Assembly

Questionnaires were distributed to candidates this month. Answers have been edited to fit the available space.

Family Sick Leave

Q. Gov. Deukmejian recently vetoed legislation that would have granted workers as much as four months of unpaid leave every two years to care for sick children, spouses and other family members without fear of losing their jobs. Do you favor this type of legislation?

Margolin: Yes.

Michael: Yes.

Staley: Yes.

Teacher Salaries

Q. The Legislature approved a 4.7% cost-of-living raise for school employees, and Gov. Deukmejian reduced it to 3%, placing the difference in an account for special education programs. Should this money be used for salaries?

Margolin: Yes. Recruiting talented and dedicated teachers is critical to improving educational performance.

Michael: Yes, but only for teachers’ salaries. I do not consider an increase of 4.7% to be extravagant and do not believe the governor should have cut corners on teachers.

Staley: Yes. It should be used for cost-of-living raises.

Big Green

Q. Proposition 128, the so-called “Big Green” initiative on the November ballot, seeks to eliminate ozone-depleting chemicals by the year 2000, phase out pesticides known to cause cancer and require that trees be planted in all new developments. Do you support this initiative? Margolin: Yes. These significant reforms of our environmental protection laws represent a major breakthrough in the effort to halt the alarming deterioration of our environment.

Michael: Yes. We must eliminate toxic pesticides from our food, land and livestock and must cease endangering our farm workers and their families. This is the best aspect of Big Green.

Staley: Yes. Preservation of the environment is of the utmost importance.

Tree-Cutting

Q. Proposition 130 on the November ballot would restrict clear-cutting of forests, allow the sale of $710 million in bonds to preserve ancient redwood forests and provide $32 million to retrain unemployed loggers. Do you support this initiative? Margolin: Yes.

Michael: Yes.

Staley: Yes, but not as an alternative to 128.

Limited Terms

Q. Proposition 131 on the November ballot, authored by Atty. Gen. John K. Van de Kamp and Common Cause, would limit most statewide elected officials to eight consecutive years in office, and senators and Assembly members to 12 years. Proposition 140, sponsored by Los Angeles County Supervisor Pete Schabarum, is more stringent, limiting lifetime service to eight years in the Senate and six in the Assembly. Do you support limiting the number of terms state legislators can serve? If yes, how long should the limits be? Margolin: No. Term limits deprive the voters of the right to select their representatives. They also would expand the influence of the special interests who would clearly benefit from the turmoil artificial term limits would create.

Michael: Yes. I support Proposition 140. We must rid ourselves of the corrupt Legislature we have, and this will do that.

Staley: Yes. I favor shorter limits. Legislators will be less at the mercy of campaign contributors. They would give more citizens access to government and would help free legislators from constant campaign worries.

Sales Tax

Q. Proposition 133 on the November ballot would raise state sales and use taxes by 0.5% for four years to raise $7.5 billion for drug enforcement and treatment, anti-drug education , and prison and jail construction and operation. Do you support this initiative?

Margolin: Yes.

Michael: Yes.

Staley: No.

Liquor Tax

Q. Proposition 134 on the November ballot would substantially raise taxes on beer, wine and liquor, and dedicate the revenue from the tax hike to programs for the treatment of drug and alcohol abuse. Do you support this initiative? Margolin: Yes.

Michael: No.

Staley: No.

Inmate Laborers

Q. Proposition 139 on the November ballot would allow private companies to hire state prison and county jail inmates as laborers. Do you support this initiative? Margolin: No.

Michael: Yes.

Staley: No.

Death Penalty

Q. Do you support capital punishment? If so, do you think it should be imposed on those convicted of importing or selling drugs? Margolin: No.

Michael: Yes, I support capital punishment. No, I am not inclined to use it for simple drug-dealing, but would make it an option if a specific death can be clearly tied to a certain dealer’s drugs.

Staley: No to both.

Handgun Controls

Q. Do you support additional limits on handgun purchase or possession in California? Margolin: Yes. Senseless violence is made easy because of the virtually unrestricted access to handguns. I support waiting periods for their purchase and mandatory training programs. I also support increased penalties for illegal possession.

Michael: No. Gun laws do not work, as the cities of New York and Washington, D.C., readily prove. In addition, they are of questionable constitutionality.

Staley: Yes. A more thorough background check, a waiting period and proof of training should be rigid. Ultimately, handguns should be made illegal, but it is a decision voters must make.

Abortion Rights

Q. Do you support a woman’s right to unrestricted abortions within the first three months of pregnancy? Margolin: Yes.

Michael: No.

Staley: Yes.

Abortion Funding

Q. Do you support government funding of abortions for women who cannot afford them? Margolin: Yes.

Michael: No, except in cases of reported rape and incest, and where the life and/or health of the mother is in jeopardy.

Staley: Yes.

Day-Care Services

Q. Do you believe the state should require private employers to subsidize day-care services for employees who request them? Margolin: Yes. Better day care would allow working parents to improve their job performance. It serves the interests of both the employee and the employer.

Michael: No. The state should provide tax incentives for companies to provide day care. Mandatory requirements would promote discrimination against women in hiring.

Staley: Yes, as well as paid maternity leave.

War on Drugs

Q. Do you believe our present strategy of criminal prosecution, interdiction of supplies and imprisonment of users and dealers will ever significantly reduce the level of drug use in the United States? If no, what should be done? Margolin: No. While they are necessary steps, by themselves they are unlikely to succeed. Equal effort has to be applied to drug education and drug treatment if any long-term progress is to be made.

