| | | | |  | | By Jeremy B. White, Lara Korte and Juhi Doshi | Presented by Southern California Edison | THE BUZZ: Anaheim's unfolding corruption scandal is about as compelling as Mike Trout's Hall of Fame case. A mayor musing about converting an MLB stadium deal into a six-figure campaign payoff. A deceptively registered yellow helicopter. A "small cadre of individuals" wielding behind-the-scene's control over the affairs of California's tenth-largest city. All of it is alleged in a pair of FBI affidavits whose explosive fallout this week has included calls for Anaheim Mayor Harry Sidhu's resignation and a halted ballpark breakthrough. Anaheim's years-long quest to sell Angel Stadium and the land it occupies sits at the center. The city initially proposed selling to team owner Arte Moreno's management group for $325 million; that became $150 million in cash and Moreno's team pledging $170 million worth of affordable housing and parkland. Plenty of elected officials questioned those terms. A prominent trio in 2020 assailed the modified proposal as an opaque, one-sided giveaway and questioned Sidhu having "no qualms." Then California's Department of Housing and Community Development warned the deal violated the Surplus Land Act, spurring Anaheim to agree on a $96 million affordable housing payout in April. But federal scrutiny prompted a court to shut down that deal this week. According to the FBI, there's probable cause that Sidhu committed a variety of criminal offenses as that unfolded (he has not been charged). The affidavit describes Sidhu securing a spot on the stadium negotiating team and then communicating confidential information to the Angels via a Chamber of Commerce intermediary — part of that purported inner sphere of power in Anaheim — and then repeatedly talking about how he expected the Angels to furnish half a million dollars in campaign cash in exchange for a stadium deal. Sidhu allegedly sought to conceal those communications. Oh, and the helicopter: the affidavit alleges Sidhu registered a helicopter in Arizona to avoid a roughly $15,000 California sales tax hit. In a related development, the feds also accused former Anaheim Chamber of Commerce CEO Todd Ament of laundering money and fudging his assets to secure a home loan. The feds' sketch of the scheme reads like an object lesson in cultivating political clout: Ament and his political consultant arranging a hotel "retreat" to plan policy, debating which elected officials to bring into their "cabal," talking about how they expect loyalty after re-electing an official and could "give" him a promotion. They describe moving elected officials like chess pieces, mocking one for bumbling a "script" they wrote for him to read at a City Council meeting but fretting that one could be a "double agent." Ament's alleged assessment of how one target operated: "smart enough to know how to take hall passes where he needs them, but not screw with your team." Representatives for Ament, the Angels and Sidhu did not respond to requests for comment. Anaheim Chamber of Commerce President Laura Cunningham said the organization was "shocked" by the allegations against Ament. Anaheim spokesman Mike Lyster called the contents of the affidavit "alarming" and "disheartening" and said the city negotiated on the stadium "in good faith" without being aware of Sidhu's alleged actions. So what's next? Multiple Anaheim City Council members have formally demanded Sidhu step aside in a letter to the city — a call that Assembly member Sharon Quirk-Silva echoed yesterday. Lyster said the city has not gotten a response from the mayor. But we could see another development next week: if Sidhu misses a Tuesday council meeting without an excuse, the city charter allows the council to declare his seat vacant. FURTHER READING: "After nine years, endless delays and a corruption probe, what's next for Angel Stadium?" writes the LATimes' Bill Shaikin. BUENOS DÍAS, good Friday morning. We get another Los Angeles mayoral event tonight, candidates focusing on homelessness and housing. Rep. Karen Bass, City Council member Kevin de León and organizer Gina Viola are set to discuss their plans in a KCRW/LATimes event that you can watch live here starting at 6. Got a tip or story idea for California Playbook? Hit us up jwhite@politico.com and lkorte@politico.com or follow us on Twitter @JeremyBWhite and @Lara_Korte. QUOTE OF THE DAY: "It's a powerful and ruthless industry. First the industry killed Halyna. Then they killed the bill that would've made people like her safe." Sen. Dave Cortese calls out Hollywood after the Senate Appropriations Committee halted his bill to regulate firearms in film production in response to cinematographer Halyna Hutchins being fatally shot on the Rust set. TWEET OF THE DAY: Assembly parliamentarian Brian Ebbert @SacGreenbelt after the power went out on Suspense File Day: "Ugh. #CALeg" WHERE'S GAVIN? Nothing official announced.
