Tag: california

California’s Retirement Fund Lost 71% Of $468M Investment In Clean Energy And Won’t Say How

The California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) lost roughly 71% of its $468 million investment in a clean-energy and technology private equity fund – and won’t explain how. The losses highlight growing concerns about the pension giant’s private equity strategy, which relies heavily on opaque, illiquid investments and leaves taxpayers ultimately on the hook.

According to state records analyzed by the Center Square, the CalPERS Clean Energy & Technology Fund (CETF), launched in 2007, has seen its value fall from a total commitment of $468.4 million to $138 million as of March 31, 2025. That represents a loss of more than $330 million, even after paying $22 million in fees and costs to private equity managers.

CalPERS’ overall returns for fiscal 2024–2025 were 11.6%, with public equities returning 16.8% and private equity 14.3%. The similar performance between the two asset classes has raised questions about whether the complexity and cost of private equity are worth it.

“If you can get these kinds of returns on the public markets, why bother with all the complexities and the illiquidity involved in private equity?” said Marc Joffe, a public finance expert and visiting fellow at the California Policy Center, in an interview with The Center Square.

Joffe said the CETF losses underscore “the combined dangers of private equity and ESG investment,” describing it as an opaque strategy that appears driven by “green credentials” rather than returns. “CalPERS would be better off focusing on a diverse portfolio of publicly traded equities to get better long-term returns,” he said.

Keep reading

Newsom Brutally Fact-Checked Over Latest Anti-Trump Sales Pitch

California Governor Gavin Newsom is running for President in 2028. That much is obvious.

What doesn’t make sense to us, however, is that Newsom seems to be working under the impression he’ll be running against President Trump in three years, not some other yet-unnamed Republican. He’s tried — in cringe-inducing fashion — to emulate President Trump’s brash style, and constantly attacks the president as if he’ll be running for reelection in 2028.

We won’t disabuse Newsom of that idea; any time he spends wasting energy and resources on attacking President Trump only helps whoever the actual nominee is. 

That being said, Newsom is not above lying to achieve his political ends, and he’s back doing that and attacking President Trump in the same X post.

Keep reading

Newsom’s and Weiner’s vile law ties cops’ hands on child sex-trafficking

California’s statehouse Democrats called their 2022 law the “Safer Streets for All Act.” 

Gov. Gavin Newsom gladly signed Senate Bill 357 sponsored by radical state Sen. Scott Wiener, and his ACLU pals hailed it as a bill that “will move California one step closer to acknowledging sex workers as deserving of full dignity and respect.”

But its effect has been the opposite for vulnerable children without functioning families  — who end up coerced into lives of prostitution by sex-traffickers and the pimp trade is flourishing.

The law prohibits any enforcement action against loitering with intent of commiting prostitution, supposedly because cops are racist and like to target black and trans people.

The real effect is that cops can’t catch sex-traffickers of children anymore. Eleven-year old girls just line the streets of Los Angeles openly now, waiting to be bought and sold like meat for perverts, and cops can’t do a thing to stop them.

That’s what was found by New York Times reporter Emily Baumgaertner Nunn, in a long investigative report about child sex-trafficking on Los Angeles’s Figueroa Street, in a stretch appropriately called ‘The Blade.’

She writes of a pitiful young teenage prostitute she calls ‘Ana’ whose mother was a drunk, who got bounced around foster care homes, who ran away, and who was picked up by a pimp she met on Instagram, at the tender age of 13.

Keep reading

Indian Illegal Involved in Triple Fatality Crash Had REAL ID CDL; Needed Interpreter in Hearing

The Indian illegal-alien charged in the vehicular homicide of three motorists in California not only had a commercial driver’s license despite not speaking fluent English, but also had a REAL ID, which is not available to illegals.

Jashanpreet Singh, the beturbaned Third World Biden “migrant” who is charged with manslaughter while driving intoxicated, had both. He needed an interpreter in his first court hearing.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said that California ignored his order to enforce federal regulations regarding CDLs. On Friday, the department detailed the state’s refusal to keep Singh off the road in defiance of those regulations.

