It’s definitely one of our core strengths.” Since Sharp is a private health system … the deal will need voters’ approval. But that vote is at least a year away. The two entities still need to sign a letter of intent. That is expected to be completed this week. Alexander Nguyen, KPBS News.

ALEX TARDY HAS USHERED SAN DIEGANS THROUGH FIRES, FLOODS…EVEN THE OCCASIONAL TSUNAMI WARNING. AS METEOROLOGIST FOR THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE, TARDY HAS TALKED ABOUT ALL THINGS CLIMATE TO KPBS’S AUDIENCE IN SAN DIEGO AND ELSEWHERE FOR 32 YEARS. HE RETIRED IN APRIL AMID PROPOSED RADICAL CUTS THAT WOULD SEVERELY WEAKEN THE UNITED STATES’ WEATHER FORECASTING CAPABILITIES. HE SPOKE TO KPBS’S AMITA SHARMA.

ALEX, BEFORE WE GET INTO WHY YOU LEFT THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN APRIL, TALK TO ME ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF WEATHER FORECASTING. IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT TELLING US WHETHER WE SHOULD TAKE AN UMBRELLA BEFORE WE LEAVE THE HOUSE IN THE MORNING, IS IT? YEAH. THANKS FOR HAVING ME ON THE WEATHER FORECAST, YOU CAN FIND IT ON YOUR PHONE. SO I'M GUILTY TOO. JUST LOOKING AT YOUR PHONE GIVES YOU THE WEATHER FORECAST INFORMATION. WHAT'S SO IMPORTANT IS THAT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE METEOROLOGISTS CAN WARN YOU AHEAD OF TIME ABOUT DANGEROUS, THREATENING WEATHER. THEY CAN SAVE YOUR LIFE AND PROPERTY IN SEVERE WEATHER SITUATIONS. ALEX, YOU WROTE IN YOUR RETIREMENT ANNOUNCEMENT THAT WHILE THERE WAS A LOT TO CONSIDER, GREAT STAFF, UNFINISHED WORK THINGS, THERE WERE LIMITATIONS THAT TIPPED YOUR DECISION TOWARD RETIREMENT. EXPLAIN. YEAH, THIS IS THE FIRST TIME IN MY CAREER, SO I JUST FINISHED 32 YEARS IN FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME WHERE I WAS RESTRICTED, WHERE I COULD GO, WHAT I COULD SAY, WHO I COULD MEET WITH. AND I'M TALKING ABOUT IMPORTANT MEETINGS LIKE GOVERNMENT AGENCIES, MEDIA, AND SO THAT'S SOMETHING I'D NEVER FELT OR EXPERIENCED BEFORE IN MY WHOLE CAREER. WHAT KIND OF EXPLANATION WERE YOU GIVEN FOR THOSE LIMITATIONS? SOME OF IT WAS WHERE TRAVEL WAS BANNED, BASICALLY, AS SIMPLE AS THAT, NO EXPLANATION, OR OUR GOVERNMENT CREDIT CARDS WERE REDUCED TO $1. OTHER SITUATIONS IT WAS. YOU HAD TO PROVE THAT IT WAS AN EMERGENCY, LIFE THREATENING SITUATION TO MEET WITH ANY GROUP OR ANY AGENCY. WHERE WAS TRAVEL? BLAND. SORRY? WHERE WAS TRAVEL BANNED? TRAVEL WAS BANNED EVEN LOCALLY, AND I'D NEVER EXPERIENCED THAT BEFORE. THE ONLY TIME I FELT THAT TYPE OF LIMIT OR IMPACT WAS DURING A GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN. AND THAT AFFECTS EVERYONE AND EVERYTHING, EVEN MILITARY SOMETIMES. SO THAT'S HOW SEVERE IT WAS. EVEN LOCAL. BUT CERTAINLY ANY REGIONAL OR NATIONAL TRAVEL