John Stossel: Trump is a horrible person, but Alvin Bragg’s prosecution of him is bogus

• April 5, 2023

The Stossel TV Studio is just a block from Trump Tower.

Today, noisy helicopters hover, and sidewalks are pointlessly blocked by the usual politics/media excess: too many barricades manned by too many bored police officers.

The predicted “big demonstration!” and “possible violence” are not visible.

Donald Trump left for the courthouse around 1 p.m. to turn himself in. He was booked and fingerprinted at the courthouse. He then pled not guilty to the 34-count charge of falsifying records to hide hush money payments.

Presidents should not be above the law, but neither should they face politically motivated charges.

Manhattan district attorneys campaigned on opposing Trump, bragging, “I have sued Trump more than a hundred times!” He suggested he would be best choice to get Trump before he even saw the evidence. That’s just wrong. Federal prosecutors did see the evidence and decided against charging Trump.

Using campaign funds to pay someone to keep silent about sex may well violate the rules, but most campaign finance rules are useless, and no serious person thinks this case would ever be brought against anyone other than Trump.

This is a slippery slope to banana republic.

On the other hand, Trump definitely is a horrible person.

In his real estate business, he cheated the little people, cleverly using our slow and expensive justice system to avoid paying what he owed.

As president, he was unpresidential and childish. He’s vain, selfish and mean. He doesn’t read or listen to advice from smart people, and he lies again and again. I hate him.

Yet it would be better for America if he were president today, instead of Joe Biden.

Nothing is more important to more people, especially the poor, than a solid dollar and a growing economy.

Trump’s presidency brought us closer to that than today’s Democrats ever will.

Trump knows how government can kill growth. He criticized “job-crushing regulations,” saying he’d eliminate two of them for every new one passed. He didn’t, but he did repeal some big ones: allowing more oil drilling, reducing the Environmental Protection Agency’s power to regulate waterways that are barely waterways, ending Barack Obama’s regulations forcing automakers to make “greener” cars (Biden reimposed them), and allowing internet service providers to charge different rates for different services (repealing the destructive net neutrality).

His words alone sent a message: “Not everyone needs welfare. You can work!”

Under Obama, people stopped looking for work. Democrats’ message was: Poor people are victims of an unfair system; you need handouts.

Under Trump, people started working again. Six million Americans were hired. Unemployment dropped to a 50-year low.

Trump signed the First Step Act, reducing long prison sentences for drug-related offenses.

He launched Operation Warp Speed, speeding production of Covid vaccines.

He appointed judges who believe in free speech and limited government.

Hooray for President Trump!

But then there’s the evil Trump.

He lies and breaks promises.

Trump promised he would “cut spending, big league” and then increased spending.

Biden’s been worse; this administration’s crazy spending is why inflation is killing your savings. But Trump was little better. He increased spending from an already astounding $4.1 trillion in 2017 to $6.55 trillion in 2020.

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Trump promised to end America’s wars. He didn’t. In fact, he signed a massive $738 billion defense bill, bragging that it was “an all-time record!” At least Trump, unlike his predecessors, didn’t start new wars.

Trump imposed tariffs on China, ignorantly claiming they’d protect American consumers. Instead, the tariffs punished American consumers and businesses. So Trump then gave billions of your dollars to farmers and others hurt by his tariffs.

Finally, Trump refused to accept the results of the election. For 224 years, our democracy has had a peaceful transfer of power. Trump ended that.

He lied about voter fraud. He told his supporters, “Fight like hell.”

On Jan. 6, he did tell them to “peacefully” march to the Capitol, but when things got ugly, he did nothing. Only hours later did he post a video asking protesters to go home.

Today he shows no remorse for any of the nasty things he did.

Because of Trump, Biden will probably be reelected.

Every Tuesday at JohnStossel.com, Stossel posts a new video about the battle between government and freedom.

​ Orange County Register 

California’s controller finally files state audit – for 2021

• April 5, 2023

Hand it to new California Controller Malia M. Cohen. On March 23 her office finally achieved what her predecessor, Betty Yee, failed to do. Cohen filed the Audited Comprehensive Financial Report for California for fiscal year 2020-21, which ended on June 30, 2021. Almost two years ago. Every other state filed its ACFR long ago, as did almost all California cities, counties and school districts. It’s the fifth year in a row California was late.

