| | | | |  | | By Lara Korte, Dustin Gardiner and Sejal Govindarao | Presented by Connected Commerce Council | |  In this photo provided by the U.S. Air Force, a C-5M Super Galaxy takes off Wednesday, April 28, 2021, from Travis Air Force Base in Solano County. A mystery buyer has purchased large plots of land around the base. | AP | THE BUZZ: It’s not a whodunit. It’s a who-is-behind-it. And why. A mysterious entity under the name Flannery Associates has purchased 52,000 acres of mostly dry farmland in Solano County around Travis Air Force Base. That’s more than three times the size of Manhattan and nearly twice the size of Disneyworld. But it’s not clear at all if Flannery intends — or even can — develop the land or build a theme park there. The entity and its representatives have given no indication of their plans to local officials or landowners from whom they’ve acquired the property — sometimes at above-market prices. Solano County officials have raised security concerns about the acquisitions, according to a recent investigation by The Wall Street Journal. The paper noted that similar concerns also emerged when a Chinese-owned company sought to develop land near the Grand Forks Air Force Base in North Dakota. The Air Force shut that project down. Now, members of California’s congressional delegation are trying to figure out what’s happening in Solano County. “What is this all about?,” asked Rep. John Garamendi, whose district includes the base. “Why is an unknown, non-communicative secret organization buying up all the land around Travis Air Force Base?” Travis, about an hour west of Sacramento, is known as the “Gateway to the Pacific” and sees a significant amount of air traffic. It has long been home to critical military operations, but now, as Garamendi points out, is deeply involved in the effort to move personnel and equipment into Poland for Ukraine. Flannery’s purchases date back five years, but the congressman said the rate of purchases has increased in the last 18 months. Flannery has spent more than $800 million on its land acquisitions, often pushing out family farms and filing suits against owners who refuse to sell. “It is weird beyond weird,” Garamendi said. Assemblymember Lori Wilson, whose district includes the Air Force base, said she first encountered the Flannery group when she was mayor of nearby Suisun City. As mayor, Wilson served on the Solano County Water Agency, which often sought to purchase land to expand water rights, but found itself losing out to Flannery. The group has cited various explanations, including agricultural and clean energy pursuits, but local officials are still baffled and suspicious. An attorney told The Journal that the LLC is controlled by U.S. citizens, with the majority of funding from Americans and a smaller amount from British and Irish investors. “Any speculation that Flannery’s purchases are motivated by the proximity to Travis Air Force Base” is unfounded, the LLC’s attorney told the WSJ. A division of the Treasury Department is looking into the situation, but Garamendi and fellow members of the California delegation want further action. Garamendi recently included a provision in the recent National Defense Authorization Act requiring the military to issue guidance about dealing with encroachments around bases . Rep. Mike Thompson (D-Calif.) whose district now includes part of Solano County, introduced a bill earlier this month to strengthen and expand protections around national security sites, critical infrastructure and farmland. Thompson is co-authoring the legislation with Wisconsin Republican Rep. Mike Gallagher, chair of the Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party. “There’s no shortage of rumors of what may or may not be happening,” Thompson said. “We just don’t know.”
| | | | A message from Connected Commerce Council: Over 2 million CA small businesses sell online — to reach customers nationwide, track performance metrics, and manage logistics. Keep California small businesses connected with online marketplaces. Learn more. | | | HAPPY WEDNESDAY. Thanks for waking up with Playbook. PLAYBOOK TIP LINE — Are you a lawmaker who loves Taylor Swift? Are you going to her Eras tour? Get in touch! We want all your hot tips, photos and story ideas. Now you can text us at 916-562-0685 — save it as “CA Playbook” in your contacts now. Or drop us a line at lkorte@politico.com and dgardiner@politico.com, or on Twitter — @DustinGardiner and @Lara_Korte WHERE’S GAVIN? Nothing official announced. ELDER WATCH: Who’s qualified for the GOP debate next month — and who might be watching from home? Our POLITICO colleagues sifted through the party rules and are closely tracking the eligibility of presidential hopefuls, including California’s own Larry Elder. Check it out here. PROGRAMMING NOTE: California Playbook will be dark next week, July 31 to Aug. 4, for a little recess of our own. We'll be back in your inboxes on Monday, Aug. 7.
