Good morning. It’s Friday, Jan. 23.
- Rescuers save wild horses stranded in deep Sierra snow.
- Alex Honnold plans another ropeless climb, streamed live.
- And a massive data center project divides Imperial County.
Statewide
1.
Gov. Gavin Newsom is leading polls for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2028. His persona as a fighting moderate, willing to ruthlessly mock President Trump, has appealed to voters, wrote Marc Novicoff and Jonathan Chait in the Atlantic. But Newsom has a problem:
“He has been a California politician for decades, and has held the state’s governorship since 2019. During his tenure, the state has been a laboratory for some of the Democratic Party’s most politically fraught policies and instincts, which has left it less affordable and more culturally radical than it used to be.”
2.
After a wildlife photographer found a group of wild horses starving and stranded by deep snow near Mammoth Lakes two weekends ago, the U.S. Forest Service mounted a rescue operation to save them. Getting the animals out required cutting a trail through the snow and luring them onto trailers with food. About two dozen of the horses survived; another 10 or so died. The survivors are expected to require as much as 10 months to recover at a wildlife facility, the forest service said. L.A. Times
- See video of the trapped horses before their rescue.
Northern California
3.
Alex Honnold, the Sacramento climbing phenom who ascended El Capitan without a rope in 2017, is about to attempt his latest feat of madness: crawling up the side of a 101-story skyscraper in Taiwan — once again untethered. It will be streamed live on Netflix on Friday at 5 p.m. Pacific time. The event has drawn trepidation over the ethics of attempting such a risky climb on a live broadcast. But Honnold, now a married father of two young girls, has said he doesn’t expect it to be hard. “We’ll see,” he said. A.P.
- “Do you and Sanni talk about this at all — the decision to put your life at risk, and what the consequences would be for your family?” The New York Times asked Honnold about the possibility of something going wrong.
4.
Days after calling Israel’s military actions in Gaza a genocide for the first time, state Sen. Scott Wiener announced Thursday that he is stepping down as co-chair of the Legislative Jewish Caucus. Wiener, who is running for Nancy Pelosi’s House seat, faced two rounds of public outcry this month: first for declining to call Israel’s actions a genocide, then again for changing his mind. “My recent statements on Israel and Gaza have led to significant controversy in the Jewish community,” Wiener said. “The time to transition has arrived.” S.F. Chronicle
5.
Some political writers were stunned Wednesday when nine Democrats joined Republicans on the House Oversight Committee to hold former President Bill Clinton in contempt of Congress for refusing to appear for a deposition in the investigation of deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Among the Democrats who broke with party leadership was Oakland Rep. Lateefah Simon. She told the San Francisco Chronicle that she believes no one is above the law. “When you are subpoenaed, you show up,” she said.
6.
Far from the Southern California birthplace of Googie architecture, a striking example of the futurist architecture stands on a lonely corner in Sacramento. Constructed around 1964, the former gas station with outrageous triangular canopies is among only a few examples of the style in the capital city. On Wednesday, the city’s preservation commission voted unanimously to declare it a historic landmark, a move that would protect it from demolition for years to come. Sacramento Bee | CBS Sacramento
- See drone video of the gas station.
Southern California
7.
A hard-charging developer is trying to build a massive $10 billion data center in the arid Imperial Valley, one of California’s most impoverished rural regions. The plans call for a 950,000-square-foot facility that would require vast amounts of water and almost double the amount of electricity that the entire county used in 2024. Local opponents say the developer sees them as easy to exploit. “We need to stand two feet on the ground and say, ‘No,'” said Kathia Olivas, a substitute teacher. KPBS
8.
One tenant said the landlord sprayed her with bear mace. Another said she swung a broom at her head. Others said the landlord threatened to call ICE on them. Out of the more than 23,000 complaints filed against Los Angeles landlords, just one building owner has ever been charged with criminally harassing tenants: Nela Petrusan. She denies the accusations, including the ICE threat. “If I called immigration, all my tenants would leave,” Petrusan told the Los Angeles Times.
9.
According to the Recording Industry Association of America, the Eagles album “Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975” just became the first to sell more than 40 million units. Formed in Los Angeles in 1971, the Eagles built on the Beach Boys’ “California Sound,” crafting songs that became synonymous with the sun-drenched, feather-haired vibe of Southern California. “Come on,” they implored, “take it easy.” The latest milestone for the band comes as they prepare to perform a final run of shows at the Sphere in Las Vegas, starting Friday. A.P.
10.
“Sinners,” a musical vampire film set in the 1930s, received 16 Oscar nominations on Thursday, more than any other film in Academy Award history. “One Battle After Another” was close behind, with 13 nominations. Both films drew on the riches of California and its people. Paul Thomas Anderson’s “One Battle After Another” featured a sweeping tour of the state, and both films were directed by Californians, with Anderson hailing from the San Fernando Valley and “Sinners” director Ryan Coogler from the East Bay. Both men were nominated for best director. Berkeleyside | Hollywood Reporter
- See the full list of nominations.
11.
On this week’s California Sun Podcast, host Jeff Schechtman talked with Laurie Lipton, a Los Angeles-based artist known for her surreal pencil and charcoal drawings. A relentlessly productive artist, Lipton described drawing as an almost physiological need. “I use my work to deal with life. … I have very, very strong emotions, but I need the illusion of control,” she said. “Otherwise I think I’d start running through the streets screaming.”
In case you missed it
12.
Five items that got big views over the past week:
- In 1939, Fortune magazine commissioned Ansel Adams to document Los Angeles’ booming aerospace industry. Adams captured more than 200 pictures, showing the rituals of everyday residents in a city that is now barely recognizable. This week, a Santa Barbara museum opened an exhibit on Adams’ Los Angeles series. PetaPixel
- See 23 images from the collection. 👉 California Sun
- Tucked in a truck loading bay in a corner of Los Angeles is an extraordinary greenhouse filled with some of the world’s rarest plants. The greenhouse is tended by the landscape design company Geoponika for the sake of preservation, not retail. Landscape designer Carlos Campos Morera took Architectural Digest on a tour. YouTube
- “A dense, organic tapestry.” Julien Sage photographed Geoponika. Atmos
- In recent weeks, thousands of violent behemoths have occupied beaches along the California coast. The birthing and mating ritual of the northern elephant seals is one of nature’s wildest scenes. Bulls, each the weight of an SUV, engage in bloody brawls for dominance of harems, issuing roars that sound like motorcycles starting up. A.P.
- See video of an elephant seal battle.
- There’s a boulder atop a hill in San Francisco that serves as an ever-changing canvas for artistic expression. Every so often, the Bernal Hill Rock is painted anew, appearing as an avocado, Cookie Monster, a pumpkin, or a placard for political messages or homages to the dead. Atlas Obscura
- See the many incarnations of the Bernal Hill Rock.
- A pair of rustic cottages were listed for sale along the Big Sur River across from Pfeiffer Beach. The homes sit on a 9-acre property above the canopy of the forested canyon. Asking price: $2.6 million, or a whopping $2,567 per square foot. N.Y. Times
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