WEBVTT - 130 Units in a Backyard? San Diego Neighbors Sue ADU Developers 0:00:00.080 --> 0:00:04.400 Well, the city council might only give you sixty seconds 0:00:04.440 --> 0:00:05.560 to where your grievance is. 0:00:05.640 --> 0:00:08.000 Oh hi, i'd like to start go to the first 0:00:08.080 --> 0:00:09.160 caller on the phone. 0:00:09.600 --> 0:00:13.520 Well, if you're lucky, now we're giving you a both 0:00:13.920 --> 0:00:18.840 sixty minutes. It's a KABC News Blitz with Randy Wang 0:00:18.960 --> 0:00:21.639 and our long recap of the day's top local stories 0:00:21.640 --> 0:00:25.560 flung your drive home, and unlike the City Council, we're 0:00:25.600 --> 0:00:29.639 the perfect vehicle to actually get your voice heard. The 0:00:29.760 --> 0:00:33.800 KABC News Blitz with Randy Wang starts. 0:00:33.560 --> 0:00:37.040 No, No, It is the News Blitz with Randy Wang 0:00:37.120 --> 0:00:41.200 on Talk Radio seven ninety KABC. This is your daily 0:00:41.280 --> 0:00:43.879 rundown of everything you need to know that's going on 0:00:43.960 --> 0:00:48.440 in the state of California, Southern California, the Bay Area, Sacramento, 0:00:48.600 --> 0:00:51.480 San Diego, and the Central Valley. I currate a list 0:00:51.560 --> 0:00:53.920 every single day of all the stories that I found 0:00:53.920 --> 0:00:56.400 that you may find interesting from all of our local 0:00:56.440 --> 0:00:59.160 news stations up and down the Golden State. Check it 0:00:59.160 --> 0:01:02.760 out at Randy Waygradio dot substack dot com, and make 0:01:02.800 --> 0:01:05.600 sure you check out our YouTube channel where we have 0:01:06.400 --> 0:01:09.839 recordings of this show. The Live John Phillips Show, Best 0:01:09.880 --> 0:01:12.880 Segments from that, and of course the Accountability Podcast. Our 0:01:12.920 --> 0:01:15.800 brand new episode drops tomorrow at three pm with a 0:01:16.000 --> 0:01:19.600 interview with Steve Hilton. Check all that out at Johnny 0:01:19.600 --> 0:01:23.240 don't Like dot com or Randywangradio dot com. You can 0:01:23.280 --> 0:01:26.280 also email me at Randy Wang Radio at gmail dot 0:01:26.280 --> 0:01:28.160 com and give us a call at eight hundred two 0:01:28.240 --> 0:01:32.480 two two five two two two. It is very fitting 0:01:33.319 --> 0:01:37.760 that on the day where La County Fire announces what 0:01:37.920 --> 0:01:43.039 we already knew that so Cal Edison was definitely to 0:01:43.120 --> 0:01:46.560 blame for the Eaton fire, that we have this story 0:01:46.680 --> 0:01:50.320 from CBSLA So yes, and I'm sure we'll get a 0:01:50.320 --> 0:01:54.960 lot more coverage of this tomorrow. We have found out 0:01:55.280 --> 0:02:05.320 that the La County five Department finally finally has finished 0:02:05.360 --> 0:02:08.959 their investigation of the Eating Fire to find out what well, 0:02:09.080 --> 0:02:12.000 something that we knew for a very long time that 0:02:12.120 --> 0:02:17.160 so Cal Edison started the Eating Fire with their faulty equipment, 0:02:17.440 --> 0:02:21.560 specifically their zombie tower that they should have torn down 0:02:21.639 --> 0:02:25.200 fifty years ago that activated even though they were supposed 0:02:25.200 --> 0:02:27.840 to turn off all the power. So we'll get a 0:02:27.840 --> 0:02:31.320 lot more information on what the La County Fire Department 0:02:31.360 --> 0:02:36.000 has found out and what the implications are Meanwhile, Sacramento 0:02:36.639 --> 0:02:43.200 is back. Sacramento is got thirty days to author and 0:02:43.320 --> 0:02:46.840 pass legislation that then goes on to Gavin Newsom's desk 0:02:47.280 --> 0:02:51.640 for his final legislative session. And there's a lot of 0:02:52.200 --> 0:02:59.440 lobbyists for our private energy monopolies, whether that be so 0:02:59.639 --> 0:03:04.640 cal Medicine, Pacific Gas and Electric, or San Diego Gas 0:03:04.639 --> 0:03:11.800 and Electric, who want the California legislature to author new 0:03:11.880 --> 0:03:15.640 bills that would I'm going to try to say this 0:03:15.680 --> 0:03:24.080 without laughing, limit their liability from lawsuits when they start fires. 