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Newsom proposes defunding police, prisons, public safety as California faces massive deficit

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Newsom proposes defunding police, prisons, public safety as California faces massive deficit


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Gov. Gavin Newsom, D-Calif., proposed slashing budgets regarding public safety, such as prisons and law enforcement, as the state simultaneously grapples with a crippling deficit and doubles down on climate goals relating to equity.

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The California Democrat’s proposed budget, released in May, notes that “difficult decisions” are necessary to address the estimated $27.6 billion deficit, which is projected to continue for years to come. It includes a $97 million cut to trial court operations, $10 million to the Department of Justice’s Division of Law Enforcement and more than $80 million to the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

A Newsom spokesperson initially told Fox News Digital that there were “no cuts to law enforcement.” 

“The budget proposes numerous ways to make government more efficient and reduce costs for taxpayers, including cuts on inmate spending. Since Governor Newsom took office in 2019, the state has made record investments in law enforcement, including $1.1 billion to tackle crime, support police, and hold criminals accountable,” the spokesperson said. 

“I look at what’s happening in California is just the greatest disrespect of taxpayers resources in the history of America,” the chief financial officer of the State of Florida, told Fox News Digital.  (Fox News Digital | Getty)

However, an official from the Department of Finance acknowledged a 1.6% reduction in the state’s Department of Justice’s overall proposed budget.

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“What’s happening in California is just the greatest disrespect of taxpayer’s resources in the history of America,” Florida’s chief financial officer, Jimmy T. Patronis, told Fox News Digital. “They’re in a panic. They’re in a free fall. They’re looking for money to make up this enormous budget deficit they’ve got right now.” 

Patronis argued that an exodus from California has helped fuel the budget deficit. The Golden State experienced the largest net loss of one-way movers, according to a United Van Lines study published earlier this year. 

Moreover, California’s green energy policies have caused blue-collar businesses to suffer from stagnation and decline, a Chapman University study published in April found. Soaring home prices in California, exacerbated by environmental regulations, are also causing historically White middle class people to join the exodus, according to the study. 

Nonetheless, Newsom proposed shifting money from the general fund, offering $1.7 billion for climate goals, particularly those related to “equity programs.” 

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Patronis also said California’s deficit was partially due to businesses fleeing the state because of high crime. Newsom’s proposal to cut public safety funds will only fuel the “vicious cycle,” he added. Florida, on the other hand, has had budget surpluses. 

“Ultimately, this vicious cycle where you’ve got a weaker prison system” will cause “weaker incarceration, which has been kind of the narrative that’s been coming out of California now,” Patronis said. “San Francisco has been kind of like the poster child for businesses fleeing a once-prosperous city.”

Since the beginning of the year, there have been 8,686 thefts in San Francisco, not including 1,962 burglaries and 2,298 motor vehicle thefts, according to the latest available crime stats. 

This year alone, retailers such as Aldo, J.Crew and Madewell announced they were closing their stores at the San Francisco Centre. This follows a trend of major stores who have fled the Northern California city, leaving malls with major vacancies, according to a report. The North Face and Macy’s also closed down at the beginning of 2024, and Zara is expected to follow suit in 2025. 

The governor’s office pointed to violent and property crime being down the first quarter of this year when compared to last year.

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Homeless encampments line the streets in Oakland, California on Friday, March 15, 2024. The city remains plagued by homelessness as nearby businesses close their doors due to safety concerns. (DWS for Fox News Digital)

The $80 million cut from the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation is intended to eliminate 4,600 beds across 13 prisons. Newsom also proposed slashing law enforcement training and cutting $4.4 million from county probation departments.

The California State Legislature, meanwhile, is pushing against some of the proposed cuts regarding public safety, particularly a $15 million decrease from the DOJ, Department of Finance deputy director for external affairs H.D. Palmer told Fox News Digital. 

“These proposed reductions are unallocated reductions, meaning that it would be up to the department as to how they would be implemented,” Palmer said. 

The legislature has until June 15 to approve the budget, which would go into effect in July.

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Patronis attributed Florida’s financial success, in part, to Newsom’s failures as governor to ensure Californians feel safe.

“The one that you have to hold responsible is Gavin Newsom,” he said. “When you create a safe environment, people want to relocate their businesses.”