| | | | HITTING YOUR INBOX AUGUST 14—CALIFORNIA CLIMATE: Climate change isn’t just about the weather. It's also about how we do business and create new policies, especially in California. So we have something cool for you: A brand-new California Climate newsletter. It's not just climate or science chat, it's your daily cheat sheet to understanding how the legislative landscape around climate change is shaking up industries across the Golden State. Cut through the jargon and get the latest developments in California as lawmakers and industry leaders adapt to the changing climate. Subscribe now to California Climate to keep up with the changes. | | | | | |  | FRESH INK | | |  A pump jack extracts oil at a drilling site next to homes on June 9, 2021, in Signal Hill, Calif. Oil companies want to overturn, via the referendum process, a 2022 state law that would limit drilling near homes. | AP | | GOOGLES OF CASH — Climate advocates are mobilizing to defend one of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s major environmental wins from an oil industry onslaught Backers of a 2022 law banning new wells near homes and schools are making $550,000 down payment toward defeating an industry referendum, with $50,000 from the Center for Biological Diversity and half a million flowing from a foundation funded by former Google CEO Eric Schmidt and spouse Wendy. The anti-referendum campaign is also rolling out a website with an ad displaying an image of Newsom, who championed and signed the law. The governor, meanwhile, appears to be playing a minor role in the effort — for now. Supporters will need to raise more to compete with fossil fuel companies that wield virtually unlimited resources. Energy extraction firms raised $20 million in two months to qualify the initiative, and an industry-backed group spent some $4 million in the first few months of 2023 to combat efforts to limit production. A recent statewide poll found voters would uphold the law by a 2-to-1 margin, but those numbers come before the industry’s full counteroffensive. Newsom could offset a cash imbalance by campaigning aggressively against the referendum. He played a decisive role last cycle in defeating a ballot measure to fund electric vehicle infrastructure by taxing top earners. But while Newsom has raised money into his ballot committee to combat the oil industry’s referendum, he's not throwing down yet as the 2024 ballot continues to take shape. His campaign team — Bearstar Strategies — has, it should be noted, signed on with the anti-referendum campaign. And the chess board is in flux. The campaign is also weighing tactics that include running its own rival ballot measure enshrining environmental protections, rather than merely opposing the industry referendum. — Jeremy B. White
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Adam Schiff is selling campaign merchandise with the slogan “Get Schiff Done." | Courtesy Adam Schiff for Senate | MERCH DROP — Adam Schiff is trying to sharpen the contrast with Senate race rivals and fellow Democratic Reps. Katie Porter and Barbara Lee with a new slogan: “Schiffective.” The push beginning Wednesday — including a one-minute video, new website section devoted to his record in Washington and Sacramento and related campaign merchandise — is the latest example of Schiff being far and away the early aggressor in a 2024 contest that polls show as wide open — despite his huge cash advantage. Now, for the new merch. There’s a mug and tote bag with a picture of a suited young Schiff in aviators and the phrase “Get Schiff Done.” And there’s other swag that provides a definition for Schiffective, an adjunctive, including “delivering intended results.” That one shows a younger Schiff pointing in front of a very old computer. — Christopher Cadelago OLD BOYS’ CLUB — This year’s annual gathering at the mysterious male-only event known as Bohemian Grove on the Russian River included a host of prominent politicians, political strategists and media personalities. Our colleagues at POLITICO’s D.C. Playbook reported that the attendee list included Kevin McCarthy, Jerry Brown, Michael Bloomberg, Paul Ryan, Jeb Bush, Karl Rove, Darrell Issa, Bill Hagerty, Haley Barbour, Doug Ducey, Ben Sasse, Chris Matthews and David Gergen. Man, what we’d be willing to pay to hear the campfire talk between Brown and McCarthy.
| | | | A message from Connected Commerce Council:   | | | | | WHAT WE'RE READING TODAY | | — “A politician’s downfall reveals a Disney exec and a secret ‘cabal’s’ power over Anaheim,” by the Los Angeles Times’ Adam Elmahrek, Gabriel San Román and Nathan Fenno: “The role of powerful business interests in Anaheim — home to Disneyland Resort and Angel Stadium — has come under renewed scrutiny amid an ongoing federal corruption investigation that became public last year.” — “Its patients are ‘literally a captive market.’ Is this California health care giant failing them?” by the San Francisco Chronicle’s Susie Neilson: “A health care company specializing in jails has rapidly expanded in California in recent years, securing dozens of lucrative public contracts while facing allegations in lawsuits and government investigations that it provides substandard care to its uniquely vulnerable clients.” — “Inmates at California prison say they’re sweltering as cooling systems fail amid heat,” by The Sacramento Bee’s Sam Stanton: “With an unprecedented heat wave baking much of the West, inmates at California’s largest female-only prison say they have been suffering in recent weeks because of faulty cooling systems that have left them sweltering.” — “Newsom’s signature move at the California Capitol: Jam the Legislature,” by the Los Angeles Times’ Taryn Luna: “Whether born from a lack of patience or hard-nosed intentionality, the policy trademark of California’s 40th governor has become increasingly apparent in his second term. Newsom has a penchant for publicly manufacturing a sense of urgency and giving lawmakers as little time as possible to act.”
| | | | STEP INSIDE THE WEST WING: What's really happening in West Wing offices? Find out who's up, who's down, and who really has the president’s ear in our West Wing Playbook newsletter, the insider's guide to the Biden White House and Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details that you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today. | | | | | | | BIRTHDAYS | | Lesli Linka Glatter … Lia Seremetis … Sam Schabaker WAS TUESDAY: Darren Star ENGAGED — Andrew Moore, chief of staff to former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, last week proposed to Virginia Boney, senior manager for public policy at Amazon. The couple got engaged in Aspen, where they met two years ago at the Schmidt Futures’ International Strategy Forum, where Virginia was a fellow and Andrew was working the event. Pic
| | | | A message from Connected Commerce Council: "Selling online and using social media allow us to reach thousands of customers, and also connect with stores and independent retailers across the country" – Jeff, Instant Biologics. Keep California small businesses like Instant Biologics in San Diego connected with online marketplaces. Learn more. | | | CALIFORNIA POLICY IS ALWAYS CHANGING: Know your next move. From Sacramento to Silicon Valley, POLITICO California Pro provides policy professionals with the in-depth reporting and tools they need to get ahead of policy trends and political developments shaping the Golden State. To learn more about the exclusive insight and analysis this subscriber-only service offers, click here. Want to make an impact? POLITICO California has a variety of solutions available for partners looking to reach and activate the most influential people in the Golden State. Have a petition you want signed? A cause you’re promoting? Seeking to increase brand awareness amongst this key audience? Share your message with our influential readers to foster engagement and drive action. Contact Jesse Shapiro to find out how: jshapiro@politico.com. | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Ottawa Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |
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