0:03:24.639 --> 0:03:27.040 Couldn't do it. I could not say it with a 0:03:27.080 --> 0:03:33.119 straight face. They actually have created their own phony Bologny 0:03:33.360 --> 0:03:38.880 group that's like Protect Wildfire Survivors Now, which is a 0:03:38.960 --> 0:03:42.400 fake advocacy group for Well, we really shouldn't go after 0:03:42.440 --> 0:03:44.880 the utility companies. And look, I want to make something 0:03:45.040 --> 0:03:46.960 very clear right off the bat, because I got a 0:03:47.080 --> 0:03:52.640 very strongly worded DM someone slid into my DMS that 0:03:53.320 --> 0:03:56.880 I believe was someone that worked for Pacific Gas and 0:03:56.960 --> 0:03:59.320 Electric depfor I went on one of my many, many, 0:03:59.320 --> 0:04:06.160 many rants against these companies. I'm sure there are people 0:04:06.200 --> 0:04:11.280 with integrity working on the lines, working, you know, on 0:04:11.320 --> 0:04:15.440 the regular jobs. The people that help power this state. 0:04:16.200 --> 0:04:20.000 When I criticize PG and E, when I criticize so 0:04:20.240 --> 0:04:24.599 Cal Edison, San Diego Gas and Electric, I'm not talking 0:04:24.640 --> 0:04:27.640 about the linemen. I'm not talking about the guys that 0:04:27.680 --> 0:04:31.599 dig the trenches. I'm not talking about the electricians. I'm 0:04:31.640 --> 0:04:37.600 talking about management and specifically how much money these monopolies 0:04:38.040 --> 0:04:42.800 spend on lobbying to our Boughton paid for California Legislature, 0:04:43.240 --> 0:04:46.240 our bought and paid for governor, and are bought and 0:04:46.360 --> 0:04:52.680 paid for California Public Utilities Commission. Not criticizing the actual 0:04:52.760 --> 0:04:57.000 people that do those jobs, because guess what, the lineman 0:04:57.200 --> 0:04:59.280 isn't the one that gets to make the decision that 0:04:59.320 --> 0:05:02.039 we don't get ri to the derelict zombie tower in 0:05:02.120 --> 0:05:05.039 Eaton Canyon. It's the lineman that doesn't get to make 0:05:05.080 --> 0:05:08.919 the decision that, oh, this hook is incredibly old and 0:05:09.000 --> 0:05:12.120 rusty on this tower in Paradise and could start a 0:05:12.160 --> 0:05:16.919 massive fire. No, none of that, But I for one 0:05:17.800 --> 0:05:22.720 have had enough of these companies lobbying to get their 0:05:22.800 --> 0:05:28.240 way when they are solely responsible for so much destruction 0:05:28.560 --> 0:05:31.040 in the state of California, to the point where when 0:05:31.120 --> 0:05:33.400 Pgenie got bailed out one of the things we had 0:05:33.400 --> 0:05:36.080 to do was get a wildfire fund going because we 0:05:36.200 --> 0:05:40.800 knew that these companies were going to continue burning down 0:05:40.839 --> 0:05:45.279 the state over and over and over again. It is 0:05:45.360 --> 0:05:49.200 a mess. I can't believe they're actually creating a phony 0:05:49.240 --> 0:05:52.440 Bologne group because what they're are worried about getting sued. 0:05:52.920 --> 0:05:56.279 This is, by the way, the same organization so Cal Edison, 0:05:56.760 --> 0:06:00.440 that has been trying to make settlements with people even 0:06:00.480 --> 0:06:03.360 before they were officially the cause of the fire at 0:06:03.360 --> 0:06:07.400 Eton Canyon, saying that hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, we'll 0:06:07.400 --> 0:06:09.760 write you a low ball settlement if you promise not 0:06:09.880 --> 0:06:12.440 to sue, because that lawsuit is going to take years 0:06:12.480 --> 0:06:14.320 and years and years, because we're going to fight it 0:06:14.400 --> 0:06:20.320 with every fiber of our being. And look, obviously, the 0:06:20.360 --> 0:06:24.880 goal of these private companies is to make as much 0:06:24.960 --> 0:06:28.760 money for their shareholders as possible. Why Pacific Gas and 0:06:28.880 --> 0:06:32.679 Electric literally asked for a rate increase to do nothing 0:06:32.760 --> 0:06:36.960 but reward their shareholders. And one of the things that 0:06:37.640 --> 0:06:40.440 very angry linemen sent to me and the DMS is