Mark Z. Barabak
@markzbarabak.bsky.social
LA Times columnist, covering politics from out West. Cat on a tin roof. Dogs in a pile. California uber alles.
https://www.latimes.com/people/mark-z-barabak
https://www.latimes.com/people/mark-z-barabak
Mayhem? What mayhem?
Police in Orange County stop man pointing gun at female driver, only to learn he is ICE agent
www.latimes.com/california/s...
Police in Orange County stop man pointing gun at female driver, only to learn he is ICE agent
www.latimes.com/california/s...
Fullerton police stop man pointing gun at female driver, only to learn he is ICE agent
A Fullerton police officer told the agent he couldn't help 'with someone following or recording him if no crime had occurred.' Under state law, local police cannot enforce federal immigration law.
www.latimes.com
November 10, 2025 at 9:18 PM
Mayhem? What mayhem?
Police in Orange County stop man pointing gun at female driver, only to learn he is ICE agent
www.latimes.com/california/s...
Police in Orange County stop man pointing gun at female driver, only to learn he is ICE agent
www.latimes.com/california/s...
Reposted by Mark Z. Barabak
NEW: Gavin Newsom won big with Proposition 50. But not that big.
The largest impediment to his White House dreams - his California pedigree - hasn't changed.
And all those snarky memes won't seem so funny if JD Vance is inaugurated in January 2029.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
The largest impediment to his White House dreams - his California pedigree - hasn't changed.
And all those snarky memes won't seem so funny if JD Vance is inaugurated in January 2029.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
Commentary: Newsom prevailed on Proposition 50. But the White House is still a big reach
California's governor gambled and won, raised his national profile and fortified his fund-raising base. But Newsom's biggest political impediment — his Left Coast pedigree — hasn't changed.
www.latimes.com
November 9, 2025 at 4:05 PM
NEW: Gavin Newsom won big with Proposition 50. But not that big.
The largest impediment to his White House dreams - his California pedigree - hasn't changed.
And all those snarky memes won't seem so funny if JD Vance is inaugurated in January 2029.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
The largest impediment to his White House dreams - his California pedigree - hasn't changed.
And all those snarky memes won't seem so funny if JD Vance is inaugurated in January 2029.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
Reposted by Mark Z. Barabak
Barabak: Newsom prevailed on Proposition 50. But the White House is still a big reach
Commentary: Newsom prevailed on Proposition 50. But the White House is still a big reach
California's governor gambled and won, raised his national profile and fortified his fund-raising base. But Newsom's biggest political impediment — his Left Coast pedigree — hasn't changed.
www.latimes.com
November 9, 2025 at 11:45 AM
Barabak: Newsom prevailed on Proposition 50. But the White House is still a big reach
Trump says targeted boat crews are narco-terrorists. AP findings show otherwise
www.latimes.com/world-nation...
www.latimes.com/world-nation...
Trump says targeted boat crews are narco-terrorists. AP findings show otherwise
One was a fisherman struggling to eke out a living on $100 a month.
www.latimes.com
November 9, 2025 at 4:51 PM
Trump says targeted boat crews are narco-terrorists. AP findings show otherwise
www.latimes.com/world-nation...
www.latimes.com/world-nation...
NEW: Gavin Newsom won big with Proposition 50. But not that big.
The largest impediment to his White House dreams - his California pedigree - hasn't changed.
And all those snarky memes won't seem so funny if JD Vance is inaugurated in January 2029.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
The largest impediment to his White House dreams - his California pedigree - hasn't changed.
And all those snarky memes won't seem so funny if JD Vance is inaugurated in January 2029.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
Commentary: Newsom prevailed on Proposition 50. But the White House is still a big reach
California's governor gambled and won, raised his national profile and fortified his fund-raising base. But Newsom's biggest political impediment — his Left Coast pedigree — hasn't changed.
www.latimes.com
November 9, 2025 at 4:05 PM
NEW: Gavin Newsom won big with Proposition 50. But not that big.
The largest impediment to his White House dreams - his California pedigree - hasn't changed.
And all those snarky memes won't seem so funny if JD Vance is inaugurated in January 2029.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
The largest impediment to his White House dreams - his California pedigree - hasn't changed.
And all those snarky memes won't seem so funny if JD Vance is inaugurated in January 2029.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
Slaying of Mexican mayor sparks national outcry over cartel power
Patrick McDonnell
www.latimes.com/world-nation...
Patrick McDonnell
www.latimes.com/world-nation...
Slaying of Mexican mayor sparks national outcry over cartel power
Though the assassinations of other public figures in Mexico have triggered outrage, the recent killing of Carlos Manzo, a mayor in Michoacán, has left many Mexicans wondering if the government can eve...
www.latimes.com
November 9, 2025 at 4:03 PM
Slaying of Mexican mayor sparks national outcry over cartel power
Patrick McDonnell
www.latimes.com/world-nation...
