News Under the Radar
Supersized campaign cashA developer-backed independent campaign committee being used to rescue the mayoral bid of incumbent Democrat Todd Gloria is also trying to beat back a California rent control measure. The group, officially titled San …
Rincon’s splashy suicideBig time gambling interests are playing a major role in the Republican-based Lincoln Club’s hit-piece effort to take down Democratic County Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer. On October 12, fresh money rolled into the club’s …
Captive lobbyingStrike at least one would-be influence peddler from the ranks of ex-government insiders who want to sell their big-money services to corporations seeking to get their way with San Diego’s Port District — at …
A spam king and his dadA widely proclaimed ex-king of spam and YouTube influencer with a big-money slot machine channel who hails from Colorado — along with a million-dollar contribution to San Diego’s longtime hit …
Summer of drugsDillon Cooke, an aide to House Democrat Scott Peters of La Jolla, picked up some free travel and a stay in San Francisco from Center Forward, a non-profit group known for pushing pro-Pharmaceutical …
U-T’s strange volleyball daysThere was a time not long ago that the Union-Tribune was the mouthpiece for San Diego professional sports. In those old days, the paper hustled mightily for the Chargers, denying for two …
Taxing charityThe well-monied effort by city hall Democrats, led by incumbent mayor Todd Gloria, to hike San Diego sales taxes picked up major cash support on September 10 in the form of $40,000 in donations …
Sports and taxesTorrents of political cash to support passage of the sales tax measure backed by San Diego mayor Todd Gloria and his fellow Democrats on the city council have begun pouring in from out …
From paper to policeIs the Union-Tribune, cast off last summer by Los Angeles billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong , about to get a long-hoped-for second life? So believe an ever-hopeful few, as the paper advertises for new …
Quid pro ArsenaultThe prospect of riches from high-end real estate continues to attract wealthy investors, who come up with major money for so-called independent political committees boosting elected officials here.For example, developers of North County’s …
I.V. hatersA new report by the California State Auditor’s office on violations of the federal Clery Act, an crime disclosure law, has singled out the Imperial Valley Community College District for failing to fully report …
Palomar’s Petco pleasuresThe people who run Palomar College have long been allies of Southern California utility giant Sempra Energy, notably around the time the San Diego-based firm became the subject of an August 17, 2023 …
Future hits and missesA battle between San Diego’s politics of the past and those of the its possible future is playing out in this year’s mayoral race. Forces for Democratic mayor Todd Gloria — backed …
Blind council Have San Diego mayor Todd Gloria and the city council been getting away with fiscal murder? So suggest two mid-July reports by City Auditor Andy Hanau accusing the council of being derelict in its …
The El Paseo messThe last living player in a 2005 backstage power struggle over future development at San Diego State University has died. As consultant to the San Diego State University Research Foundation, Fred Pierce, …
Rooms with a ConAs this year’s Comic-Con draws closer, threats that the big-bucks event could soon be moving to another city are rising as well, the sharpest via a July 10 dispatch on Forbes.com. “I …