true. 0:06:41.279 --> 0:06:44.640 You know, you could invest in these companies, and you 0:06:44.680 --> 0:06:47.359 could definitely make the argument that it makes sense to 0:06:47.480 --> 0:06:51.400 invest in these companies because the state is going to 0:06:51.440 --> 0:06:55.040 make sure that they never lose, because the state doesn't 0:06:55.040 --> 0:06:59.880 want to own the liability that these monopolies have by 0:07:01.200 --> 0:07:04.080 and believe you me, there are plenty of instances where 0:07:04.200 --> 0:07:07.640 municipally owned utilities are just as big of a mess, 0:07:08.080 --> 0:07:12.320 LADWP being prime suspect number one, But there are are 0:07:12.440 --> 0:07:17.760 municipalities where this works a lot better. And I don't 0:07:17.880 --> 0:07:21.160 like the fact that we have these monopolies that do 0:07:21.240 --> 0:07:24.760 not have our best interests. Let me give you for instance. 0:07:25.280 --> 0:07:27.640 You know, there's been a lot of talk about solar 0:07:27.680 --> 0:07:31.680 panels over the last few weeks because of the devastating 0:07:32.040 --> 0:07:37.800 destructive fire and boil heights, and I think it's strange 0:07:37.960 --> 0:07:42.320 that the mayor, the county, nobody wants to talk about 0:07:42.320 --> 0:07:47.480 how dangerous these high concentration solar panel farms are. And 0:07:47.560 --> 0:07:49.960 I think there needs to be a distinction between solar 0:07:49.960 --> 0:07:53.000 panel farms and rooftop solar. Having a couple of these 0:07:53.040 --> 0:07:55.720 on your roof is very different from having thousands of 0:07:55.760 --> 0:08:01.720 them on a warehouse. I'm a big advocate of rooftop solar, 0:08:02.200 --> 0:08:05.119 and for a very long time, so was the State 0:08:05.160 --> 0:08:09.440 of California. The State of California was a leader in 0:08:09.800 --> 0:08:14.280 pushing people to get the right kind of incentives to 0:08:14.440 --> 0:08:17.840 get solar panels on their roof. By the way, we 0:08:17.840 --> 0:08:20.760 can have a whole other discussion as to why it 0:08:20.920 --> 0:08:23.800 still cost you twenty thousand dollars to get these things 0:08:23.840 --> 0:08:26.040 on your roof when the cost of the materials has 0:08:26.080 --> 0:08:29.560 gone so far down that in certain places like Utah 0:08:29.680 --> 0:08:32.760 or even Germany, you can buy a solar panel that 0:08:32.840 --> 0:08:35.800 plugs into your wall that will cost you about eight 0:08:35.880 --> 0:08:39.600 hundred bucks. But that's another story for another day. The 0:08:39.600 --> 0:08:44.360 state of California encourage this technology. It was supposed to, 0:08:44.920 --> 0:08:49.120 you know, greenify our grid, make us less dependent on 0:08:49.240 --> 0:08:52.120 things like coal and natural gas and of course foreign 0:08:52.120 --> 0:08:56.320 oil what have you. And we had signed contracts that 0:08:56.520 --> 0:08:59.640 not only were you going to not have to pay 0:08:59.679 --> 0:09:02.760 a lot bill because now you're generating your own electricity, 0:09:03.120 --> 0:09:05.560 but you're actually going to get paid for the excess 0:09:05.600 --> 0:09:08.880 electricity that you put into the grid. And you know 0:09:08.920 --> 0:09:13.400 who didn't like that, so cal Edison, Pacific Gas and Electric, 0:09:13.600 --> 0:09:17.480 and San Diego Gas and Electric. These multi billion dollar 0:09:17.520 --> 0:09:22.120 corporations claim that they're losing so much money over rooftop 0:09:22.280 --> 0:09:27.800 solar that they, through their lobbied bribed members of the 0:09:27.960 --> 0:09:33.800 California Legislature. Gavin Newsom and the CPUC decided to slash 0:09:33.880 --> 0:09:37.840 those incentives, decided to slash what people were getting paid 0:09:37.880 --> 0:09:41.240 back for the electricity they were generating. And guess what, 0:09:41.720 --> 0:09:46.080 the solar industry has not recovered in the state of California. 