Michael: No. You must decrease the demand side through education. If the demand is still there, the law will not stop it alone.

Staley: No. The problem is not the users and dealers.

Drug Decriminalization

Q. Would you consider supporting the decriminalization of drug use? Margolin: No.

Michael: No, except for marijuana.

Staley: Yes.

Oil Exploration

Q. Do you think the present Mideast crisis justifies opening up additional parts of the California coastline to oil exploration? Margolin: No. New energy sources can be developed without desecrating our priceless coastline.

Michael: No. The economic crisis isn’t that bad, and we need to be less dependent on petroleum.

Staley: No. The United States has other reserves.

Parkland Exchange

Q. Should the National Park Service exchange 50 acres in Cheeseboro Canyon in southeastern Ventura County for about 1,100 acres of the neighboring Jordan Ranch owned by entertainer Bob Hope, permitting park agencies to buy another 4,600 acres of Hope’s land in the Santa Monica and Santa Susana mountains for $10 million? Margolin: Yes.

Michael: Yes.

Staley: No, Mr. Hope should donate the land voluntarily.

Mandatory Ride-Sharing

Q. Do you favor mandatory ride-sharing in an effort to meet government air pollution standards? Margolin: Yes. Ride-sharing has proven to be an effective tool in reducing traffic congestion. Any mandatory program needs to be flexibly structured to meet the needs of Southern California commuters.

Michael: No. It’s unenforceable.

Staley: No. That would be a violation of civil liberties. Public transit should be improved and should be free.

Political Funding

Q. Do you support full or partial public funding of political campaigns? Margolin: Yes, if it applies to general elections and the level of funding is adequate for the candidates to effectively communicate their views to the electorate.

Michael: No. Taxpayer money should not go to campaign consultants and television stations.

Staley: Yes. Full funding for candidates who want it would make this process fairer and would help reduce the influence of campaign contributors. There should be spending limits, also.

Income Disclosure

Q. Are you willing to publicly release your income tax returns and those of your spouse prior to the November election? Margolin: No.

Michael: No.

Haley: Yes.

Porter Ranch

Q. Do you support development of the massive Porter Ranch project in the hills north of Chatsworth as presently configured? Margolin: No. Projects of this immense scale will add to the congestion that is already choking our streets and eroding the quality of life in Los Angeles.

Michael: No. The neighborhood doesn’t want it, and it’s simply a developer, money-making scheme which benefits no one else.

Haley: No. I do not support unlimited growth and I believe voters in the area should make the decision, not politicians.

CONTENDERS Burt Margolin, 39, a Democrat, has represented the 45th District in the state Senate since 1982. Previously, he worked for Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Los Angeles) and Rep. Howard. L. Berman (D-Panorama City).

Elizabeth Michael, 34, of Hollywood, is a businesswoman who has long been active in Republican party politics. She made an unsuccessful bid for the state Senate two years ago.

Owen Staley of Hollywood is the Peace and Freedom party candidate. He is a college instructor.

As world leaders talked about acting against Israel at the UN General Assembly, more than 360 Palestinians in Gaza were killed, with many more injured, starved and displaced by the ongoing genocide. Israel has killed 66,000 Palestinians since October 7, 2023.

UN delegates walked out as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took to the podium at the UN General Assembly. Other world leaders condemned Israel’s genocide in Gaza, while a further 10 countries have recognised Palestinian statehood. Observers say Israel has never been more diplomatically isolated.

Picture the crowded sidewalks and standstill traffic of New York City. Pedestrians jostle past street vendors as they rush to their destinations. The wail of sirens mingles with the sudden screech of car horns.

Now add to the fray an influx of world leaders and diplomats, accompanied by gaggles of journalists, advocates and security officers.

Each year in September, the bustling east side of Midtown Manhattan becomes even busier as it hosts the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

New York briefly transforms into the centre of international politics as presidents, prime ministers and royals descend on the UN headquarters to speak at the opening debate for the latest UNGA session.

This year, the summit arrives amid heightened security concerns in the United States following the assassination of right-wing commentator Charlie Kirk. It also comes at a time of growing global outrage at the horrors that Israel is inflicting on Gaza.

Traffic has been blocked in the eight city blocks flanking the UN complex, establishing a restricted zone that can only be accessed by authorised personnel.

Hundreds — if not thousands — of heavily armed local and federal law enforcement agents surround the area, ensuring that no one gets near the summit without prior approval.

Due to the restrictions, many local residents told Al Jazeera they feel a mix of apathy and annoyance towards the annual gathering, which has been informally dubbed the World Cup of Politics.

Ugur Dikici, who operates a fruit stand across from the UN, said it may seem cool to have leaders from across the world come to your neighbourhood. “But when you’re stuck in traffic for two hours, it’s not fun,” he told Al Jazeera.

Dikici added that the event also hurts his business; tourists and delegates don’t buy fruit and vegetables as much as locals, who may be deterred by the commotion.

However, he said having New York as a global platform is still worth it. “You can deal with three, four days once a year. It’s fine.”

‘International ideals’

Entering the UN headquarters during the general debate requires navigating through a maze of checkpoints.

Delegates, visitors, staff and journalists are distinguished by different badges that allow them access to certain areas — but not others.

Even within the UN complex, some buildings and floors have their own airport-like screenings for multiple layers of security.

The East River, which borders the four main UN buildings, has also not been spared.

