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Thousands demonstrated in San Diego as part of nationwide No Kings protests

 March 30, 2026 at 5:00 AM PDT

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Good Morning, I’m Lawrence K. Jackson….it’s MONDAY, MARCH 30TH>>>> THOUSANDS PROTEST AGAINST TRUMP AND AUTOCRACYMore on that next. But first... the headlines….#######

THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION'S JUSTICE DEPARTMENT IS DEMANDING TO BE SENT DETAILED ADMISSIONS INFORMATION FROM THREE MEDICAL SCHOOL’S, INCLUDING U-C SAN DIEGO'S SCHOOL OF MEDICINE 

UC SAN DIEGO, STANFORD AND THE OHIO STATE ALL RECEIVED LETTERS THIS PAST WEDNESDAY DEMANDING THE UNIVERSITIES HAND OVER THEIR ADMISSIONS DATA BY APRIL 24TH OR RISK LOSING THEIR FEDERAL 

FUNDING 

THE NEW YORK TIMES BROKE THE NEWS AND SAYS THE GOVERNMENT IS SEEKING INFORMATION ABOUT APPLICANTS WITHIN THE LAST SEVEN YEARS 

THAT INCLUDES INFORMATION LIKE,  LEGACY OR DONOR TIES, ZIP CODES AND TEST SCORES  

THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT IS ALSO ASKING FOR COPIES OF INTER-OFFICES MEMOS AND MESSAGES AROUND DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION

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WALGREENS WILL PAY SIX MILLION DOLLARS TO RESOLVE  ALLEGATIONS THAT THE COMPANY’S STORES OVERCHARGED CUSTOMERS AND SOLD EXPIRED PRODUCTS

THE ALLEGATIONS WERE BROUGHT FORWARD BY SEVERAL PROSECUTORS OFFICES IN THE STATE, INCLUDING THE SAN DIEGO COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S OFFICE 

THE D-A’S OFFICE SAYS AN INVESTIGATION FOUND THAT WALGREENS CHARGED CUSTOMERS PRICES THAT WERE HIGHER THAN THEIR LOWEST ADVERTISED OR POSTED PRICES 

THE D-A'S OFFICE ALSO SAYS THE COMPANY SOLD EXPIRED PRODUCTS, LIKE SUNCREEN, ASPIRIN AND HAND SANITIZER

PRICE ACCURACY MEASURES WILL NOW BE PUT IN PLACE, INCLUDING STORE AUDITS AND A SCANNER PRICE GUARANTEE

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M-T-S RECEIVED A LITTLE MORE THAN SIXTY MILLION DOLLARS TO ADD ELECTRIC BUSSES AND MAKE IMPROVEMENTS TO THE ORANGE TROLLEY LINE

THE FUNDS CAME BY WAY OF THE STATE'S TRANSIT AND INTERCITY RAIL CAPITAL PROGRAM 

 

MTS SAYS THAT THE PROGRAM  PROVIDES SUPPORT FOR TRANSIT INVESTMENTS THAT HELP  REDUCE EMISSIONS, EXPAND MOBILITY OPTIONS AND IMPROVE SERVICE WITHIN DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITIES

From KPBS, you’re listening to San Diego News Now.Stay with me for more of the local news you need.

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THOUSANDS OF DEMONSTRATORS TOOK TO THE STREETS ACROSS THE COUNTY THIS WEEKEND. 

REPORTER KORI SUZUKI SAYS THE RALLIES WERE PART OF A NATIONWIDE DAY OF PROTEST AGAINST THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION AND THE RISE OF AUTOCRACY.

NOKINGS (:50) SOQ

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The sound of chanting, honking horns whistles and drums filled the air across the county on Saturday — from downtown San Diego to La Mesa, Chula Vista and Escondido.

Protestors fiercely criticized a wide range of the Trump administration’s actions. Including its sweeping immigration crackdown, military strikes on Iran, and attacks on free speech and civil rights.

For Kandy Ray of Lemon Grove, it was the images of federal agents chasing down and aggressively detaining people — especially from this past winter.

20260328_nokings_kandyray

People are literally being hunted down like animals, and shot in the face, just because they’re brown. And my family happens to be brown. And it’s… it’s sickening.

This weekend was the third “No Kings” protest since the Trump administration took office last year. They’ve been some of the largest mass demonstrations in U.S. history.

Just this month, three major organizations that study democracy found President Trump has already done serious damage to democratic systems in the U.S.

Kori Suzuki, KPBS News.