California Admits Error

Answering Fox News reporter Bill Melugin’s inquiry, the state admitted that it gave the REAL ID CDL to Singh because the federal government authorized it.

The state transportation agency claims that Singh received federal employment authorization that is valid until August 30, 2030.

“The DMV confirmed Mr. Jashanpreet Singh’s documents using the federal SAVE system,” the agency told Melugin. As well, “Singh’s commercial driver’s license is a federal REAL ID which he was entitled to receive given the federal government’s confirmation of his legal status,” the state continued. Thus, “California followed all federal and state laws in reviewing and granting him a California commercial driver’s license.”

SAVE is an online system that verifies “immigration status and U.S. citizenship of applicants seeking benefits or licenses,” its website says. However, SAVE “does not determine an applicant’s eligibility for a specific benefit or license.”

Continuing his X report, Melugin said he “asked them to clarify what they mean by the Feds’ confirmation of his legal status, as he is still in the U.S. illegally even if granted federal work authorization while his asylum case plays out.”

The answer appears to have been a canned reply, or something created by artificial intelligence that scraped the internet for state law.

Keep reading

California Allows Illegals to Not Only Vote but Also Oversee Elections

In small local elections, illegal aliens are already allowed to vote. In larger, statewide elections such as the gubernatorial race, citizenship is verified through an affidavit system—essentially an honor system. Now, California Governor Newsom has signed a bill into law that will allow illegal aliens to oversee elections. The Democratic counterargument is: “No, that’s a myth. This legislation makes elections more secure.”

In July 2018, San Francisco began allowing noncitizens, including those without legal status, to register and vote in local school board elections. The measure, approved by voters in a 2016 referendum, permits only parents, legal guardians, or caregivers of children under 19 to vote in school board races. The program, set to expire after 2022 unless renewed, was justified by supporters who noted that about one-third of children in San Francisco’s public schools have foreign-born parents.

Opponents, including Republican officials, argued that voting should remain an exclusive right of citizens. Newly eligible voters must use a separate registration form warning that their information may be shared with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and advising them to consult an immigration attorney before registering, a requirement that may deter participation. The issue also surfaced in the California governor’s race, drawing national attention and criticism from politicians who said it undermined the principle that only citizens should vote.

Similar initiatives exist in other U.S. municipalities. Takoma Park, Maryland, has allowed noncitizen voting for over two decades, and several neighboring communities have adopted comparable policies. Advocates say these measures give immigrant families a voice in education decisions; however, in the U.S., the right to vote is restricted to citizens, not green card holders and not illegal aliens.

In California, San Francisco remains the only city where noncitizens can currently vote in limited local elections. Proposition N, passed in 2016 with 54 percent support, allows noncitizen parents or caregivers with children in the San Francisco Unified School District to vote in school board elections only. Oakland voters approved a similar measure in 2022 with 67 percent support, but as of late 2024, it had not yet been implemented. Santa Ana voters, however, rejected Measure DD in November 2024, which would have permitted noncitizens to vote in all municipal elections.

Important clarifications: San Francisco’s law applies only to school board elections, and noncitizen voters must complete a separate registration process. Their information is maintained in an entirely separate voter file, there is no mixing with state or federal voter rolls.

For presidential and gubernatorial elections in California, state law limits voting to U.S. citizens, but the system operates entirely on the honor system. Under California Elections Code Section 2111, a person proves citizenship by signing an affidavit of registration under penalty of perjury. In practice, this means voters simply check a box and sign. There is no verification of actual citizenship status.

A Santa Barbara County grand jury investigation confirmed that neither the state nor the counties require proof of citizenship to register. “We uncovered that there’s no requirement to provide proof of citizenship. You just sign off that line in the ballot that informs you of the potentials of felony perjury if you’re not eligible to register to vote,” said grand jury foreman Andrew Brown.

California ID numbers are matched with DMV records, and Social Security Numbers are checked against Social Security Administration records. However, citizenship itself is not verified. The system only confirms that the ID or SSN exists and matches the name and birthdate. It does not determine whether the registrant is actually a U.S. citizen.

