By Lara Korte and Dustin Gardiner

Laphonza Butler | Stephanie Scarbrough/AP

THE BUZZ: Fresh off her swearing-in, Laphonza Butler has been making pit stops up and down the state, meeting with key leaders and flexing her California credentials after spending some time away.

Today, Butler is expected to join Gov. Gavin Newsom for a star-studded event in Los Angeles. They will join Los Angeles Unified Superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho, George Clooney, Don Cheadle, Eva Longoria and Kerry Washington to celebrate the second year of the Roybal School of Film and Television Production Magnet — a program to drive diversity in the entertainment industry.

Butler’s Los Angeles roots run deep. It’s where she led the powerful SEIU Local 2015 union, and where she is registered to vote. Her presence at the Roybal School gives her a chance to rub elbows with some of the industry’s most influential players — who often happen to be politically active as well.

Butler is also touching base with two other pillars of Democratic politics in California: organized labor and abortion rights advocates.

In San Francisco on Wednesday, she met with members of the California Teachers Association and SEIU 1021, which represents employees in local governments, nonprofit agencies, health care programs and schools.

On Thursday, she stopped by a Planned Parenthood health center in Northern California to meet key advocates, including statewide head Jodi Hicks. 

“Breaking barriers in the Senate while being a champion for reproductive rights and we are thrilled!” the group said on Twitter.

At first glance it may seem like the beginnings of a campaign, though she has been publicly silent on her plans. Butler has until Dec. 8 to decide if she wants to run for a full term next year. With primaries only five months away, the new senator would need to start campaigning ASAP to have a chance at rivaling the name recognition and cash reserves of the three leading Democrats.

On that note — Rep. Katie Porter announced raising $3.4 million in the third quarter. It’s a significant haul, but still far less than the $32 million cash on hand Rep. Adam Schiff reported at the end of the quarter. Rep. Barbara Lee has yet to announce her latest fundraising figures, but reported $1.4 million cash on hand at the end of June.

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WHERE’S GAVIN? Nothing official announced.

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Assemblymember Jasmeet Bains, D-Bakersfield. | AP

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — BAINS WADES IN: Central Valley Assemblymember Jasmeet Bains today is throwing her support behind Democratic state Sen. Melissa Hurtado for California’s 22nd Congressional district, bypassing her predecessor Rudy Salas in one of the state’s most-watched House races.

“I know that with Melissa representing us in Congress, we will have a champion on the national stage who will put the Central Valley first,” Bains said in a statement.

Bains, a Democrat who was elected last year, represents a moderate, oil-producing area near Bakersfield similar to the one served by Salas, who was narrowly defeated by Republican Rep. David Valadao in his bid for Congress last year.

Salas is looking for a rematch with Valadao in 2024, but Hurtado’s entrance into the race could mean he first has to make it past a competitive primary.

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — CALVERT CASH: Rep. Ken Calvert pulled in nearly $730,000 in the third quarter as the Republican looks to fend off a second challenge from Democrat Will Rollins in a newly competitive, Palm Springs-anchored 41st district (D+0.6). Rollins raised more than $830,000 in the same period.

Israeli-Americans, Jews and supporters of Israel rally in support of Israel and against Saturday's attacks on Monday, Oct. 9, 2023 in Beverly Hills, Calif. | AP

DSA FALLOUT RIPPLES — More candidates supported by the Democratic Socialists of America are facing pressure to disavow the group over its response to the Hamas attacks that killed more than 1,200 people in Israel.

DSA’s national organization and local chapters in California have expressed support for Palestinian militants after they massacred hundreds of civilians, including infants and the elderly.

In Los Angeles County, progressive District Attorney George Gascón has faced criticism from opponent Eric Siddall for not renouncing the DSA’s local chapter and its endorsement. Siddall, a centrist Democrat and prosecutor, has called Gascón’s silence cowardly and accused the DSA of “siding with terrorists.”

The national DSA was denounced by many mainstream Democrats and others after it blamed the violence on Israel and called the attacks the “direct result of Israel’s apartheid regime.” Many DSA members have backpedaled, asserting they can object to the bombing of Palestinian territories and to the killing of innocent Jewish people.

In San Francisco, Board of Supervisors candidate Jackie Fielder has taken flak for her close ties to the DSA. Trevor Chandler, one of Fielder’s opponents in the race, called on her to cut ties after the local DSA chapter responded to the killings by tweeting its support for Palestinians’ “right to resist and fight for their own liberation.”

Fielder hasn’t responded to the criticism. The LA and San Francisco chapters of the group also have not responded to the blowback.

Gascón and Fielder both have close ties to DSA. But the group appears to have backed some candidates without their knowledge. For example, the state Republican Party attacked Democratic state Sen. Josh Newman over the DSA's backing of his campaign in 2020 — an endorsement he apparently didn’t even know about.

Newman called the CA GOP’s needling a “classic bullshit way to do politics” and told Playbook he never sought the endorsement of DSA, never completed a questionnaire and had “no knowledge ever” that he was on their voter guide.

“I’m against anybody that would conflate the actions of Hamas with something legitimate,” he told us.

THE LONG GAME —  Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg has opened a committee for attorney general — in the year 2030. Steinberg, who is not running for reelection next year, had previously expressed interest in a 2026 bid, but said he wanted to see whether Attorney General Rob Bonta sticks around for another term or gets into the governor’s race. This 2030 committee allows Steinberg to fundraise without signaling a direct challenge to the current AG.

If that doesn’t work out, Steinberg does have other options. Late last year we reported that Newsom was vetting him for a spot on the Court of Appeals, but the Sacramento Mayor seemed more interested in a spot on the California Supreme Court. 

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KAMALA’S IMPACT: President Joe Biden’s decision to pick Kamala Harris as his 2020 running mate has often been described as heavily driven by identity politics. That has repeatedly irked the vice president. Heading into the 2024 presidential election, questions linger about whether Harris can define herself — and whether she can energize the voters of color Biden needs to keep the White House. (New York Times)

SELF DEFENSE: Hamas’ attacks in Israel have put Jewish volunteer security forces and extrajudicial defense groups on high alert around the world. Those groups are busy patrolling public memorials and synagogues in the Los Angeles area, but they have existed for many years — out of necessity to protect the community from long-standing threats. (Los Angeles Times)

WEDDING WATCH — Jirair Ratevosian, a candidate for Congress in CA-30 and former senior health adviser in the State Department, married Micheal Ighodaro, co-executive director for the HIV Prevention Access Campaign. The couple exchanged vows Oct. 9 in New York City. The couple began dating while working together for the Biden campaign during the 2020 Iowa Caucus.

TRANSITIONS — Shalini Avasarala is joining Weber Shandwick as manager of client experience/media relations. She previously was press secretary for Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.).

BIRTHDAYS — Second gentleman Doug Emhoff … (was Thursday): David Lehrer ... Bobby Samini

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