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“You created an environment [in California] where … you are defunding the police and defunding law enforcement. So look, in the state of Florida, we’ve taken advantage of their poor governance,” Patronis continued. “We have offered incentive bonuses. We’ve actually recruited law enforcement officers for the state of Florida with a $5,000 recruitment bonus. And we have gotten law enforcement officers from all 50 states.”

One worker was injured, and a second killed after a truck veered onto the shoulder of a Southern California highway. (Fox News)

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Patronis also worried about Newsom’s future ambitions.

“I think he would love to be president one day … He could just lie straight through his teeth like nobody I’ve ever seen on camera,” he said. “I would hate to ever see somebody with that type of a deliberate mindset to be in charge of our country’s economy.” 

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Fox News’ Hannah Panreck and Jamie Joseph contributed to this report. 

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Chance of more showers in L.A., with a new storm set to hit Thursday

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Chance of more showers in L.A., with a new storm set to hit Thursday


Showers could linger in Los Angeles on Tuesday following four straight days of rain — and even more rain is likely on Thursday and Friday.

There’s a 20% to 30% of showers and thunderstorms Tuesday across much of Los Angeles County, the National Weather Service said, although it’s expected to be mostly sunny. The thunderstorms will remain a slight risk because of a cold front that ushered in unstable air Monday.

By Tuesday, the cold front will have moved away from L.A., but the cold core of the low-pressure system will still be around. “This will bring enough instability to the area for a slight chance of thunderstorm development,” the weather service in Oxnard said.

Temperatures have chilled with the latest storm. While the L.A. coast and San Gabriel Valley on Monday reached the mid-60s, due to late arriving rain, most of L.A. County’s coastal areas and valleys “struggled to get out of the 50s,” the weather service said.

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Wednesday will bring a reprieve with sunny skies, but another storm is expected to enter Southern California on Thursday and continue through Friday.

Thursday’s storm is expected to drop from 0.25 to 0.75 inches of precipitation. That’s on top of the 0.74 inches of rain that fell on downtown L.A. in the 24-hour period that ended at 9 p.m. Monday. Before that, the weekend storm that began Friday brought 2.68 inches of rain to downtown.

For the 24-hour period ending 9 p.m. Monday, Porter Ranch received 1.61 inches; La Cañada Flintridge, 1.5; Northridge, 1.43; Bel-Air, 1.21; Castaic, 1.15; Van Nuys, 1.12; and Beverly Hills, 1.11.

Warm Springs Camp, in the mountains overlooking the Santa Clarita Valley, recorded an 18-hour rainfall total of 2.5 inches by Monday evening.

The storms, thus far, have caused some mayhem but no severe or life-threatening damage in recently burned areas.

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By late Monday night, landslides and flooding were reported on a number of roads. The 5 Freeway near Highway 14, between Sylmar and Santa Clarita, suffered flooding Monday afternoon, as did an offramp on the 91 Freeway at Carmenita Road. The California Highway Patrol said there was flooding at onramps to the 10 Freeway in El Monte and the 605 Freeway on the southern border of Baldwin Park.

Mountain roads were hard hit. One motorist on Angeles Crest Highway, a road that winds through the San Gabriel Mountains, became “stuck in mud, dirt and rock” in a northbound lane, while the southbound lane was completely blocked with multiple landslides, according to reports filed to the National Weather Service. Snowplows couldn’t haul away the debris because it was too heavy.

Near the 101 Freeway in Hidden Hills, a number of vehicles hydroplaned as Round Meadow Road flooded near Mureau Road.

Monday afternoon and evening also brought rockslides or mudsldies to San Francisquito Canyon Road, the mountainous route that connects Santa Clarita to the Antelope Valley; a section of Kanan Dume Road, which leads into the Santa Monica Mountains from Malibu; and on Mulholland Highway south of Calabasas.

Snow levels were at around 7,000 feet on Monday but were expected to drop to 5,000 feet by Tuesday. Officials issued a winter weather advisory for the eastern San Gabriel Mountains and the northern Ventura County mountains that is set to last through Tuesday night. About 2 to 5 inches of snow could fall in the mountains.