California’s voter registration system functions entirely on self-declaration, an “honor system.” Registrants attest under penalty of perjury that they are citizens, but this statement is never cross-checked against any citizenship database. The only verification performed is that their identifying information exists in government systems. These rules apply to all elections in the state, including federal, state, and local races.

Section 2111 defines an affidavit of registration as proof of citizenship for voting purposes, allowing a signed declaration to serve as legal verification. County officials admit that while perjury is a felony, the process effectively depends on the honor system.

Legislative efforts such as AB 25 seek to repeal Section 2111 and require documented proof of citizenship to register. Liberal lawmakers have labeled the bill “Hitler” and “fascist” and, as expected, are dramatically opposed to passing it.

Keep reading

California Political Adviser Pleads Guilty to Being Foreign Agent of China

The former campaign adviser of a Southern California city council member pleaded guilty on Oct. 27 to acting as an illegal Chinese agent.

Sun Yaoning, also known as Mike Sun, worked as a campaign adviser in the 2022 city council race in Arcadia, a Los Angeles suburb.

He also operated a news website targeting the local Chinese American community, posting content supporting the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

If the judge accepts the sentencing recommendation, Sun, 64, could face up to 10 years in prison.

In the plea agreement, Sun agreed that he was a foreign agent for China from 2022 to 2024, promoting pro-CCP propaganda in the United States without alerting the U.S. Attorney General.

Campaign filings from the November 2022 election show that Sun worked as treasurer for the campaign of Eileen Wang, an Arcadia city council member.

At the time of the arrest in December 2024, Arcadia City Manager Dominic Lazzaretto said in a letter to the community that Sun had no affiliation with the City of Arcadia and that Wang had spoken with the FBI and was cooperating with investigators.

According to the plea agreement, Sun admitted to writing a report about his activities in support of the CCP.

“Overseas anti-China forces have been ceaseless, Taiwan independence, Tibet independence, Xinjiang independence, and Falungong have been active for a long time,” he wrote.

Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a spiritual discipline based on the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance. As with the other areas mentioned above, the faith group has been a major target of the Chinese regime.

Sun proposed organizing counteractivities and requested $80,000 to fund a demonstration at a Fourth of July parade in Washington, according to the criminal complaint filed on Dec. 17, 2024, by the Justice Department in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

Sun also admitted to providing information to a Chinese official at the Chinese Consulate in Los Angeles about activities in the area related to Taiwan. In April 2023, during a visit by then-Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, Sun took photos of protesters and sent them to the Chinese official.

Keep reading

ExxonMobil Sues California Over Climate Regulations

Energy giant ExxonMobil filed a lawsuit on Oct. 24 against California officials—including Lauren Sanchez, chair of the California Air Resources Board, and Attorney General Robert A. Bonta—accusing the state’s climate disclosure regulations of harming the company.

The complaint, filed in the District Court for the Eastern District of California, is about two climate laws approved by Gov. Gavin Newsom in October 2023: SB 253 and SB 261.

SB 253 requires businesses with total annual revenues of more than $1 billion that operate in California to disclose their greenhouse gas emissions, while SB 261 requires businesses with more than $500 million in annual revenues operating in the state to develop a report on their climate-related financial risks.

The bills are scheduled to come into effect in 2026.

“Both bills require ExxonMobil to espouse California’s preferred framing for issues of immense public concern,” the company said in its lawsuit.

The bills require the company to “serve as a mouthpiece for ideas with which it disagrees,” it said, while using frameworks that place “disproportionate blame” of emissions and climate risks on companies like ExxonMobil just for “being large.”

Keep reading

Democrats Cry ‘Voter Intimidation’ as DOJ Deploys Election Monitors to California, New Jersey

The Department of Justice announced Friday it will send election monitors to polling locations across California and New Jersey for the upcoming November 4 general election, citing efforts to ensure transparency and compliance with federal voting laws.

According to a Justice Department press release, monitors from the Civil Rights Division will be present in six jurisdictions—Passaic County, New Jersey; and California’s Kern, Riverside, Fresno, Orange, and Los Angeles Counties. Attorney General Pamela Bondi said the initiative is meant to “uphold the highest standards of election integrity” and guarantee that “the American people get the fair, free, and transparent elections they deserve.”

