Jacob Margolis
covers science, with a focus on environmental stories and disasters.
Published February 9, 2026 12:22 PM
Rain and snow are in the forecast for early next week.
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Robert Gauthier
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Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
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Topline:
Beginning Tuesday, rain will move into Southern California and temperatures will start dropping from the 80s (which is 15 to 20 degrees above normal) down into the 60s, according to the National Weather Service.
Two storms: The first storm will roll into the area late Tuesday and wrap up early Wednesday, likely dropping less than an inch of rain. Another storm is expected to arrive late Saturday or early Sunday and will be much cooler. We could see multiple inches of rain fall across the region, and snow falling on our mountains and deserts. The storm will likely wrap up by Feb. 18.
Hazards ahead: The second storm could cause flooding, particularly in recently burned areas. Heavy snow could affect mountain travel, as well as the Grapevine.
Snow drought: The West has been suffering from a lack of snow — from California to Colorado — imperiling water supplies and stressing landscapes. Snowpack generally peaks by April 1, so we still have time for a March miracle, but current conditions are concerning.
About that rain: Downtown L.A. receives about 14 inches of rainfall on average each year. It was drenched with that much at the start of the rainy season. However, only 2.47 inches have fallen since Jan. 1. The lack of precipitation and the recent high temperatures mean that fire season — which we felt confident saying would be delayed for some time, back in December — could come earlier than anticipated if landscapes continue to dry out.
When will it happen? The first of six East LA Community Forums will be held on Feb. 21 at Salazar Park in East LA. Residents can attend in person or virtually to weigh in on whether a Municipal Advisory Council (MAC) or similar advisory body could benefit the unincorporated community.
The backstory: Because East L.A. is not an incorporated city, it falls under direct oversight of LA County. That means decisions about services and developments are handled by county officials — in this case by Supervisor Hilda Solis, who represents the area and more than two million constituents. If established, a MAC would be led by citizens and directly advise the county Board of Supervisors on issues unique to East LA.
Read on... for more details on how residents can weigh in.
This story was originally published by Boyle Heights Beat on Feb. 9, 2026.
The first of six East L.A. Community Forums will be held on Feb. 21 at Salazar Park in East L.A. Residents can attend in person or virtually to weigh in on whether a Municipal Advisory Council (MAC) or similar advisory body could benefit the unincorporated community.
How East L.A. is governed and what could change
Because East L.A. is not an incorporated city, it falls under direct oversight of L.A. County. That means decisions about services and developments are handled by county officials – in this case by Supervisor Hilda Solis, who represents the area and more than 2 million constituents.
If established, a MAC would be led by citizens and directly advise the county Board of Supervisors on issues unique to East LA.
MACs don’t have the power to make laws, authorize budgets or direct county operations but can, however, provide a structure for public input and give stakeholders a direct line of communication to county leadership. Some residents argue that the current governance structure does not adequately serve the community of nearly 120,000 and that an alternative form of representation could help address local needs.
Although the 2025 report detailed the fiscal challenges for incorporation, several East L.A. residents and stakeholders agreed that the push for the study was less about cityhood and more about financial transparency for East L.A.
Who is leading the outreach?
The forums are being led by the Los Angeles Economic Equity Accelerator and Fellowship (LEEAF) program through California State University, Los Angeles, at the direction of the county CEO’s office. According to a spokesperson, the outreach is expected to conclude in the spring with a report submitted to the Board of Supervisors by the end of July 2026.
The forums are free and will focus on small, group conversations to allow all attendees to speak and share insight. Meetings will run for approximately 90 minutes and have a place for children ages 5-12 to play.
How to attend
Interested in making your voice heard at one of the forums? See a complete list of the meetings below. While RSVPs are suggested, they are not required.
Feb. 21 at 2 p.m. at Salazar Park, 3864 Whittier Boulevard. Register here
Feb. 26 at 5 p.m. at East LA Library, 4837 East 3rd Street. Register here
Feb. 28 at 2 p.m. at City Terrace Park, 1126 North Hazard Avenue. Register here
March 4 at 5:30 p.m. at East LA Service Center, 133 North Sunol Drive. Register here
March 5 at 5:30 (Virtual meeting on Zoom) Register here
March 7 at 2 p.m. at Saybrook Park, 6250 Northside Drive. Register here
A 3D-printed gun at Defense Distributed in Austin, Texas on Aug. 1, 2018.
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Eric Gay
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AP Photo
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Topline:
California law enforcement agencies seize about 11,000 ghost guns every year. The state now is suing websites that help people manufacture untraceable firearms.
More details: The lawsuit, filed by Attorney General Rob Bonta and San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu, is aimed at the Gatalog Foundation Inc. and CTRLPEW LLC. The lawsuit in San Francisco Superior Court argues that the websites violated multiple state laws, including the distribution of computer code and guidelines for 3D printing firearms, illegal large-capacity magazines, and other firearm-related products.