0:09:46.520 --> 0:09:49.640 You know who's producing more wind and solar than California 0:09:49.760 --> 0:09:53.920 right now, Texas, And that is because we are utterly 0:09:54.000 --> 0:09:58.720 beholden to these incredibly corrupt companies. Not saying that the 0:09:58.800 --> 0:10:02.080 linemen are corrupt, I'm saying that the management is corrupt, 0:10:02.320 --> 0:10:05.319 and I mean corrupt in the simplest way. They use 0:10:05.440 --> 0:10:09.199 their money and their influence to pay politicians, whether it's 0:10:09.240 --> 0:10:12.800 through the legal means of lobbying or who knows what else, 0:10:13.200 --> 0:10:15.880 to get their way, and they don't give a crap 0:10:15.920 --> 0:10:19.800 about you. So I am not surprised at all. Then, 0:10:19.800 --> 0:10:22.440 on the day we find out that obviously so Cal 0:10:22.559 --> 0:10:25.600 Edison was responsible for the Eaton fire, that they are 0:10:25.640 --> 0:10:30.200 currently lobbying in Sacramento to get new laws passed that 0:10:30.280 --> 0:10:33.440 would limit how much they can get sued for when 0:10:33.600 --> 0:10:41.240 their old decrepit equipment burns down the state. Now, let's 0:10:41.240 --> 0:10:44.199 move on to San Diego, where there is a little 0:10:44.240 --> 0:10:49.720 fight in Pacific Beach over an ADU apartment complex project. 0:10:50.240 --> 0:10:53.320 Now you might be asking, what does that even mean 0:10:53.679 --> 0:10:59.200 ADU apartment complex. So San Diego is a very interesting place. 0:11:00.760 --> 0:11:04.640 They have tried to say yes and like an improv 0:11:04.720 --> 0:11:09.760 student at the groundlings to every single idea that could 0:11:09.840 --> 0:11:13.679 increase more housing. And you know what, there's something to that. 0:11:14.360 --> 0:11:16.600 You know, if you truly believe that we're in a 0:11:16.720 --> 0:11:19.280 housing crisis and we just need to build more and 0:11:19.320 --> 0:11:22.000 that will lower the cost for everybody, then we got 0:11:22.040 --> 0:11:24.360 to say yes to every possible way to build more, 0:11:24.800 --> 0:11:32.880 including San Diego's density bonus law, where you, as a developer, 0:11:33.559 --> 0:11:37.440 can build an ADU, an accessory dwelling unit, a granny 0:11:37.480 --> 0:11:43.160 flat in your backyard. But in San Diego, it's more 0:11:43.240 --> 0:11:46.080 than just like a nice little shack with some air conditioning. 0:11:47.080 --> 0:11:52.280 You can build it two stories, three stories, four stories, 0:11:52.679 --> 0:11:54.920 depending on how big your property is. You could put 0:11:54.960 --> 0:11:57.840 an entire apartment building in the backyard of a home 0:11:57.880 --> 0:12:03.240 that was designated single family. And this is because we 0:12:03.520 --> 0:12:08.280 encourage more density even in single family neighborhoods that definitely 0:12:08.360 --> 0:12:10.439 don't want it. And if you're the person that owns 0:12:10.440 --> 0:12:13.200 a single family home and now you have seven story 0:12:13.240 --> 0:12:17.480 buildings looking down on you sunbathing. Well, that's a little awkward. 0:12:18.120 --> 0:12:22.360 And I do feel for the ymbie crowd. I understand 0:12:22.440 --> 0:12:25.640 the urge to want to build, build, build, build build, 0:12:26.160 --> 0:12:29.520 but can we stop with the it's still an adu. No, 0:12:29.679 --> 0:12:33.040 this is an apartment building now, So I understand that 0:12:33.400 --> 0:12:36.600 aspect of the fight. But on the other end, the 0:12:36.880 --> 0:12:39.040 people that are opposing this, I have an issue with 0:12:39.120 --> 0:12:41.640 them too because they're like, oh, well, this developer is 0:12:41.679 --> 0:12:44.240 not a good steward because they haven't cleared the weeds 0:12:44.280 --> 0:12:50.199 on this property. And sometimes and this is a very California, 0:12:50.240 --> 0:12:54.800 this's a very old generation California thing. There is so 0:12:55.000 --> 0:12:59.720 much opposition to building anything that it's why you have 0:12:59.800 --> 0:13:03.480 law makers that go for these things like density bonus laws. 0:13:03.559 --> 0:13:08.439 Because we have enabled anyone anywhere, whether you're in a 0:13:08.559 --> 0:13:12.640 neighborhood that's affected or not, to sue to stop a 0:13:12.720 --> 0:13:17.440 development over the California Environmental Quality Act. And until we 0:13:17.440 --> 0:13:20.240 get rid of a private right of action that's in 0:13:20.280 --> 0:13:24.840 the California Environmental Quality Act, we will not be able 0:13:24.960 --> 0:13:28.760 to build in an effective rate because anybody anywhere can 0:13:28.800 --> 0:13:33.120 shut any project down for any reason, and that is 0:13:33.200 --> 0:13:36.559 not a way to build your way out of this crisis. 