California’s population grew by 67,000 people last year, marking the first increase since 2020. The total number of residents now stands at 39,128,162 as of January 1st.

This growth is due to several reasons. First, there have been better policies for legal immigration, meaning more people are moving to California from other countries. Second, more babies were born, contributing to natural population growth. Third, the number of deaths returned to normal levels after being higher for a while.

However, fewer people moved to California from other parts of the United States compared to previous years. Despite this, the state’s Department of Finance predicts that the population will continue to grow.

In total, 31 out of 58 counties in California saw their populations increase. This was especially true for areas like the Bay Area, the Central Valley, and the “Inland Empire,” which is the region east of coastal Southern California.

Los Angeles County and Orange County also saw slight increases in their populations. Some counties had growth rates of over one percent, including Sutter, Yuba, and Glenn counties in the Sacramento Valley, as well as San Benito County and Imperial County.

Housing gains played a big role in these increases, according to the Department of Finance. In fact, nine out of every ten counties with more than 1 million people saw their populations go up. Riverside County had the largest increase, adding 13,800 new residents.

Governor Gavin Newsom commented on the growth, saying that people from all over the world and the country are coming to California to chase the “California Dream” and take part in the state’s strong economy. He emphasized that this growth is helping to strengthen communities across California and secure the state’s future.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer criticized protesters at Columbia University who broke windows and took control of Hamilton Hall. He said it’s not free speech when people break the law. Schumer thinks those who did it should face serious consequences. He said protests should not turn into crimes because it doesn’t help their cause.

The protesters at Columbia University barricaded themselves in a building. The university said they can’t keep interrupting classes with protests. They warned that there would be consequences for breaking the rules.

Schumer, who is Jewish, said it’s wrong when Jewish students are targeted. He talked about a speech he made about antisemitism. He said antisemitism is terrible and shouldn’t be accepted.

Some Republicans want Columbia’s president to resign for not controlling the situation. They said it’s not right that Jewish students have to fear for their safety.

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell also criticized the pro-Palestinian protests. He said the protesters are promoting hate against Jewish people. He thinks universities need to do more to stop these protests from turning violent.

McConnell praised Princeton University for handling protests better. He said universities should not just talk about stopping disorder, they should take action too.

Testimony resumed on Tuesday in the trial of former President Trump. He’s accused of paying hush money to Stormy Daniels, an adult film actress who said they had an affair during the 2016 election.

The day started with Judge Juan Merchan finding that Trump broke a rule nine times by making comments online about jurors and witnesses. The judge fined Trump $9,000 and warned that more violations could lead to jail time.

Trump responded to the ruling by saying his freedom of speech was being taken away. He called the trial rigged and criticized the judge.

The court heard from witnesses who talked about Michael Cohen, a long-time associate of Trump. They described Cohen in a negative way. Cohen’s former legal advisor said those descriptions were in the past.

Another witness, Gary Farro, said Cohen misled the bank about why he was opening an account. Cohen’s lawyer testified that a Playboy model sold her story to a media company instead of a news outlet to keep it from being published.

They also talked about a video where Trump made inappropriate comments. They said it changed how people viewed women who claimed they had affairs with Trump.

The trial will continue on Thursday.

The Trump campaign criticized the Commission on Presidential Debate’s decision not to change the debate schedule on Tuesday. They said it was not right because many people would have already voted before the debates started. They want the debates to happen sooner so voters can hear from both candidates before voting starts.

Chris LaCivita and Susie Wiles, Trump campaign spokespeople, said, “We are committed to making this happen with or without the Presidential Debate Commission.” They want to invite every TV network in America to host a debate and want Joe Biden’s team to work with them to set it up soon.

The campaign shared a Fox News report where the commission said they’re sticking to the current schedule. Biden said he’s willing to debate Trump now that both are the presumptive nominees of their parties. While Biden hasn’t talked much about debates, Trump has been pushing for them.

Trump said he’s ready to debate Biden anywhere, anytime, and anyplace. The first presidential debate is scheduled for September 16 at Texas State University. Then, there’s a vice presidential debate on September 25 at Lafayette College. Two more presidential debates are set for October in Virginia and Utah.