TO A CONFERENCE, TO A MEETING WAS NOT ALLOWED. AND AGAIN, YOU WERE NEVER GIVEN A REASON? NO, THE REASON WAS THAT TRAVEL IS NOT AUTHORIZED UNLESS IT'S FOR AN EMERGENCY. SO WHAT IMPACT DO EVEN CHANGES LIKE THAT HAVE ON THE PRACTICE OF WEATHER PREDICTION FOR SAN DIEGO AND ACROSS THE COUNTRY? WELL, PART OF OUR WEATHER PREDICTION AND OUR CLIMATE MONITORING IS HAVING RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHER GROUPS BECAUSE WE CAN'T DO IT ALL OURSELF. WE RELY ON UNIVERSITIES, GOVERNMENT AGENCIES, WE RELY ON YOU, THE MEDIA TO GET MESSAGES OUT THERE ABOUT SANTA ANA WINDS AND RED FLAG WARNINGS. SO THERE'S HUGE IMPACT WHEN YOU'RE NOT ABLE TO GET OUT OF THE OFFICE, MEET WITH PEOPLE. THAT WAS A KEY COMPONENT OF MY JOB FOR YEARS, WAS DEVELOPING RELATIONSHIPS, MEETING WITH PEOPLE, UNDERSTANDING WHAT THEY NEED HOW THEY RESPOND AND RELAYING THEM WHEN IT COUNTED IMPORTANT WEATHER INFORMATION. SO I WANT TO PIVOT NOW TO THE NITTY GRITTY OF WHAT'S HAPPENED IN THE FIRST FIVE MONTHS OF THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION. THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS LOST MORE THAN 500 EMPLOYEES THROUGH FORCED. SORRY. THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS LOST MORE THAN 500 EMPLOYEES THROUGH FORCED LAYOFFS, RETIREMENT. YOU KNOW WHAT? I'M GOING TO PHRASE THAT DIFFERENTLY. THREE, TWO, ONE. I WANT TO GET INTO THE NITTY GRITTY OF WHAT'S HAPPENED IN THE FIRST FIVE MONTHS OF THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION. THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS LOST MORE THAN 500 EMPLOYEES THROUGH LAYOFFS AND EARLY RETIREMENT AND FOR OTHER REASONS. IT IS NOW HIRING BACK ABOUT 100 EMPLOYEES TO, QUOTE, STABILIZE OPERATIONS AFTER A PUBLIC BACKLASH. IS THAT ENOUGH? IS 100 ENOUGH? YEAH. SO THERE'S A LOT OF NUMBERS OUT THERE, A LOT OF STATISTICS. EVEN WHEN I WAS EMPLOYED, BEFORE I RETIRED IN APRIL, I DIDN'T KNOW THE EXACT NUMBERS, BUT I'VE COME TO FIND OUT THAT EVEN IN APRIL AND BEFORE STARTING JANUARY, WE HAD ABOUT 10% SHORTAGE, SO WE HAD GAPS ALREADY. THEN WE HAD THE PROBATIONARY EMPLOYEES THAT WERE LET GO, ABOUT 100 OF THEM NATIONWIDE. WE'RE TALKING ABOUT AN EMPLOYMENT OF 3,500, 3,500 PEOPLE. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE, 100 PROBATION EMPLOYEES WAS A BIG DEAL. THEN WE HAD EARLY RETIREMENTS. THAT WAS ANOTHER COUPLE HUNDREDS. THEN WE HAD ANOTHER ROUND, WHICH I LEFT WITH, WHICH WAS ABOUT 2, 300. SO YOU'RE RIGHT, 550. IF WE JUST PICK UP ANOTHER 125 OR SO, IT'S GOING TO TAKE A LONG TIME TO TRAIN THEM, SPIN THEM UP, GET THEM IN, GET THEM IN THE RIGHT LOCATIONS. WE, WE HAVE SOME OFFICES RIGHT NOW, EVEN IN CALIFORNIA, THAT ARE DOWN ABOUT 50% OF THEIR STAFF. BECAUSE IT'S NOT JUST METEOROLOGISTS. RIGHT. IT'S ADMINISTRATIVE. IT'S TECHNICIANS AS