Robert F. Kennedy Jr. points to housing affordability in pitch to Southern California voters

• June 12, 2024

Third-party presidential contender Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pointed to housing affordability as he made his case to Southern California voters ahead of the November election.

Kennedy, who is running a longshot bid for the White House, was set to lay out his foreign policy plans — which cover “how do we wind down the American empire abroad and leave us a stronger country than we are today,” he said — at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library in Yorba Linda on Wednesday evening. Ahead of that speech, the Southern California News Group caught up with the candidate to talk about the state of the race, artificial intelligence, immigration, housing and more.

As he has throughout his campaign, Kennedy often drew on his family: His father was Robert F. Kennedy, a former U.S. attorney general and U.S. senator; former President John F. Kennedy was his uncle.

But he’s also focused on voters’ dissatisfaction with President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, the presumptive nominees of both major parties. Those two candidates aren’t focused enough on issues that impact Americans’ wallets, including housing affordability, he said in an interview Wednesday.

“If we’re going to keep our middle class — which is the greatest economic engine in the history of mankind — if it’s going to continue to be the foundation stone of democracy, we need to make sure that all of our kids can get into houses,” said Kennedy.

Kennedy, 70, has qualified to be on the ballot in California, Delaware, Hawaii, Michigan, Oklahoma and Utah so far, per the New York Times’ tracker. Petitioning for ballot access is ongoing in several other states, according to his campaign.

With less than five months to go until Election Day, Kennedy is polling a distant third in California, election analytics site 538 shows.

The responses below have only been lightly edited for length and clarity.

SCNG: What is your message to voters in Southern California? Why you over the other presidential candidates? 

Kennedy: Everybody in this country is concerned about the direction that we’re going in. Everybody’s concerned that we now have a $34 trillion debt, which is largely the military budget, and that affects everything. It affects the price of housing. 

Orange County is this kind of utopian ideal for America, and there’s this assumption that everybody should be able to afford a home. And today there’s a whole generation of kids in Orange County who are not going to be able to afford a home, who are going to have lives that are vastly diminished from the lives that their families led. That fact has really dire moral implications for our society, that our children are going to live less well than we are. 

The reasons for that are easy to change. They’re easy to understand, and they’re changeable. 

We need to unravel the war machine. We don’t need 800 bases abroad. … We spend more on our military budget than the next 10 nations combined. 

The bigger cause, which is five times the military budget, is chronic disease. 

In Orange County and elsewhere, parents are watching children being plagued by autoimmune diseases like juvenile diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, neurological diseases, peanut allergies and food allergies. 

We have the sickest children in the world, and this is easy to fix. That’s what the role of government is, to eliminate the toxins that are causing those epidemics and give us healthy kids again. 

SCNG: You just touched on housing affordability, which is obviously a big issue for voters in Southern California. Walk us through the specifics of your plan to make buying a home more accessible. 

Kennedy: The most important thing to do right now is to make it illegal for big investment firms to do mass purchasing of housing. I will immediately propose that legislation to Congress.

If we’re going to keep our middle class — which is the greatest economic engine in the history of mankind — if it’s going to continue to be that, if it’s going to continue to be the foundation stone of democracy, we need to make sure that all of our kids can get into houses. 

I have a whole host of plans, including encouraging and incentivizing federal loans, and incentivizing localities to change their rules to allow innovative housing, particularly housing that’s accessible to the middle class. There are all kinds of new innovations in construction — small houses, environmentally friendly houses — but a lot of times you can’t get permits for them. 

My plan is to increase the current housing construction rate by 2 million a year. And that will not only create a boom for the economy but will also quickly remedy the housing shortage. 

I’m going to do a 3% mortgage for young people trying to get into their first home, and I’ll finance that with the issue of treasury bonds that are tax-free at 3% interest. 

SCNG: Something you’ve been particularly critical of the Biden administration about is immigration and border security. Can you detail your plan for us?

Kennedy: I’m going to shut down the border immediately. We should have high walls at the border, but we should have wide gates with legal immigration. We need to have a compassionate immigration policy that reflects our values and our needs. 