| | | | A message from Southern California Edison: We believe everyone should have the right to breathe clean air. That's why we're leading the charge for more clean, renewable energy. We're a national leader in battery storage and delivering solar energy to our customers. We're working to cut emissions from buildings and freeways. And we proudly support the growth of green jobs. | | | |  | Top Talkers | | HORROR IN BUFFALO — "The Enduring Afterlife of a Mass Shooting's Livestream Online," by the New York Times' Ryan Mac, Kellen Browning and Sheera Frenkel: "Online writings apparently connected to the 18-year-old man accused of killing 10 people at a Buffalo grocery store on Saturday said that he drew inspiration for a livestreamed attack from the Christchurch shooting. The clip on Facebook — one of dozens that are online, even after years of work to remove them — may have been part of the reason that the Christchurch gunman's tactics were so easy to emulate." — " The L.A. Times guide to the 101 best California experiences," by the LATimes: "One great answer is our own backyard. Driven by our pent-up wanderlust, The Times set out to find the most delightful, fascinating and awe-inspiring things to do right here in the Golden State. What we returned with is our most ambitious list of adventures. Behold, the California 101." — " Eva, the California dog that saved her owner from a mountain lion, may leave the vet today," by Sac Bee's Ryan Sabalow: "Eva, the 2½-year-old Belgian Malinois that was wounded fighting with a mountain lion on Monday, has likely recovered enough to go home from the animal hospital on Thursday, her owners say."
| | CAMPAIGN MODE | |
ASHBY v. JONES — "Big oil backers and bobblehead ads? Sacramento's Senate race heats up as PACs weigh in," by Sac Bee's Lindsey Holden: " Although Sacramento residents have already begun to fill out their ballots ahead of the June 7 primary, a political action committee, or PAC, has injected some late-breaking controversy into the 8th Senate District race by coming out against Jones so strongly."
AG RACE — "A 'no party preference' prosecutor could shake up California attorney general's race ," by the LATimes' Hannah Wiley: "Schubert is running to unseat Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta, the Democratic incumbent appointed by Gov. Gavin Newsom last year as the first Filipino American to hold the job. Should she advance to November, the race could become one of the fiercest competitions of 2022, testing the political viability of both independent candidates and a tough-on-crime platform reminiscent of California campaigns from the 1990s." | | | | STEP INSIDE THE WEST WING: What's really happening in West Wing offices? Find out who's up, who's down, and who really has the president's ear in our West Wing Playbook newsletter, the insider's guide to the Biden White House and Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details that you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today. | | | | | | | CALIFORNIA AND THE CAPITOL CORRIDOR | | SUSPENSEFUL: California won't ban offshore drilling after legislation stalls, by POLITICO's Colby Bermel: The defeat of SB 953 underscores the Golden State's rocky transition to a green economy, despite its environmental credentials. California is the seventh-largest oil-producing state in the country, activity that creates well-paid jobs and contributes to local tax bases. … Among the other bills that didn't survive yesterday's Appropriations Committees' suspense file culling, in which the advancement or demise of legislation gets announced auctioneer-style: measures to prod cities to convert municipal golf courses into affordable housing, require companies to disclose more information about worker pay and benefits (earned a "job killer" label from the Chamber of Commerce); and compel insurers to cover fertility treatments. A measure to make public pension funds divest from fossil fuels squeaked out after some back-and-forth in Senate Appropriations. NEWSOM'S RELIEF PACKAGE — " Gavin Newsom's inflation relief package could drive up prices even more, experts say," by Sac Bee's Cathie Anderson and David Lightman: "An $18.1 billion inflation-relief package proposed by Gov. Gavin Newsom will put salve on key pain points for Californians most affected by rising gas and grocery prices but also likely will cause prices to tick up just a tad more, leading economists say." — "California traffic deaths spiked for second year in a row in 2021," by SF Chronicle's Andres Picon: "Traffic deaths in California surged by 10.7% in 2021 relative to 2020, mirroring a grim upward trend observed nationwide, according to estimates released this week by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration." WHERE'S MY FRIDGE? — "Why do so many L.A. apartments come without fridges? Inside the chilling mystery," by the LATimes' Liam Dillon: " California law does not require refrigerators to be included in rental units, instead classifying them as "amenities" that aren't necessary to meet habitability standards. "It's like a hot tub," Maloney said, incredulously." — "Sac City won't extend school year after all. What it means for students and district ," by Sac Bee's Sawsan Morrar: "Sacramento City Unified School District will not extend its academic year to make up for class time lost during an eight-day teacher strike, district officials announcing on Thursday, dropping a proposal that could have kept classrooms open until late June."