During the Republican primary debates, Trump didn’t take part because he was leading in the polls. Now, he’s facing legal trouble in New York over a payment made during the 2016 election.

Former First Lady Michelle Obama surprised high school students from Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia to celebrate College Signing Day and their choice to go to college.

She said, “Look, on a day when so much is about looking ahead, I just want to take a little moment to look back with you all. Because I know it has been a long, hard road for all of you to make it to this day… and [there] has been nothing normal about this journey, especially that your class has been through.”

Obama spoke at Capital One Arena on Tuesday. She praised the students for staying in school during the COVID-19 pandemic and encouraged them to sign up for FAFSA, the federal student aid form.

Despite missing out on regular high school experiences and having classes online, the students persevered and are now ready to graduate, she said.

“Now, I know that even on a day like this… maybe some of you are feeling some trepidation, some nerves about what’s to come… especially if you are a first-generation college student like I was,” Obama said.

She shared how she felt doubtful before going to college but wanted to talk to students to encourage them. This year is the tenth anniversary of Obama’s Reach Higher program.

“My goal then was to make sure that every student realized the importance of getting their education beyond high school and to ensure that everyone had the resources, information, and the tools to make that happen,” she said.

“But, more importantly, I wanted students to know that higher education wasn’t just for the privileged few, for the kids with connections and money who were expected to fill those seats on college campuses.”

Obama announced that Reach Higher was teaming up with Common App, an undergraduate college admission application that lets students apply to over 1,000 schools.

The event was organized by the DC College Access Program (DC-CAP) and brought 2,500 students to celebrate their achievements. Obama was joined by DC-CAP President Eric Waldo, DC-CAP Board Chairman Ted Leonsis, and DC Mayor Muriel Bowser.

“You’ve got a community of people around you, including me and Barack, who is sending his love to you all too,” Obama told the students. “We are rooting for your every step of the way.”

New York state Senator Timothy Kennedy, a Democrat, has won the special election to take the place of retired Democratic Representative Brian Higgins in Congress. Decision Desk HQ projected his victory.

Kennedy defeated Republican Gary Dickson in New York’s 26th Congressional District. This district was expected to remain Democratic, but the race was closely watched as the GOP holds a small majority.

Both Kennedy and Dickson were chosen by local party leaders as their party’s candidates for the special election. Kennedy will serve the remainder of Higgins’s term.

Higgins left Congress in February after nearly 20 years, citing dysfunction and slow progress in Washington. He now leads Shea’s Performing Arts Center in Buffalo. He was one of many lawmakers who decided not to seek reelection due to frustration with chaos in Capitol Hill.

The district includes Buffalo and Niagara Falls. Kennedy pushed for gun safety laws in the New York state Senate following a mass shooting in Buffalo in 2022.

Dickson, the Republican candidate, was the first Republican town supervisor in West Seneca in many years.

Kennedy will hold Higgins’s seat for the rest of the year. He is also running for a full term in the House in the November elections, according to the New York State Board of Elections.

The special election took place while former President Trump is on trial in Manhattan. Trump faces charges of falsifying business records related to a payment during the 2016 election.

Senator Marsha Blackburn from Tennessee said that the U.S. government should cancel the visas of international students who support Hamas and send them back to their countries as protests continue at colleges all over the country.

She mentioned on to the media , “If they’re foreign students and they’re out protesting, shouting ‘Death to America’ and ‘Death to Israel’ and … being Hamas sympathizers, I would pull their visa and deport them.”

Blackburn also suggested that if these students are from the U.S. and have federal student loans, their loans should be canceled because taxpayer money funds them.

Her comments come after students at Columbia University took control of a university building. They blocked entrances and hung a Palestinian flag from a window at Hamilton Hall. The protests have spread to many other college campuses, with over 1,000 people arrested.

Although many student protesters call for their schools to stop supporting Israel and to seek a cease-fire, some incidents have raised concerns. Columbia University banned a student protest leader who said, “Zionists don’t deserve to live.” Another protest organizer, Khymani James, apologized for saying earlier this year that people should be grateful he doesn’t go around “murdering Zionists.”

Blackburn emphasized that if people openly declare support for Hamas, they should be put on the terrorist watch list and not allowed to fly. She stated, “You cannot sit by and just let this activity continue and have Jewish students put in harm’s way.”