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A NEW REPORT SAYS THE MEDIAN RENT IN SAN DIEGO HAS GONE DOWN SINCE LAST YEAR AFTER A SURGE IN SUPPLY. 

REPORTER JAKE GOTTA SPOKE WITH HOUSING ADVOCATES AND CITY LEADERS ABOUT WHY THOSE TWO MIGHT BE CONNECTED.

SD RENT (jg).mp4 [1:13] SOQ

Data from the apartment listing site zumper showed that median rents in san diego for a 1 bedroom were down 5.6% since last year; for a two bedroom, rents are down 7.5%

this was one of the biggest decreases in the top 20 most expensive cities.

and the data shows san diego had about a 15% increase in active listings since last year.

most other cities in the top 20 with fewer new active listings didn’t see the same decline

zack defazio farell is with the housing advocacy group yimby democrats of san diego. he says these numbers dont surprise him

“generally speaking, the more supply there is, the less the prices will continue to increase. and they may go down as we're starting to see here. so yeah. shouldn't be too surprised by this.”

city council president pro tem kent lee is the chair of the land use and housing committee. he said that the city’s efforts to streamline production are a big part of it.

“i think that's really a collective effort between, the mayor's office, a supportive council, and, our planning and development services department that are trying to find, really all the tools in which they can help to ensure that new housing is happening in san diego.”

both lee and defazio farell agreed, more choices means power for renters

Jake Gotta, kpbs news

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STATE LEADERS ARE RESPONDING TO FEDERAL CUTS TO PUBLIC BROADCASTING.

REPORTER JACOB AERE SAYS AN ASSEMBLY MEMBER WHO REPRESENTS SAN DIEGO IS REQUESTING $80 MILLION IN THIS YEAR'S STATE BUDGET.

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PMFUND 1 (ja) 1:06

Assemblymember Chris Ward was joined by media advocates who say a state investment in local journalism is needed, in an age of shrinking newsrooms.

Ward says the $80 million dollar request in this year’s state budget includes $60 million to backfill federal cuts and stabilize operations, $10 million for innovation and infrastructure, and and $10 million for ethnic media outlets.

“Without any action many of these stations, especially in rural and underserved communities are at risk of shutting down. So public media is not just programming – its critical infrastructure – emergency alerts during disasters, educational content for families and children…”

At the event, Ward also discussed his recently introduced legislation AB 22-22.

The bill proposes tax credits for local news organizations in the state to hire and keep journalists employed. It prioritizes small and community based newsrooms, according to Ward.

News organizations controlled by political action committees or largely funded by political action committees would not qualify for the tax exemption. JA KPBS News.

ANCHOR TAG: IN THE INTEREST OF DISCLOSURE, KPBS COULD BENEFIT FINANCIALLY FROM BOTH OF THESE PROPOSALS.

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THE HELIX WATER DISTRICT HAS A NEW HIGH-SPEED CHARGING DEPOT IN EL CAJON. 

REPORTER TAMMY MURGA SAYS THE CHARGERS WILL HELP LOCAL PUBLIC AGENCIES  AS THEY TRANSITION TO ALL-ELECTRIC VEHICLES.

HELIX 1 :57 soq

The Helix Water District has been preparing for a major state deadline. It has until 20-30 to buy only electric vehicles to cut emissions.

In recent years, the district installed a few electric vehicle chargers. But officials quickly realized a big challenge.

HELIX 1 00:06

“All I have is that three-kilowatt, that's going to take me, you know, two weeks to charge a dump truck, that doesn't quite work.”

Kevin Miller is with Helix. He says the district built its charging station to prepare for an all-electric transition.

It has 87 high-speed chargers and some backup generators. The chargers can power a pickup truck as fast as 20 minutes.

Neighboring public agencies will be able to use the chargers.

HELIX 1 00:08

“We need to have accessible charging for public fleets at public facilities spread across the region. That's how you make this work.”

Miller says Helix will invoice the agencies so that water customers aren’t charged. Tammy Murga, KPBS News

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That’s it for the podcast today. As  always you can find more San Diego news online at KPBS dot org. I’m Lawrence K. Jackson. Thanks for listening and subscribing; by doing so you are supporting public media and I really want to thank you for that. Have a great day!

First, peaceful protests were held across San Diego County in solidarity with nationwide protests. Then, the median rent in San Diego has gone down, we explore why. Also, state leaders respond to federal cuts to public broadcasting. And, we’ll tell you the impact that Helix Water District's new high-speed charging depot could have.