0:13:37.520 --> 0:13:41.160 That being said, and again, I know sometimes I sound 0:13:41.200 --> 0:13:43.120 like I'm all over the place on an issue. It's 0:13:43.160 --> 0:13:48.679 because there really is no right answer. San Diego has 0:13:48.720 --> 0:13:54.400 said yes and to everything. More apartment buildings, more houses, 0:13:54.440 --> 0:13:59.680 more townhouses, more ADUs, more ADU apartment buildings. They have 0:13:59.720 --> 0:14:03.280 built more new housing in the state of California than 0:14:03.520 --> 0:14:07.680 the rest of the state by a whole lot. But 0:14:07.840 --> 0:14:11.560 that being said, none of the new housing that's being 0:14:11.679 --> 0:14:16.640 built is still cost effect. I'm trying not to use 0:14:16.679 --> 0:14:20.040 the word affordable because the word affordable is a loaded 0:14:20.040 --> 0:14:23.960 word now because affordable means subsidized. But I mean, actually, 0:14:24.160 --> 0:14:27.120 like the cost of the rents go down, the cost 0:14:27.160 --> 0:14:30.520 of the mortgages go down. Todd Gloria does a victory 0:14:30.600 --> 0:14:32.840 lap talking about all the new housing he's built in 0:14:32.880 --> 0:14:35.720 San Diego as he cuts the ribbon on a brand 0:14:35.720 --> 0:14:39.080 new apartment building in San Diego with one bedroom's going 0:14:39.160 --> 0:14:44.800 for four thousand dollars. That's San Francisco price is right there. 0:14:45.520 --> 0:14:49.000 So it is just an interesting question to think about, 0:14:49.480 --> 0:14:52.640 at what point do you build enough where things actually 0:14:52.680 --> 0:14:55.920 go down in price. And if you're a homeowner who 0:14:55.960 --> 0:14:59.040 has equity, at what point do you build enough that 0:14:59.120 --> 0:15:03.160 your equity start It's going down right now everywhere that 0:15:03.280 --> 0:15:06.400 has not happened. Is there a point where that will happen? 0:15:06.560 --> 0:15:10.000 Or are we just building more that still most people 0:15:10.080 --> 0:15:15.120 cannot afford, most young people cannot afford. So it's just 0:15:15.240 --> 0:15:19.040 something to think about. I don't I could change the 0:15:19.120 --> 0:15:21.680 name of this show too. I don't have the answers 0:15:21.720 --> 0:15:24.920 with Randy Wang, but I like to pose the questions 0:15:25.880 --> 0:15:32.600 as people talk about California's housing crisis. Building adu's probably 0:15:32.640 --> 0:15:35.560 a really good idea. I love what San Jose is 0:15:35.600 --> 0:15:38.000 doing where not only can you build the ADU, but 0:15:38.080 --> 0:15:41.040 you can because not everyone in California wants to be 0:15:41.080 --> 0:15:43.000 a landlord. I got a great story in the news 0:15:43.000 --> 0:15:48.200 Blix about a squatterfight at a ranch in Alcoholne. But 0:15:48.240 --> 0:15:51.120 what if you could, I don't know, partition off your property, 0:15:51.280 --> 0:15:54.360 sell off part of it, so the ADU now is 0:15:54.440 --> 0:15:56.840 its own property and you don't have anything to do 0:15:56.880 --> 0:16:00.400 with it anymore. Kind of like that and the pro 0:16:00.520 --> 0:16:04.400 Yimbi pro ADU crowd people. Here's the biggest gripe where 0:16:04.520 --> 0:16:09.240 the NIMBI people have a point. Building all these things 0:16:09.560 --> 0:16:11.800 on the assumption that they're just going to use transit 0:16:11.840 --> 0:16:13.640 and they don't need a car and they don't need 0:16:13.720 --> 0:16:18.040 parking is foolish because even if you can use transit 0:16:18.160 --> 0:16:21.200 for seventy five percent of your trips, if you're in 0:16:21.240 --> 0:16:23.640 a place where transit actually