If small businesses in this country are now looking for 10 million workers from abroad, we need to be able to get those workers into place in American businesses to pay taxes in this country and keep Social Security solvent and do all the other things that legal immigrants do for our country. 

I want to make sure there is a faster track for citizenship for people who come in here legally, but no nation can survive if it doesn’t secure its borders.

I’ve seen in New York City and other cities around the country, immigrants are coming in, they’re being preyed upon by predatory employers who are paying them $6-$10 per hour. They’re crushing the social safety net. 

I worked with (labor leader) Cesar Chavez for the last couple of decades of his life. He had two big issues: One was pesticides, which disproportionately affect Hispanic farmworkers, and that was my interest. But the other issue he was working on at the time was securing the border. He understood that the illegal immigrants coming across made it more difficult for him to negotiate more salaries and conditions for U.S. workers. All of the lessons I learned from him are true today. We need to shut down the border. 

• Editor’s note: Cesar Chavez’s family has asked Kennedy and his campaign to stop invoking the late labor leader in his campaign and endorsed Biden in his re-election bid. Kennedy’s father worked closely with Chavez on farmworker labor issues. 

SCNG: A new poll came out this week from Vote Latino that showed you doing fairly well among Latino voters. That poll was conducted in five states — not California — but why do you think your message may resonate with Latino voters?

Kennedy: I think I’m doing fairly well because the concerns of Latino voters are a big priority for me. The issues that affect Latino voters have been a priority for my family for generations.

Plus, I’m talking about issues that they’re concerned with — which is building small businesses. The Hispanic immigrants are right now one of the greatest economic drivers for small businesses. They are very entrepreneurial, very hard-working, and they’re optimistic and idealistic about the American dream.

• Editor’s note: The Vote Latino poll surveyed Latino voters in Arizona, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Texas and found Biden leads Trump in a head-to-head matchup 59% to 39%. But when third-party candidates are added to the mix, including Kennedy, Cornel West and Jill Stein, Biden’s support drops to 47% while Trump is at 34%. Kennedy took 12% in the poll.

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SCNG: What is your plan for artificial intelligence? How should the federal government balance regulation and safety and promotion? 

Kennedy: I’d answer the question with the question you just asked me — you have to balance safety, and you have to balance the potential. 

We need to make sure that AI becomes a tool for the people to control their government, which it should be. We should have AI walkers doing inventory in the Pentagon and … auditing the Pentagon for the American people, auditing the entire government. We can make government much more efficient. 

But at the same time, Elon Musk warned that AI is first going to steal our jobs and then it’s going to kill us, and between those two things, it’s going to become potentially a tool for totalitarian control by intelligence agencies, by corporations. That’s the danger. 

This is a very complex issue that we need somebody in office who is thinking about this every single waking moment; how do you make this happen? 

You need to regulate it, but if you overregulate it, you drive it out of the country. 

AI can be used for bad things or good things. We want to keep it in the hands of the people to make government more responsive and more subservient to the people, and we shouldn’t allow it to be used by government to make the people more compliant and subservient.

SCNG: What’s your go-to campaign trail food? 

Kennedy: Dried mangos, and I’m a cheeseburger guy. I eat a lot of those. And whenever I’m near the ocean, I eat fish.

​ Orange County Register 

Home designed by OC college students to be used for transitional youth housing

• June 12, 2024

A small house built by Orange County college students was donated to a Homeless Intervention Services of Orange County shelter in Placentia, doubling the number of young adults the program will be able to support.

The home, which is considered an accessory dwelling unit, will house foster youth who have aged out of the system.

The modular unit was designed and built by a group of 30 students from UC Irvine and Orange Coast College as part of the inaugural Orange County Sustainability Decathlon. The competition brought together college students to not only get hands-on architecture experience, but to do so with affordability and sustainability in mind.

