LA Podcast

LA Podcast
  • 4.8 (427)
  • NEWS COMMENTARY
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

A news and politics podcast for people who live in Los Angeles.

  1. 5D AGO

    What’s the Fiscal Chief, Kenneth?

    Mike, Godfrey and Oscar dive into two big charter reform debates: oversight of the LAPD and the role of LA’s city controller, which current Controller Kenneth Mejia is turning into a public battle. The Trump administration is planning to evict thousands of immigrant families, but community groups are fighting back. Plus, the proposed “Billionaire’s Tax” that’s dividing California Democrats. COME PARTY WITH US! Join all the LA Podcast co-hosts and producers on Saturday, March 21! This gathering is exclusively for paid subscribers so sign up today at thinkforward.la to get the invite Godfrey is quoted in this LAist story by Frank Stoltze: “LA commission recommends expanding City Council power over LAPD” Meanwhile, even some commissioners are expressing confusion about the significance of the recommendation The commission originally punted on the issue entirely before facing pushback from the public, advocacy organizations, and Councilmembers Eunisses Hernandez and Hugo Soto-Martinez, who wrote letters proposing specific and significant reforms The debate over whether the City Council can set policy for the LAPD gained new energy when Chief Jim McDonnell flatly stated he would not enforce a law against immigration agents wearing masks, and a later executive order from Mayor Karen Bass instructing LAPD to enforce the ban and train their body cameras on immigration operations. A recent Police Commission meeting revealed LAPD’s enforcement of the mayor’s orders has been minimal The subject of police liability — and police immunity — is covered by UCLA’s Joanna Schwartz in her excellent book Shielded: How the Police Became Untouchable The commission has also been looking at ways to rein in LAPD liability costs, which have resulted in massive taxpayer-funded settlements, as often highlighted by the City Controller City Controller Kenneth Mejia has been marshaling public support on social media to fight back against efforts to limit his power, including the suggestion to add a CFO Public comment was overwhelmed with over 1,000 pages of written comments supporting Mejia’s agenda after he issued pleas to back his recommendations Mejia has also been pushing for expanded resources and greater oversight of other elected officials at the same time. Here's more on his vision — including a Capital Infrastructure Plan! — on Spectrum's "Inside the Issues," and his history of LA's budget priorities You can watch the full March 7 charter commission meeting hearing here A mixed-status family is a household with members holding different citizenship or immigration statuses, often consisting of U.S. citizen children living with undocumented parents or relatives. A new proposed regulation from the Trump administration to deny these households rent subsidies could have a devastating impact on families living in public housing or using federal housing vouchers. More than one-third of those families are in California Capital & Main: “Community organizers in Los Angeles are rallying in opposition to a Trump administration rule that they say will displace and fracture immigrant families, increase homelessness and potentially throttle rent collections to the point that local housing authorities might be forced to shutter some of their stock” LA officials are fighting the policy, warning it could force 1,700 local families into homelessness Weigh in on the proposed policy by making a public comment or attending one of many virtual teach-ins organized by Keep Families Together, and you can also sign up for email updates California voters may get a chance to impose a one-time 5% tax on the state’s estimated 200 billionaires in November. The proposal is dividing Democrats, and causing concern the uber rich may flee the state LA Forward, CHIRLA and dozens of other groups are planning a mass mobilization, LA Strikes Back: A Call to Action, this Saturday, March 14 at 9 a.m. at LA Trade Tech College. Details and registration here This episode was produced by Sophie Bridges The reporting and analysis you hear in the show is put together by our rotating cast of producers and co-hosts every week. All opinions expressed on the show are solely those of co-hosts and may not represent the views of LA Forward