California’s ACFR for the latest full fiscal year, ending June 30, 2022, still is AWOL. This is especially important because, as state legislators are crafting the budget for 2023-24 fiscal year beginning on July 1, they need an accurate picture of the state’s finances.

All these ACFRs now are online. So check those for your local county, city and school district. The person who showed me how to analyze the ACFRs 20 years ago was John Moorlach, then the Orange County treasurer-tax collector, later supervisor, then a state senator, in which role I worked for him as press secretary. For years, Moorlach has compiled lists and rankings of the ACFRs for the U.S. states and California counties, cities and school districts.

The key is dividing the “Unrestricted net position” (UNP) by the population, to get a per-capita number. For California’s new 2021 ACFR, the UNP was -$174.4 billion; which was better than 2020’s -$208 billion. A $33.6 billion improvement, or 16%.

Divide the new -$174.4 billion number by the state’s population in 2021 of 39.24 million. And we get a per capita tally of -$4,434. That’s the credit card slip Gov. Gavin Newsom and the Legislature signed for you. For a family of four, you owe $17,736.

Moorlach pointed out to me a couple of things he found. As the state’s population declines, the per capita number will increase. Because almost all of it is for public retiree pensions and medical care, which cannot be cut no matter how many people flee.

Second, he fingered this excuse from the ACFR on the tardiness: “The modified opinions are the result of ongoing challenges experienced by one state department in administering California’s unemployment insurance program and preparing its financial statements using the Financial Information System for California (FI$Cal) accounting system.”

That means the highly incompetent Employment Development Department.

The fiscal year ending June 30, 2021 included almost the whole period of Newsom’s excessive COVID-19 lockdowns, forcing millions into unemployment and overloading the EDD’s rickety old computer systems. As I wrote for this newspaper in Dec. 2020, I saw firsthand how Moorlach and his Senate staff worked overtime helping local jobless constituents navigate that broken system.

The new ACFR calculates a $19.8 billion EDD “loan” from the federal government, which Moorlach said is paid down by $147 per year taken from your paycheck today. That number is not included in the ACFR’s $33.6 billion UNP improvement. So the real improvement is only $13.8 billion.

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The person Newsom appointed to oversee EDD during that time was Julie Su, secretary of the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency from Jan. 7, 2019 to July 17, 2021, that entire period. She currently is the acting U.S. secretary of labor, and was appointed to hold the post, pending Senate confirmation, by President Biden on Feb. 13. Moorlach called it “failing upward.”

A real problem here was term-limited former Controller Betty Yee failed to call out Newsom for not putting competent people in charge of the EDD, both to serve the people suffering in jobless lines and to finish her ACFR on time.

A second problem is this is what happens in a one-party state. Republican Lanhee Chen in his run for controller promised to produce timely ACFRs. To Cohen’s 55.3%, he got just 44.7%, actually the best performance of any GOP candidate statewide.

But Cohen’s timely performance in producing this ACFR just three months into her term is promising. Now, could we please have the 2022 numbers before the June 15 constitutional budget deadline? So the governor and legislators – and all Californians – can know what’s really going on in their fiscal house?

John Seiler is on the SCNG Editorial Board.

​ Orange County Register 

California needs an alliance between good government and small government forces

• April 5, 2023

Let’s face it: California has almost zero chance of becoming a small government, red state in the foreseeable future. A large majority of voters prefer extensive government services and the high taxes they require. Many of the conservatives that brought us Proposition 13 have passed away, retired, or moved away.

But within California’s big government majority, many are concerned with public sector inefficiency and dysfunction. If our government can’t even get the small things right, how is it supposed to tackle the big issues?

There are those out there fighting for more efficient government service. Govern for California is an example of  good government group that sometimes breaks with ruling party orthodoxies, as it advocates“actions to increase government performance and accountability” and opposes legislation “detrimental to the public interest.”

Libertarians and free market conservatives often oppose government action because they recognize that spontaneous order outperforms centrally formulated top-down solutions. Sacramento bureaucrats lack detailed knowledge of what’s happening in Calexico or Redding and are thus not in a good position to dictate what their residents should be doing. Even within a town or neighborhood, people working together voluntarily can solve problems better than local officials.