“The ADU gifted from UCI and OCC is going to give us the ability to expand our program. Currently with just the home that we have, we can serve up to nine individuals, both male and female,” Alfa Hernandez, program director at HIS-OC, said. “With the expansion of the ADU coming into the backyard of our home. We’re going to go from nine beds to 17 beds. So it’s going to allow us to reach more individuals that are in need.”

This specific group of youths, ages 18 to 24, are “good at hiding,” Hernandez said, meaning they can be more difficult to reach with services.

“They usually try to hide, in their cars and anywhere, but bringing them here and giving them structure, which is what the program does, it gives them that structure, it allows them to learn life skills,” Hernandez said. “A lot of them come up from broken homes, age out of the foster care system, some their parents kick them out for different reasons, and they don’t have that foundation, that basic safe foundation that they need.”

Orange Coast College students Yuka Suzuki and Georgie Ampudia said the experience building the small house was “life-changing,” and knowing the unit will be used for housing youths on the brink of homelessness has made the project all the more fulfilling.

“It’s nice knowing that what we’re building has a purpose,” Ampudia said. “Working with HIS-OC has been really huge because we’re tackling an actual housing crisis that’s going on. That’s the goal. It’s to help the housing crisis while simultaneously tackling climate change.”

Ampudia said she’ll truly feel like their work is done once the ADU is set up in the shelter’s backyard and folks have been moved in.

HIS-OC staff celebrated the expansion Wednesday and will soon start prepping the space – taking down a fence, cutting a couple of trees and more –  before transporting the unit. The organization is working with the city of Placentia to ensure the ADU meets all city building requirements, Hernandez said.

It will cost approximately $160,000 to transport the unit, as well as build out the plumbing, water and solar power systems. More fundraising is needed, Hernandez added.

“We’re rapidly trying to get funding and looking for donations, but the next step would be breaking down the fence at the back of the house, laying down the foundation and getting all the permits,” Hernandez said.

Mike Moodian, a Chapman University professor and cofounder of the  Orange County Sustainability Decathlon, said the “sky’s the limit” for the students who designed and built the home.

“These 30 students from a community college, Orange Coast College, and a research university, UCI, spent more than a year designing and building a highly sustainable, ultra-efficient, innovative home for this major competition,” Moodian said. “Now, it’s being used at a site to house individuals who aged out of the foster system. That is incredible. Who else can say that they accomplished this during their college years?”

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​ Orange County Register 

Board trying to nanny OC e-bike riders

• June 12, 2024

Whenever we see lawmakers rush to impose new regulations, we like to remind readers about one of the core traits of a free society: self-regulation. If most people behave in a reasonable and conscientious manner, there’s little need for government intervention. This concept is the starting point on our thoughts about Orange County’s new e-bike rules.

Orange County’s Board of Supervisors recently passed rules governing those electric-powered bicycles that now are ubiquitous on roads and trails. Supervisor Katrina Foley, who spearheaded the effort, has complained that e-bike accidents have soared 500 percent over four years. Residents have complained about riders speeding on sidewalks – and “street takeovers,” where dozens of riders snarl traffic and pop wheelies.

Those concerns are legitimate, but accidents and complaints are up largely because the usage of e-bikes has increased exponentially over that time. Those street takeovers are annoying, but they are fairly uncommon – and police already have tools available to deal with road-blocking pranksters.

California has been trying to encourage e-bike usage to reduce car reliance, so overregulating their use runs counter to those goals. The OC rules impose speed limits of 28 mph, require helmet use for those under 18, require e-bikes to yield to pedestrians on sidewalks and make a distinction between e-bikes and more-powerful motorized bicycles which already require DMV licensing.

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The code also forbids “unsafe operation” of bicycles or e-bikes. Riders may not operate bikes “in any manner that endangers any person or animal,” the rule explains. Some OC cities passed similar bans on “unsafe” riding. That term seems vague – and the entire package strikes us as unnecessarily complex. We can’t imagine that police agencies will devote the resources to operate bicycle speed traps.

According to the rules, “No person shall operate a bicycle or electric bicycle at a speed that is greater than is reasonable and prudent, having due regard for other users and the surface, width and grade of the road.” That’s certainly the right standard, however difficult to enforce. But, seriously, did we really need a new law to say as much?