Only police and US Coast Guard vessels, about a dozen of them, can be seen on the water at any point. No ferries, cruises or commercial ships are allowed.

Authorities have declared the stretch of the water a security zone that is blocked to most ships during the summit.

Despite the intricacy of the security arrangements, the event tends to go on smoothly every year.

The occasional hiccups do occur, however. On Monday evening, for example, the motorcade of US President Donald Trump blocked the path of his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, as he tried to reach France’s embassy.

Video captured the French leader gently haggling with a police officer to let him and his delegates pass. “Guess what? I am waiting in the street because everything is frozen for you,” Macron later told Trump in a cellphone call.

New York has been hosting the summit at the same spot for more than 70 years, and the city’s leaders take a lot of pride in it.

“The iconic UN sits near the East River [and] remains a symbol of not only peace but a symbol of hope,” New York Mayor Eric Adams said last week.

“And I’m proud to be the mayor of this city that would house this important conversation.”

But in his speech to the UNGA on Tuesday, Trump disparaged the international body, describing it as little more than a conveyor of “empty words”.

Dozens of protesters had gathered outside the event to denounce the US president. Paul Rabin, one of the demonstrators, said he hoped to show his support for the UN’s founding ideals — values he feels Trump is trampling.

“This is a city of people from all over the world,” he said of New York.

“The international ideals are in alignment with the ideals of New York. And we want to call out people who are against the values that the UN and the United States are really founded on.”

‘I lose business’

But Harry Khan, who owns a corner store nearby, was not as thrilled about the summit.

“When there is a road closure, I lose business. My regular customers, they avoid coming outside,” he told Al Jazeera.

And the influx of tourists does not offset the losses, according to Khan.

As mammoth as the UNGA is, its impact on New York is limited to the immediate neighbourhood outside the restricted area.

In the vast and densely populated city, signs of the UNGA start to dissipate within a few blocks from the UN complex.

With the world’s eyes on the summit, some of the city’s 8.5 million residents say they’re more worried about daily struggles. More than 18 percent of New York City’s population lives under the poverty line.

On Tuesday evening, a young woman grew visibly frustrated when she found out that her bus stop was barricaded within the security zone.

When asked how she feels about the UNGA being in New York, she replied: “Because it stops traffic, I don’t care for it. I can’t get to my bus to go home. Now, I’ve got to find another route.”

First day of high-level meeting to kick off with speeches from world leaders, including from Brazil, US, Turkiye, Qatar and France.

Sept. 18 (UPI) — Ecuador President Daniel Noboa announced Thursday plans to call a voter referendum to ask whether they want a constituent assembly. He said the country must “free itself from institutional captivity” and establish a new legal framework to confront organized crime.

In an official statement, he said Ecuadorians will set the rules for a “new Ecuador” and accused traditional political structures of blocking reforms needed to strengthen his security policy.

According to the presidential message, earlier questions submitted by the executive branch for a public vote “were rejected” by the Constitutional Court, a decision Noboa attributed to “political activism” without naming a specific institution or giving dates.

Noboa’s decision follows other recent measures, including the Sept. 1 replacement of the entire military leadership, which the Defense Ministry described as a new phase in the war against criminal gangs.

The Security Bloc has seized 135 tons of drugs in maritime operations so far this year, a record that already surpasses all seizures made in 2024. Between January and August, authorities confiscated 68.1 tons of cocaine at the ports of Guayaquil, Machala and Posorja, including 27.3 tons at Posorja, which accounted for 40% of the total.

Posorja, a fishing town in the southwest that is home to Ecuador’s most modern port, has become a symbol of the international fight against drug trafficking. Built to boost legal exports, it is now at the center of battles over cocaine routes.

Ecuador has also strengthened cooperation with the United States. The Trump administration pledged $13.7 million in security aid and $6 million in drones to bolster maritime surveillance, along with updates to the extradition treaty and intelligence sharing to combat criminal groups.

The government says this year’s seizures have caused losses of more than $9.3 billion for criminal networks.

“Our goal is to financially strangle drug trafficking and cut off every supply route,” Defense Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo said.

The 80th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) begins this week in New York City, bringing together world leaders for a spectacle of speeches as the institution faces mounting scrutiny over its role on the global stage.

The annual gathering comes at a time of particular reckoning, not least marked by internal handwringing over unsustainable funding, ossified outrage over Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza, and increased urgency for non-Western countries to wield more influence.

Already sparking dismay ahead of this year’s event has been a decision by the United States, under the administration of President Donald Trump, to withhold or revoke visas for Palestinian Authority and Palestinian Liberation Organization officials to attend the gathering.

That comes as France and Saudi Arabia are set to host a conference on Israel and Palestine, promising to join several European countries in recognising a Palestinian state.

All told, according to Richard Gowan, the UN director at the International Crisis Group, the gathering comes during a year when “illusions have been rather stripped away”.

“It’s now very, very clear that both financially and politically, the UN faces huge crises,” he said. “Now the question is, is there a way through that?”

Here’s what to know as the UNGA session begins:

When does it start?

The proceedings officially start on Tuesday when the incoming president, former German Minister for Foreign Affairs Annalena Baerbock, is set to present her agenda for the coming session, which will run through September 8, 2026.

This year’s theme has been dubbed, “Better Together: 80 years and more for peace, development and human rights.”

The first week will be largely procedural, but will be followed by the organisation’s most prominent event, the so-called “high-level week”. That begins on September 22 at 9am local time (13:00 GMT), with a meeting to commemorate the UN’s 80th anniversary and to consider “the path ahead for a more inclusive and responsive multilateral system”.

