| | | | |  | | By Dustin Gardiner and Lara Korte | Presented by Center for Biological Diversity | | 
San Francisco mayoral candidate Daniel Lurie talks with voters at a neighborhood event on Sept. 21. | AP | THE BUZZ: OUTSIDER LANE — Levi Strauss heir Daniel Lurie is seizing on two of his biggest rivals’ ethical scandals to bill himself as the anti-corruption candidate in the race for San Francisco mayor — and he's splashing out millions in family cash to do so. Lurie, a nonprofit executive and an heir to the city’s famed jeans family fortune, has made fighting corruption a central theme of his campaign in the final weeks before the November election, hammering opponents London Breed, the incumbent, and Mark Farrell over a flurry of recent controversies. Lurie has often touted being a City Hall outsider, but his messaging has found new resonance in the homestretch due to a parade of negative headlines about Breed and Farrell. His anti-corruption kick highlights how candidates are fiercely fighting to distinguish themselves in the tight race when the top three candidates are all moderate Democrats, at least by SF standards. It also reflects the unique political dynamics of a wealthy city grappling with deep problems of crime and homelessness. Corruption was one of Lurie’s top talking points during a recent weekend campaign stop outside a coffee shop in the bougie Noe Valley neighborhood, where he spoke to a crowd of about 70 people gathered on the sidewalk. “Once you have accountability, corruption can start fading away, and we have to stomp it out,” Lurie told the group, as passersby pushed babies in strollers and wrangled dogs on leashes. He added, “These departments are run like their own little fiefdom right now. They get to do whatever they want.”
|  Lurie speaks with voters during a campaign event in the Noe Valley neighborhood last weekend. | Dustin Gardiner/POLITICO | Lurie has uniquely benefited from the timing of a series of City Hall scandals — and polling suggests he has recently gained steam in the ranked-choice contest. First, Farrell, a former interim mayor and venture capitalist, was hit with a series of allegations that he skirted campaign-finance laws (he denies any wrongdoing). Breed has also accused him of asking her to rush permits to renovate his estimated $5 million home (Farrell says he never asked for such a favor). Then, Breed faced a major PR nightmare as an appointee stepped down amid news that she oversaw $1.5 million in contracts going toward a nonprofit led by a man she lives with. Breed, who said she pushed the appointee to quit, has punched back at Lurie by questioning his experience, suggesting he hasn’t held a real job in the five years since he stepped down as CEO of a housing nonprofit. Breed’s campaign consultant, Todd David, said the notion that Lurie is the change candidate is laughable given the candidates’ divergent life stories: Breed is a Black woman who grew up in public housing; Lurie is a white man whose family embodies San Francisco old money. “Daniel has never had a difficult day in his life,” David told Playbook on Wednesday. “The only reason he is a competitive, viable candidate is because of his family’s wealth.” Lurie’s anti-corruption message has been propelled by millions in advertising, including a TV spot his campaign launched last weekend. He has poured more than $5 million of his own money into the race. An independent-expenditure committee backing Lurie — which received a $1 million contribution from his mother, Mimi Haas — has also sent voters gigantic mailers with the word “BUSTED” printed above Breed and Farrell’s heads. Lurie, in an interview with Playbook after his Noe Valley rally, said opponents knocking his upbringing or “privilege” are trying to deflect from their role in City Hall dysfunction. “They want to use that word [privilege]. Well, I’m turning around and saying, ‘Look at what I did with it,’” Lurie said, citing his nonprofit work to fund affordable housing and other initiatives. “They can come at me on my background.” GOOD MORNING. Happy Thursday. Thanks for waking up with Playbook. You can text us at 916-562-0685 — save it as “CA Playbook” in your contacts. Or drop us a line at lkorte@politico.com and dgardiner@politico.com, or on X — @DustinGardiner and @Lara_Korte. WHERE’S GAVIN? Nothing official announced. Taking action on pending legislation, per Newsom’s office. The governor has five days left to sign or veto hundreds of bills on his desk.
