Gavin Newsom beat the effort to recall him

THE BIG STORY

California Gov. Gavin Newsom beat the effort to recall him

California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks to union workers and volunteers on Sept. 14, 2021, in San Francisco. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

The Democrat needed a majority of California voters to vote "no" on the question of whether he should be recalled as governor, and Decision Desk HQ projected that he did so as of Tuesday night.

The results are unsurprising, given that polling showed he had a large lead and Democrats have a sheer advantage in the state because they vastly outnumber Republicans. Nonetheless, Democrats campaigned heavily in the past month to ensure Newsom didn't lose.

"The decision you're about to make isn't just going to have a huge impact on California. It's going to reverberate around the nation," President Joe Biden said at a rally for Newsom on Monday. "The leading Republican running for governor is the closest thing to a Trump clone that I've ever seen in your state."

Even before votes had been fully cast, Republican frontrunner and right-wing radio personality Larry Elder put up an online form for voters to flag fraud, reportedly saying that there were inconsistencies in the results. Former president Donald Trump also put out a statement fomenting similar conspiracies as Elder, comparing the recall election to the 2020 presidential race. Both elections show no evidence of voter fraud.

STAYING ON TOP OF THIS

The Democratic tax plan is progressive but doesn't end preferential treatment for the ultrarich

House Democrats proposed a rewrite of the tax code to raise taxes on big corporations and the rich. Some experts say it falls short of its goals. Here are the key takeaways of this plan as it stands:

The bill sets the tax rate on capital gains at 25% for anyone who earns over $400,000. That's up from the current 20% but still well below the 37% top rate that regular income is taxed at.
It also raises the corporate tax rate from 21% to 26.5% for companies that make over $5 million. The federal tax rate on corporations had been 35% until 2017, when Republicans cut it sharply.
The top individual income tax rate for people who earn over half a million dollars per year will be bumped to 39.6%.
The bill does not close a loophole that allows hedge fund managers to tax their bonuses at a lower rate, despite bipartisan support for ending this benefit.

It's not clear whether progressive Democrats will mount a campaign to change the bill. The Senate is also developing its own plan, and the two chambers will need to agree on a final plan for anything to pass. Read politics reporter Paul McLeod's full breakdown of the tax proposal to understand what comes next.

SNAPSHOTS

The iPhone 13 isn't a major upgrade, but boasts new professional camera features, a faster chip, and a smaller notch. In other news from yesterday's Apple event, the new Apple Watch is big enough to type on.

Britney Spears took down her Instagram page Tuesday after she posted about waiting "13 years and counting" to be freed from her guardianship. She also thanked the #FreeBritney movement, saying, "you guys fucking kick ass."

Kim Kardashian West walked the Met Gala carpet with a masked man who replicated a past Kanye West look hours after changing her Instagram icon to match his. You: Alexa, let go of the KKW/Kanye saga. Me, whispering softly: I can't.

BURNOUT HEATS UP

Sex workers are burning out from the long hours needed to compete on OnlyFans

(Nicole Rifkin for BuzzFeed News)

In the wake of the pandemic, burnout has become a widespread problem among many sectors of the economy, and sex workers have faced some of the toughest conditions.

Online work through OnlyFans and similar platforms has been a lifeline for some, especially since it avoids the COVID risk of in-person work. But experienced sex workers say that what was once a relatively accessible way to make extra money has transformed into something more consuming.

"Everybody and their grandmom is on OnlyFans. It's oversaturated, so it's harder to get people to pay," said Destiny Red, an adult performer who's been in the industry for eight years. "With me having to do my own promo, create my own content, editing my own content, and being a mom … It gets overwhelming."

At the same time, sex workers worry that dropping out of the content creation industry means going back to old jobs where they could face violence, arrest, or other safety risks.

It means "returns to street work or strip clubs during COVID, people who have retired from escorting having to go back," performer Fabiana Fox said. "Many of us [would] have no choice to return to unsafe working conditions or forms of sex work we have previously left."

THIS ENVIRONMENTALIST'S LAST NAME IS REALLY WATERHOUSE

Carlton Waterhouse is fighting for environmental justice at the EPA

(BuzzFeed News; Getty Images/via YouTube/youtube.com)

Carlton Waterhouse is the Biden administration's nominee to run the Environmental Protection Agency office in charge of cleaning up America's most toxic waste sites. In the lead-up to his Senate confirmation hearing on Wednesday, he's being called a "racist" and "extremist" for his positions on law enforcement funding and reparations policy.

It's the Republicans' latest attempt to perpetuate a culture war around diversity and critical race theory, says reporter Zahra Hirji in a new interview with Waterhouse. Prior to his nomination, Waterhouse's work as an attorney, environmental law professor, and deputy in the EPA's Office of Land and Emergency Management raised extensive awareness about the impact of pollution in marginalized US communities.

Despite these attacks against Waterhouse, the Biden administration is confident he'll be confirmed by the Senate.

"Carlton Waterhouse has devoted his career to protecting communities across the country from hazardous waste and looking out for those who have suffered the most," said Sen. Tom Carper, the Congress member hosting today's hearing. "I look forward to getting him confirmed in this important role."

Hey. You look great today,

Alexa

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