Porter raises $$ + Bonta backs Biden + Padilla joins film commission
Good morning and welcome to the A.M. Alert!
PORTER RAISES $1.3 MILLION AFTER DECLARING SENATE BID
In the first 24 hours since announcing her candidacy for the U.S. Senate in 2024, Democratic Rep. Katie Porter raised $1.3 million, nearly all of it coming from small donations.
Her campaign team announced that 98% of the contributions were $100 or less, with an average of $38.23.
“I have never taken a dime from corporate PACs, Big Oil or pharmaceutical companies — every race I have ever run has been 100% people powered,” Porter, 49, said in a statement. “I am so touched and grateful for the outpouring of support from so many Californians. Californians deserve a Senator who will fight for them and against powerful special interests, and that’s exactly what I will do.”
The seat is held by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, 89, who hasn’t announced her plans but who is widely expected to retire.
Porter likely won’t be the only California Democratic representative to run. Rep. Barbara Lee, 76, told fellow Congressional Black Caucus members that she is in, according to Politico. Others believed to be considering the race include Rep. Adam Schiff, 62, and Rep. Ro Khanna, 46.
BONTA BACKS BIDEN ON STUDENT LOAN DEBT CANCELLATION
California Attorney General Rob Bonta joined 21 fellow state attorneys general in a U.S. Supreme Court brief supporting President Joe Biden’s order to discharge up to $20,000 in federal student loan debt from certain low-income borrowers.
Bonta’s office noted that Biden’s plan would provide debt relief to 40 million Americans, including 3.5 million Californians.
“The historic cancellation of federal student loan debt will ease the burden for millions of Californians weighed down by the cost of their higher education dreams,” Bonta said in a statement. “This one-time program targets borrowers most impacted by the pandemic — in keeping with federal authority to make changes to student loan payments in response to national emergencies.”
The amicus brief argues that Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona properly exercised his authority to target debt cancellation for lower-income borrowers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
SEN. STEVE PADILLA NAMED TO CALIFORNIA FILM COMMISSION
Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, on Wednesday announced that fellow San Diego Democrat, Sen. Steve Padilla, has been named to the California Film Commission, which is tasked with attracting productions to the Golden State and administering the state’s Film & Television Tax Credit Program.
“The film and television industry is not only an integral part of California’s legacy, but also employs tens of thousands of Californians and serves as an economic force throughout the state,” Atkins said in a statement.
Padilla, elected last November, was mayor and a city council member in Chula Vista, and also has served as chair of the California Coastal Commission.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Conservatives are trying to make protecting gas stoves — which are toxic — a culture war issue. What they don’t appear to realize is that gas stoves are a blue state thing. People in red states predominantly use electric stoves. Facts are a funny thing, aren’t they?”
- Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, via Twitter.
Best of The Bee:
In one of her first orders of business, new Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders banned the term “Latinx” from state documents, marking a new battle in the culture war over the gender-neutral term, via Mathew Miranda.
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The war is on, Gov. Gavin Newsom vs. Rep. Kevin Kiley and the House Republicans, and it’s ugly, via David Lightman and Jenavieve Hatch.
Gov. Gavin Newsom faces a precarious budget season as he tries to pursue his agenda while juggling a projected $22.5 billion deficit and uncertain economic times, via Maggie Angst and Lindsey Holden.
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s goal to make California the first state in the nation to offer food benefits to undocumented immigrants will take longer than expected, via Mathew Miranda.