Truthout
Gavin Newsom
![Renters and housing advocates attend a protest to cancel rent and avoid evictions in front of a court house on August 21, 2020, in Los Angeles, California.](https://truthout.org/app/uploads/2018/05/2021_0622-rent-eviction-protest-400x300.jpg)
California Rent Forgiveness Shows It’s Possible to Shift Our National Priorities
Government -- local, state and federal -- can actually help us if we invest in people's lives instead of wars.
![A restaurant worker disinfects indoor tables for customers waiting for to-go orders after resuming outdoor dining services at a restaurant in Sausalito, California, on, January 25, 2021.](https://truthout.org/app/uploads/2021/02/GettyImages-1298427063-400x300.jpg)
Loosening Restrictions as New COVID Variants Spread Could Lead to New Surge
Health experts say that opening indoor dining and other activities could undo efforts to control the pandemic.
![A nurse fills a syringe with vaccine](https://truthout.org/app/uploads/2021/01/2021_0120nurse-400x300.jpg)
As COVID-19 Surges, California Overrides Limits on Nurse Workloads
Currently, four times as many Californians are testing positive for the coronavirus compared with the summer’s peak.
![A U.S. flag flaps in the wind as the Shady Fire impacts structures in Santa Rosa, California, on September 28, 2020.](https://truthout.org/app/uploads/2020/10/2020_1016-california-wildfire-400x300.jpg)
Trump Denies California Request for Federal Disaster Aid After Historic Fires
The White House's decision was met with outrage by environmentalists and lawmakers who represent the state.
![President Trump speaks during a briefing on wildfires with local and federal fire and emergency officials at Sacramento McClellan Airport in McClellan Park, California, on September 14, 2020.](https://truthout.org/app/uploads/2020/09/2020_0915-trump-fire-400x300.jpg)
Trump’s Forest Management Talk Is a Ruse, Former White House Officials Say
Trump is using the baseless complaint of forest management for political purposes, former officials allege.
![Flames race through a field in Winters, California, on August 19, 2020.](https://truthout.org/app/uploads/2020/08/GettyImages-1228119032-400x300.jpg)
Families and Advocates Call for Evacuation of Prisons Amid California Wildfires
Some of California's prisons are located in areas under evacuation orders.
![California’s Public Banking Act can pave the way for a just transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy.](https://truthout.org/app/uploads/2019/11/GettyImages-1047648916-400x300.jpg)
Could California’s Public Banks Finance a Statewide Green New Deal?
California’s Public Banking Act can pave the way for a just transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy.
![Firefighters hose down a burning house in the midst of a wildfire](https://truthout.org/app/uploads/2019/10/2019_1028-california-wildfire-400x300.jpg)
California Governor Declares Statewide Emergency as Nearly 200,000 Evacuate
The fires must be met with urgent and nationwide climate action.