The American Press Institute, says the conservative-leaning website InfluenceWatch.com, “receives funding from many sources, including several left-leaning philanthropic organizations that support left-of-center journalism.

Endowment of color

The Reston, Virginia-based American Press Institute has jumped into the middle of November’s heated ballot battle over San Diego’s free trash pickup. The non-profit announced on September 28 that it is funding a San Diego State University-based non-profit news operation.

“Investigative Newsource will use mapping and analysis to explore the potential impact of a ballot initiative to end free trash pickup for single-family homeowners, a service that creates an inequity for apartment residents and others who pay for pickup, including under-resourced communities,” says the Institute’s news release.

“Its coverage will also explore special interests attempting to influence the outcome.” But the definition of special interests can depend on the eye of the beholder. The American Press Institute, says the conservative-leaning website InfluenceWatch.com, “receives funding from many sources, including several left-leaning philanthropic organizations that support left-of-center journalism, oppose election integrity measures, and support more lenient immigration policies.” According to the Institute’s release regarding its grants to Investigative Newsource and thirty other groups around the country, “the American Press Institute prioritized projects that seek to shore up trust and engagement between news outlets and communities of color. Many of the newsrooms are looking to expand their reach into communities that have been underserved or undercovered, leading to distrust and a disconnection from many media organizations.”

On the road, again and again

Keeping alive the junketeering tradition of her predecessor and fellow Democrat Susan Davis, 53rd District House member Sara Jacobs ran up a substantial tab for airfare, food, and lodging on a summer trip to Africa, paid for by the United Nations Foundation, according to a July 23 disclosure filing. The weeklong getaway ran from July 2 to July 10, took Jacobs to Khartoum and other stops in Sudan and South Sudan, and cost $17,252 for transportation, $1,674 for lodging, and $245 for meals.

Susan Davis: guide on the junket path.

“A sleek architectural masterpiece of steel and glass, CORINTHIA Hotel Khartoum redefines the business hotel category and is the ideal environment for corporate and leisure travelers,” reads a TripAdvisor.com review of the place where Jacobs stayed.

“The designer spaces, the view, and the spectacular architecture create a fascinating setting for the contemporary cuisine of the Mugran Restaurant: a range of flavors from Mediterranean to African on to Oriental,” offers another. Meanwhile, Giulia DiGuglielmo, a legislative assistant to GOP Congressman Darrell Issa, journeyed to Seattle from September 7 and September 10, thanks to the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, per a September 16 disclosure.

“We attended meetings for the entirety of the day on Wednesday, 9/7/22 after landing in Seattle around 10:45 am, throughout the entire day on Thursday, 9/8/22, and from 8:30 am-noon on Friday 9/9/22,” wrote DiGuglielmo. “The meetings related to science and technology — examples of such meetings were Boeing, Google, Amazon, Meta, Comast [sic], and T-Mobile.“ The honorary co-chair of the foundation that paid for the trip is Issa himself, and the House’s free junket record holder — ex-congresswoman Susan Davis — is board co-chair.

Hit to pieces

With his rival and fellow Democrat Georgette Gomez dropping out of the November general election race, state Assembly incumbent David Alvarez has an easy cruise to reelection. So Alvarez has folded the committee funding his effort to run for county supervisor in 2024, but not before moving the remaining $2175 in that account to his Assembly Special Election committee, according to a September 17 filing. Those giving to his current campaign include Kilroy Realty, LP, a former lobbying client, which gave $4900 on September 24, and the California Nations Indian Gaming Association Sovereignty Protection Fund, giving the same amount the day before.

Georgette Gomez, clearing the path for Alvarez, and saving him $$$, too!

The Southern California Rental Housing Association PAC gave $2000 on September 22, and Yum Brands also contributed $1000 that day. “The fast food corporation is most well-known as the parent company for KFC, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell,” notes the website Mashed.com.

The company is aligned with other fast food giants in a ballot-box effort to overturn AB 257, known as the Fast Food Accountability and Standards Recovery Act. The law was signed September 5 by Governor Gavin Newsom, and set up an appointed body “that could set wage and other workplace conditions for fast-food workers,” the LA Times reported September 23.

“Whatever one might think of the virtues or sins of AB 257, the main question confronting California voters is whether we want to place legislative power in the hands of corporations determined to write laws specifically for the benefit of their executives and shareholders, and to pass them via campaigns of unexampled dishonesty,” wrote the paper’s business columnist Michael Hiltzik...

The San Diego County Deputy Sheriffs’ Association contributed $49,990 on September 17 to a rough-and-tumble Lincoln Club-sponsored campaign committee called the North County Leadership Council opposed to [Tiffany] Boyd-Hodgson for Supervisor 2022. A Democrat, Boyd-Hodgson is challenging District 5 Republican incumbent Jim Desmond, and with the Lincoln Club in the battle, hit pieces are expected to fly...The California Medical Association and its affiliated entities came up with a cool $850,000 on September 22 for the ballot measure committee of Senate Pro Tem Toni Atkins, currently raising a war chest for Yes on Prop 1, the pro-choice measure on November’s ballot.

— Matt Potter

(@sdmattpotter)

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