​ Orange County Register 

Local Jimmy Buffett ‘parrot heads’ are keeping the party going while giving back

• June 12, 2024

Full of Hawaiian shirts and margaritas, the Orange County Parrot Head Club, a Jimmy Buffett-inspired club that assists local organizations, celebrated its 30th anniversary on Saturday with an event giving back to the community.

On June 8, “parrot heads,” a coined name for Buffett fans, gathered at the Elks Lodge in Mission Viejo to support local charities and listen to Buffett-inspired tunes, nine months after his death.

“Although Jimmy passed (recently), his final message to the clubs was to ‘keep the party going,’ and so we are,” Mark Lokovic, vice president of the Orange County Parrot Head Club, said.

The Orange County Parrot Head Club, founded by A.J. Johncox in 1994, is one of over 200 official Parrot Head Clubs in the U.S., all based around helping charities, Lokovic said.

Dubbed “Party with a Purpose,” each chapter throws events where members can flock to learn about Buffett’s life while also helping a good cause. Over the years, the Orange County chapter has helped a wide range of charities, including the Boys & Girls Club of Anaheim, Heroes Hall Veterans Foundation and the Alzheimers Association, according to the club’s website.

The Orange County Parrot Head Club members meet monthly at Lopez and Lefty’s in Anaheim where they fellowship, listen to entertainment and “do good work for our charities,” the website says. Membership fees start at $40 and can be purchased online.

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The charities represented this year at the Orange County event were the Elks’ Purple Pig, the St. Kilian Food Bank and the Orange County Ronald McDonald House. In addition to a live and silent auction, partygoers were asked to bring different items for donations for the charity groups, such as laundry detergent pods for the Orange County Ronald McDonald House and canned food for St. Kilian.

​ Orange County Register 

Man charged with robbing an Anaheim bank one day after his release from prison

• June 12, 2024

SANTA ANA — A 53-year-old man was indicted Wednesday on federal charges of carrying out a takeover-style bank robbery in Anaheim one day after he got out of state prison.

The federal case was filed after the Orange County District Attorney’s Office dismissed state bank robbery charges against Eric Walter Gray on June 4.

Gray is charged in the federal indictment with bank robbery and forced accompaniment. Gray, who is being held without bond, is scheduled for arraignment June 24.

Gray had been charged in state court in May with three counts of kidnapping to commit robbery, two counts of robbery, one count of attempted robbery, three counts of resisting arrest and a count of escape by someone in custody with a use of force, all felonies. Those charges were dismissed in state court last week.

Police responded about 4:40 p.m. May 8 to a report of a bank robbery in progress at a BMO branch at 4501 E. La Palma Ave., between Imperial Highway and Lakeview Avenue, according to FBI Special Agent Trevor Twitchell. Gray loitered in the bank “for a long time,” and then told an employee he was waiting for a ride, Twitchell said.

After he returned from a bathroom he leaped a teller counter, announced he had a gun and demanded cash, Twitchell said.

When the teller handed over the cash, Gray stuffed it in his pockets and directed the bank manager and two other employees into a storage room, Twitchell said.

After awhile he let the two employees go, but he kept the bank manager confined for about an hour, the agent said.

Gray eventually surrendered to police, the agent said.

“While in custody at the Anaheim Police Department, Gray was found to have hidden cash and narcotics within his rectal cavity,” Twitchell said.

Police suspected he had more hidden in him, so they took him to a hospital for a CT scan, where he “repeatedly attempted to escape and fought with officers, resulting in multiple injuries to the officers involved,” the agent wrote in an affidavit.

The defendant “has a lengthy criminal history that includes, but is not limited to, grand theft auto, robbery, sexual battery and narcotics-related offenses,” the agent said.

The defendant had been released from San Quentin prison a day before the bank robbery, the agent said.

Gray pleaded guilty to robbery Sept. 12, 2023, according to court records. He was sentenced to two years in prison for the Oct. 4, 2022, robbery.