But we should recognize that while government solutions are generally inferior, some governments execute better than others. California often comes up short relative to other states on quality-of-life measures because its government performs poorly relative to its peers.

For example, the state of California has now failed to complete its audited financial statements within the federally established nine-month deadline for the last five years in a row. It is failing to produce financial statements on time despite spending $1 billion on a new financial system. No other state government has been so consistently late.

Late financial statements don’t impact the day-to-day lives of most Californians, but other government failures do. State and local government’s inability to address homelessness and public disorder are driving people away from urban downtowns, and, to an increasing extent, transit.

Despite spending billions on the issue, California’s share of unsheltered homeless far exceeds its share of the US population. And weather is not a sufficient explanation: Florida and Texas have much lower rates of homelessness rates than we do.

Libertarians, reform Democrats, and conservatives apply different lenses to the issue, with the latter groups more focused on the state’s lax enforcement of drug laws. The libertarian critique focuses on state and local policies that drive up the cost of housing. But most would agree that Los Angeles’ response, in the form of Measure HHH, has created very few new units at very high costs despite its $1.2 billion price tag.

Transportation is another clear case of government failure. While the state spends tens of billions on an endless high-speed rail project in the Central Valley, both Northern and Southern California struggle with traffic congestion. While reform Democrats might not agree that the state has underinvested in highways, they often share the belief that transit agencies are inefficiently run and fail to provide a safe, inviting environment to potential riders.

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Small government and good government advocates are also concerned about the low quality of public education across much of the state. In the 2021-22 school year, critics with varying ideological perspectives found common ground in opposition to excessive school closures which most other states avoided.

Now that schools are open, the groups’ approaches may differ as reform Democrats focus on ways to improve traditional public schools, while conservatives and libertarians would like to see more money going to private schools, and, possibly, charters. Perhaps the two groups can agree that some degree of choice is required, even if that choice is sometimes limited to multiple public schools within or across districts.

Whether the issue is homelessness, transportation, or education, all of us critical of the Sacramento establishment should agree on greater accountability. All major California public agencies should have strong auditors or inspectors general. Revelations from independent watchdogs like these could make California government less wasteful, even if it remains bigger than we would like.

Marc Joffe is a federalism and state policy analyst at the Cato Institute.

​ Orange County Register 

Leon Draisaitl propels Oilers past Kings, into 2nd in Pacific Division

• April 5, 2023

LOS ANGELES — For the Kings, a Pacific Division title and even home ice in the first round of the playoffs drifted further into the horizon on Tuesday night when they were stifled for the second time in less than a week by the Edmonton Oilers, who prevailed 3-1 at Crypto.com Arena.

These two clubs met on March 30, when the Oilers won, 2-0, in Edmonton. In both instances, the victories moved them ahead of the Kings in the standings. Both teams have four games remaining with Edmonton holding a one-point lead. They have split the season series after Edmonton eliminated the Kings from the 2022 postseason. The Kings also trail the Pacific Division-leading Vegas Golden Knights, whose overtime loss to the Nashville Predators Tuesday left them four points ahead of the Kings and three up on Edmonton.

Winger Viktor Arvidsson scored the Kings’ only goal. Pheonix Copley snapped his string of nine consecutive decisions with at least one point earned for his team, making 30 saves.

Forwards Leon Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins assisted on each other’s power-play goals before Draisaitl set up defenseman Darnell Nurse’s late empty-netter. Draisaitl’s three points extended his scoring streak to 13 games over which he’s scored 27 points (10 goals) to top the NHL since the surge commenced. Stuart Skinner turned away 20 shots to earn his seventh victory in his past eight appearances.

For Edmonton, the past 11 games have seen them collect 21 of a possible 22 points while wearing the countenance of contenders. For a Kings team that has now allowed two goals or fewer outside of empty-net goals and shootouts in 15 of its past 16 games, the loss was a bitter pill at a moment when the group was ailing for a big win.

“It’s the way it’s going to be against L.A., that’s the way you beat a team like that. We’ve done it twice now and I think it’s good for our group to show to ourselves, and to them, that we can beat them that way,” Edmonton captain Connor McDavid said.

