Rob Bonta

JUDGE TEMPORARILY BLOCKS TRUMP CUTS TO PUBLIC HEALTH AFTER CA ATTORNEY GENERAL FILED LAWSUIT

By Miriam Raftery

April 7, 2025 (Oakland, CA)—California Attorney General Rob Bonta has scored a keyvictory in federal court. Trump-appointed judge,  Mary McElroy, issued a temporary restraining order to stop the Trump administration from clawing back over $11 billion in public health funding from state and local health departments. California stands to lose over $972 million, according to Bonta.

The action came in a lawsuit led by Bonta, joined by 23 states and the District of Columbia. The suit was filed against the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services and its director, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.

“The likelihood of success on the merits is extremely strong,” Judge McElroy stated after a hearing. She stated that the record is “voluminous” with “allegations of irreparable harm” if funding stops.


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TWO JUDGES ORDER FEDERAL AGENCIES TO REHIRE TENS OF THOUSANDS OF WORKERS FIRED IN DOGE PURGE

By Miriam Raftery

Photo by Anne Meador: Federal workers protest at Capitol (CC by NC-ND)

March 14, 2025 – Two federal judges have ruled that the Trump administration’s mass firing of federal workers was illegal.  Both judges ordered thousands of probationary fired workers rehired, at least temporarily, though the two rulings differed on the scope of agencies affected. Combined, the two rulings order that 18 agencies immediately rehire those fired, affecting a broad range of jobs from national park rangers to Veterans’ Administration workers and many more.

 The judges also issued scathing rebukes of the purge of agencies done by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and accused the administration of lying when it claimed the firings were based on performance issues, since many of the laid-off workers had extremely positive performance reviews.

U.S. District Court Judge William Alsup in San Francisco called the mass terminations a “sham.”  He stated in open court, “It is sad, a sad day, when our government would fire some good employee and say it was based on performance when they know good and well that’s a lie.  That should not have been done in our country.”


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CA ATTORNEY GENERAL BONTA SECURES PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION BLOCKING DOGE’S ACCESS TO PRIVATE DATA

East County News Service

February 22, 2025 (New York) -- California Attorney General Rob Bonta today released a statement after the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York's issuance of a preliminary injunction blocking the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from accessing Americans’ personal and private information maintained by the U.S. Treasury Department.


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ATTORNEY GENERAL BONTA FILING SAYS TRUMP ADMINISTRATION IS NOT COMPLYING WITH COURT ORDER TO UNFREEZE CERTAIN FEDERAL FUNDING

East County News Service

February 9, 2025 (Oakland, CA) – Last week, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order prohibiting the Trump administration from carrying out a spending freeze. “Each day that the pause continues to ripple across the country is an additional day that Americans are being denied access to programs that heal them, house them, and feed them,” Judge Loren AliKhan wrote in the ruling.

Now California Attorney General is accusing the Trump administration of defying the judge’s order and continuing to block funds to states under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA and the Infrastructure, Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA, also known as the bipartisan infrastructure act). Bonta on Feb. 7 filed a motion on behalf of 23 state attorneys general. The motion asks the court to enforce the earlier ruling and and to order Defendants to immediately restore funds until the preliminary injunction motion can be heard and decided.

The coalition seeks to preliminarily enjoin the Trump Administration’s funding freeze, emphasizing the widespread and irreparable harm to states, which rely on billions of dollars of critical federal assistance for public services that ensure access to education, clean air and water, and health care and that support essential infrastructure projects.  More than $100 billion in Medicaid funding, tens of billions in infrastructure and climate funding, among the funding at risk in just California, according to a press release issued by Bonta.


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TRUMP DEFIES CONSTITUTION, ORDERS BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP TO END: LAWSUITS FILED TO BLOCK IMPLEMENTATION

By Miriam Raftery

Image: Wong Kim Ark, whose landmark 1898 lawsuit led to a Supreme Court ruling affirming citizenship for all children born in the U.S., regardless of parents' immigration status. Born in the U.S.,Kim had been denied reentry after traveling abroad. Photo via 1904 immigration document.

January 21, 2025 (Washington D.C.) – Multiple lawsuits have been filed seeking to block an executive order yesterday issued by President Donald Trump which aims to end birthright citizenship. Trump’s order seeks to end citizenship from being issued to children born in the U.S. if the parents are not in the U.S. legally In addition, his order would prohibit citizenship from children born to a mother who is in the U.S. on a temporary and legal basis, such as student, work, or tourist visas, unless the father is a citizen or lawful permanent resident. The order would take effect in 30 days, on Feb. 19, and apply to children born on or after that date.

The order is in direct contradiction to the U.S. Constitution’s 14th amendment, which states: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States.” Trump’s order contends that children of undocumented immigrants as well as children born to mothers here on a temporary basis are not “subject to the jurisdiction” of the U.S..


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ATTORNEY GENERAL BONTA URGES FDA TO ADDRESS DANGEROUS PULSE OXIMETER INACCURACIES IMPACTING COMMUNITIES OF COLOR

Source: California Attorney General’s office

Image: CC via Bing

November 1, 2023 (Sacramento) -- California Attorney General Rob Bonta, leading a multistate coalition of 25 attorneys general, today submitted a letter to urge the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to strengthen guidance and provide clear warning labels regarding incorrect pulse oximeter readings for patients of color.