On Tuesday, September 23, the “General Debate” begins, with at least 188 heads of state, heads of government, or other high-ranking officials preliminarily set to speak through September 29.

An array of concurrent meetings – focusing on development goals, climate change and public health – is also scheduled. Customary flurries of sideline diplomacy are in the forecast, too.

What does the UNGA do?

The UNGA is the main deliberative and policy-making body of the UN. It is the only body in the organisation where all 193 member countries have representation. Palestine and the Holy See have non-member observer status.

Under the UN Charter, which entered into force in 1945, the body is charged with addressing matters of international peace and security, particularly if those matters are not being addressed by the UN Security Council (UNSC), a 15-member panel with five permanent, veto-wielding members: France, China, Russia, the United Kingdom and the US.

The UNGA also debates matters of human rights, international law and cooperation in “economic, social, cultural, educational, and health fields”.

Operationally, the UNGA approves the UN’s sprawling annual budget, with one of its six main committees managing the funding of 11 active peacekeeping missions around the world.

Will more countries recognise Palestinian statehood?

Israel’s war in Gaza, which began in the wake of the Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, largely defined last year’s gathering.

With Israel’s constant attacks, and atrocities continuing to mount, the war is expected to again loom large, with anticipation focusing on several countries that have recently recognised or pledged to recognise a Palestinian state.

Last week, Belgium became the latest country to pledge to do so at the UNGA, following France and Malta. Other countries, including Australia, Canada and the UK, have announced conditional recognition, but it has remained unclear if they will do so at the gathering.

While recognition of Palestine as a full member of the UN would require UNSC approval, a move almost surely to be vetoed by the US, the increased recognition will prove symbolically significant, according to Alanna O’Malley, a professor of UN studies in peace and justice at Leiden University in the Netherlands.

“France’s recognition will be important, because it means that the only European member of the Security Council in a permanent seat is now recognising Palestinian statehood,” O’Malley told Al Jazeera, noting that 143 UN member states had already recognised a Palestinian state ahead of the most recent overtures. 

“I think it puts pressure on the US, and then, in that regard, increases pressure on Israel,” she said. “But, of course, it also reveals that the European countries are far behind the Global South when it comes to the Palestinian issue and when it comes to cohesive action to combat the genocide.”

Multilateralism challenged from inside and out?

Despite UN leadership seeking to strike a celebratory tone as the institution marks its 80th year in existence, the last decade has been punishing for the global cooperation the body has long spearheaded.

During Trump’s first term, from 2017 to 2021, he withdrew the US from the landmark Paris Climate Accord, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN Human Rights Council. Former US President Joe Biden then reversed his predecessor’s actions only to see Trump repeat them upon taking office in January this year.

The Trump administration has undertaken widespread cuts to foreign aid, including hundreds of millions to UN agencies and caps on further spending. The US remains far and away the largest funder of the UN, providing about $13bn in 2023.

“The US funding caps have put the UN in an incredibly bad financial situation,” the International Crisis Group’s Gowan said.

Further adding to that instability have been questions over UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’s campaign to streamline and refocus the UN as part of what he has dubbed the “UN80 Initiative”.

Proposals under the initiative, which will appear in a preliminary budget later this month, have been opposed by some UN member states and staff, with employees in Geneva passing a motion of no confidence against the UN chief earlier this year.

“Guterres will be talking about his efforts to save money,” Gowan said. “But I think there’s going to be a lot of people asking if the UN really can continue at scale without very major institutional changes, because it just doesn’t have the cash any longer.”

A chance for new influence?

But this year’s gathering may also be marked by efforts by traditionally marginalised countries to take on a bigger role at the UN, according to Leiden University’s O’Malley.

While no country has shown a willingness or capability to fill the US’s financial commitments, China has for years sought more influence within the UN, particularly through funding peacekeeping missions.

Countries like South Africa and Jamaica have also leaned into UN mechanisms, notably its International Court of Justice (ICJ), to seek accountability for Israeli abuses in Gaza and climate change, respectively.

“I think a lot of Global South countries, especially those like Brazil and India, and South Africa and Indonesia, to a certain extent, are looking at this not as a crisis of multinationalism,” O’Malley said.

“This is an opportunity to remake the system of global governance to suit their ends more precisely, and also to serve their people more directly, since they represent most of the world’s population.”

This has, in turn, refreshed energy towards long-sought reforms, including expanding the number of permanent members on the UNSC, O’Malley said, while noting a clear pathway for such a reform still does not exist.

History-making moments?

The first weeks of the UN General Assembly are known for history-making moments: Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez calling George HW Bush “the devil”; Muammar Gaddafi’s 100-minute screed in 2019 against the “terror and sanctions” of the UNSC; Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s literal drawing of a red line under Iran’s nuclear programme.

It also includes Trump’s inaugural speech in 2017, when he first took the podium, pledging to, among other aims, “totally destroy” North Korea.

The bellicose speech was met with chortles from the foreign delegations gathered. The tone is likely to be much different this time around, as world leaders have increasingly embraced flattering the mercurial US leader.

At the same time, with rumblings of lower attendance due to Trump’s restrictions on foreign travel, it is not out of the question that this year’s event could be a swan song for the long-held tradition of kicking off the UNGA in the US, the International Crisis Group’s Gowan said.

“I do think that, down the road, when people are organising big events around the UN, they are going to say ‘Should we do this in Geneva or Vienna or Nairobi?’” he said.