As 96 seconds remained, Nurse’s length-of-the-ice, bank shot off the glass and into an empty net condemned the Kings to defeat.

With 7:20 to play, the Oilers had taken the lead for good with a man-advantage goal. McDavid, the NHL’s leading scorer, waited out defenseman Matt Roy to get a shot on net that created a rebound that Draisaitl narrowly stuffed past defenseman Sean Durzi and Copley.

Skinner was impenetrable for more than five-and-a-half periods, as he shut out the Kings on Thursday and up past the midpoint of Tuesday’s third period. A dump-in and forecheck allowed forward Trevor Moore to recover the puck and slip it to Arvidsson for a one-timer from the blue line, Arvidsson’s 25th goal of the season. But no sooner did he breathe life into the Kings with an equalizer did he take a slashing penalty against McDavid, sending Edmonton to the game-winning power play.

“The timing of penalties comes into play a little bit, too. We just get some energy and some traction, and then we go back to the box,” Kings coach Todd McLellan said.

The Kings buzzed late in the second period. Winger Quinton Byfield had his stick broken, by what he suggested to the official was an unnoticed slash, during a sterling chance. Then center Phillip Danault tested Skinner’s glove, yet they trailed 1-0 at the second intermission just the same.

Winger Adrian Kempe’s partial breakaway at the end of a shift just over six minutes into the period might have been the game’s strongest scoring chance to that point. That was until Edmonton’s third power-play opportunity of the night.

Play broke down after Durzi’s blocked shot led to a board battle. Draisaitl came away with the puck and zipped it across the zone to Nugent-Hopkins for a one-timer, his career-best 36th goal of the season with 8:30 showing on the clock.

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“They rely on their power play an awful lot. They won it with their power play tonight,” McLellan said.

The Oilers have the best power-play conversion rate in the NHL, but they had gone 0 for 11 against the Kings before the goal from Nugent-Hopkins. He, Draisaitl and Connor McDavid are the three most prolific man-advantage players in the NHL.

“Credit to them, they did a lot of good things on their kill and they know our group really well,” said McDavid, who played for McLellan for parts of four seasons in Edmonton. “It’s a game of inches and little battles, and we won just enough to put two in.”

Space was at a premium in the first period with the two sides combining for more than twice as many blocks (12) as shots on goal (five). There was a physical bent to the frame as well, with Edmonton doling out 20 hits. A small skirmish broke out in each of the first two periods, though nothing like the three fights during the Oilers’ last visit to Figueroa Street.

“We know how tight it is in the West. Home ice is a big thing,” defenseman Sean Walker said. “Obviously the guys played these guys last year in Round 1, so it’s something that we’re looking at and we’re going to do everything going forward to make sure we get home ice.”

​ Orange County Register 

Social media posts with BB gun spark panic at Fullerton school

• April 5, 2023

A social media post from a Fullerton junior high school student holding what appeared to be a handgun set off a chain of events Monday that led parents to panic, with 250 parents rushing to campus to pull out their kids.

By Tuesday, 228 of Nicolas Junior High’s 630 students were still staying home. And some 150 parents, many upset about what they said was inadequate notification from the school, showed up to a town hall meeting on campus, demanding answers — and changes.

Parents, and a couple of students, mistakenly thought there was a gunman at the school. Parents were getting texts Monday from their children that said, “There’s a shooter on campus.”

“It was very apocalyptic,” parent Maria Cardenas said, describing how some parents were running to school to grab their children.

One student said: “I felt safe in the beginning. But once I saw my friends leaving, I got scared.”

There wasn’t an active shooter; the student who sent the original social media post was still at home, where local police were questioning the student by 7:15 a.m.

By then, school officials realized “our school was safe,” principal Jose Varela told those who gathered for the town hall meeting Tuesday afternoon.

Varela said he understands the parents’ reactions.

“I would have freaked out, and I would have done the same thing,” Varela said.

In a presentation in the school’s auditorium, Varela gave a timeline of what happened.

Over the weekend, a Nicolas student posted on social media, posing with a gun along with “threatening” language.

That was followed by a second post, by someone unrelated to the school, who included a “PSA” — or public service announcement — that said the student pictured would be “shooting up the school,” Varela said. And unlike the first post, the second one specifically named Nicolas Junior High.