makes sense, which is not 0:16:23.760 --> 0:16:26.880 Los Angeles, you're still going to need a car for 0:16:26.920 --> 0:16:29.600 that other twenty five percent. So where's the car going 0:16:29.640 --> 0:16:32.840 to be. So you want to make everybody happy, put 0:16:32.840 --> 0:16:38.000 in parking with the ADUs, which, by the way, this 0:16:38.120 --> 0:16:43.200 specific story the developer did. They were not going to 0:16:43.240 --> 0:16:45.840 have enough parking for every unit they were going to build, 0:16:46.200 --> 0:16:49.280 and they said, all right, neighbors, we hear you. We're 0:16:49.320 --> 0:16:52.200 going to put enough parking spaces for every one of 0:16:52.240 --> 0:16:55.360 these units. And the neighbors still are blocking it and 0:16:55.400 --> 0:16:58.960 still are suing. There are no heroes in this story 0:17:00.080 --> 0:17:04.879 on this side, not on this side, but ultimately, the 0:17:04.880 --> 0:17:07.800 private right of action needs to go or we're never 0:17:07.840 --> 0:17:11.600 getting anywhere with this. It's the News Blitz with Randy 0:17:11.600 --> 0:17:16.720 Wang on KABC. It's the News Blitz with Randy Wang 0:17:16.800 --> 0:17:20.399 on Talk Radio seven to ninety KABC. If you'd like 0:17:20.440 --> 0:17:22.680 to comment on anything you've heard today, you can always 0:17:22.720 --> 0:17:25.920 email me at Randy Wang Radio at gmail dot com 0:17:26.000 --> 0:17:27.800 or give us a call at eight hundred two two 0:17:27.880 --> 0:17:30.520 two five two two two. Let's go to Vincent in 0:17:30.640 --> 0:17:34.800 Santa Anna. Vincent, Hello, Hello there. 0:17:34.960 --> 0:17:38.479 Thank you always for your show. It's always informative and 0:17:38.520 --> 0:17:42.040 it always rows people up, which is great. I just 0:17:42.080 --> 0:17:46.760 wanted to talk about the utilities and the insurance companies 0:17:46.800 --> 0:17:50.600 for that matter. Obviously, it's it's not as if we 0:17:50.640 --> 0:17:54.240 have an option not to have insurance or utilities, and 0:17:54.280 --> 0:17:56.480 so it's ridiculous to think that they can get away 0:17:56.520 --> 0:18:00.800 with treating it as a regular business when it's a must. 0:18:00.840 --> 0:18:04.920 It's basically it's kind of almost a commodity anymore. And 0:18:05.359 --> 0:18:07.960 there's I know in California it's probably never gonna happen, 0:18:07.960 --> 0:18:10.960 at least with Newsom, but there really should be some 0:18:10.960 --> 0:18:15.679 somehow a cap on salaries for executives. And guess what 0:18:15.760 --> 0:18:17.240 if you don't like it, If you don't like it 0:18:17.320 --> 0:18:18.919 in two three million a year because you think you 0:18:18.960 --> 0:18:21.640 want to make ten, hey, the private sector's out there 0:18:21.640 --> 0:18:24.919 for those who do that, but they're somehow hopefully if 0:18:24.960 --> 0:18:28.920 Hilton gets in, we've got to revisit this whole concept 0:18:28.920 --> 0:18:32.760 of how we get how people in the state pay 0:18:32.800 --> 0:18:34.359 for their electricity and everything else. 0:18:35.000 --> 0:18:36.680 Oh, I think you're totally right. We need to have 0:18:36.720 --> 0:18:40.439 a complete reworking, especially because the technology has changed. The 0:18:40.440 --> 0:18:43.439 way we do transmission has change. You can have micro 0:18:43.560 --> 0:18:46.560 grids in neighborhoods. We have got to get off of 0:18:46.920 --> 0:18:49.760 these private energy monopolies that are just going to bleed 0:18:49.920 --> 0:18:51.959 us dry. Thank you so much for the call, Vincent, 0:18:52.040 --> 0:18:55.960 appreciate it. Hey, if you want to check out what 0:18:56.119 --> 0:18:58.800 this show looks like on video, I post every single 0:18:58.840 --> 0:19:03.320 episode at Randy radio dot com. Coming up next, one 0:19:03.359 --> 0:19:06.919 of the best reporters in Los Angeles has some big news. 0:19:07.400 --> 0:19:10.760 Daniel Gus will be here with of course his website, 0:19:10.840 --> 0:19:14.479 Daniel Gus dot substack dot com. It's the News Blitz 0:19:14.520 --> 0:19:18.720 with Randy Wang on KABC. It's the News