President Biden’s campaign criticized former President Trump after he stated his intention to eliminate the Office of Pandemic Preparedness and Response Policy (OPPR).

The OPPR was created in 2022 due to government failures in responding to the COVID pandemic. Trump mentioned in a TIME interview that he doesn’t believe the office is necessary, calling it “a way of giving out pork.” He expressed doubts about its effectiveness, saying it’s an expensive solution that won’t work.

Biden’s campaign strongly opposed Trump’s idea, citing his handling of the COVID pandemic in 2020 as inadequate and lacking a clear plan. Campaign spokesman Kevin Munoz emphasized the devastating impact of Trump’s response, including economic turmoil, school closures, and unnecessary loss of lives.

Munoz, who previously served as a White House spokesman on COVID, stressed that returning to Trump’s approach is not an option.

Trump’s decision to disband the OPPR follows the elimination of a similar pandemic preparedness task force in 2018. The National Security Council’s Global Health Security and Biodefense unit was dissolved during a reorganization, leading to staff departures or absorption into other units.

Established after the Ebola outbreak in 2015, the unit aimed to develop response plans and logistical preparations for domestic health crises. Biden’s successor office, the OPPR, has already been involved in addressing a bird flu outbreak among American livestock this year.

Former President Trump said that the pro-Palestine protests at Columbia University had “paid agitators” involved. He made these claims during a Fox News interview while the New York Police Department officers were clearing out the protest encampments at the university.

During the interview with Sean Hannity, Trump said, “I really think you have a lot of paid agitators, professional agitators in here too, and I see it all over.” He pointed out that the signs carried by protesters looked identical, suggesting they were made by the same printer and possibly funded by someone else.

Trump expressed concern that these actions were harmful to both the world and the country.

However, there is no evidence to support Trump’s claims that any protester at Columbia University or in the nationwide pro-Palestine protests is being paid or not genuine.

The police’s response at Columbia University came after tensions had been rising for days. The protests were part of a larger movement against the Biden administration’s handling of the Israel-Hamas conflict. Students demanded a cease-fire, an end to military aid to Israel, and divestment from Israeli interests by their colleges and universities.

Columbia University has been a focal point of these protests, with visits from political figures and calls for the university president to resign if the protests continue.

Both Trump and President Biden have spoken out against the protests. Trump called them “a sad thing to see” and criticized Biden’s response. He urged action to combat antisemitism and called on Biden to take a stronger stance.

The protests have led to numerous arrests nationwide, with some demonstrations turning violent.

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis (D) didn’t show up for the county’s first Democratic Party debate on Sunday. Her challenger, attorney Christian Wise Smith, stood alone on the stage. The moderator said Willis chose not to come, so there was an empty podium for her.

Instead of the debate, Willis co-hosted a “Self Care Fair” in Atlanta. Her campaign said she’s not talking about big cases she’s working on, like the one against Trump, including a trial involving rapper Young Thug.

During the debate, Smith asked where Willis was and criticized her for not being there for Fulton County. He also talked about her past relationship with a special prosecutor and questioned her spending on the Trump case.

Smith ran against Willis before and lost. They’ll compete in a primary on May 21. Courtney Kramer is the only Republican running.

Green Party candidate Jill Stein says police hurt her and others at a protest in St. Louis. She claims police pushed them with bikes, causing injuries. More than 80 people, including Stein, were arrested when they didn’t leave after being told.

Stein says police charged her with assaulting an officer, but she denies it. She says her ribs hurt and she might have a fracture.

Many protests at colleges are happening, calling for peace in the Israel-Hamas conflict. Stein’s campaign shared a video of her being taken away by police.

She and others were let go from jail early Sunday. The university says the protesters planned to disrupt and set up camp against school rules.

Stein supports the student protesters, saying they risk a lot to demand change. They want the university to cut ties with Boeing.

Columbia University has started to suspend students who refuse to leave the pro-Palestinian encampment on campus. This happened after the deadline for them to leave the encampment passed.

Ben Chang, the vice president of communications for Columbia University, said, “We have begun suspending students as part of this next phase of our efforts to ensure safety on our campus.” He added that disciplinary action would be handled by different units within the University.