When Varela learned of this early Monday morning, he immediately contacted Fullerton Police Sgt. Eric Bridges, who serves as a liaison to the district’s junior high schools.

Bridges said he was at the student’s house with another officer within minutes. They determined that what appeared to be a firearm in the post was a BB gun.

Even though they established there was no threat to the school, numerous officers arrived on campus by 7:30 a.m., when teachers also were informed of a post on social media, said Varela. As the first bell rang, the principal made a statement over the intercom.

“We are aware of an inappropriate post,” Varela said he told them. “Fullerton police is taking care of the matter. Please understand that Nicolas is the safest place to be.”

Then the second post came out. And word spread like wildfire.

At 10:07 a.m., Bridges called Varela and confirmed the investigation was done. There was no direct threat to the school, he said.

Shortly after that, an email went out to parents in English, Spanish and Vietnamese.

Many parents at the town hall — already concerned about the spate of school shootings across the U.S. — said they were angry about the delay. They demanded the school and the district inform them immediately of any potential danger to their children, and let the parents decide whether they want to pull their children out or not.

Fullerton Superintendent Bob Pletka said a notice wasn’t immediately sent out because it was established early on, before school started, that the students were not in danger and they wanted to have more information before contacting families.

“What’s worse than slow information is inaccurate information,” Pletka said.

But faced with angry replies from parents demanding to be quickly informed of any future potential incidents, Pletka told them: “The experts in the room are you.”

In the future, Pletka said, the district will send out information “as soon as we get it.”

School officials said the student would not be returning to Nicolas Junior High.

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​ Orange County Register 

Cypress, El Dorado, Servite advance to semifinals in National Classic baseball tournament

• April 5, 2023

It will be Cypress vs. El Dorado and Servite vs. San Dimas in the semifinals of the National Classic baseball tournament Wednesday.

Both games are at El Dorado High — Cypress vs. El Dorado at 1 p.m., Servite vs. San Dimas at 4 p.m.

In the Orange County Top 25 Cypress (14-4) is No. 7, Servite (11-8) is No. 9 and El Dorado (12-7) is No. 11.

El Dorado advanced Tuesday with a 7-3 win over Vista Murrieta. Isaac Cadena and Lucas Raya each drove in two runs for the Golden Hawks. Nick Sandstedt pitched 6 1/3 innings to get the win.

Cypress defeated No. 8 Foothill 5-1. Centurions pitcher Wyatt Rosales struck out five in his 5 2/3 innings on the mound. Trevor Monteleone and Nick Montgomery had RBIs for Cypress.

Servite pitcher Ben Dominguez went four innings to get the win for the Friars in a 4-1 victory over No. 5 Villa Park. San Dimas defeated Bishop Amat 5-2.

In fifth-place semifinals Wednesday, Foothill plays Vista Murrieta at Fullerton College at 9 a.m. and Villa Park plays Bishop Amat at noon at Fullerton College.

​ Orange County Register 

USC’s Carson Tabaracci ready to contribute at tight end

• April 5, 2023

LOS ANGELES — Carson Tabaracci spent his freshman year in USC’s linebacker room, studying. It was all he could do following back surgery, not able to practice or play with his teammates.

But this offseason he was called into head coach Lincoln Riley’s office. He was presented with an opportunity to switch positions to tight end meaning a clearer shot at seeing the field. Tabaracci took it, and he has embraced the challenge of a new position this spring camp.

“It’s a little bit of a change, but it’s a lot of fun,” Tabaracci said. “I feel like I got a lot of natural skills on offense. I’m just trying to utilize that and learn and grow.”

Tabaracci was always a two-way player in high school, but he trended toward offense. As a senior at Park City (Utah) High, he played quarterback, running back, receiver and linebacker. He rushed 174 times for 1,188 yards and caught 23 passes for 235 more yards, but had just 19 tackles on defense.

His multi-faceted game earned him the position of “athlete” on recruiting sites, indicating USC would have a choice to make about his future after Tabaracci transferred from Utah following spring practices.

At USC, he was put in the linebacker room. He worked on learning the scheme and skills of the position, but he wasn’t able to put any of it onto the field.

“Just treat it like a profession,” Tabaracci said.