Blitz with 0:19:18.800 --> 0:19:22.720 Randy Wang on KABC. This is your daily rundown of 0:19:22.720 --> 0:19:24.639 everything you need to know that's going on in the 0:19:24.640 --> 0:19:28.720 state of California, Southern California, the Bay Area, Sacramento, San Diego, 0:19:28.760 --> 0:19:31.199 and the Central Valley. Check out my new list I 0:19:31.200 --> 0:19:34.879 put one up every single day at Randywangradio dot substack 0:19:34.960 --> 0:19:39.120 dot com. And every single time I say randywangradio dot 0:19:39.160 --> 0:19:42.040 substack dot com, the first thing I think about in 0:19:42.119 --> 0:19:47.280 my head is Danielgus dot substack dot com. Daniel Gus, 0:19:47.320 --> 0:19:50.960 writer of the Gus Report, someone who is deeper into 0:19:51.000 --> 0:19:54.560 the city under belly of lacitypolitics than anybody I know, 0:19:55.280 --> 0:19:59.480 joins Us and Daniel Gus, you have got some big 0:19:59.560 --> 0:20:04.640 news about Mark Ridley Thomas. Well, it's good news, by 0:20:04.640 --> 0:20:04.840 the way. 0:20:04.880 --> 0:20:06.760 Thank you for having me on today, Randy. I'd say 0:20:06.760 --> 0:20:09.000 I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little 0:20:09.040 --> 0:20:11.879 intimidated by the video stream, but I hopefully got that 0:20:11.960 --> 0:20:14.440 right today, So thank you for having me on. Yes, 0:20:14.920 --> 0:20:19.679 Mark Ridley Thomas, the career Los Angeles politician who was 0:20:19.720 --> 0:20:23.400 a county supervisor and of this and almost an LA 0:20:23.520 --> 0:20:28.240 City Council member but didn't get quite sworn in, was 0:20:28.280 --> 0:20:35.520 convicted a year or two ago of bribery and all 0:20:35.600 --> 0:20:40.000 sorts of corrupt things that we know that local politicians do. 0:20:40.480 --> 0:20:43.200 And today we had the big news that his appeal 0:20:44.000 --> 0:20:47.879 to the Ninth Circuit of the federal court system was 0:20:48.240 --> 0:20:53.840 unanimously rejected and I want to point out that one 0:20:53.840 --> 0:20:56.960 of the federal appeals judges his first name is Johnny. 0:20:57.280 --> 0:21:00.520 We think that's a good sign. And it's not looking 0:21:00.560 --> 0:21:04.159 good for mister Ridley Thomas because he's basically been putting 0:21:04.160 --> 0:21:08.520 off the inevitable, which is a jail cell, a federal 0:21:08.720 --> 0:21:14.200 jail cell, for basically ever since he was convicted, and 0:21:14.359 --> 0:21:18.040 he's kind of teasing or his lawyers are teasing that, well, 0:21:18.040 --> 0:21:21.840 we're gonna have it reviewed by the entire twenty nine 0:21:22.119 --> 0:21:25.840 appeal panel. And that's not gonna fly because he would 0:21:25.880 --> 0:21:28.360 have to get fifteen of the twenty nine appeals judges 0:21:28.880 --> 0:21:33.359 to agree to hear a full appeal. That's not gonna happen. 0:21:33.640 --> 0:21:37.800 That happens in one percent of the cases. So our 0:21:37.880 --> 0:21:41.800 prosecutors at the federal level bill a salee and all 0:21:41.880 --> 0:21:44.360 those folks. They may not get everybody, but they got 0:21:44.359 --> 0:21:47.240 a big one this time in Mark Ridley Thomas. 0:21:48.200 --> 0:21:51.200 Well, and we got to refresh people because it's been 0:21:51.440 --> 0:21:54.960 so long, because it takes so long to actually go 0:21:55.040 --> 0:21:59.120 from conviction to the jail cell with the appeals process, 0:21:59.200 --> 0:22:03.359 with these politicsitions, whether you're talking about Jose Huizar or 0:22:03.440 --> 0:22:07.000 Mark Ridley Thomas, let's give a quick little refresher on 0:22:07.720 --> 0:22:10.600 what exactly they got him on, because it was one 0:22:10.640 --> 0:22:14.080 of the most ridiculous, brazen things we have ever seen, 0:22:14.480 --> 0:22:19.639 including trying to use USC as an intermediary to transfer 0:22:19.800 --> 0:22:23.359 money from his campaign to his no good son. 0:22:25.520 --> 0:22:29.440 Yeah, well, yeah, that's what I'm thinking of. You know, 0:22:29.640 --> 0:22:33.000 he has By the way, Mark Wordthley Thomas has two sons, 0:22:33.080 --> 0:22:36.760 twin