WELL. AND SO IT'LL BE A BAND AID, THAT 125. AND HOW DOES THAT MANIFEST FOR US, THE PUBLIC? WELL, YOU KNOW, WHEN AN OFFICE IS SHORT, ANOTHER OFFICE HAS TO STEP UP SO WE DON'T LEAVE THE DESK UNMANNED. WE DON'T NECESSARILY CLOSE THE OFFICE UNLESS WE ABSOLUTELY HAVE TO. AND THAT'S WHAT'S EVEN BEEN GOING ON IN CALIFORNIA, EVEN BEFORE I RETIRED, WAS THE SAN DIEGO OFFICE HAD TO HELP THE FRESNO OFFICE, THE LA OFFICE HAS TO HELP THE SACRAMENTO OFFICE. WE DO A LOT OF THIS REMOTELY, BUT WE CAN EVEN DO IT IN PERSON BY TRANSFERRING PEOPLE, EITHER TEMPORARILY OR PERMANENTLY. SO WE'RE A FEDERAL AGENCY ACROSS THE WHOLE NATION. IT'S NOT JUST ONE OFFICE. IT AFFECTS ALL OF IT. AND THAT IN TURN AFFECTS OUR USERS LIKE GOVERNMENT AGENCIES, EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AND THE GENERAL PUBLIC. THAT'S WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW. LOOKING TOWARD THE FUTURE, THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION HAS PROPOSED ENDING CLIMATE RESEARCH AND RELATED PROJECTS, SLASHING WEATHER SATELLITE PROGRAMS AND OTHER INFRASTRUCTURE, AND ENDING EFFORTS TO MONITOR THE OCEAN. WHAT WOULD THIS DO TO WEATHER PREDICTION IN THE COUNTRY AND SAN DIEGO SPECIFICALLY? WELL, WHEN WE START OFF IN THIS AGENCY, WE'RE OBSERVING THE WEATHER AND THAT ACTUALLY BECOMES THE CLIMATE. SO WE WERE THE ONE AND ARE THE ONES THAT GATHER THE OCEAN DATA, THE LAND DATA, THE SKY CONDITIONS. WE CREATE WHAT WE CALL NORMAL AVERAGES AND CLIMATE. WE DO THAT EVERY DAY, NO MATTER WHAT. AND THE MORE YOU DO THAT, THE BETTER YOU UNDERSTAND THE IMPACTS AND BETTER YOU UNDERSTAND HOW TO PREDICT THE WEATHER, THE BETTER YOU BECOME AND THE MORE SERVICES YOU CAN PROVIDE, MORE LEAD TIME, MORE PREPARATION FOR THE GENERAL PUBLIC. SO NOT HAVING CLIMATE OBSERVATIONS, I MEAN, THAT'S A DAGGER. YOU TALK TO ANYONE, EVEN IN AN ELEVATOR, THEY'RE ALWAYS TALKING ABOUT WHAT'S NORMAL, WHAT'S NOT, AND THAT'S HOW WE'RE ABLE TO TRACK TRENDS. IT WOULD BE A HUGE LOSS. WE'RE NOT THE RESEARCHERS, BUT WE PROVIDE THE DATA TO THE RESEARCHERS. YOU ARE SOMEONE WHO HAS COMMITTED 32 YEARS OF YOUR PROFESSIONAL LIFE TO WEATHER FORECASTING. WHAT KIND OF EFFECT IS THIS HAVING ON YOU PERSONALLY? YEAH, THIS WAS A BIG CHANGE. YOU KNOW, AFTER 32 YEARS, I KNEW I HAD THINGS I HADN'T COMPLETED. I KNEW I HAD THINGS I COULD STILL DO. I STILL HAD THE ENERGY, THE PASSION. IT DOESN'T FEEL LIKE WORK TO ME TO MONITOR THE WEATHER, TO PREDICT THE WEATHER, TO INFORM PEOPLE, TO EDUCATE ABOUT THE WEATHER. SO IT'S A DRAMATIC CHANGE. IT WAS NOT SOMETHING I THOUGHT OF OVERNIGHT AND SAID, OH, I'M GOING TO LEAVE. I DIDN'T LEAVE OUT OF FRUSTRATION. I, I LEFT BECAUSE I FELT THAT OTHERS COULD PICK UP THE SLACK, THAT OTHERS COULD HAVE MORE TIME OR ENERGY TO KEEP THINGS GOING. AND I FELT THAT I DID MY PART AND