Voice of San Diego Podcast

Another Dark Week in the Homelessness Crisis

Schools, Streets and Sweet Federal Cash

Let's talk about leadership. This week, an interview by KPBS's Andrew Bowen caught the attention of Scott, Andy and Sara. He was interviewing San Diego City Council President Jen Campbell, and she voluntarily rehashed the contentious battle she fought to become Council president. We get into that and a brief history of Council presidency. At the state level, California's leadership is trying to wrap up this whole virtual schools nightmare. But former Mayor Kevin Faulconer thinks he can lead better. Plus: VOSD's MacKenzie Elmer joins the show to unpack a binational sewage crisis. Support explanatory journalism! Join now and your contribution will be matched by the Parker Foundation: vosd.org/parkermatch See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you live in the 79th Assembly District, you’ve got another election coming up. That’s because Shirley Weber, who represented the area for nearly a decade, was recently appointed by Gov. Gavin Newsom to be California’s new secretary of state. VOSD held a debate with the five candidates running for that seat. This is part two of the debate — police, criminal justice and reform. Keep up with state Assembly news with the Sacramento Report: vosd.org/sacramento See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you live in the 79th Assembly District, you’ve got another election coming up. That’s because Shirley Weber, who represented the area for nearly a decade, was recently appointed by Gov. Gavin Newsom to be California’s new secretary of state. VOSD held a debate with the five candidates running for that seat. This is part one of the debate — schools and education. Keep up with state Assembly news with the Sacramento Report: vosd.org/sacramento See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, San Diego took an actual step toward solving the years-long political puzzle of vacation rentals. But before we go popping bottles over fancy new rental regulations and permitting procedures, our Scott, Andy and Sara assess what the new rules could look like in real life and whether they may have the desired effect anytime soon. Plus: The latest story on San Diego Police mishandling rape kits and a school reopening date is on the horizon (or so it seems). Watch the debate with the candidates running to replace Shirley Weber in the state Assembly: vosd.org/79th Keep up with all our politics coverage with The Politics Report: vosd.org/politics See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Recently, our hosts volunteered at a local vaccination super site. On the show, they recount how that experience went, what they saw and heard and the emotions some folks experienced after getting their shots. While a new crop of local vaccination sites and the promise of more adults getting shots continues, we've still got normal problems like weather getting in the way; insufficient supply forced local vaccination sites to close recently. With all this news, we discuss what it could mean for schools. (Scott Lewis has some ideas for San Diego Unified.) Plus: The race to replace Shirley Weber in the state Assembly is on. Get the details for our town hall for the 79th Assembly District special election at vosd.org/79th See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, we review the short, dramatic history that led to the recall effort of City Council President Jen Campbell. Plus: County Supervisor Joel Anderson tried to get COVID-19 vaccines for cops but was blocked by the Democrat majority. We try to figure out why. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

San Diego's budget is in trouble. This week, we pin down what's going on with the city's books — especially hiring that happened under former Mayor Kevin Faulconer and infrastructure mandates the city must soon comply with. Plus: Faulconer's officially running for governor. Keep up with all our stories and local takes with The Morning Report: vosd.org/morning See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The road back to in-person schooling is filled with some high hurdles. Teachers and their unions are increasingly demanding that educators be vaccinated before officials re-open schools. But mandating vaccines is tricky business. This week, we try to piece together the vexing vaxx puzzle. Plus: San Diego Assemblywoman Shirley Weber is set to make history as secretary of state while the scramble to replace her gets going. Love the show? Share us with a friend! vosd.org/pod See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The news came down this week that San Diego Unified Superintendent Cindy Marten was tapped to be the deputy education secretary for the Biden administration. It's another major bump for a local leader. On this episode, we dive deep into her tenure and stories we've done while she's led the district. Plus: COVID vaccinations, tests and data cops are getting from the county. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Now for something totally different. This week, host Scott Lewis spoke with Travis View, a writer, researcher and co-host of the podcast QAnon Anonymous. It’s a show dedicated to understanding, debunking and explaining the conspiracy theory group QAnon, which was instrumental in the insurrection at the Capitol last week. You can find that show wherever you listen to podcasts.  Get Scott’s newsletter, The Politics Report, at vosd.org/politics See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria gave the first State of the City address of his new administration this week. It was a big deal — not just because it was his first as head of the city. It was also the first (and hopefully last?) of the pandemic, and the first since former Mayor Kevin Faulconer launched his exploratory committee for governor. Let's talk about it. And VOSD's Jesse Marx joins us on the second half of the show to talk about his story detailing how the San Diego City Council approved funds for a secretive law enforcement group to purchase surveillance tech. Get our most popular newsletter, The Morning Report: vosd.org/morning See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As the insurrection at the Capitol dominated the news this week, we surveyed what San Diego's congressional delegation was up to. On the state side, Gov. Gavin Newsom started a political domino effect by appointing Assemblywoman Shirley Weber to Secretary of State. Plus: some troubling local news about domestic violence prosecutions and support. Sign up for the Politics Report at vosd.org/politics Get our daily newsletter at vosd.org/morning Thank you to all our donors! You helped make our year-end campaign a success. We're grateful for such a dedicated audience. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, Scott Lewis interviews the two local reporters who got their hands on the COVID-19 outbreak data that the county fought to keep under wraps. KPBS's Katy Stegall and Claire Trageser join the show and share what they found, how to read the data and important points to keep in mind when absorbing it all. Support this show at vosd.org/podcast2020 See the KPBS investigation at kpbs.org See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.