​ Orange County Register 

Next-Generation Smart Tech Solutions for Multifamily Customers

• June 12, 2024

By Guillermo Rivas

It’s nearly impossible not to notice the changing landscape in Southern California with the continued proliferation of new construction, much of which is in the extremely competitive multi-dwelling unit (MDU) sector. A 2024 survey by the National Multifamily Housing Council found that 87% of renters demand robust connectivity from the properties they live in—and, according to Rent.com, they’re willing to pay $38 more each month to have it. More choices for savvy renters means property owners and managers are challenged to manage rising operating costs while offering the latest and greatest tech to attract prospective residents and retain those they already have.

Enter Cox Communities, a division of Cox Communications, whose continued investment in smart technology is helping address the needs of all stakeholders. While the latest technology must be added to older MDU properties to help them stay competitive, it’s often installed in new builds, which means our work also happens, quite literally, at ground level through long-standing relationships with builders like HomeFed Corporation and Greystar in California.

What is the Internet of Things

The Internet of Things (IoT) refers, at its essence, to a network of physical devices—phones, sensors, and cameras, for example—connected to one another and which help owners and residents manage their experience from the curb to the couch. If you’ve rented a storage unit recently, you’re likely able to open the entrance gate through an app on your phone. In an apartment building or complex, you may use an app to access entry to a property, a garage, or even an elevator. With IoT, nearly everything is at your fingertips.

Cox Communities has partnered with Level M, a provider of next-generation smart tech solutions for multifamily customers, to provide the most cutting-edge technology solutions, which leverage Cox’s fiber-powered network and more than 26  [DT1] years of experience in the multifamily space. Level M partners with  Cox to support the multifamily industry including:

Offering comfort, convenience, and control to residents—With a single app, residents can do everything from enter through a main gate, enter a hallway with a secured door, access a particular floor in the elevator, and enter their apartment. Residents can also control their thermostat and lights, reducing their utility bills. Safety, security, and convenience are in the palm of their hand from the start.

Improving efficiency and property management—Gone are the days of triplicate carbon copies or a ring full of keys. Level M alleviates the need to manage property access on-site: Owners can now control everything via app or desktop and provide managers and workers an access code. Where a maintenance worker once had to make multiple trips to address a single trouble ticket, now they can access an apartment at a specified time through an app.

Avoiding unexpected expenses for owners—The average leak can cost an owner as much as $35k, and with insurance premiums and deductibles on the rise, it’s never been more important to mitigate the impact of leaks. Enter Smart Tech Leak Detection: Leaks will trigger an app or portal notification through a device placed on water heaters and pipes underneath sinks (some insurance companies offer a discount for leak protection). In addition, smart thermostats and lighting systems reduce energy consumption and lead to significant cost savings for both owners and residents.

Making move-in a breeze for everyone—The revolutionary smart-building connectivity of IoT translates to unmatched reliability, affordability, and flexibility. Gone are the days of scheduling and then waiting two weeks for a cable installer. With Cox’s pre-installed internet program, residents can be connected within minutes of move-in and enjoy fast, reliable internet—and a suite of smart apartment amenities—so they can be online on move-in day.

Of course, these are just a few examples of the many ways smart apartment technologies impact the growing MDU market, and more change is coming. The evolution and integration of artificial intelligence and virtual reality with existing infrastructure holds endless promise of what’s possible when it comes to supporting the extremely competitive housing industry. As developers shift to affordable single-family “build-to-rent” communities with the latest technology, Cox is helping owners of existing properties update their technology. Upgrading older properties with the latest Smart Tech enables them to remain relevant as a viable choice for renters and be a positive contributor in growing communities.

Southern California is always growing, and the Smart Tech that feeds our multifamily homes is enhancing the rental experience across the board. As a partner, Cox Communities will continue to innovate while providing robust services, best-in-class connectivity, and Internet of Things (IoT) solutions to build a better future for all.

