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By JOSH FUNK President Donald Trump has fired one of two Democratic members of the U.S. Surface Transportation Board to break a 2-2 tie before the body considers the largest railroad merger ever proposed. Board member Robert E. Primus said on LinkedIn that he received an email from the White House Wednesday night terminating the position he has held since he was appointed by Trump in his first term. The vacancy would allow Trump to appoint two additional Republicans to the board before its decision on the Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger though the Senate would have to confirm them. Primus…

LOS ANGELES — Dave Roberts struggles to begin his answer, a reflection of his reluctance to give voice to his own diagnosis. “I just think we didn’t, we haven’t – I just don’t think we’ve put in the focus,” he said. “To be quite honest, I just don’t think we had the urgency or focus that we needed to have. That’s just the bottom line – because when the standings started to get interesting then our guys certainly have ramped up their quality of at-bat. The offensive performance has ticked up. “It’s not something I like saying. But I just…

The wrongful-death trial brought by pitcher Tyler Skaggs’ family against the Angels is expected to begin in a little more than a month, according to a schedule set by an Orange County Superior Court judge during a hearing on Thursday, Aug. 28. After several lengthy delays, attorneys on both sides of the civil case confirmed they are prepared to move forward with the jury trial. The attorneys, as well as the judge, all agreed that they want the trial completed by Thanksgiving. The family has asked for $210 million. Jury selection is expected to begin on Oct. 6, with the…

By GABRIELA AOUN ANGUEIRA Four days after starting his second administration, President Donald Trump floated the idea of “ getting rid of ” the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which manages federal disaster response. But at a Thursday meeting, the 12-person review council he appointed to propose changes to FEMA seemed more focused on reforms than total dismantlement. FEMA must be “reformed into an agency that is supporting our local and state officials that are there on the ground and responsive to the individuals that are necessary to help people be healed and whole through these situations,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi…

KATOWICE, Poland — A slimmed-down Luka Doncic gave Lakers fans something to look forward to, but it wasn’t enough to lead his team to victory in a EuroBasket opener on Thursday. American-born guard Jordan Loyd hit seven 3-pointers and finished with 32 points to help Poland outlast Doncic and Slovenia, 105-95. Loyd’s efforts spoiled a strong effort from Doncic, who finished with 34 points and nine assists in the Group D matchup. Doncic shot 7 for 14 from the field (3 for 9 from 3-point range) and 17 for 18 from the free-throw line in a team-high 36 minutes. He…

The California Highway Patrol will upgrade a part-time San Bernardino County team to full-time and create a new team in the city of Los Angeles after Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a crime suppression effort for various regions across the state on Thursday, Aug. 28. The partnership builds on “successful” CHP efforts already underway in Oakland, Bakersfield and San Bernardino, according to the governor’s office. CHP officers assigned to these crime suppression teams are expected to saturate high-crime areas, target repeat offenders and seize illicit weapons and narcotics. “When the state and local communities work together strategically, public safety improves,” Newsom…

By MIKE STOBBE, AMANDA SEITZ and CHRIS MEGERIAN, Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — The nation’s top public health agency was left reeling Thursday as the White House worked to expel the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director and replace her with a top adviser to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The turmoil triggered rare bipartisan alarm as Kennedy tries to advance anti-vaccine policies that are contradicted by decades of scientific research. Two administration officials said Jim O’Neill, a former investment executive, would supplant Susan Monarez, a longtime government scientist. O’Neill worked at the Department of Health and Human Services under President George W. Bush, but he…

EL SEGUNDO — Marlowe Wax and Nikko Reed arrived at the Chargers’ training camp last month feeling confident in their abilities and in their respective chances to make the team. Or as confident as they could be after they went undrafted and, in Reed’s case, uninvited to the draft combine in Indianapolis. Undrafted free agents tend to come and go each summer, frequently victims of numbers games and the unwritten desire of NFL general managers, coaches and coordinators to hang onto their draft picks at the expense of players who have come to training camp off the street. Wax and…

This week, the California Senate faces one of the most consequential votes on children’s health in state history. Assembly Bill 1264, authored by Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel, would make California the first state in the nation to legally define ultra-processed foods (UPFs) and begin phasing the worst of them out of schools. As so often goes California, so goes the nation. The stakes could not be higher. About two-thirds of the calories American children consume come from ultra-processed foods. In California alone, schools serve close to one billion meals each year, many of them ultra-processed, making our state one of the…

Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook stands accused by the Trump administration of mortgage occupancy fraud, claiming two owner-occupied properties in 2021. U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff is being accused by the Trump administration of occupancy fraud involving California and Maryland properties. New York Attorney General Letitia James is being accused by the Trump administration of occupancy fraud regarding a Virginia property. And she’s accused of misstating information in another mortgage loan application. I don’t have a position on their guilt or innocence as I don’t have enough information regarding these three public figures or the governments’ cases against them. Rather, it’s…