Laphonza Butler wants you to know she’s your U.S. senator

Ever since Laphonza Butler took herself out of the running for U.S. Senate a year ago — just two weeks after Gov. Gavin Newsom picked her to replace the late Dianne Feinstein — she has faded into the background quite a bit. 

Thursday, to mark one year since she took the oath of office, her office sent a clear message that she’s busy representing California — and will be until whoever voters pick in November is sworn in to serve until January, and then a full six-year term after that.  

Butler, in a statement to CalMatters: “I’m proud to represent one of the most racially and ethnically diverse states in America, with a population of young people who have shown up to be the face of change. Their courage, their passion, their drive to lead have fueled me every single day in the Senate…”

In a series of social media posts, Butler’s office gave some facts and figures on what she’s been up to — 342 votes and much more:

Bills, bills, bills: Introduced 19 bills, including to extend funding for research on maternal health and develop a pilot program to address children’s behavioral health needs; and co-sponsored 235 more, including to strengthen protections for abortions, voting rights and access to fertility treatments.

Meetings, meetings, meetings: 70 meetings of four Senate committees, plus 30 “markup” sessions to debate bill amendments — further evidence that government jobs can be just as unglamorous as regular jobs.

Responding to constituents: 1.2 million pieces of mail and more than 2,000 casework requests for help with federal agencies.

Wrestling with AI: A bill to direct federal agencies to study the effects of artificial intelligence on the job market, plus hosting events about AI’s potential economic impact within Black communities. “Hopefully … we’ll be able to catch the full opportunity that is the deployment of artificial intelligence,” Butler told The Verge recently.

Butler’s office did not answer my questions about what’s next for the senator once her term ends in December.

A political firestorm: Gov. Newsom, of course, but even President Joe Biden reacted Thursday to a report that Donald Trump, when he was president in 2018, initially refused to help California during its devastating wildfires because it’s a Democratic state.

A former White House official told Politico that Trump changed his mind after being shown that he received more votes in Orange County than the entire state of Iowa in 2016. (In 2020, even though Biden defeated Trump by 63% to 34% in California, Trump still won 6 million votes, more than in any other state).

Biden, on social media: “You can’t only help those in need if they voted for you. It’s the most basic part of being president, and this guy knows nothing about it.”

Let’s get to some housing news Gov. Newsom made Thursday:

Norwalk rebuked: Two months after Norwalk temporarily banned new homeless shelters in violation of state law, Gov. Newsom made good on his threat of legal action against the L.A. County suburb, reports CalMatters’ Felicia Mello. Calling Norwalk’s policy “beyond cruel,” the governor announced that the city’s housing plan has been decertified, cutting it off from key state housing and homelessness funding. The mayor of Norwalk, a city of 100,000 and at least 200 homeless people, said it’ll fight the state. It’s the latest city to draw the governor’s ire on housing. In September, the state settled a lawsuit with Elk Grove after it denied a housing project for families at risk of homelessness. And in May, Newsom secured a court order against Huntington Beach. Read more in Felicia’s story.

San Francisco project OK’d: With more than 8,000 people experiencing homelessness in San Francisco, Newsom announced that a Department of Motor Vehicles office from the 1960s will be remodeled, and will include a housing complex with 372 homes. The project follows through on Newsom’s 2019 executive order that directed agencies to identify and develop affordable housing sites on underused state property. “Treating our housing shortage like the crisis it is means we need to get creative with how we’re using space…” said Democratic state Sen. Scott Wiener of San Francisco. “This project is a model for how the state must engage on housing.”

Facebook has acknowledged that polarizing content and misinformation on its platform has incited real-life violence. 

An analysis by CalMatters and The Markup found that the reverse is also true: Real-world violence can sometimes open new revenue opportunities for Meta. 

Using Facebook’s own AI tool to count the millions of dollars it makes after violent news events, investigative reporter Colin Lecher and journalism engineer Tomas Apodaca analyzed ad revenue connected to the July 13 attempted assassination of Donald Trump and Israel’s war in Gaza. Research also shows some advertisers increased ad spending following mass shootings and in the lead-up to the Jan. 6, 2021 storming of the U.S. Capitol. 

Meta said advertisers often respond to current events and that ads that run on its platform are reviewed and must meet the company’s standards.

Read more in the story.

In 2018 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration sued a California stem cell treatment center for offering unapproved services. A federal appeals court has weighed in on the case. Find out how it ruled from CalMatters health reporter Ana B. Ibarra.