“If the US isn’t going to give out visas, then what’s the point of trying to do the global meetings there?”

Reporting from Sacramento — An Assembly panel on Tuesday recommended the confirmation of Los Angeles Rep. Xavier Becerra as state attorney general after the nominee pledged to aggressively defend state policies on immigration, civil rights and the environment against potential attacks by President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration.

Before the panel’s 6-3 vote in favor of confirmation, with all Republicans opposed, Co-Chairman Reggie Jones-Sawyer (D-Los Angeles) told Becerra that he expects the state will become involved in a “long and ferocious and hard-fought legal war” with the federal government.

“Now more than ever we need an attorney general who will defend our values and stand up to the next administration’s backward vision for America,” Jones-Sawyer said during the hearing, denouncing Trump’s campaign rhetoric as “xenophobic.”

Gov. Jerry Brown introduced Becerra at the two-hour hearing, warning that “there are big battles ahead” and calling his nominee an “outstanding candidate that can certainly champion the causes we believe in.”

The nomination still must be acted on by the full Assembly, which is scheduled to vote Friday, as well as the Senate. The Senate Rules Committee will hold a confirmation hearing Jan. 18.

Becerra was questioned for more than an hour by members of the Assembly Special Committee on the Office of the Attorney General. He told them he is ready to fight for the state’s values. He told the panel that as the son of hardworking immigrants, he is committed to fighting any federal policy that takes away the rights of Californians who are playing by the rules.

“As California’s chief law enforcement officer and legal advocate, I am going to be ready to deploy those values and life lessons to advance and defend the rights — big and small — of all Californians,” Becerra told the panel. “Everyone who plays by California’s rules deserves to know, ‘We’ve got your back.’ ”

The 12-term congressman said he supports the state’s policies protecting the environment and civil rights. He said he opposes racial profiling by police and the stop-and-frisk policies of other cities.

With Trump proposing mass deportations and registration of immigrants from predominantly Muslim countries, Becerra said, “the head winds from outside of California could threaten the basic rights of so many families like the one I grew up in.”

“At risk is the notion that anyone who, like my parents and yours, works hard and builds this country can dream to own their own home, send their kids to college, earn a dignified retirement,” he said.

Asked about threats of cuts in federal funding to sanctuary cities, Becerra said cities will not protect violent criminals.

“‘Sanctuary’ is simply saying we are not going to go out there and do the bidding of an aggressive immigration enforcement agency.”

Updates from Sacramento »

Becerra noted that federal law, on occasion, preempts state law, but he said he will be vigilant in ensuring that the state’s laws are preserved to the extent possible.

“If we have laws in place, we have every right to protect those laws,” Becerra said. “And while the federal government has preemption authority in most cases against the state for matters that are federal in nature, the federal government would have to prove that what it’s doing is federal in nature and that it isn’t violating the state’s rights to enact laws that improve the welfare of its people.

“You will find me being as aggressive as possible working with all of you to figure out ways that we can make sure there is no federal intrusion in areas that are really left to the state in the U.S. Constitution.”

Republican members called on Becerra to make fighting crime his top priority and said they had concerns about the attorney general failing to defend the rights of gun owners and religious institutions facing interference by the state government.

Assemblyman James Gallagher (R-Plumas Lake) complained about religious nonprofits being told by the state they must inform clients of the availability of abortion services even if it is against their beliefs.

Becerra tried to lighten the mood in the face of deeply philosophical questions.

“You’re getting into some subjects that probably require a few beers,” Becerra said, offering to buy Gallagher a round so they could talk about weighty issues.

Some 50 people testified, with support coming from groups such as the Sierra Club, Los Angeles Police Protective League, Equality California and several labor unions. Only two people objected to the nomination, including an American Independent Party member who questioned whether Becerra had enough years serving as an attorney to be qualified.

Craig DeLuz of the Firearms Policy Coalition said his group wants a state attorney general who can protect the constitutional rights of gun owners.

“Unfortunately, based on the record, we simply do not believe that this nominee is capable of doing that,” DeLuz told the panel.

The National Rifle Assn. also opposed Becerra in a letter.

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A recently fired California Legislature staff member filed a lawsuit this week against Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas claiming that the lawmaker and his brother, Rick, retaliated against her for reporting sexual harassment and alleged ethics violations.

Former press secretary Cynthia Moreno alleged in the lawsuit, filed Tuesday in Sacramento County Superior Court, that the speaker targeted her after she filed a sexual harassment complaint against a colleague in May 2024 and stripped her of “significant job responsibilities.”

Early this year, Moreno filed another complaint to the Workplace Conduct Unit, which investigates allegations of inappropriate conduct by legislative employees, alleging Rick Rivas, a nonprofit organization and a political action committee had “funneled money” to exert influence on the speaker, according to the lawsuit.

In response, Moreno alleges in the lawsuit, Rick Rivas used his influence to deny her a tenure-based pay raise and terminate her employment.

Rick Rivas is the American Beverage Assn.’s vice president for California and has acted as a political advisor to his brother. Rick Rivas did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

Elizabeth Ashford, a spokesperson for Robert Rivas, said the speaker’s brother had no role in Moreno’s employment and the lawmaker “recused himself from all matters related to Moreno’s termination,” which was handled by the Workplace Conduct Unit.

“The vast conspiracy theories included in this filing are absolutely false,” Ashford said in a statement, adding that “any court will see this for what it is: an attempt by a former employee to force a payout.”