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HAPPY FILIPINO AMERICAN HISTORY MONTH

East County News Service

 

Photo: Brett Sayles (Pexels)

 

October 10, 2023 (San Diego's East County) -- Filipino American History Month is a time to celebrate and honor the contributions and achievements of Filipino Americans in the United States. It is also a time to learn about the rich and diverse history and culture of the Philippines and its people.

California and San Diego have a special connection to Filipino American history, as they are the places where the first Filipinos arrived in the continental United States. On October 18, 1587, a group of Filipino sailors landed on what is now Morro Bay, California, aboard the Spanish galleon Nuestra Señora de Esperanza1They were the first modern Asians to set foot on American soil, and they established trade and cultural exchanges with the native Chumash and Obispeño peoples2, according to Bing AI.


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ATTORNEY GENERAL BONTA ANNOUNCES LAWSUIT AGAINST TELECOMMUNICATIONS CO. OVER BILLIONS OF ILLEGAL SCAM ROBOCALLS

577 Million Robocalls made to CA phones on National Do Not Call Registry, including Medicare and Social Security scams

May 23, 2023 (Sacramento)-- California Attorney General Rob Bonta today, as part of a bipartisan coalition of 49 attorneys general, announced a lawsuit against Avid Telecom for allegedly making billions of unlawful robocalls in California and across the nation.. Those robocalls included Social Security Administration scams, Medicare scams, and employment scams; two robocall examples can be found here and here

Today’s complaint is the result of efforts by the nationwide Anti-Robocall Litigation Task Force, which Attorney General Bonta helped launch last year and is charged with taking legal action against telecommunications companies that perpetuate robocall traffic.


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ATTORNEY GENERAL BONTA SECURES COURT ORDER SANCTIONING GOOGLE FOR DESTROYING EVIDENCE IN ANTITRUST LAWSUIT

East County News Service

March 29, 2023 (Sacramento) -- California Attorney General Rob Bonta today, as part of a multistate coalition, secured a court order sanctioning Google for its destruction of evidence in the coalition’s lawsuit against the company filed in 2021.


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ATTORNEY GENERAL BONTA, SAN DIEGO HUMAN TRAFFICKING TASK FORCE ANNOUNCE TRAFFICKING ARRESTS IN OPERATION BETTER PATHWAYS

During multi-day operation, task force makes 48 arrests, offers support to 41 individuals, and recovers two firearms

Source: Attorney General Rob Bonta

Tuesday, February 21, 2023 (San Diego) --  As part of a joint investigation through the San Diego Human Trafficking Task Force (SDHTTF), California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced the results of Operation Better Pathways during a press conference in San DIego. The multi-jurisdictional operation, which concluded earlier this month, is part of a broader, regional effort to combat human trafficking and sexual exploitation through targeted enforcement, relying both on surveillance of known locations and officers working undercover. 

As a result of the multi-day operation, 48 individuals were arrested for alleged human trafficking, sexual exploitation, and other criminal offenses, 41 individuals — including eight children — were offered support services, and two firearms were recovered, including a ghost gun.


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CA ATTORNEY GENERAL THREATENS EL CAJON OVER CITY SENDING WARNING NOTICES TO HOTELS OVER HOMELESS VOUCHER PROGRAM

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: California Attorney General Rob Bonta

September 27, 2022 (El Cajon) – California Attorney General Rob Bonta sent a warning letter to El Cajon’s Mayor and City Council on Sept. 23 demanding that the city rescind warning notices sent to hotels housing homeless individuals under the County of San Diego’s voucher program. Bonta letters calls the County’s program “unquestionably legal” and claims the city’s notices constitute unlawful discrimination under the Fair Employment and Housing Act, which prohibits housing discrimination based on income source.

Last week, the city of El Cajon sent warning notices to seven of the eight hotels/motels participating in the County of San Diego’s voucher program to temporarily house homeless people. The city warned that the motels were violating a city law that limits hotels to a maximum 25% of capacity for homeless people in the voucher program. The city notified the hotels that they would be fined up to $1,000 a day if they did not comply.

The city noticed an increase in drug dealing and drug use around the motels, then learned that the County had placed homeless people from across the region into the motels through the voucher program.


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JUDGE BLOCKS OTAY RANCH DEVELOPMENT, ORDERS COUNTY TO REVERSE APPROVAL DUE TO WILDFIRE DANGERS

By Miriam Raftery, East County Magazine

October 7, 2021 (Proctor Valley) – A San Diego Superior Court judge today ordered the County of San Diego to vacate its 2019 approval of portions of the Otay Ranch Village 14 and Planning Areas 16/19 in Proctor Valley south of Jamul near Chula Vista, due to the danger of wildfires in an area that has already had many severe fires.

Judge Richard S. Whitney found that the County’s environmental impact report failed to assess the increase wildfire risk, nor offer any mitigation to reduce those increased risks if the controversial master-planned community were built. 

California Attorney General Rob Bonta intervened on behalf of the people of California to support a lawsuit filed by environmental groups challenging the project.  Bonta praised the decision, stating, “Today’s ruling by the Superior Court affirms a critical fact: Local governments have a responsibility to address wildfire risks associated with development projects at the front end. Doing so will save dollars—and lives—down the line.”


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