Earlier, Columbia told students they must disperse from the camp by 2 p.m. and sign a document to follow university rules. Those who didn’t do this started getting suspended by around 5:30 p.m. Monday. They were also declared ineligible to complete the semester or graduate and were restricted from academic, residential, and recreational spaces.

The protests have continued for over a week at Columbia and other college campuses across the country. Demonstrators are demanding a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war and a stop to U.S. military aid to Gaza.

University of Southern California canceled its main commencement ceremony after canceling a pro-Palestinian valedictorian’s speech, which faced criticism.

School administrators are trying to balance free speech rights with protecting Jewish students’ safety. Some protests have been peaceful, but there have been concerns about anti-Semitic rhetoric.

A coalition of over 20 Democratic House members wrote a letter to Columbia University, urging administrators to end the encampment. They expressed disappointment that the university hadn’t disbanded the encampment yet.

However, some Democrats have defended the demonstrations and accused school administrators of violating protesters’ rights.

Independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has made it onto the ballot in California, according to his campaign on Monday.

Kennedy, along with his running mate Nicole Shanahan, received support from the American Independent Party (AIP) of California, which is in the state with the most votes in the Electoral College. The campaign said they filed the necessary paperwork with California’s secretary of state on Monday.

In a five-minute video, Kennedy mentioned that the AIP was originally associated with segregationist George Wallace from Alabama.

However, he noted that the party has transformed into one that stands for compassion, unity, idealism, and common sense. Kennedy expressed that the party’s new charter allows independent candidates to work towards uniting America without facing barriers from the two-party system.

Kennedy and Shanahan have qualified for the ballot in three states so far: Utah, Michigan, and now California. They have also gathered enough signatures to be on the ballot in seven other states, including New Hampshire, Nevada, Hawaii, North Carolina, Idaho, Nebraska, and Iowa.

Kennedy, who shifted from being a Democrat to an independent last year, aims to be on ballots across the country alongside President Biden and former President Trump. He believes neither of the major party nominees is suitable to continue leading the country.

Although Kennedy’s campaign is striving to collect signatures from all 50 states, experts suggest that securing a few crucial battleground states could significantly influence the election outcome.

Currently, Kennedy is polling ahead of other third-party candidates. However, his numbers against Biden and Trump have declined in recent polling data. As of Monday, Kennedy had approximately 8.5 percent of the vote, with Trump leading at just over 42 percent and Biden at nearly 41 percent.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene from Georgia has kept people guessing about her plans.

She wanted to remove Speaker Mike Johnson from Louisiana back in March. She said this was a warning to GOP leaders before some important debates.

But even after more than a month, she hasn’t pushed for a vote on her plan. And she didn’t show up for the only House votes on Monday.

Another lawmaker, Rep. Thomas Massie, talked with Greene about the plan. But he won’t say if or when they will bring it up.

Some Republicans, like Rep. Eli Crane, don’t think it will happen.

But Greene’s team says she’s not backing down. They say anyone who thinks so is wrong.

Others, like Rep. Chip Roy, think Republicans should focus on the upcoming elections instead of ousting the Speaker.

Johnson himself doesn’t seem worried. He says he doesn’t think about Greene at all.

Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt stated that he won’t allow “hate speech” from protesters supporting Palestine in Oklahoma. He said he would expel those who support Hamas from state colleges.

Stitt was questioned about the arrests of pro-Palestine protesters at universities nationwide and their criticism of Israel’s military actions in Gaza after Hamas’ terrorist attack on October 7.

Stitt told Fox News that he believes it’s only a small group of people who are very vocal. He hopes young people will see footage of the terrorist attack to understand the seriousness of the situation.

Stitt strongly opposes those who support Hamas and says they should be expelled from universities. He calls their actions “hate speech” and believes everyone who stands for what’s right should oppose them.

Pro-Palestinian protests have happened on campuses across the country, with some students setting up camps. They demand an end to military support for Israel and a ceasefire in Gaza.

After his appearance on Fox News, Stitt emphasized his stance against “hate speech.” He posted on social media that supporting terrorist groups like Hamas is unacceptable. Stitt previously signed a bill in 2022 to create the “Oklahoma Free Speech Committee,” which monitors free speech at the state’s colleges.