MY PART WAS BASICALLY BEGINNING TO BE CHOKED OFF, LITERALLY. AND SO I'M HOPEFUL I MADE THE RIGHT DECISION. I FEEL GOOD ABOUT IT, BUT I HAVEN'T LOST THAT PASSION FOR WEATHER AND CLIMATE. GIVEN THAT THAT'S THE CASE, GIVEN THAT YOU HAVEN'T LOST THAT PASSION, WHAT'S NEXT FOR YOU? WEATHER HAS NEVER FELT LIKE WORK. YOU KNOW, I USED TO WRITE THE WEATHER DOWN ON A CALENDAR WHEN I WAS EIGHT YEARS OLD, NO MATTER WHAT, AND THAT BECOMES CLIMATE DATA. SO I'LL BE DOING A LOT OF SKIING. I GOT AN ICON PASS. I'LL BE DOING PART TIME WEATHER. I'M SPINNING UP A BUSINESS CALLED WEATHERECHO. LLC. I'LL DO A LOT OF THE SAME WORK THAT I USED TO DO, TALKING TO THE MEDIA, TALKING TO GOVERNMENT AGENCIES, TALKING TO THE PUBLIC IN OUTREACH. I'LL STILL BE DIDDLY DADDLING ON THE WEATHER, SOCIAL MEDIA, YOUTUBE, BLOGS, BUT IT WON'T QUITE BE THE SAME. RIGHT. BECAUSE I WON'T BE PAID FULL TIME AND ALL THAT. BUT I STILL THINK I CAN CONTRIBUTE SOME, EVEN THOUGH I'VE PUT MY FEDERAL YEARS IN. SO IT'S NOT AN ABSOLUTE FAREWELL TO ALEX TODI. NO. IT'S HARD TO GET THE WEATHER OUT OF SOMEONE ONCE IT'S IN THEM. YEAH. SO I WILL CONTINUE TO DO MY SMALL PART, WHATEVER I CAN TO HELP THINGS MOVE ALONG, TO EDUCATE PEOPLE ABOUT WEATHER. I THINK THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS EDUCATION. THAT'S HOW WE PREPARE, THAT'S HOW WE'RE MORE RESILIENT, THAT'S HOW WE MAKE BETTER DECISIONS. AND IT'S NOT NECESSARILY EDUCATION ABOUT THE SCIENCE OR THE NERDY STUFF THAT WE FOCUS ON. IT'S EVERYTHING, HOW TO RESPOND, HOW TO REACT TO THE WEATHER SITUATION. WE'RE ALL UNDER WEATHER THREATS AND THOSE ARE NOT GOING AWAY.

THAT WAS METEOROLOGIST ALEX TARDY SPEAKING WITH KPBS REPORTER AMITA SHARMA.

AN ART GALLERY IN EL CAJON THAT CELEBRATES INCLUSION AND EXPRESSION … IS MARKING AN ANNIVERSARY MILESTONE WITH A SPECIAL SHOW.

REPORTER JACOB AERE SAYS THE ARTWORK … HAS BEEN 25 YEARS IN THE MAKING.

Sophie's Gallery is a space for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities…  to explore their creativity through art.  Lauren Heim is one of over 200 student artists who attend classes at the studio every week. She enjoys making mosaics and selling her works at the gallery. “It really makes me feel proud when people buy my art.” Students like Heim learn from professional artists on-site. Visual artist Hollie Pierce teaches at Sophie's Gallery. “We do a little bit of everything here: Weaving, mosaics, printmaking, painting.” Now, the gallery is celebrating its 25th year anniversary with a special ‘Best of’ show. It's an archival exhibition that's open for the public to explore through July 7. Jacob Aere, KPBS News.

That’s it for the podcast today. As always you can find more San Diego news online at KPBS dot org. I’m Debbie Cruz. Thanks for listening and have a great day.