The Assembly Rules Committee terminated Moreno in August after an investigation substantiated allegations of sexual harassment that had been lodged against her, according to Chief Administrative Officer Lia Lopez. Moreno has denied those allegations.

Moreno is seeking damages for lost wages and benefits, lost business opportunities and harm to her professional reputation. She’s also seeking a public apology for the “made-up sexual-harassment allegations launched against [her] for reporting Robert Rivas’ and Rick Rivas’ illegal and unethical actions,” the lawsuit states.

WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Marco Rubio has revoked the visas of a number of Palestinian Authority and Palestine Liberation Organization officials ahead of next month’s annual high-level meeting of the U.N. General Assembly, where the groups previously have been represented.

The State Department said in a statement Friday that Rubio also had ordered some new visa applications from Palestinian officials be denied.

The move is the latest in a series of steps the Trump administration has taken to target Palestinians with visa restrictions and comes as the Israeli military declared Gaza’s largest city a combat zone. The State Department also suspended a program that had allowed injured Palestinian children from Gaza to come to the U.S. for medical treatment after a social media outcry by some conservatives.

The State Department didn’t specify how many visas had been revoked or how many applications had been denied. The department did not immediately respond to a request for more specifics.

It wasn’t immediately clear if Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas would be affected.

The agency’s statement did say that representatives assigned to the Palestinian Authority mission at the United Nations would be granted waivers under the U.S. host country agreement with the U.N. so they can continue their New York-based operations.

“It is in our national security interests to hold the PLO and PA accountable for not complying with their commitments, and for undermining the prospects for peace,” the statement said. “Before the PLO and PA can be considered partners for peace, they must consistently repudiate terrorism — including the October 7 massacre — and end incitement to terrorism in education, as required by U.S. law and as promised by the PLO.”

The Palestinian ambassador to the U.N., Riyad Mansour, told reporters Friday that he had just learned of Rubio’s decision and was assessing its impact.

“We will see exactly what it means and how it applies to any of our delegation, and we will respond accordingly,” he said.

Mansour said Abbas was leading the delegation to next month’s U.N. meetings and was expected to address the General Assembly — as he has done for many years. He also was expected to attend a high-level meeting co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia on Sept. 22 about a two-state solution, which calls for Israel living side by side with an independent Palestine.

Lee writes for the Associated Press. AP writer Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report.

There are plenty of reasons to dislike Carl DeMaio, if you so choose.

The first-term San Diego assembly member is MAGA to his marrow, bringing Donald Trump’s noxious politics and personal approach to Sacramento. For Democrats, the mere mention of his name has the same effect as nails applied to a chalkboard.

Fellow Republicans aren’t too fond of DeMaio, either.

Party leaders worked strenuously — and far from successfully — to keep DeMaio from being elected last fall. They accused him of criminal wrongdoing. Allies spent millions of dollars to boost his GOP rival.

Republican foes “cite his relentless self-promotion, his criticism of his party and his tendency to take credit for victories he played little or no part in to help him fundraise and elevate his political brand,” CalMatters wrote in a harsh January profile.

None of that, however, excuses the silly and juvenile behavior of the Assembly’s majority Democrats last week when the chamber took up a resolution commemorating Pride month.

DeMaio, the Assembly’s first openly gay Republican member, rose on the floor to voice his objections. Usually lawmakers have around five minutes to offer their remarks without interruption.

Not this time.

DeMaio complained that the resolution — larded with more than three dozen whereas-es — strayed far afield from a straightforward commendation, endorsing some “very controversial and extremist positions” opposed even by members of the LGBQT+ community.

“This is not about affirming the LGBT community,” DeMaio said. “It’s about using them as a political pawn to divide us.”

You can agree or disagree with DeMaio. You can embrace the resolution and its myriad clauses with all your heart, or not. That’s beside the point.

About 90 seconds into his remarks, DeMaio was interrupted by the Assembly member presiding over the debate, Democrat Josh Lowenthal of Long Beach, who said he had a “very important announcement” to make.

And what was the pressing matter that couldn’t possibly wait a second longer? Wishing another Assembly Democrat a happy birthday.

Cheers and applause filled the chamber.

DeMaio resumed, only to be interrupted a short time later. Lowenthal deadpanned that he’d forgotten: It had been another Democratic lawmaker’s birthday just a few days earlier. More cheers and applause.

DeMaio resumed and then was interrupted a third time, so Lowenthal could wish “a very, very happy birthday” to a third Democratic Assembly member, who was marking the occasion the next day.

The response in the chamber, laughter mixed with more whoops and cheers, suggested the hazing by Lowenthal and fellow Democrats was great good fun and oh-so-clever.

It wasn’t.

It was petty. It was stupid.

And it bespoke the arrogance of a super-majority party too used to having its way and bulldozing Sacramento’s greatly outnumbered Republicans.

A few things are worth noting here, seeing as how California is supposed to be governed by a representative democracy.

DeMaio’s political peers may not be terribly enamored of the freshman lawmaker. But he was the clear-cut favorite of voters in San Diego, who sent him to the Assembly by a whopping 57% to 43% margin. Their views and voices deserve to be heard.

Democrats may be California’s majority party, enjoying a sizable registration advantage. They hold 60 of 80 seats in the Assembly and 30 of 40 in the state Senate. But the state has nearly 6 million registered Republicans. There are doubtless many more in California who support the party, or at least its policies and broad philosophy, but choose not to formally affiliate with the GOP.

