Political columnist George Skelton has covered government and politics for 60 years and for The Times since 1974. He has been a Times political writer and editor in Los Angeles, Sacramento bureau chief and White House correspondent. He has written a column on California politics, “Capitol Journal,” since 1993. Skelton is a Santa Barbara native, grew up in Ojai and received a journalism degree at San Jose State.
Latest From This Author
Gov. Gavin Newsom once talked big about forcing internet giants to pay for the products they heist and profit off. But last week he scuttled legislation to require payment for news stories.
Aug. 26, 2024
Kamala Harris is one step from becoming America’s first female president because she has always had the drive and guts to risk seeking a higher office.
Aug. 23, 2024
A functional democracy must be fueled by a flow of credible information. The void created by the decline of journalism is filled by misinformation.
Aug. 19, 2024
Donald Trump is either deranged or at least delusional. Maybe confused, but that’s just as worrisome. What rational mind can’t remember the details of plummeting from the sky and facing possible death in a helicopter?
Aug. 15, 2024
Kudos to Vice President Kamala Harris. She didn’t do the blatantly political thing and select a popular governor from a key battleground state to be her running mate.
Aug. 7, 2024
Democrats are celebrating Vice President Kamala Harris’ expected ascension to replace President Biden as the party’s nominee to battle Donald Trump. Democrats could do better than Harris and should.
July 22, 2024
My choice to replace President Biden as the Democratic nominee is George Clooney. He’d whip the dangerous Donald Trump easily, probably by a landslide.
July 13, 2024
As pressure mounts on President Biden to quit his reelection race after a shockingly dismal debate performance, the spotlight will turn more intensely on two Californians: Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Gavin Newsom.
June 29, 2024
Gov. Gavin Newsom delivered his annual State of the State address Tuesday in a very odd way. Except it wasn’t odd for him — just abnormal compared with the previous 10 California governors going back 82 years.
June 26, 2024
Baseball great Willie Mays never wanted to be an activist, but the racism he encountered after moving to San Francisco helped motivate the city and state governments to outlaw housing discrimination.
June 22, 2024