    51 min

  2. MAR 2

    Gov Me Something to Believe In

    Alissa, Mike, and Godfrey report back from the California Democratic Party state convention where endorsement battles plague the governor’s race. Will Republicans end up nabbing the top two spots on the November ballot? LAUSD Superintendent Alberto Carvalho is placed on leave after an FBI raid of his home and office. And Metro wants you to ride the D — with crop tops to match — on May 8. Join all the LA Podcast co-hosts and producers on Saturday, March 21! This gathering is exclusively for paid subscribers so sign up today at thinkforward.la. Here are the full CADEM endorsement results CalMatters: “CA Democrats can’t agree on endorsement for governor. Will Republicans benefit?” Columnists like the Los Angeles Times’ George Skelton are arguing for some Democratic candidates to drop out Watch Mike’s video which provides the critical analysis that the candidates being urged to drop out are almost all people of color Meanwhile, the race for insurance commissioner is interesting, but who would want this job? An early morning FBI raid of LAUSD Superintendent Alberto Carvalho’s home and office appears to be tied to an AI chatbot that Carvalho championed The chatbot, named Ed, was made by the company AllHere which collapsed in 2024 when its CEO was indicted for defrauding investors. Carvalho said he’d set up a task force to investigate the company but never did After meeting for a total of seven hours, the LAUSD school board placed Carvalho on paid leave and named Chief of School Operations Andres Chait as interim superintendent SEIU Local 99, which represents educational workers, put out a statement calling for more accountability. SEIU Local 99 and UTLA had previously planned a rally on March 18 to draw attention to proposed layoffs Harbor Peace Patrols first broke the news of Carvalho’s home being raided. The group which had formed to track immigration raids staging on Terminal Island recently celebrated a win when federal agents packed up their operations The Graffiti Ghost Towers are being bought by developer Kali P. Chaudhuri — but he doesn’t want to save the graffiti Artist Sayre Gomez built an astonishing sculpture of the towers Unfortunately for Alissa’s 2025 predictions, but fortunately for everyone else, the D line extension is finally opening on May 8! But the even bigger news was that Metro made ‘Ride the D’ shirts and the internet went wild Alissa wrote about the astonishing demand for ‘Ride the D’ t-shirts Some LA City charter reform recommendations are moving forward, including expanding the council to 25 members and ranked choice voting starting in 2032 Plus, LA City Council votes to make Unarmed Crisis Response a permanent city program. But $40 million a year is needed to make the program citywide This episode was produced by Sophie Bridges The reporting and analysis you hear in the show is put together by our rotating cast of producers and co-hosts every week. All opinions expressed on the show are solely those of co-hosts and may not represent the views of LA Forward

    51 min

  3. FEB 23

    Paved and Confused

    Scott, Alissa, and Rachel dry off after yet another flash flooding event and absorb a new report that says LA County could eliminate half of its pavement. Casey Wasserman is leaving his own company but will apparently stay on as LA28 chair (?!?) as more elected officials call for him to step down. And LA’s City Council searches for more ways to not build more housing near transit by delaying implementation of SB79 as many places as possible. Coming up on Saturday, March 21 –a fun gathering exclusively for paid subscribers with LA Podcast co-hosts and producers! Become a paid subscriber at thinkforward.la to join us and to keep this podcast coming out every week Melrose stores flooded again and business owners are blaming the city’s lack of response. Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky is calling for an investigation: "The response was delayed, inadequate, and local businesses were left dealing with flooding and damage” Elsewhere: food delivery bots can’t swim, Santa Monica channel in Rustic Canyon lost all its concrete, Trader Joe’s parking lot floods store in Silver Lake Alissa would like to remind everyone we would have had stormwater gardens to stop the flooding on Melrose if former councilmember Paul Koretz hadn’t killed the Uplift Melrose project The new DepaveLA study from Accelerate Resilience LA shows that LA County contains 488 square miles of pavement — that’s about the size of the city of LA — and nearly half of it may be unnecessary Accelerate Resilience LA’s Devon Provo writes about LA County’s sustainability plan, which calls for “the first explicit depaving target from a major U.S. public agency, signaling an emerging shift in how policymakers are rethinking infrastructure” — but it’s only 1,600 acres by 2045 There are incentives for property owners to reduce impermeable surfaces through Measure W, also known as the Safe Clean Water Program Flooding happens pretty much exactly where we paved over old creeks, which are easy to see thanks to maps from UC Irvine’s Flood Lab that show flood risk. Unsurprisingly, LA’s Black communities would be hit the hardest in a major flood Last Friday, after dozens of the artists he represents fled his agency due to his ties with sex traffickers Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, Casey Wasserman announced he was selling his entire company and issued a heartfelt apology to his employees Yet he will stay on as LA28 chair, because the board voted to keep him. Here’s a really good Guardian story that sums it all up, with some very angry quotes from Councilmember Monica Rodriguez Alissa wrote about “LA28's big gamble” over at Torched LA Mayor Karen Bass finally said she thought Wasserman should step down CNN: LA mayor calls for head of 2028 Olympics to step down over Epstein ties  West Hollywood had a rally with survivors and Councilmember John Erickson said he was introducing a resolution to call for Wasserman’s resignation More state representatives have called on Wasserman to resign, including a statement from the LA County delegation (although some said they didn’t know they were signed on) Sports Illustrated’s Michael Rosenberg puts the emails in context and argues why Wasserman is a liability NOlympics LA: LA28 Chair Casey Wasserman: A Lifelong Pattern of Abuse  LAist: “How much housing is LA actually building?” LA’s planning department has delivered a plan to delay SB79 effectuation (also in StoryMap form), the new state law requiring cities to build more (as in taller and denser) housing around high-quality transit stops Come learn about SB79 implementation on Thursday evening and why LA Forward, Abundant Housing LA, and others are supporting Option C in the planning department's proposal Meanwhile, Beverly Hills has a thoughtful plan to reluctantly implement SB79 (which the city only has to do for a ¼-mile area around at the three new D line stations)  Although Beverly Hills is also forced to approve multiple “builders remedy” projects because the city didn’t build enough housing This episode was produced by Sophie Bridges (allegedly) The reporting and analysis you hear in the show is put together by our rotating cast of producers and co-hosts every week. All opinions expressed on the show are solely those of co-hosts and may not represent the views of LA Forward