Guillermo Rivas is Vice President of New Business Development for Cox Communities. In this role, he spearheads the development of strategies for multifamily owners to maximize their return on investment by leveraging Cox’s advanced fiber to the home network, Managed Wi-Fi and IoT network solutions that improve the resident experience.

​ Orange County Register 

Juvenile’s 25th anniversary of ‘Back That Azz Up’ will bring an October show to Anaheim

• June 12, 2024

Anyone who’s been at a nightclub in the last 25 years has likely danced to rapper Juvenile’s party anthem “Back That Azz Up.” The timeless hit has become such a staple that it’s getting its own nationwide tour celebration.

To commemorate the 25th anniversary of the song, Juvenile and the 400 Degreez Band will bring their tour to House of Blues Anaheim on Sunday, Oct. 20. Tickets for the event go on sale Friday, June 14 at 10 a.m. at livenation.com.

Fans in Anaheim can share their favorite memories of the anthem or create new ones using the #BackThatAzzUpDay hashtag to win free tickets for the House of Blues show in October. Juvenile will select one participant from Anaheim who uses the hashtag on any social media platform.

On Tuesday, June 11, the rapper’s hometown of New Orleans celebrated its first “Back That Azz Up Day,” recognizing the song that’s become a cultural phenomenon and a staple of the city’s vibrant musical heritage.

“I am beyond excited to celebrate 25 years of ‘Back That Azz Up’ with my fans,” Juvenile said in a press release announcing the tour. “This song has been a huge part of my musical journey, and it’s amazing to see it still resonate with people today and I can’t wait for the moment each night of the tour when the song drops.”

The hit track, produced by Mannie Fresh and featuring fellow rapper Lil Wayne, has made an indelible mark on pop culture, appearing in movies, TV, sporting events, celebrations, and memes. In 2021, it was listed as one of Rolling Stone’s “Top 500 Best Songs of All Time.” Last year in June, Juvenile performed a set of his greatest hits on NPR’s Tiny Desk with The 400 Degreez Band and said in a press release that he loved it so much fans will likely never catch him performing without a live band again.

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​ Orange County Register 

NOFX’s final shows in San Pedro include Dropkick Murphys, Descendents and Pennywise

• June 12, 2024

It’s been nearly two years since the Los Angeles punk rock band NOFX announced they were hanging up their combat boots with a final tour and three stops slated at Berth 46 in San Pedro on Oct. 4-6.

The band has been headlining its Punk in Drublic music festival tour and added the last dates to the NOFX Final Tour: 40 Years 40 Cities 40 Songs Per Day outing back in November, revealing that it will all wrap up in San Pedro in October. The final tour, which began on April 22 in Austin, Texas, includes full albums and rarities while not repeating setlists.

The event’s promoters, Orange County-based Brew Ha Ha Productions, shared several acts set to perform with a poster on the festival’s official Instagram page in February. However, several bigger names on that poster were blacked out until today, revealing most of the entire lineup (a surprise band is set for the last show on Oct. 6) with Dropkick Murphys, Descendents, and Pennywise topping the festival’s bill alongside NOFX.

NOFX chose all the bands, and the final dates in San Pedro will feature two stages with no overlapping set times. General admission and VIP tickets are on sale now at punkindrublicfest.com. Options include GA single-day tickets starting at $125, VIP single-day tickets starting at $249, and weekend tickets starting at $350.

The daily band lineups for the NOFX Final Tour in San Pedro are as follows:

Friday, October 4: 

NOFX, Dropkick Murphys, MxPx, Bouncing Souls, Sick Of It All, 7 Seconds, DOA, D.I., Luicidal, The Last Gang and KnuckleHeadz

Saturday, October 5: 

NOFX, Descendents, Less Than Jake, Lagwagon, Strung Out, Good Riddance, Mad Caddies, Swingin’ Utters, Bad Cop/Bad Cop, Get Dead and Poli Van Dam

Sunday, October 6: “The Final Show:”

NOFX, Pennywise, The Vandals, Subhumans, Fishbone, Codefendents, The Flatliners, surprise band TBA, We Are The Union, Das Klown.

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​ Orange County Register