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“As for the Grapevine area, there is a chance of a dusting of snow Tuesday morning as the snow levels lower,” the weather service said. The Grapevine is a key travel corridor on the 5 Freeway that connects L.A. and Santa Clarita with the Central Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area.

The highest point of the Grapevine section is the Tejon Pass, which peaks in elevation at 4,144 feet above sea level. At that location, “some non-accumulating snow is possible,” the weather service said.



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New roller coaster coming to Legoland California and Florida

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New roller coaster coming to Legoland California and Florida


Legoland doesn’t have the same mindshare as a Disney or Universal resort, but Merlin Entertainments, the owner of those theme parks, is hoping to get onto the radar of more theme park enthusiasts with an upcoming $90 million expansion.

The Galacticoaster, scheduled to open in 2026 at both the Legoland Florida and Legoland California resorts, will be an indoor family coaster that’s themed to one of the first Lego space sets from the 1970s, when a 100-piece set was considered expansive.

This will be the first new roller coaster at Carlsbad’s Legoland California in nearly 20 years. In Winter Haven, Fla., it will be Legoland Florida’s first new coaster in 15 years.

Legoland hasn’t offered a lot of details about the coaster just yet. The building that will house it, however, will have the same footprint as 10 basketball courts. The track will be more than 1,500 feet long.

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California’s Lego Galaxy expansion will also feature two additional themed rides, food and gift shop offerings, and a “Junior Astronaut Training Zone” for toddlers.

Legoland’s expansion comes as Disney is in the midst of a $60 billion capital investment between now and 2033, which includes a variety of planned updates and changes at its park, updating legacy attractions and unveiling what it called “the largest ever” expansion plans for the Magic Kingdom. The company is also adding seven ships to its cruise line fleet, including the Destiny, which will begin sailing on Nov. 20.

Universal, meanwhile, recently launched Epic Universe, a $6 billion new theme park that spans 110 acres, with hundreds more for expansion. Universal, in August, said revenue at its parks was up 19% thanks to Epic Universe.

A $90 million expansion doesn’t come close to matching those numbers, but Legoland doesn’t have to fight at the same level as those companies. Merlin Entertainment, earlier this year, said annual sales hit a record high last year, with revenues jumping 8% to £2.1 billion (about $2.8 billion) in 2024.

Beyond Legoland, Merlin owns the Madame Tussauds museums and the Orlando Wheel at Icon Park, Central Florida’s tallest ferris wheel.  

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Lingering thunderstorms bring flooding risk after atmospheric river drenches much of California – WTOP News

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Lingering thunderstorms bring flooding risk after atmospheric river drenches much of California – WTOP News


LOS ANGELES (AP) — A powerful atmospheric river had mostly moved through California after causing at least six deaths and…

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A powerful atmospheric river had mostly moved through California after causing at least six deaths and dousing much of the state, but lingering thunderstorms brought the risk of mudslides in areas of Los Angeles County that were recently ravaged by wildfire.

Flood advisories remained in place through Sunday afternoon for LA, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, where localized showers were still possible after heavy downpours on Friday and Saturday.

“Due to the abundant rainfall the past couple of days, it will not take as much rainfall to cause additional flooding/rockslide conditions,” the National Weather Service said in a Sunday update.

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Authorities on Sunday were still searching for a 5-year-old girl who was swept into the ocean by 15-foot (4.6-meter) waves at a state beach in Monterey County on Friday. The girl’s father, 39-year-old Yuji Hu, of Calgary, Alberta, was killed while trying to save his daughter, sheriff’s officials said.

In Sutter County north of Sacramento, a 71-year-old man died Friday after his vehicle was swept off a flooded bridge, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Off the coast of San Diego, a wooden boat believed to have been ferrying migrants toward the U.S. from Mexico capsized in stormy seas, leaving at least four people dead and four hospitalized, the Coast Guard said Saturday.

The long plume of tropical moisture that formed over the Pacific Ocean began drenching the San Francisco Bay Area on Wednesday night and then unleashed widespread rain over Southern California on Friday and Saturday. More than 4 inches (10 centimeters) of rain fell over coastal Santa Barbara County as the storm approached Los Angeles. Parts of the Sierra Nevada received more than a foot of snow.

The weather service said scattered rain could continue through Tuesday in the southern part of the state. Another storm was expected to arrive on Thursday.

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