    1h 9m

  4. FEB 16

    Raman Up That Hill

    Alissa, Mike, Rachel, and Olga unpack Nithya Raman’s surprise mayoral run. How the LA city councilmember’s last-minute decision to challenge incumbent Karen Bass has rattled establishment Democrats and angered activists on the left — and why comparisons to progressive officials in other cities don’t really hold up. Then: Trump’s attorney general Pam Bondi is suddenly worried about crime in Culver City. Become a paid subscriber at thinkforward.la to keep this podcast weekly. A fun gathering exclusively for paid subscribers with LA Pod co-hosts and producers is coming up Saturday, March 21! New York Times: “Rising Progressive Star Shakes Up Race for Los Angeles Mayor” Here’s Raman’s campaign video and her first TV interview with NBC LA’s Conan Nolan LA Daily News: “Nithya Raman’s entry tests Karen Bass from the left in Los Angeles mayoral race” More reaction stories from the Los Angeles Times and Politico “Now is not the time for distractions from a political opportunist — especially one who backed the Mayor’s re-election campaign just weeks ago,” said Yvonne Wheeler, president of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO told the LA Times “As Raman scrambles to build a campaign apparatus before the June election, Bass’ supporters have rallied around the embattled incumbent with fresh energy and barely-veiled fury,” writes Melanie Mason at Politico (includes a quote from Mike!) LA Times: “The record of Nithya Raman, L.A. mayoral candidate, may surprise you” Meanwhile, mayoral candidate Rev. Rae Huang got her mic cut at a charter reform meeting about LAPD reform One of Raman’s key platform planks is addressing the city’s streetlight outages. While some councilmembers might prefer dark skies, the truth is that the city needs to raise the streetlight district assessments not increased the 1990s — and Raman has already been messaging this reality to her constituents Read Alissa’s story at Torched about the new SAJE report looking at the financial risks of hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games and how the city could turn a bad deal into a less-bad one And if you need a refresher about who, exactly, is running for mayor, check out Mike’s video about the five front-runners In response to questioning about the Epstein files from Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove, Attorney General Pam Bondi went off on a bizarre tangent: “Her district includes Culver City, and she’s not talking about any crime in her districts” “Kamlager-Dove shrugged off Bondi’s comment, saying Culver City was known for “breakfast burritos — not crime,” reports the LA Times “The first thing I thought was, ‘What is she talking about?’ said Bryan Fish, the vice mayor of Culver City, whom everyone calls Bubba but doesn’t look like someone whom everyone calls Bubba. ‘The only crime here,’ he added, ‘is like the $18 strawberry at Erewhon,” reports the New York Times Yes, Culver City actually bought a gun store and they’re turning it into 67 units of affordable housing with a preference for teachers This episode was produced by Sophie Bridges The reporting and analysis you hear in the show is put together by our rotating cast of producers and co-hosts every week. All opinions expressed on the show are solely those of co-hosts and may not represent the views of LA Forward