| | A message from Center for Biological Diversity: You know what's rich? Billionaire oil companies who hike up the price of energy to boost profits trying to blame high rates on California. There IS a better way: Abundant clean energy and independence from greedy oil companies. Learn more. | | | |  | ON THE AIRWAVES | | | 
Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris. | Gene Puskar/AP | NOT MY CIRCUS — Kamala Harris would very much like to be excluded from the narrative around a California rent control measure. The Harris-Walz campaign appears to have sent a cease and desist letter to stations running an ad by the Yes on Proposition 33 campaign that heavily features the vice president. Harris has not endorsed the measure, which is led by political provocateur Michael Weinstein and the AIDS Healthcare Foundation that he heads. The letter, obtained by Playbook, is signed by Varoon Modak, senior counsel for the campaign, and warns station managers that the ad is “false, deceptive and in violation of Vice President Harris’ publicity rights.” “The advertisement … appears to be a blatant attempt to confuse and mislead California voters,” Modak writes. The Harris campaign did not respond to questions about the veracity of the letter. A representative for KNBC in Los Angeles confirmed the station received the letter. A spokesperson for AHF told Playbook that the vice president’s campaign had not contacted the group, nor had any stations pulled the ad, which appeared to be still airing in Los Angeles as of Wednesday. Weinstein, in previous interviews with Playbook, has vehemently denied the assertion that the campaign is trying to mislead voters, and argued that the ad merely reiterates Harris’ support for certain housing policies. The spot features a small disclaimer on the last frame clarifying that the "use of Kamala Harris' likeness and words does not imply endorsement." “What we’re saying very clearly is Kamala Harris believes in rent caps,” he told us earlier this month. Nathan Click, a spokesperson for the No on Prop 33 campaign — which sent a complaint to the Federal Elections Commission over the ad — decried AHF’s tactics. “It’s disgusting that AHF would use VP Harris as a pawn and use her name, image and likeness against her wishes,” he said.
| | | | A message from Center for Biological Diversity:   | | | | | CAMPAIGN YEAR | | |  Pumpjacks extract oil in the Inglewood Oil Field near Los Angeles. | AP | FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: ALLIANCE ALERT — The group that was battling an effort to overturn the state’s oil well setback law is partnering up with labor groups to take its fight to the campaign trail. Campaign for a Safe and Healthy California, the Jane Fonda- and Wendy Schmidt-backed group that was left with $20 million to spend elsewhere when the California Independent Petroleum Association pulled its ballot initiative earlier this year, is teaming up with a slate of labor unions from the powerful Opportunity PAC to back legislative candidates who are facing opponents funded by Big Oil. The list of candidates is TBD. CSHC is funneling an initial $1 million to the effort. Among the unions joining the cause are SEIU, the California Teachers Association, the California Federation of Teachers, the California School Employees Association, United Food and Commercial Workers and the California Nurses Association. “The 750,000 members of SEIU California demand a labor movement that not only fights for fair wages and working conditions for working-class families but also for neighborhoods with clean air and water for their families and the next generation,” said David Huerta, president of SEIU California and SEIU-USWW (United Service Workers West).