They, too, deserve to be heard.

A not-insignificant number of California residents feel overlooked, ignored and unrepresented by Democrats and their hegemonic rule over Sacramento. The frustration helped spawn the fruitless and wasteful 2021 attempt to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom — which cost taxpayers more than $200 million — and fuels the perennial fantasy of a breakaway rural state called Jefferson.

To a larger point: One-party rule is not good for California.

“When you’re competing, you’ve got to be sort of on your toes,” said Thad Kousser, a UC San Diego political science professor who’s researched the difference between states with two vibrant political parties and those ruled by one or the other.

“When you’re solidly in control, you don’t feel like you need to prove it to voters,” Kousser went on. “You can write off certain areas of the state. You can ignore legislators in the other party, because you don’t think the shoe will ever be on the other foot.

“None of that,” Kousser concluded, “is good for democracy.”

It’s been well over a decade since Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger left office and Republicans wielded meaningful clout in Sacramento. The last time the GOP controlled the Assembly was when Bill Clinton was in the White House. Gerald Ford was president the last time Republicans had a majority in the state Senate.

That’s not likely to change anytime soon.

In the meantime, Democrats don’t have to love their fellow lawmakers. They don’t even have to like them. But at the very least, Republicans elected to serve in Sacramento should be treated with respect.

Their constituents deserve as much.

June 24 (UPI) — Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau will lead the U.S. delegation at this week’s Organization of American States General Assembly in St. John’s, Antigua and Barbuda.

The OAS event is scheduled from Wednesday through Friday at the American University of Antigua, and Landau will open the event by delivering the United States’ opening address.

“Deputy Secretary Landau’s trip underscores the United States’ commitment to addressing the shared challenges and opportunities in our hemisphere, consistent with the OAS’s founding charter and the Inter-American Democratic Charter,” a State Department news release said.

Landau also will advocate for the election of Rosa Maria Paya of the United States to serve on the OAS’s Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.

Other goals for Landau include urging OAS member states to address illegal immigration and “dire situations” in Venezuela and Haiti, according to the new release.

Dominican Republic Foreign Minister Roberto Alvarez is scheduled to discuss matters in Haiti, urge the international community to assist Haitians and address related regional security concerns.

The OAS General Assembly has met annually since 1971 and has four sessions scheduled on Thursday and Friday.

During this year’s assembly, member states will elect three members each for the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and the Inter-American Juridical Committee.

The states also will elect two members of the Justice Studies Center of the Americas, one member of the Administrative Tribunal and one member of the Audit Committee.

The General Assembly is the “supreme organ” of the OAS, and each of its 34 member states has one vote per ballot.

Its purpose is to strengthen and coordinate cooperation with the United Nations and its agencies, promote regional collaboration, assess OAS reports and establish requirements of its member states.

SACRAMENTO — Nearly six months after a firestorm ravaged communities across Los Angeles, California lawmakers are crafting legislation to try to protect the state insurance program for high-risk homes from financial collapse.

A bill, AB 226, sponsored by Assemblymembers Lisa Calderon (D-Whittier) and David A. Alvarez (D-San Diego), would make the state’s insurer of last resort, the FAIR Plan, eligible for loans and bonds from the state-backed California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank to avoid running out of money after a disaster.

Alvarez proposed the measure last year but it failed to pass. Despite receiving unanimous support in the Assembly, the bill never reached the Senate floor for a vote before the end of the 2024 legislative session.

If the measure had passed last year and been signed into law by the governor, the FAIR Plan would have had more flexibility to weather the massive number of claims filed after the January firestorms, Alvarez said.

Instead, the FAIR plan was forced to imposed an extra $1 billion in total assessments on insurers that provide homeowners policies in California. To recoup those expenses, insurance companies are expected to hike rates on homeowners through monthly surcharges.

“Had they had this option available to them … they would not be having to hit consumers with price increases on the private market now,” Alvarez said.

AB 226 is one of many wildfire-related bills still winding their way through the slow legislative process. If passed into law, the measures would protect homeowners from price gouging after disasters, streamline the process for filing claims for lost property and offer financial protections for disaster victims.

Lawmakers and Gov. Gavin Newsom in January approved $2.5 billion in wildfire aid after the Palisades and Eaton fires killed more than two dozen people and became the second and third most destructive fires in state history. Legislative leaders at the time signaled for a swift, bipartisan approach to the disaster.

“Tens of thousands of our neighbors, our families and friends, they need help. This means that we need to be able to move with urgency, put aside our differences, and be laser-focused on delivering the financial resources, delivering the boots on the ground that are needed and the policy relief that is needed to get neighborhoods cleaned up and communities rebuilt,” Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire (D-Healdsburg) said after it passed.

California’s last-ditch home insurer, the FAIR Plan, is meant as a backup for properties deemed high-risk and uninsurable by private companies. A Times analysis found that within the Eaton and Palisades fire zones, the number of homes on the plan nearly doubled between 2020 and 2024 and the plan has become one of the state’s largest insurers.

Amid lawsuits alleging collusion between private insurers and the FAIR Plan and policyholders raising concerns about delays in payments and smoke damage investigations, lawmakers and insurance advocates have repeatedly called for better safety nets — like the one proposed in AB 226 — to keep the insurer solvent in emergencies and viable as a long-term solution to the state’s home insurance problem.

This year, Alvarez was joined on the bill by Calderon, chair of the Assembly’s insurance committee. It passed through the Assembly at the beginning of March but has not yet seen its first Senate committee.