    55 min

  5. FEB 9

    Casey Closed

    Alissa, Mike, and Memo discuss the “No Secret Police Act,” which requires ICE agents to remove face coverings — and why LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell’s refusal to enforce it is such a red flag. Don Lemon’s federal detention highlights the double standards for LA journalists who are arrested during protests. LA Mayor Karen Bass delivers her (first) state of the city. Plus: why elected officials are calling for LA28 chair Casey Wasserman to step down. At a press conference, LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell “described two state laws that were passed by the state legislature in response to the ICE raids — one banning face coverings, the other requiring law enforcement officers to identify themselves — as ‘not a good public policy decision,’” LA Taco reports Mike writes about how McDonnell is setting the city back: “In his 15 months as chief, McDonnell has consistently shown contempt for civilian authority, tolerance for police violence, hostility toward the press, and a drive to militarize LAPD under the guise of mega-event security. He is rebuilding the old LAPD that had only recently been partially dismantled.” After deadly shootings, ICE says it will start using body cameras for transparency (where have we heard that before?). Read Copaganda’s Alex Karakatsanis on why body cameras are bad, actually Attorneys for Keith Porter, Jr.’s family are calling for an investigation of his murder at the hands of an off-duty ICE agent Don Lemon and Georgia Fort were two of four Black journalists detained after covering a protest in St. Paul. Lemon talked more about his arrest on his YouTube channel. ”We’re having a constitutional crisis,” Fort said on Democracy Now! LA Mayor Karen Bass was publicly defending Lemon but hasn’t defended journalists arrested by LAPD at protests, including LA Taco reporter Lexis-Olivier Ray who was detained by LAPD at a protest in downtown the same weekend Adam Rose, deputy director of advocacy at the Freedom of the Press Foundation, was out sounding the alarm about these arrests and had some very harsh words for Bass Bass delivered her first of two State of the City addresses: here’s the address as delivered and here’s Alissa’s thread from the event LA28 chair Casey Wasserman is facing calls to resign due to associations with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell revealed in the latest Department of Justice release Bass declined to call for Wasserman’s resignation, saying instead: “Ultimately, any decision on the LA28 leadership must be made by the LA28 Board. As you know, they are a separate and independent nonprofit organization." Alissa’s tracking which elected officials, organizations, and clients are calling for Wasserman to step down Lindsey Horvath and Monica Rodriguez both went on TV calling for Wasserman to step down And yes, after we recorded, Horvath opted not to run for LA mayor, but, in a huge surprise, Councilmember Nithya Raman did. We’ll talk about that more next week This episode was produced by Kristen Torres The reporting and analysis you hear in the show is put together by our rotating cast of producers and co-hosts every week. All opinions expressed on the show are solely those of co-hosts and may not represent the views of LA Forward Become a paid subscriber at thinkforward.la  to keep this podcast weekly! A fun gathering exclusively for paid subscribers is coming up Saturday, March 21!