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon stated that “Transparent election processes and election monitoring are critical tools for safeguarding our elections and ensuring public trust in the integrity of our elections.” Acting U.S. Attorney  affirmed his office would “work tirelessly to uphold and protect the integrity of the election process,” while Acting U.S. Attorney Alina Habba added that “Election protection means making sure every eligible voter can participate freely and every lawful vote is counted.”

California Gov. Gavin Newsom sharply condemned the announcement in a video message, claiming the Trump administration had “no basis” to send monitors into California polling sites. “This is about voter intimidation. This is about voter suppression, period, full stop,” Newsom declared. He accused federal officials of creating “a chill” through the “federalization of the National Guard” and portrayed the move as similar to “masked men” from ICE or Border Patrol appearing near voting locations. “They do not believe in fair and free elections,” Newsom continued. “Our republic, our democracy, is on the line.”

In a series of posts on X, Newsom wrote, “Donald Trump’s puppet DOJ has no business screwing around with next month’s election,” and called the move “a deliberate attempt to scare off voters and undermine a fair election.” He also asserted, “Trump is sending the DOJ to California to ‘monitor’ the election. His intentions are clear — he wants to suppress the vote. And when we win, he will falsely lay claim to fraud. We will not be intimidated.”

Keep reading

Ninth Circuit Hands President Trump Sweeping Win Over Gavin Newsom — Trump Can Federalize California National Guard to Enforce Federal Immigration Law

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has denied en banc rehearing in Newsom v. Trump, effectively upholding the earlier panel decision that sided with Trump and affirmed his authority to federalize the California National Guard to support federal immigration enforcement.

When California officials refused to cooperate with federal agents, Trump invoked § 12406(3), federalizing and deploying 4,000 members of the California National Guard to Los Angeles to secure ICE facilities and restore order.

California Governor Gavin Newsom and the State of California sued over President Trump’s order, claiming it was unconstitutional and violated state sovereignty.

Newsom wrote at the time:

“We are suing Donald Trump. This is a manufactured crisis. He is creating fear and terror to take over a state militia and violate the U.S. constitution. The illegal order he signed could allow him to send the military into ANY STATE HE WISHES. Every governor — red or blue — should reject this outrageous overreach. There’s a lot of hyperbole out there. This isn’t that. This is an unmistakable step toward authoritarianism that threatens the foundation of our republic. We cannot let it stand.”

US District Judge Charles Breyer (brother of retired SCOTUS Breyer), a Clinton appointee, granted Newsom a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) and said Trump’s decision to federalize the National Guard was illegal.

But the appellate panel ruled that the statute clearly empowers the President to act whenever he is “unable with the regular forces to execute the laws of the United States.”

In practical terms, this means the Commander-in-Chief may call Guard troops into federal service when local or federal law-enforcement personnel cannot safely or effectively enforce the law.

After Senior Judge Marsha S. Berzon, joined by several liberal colleagues, requested a full-court rehearing, a vote of active Ninth Circuit judges failed to secure a majority, and rehearing en banc was denied on Wednesday. That denial makes the earlier Trump victory final within the circuit and binding precedent across nine Western states.

Judge Marsha Berzon’s 38-page dissent argued that the ruling “invited presidents, now and in the future, to deploy military troops… in response to commonplace, short-lived, domestic disturbances.”

Keep reading

International Student from China Accused of Drugging and Raping Multiple Women on Campus

A Chinese national faces felony charges after he reportedly drugged and raped three women while enrolled at the University of Southern California.

Sizhe “Steven” Weng, 30, allegedly committed the crimes between 2021 and 2024 while pursuing his doctoral degree, according to a Wednesday news release published by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.

He was arraigned Sept. 2 and pleaded not guilty to all felony charges: one count of forcible rape; two counts of sodomy by controlled substance or anesthesia; one count of rape by controlled substance; and four counts of sexual penetration by controlled substance or anesthesia, according to the release.

“No one should ever have to endure the trauma of being drugged, sexually assaulted and stripped of their ability to consent,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman said.

Keep reading