Entering his redshirt freshman year, the plan changed. Tabaracci was lined up to work on both linebacker and tight end during spring. But looking at the depth chart, Riley and tight ends coach Zach Hanson saw a bigger opportunity for Tabaracci to contribute on offense in 2023.

Which suits the redshirt freshman just fine.

“I just love offense,” Tabaracci said. “I feel like it’s maybe a little bit more natural for me. I played it a lot more. I have a blast on that side of the ball.”

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His experience at so many different offensive positions has made for an easy enough transition this spring. He’s comfortable in the receiving game and just learning what it takes to be lined up inside.

Now, he’s studying the other side of the ball. But getting to actually participate in practice helps with the transition. He’s still dealing with some setbacks with the back but is largely able to be a full participant.

“I think it’s deep down where he wanted to play, as well,” Riley said. “He’s come into a good situation. He’s getting a lot of reps, he’s getting a look. And his skillset’s good for it. He’s a physical kid and he catches the ball well. For missing as much as he has and first time in our offense, he’s handled it well.”

​ Orange County Register 

LAFC looks to solve Vancouver’s slow turf in CONCACAF Champions League match

• April 5, 2023

Does the best soccer team in North America play in Los Angeles?

Vanni Sartini, the Italian head coach of the Vancouver Whitecaps, thinks so.

The day before his group hosts the Los Angeles Football Club for the opening leg of the quarterfinal round of the CONCACAF Champions League, Sartini declared that “from Panama to the Yukon (LAFC is) the best team, so that’s the challenge that they present to us.”

Specifically, Wednesday night boils down to which team is best at BC Place. Despite Sartini’s declarations about LAFC’s status in the region, last year’s Supporters’ Shield and MLS Cup winners have lost their last three games on the slow turf in British Columbia.

“We know they are very strong but we also know at home we have a strong record against them,” Sartini said. “We have the weapon to block them.”

LAFC’s only loss during a 10-1-1 run from the end of May through mid-August of last year, came on the road against the Whitecaps thanks to an 89th-minute game-winner that Steve Cherundolo had little interest in revisiting this week.

“What we’re doing differently now is apples and oranges,” the LAFC head coach said.

The same goes for Vancouver, which has a pair of 5-0 wins, including its first MLS victory against Montreal on Saturday, and the resounding CCL opener at home against Honduran club Real España.

Whitecaps forward Simon Becher was named MLS Player of the Week with a pair of goals and an assist against Montreal in his first start for the club.

The 23-year-old also is the quickest to score four league goals, needing just 87 minutes of game action to get there.

As for Sartini’s bold proclamation, “it’s certainly not true,” Cherundolo responded.

“I don’t think we can make general statements like that. It’s clearly Vanni trying to set the tone and play the underdog card,” the coach said. “That’s fine. I think they see themselves as kind of deriving a lot of their confidence and energy from being the underdog in the Western Conference. But that is not the truth. They are very good this year. Much improved and made some good signings. Spent money. And they have a very deep roster and a clear way of playing. I understand why he would say that, but I have to say I disagree.”

Like LAFC, the Whitecaps jumped out to a big advantage after the first leg of the Round of 16 and moved through on aggregate despite dropping the return match.

After trips to Costa Rica and Honduras, the all-MLS quarterfinal, which culminates at BMO Stadium in L.A. on April 11, is obviously less exotic for both sides. So there shouldn’t be a secret lurking around a corner in Vancouver that surprises LAFC, but there doesn’t have to be if the Whitecaps’ results against an otherwise dominant Black & Gold hold to form.

Vancouver is strong on set pieces and has adapted a style of play to suit its home turf that doesn’t require possession to be happy. The Whitecaps are content to mark zonally because that is where they see an edge over man-marking, which makes it easier for LAFC to turn the ball over and counter.

LAFC, conversely, wants to score no matter where it plays, but the slower field has bothered the club and goals are hard to come by at BC Place.

With away goals serving as the first tiebreaker, one finish could prove pivotal.

“The past is not playing,” LAFC captain Carlos Vela exclaimed. “It’s CONCACAF Champions.”

LAFC AT VANCOUVER

What: CONCACAF Champions League

When: Wednesday, 7 p.m.

Where: BC Place, Vancouver, British Columbia

TV: FS2, TUDN

​ Orange County Register