    1 hr

  6. FEB 2

    If I Was Your Boycott

    Alissa, Godfrey, and Sophie recount another week of accelerating immigration raids and how Angelenos are organizing against them. Why the “national shutdown” isn’t a general strike (yet). If ICE is going to the Winter Olympics, what does that mean for LA in 2028? And what about the World Cup this summer? And RIP to Shirley Raines who brought dignity, agency, and eyelash extensions to Skid Row residents. LA Taco’s Daily Memo for Wednesday, January 28: “There was a time when 25-40 was the total number of incidents I’d report for a whole week; they just did that in one day” “What we’re seeing now are large numbers of officers to grab anywhere from one to five people, not necessarily questioning them, and then moving out as quickly as possible,” Juan Pablo Orjuela-Parra, an organizer with the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, told the Los Angeles Times TPM: ICE not only looks and acts like a paramilitary — it is one Gavin, wyd? “California has cooperated with more ICE transfers probably than any other state in the country,” California’s governor told Ben Shapiro Meanwhile progressive district attorneys — meaning: not LA’s DA — are banding together to prosecute federal agents: “The group launched Wednesday and calls itself Fight Against Federal Overreach, or FAFO” Highland Park is testing out air raid sirens for ICE raids There’s another community defense training Saturday, February 7 at 11 a.m.; here’s how to sign up Kim Kelly on the difference between a general strike and a national shutdown Yes, ICE is going to the Winter Olympics. Yes, it’s also kind of horribly normal for U.S. law enforcement to be involved in the Olympics — does everyone remember when the LAPD got special permission to carry guns in Paris during the 2024 Summer Olympics?  “ICE, NO GRAZIE!” LAist’s Libby Rainey reported on potential plans to clear unhoused people from around sports venues ahead of megaevents Will LA see a boycott in 2028? Will LA see a boycott this summer? Alissa’s Torched piece focused on “hospitality houses” in what feels like the least hospitable possible environment — and she also reported on the World Cup fan zones announcement Speaking of cognitive dissonance, how about that Home Depot World Cup sponsorship deal? LA Mayor Karen Bass is giving two State of the City addresses; one is Monday, February 2, watch it here Finally, remembering the Skid Row outreach legend Shirley Raines who died at 58 Tune in Tuesday, February 3 at 7 p.m. for a Measure G teach-in to learn the latest news about LA County’s charter reform initiative This episode was produced by Sophie Bridges The reporting and analysis you hear in the show is put together by our rotating cast of producers and co-hosts every week. All opinions expressed on the show are solely those of co-hosts and may not represent the views of LA Forward Become a paid subscriber at thinkforward.la to keep this podcast weekly! Subscribers-only event is coming soon!

    54 min

  7. JAN 26

    ULA Confidential

    Mike, David, and Carla do a deep-dive on state and local efforts to build and fund — and also stop and kill — housing, while changes are proposed to LA city’s ULA transfer tax, also known as the “mansion tax.” More charter reform proposals advance. Are 23 councilmembers enough? Should 16-year-olds get the right to vote in local elections? Then: California’s mountain lions might finally get endangered species protection. 2025 was a pivotal year for housing legislation in California and Los Angeles, with a slew of new laws and rules taking effect this year to spur housing construction — and the coming year might see even more, as KQED reports Politico’s Liam Dillon reports on LA’s latest strategy to stop/subvert SB 79, the new state law allowing more density in transit-rich areas. Metro also weighed in against SB 79, expressing concern that transit-oriented housing creates opposition to new transit. Reminder to Metro board members that building housing near transit increases transit ridership, which you think would be their goal?  Metro also voted on this as they approved the Sepulveda subway and potentially stall the C line extension to Torrance. Time to dissolve (or seriously reform) the Metro board? Liam also reports on the high-stakes staredown between the state and the city trying to kill affordable housing in Venice Meanwhile, YIMBY Law has filed a lawsuit to overturn Gavin Newsom’s executive order blocking SB 9, which would allow new duplexes, in Pacific Palisades The fight over Measure ULA has been brewing for months. Affordable housing advocates proclaim success with more than $1 billion raised. Opponents of the measure contend it’s killing development of multifamily housing in Los Angeles.  Conflicting reports — even in the same publication — argue new apartment construction is down and that multifamily investment is on the rebound Councilmember Nithya Raman, a longtime supporter of Measure ULA, is proposing a ballot measure to exempt multifamily and commercial housing from the transfer tax for 15 years after construction. Raman’s proposal is getting a lot of attention. The council has until February 11 to put something on the June ballot State lawmakers are mulling a proposal to put a $10 billion affordable housing bond before voters in November LA’s Charter Reform Commission is weeding through various proposals. If you can’t find anything to binge on Netflix, watch the full 6 hour, 22 minute meeting — the commission is likely to recommend expanding the size of the City Council from 15 to 23  The commission also seems poised to recommend lowering the voting age for Los Angeles city and LAUSD elections to 16.  There is a national movement to lower the voting age and extend the franchise to 1-6 and 17-year-olds. Liz Chou recently looked at the issue in her LA Reporter newsletter. A ballot measure to lower the threshold to 16 in Culver City failed narrowly last year, getting 49.5% of the vote Here’s the Charter Reform Commission website. Stay involved with LA Forward’s governance reform and CIP working groups. Topics coming up: police reform; the removal/replacement of elected officials for misconduct; establishment of a 2-year budget cycle, ethics, and neighborhood councils California wildlife officials are considering listing mountain lions as threatened. Advocates of the protected status point to the hazards encountered by LA’s beloved Hollywood Hills mountain lion, P-22 In 2022, the wealthy Northern California town of Woodside declared its entire jurisdiction a mountain lion habitat to pause all new housing projects under SB 9 — yep, the same duplex bill that’s being exempted in Palisades — but the decision was later reversed This week’s episode was produced by Sophie Bridges The reporting and analysis you hear in the show is put together by our rotating cast of producers and co-hosts every week. All opinions expressed on the show are solely those of co-hosts and may not represent the views of LA Forward Become a paid subscriber at thinkforward.la to keep LA Pod going. Subscribers-only event coming soon!

