It’s a big week on the housing beat, as Newsmakers TV’s All-Star Panel of Top Local Journalists features Christina McDermott, Josh Molina, Ryan P. Cruz and Nick Welsh breaking down all the latest about that monstrosity project proposed for the Mission, the City Council’s latest misadventures with rent control, and the icy response city planners had to the first-look development at Paseo Nuevo. Plus: a big court ruling on the Sable Oil pipeline, local impacts of the federal government shutdown and a shock new budget report out of City Hall.

Rep. Salud Carbajal checks in with Newsmakers to discuss the ongoing shutdown of the federal government. He breaks down the key health care issue that Democrats are pressing in the conflict, talks about some of the real-life, day-to-day impacts of the government being closed, and expresses deep concern over some recent actions Donald Trump’s “fascist administration.”

Our All Star Panel of National Political Pundits returns, as veteran journalist Carla Marinucci, author Dan Morain and media strategist Bill Carrick join the genial host for a deep dive into Proposition 50, Gavin Newsom’s not-so-secret bid for president, and Donald Trump’s destruction of the East Wing of the White House, among other matters, including the governor’s race, what’s up with Nancy Pelosi and fond farewells to two giants of California politics.

Our All-Star Panel of Top Local Journalists roves through the full range of politics and public policy stories animating Santa Barbara this week, as Nick Welsh offers a behind-the-scenes view of the Independent’s Yes-on-50 front cover editorial, Josh Molina sheds light on the city’s meeting-before-the-meeting on the big Paseo Nuevo development and Ryan P. Cruz breaks down the agendas of the city council members pushing anew for rent control. Plus: why supes punted on health department layoffs, why Montecito Union School District decided to settle a $7.5 million, decades-old claim of child abuse, and why Nick went long in this week’s issue on Good Samaritan homeless services.

In an exclusive interview, celebrated public health leader Dr. Peter Marks joins Newsmakers for a far-ranging conversation about the clear and present danger posed to the nation by Robert F. Kennedy’s purge of science-based health and safety policies. Dr. Marks recounts his own defenestration by RFK, after years of government service - including his pivotal role in developing the Covid vaccine - and offers a sobering forecast of what it will take to repair and restore fact-based practices to the task of keeping the U.S. public safe from unnecessary disease.

It’s a special Three Amigos edition of Newsmakers TV, as Nick Welsh and Josh Molina join the genial host to break down the latest in this week’s top local news stories in Santa Barbara, including the showdown over expanding the Hilton Beachfront Resort, efforts by the city to find a new operator for the FARO homeless navigation center and the local multi-front battle to block Sable Oil’s restart of an antiquated offshore pipeline. Plus: the first you-heard-it-here-first gossip from the 2026 city council campaign trail.

Assembly member Gregg Hart returns to Newsmakers TV to discuss his just-passed milestone legislation requiring the rogue Sable oil company to undergo full environmental review in its bid to restart the failed pipeline that caused the disastrous Refugio spill. Hart also offers his up-to-date assessment of the Trump Administration’s efforts to dismantle California’s efforts on climate; concerns about Gov. Newsom’s support for new drilling in the Central Valley; and the Nov. 4 special election campaign to pass Proposition 50, the Democrat’s response to the Texas Republican gerrymander of congressional seats, which Trump triggered to head off GOP loss of the House in the 2026 mid-terms.

State Senator Monique Limon returns to Newsmakers TV for an urgent conversation about Proposition 50, the one and only issue in the Nov. 4 special election, by which Democrats are trying to respond to Donald Trump’s efforts to redo the national political landscape in advance of the crucial 2026 mid-term elections. Characteristically for Limon, she explains her support of the measure in practical terms – what it means in federal funds for education, health care and emergency services for constitutents, as well as the need to respond to the threats and intimidation that the president has inflicted on communities with large Latino populations, like Santa Barbara.