Patrick McDonnell
www.latimes.com/world-nation...
Reposted by Mark Z. Barabak
Citing a string of incidents in which masked criminals posing as immigration officers robbed and kidnapped victims, the FBI recently issued a memo suggesting agents clearly identify themselves while they’re in the field.
By @tarantulaarms.bsky.social & Ruben Vives
www.latimes.com/california/s...
By @tarantulaarms.bsky.social & Ruben Vives
www.latimes.com/california/s...
FBI urges ICE agents to identify themselves after string of impersonators commit crimes
Citing a string of incidents in which masked criminals posing as immigration officers robbed and kidnapped victims, the FBI recently issued a memo suggesting agents clearly identify themselves while t...
www.latimes.com
November 7, 2025 at 4:07 AM
Citing a string of incidents in which masked criminals posing as immigration officers robbed and kidnapped victims, the FBI recently issued a memo suggesting agents clearly identify themselves while they’re in the field.
By @tarantulaarms.bsky.social & Ruben Vives
www.latimes.com/california/s...
By @tarantulaarms.bsky.social & Ruben Vives
www.latimes.com/california/s...
Asylum as swimsuit competition—>
Trump adds new reasons to deny visas to immigrants: obesity and other health issues
www.latimes.com/california/s...
Trump adds new reasons to deny visas to immigrants: obesity and other health issues
www.latimes.com/california/s...
Trump adds new reasons to deny visas to immigrants: obesity and other health issues
The White House has directed visa officers to consider common health ailments, including obesity and diabetes, when deciding if immigrants can enter the U.S. The legality is questionable, experts say.
www.latimes.com
November 7, 2025 at 5:21 PM
Asylum as swimsuit competition—>
Trump adds new reasons to deny visas to immigrants: obesity and other health issues
www.latimes.com/california/s...
Trump adds new reasons to deny visas to immigrants: obesity and other health issues
www.latimes.com/california/s...
Your plutocracy at work——>
The Trump administration’s gutting of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has been good for venture capitalists like Marc Andreessen, who previously accused the agency of “terrorizing” fintech startups and crypto companies.
Tech Billionaire Marc Andreessen Bet Big on Trump. It’s Paying Off for Silicon Valley.
The Trump administration’s gutting of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has been good for venture capitalists like Andreessen, who previously accused the agency of “terrorizing” fintech startup...
www.propublica.org
November 6, 2025 at 9:37 PM
Your plutocracy at work——>
Reposted by Mark Z. Barabak
Barabak: Nancy Pelosi prided herself on cold calculation. She knew it was time
Commentary: Nancy Pelosi prided herself on cold calculation. She knew it was time
In her history-making career, the former House Speaker showed her capacity to read the political situation. She leaves at the right time, securing a profound legacy.
www.latimes.com
November 6, 2025 at 7:47 PM
Barabak: Nancy Pelosi prided herself on cold calculation. She knew it was time
NEW: Nancy Pelosi prided herself on dispassion, detachment and cold-eyed calculation.
She knew how to count votes and read a political situation better than just about anyone.
She knew it was time.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
She knew how to count votes and read a political situation better than just about anyone.
She knew it was time.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
Commentary: Nancy Pelosi prided herself on cold calculation. She knew it was time
In her history-making career, the former House Speaker showed her capacity to read the political situation. She leaves at the right time, securing a profound legacy.
www.latimes.com
November 6, 2025 at 7:04 PM
NEW: Nancy Pelosi prided herself on dispassion, detachment and cold-eyed calculation.
She knew how to count votes and read a political situation better than just about anyone.
She knew it was time.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
She knew how to count votes and read a political situation better than just about anyone.
She knew it was time.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
Rep. Nancy Pelosi, trailblazing Democratic leader from San Francisco, won’t seek reelection
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
Rep. Nancy Pelosi, trailblazing Democratic leader from San Francisco, won't seek reelection
Rep. Nancy Pelosi leveraged decades of power in the U.S. House to become one of the most influential political leaders of her generation. She won't seek reelection in 2026.
www.latimes.com
November 6, 2025 at 2:12 PM
Rep. Nancy Pelosi, trailblazing Democratic leader from San Francisco, won’t seek reelection
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
Reposted by Mark Z. Barabak
Democrats' wins hardly reflected a unified party - Mamdani challenges the party establishment as much as he does Trump - but gave many on the left optimism that Trump & MAGA aren’t unstoppable and that their ability to resist isn’t just alive & well but gaining speed
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
Democratic wins nationwide, a major rebuke of Trump, offer the left hope for 2026
The cascade of Democratic victories Tuesday evoked a political hope that many on the political left hadn't felt in a while: a sense of optimism that Trump and his MAGA movement aren't unstoppable.
www.latimes.com
November 5, 2025 at 5:21 PM
Democrats' wins hardly reflected a unified party - Mamdani challenges the party establishment as much as he does Trump - but gave many on the left optimism that Trump & MAGA aren’t unstoppable and that their ability to resist isn’t just alive & well but gaining speed
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
NEW: The animating impulse behind Proposition 50 was understandable, given Trump's awfulness. But it's a short-sighted solution.
