Cutting California’s Power Is Job Nobody Wants Ahead of Blackouts

  • Utility urges a state call, Newsom labels that a ‘bailout’
  • ‘People are going to be unhappy either way’ in fire-prone area
Gavin NewsomPhotographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg
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California’s governor is sparring with the state’s largest utility over who decides when to cut the power.

It’s a no-win situation: As hot, dry winds sweep across the state, switching off the electricity is seen as a needed measure to keep power lines from sparking wildfires. But making the call is a thorny political challenge.