Alvarez celebrated the bill’s swift passage through the Assembly and hopes the Senate will work to do the same, “God forbid, if it has to be used because of a devastating fire this summer,” he said.

Other major wildfire bills being considered by lawmakers include:

• AB 493, which would require lenders to pay policyholders interest on disaster insurance payouts that are held in escrow. The measure, authored by Assemblymember John Harabedian (D-Pasadena) would close a loophole in existing law, which already requires interest payments on other escrowed funds.
• AB 597, also introduced by Harabedian, which would keep public insurance adjusters from gouging homeowners, especially after a natural disaster or state of emergency.
• SB 495, which would prevent insurers from requiring an itemized list of personal property losses from policyholders during a state of emergency, and would require insurers to provide extensions where reconstruction is delayed. The bill, introduced by state Sen. Benjamin Allen — who represents the Pacific Palisades and Santa Monica areas — passed a Senate floor vote on Tuesday and is headed to the Assembly.

Most of the pending legislation won’t directly support survivors of the Palisades and Eaton fires but are still important to the rebuilding process, said Maryam Zar, president emeritus of the Pacific Palisades Community Council and founder of the Palisades Recovery Coalition.

The new laws would help prevent and prepare for future fires, she said, and are a show of goodwill to the communities that are suffering still.

Some other fire relief measures focus on easing the permit process for rebuilding, while others extend provisions set by Newsom during the state of emergency — easing tenancy rights for people staying in temporary housing for longer than 30 days, shortening the permit approval timeline and securing mortgage forbearance for destroyed properties for up to a year after the disaster. Others look to address staffing issues for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection as fire season turns into a year-round threat.

“Wildfire survivors continue to face housing insecurity, financial strain, and emotional trauma long after the immediate danger has passed,” Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath said in a statement. “These State bills represent a commitment to meeting people where they are — actively in recovery, rebuilding their lives, and in need of our long-term support.”

May 21 (UPI) — Activists, officials and defectors highlighted North Korean human rights violations at a high-level meeting of the United Nations General Assembly Tuesday, with many directly tying Pyongyang’s systemic abuses to its growing nuclear weapons and missile programs.

The meeting on the North’s human rights violations, the first of its kind held at the General Assembly, featured testimonies by two escapees who shared harrowing stories of oppression and implored the world to hold North Korean leader Kim Jong Un accountable.

“Silence is complicity,” said Kim Eun-joo, who was 11 years old when she fled with her mother and sister in 1999 to escape starvation in rural North Korea.

After crossing the Tumen River into China, Kim and her family faced years of human trafficking before finally making it to South Korea.

She pointed to North Korea’s military cooperation with Russia, particularly its deployment of troops to aid Moscow in its war against Ukraine, as a “new kind of modern-day slavery.”

“[The soldiers] have no idea where they are, whom they are fighting against or why,” she said. “Their lives have become a means for the Kim Jong Un regime to make money.”

Pyongyang has deployed around 15,000 troops to Russia, Seoul’s spy agency said last month. Some 600 of the soldiers have been killed and another 4,100 injured, the National Intelligence Service told lawmakers in a briefing.

Seoul and Washington also accused North Korea of supplying artillery and missiles to Russia. In exchange, Pyongyang is believed to be receiving much-needed financial support and advanced military technology for its own weapons programs.

Participants in the U.N. meeting highlighted the close link between North Korea’s human rights abuses and the regime’s growing arsenal.

“The regime preserves itself through producing nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles,” Greg Scarlatoiu, president and CEO of the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea, said.

“North Korea is no longer just a Korean Peninsula threat. The DPRK is no longer just a Northeast Asian threat,” Scarlatoiu said.

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is the official name of North Korea.

“The DPRK is exporting instability to the Middle East and to Europe,” Scarlatoiu said. “And the root cause of this is the human rights violations that the DPRK perpetrates.”

North Korean Ambassador to the United Nations Kim Song condemned the meeting, calling it a “burlesque of intrigue and fabrication” staged by “hostile forces” including the United States.

Kim also slammed the invitation of the North Korean escapees, calling them “the scum of the earth who don’t even care about their parents and families.”

Elizabeth Salmon, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on human rights in North Korea, told the General Assembly that North Korea has diverted resources toward militarization at the expense of human rights and basic necessities such as food, healthcare and sanitation.

“As the DPRK expands its extreme militarization policies, it exacerbates the extensive reliance on forced labor and quota systems, showing how peace, security and human rights are strongly interrelated,” Salmon said.

She added that North Korea’s border closures at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in January 2020 worsened its human rights situation, as Pyongyang used the isolation to enact brutal new laws restricting access to information from the outside world.

A 2014 landmark U.N. Commission of Inquiry report documented North Korean crimes against humanity, including torture, rape, execution, deliberate starvation and forced labor, that were “without parallel in the contemporary world.”

South Korean Ambassador to the United Nations Hwang Joon-kook echoed calls to more closely tie North Korea’s human rights violations to its nuclear ambitions, which he said were “deeply interconnected.”

“For far too long the DPRK’s human rights violations have been overshadowed by its nuclear threats,” he said. “Their nuclear program is sustained by systemic repression, forced labor, diverted national resources and total control of its people.”

Hwang called North Korea “a real-life version of George Orwell‘s novel 1984.”

“However, the DPRK’s horrendous crimes do not stop at the border,” he said. “If human rights violations are stopped, nuclear weapons development will also stop.”