Newsom and other proponents called it fighting fire with fire. But that smell in the air today isn’t victory.
It’s ashes.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
Newsom and other proponents called it fighting fire with fire. But that smell in the air today isn’t victory.
It’s ashes.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
Commentary: Proposition 50 is a short-term victory against Trump. But at what cost?
California's ballot measure gerrymandering congressional lines continues a trend that's eliminated political competition in many House races. The result is today's Washington dysfunction.
www.latimes.com
November 5, 2025 at 3:10 PM
NEW: The animating impulse behind Proposition 50 was understandable, given Trump's awfulness. But it's a short-sighted solution.
Newsom and other proponents called it fighting fire with fire. But that smell in the air today isn’t victory.
It’s ashes.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
Newsom and other proponents called it fighting fire with fire. But that smell in the air today isn’t victory.
It’s ashes.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
Reposted by Mark Z. Barabak
Barabak: Proposition 50 is a short-term victory against Trump. But at what cost?
Commentary: Proposition 50 is a short-term victory against Trump. But at what cost?
California's ballot measure gerrymandering congressional lines continues a trend that's eliminated political competition in many House races. The result is today's Washington dysfunction.
www.latimes.com
November 5, 2025 at 1:00 PM
Barabak: Proposition 50 is a short-term victory against Trump. But at what cost?
Reposted by Mark Z. Barabak
Trump won a return to the White House amid broad national dissatisfaction. A year later CNN exit polling finds voters expressing similar pessimism and anti-incumbent sentiments — this time, helping to fuel a sweep of Democratic victories.
www.cnn.com/2025/11/04/p...
www.cnn.com/2025/11/04/p...
November 5, 2025 at 2:26 PM
Trump won a return to the White House amid broad national dissatisfaction. A year later CNN exit polling finds voters expressing similar pessimism and anti-incumbent sentiments — this time, helping to fuel a sweep of Democratic victories.
www.cnn.com/2025/11/04/p...
www.cnn.com/2025/11/04/p...
Whitewashing Watch:
Historians, librarians and volunteers are racing to document museum displays and historical records they fear the Trump administration will remove or alter.
Jack Dolan
www.latimes.com/california/s...
Historians, librarians and volunteers are racing to document museum displays and historical records they fear the Trump administration will remove or alter.
Jack Dolan
www.latimes.com/california/s...
A small army is racing against time and Trump to preserve U.S. history
Like 'monks' in the Middle Ages, volunteers are working to preserve cultural treasures they fear are under threat from President Trump’s war against 'woke.'
www.latimes.com
November 4, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Whitewashing Watch:
Historians, librarians and volunteers are racing to document museum displays and historical records they fear the Trump administration will remove or alter.
Jack Dolan
www.latimes.com/california/s...
Historians, librarians and volunteers are racing to document museum displays and historical records they fear the Trump administration will remove or alter.
Jack Dolan
www.latimes.com/california/s...
Reposted by Mark Z. Barabak
Gavin Newsom's gamble on Prop. 50 may be his most calculated yet
Gavin Newsom’s gamble on Prop. 50 may be his most calculated yet
From marriage equality to the death penalty to redistricting, California's governor has built a career on political risk. But Proposition 50 could determine how history judges his instincts.
www.latimes.com
November 4, 2025 at 1:27 PM
Gavin Newsom's gamble on Prop. 50 may be his most calculated yet
She helped get her violent husband deported. Then ICE deported her — straight into his arms.
@racheluranga.bsky.social
www.latimes.com/california/s...
@racheluranga.bsky.social
www.latimes.com/california/s...
She helped get her violent husband deported. Then ICE deported her — straight into his arms.
Carmen's abusive husband came home drunk one night last summer. He pounded and kicked the door.
www.latimes.com
November 3, 2025 at 4:54 PM
She helped get her violent husband deported. Then ICE deported her — straight into his arms.
@racheluranga.bsky.social
www.latimes.com/california/s...
@racheluranga.bsky.social
www.latimes.com/california/s...
Reposted by Mark Z. Barabak
NEW: Is Proposition 50 righteous payback or a grubby power grab?
A reasoned attempt to even things out with Texas or a ruthless gambit to drive California's GOP to near-extinction?
It all depends on the voter. Prop 50 has become a political ink-blot test.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
A reasoned attempt to even things out with Texas or a ruthless gambit to drive California's GOP to near-extinction?