    1 hr

  8. JAN 19

    Subway, Someday

    Alissa, Rachel, and Godfrey remember Keith Porter Jr., who was killed by an off-duty ICE agent on New Year’s Eve in Northridge. A new UCLA report shows how Metro’s unarmed ambassadors are helping Metro’s riders. A subway concept advances for the Sepulveda Corridor and Fred Rosen’s monorail might finally be dead. And LA City’s charter reform commission has begun the purge. “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” by Martin Luther King, Jr. On New Year’s Eve, Keith Porter Jr. was killed by off-duty ICE agent Brian Palacios in Northridge, and vigils were held across the city this past week There’s just so much to protest! An anti-ICE protester was blinded by a DHS agent in Santa Ana Meanwhile a new LA City Council motion that advanced would require LAPD to adopt tactics like a “graded response” model ICE raids seem to be intensifying: 10 people were taken across 8 Echo Park locations in 3 hours. Read Blood in the Machine and 404 Media on how tech companies like Palantir are finding neighborhoods to raid Sign up for the Community Self Defense Coalition patrols training and share the information on Instagram Read the Metro ambassador report from UCLA’s Institute of Transportation Studies Streetsblog LA: “UCLA Study Finds Metro Transit Ambassador Program Is Benefitting Metro Riders” And the monorail option for the Sepulveda Pass project MIGHT ACTUALLY BE DEAD but keep your calls coming — Modified Alternative 5 is up for a full Metro board vote this week Nick Andert’s video shows how they picked a hybrid option that’s pretty cool actually LA’s city charter reform process held “the purge” last weekend, where certain reforms are starting to be taken off the table. Here’s the Charter Reform Commission website and a way to join the conversation at Rethink LA Here’s a great policy document with proposed reforms for LA’s Capital Infrastructure Program — a 5 year outlook and 2 year budget, to start! Stay involved with LA Forward’s governance reform and CIP working groups Finally: we’re out of drought after 25 years! Check our progress with Cal Matters’ 2026 California Water Tracker  This week’s episode was produced by Kristen Torres The reporting and analysis you hear in the show is put together by our rotating cast of producers and co-hosts every week. All opinions expressed on the show are solely those of co-hosts and may not represent the views of LA Forward Our first subscriber-only event will be held in 2026! Become a paid subscriber at thinkforward.la and you’ll be the first to know the details

    52 min
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About

A news and politics podcast for people who live in Los Angeles.

Information

  • Creator
    LA Podcast
  • Years Active
    2018 - 2026
  • Episodes
    308
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © LA Podcast LLC
  • Show Website
    LA Podcast

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