Antonio Villaraigosa Is Quintessential California

The Former State Assembly Speaker and Two-Term Mayor of Los Angeles Isn’t Just ‘The Latino Candidate’

It shouldn’t matter much to Californians whether Antonio Villaraigosa gets to be a U.S. senator or governor someday. We have no shortage of ambitious politicians, after all. But what should matter to us is whether Antonio Villaraigosa gets to be Antonio Villaraigosa.

Villaraigosa didn’t get that opportunity over the past six weeks as he pondered, and ultimately decided against, a campaign for the U.S. Senate. Instead, in the media coverage and public discussion of the political drama, he was portrayed as one thing above all: the Latino candidate.

Villaraigosa’s supporters and …

by Joe Mathews | March 5, 2015

Pope Francis Is Making a Big Mistake

Visiting America and Skipping California Is Like Going to Italy Without Seeing Rome

by Joe Mathews | February 26, 2015

Dear Pope Francis,

You may be infallible, but your scheduler? Not so much.

The itinerary for your highly anticipated trip to the United States this September defies belief: You are only visiting …

If You Don’t Give Your Kids Shots, At Least Give Me Your Address

California Might Not Stop Parents from Opting Out of Vaccinations, But Everyone Should Know Who They Are

by Joe Mathews | February 11, 2015

Shouldn’t we know where they live?

California’s measles outbreak has touched off a debate about how to reduce the number of parents who choose—in defiance of all credible public health information—not …

Were California and Poland Separated at Birth?

The Golden State’s Long-Lost Twin Is Much Farther East Than Texas or New York

by Joe Mathews | February 5, 2015

California, I’d like to introduce you to the sister you never knew you had.

Her name is Poland.

No joke.

I see by the look on your face, California, that you are …

Let’s Put Voting Machines in In-N-Out Burger

L.A. Voter Turnout Is So Dismal We've Got Nothing to Lose

by Joe Mathews | January 29, 2015

Like a man who bangs his head against the wall to cure a headache, Los Angeles will hold more municipal elections this March. The certain result: another low-turnout embarrassment that …

Think Big, California!

Lacking Ambitious Goals, the State Seems Content to Drift, Waste Money, and Keep Doing the Same Old Things

by Joe Mathews | January 22, 2015

In today’s California, we set big, ambitious goals for improving energy efficiency, fighting climate change, and, well, not much else.

Governor Jerry Brown’s inaugural address this month was a case in …

An Outsider’s Guide to Running—and Losing—a California Election

Pete Peterson, a Republican from Santa Monica, Learned How Much the Deck Is Stacked in Favor of Career Politicians

Covering California’s Least Amazing Race

If Traditional Media Can’t Make Predictable Elections Compelling, Maybe TMZ and a Poet Laureate Can

How Anti-Immigrant Rhetoric Drove My Generation into Politics

Trump’s Cynical Policies Make the Same Mistake That California Republicans Made 20 Years Ago

Where Karl Rove Was Right

Republicans Will Suffer For Leaving Latino Voters Out of the Big Tent. But the GOP Defeat Had To Do With More Than Just Immigration Policy.

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