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Emily Hoeven

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Emily Hoeven wrote the daily WhatMatters newsletter for three years at CalMatters . Her reporting, essays, and opinion columns have been published in San Francisco Weekly, the Deseret News, the San Francisco Business Times, the Flathead Beacon, the Daily Pennsylvanian, and the Mercury News. Emily graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a BA in English and French and studied English at the University of Cambridge, England as a Thouron Summer Prize fellow. She speaks French fluently and spent a year teaching English in Châteauroux, France.

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Latest Stories

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi holds a news conference on the day after violent protesters loyal to President Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Congress, at the Capitol in Washington, Jan. 7, 2021. Photo by J. Scott Applewhite, AP Photo
WhatMatters
Pelosi threatens to impeach Trump
Good morning, California. It’s Friday, January 8. McClintock to speak in Sacramento Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Sen. Dianne Feinstein and Senator-designate Alex Padilla were among the prominent California officials who called for President Donald Trump’s removal from office Thursday, a day after a mob of his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol. Pelosi, Feinstein […]
By • January 8, 2021
A mob of Trump Supporters climb the west wall of the the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. Photo by Jose Luis Magana, AP Photo
WhatMatters
How the Capitol attack affected California
Good morning, California. It’s Thursday, January 7. State, congressional leaders respond As a violent mob of President Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday — temporarily preventing Congress from certifying the Electoral College votes to confirm President-elect Joe Biden’s victory — protests broke out at California’s Capitol building in Sacramento and in cities […]
By • January 7, 2021
Vials of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine are removed from cold storage to be thawed for use on Dec. 15, 2020 at UC Davis Health. Photo courtesy of UC Davis Health
WhatMatters
Why has CA only used 35% of its vaccine doses?
Good morning, California. It’s Tuesday, January 5. New strategies on the way Three weeks after doses of the coronavirus vaccine began arriving in California, only 35% of them have ended up in people’s arms — raising questions about the effectiveness of the state’s vaccination strategy at a critical phase in the pandemic. California has administered […]
By • January 5, 2021
Image of vaccine vial and sign with a slash through it. Image via iStock
WhatMatters
Health care workers refuse COVID vaccine
As California confronts its darkest moment yet of the pandemic, complications in the rollout of the coronavirus vaccine — which Gov. Gavin Newsom billed as the “light at the end of the tunnel” — suggest that the tunnel may be longer than previously thought. Although the Golden State was slated to receive around 2.1 million […]
By • January 4, 2021
A special education pre-k class that has been permitted to reopen amid coronavirus concerns on the Lu Sutton Elementary school campus in Novato on Oct. 27, 2020. Photo by Anne Wernikoff for CalMatters
WhatMatters
School reopening battle intensifies as unions and Democrats face off
School reopenings will likely take center stage in 2021 as one of California’s biggest political battles. It’s a battle all the more noteworthy because it pits two groups that are often allies — unions and Democratic lawmakers — against each other. This week, the state’s two largest teachers unions — the California Teachers Association and […]
By • December 18, 2020
WhatMatters
California’s population growth hits record lows
Good morning, California. It’s Thursday, December 17. People leaving for other states California’s population is growing at the slowest rate in more than a century, showcasing the contradictions of a state known for its innovation, beauty and diversity but also for its high cost of living, destructive wildfires and homelessness. The Golden State’s population increased […]
By • December 17, 2020
WhatMatters
Unions, cities square off over raises, layoffs
Good morning, California. It’s Wednesday, December 16. Big budget deficits Even as California cities face yawning budget deficits, many are still on the hook for raises promised to public employee unions — leaving local governments with little choice but to lay off employees or slash services. With Congress gridlocked over a relief package, the cities […]
By • December 16, 2020
ICU nurse Helen Cordova receives the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine as Gov. Gavin Newsom watches at Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center on Dec. 14, 2020. Photo by Jae C. Hong, AP Photo/Pool
WhatMatters
The scramble for vaccine priority
Good morning, California. It’s Tuesday, December 15. ‘Essential workers’ next Health care workers at a Los Angeles hospital were among the first Californians to receive the COVID-19 vaccine Monday, launching a fierce battle over who gets to be next in line. The state hasn’t yet specified which groups will follow health care workers and nursing […]
By • December 15, 2020
WhatMatters
The vaccine arrives in California: Health care workers up first
Thousands of California health care workers may receive their first dose of the coronavirus vaccine today, marking a promising new chapter in the state’s battle with the pandemic even as deadly outbreaks flare up.  Portions of California’s initial allotment of 327,000 doses were slated to begin arriving at health care facilities Sunday night, with shipments […]
By • December 14, 2020

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