NEWS OF THE DAY
_1 Campaign finance: Americans may be sharply divided on other issues, but they are united in their view of the 2010 Supreme Court ruling that unleashed a torrent of political spending: They hate it. In a new Bloomberg Politics national poll, 78 percent of those responding said the Citizens United ruling should be overturned, compared with 17 percent who called it a good decision. The 5-4 ruling said corporations have a First Amendment right to spend unlimited sums in support of political causes. The decision opened the way for the super PACs that are expected to pump hundreds of millions of dollars into the 2016 presidential race.
_2 Wind farm: A wind energy company is looking to bring the offshore wind industry to California by launching a 1,000megawatt project in San Luis Obispo County that could produce enough energy to power 150,000 homes. Trident Winds LLC is in discussions with Morro Bay regarding a proposal to install about 100 floating wind turbines. The project is meant to reduce the reliance on fossil fuels.
_3 Democratic debate: CNN says it will allow Vice President Joe Biden to participate in the first Democratic presidential primary debate even if he decides that day to be a candidate. The network released its criteria for the Oct. 13 debate in Las Vegas on Monday. Since Biden has achieved an average of 1 percent support in three polls — even though he isn’t a declared candidate — CNN said he needs only say he wants to participate. Hillary Rodham Clinton, Bernie Sanders, Lincoln Chafee, Martin O’Malley and Jim Webb have already been invited.
_4 Police shooting: San Diego police officers shot and killed a 59-year-old man armed with a gun at an apartment early Monday. Officers responded to the apartment in the San Ysidro neighborhood, said police Lt. Paul Rorrison. When the door opened, police were confronted with a man wielding a gun. Officers retreated and opened fire when the man followed and pointed the weapon at them, Rorrison said. No officers were injured. The man was not identified.
_5 Beluga whales: A federal judge in Atlanta on Monday upheld a government agency’s denial of a permit that would have allowed the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta to import 18 beluga whales from Russia. The aquarium argued the whales are needed to strengthen the gene pool of whales in captivity in the U.S.
_6 Funding cut: Planned Parenthood of Utah sued Gov. Gary Herbert on Monday for ordering state agencies to cut off federal funding to the organization following the release of secretly recorded videos by an antiabortion group. Herbert’s action violated the organization’s constitutional rights, Planned Parenthood of Utah said in federal court documents. He blocked funding distributed by the state after the leaked videos showed Planned Parenthood officials describing how they provide fetal tissue from abortions for medical research.
Chronicle News Services