Why now: The proliferation of ghost guns has increased dramatically over the past decade in California, resulting in what the lawsuit refers to as a “public safety crisis.” According to the lawsuit, California law enforcement agencies recovered 26 ghost guns in 2015. Since 2021, agencies have recovered an average of more than 11,000 ghost guns per year, the lawsuit said.
Read on... for more about the lawsuit.
This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters.
Two websites that distribute instructions for how to manufacture ghost guns are facing a new lawsuit from the state of California alleging that they provide access to illegal and untraceable firearms.
The lawsuit, filed by Attorney General Rob Bonta and San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu, is aimed at the Gatalog Foundation Inc. and CTRLPEW LLC.
The lawsuit in San Francisco Superior Court argues that the websites violated multiple state laws, including the distribution of computer code and guidelines for 3D printing firearms, illegal large-capacity magazines, and other firearm-related products.
According to the lawsuit, the websites offer computer code and instructions for more than 150 designs of lethal firearms and prohibited firearm accessories. The lawsuit said state officials as part of their investigation downloaded the code and instructions from the website “with a few simple keystrokes” and used it to build a Glock-style handgun.
“These defendants’ conduct enables unlicensed people who are too young or too dangerous to pass firearm background checks to illegally print deadly weapons without a background check and without a trace,” said Bonta. “This lawsuit underscores just how dangerous the ghost gun industry is and how much harm its skip-the-background check business model has done to California’s communities.”
The defendants could not be reached for comment. In addition to the two websites, the lawsuit names as defendants three men: Alexander Holladay, who the lawsuit identifies as the Gatalog Foundation’s principal; John Elik, who is identified as its director; and gun rights attorney Matthew Larosiere.
“It is, and always has been, legal for ordinary adults to make firearms for their own personal use,” he told the newspaper. “These people tend to be dedicated hobbyists. Home-built firearms have been around as long as our nation, and today in a country of 300 million people, we rarely ever see them used in crime.”
The proliferation of ghost guns has increased dramatically over the past decade in California, resulting in what the lawsuit refers to as a “public safety crisis.” According to the lawsuit, California law enforcement agencies recovered 26 ghost guns in 2015. Since 2021, agencies have recovered an average of more than 11,000 ghost guns per year, the lawsuit said.
“Because they are not serialized, ghost guns are effectively untraceable by law enforcement,” the lawsuit stated. “And because they are manufactured privately, often in one’s home, they bypass critical safeguards like background checks. In this way, ghost guns unlawfully circumvent traditional gun control measures.”
The lawsuit detailed particularly stark examples of the dangers that 3D printed firearms have posed, including the arrest of a 14-year-old boy who used a 3D printer to manufacture multiple firearms in Santa Rosa in 2024.
Adam Skaggs, chief counsel and vice president of GIFFORDS Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, said in a statement that the organization has previously partnered with Bonta to stop three ghost gun companies from operating throughout California.
“But a new generation of irresponsible gun industry actors are trying to unlawfully arm minors, people with felony convictions, and domestic abusers by letting them 3D-print their own guns without any background checks,” he said.
Cayla Mihalovich is a California Local News fellow.
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Times Square's digital screens have nothing on the glaring warning signs for Republicans ahead of these upcoming midterm elections.
Why now: President Donald Trump, his policies and actions are unpopular. The GOP continues to lose special elections. Republicans are retiring at faster rates than Democrats. And people are saying they'd rather Democrats control Congress. At this point, all of it adds up to trouble for the party in power.
Democrats are leading on the congressional ballot test: On average, Democrats have about a 5-point edge in polls asking people which party they'd rather see in control of Congress. That's often referred to as the congressional ballot test in surveys. Because more districts lean toward Republicans in the country, Democrats have generally needed a wider edge on this question.
Read on... for more warning signs for the Republican party.
Times Square's digital screens have nothing on the glaring warning signs for Republicans ahead of these upcoming midterm elections.
President Donald Trump, his policies and actions are unpopular. The GOP continues to lose special elections. Republicans are retiring at faster rates than Democrats. And people are saying they'd rather Democrats control Congress.
At this point, all of it adds up to trouble for the party in power.
The state of play: Democrats' hopes for taking over the House are more likely by the day, while the Senate remains a longer shot.
The House: All members of Congress face election every two years. Republicans currently have a 218-214 majority with three vacancies (one Democratic, two Republican). If the vacancies are filled by members of those same parties, which is likely, and you put redistricting battles to the side, Republicans can only afford to lose two seats to maintain their majority.
At this point, according to the Cook Political Report, there are 36 House seats that are either toss-ups or lean toward one party or the other. Of those, 18 are held by Republicans and 18 are Democratic seats. But zeroing in on the toss-ups alone, 14 are Republican, and only four are Democratic. And the political winds are blowing in Democrats' direction. Cook moved 18 seats in Democrats' direction a few weeks ago.
