Good morning,

Welcome to the inaugural issue of Netter News, your daily roundup of the quirky, consequential, and headline news shaping California. If you've found your way here, chances are Mike Netter played a part in it. Known for his leadership in initiatives like Rebuild California and his vibrant presence on X, Mike is a vocal advocate deeply committed to California's well-being. Your presence here indicates a shared concern for the state's future and a desire for positive change. Our goal is to help you stay informed, stay engaged, and collaborate to steer California toward a brighter tomorrow.

This is day one, so let’s go!

Netter News Team

📱NETTER’S X-FACTOR 

Mike's response to the protesters who blocked major highways, freeways, and bridges across the state struck a chord with you. The CHP arrested 38 anti-Israel protesters who blocked the Golden Gate Bridge and I-880. Does this Temecula lawmaker have the solution to prevent future chaos?

REBUILD CALIFORNIA

California Employment Development Department (EDD) confesses to a $55 Billion pandemic loss… yes, billion with a “B”! As Netter asked, nobody questioned this? 

In an audit report made public at the end of March, investigators found that initial estimates of $26 Billion in overpayments were wrong, instead, the EDD raised the estimate to $55 Billion.

HOW WE GOT HERE

• California received 21% of the federal unemployment money during the pandemic

• 9 million benefit cards were issued in California

• 3 million people were unemployed in the state

• The EDD’s then-chief was Julie Su, who is now the acting federal Department of Labor Chief

Many of you sounded off on X to Netter:

WHAT’S NEXT?

It’s complicated. Some of the missing money was fraud, some wasn’t. So that means some of the state debt can be written off. The California Globe has been doing an excellent job reporting on this. The state audits/reports are here and here.

POLITICS, ECONOMY, EDUCATION & SCIENCE 

• LA Mayor Karen Bass has a major challenge. She declared a state of emergency for the homeless the day she took office in December 2022. The latest homeless count shows 46k people are on the streets in LA. She hasn’t made a dent. And since 2015, it’s up 80%. Now she’s asking rich Angelenos to fund a new homeless campaign. And if you are keeping track, California has spent $24 billion over the past five years fighting the homelessness crisis.

• While the homeless crisis in our state grows, the White House just approved $45 million for California programs aiding immigrants who cross our southern border. This is part of a $300 million national initiative by FEMA. Yes, that FEMA is supposed to support Americans in need after disasters. The funds will aid recently arrived immigrants in San Diego County and Riverside County, and also help the catholic charities there.

• In Sunnyvale, Google employees put on masks, held Palestinian flags, and protested their employer, some even occupied the CEO’s office. The group said they are upset with Google’s cloud contract with Israel’s government. If it doesn’t go well for them, I’m sure someone else will be grateful to land a six-figure gig at Google.

• The San Francisco Deputy Sheriffs’ Association wants the California National Guard to help them police the county jails. Tuesday afternoon armed officers responded to the jail in San Bruno after inmates refused to be handcuffed. No one was injured. This is one of several jails that have been on lockdown for days because of dangerous conditions and low staffing levels.

• California filed a lawsuit against Huntington Beach over a newly passed law that would force residents to show identification to vote. The measure passed with 53% voter approval in March. The state Attorney General argues it violates state law. However, city officials maintain the law falls within their authority to manage local affairs, including elections

GROCERY WARS 

The Wall Street Journal dropped a big investigation claiming Amazon tried to swipe trade secrets from SoCal-based Trader Joe’s. Their goal? To create a new food brand to mirror TJ’s top 200 products.

WHAT HAPPENED:  

• Amazon allegedly recruited a former senior manager from Trader Joe’s snack foods division to assist in creating a product line for Wickedly Prime.

• WSJ reports the ex-Trader Joe’s employee was allegedly pressured by an Amazon manager to share store data and documents she received while working for TJs. Eventually, she complied. 

• WSJ said their efforts were halted after another Amazon employee reported the misuse of Trader Joe’s data.

• All employees were fired.

HOT TAKES

 🚨FATAL RISK WARNING: Health officials in Sacramento are cautioning the public about a Vietnamese hemorrhoid ointment that was bought on Facebook containing a “highly dangerous amount of lead”. It tragically resulted in the death of a woman.

🚨PETERSON’S SECOND CHANCE: Convicted Murderer Scott Peterson returns to court in Redwood City in a long-shot bid to get a new trial for the killings of his wife Laci, and their unborn child. But this time, he’s got help from a few friends, the LA Innocence Project.

🚨MIXED EMOTIONS: While crashing your car might feel like the worst day ever, here's a silver lining: The California Highway Patrol is rolling out an Online Crash Portal for easier access to digital crash reports. And the best part? It's free of charge!

🚨MIGHTY MOUSE EARS: A Couple is trying to fight a one-year Disneyland ban for selling their annual pass on eBay after they got sick and couldn’t use their tickets.

🚨LIVIN’ LA VIDA CALI: Another survey's out, breaking down what a single person needs to live comfy in every state. And guess what? We ain’t the worst this time! (SmartAsset)

1. Massachusetts: $116,022

2. Hawaii: $113,693

3. California: $113,651

4. New York: $111,738

5. Washington: $106,496

GOLDEN STATE GLOW

🌴Did anyone catch the kayaking craze at Death Valley this winter? Thanks to some epic rain, an ancient lake came back to life in the driest spot in the U.S. And get this: NASA now says “Lake Manly” was 1.5 to 3 feet deep! (NASA)

🌴 From your daily commute, to your home, and now to surgery! A Stanford doctor has used the Apple Vision Pro to perform a heart procedure. (Stanford Med)

🌴Tay-Tay is about to drop her new album and if you are in LA, you can take your Swifty to a pop-up Tortured Poets Department Library. And yep, the lines are snaking around the block. Que local news wall-to-wall coverage, 3…2... 1. (KTLA)

 🗓THIS DAY IN CALI-HISTORY

April 17: 

1924: When Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures & Louis B. Mayer Co. joined forces, the iconic MGM was born!🎬

1937: Porky Pig and Daffy Duck made their debut in “Porky’s Duck Hunt,” marking the very first appearance of Daffy Duck in a Warner Brothers Looney Tune Cartoon.

1969: A Los Angeles jury convicted Sirhan Sirhan of assassinating Senator Robert F. Kennedy. He is currently behind bars in San Diego.