It all depends on the voter. Prop 50 has become a political ink-blot test.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
Commentary: Payback? Power grab? Proposition 50 is California's political ink-blot test
Where California voters stand on the state's redistricting measure depends where, politically, many of them sit. In the Inland Empire, opinion appears divided even as the measure seems headed to appro...
www.latimes.com
November 2, 2025 at 3:55 PM
NEW: Is Proposition 50 righteous payback or a grubby power grab?
A reasoned attempt to even things out with Texas or a ruthless gambit to drive California's GOP to near-extinction?
It all depends on the voter. Prop 50 has become a political ink-blot test.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
A reasoned attempt to even things out with Texas or a ruthless gambit to drive California's GOP to near-extinction?
It all depends on the voter. Prop 50 has become a political ink-blot test.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
NEW: Is Proposition 50 righteous payback or a grubby power grab?
A reasoned attempt to even things out with Texas or a ruthless gambit to drive California's GOP to near-extinction?
It all depends on the voter. Prop 50 has become a political ink-blot test.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
A reasoned attempt to even things out with Texas or a ruthless gambit to drive California's GOP to near-extinction?
It all depends on the voter. Prop 50 has become a political ink-blot test.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
Commentary: Payback? Power grab? Proposition 50 is California's political ink-blot test
Where California voters stand on the state's redistricting measure depends where, politically, many of them sit. In the Inland Empire, opinion appears divided even as the measure seems headed to appro...
www.latimes.com
November 2, 2025 at 3:55 PM
NEW: Is Proposition 50 righteous payback or a grubby power grab?
A reasoned attempt to even things out with Texas or a ruthless gambit to drive California's GOP to near-extinction?
It all depends on the voter. Prop 50 has become a political ink-blot test.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
A reasoned attempt to even things out with Texas or a ruthless gambit to drive California's GOP to near-extinction?
It all depends on the voter. Prop 50 has become a political ink-blot test.
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
Reposted by Mark Z. Barabak
A major shift in where L.A. gets water: The city will double the size of a project to transform wastewater into purified drinking water, producing enough for 500,000 people. The recycled water will allow L.A. to stop taking water from creeks that feed Mono Lake. www.latimes.com/environment/...
Los Angeles will nearly double recycled water for 500,000 residents
Los Angeles is set to double the size of a planned facility that will transform wastewater into purified drinking water, recycling enough water to meet the needs of 500,000 people.
www.latimes.com
October 31, 2025 at 3:27 PM
A major shift in where L.A. gets water: The city will double the size of a project to transform wastewater into purified drinking water, producing enough for 500,000 people. The recycled water will allow L.A. to stop taking water from creeks that feed Mono Lake. www.latimes.com/environment/...
Reposted by Mark Z. Barabak
News Analysis: Trump channels past Latin American aggressions in new crusade: 'We're just gonna kill people'
News Analysis: Trump channels past Latin American aggressions in new crusade: 'We’re just gonna kill people'
U.S. gunboat diplomacy returns as President Trump threatens Venezuela invasion and sanctions Colombia. He also has worked to support right-wing admirers in Brazil and Argentina.
www.latimes.com
November 1, 2025 at 4:26 PM
News Analysis: Trump channels past Latin American aggressions in new crusade: 'We're just gonna kill people'
Proposition 50 could disenfranchise Republican California voters. Will it survive a legal challenge?
The lawsuits are teed up
Jenny Jarvie
www.latimes.com/california/s...
The lawsuits are teed up
Jenny Jarvie
www.latimes.com/california/s...
Proposition 50 could disenfranchise Republican California voters. Will it survive a legal challenge?
If Californians vote in favor of the measure on Nov. 4, the number of Republicans in California’s House — nine of 52 total members — would likely be cut in half.
www.latimes.com
November 1, 2025 at 1:39 PM
Proposition 50 could disenfranchise Republican California voters. Will it survive a legal challenge?
The lawsuits are teed up
Jenny Jarvie
www.latimes.com/california/s...
The lawsuits are teed up
Jenny Jarvie
www.latimes.com/california/s...
“As soon as Trump was reelected, we entered into a constitutional crisis. Why? Because Trump has no respect for constitutional structures.”
News Analysis: Prop. 50 is just one part of a historically uncertain moment for American democracy
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
www.latimes.com/politics/sto...
News Analysis: Prop. 50 is just one part of a historically uncertain moment for American democracy
Amid a swirl of high-stakes political standoffs from Sacramento to Washington, the future of U.S. politics and democracy has felt wildly uncertain of late.
www.latimes.com
October 31, 2025 at 3:09 PM
“As soon as Trump was reelected, we entered into a constitutional crisis. Why? Because Trump has no respect for constitutional structures.”