The Senate: Senators win six-year terms, and roughly one-third of the Senate is up every election cycle. Republicans currently maintain a three-seat net advantage, 53-47. (Two independents caucus with the Democrats.) But given Trump is president, and Vice President Vance would come in to break ties, Democrats need a net gain of four seats to take control.
This year, 35 Senate seats are up for grabs (22 Republican-held and 13 by Democrats). But the universe of competitive seats is actually much smaller — 25 seats are considered to be safely in the hands of the incumbent party (16 Republican, nine Democratic), according to Cook. That means only 10 seats are truly in play. Of those, six are held by Republicans, including Maine, North Carolina, Alaska, Ohio, Iowa and Texas. Four are Democratic: Georgia, Michigan, New Hampshire and Minnesota.
The fights for both chambers will be closely watched, but the House is still considered Democrats' best chance for control of one of the chambers of Congress.
The reasons for potential winds of change:
1. President Trump is unpopular.
President Trump talks to reporters while aboard Air Force One on Friday en route to Palm Beach, Fla.
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Samuel Corum
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Getty Images
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Almost nothing is a better predictor of electoral success in midterms than who's in power and how popular they are.
Historically, midterms are not good for the president's party. Since World War II, the president's party has lost an average of 27 seats in the House and four in the Senate.
"Even if it's a Democrat or a Republican, whoever wins the presidency has a hard time with the midterms," Trump said in Iowa late last month. He added, "It's crazy. You know, you'd think it would be like a 50-50 deal or something. It's like, for some reason — and this is Democrat, too — Democrat wins the presidency, for some reason, they lose the midterms."
It's even worse when a president is below 50% job approval, as Trump has been for a while. When that's the case, the president's party has lost an average of 32 seats in the House. (This is mainly a House phenomenon. Presidents' parties have lost on average four Senate seats, regardless of approval rating.)
Still, the popularity of the president is an important sign, and midterms are often referenda on the president's policies. Right now, Trump is under water, as evidenced by the latest NPR/PBS News/Marist poll out last week.
It showed Trump with a 39% job approval rating. He's been under 40% in the poll since November. His policies on everything from immigration enforcement to tariffs and foreign policy are all unpopular.
His voting coalition is fraying, too. Independents, voters under 30 and Latinos were key to Trump winning reelection in 2024. But they have slid away from him heavily. In the NPR poll, just 30% of independents and voters 18-29 approved of the job he's doing, along with just 38% of Latinos.
For all of Trump's boasting, he is showing signs that he and the White House understand the vulnerable position he's in. He's changed his tone on immigration enforcement, for example, saying in an interview with NBC News that he's learned his administration can take a "softer touch" (though he blamed "bad publicity" rather than bad policy).
2. The economic outlook is bleak.
Americans continue to say the economy is their top concern.
In the NPR poll, 54% of respondents said Trump's top priority should be lowering prices. Immigration was a distant second at 22%, though it was No. 1 for Republicans.
Only 36% said they approved of Trump's handling of the economy, with a majority saying tariffs hurt the economy.
A plurality — 38% — said they expect the economy to get worse in the next year, while just 31% said it will be better, and 30% said it would be about the same. Majorities in both parties said they're very concerned about the cost of health care and the price of food and consumer goods.
And, by a 52%-28% margin, respondents said Trump's policies have made things worse rather than better.
3. Democrats continue to overperform in special elections.
Ordinarily, there wouldn't be that much attention on a state Senate race, but the eye-popping margin and the pattern of other Democratic overperformances in the past year made this one national news. Special elections can be good predictors of success or failure in the following midterm elections.
In 2024, Trump won this Fort Worth, Texas-area seat by 17 points. But the Democratic candidate in this election won it by 14. That's a 31-point swing.
Trump would rather it was ignored.
"I'm not involved in that," he told reporters on Feb. 1. "That's a local Texas race."
It's just the latest example of elections over the past year, from special elections to November's off-year results, where Democrats have racked up wins and overperformed, often by double-digits.
In fact, between House seats, the fall's gubernatorial races and this one, Democrats have overperformed 2024 margins by an average of almost 16 points.
4. Republicans are retiring at faster rates than Democrats.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., speaks during a hearing with the House Committee on Homeland Security on Capitol Hill on Dec. 11, 2025. Greene has retired, leaving her seat open for a special election.
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Anna Moneymaker
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Getty Images
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A whopping 51 members of the House so far have hung it up for this 2026 election cycle.
It's a record pace, and, right now, it's more Republicans calling it quits — 30 to 21.
Lots of factors go into this, including mid-decade redistricting and the lack of appeal of serving in Washington when little gets done and acrimony is as high as it is.