sons, Sebastian Ridley Thomas, who is at the core 0:22:36.840 --> 0:22:42.240 of this criminal case, and Sinclair Ridley Thomas, who very 0:22:42.240 --> 0:22:43.119 few people hear of. 0:22:43.359 --> 0:22:43.800 By the way. 0:22:43.840 --> 0:22:46.960 They turn thirty nine years of age next week. And 0:22:47.119 --> 0:22:53.240 Sebastian was elected to the California Assembly a few years ago, 0:22:53.280 --> 0:22:56.600 a proud graduate of Morehouse College, by the way, and 0:22:56.960 --> 0:23:01.800 he succeeded La County Supervisor Holly Mitchell. It's so incestuous, 0:23:01.800 --> 0:23:05.000 what's going on, Randy? And I guess he had to 0:23:05.040 --> 0:23:10.720 resign because he was behaving inappropriately in the California Assembly 0:23:11.280 --> 0:23:16.280 and he resigned and Papa Ridley Thomas Mark needed to 0:23:16.320 --> 0:23:18.960 find something gainful for his son to do, get into 0:23:19.000 --> 0:23:22.840 grad school and get hired by a nonprofit And somehow 0:23:22.840 --> 0:23:29.280 they're all they're all connected to USC, and there was 0:23:29.440 --> 0:23:35.720 a dean at this Social College of Social Work there 0:23:36.000 --> 0:23:39.879 named Marilyn Flynn who's now eighty seven years old, and 0:23:40.000 --> 0:23:42.719 I guess the Fed's put enough pressure on her that 0:23:42.760 --> 0:23:45.919 she eventually flipped. So Ridley Thomas needed to find something 0:23:45.960 --> 0:23:48.600 good for his son to do. Used money that was 0:23:48.720 --> 0:23:51.760 kind of so sort of in his coffers but not 0:23:51.880 --> 0:23:54.520 really his own money, but is his own money, and 0:23:54.640 --> 0:23:57.800 he found a way with this dean Maryland Flynn to 0:23:57.880 --> 0:24:02.280 donate around one hundred thousand dollars to this program at USC. 0:24:03.080 --> 0:24:06.560 And it's called a thing of value, like it's bribery 0:24:06.640 --> 0:24:11.000 is established when you are basically getting a quid pro quo, 0:24:11.240 --> 0:24:14.399 something of value, something for something that is basically what 0:24:14.560 --> 0:24:19.720 quid pro quo means. And eventually, uh, this DN at 0:24:19.880 --> 0:24:24.480 USC needed a government contract, and of course Margaredley Thomas 0:24:24.760 --> 0:24:30.480 was one fifth of the La County Supervisors and and gee, 0:24:30.560 --> 0:24:34.399 that didn't work, and eventually somebody tipped off somebody the 0:24:34.720 --> 0:24:39.160 really smart prosecutors behind the scenes pieced it together and 0:24:39.240 --> 0:24:43.480 it all collapsed like a house of cards eventually, just 0:24:43.520 --> 0:24:46.359 like it did for Jose Weezar, who's cooling is jets 0:24:46.400 --> 0:24:49.600 for at least another decade in federal in the federal penitentiary, 0:24:49.960 --> 0:24:53.040 like it did for Mitchell Englander and Richard Alatori and 0:24:53.080 --> 0:24:57.760 all of these other folks. So so it's a papa 0:24:57.920 --> 0:25:02.160 helping son and somehow how USC is involved in all 0:25:02.200 --> 0:25:05.000 of this stuff. And there you go, we finally got 0:25:05.000 --> 0:25:07.720 a big fish, long overdue. 0:25:07.840 --> 0:25:10.760 Now. Another thing that's an interesting wrinkle in all this, 0:25:10.840 --> 0:25:14.360 and another thing that people forget, is that same USC 0:25:14.520 --> 0:25:18.440 School of Social Work was the same school that gave 0:25:18.960 --> 0:25:23.800 Karen Bass this honorary degree in social work. Karen Bass 0:25:23.840 --> 0:25:27.199 a longtime advocate and friend of Mark Ridley Thomas. But 0:25:27.240 --> 0:25:29.400 she likes to make sure you forget about that. 0:25:30.720 --> 0:25:33.000 Yeah, she wants you to forget about that now. But 0:25:33.359 --> 0:25:37.639 how did Karen Bass get her graduate degree while a 0:25:37.760 --> 0:25:43.080 sitting politician? And she has not been indicted on anything. 0:25:43.160 --> 0:25:47.200 But you know, I'm not so sure. I'm not so 0:25:47.240 --> 0:25:50.880 sure that investigators are done with Karen Bass. Maybe I'm 0:25:50.960 --> 0:25:53.440 just dreaming for a reset for the city of Los 0:25:53.480 --> 0:25:59.040