| | | |   | | | | | BIDEN, HARRIS AND THE HILL | | — "Former L.A. public defender picked to lead federal Office for Access to Justice," by the LATimes' Sarah D. Wire: "On Thursday, Atty. Gen. Merrick Garland announced that Rossi will lead the newly reconstituted Office for Access to Justice, an Obama administration-era program to ensure poor defendants get legal representation in civil and criminal cases. She will be the first former public defender to hold the role, and one of few in recent history to ascend to such a prominent role in the agency."
| | SILICON VALLEYLAND | | ANTITRUST ALERT — "Scoop: Schumer seeks tech antitrust bill vote by early summer," by Axios' Ashley Gold: " Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) intends to put bipartisan tech antitrust legislation up for a vote by early summer, a Democratic source familiar with the situation tells Axios." CALL TO ACTION — "The midterms are here. Critics say Facebook is already behind," by WaPo's Naomi Nix: " Facebook in particular is facing scrutiny following its role in previous elections, in part because it has a such a broad user base in the United States and has proved to be easily manipulated by those seeking to spread misinformation. Advocates worry that the platform could be used again to spread content that seeks to delegitimize primaries and general election results just like in the run-up to the Jan. 6, 2021, siege of the Capitol." — " Twitter expands content-moderation rules to cover crises like war and disasters," by the New York Times' Kate Conger: "Twitter said on Thursday that it was adding new policies aimed at combating misinformation about the war in Ukraine and other crises like natural disasters, an expansion of its rules against misleading content."
| | | | HAPPENING WEDNESDAY—A WOMEN RULE TALK ON THE MIDTERMS : Join POLITICO'S Women Rule for a conversation with the women running the midterm campaigns and how they are shaping messaging and strategy for their candidates. The program will look into what a win for either party could mean for access to reproductive health care, economic advancement of women, and how the final stages of the Covid-19 pandemic are managed. REGISTER HERE. | | | | | | | HOLLYWOODLAND | | — "A child star at 7, in prison at 22. Then she vanished. What happened to Lora Lee Michel?" by the LATimes' Stacy Perman: " Hers was a classic tale of childhood stardom: the adorable moppet who got her once upon a time but not the happily ever after. Her story, as I soon discovered, was a parable, revealing the underbelly of Hollywood's Golden Age and the perils facing child actors. But it was also one family's search for answers and the buried secrets that have a way of eventually surfacing."
| | MIXTAPE | | BEST COFFEE IN TOWN — "Top Coffee in the S.F. Bay Area," by SF Chronicle's Cesar Hernandez. — "Two dead following gunfire, crash on I-580 in Oakland," by the East Bay Times' George Kelly. — " Co-owner of beloved Oakland Filipino restaurant killed in shooting in front of his 11-year-old son," by SF Chronicle.
| | BIRTHDAYS | | Michael Law, founder and CEO of Summit Strategy Group …
| | | | A message from Southern California Edison: This is a time of great change and uncertainty. But what remains constant is our commitment to building a clean energy future for everyone. That's why SCE is standing with California, leading the charge to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve local air quality and support continued economic growth. We're a national leader in battery storage and delivering solar energy to our customers. We're working to cut emissions from buildings and freeways. And we proudly support the fastest the growth of green jobs. We're more than 13,000 employees serving 15 million Californians. When we work together, we can move full speed ahead into a clean energy future. | | |
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