But which party has more lawmakers who decide not to run for reelection is usually a pretty good indicator of which side is most concerned.
What's more, the rate of reelection is very high for incumbents. Part of that is high name identification. Part of that is built-in financial advantages. Part of that is just that people check the box more often for who they know.
When there are more open seats, especially in competitive places, parties and candidates have to spend more time recruiting candidates and more money trying to help them win — money that could be used to shore up already vulnerable officeholders.
5. Democrats are leading on the congressional ballot test.
On average, Democrats have about a 5-point edge in polls asking people which party they'd rather see in control of Congress.
That's often referred to as the congressional ballot test in surveys. Because more districts lean toward Republicans in the country, Democrats have generally needed a wider edge on this question.
But that GOP advantage has narrowed in recent years. And, a year ago, Republicans were the ones leading on the congressional ballot, showing just how much the landscape has shifted in Democrats' favor.
There are no guarantees, a lot can change, and the Democratic Party is less popular than the GOP in many polls — mostly because Democratic voters aren't thrilled with their own leaders. But, at this moment, Democrats have the advantage.
As Cook's Erin Covey writes: "With only a few exceptions, midterm elections have been driven by backlash to the party in power — and the Democratic Party's unpopularity hasn't kept their voters from turning out in off-year elections.
"If the election were held today, Republicans would need to win roughly three-quarters of the Toss Up races to keep control of the House ... . Though that's not impossible, it looks increasingly difficult."
Copyright 2026 NPR
By Sergio Martínez-Beltrán, Jasmine Garsd, Liz Baker | NPR
Published February 9, 2026 9:30 AM
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Joaquin Castro via BlueSky/via Reuters and Neilson Barnard/Getty Images
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Topline:
As Bad Bunny knelt down and rubbed the boy's head, he says: "Cree siempre en ti" ("always believe in yourself"). Almost immediately, rumors began spreading like wildfire on social media: the boy was none other than Liam Conejo Ramos, an immigrant who has made headlines in recent weeks.
Confirmed by NPR: While the concert was rife with symbolism and statement — this happens to not be true. A publicist for Bad Bunny told NPR Music that the little boy on stage was not Liam Conejo Ramos. A representative for the Conejo Ramos family also confirmed to Minnesota Public Radio that it was not the young boy.
A concert filled with symbolism: Bad Bunny's presence at the Super Bowl has been praised — and criticized — for being a predominantly Spanish-language concert, and because of his stance on Trump's immigration enforcement campaign. During his acceptance speech at last week's Grammy Awards, he stated "ICE out… we're not savage We're not animals. We're not aliens. We are humans. And we are Americans."
Read on... for more about the moment in the performance.
Around the middle of Bad Bunny's live NFL Super Bowl halftime performance, the Puerto Rican singer is seen handing a Grammy Award to a young Latino boy.
As he kneels down and rubs the boy's head, he says: "Cree siempre en ti" ("always believe in yourself"). Almost immediately, rumors began spreading like wildfire on social media: the boy was none other than Liam Conejo Ramos, an immigrant who has made headlines in recent weeks.
While the concert was rife with symbolism and statement — this happens to not be true. A publicist for Bad Bunny told NPR Music that the little boy on stage was not Liam Conejo Ramos. A representative for the Conejo Ramos family also confirmed to Minnesota Public Radio that it was not the young boy.
A screenshot of Bad Bunny giving a Grammy to a young boy during the Super Bowl performance.
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Screenshot by NPR
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NFL via YouTube
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Who is Liam Conejo Ramos?
Five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos and his dad, Adrian Conejo, were detained by federal immigration agents on Jan. 20 at their Minneapolis driveway.
A photo taken of the boy carrying a Spider-Man backpack and wearing a blue bunny hat, went viral on social media, and has become one of the symbols of President Trump's harsh immigration crackdown in Minneapolis.
Liam and his dad were sent to a detention center in Dilley, Texas, meant to hold families with minors. They were released earlier this month.
The Department of Homeland Security launched Operation Metro Surge in December, deploying nearly 3,000 federal immigration agents to Minnesota. It has led to hundreds of arrests, including of undocumented immigrants without criminal records, and the killing of two U.S. citizens by federal agents.
A concert filled with symbolism
Bad Bunny's presence at the Super Bowl has been praised — and criticized — for being a predominantly Spanish-language concert, and because of his stance on Trump's immigration enforcement campaign. During his acceptance speech at last week's Grammy Awards, he stated "ICE out… we're not savage We're not animals. We're not aliens. We are humans. And we are Americans."
Sunday's Super Bowl performance was filled with symbolism and contained several strong statements celebrating Latinos and immigrants in America, including when the singer said "God Bless America" and named all of the countries of North, Central, and South America.
Bad Bunny performs during halftime of the NFL Super Bowl on Sunday.