| | ON CAMPUS | | | | 
Republican Rep. Michelle Steel. | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images | FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: CONGRESS KNOCKING — The House Committee on Education and the Workforce this morning asked Education Secretary Miguel Cardona to investigate antisemitism allegations against the Santa Ana Unified School District in Orange County. Rep. Michelle Steel (R-Calif.) and Chair Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) co-authored the written request, asserting that the district designed an ethnic studies curriculum that “would teach young students to view Israel through the lens of colonialism.” Attorneys for Pro-Israeli government groups made the same accusation in a recent court filing as part of an ongoing antisemitism lawsuit against the district. They also obtained text messages that they say show school officials musing about scheduling votes on coursework approvals during Jewish holidays to avoid community resistance. “Ongoing litigation has already revealed an alarming pattern of antisemitism at the highest levels of the SAUSD,” the Republican committee members wrote. “It is also clear that certain individuals made a concerted effort to hide their prejudiced motives.” School leaders have disputed allegations against the district. After the lawsuit was filed, a district spokesperson told the Voice of OC that “the District denies these claims and will present counter arguments and facts to the Court for consideration and is optimistic that the Court will ultimately find in favor of the District.” Debate over how to teach the history of Israel and Palestine also complicated efforts to require ethnic studies courses in California years ago, but the state in 2021 decided to make the classes a high school graduation requirement starting with the class of 2030. Santa Ana schools are mandating the courses four years earlier, beginning with the class of 2026. If the Department of Education Office for Civil Rights investigates, Santa Ana will join dozens of other districts that have faced antisemitism probes from the federal government since Oct. 7. — Blake Jones
| | A message from Center for Biological Diversity: You know what's rich? Billionaire oil companies who hike up the price of energy to boost profits trying to blame high rates on California. There IS a better way: Abundant clean energy and independence from greedy oil companies. Learn more. | | | | | CLIMATE AND ENERGY | | |  There are 1,654 inmate firefighters in California today, down from a peak of over 4,000. | Ethan Swope/AP | FUEL TO THE FLAMES — The revelation that an alleged Cal Fire arsonist graduated from California’s inmate firefighter camps is a double whammy as the state struggles to defend both its sentencing reforms and its fire-prone communities. Read more in yesterday’s California Climate.
| | TOP TALKERS | | | | 
Vice President Kamala Harris arrives to speak at a campaign event at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh on Wednesday. | Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo | CENTERNOMICS — Harris is branding herself as “pragmatic” on the economy and looking to distance herself from accusations that she’s “too liberal,” POLITICO’s Elena Schneider reports from Pittsburgh. The vice president has attempted to bridge her progressive California record on labor with her pro-business presidential bid, pledging investments in biomanufacturing, aerospace and artificial intelligence. “I believe we shouldn’t be constrained by ideology, and instead, should seek practical solutions to problems,” Harris said. “Part of being pragmatic means taking good ideas from wherever they come.” NOT-SO-MONEY MOVES — Nathan Fletcher, a former state Assembly member and San Diego County supervisor, is under investigation for allegedly using campaign funds to cover legal expenses for a sexual harassment case, the San Diego Tribune reports. Campaign finance reports show Fletcher paid more than $500,000 in cash from a failed state Senate campaign to the law firm defending him in the case, brought by former TV journalist Grecia Figueroa. Fletcher's attorney, Jim Sutton, argues his client can use campaign funds because the case is related to his status as a former candidate.
| | | AROUND THE STATE | | | — A man is accused of hijacking a Los Angeles Metro bus with a gun Wednesday, fatally shooting a passenger and leading authorities on a chase that ended in a standoff with SWAT officers. (Los Angeles Times) — State Farm expects its total insurance policies in California to decline by more than 1 million by 2028 amid financial issues caused in part by wildfires and other catastrophes. (San Francisco Chronicle) — The Oakland Athletics will play their final game at the Coliseum today. (East Bay Times)
| | PLAYBOOKERS | | PEOPLE MOVES — Kristen Torres has launched Torres Consulting, a government relations and strategic consulting firm. Torres was most recently legislative assistant for Judy Chu. — Nathan Dooley and Dana Meyers have been promoted to be shareholders at Cozen O’Connor. Dooley is a member of the firm’s commercial litigation group in the Los Angeles office, while Meyers is a member of the firm’s subrogation and recovery department in the San Diego office. — Mary O'Carroll is now COO of the law firm Goodwin. She most recently was chief community officer at Ironclad, Inc. and previously led Google’s legal operations. BIRTHDAYS — Mark Isakowitz of Google … Steve Hansen, former Sacramento councilmember … BELATED B-DAY WISHES — (was Wednesday): Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff ... showrunner David Benioff ... WANT A SHOUT-OUT FEATURED? — Send us a birthday, career move or another special occasion to include in POLITICO’s California Playbook. You can now submit a shout-out using this Google form. 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 Rebecca Haase to find out how: rhaase@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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