it's a moment months in the making, tackling a major challenge that has bay area businesses hurting. california's governor just signed what he

calls an unprecedented effort to fight retail crime across our state. but this big problem is driving a saga over the right solution. and voters get the final say. good afternoon, i'm kristen z. thanks for joining us. governor newsom signed into law a new plan to tackle retail theft. the ten new laws passed in a bipartisan vote this week. they create stricter penalties for repeat retail thieves and make it easier for prosecutors to charge suspects with a felony. they also allow police to arrest someone on suspicion of theft, even if they don't witness the crime. >> that's the issue of organized retail theft. the issue of serial theft, the issue that is front and center in the consciousness of so many californians. you see it online, social media. you see it on the nightly news. this goes to the heart of the issue, and it does it in a thoughtful and judicious way. >> newsom signed the bills into law in san jose. but you know who wasn't there? san jose mayor

matt mehan mehan says he supports today's new laws, but he is one of the elected officials pushing for a different approach to retail crime. >> while these bills are an important first step to address the crisis of retail theft, they're just that a first step. there's nothing in this legislative package that mandates drug and alcohol treatment for those who are suffering from addiction, and whose addiction is sometimes fueling crime. >> mehan, along with san francisco mayor london breed, are backing proposition 36 on the november ballot. now that plan would increase penalties in retail theft cases and drug possession crimes, including more mandates for treatment in drug cases. it would undo changes voters approved a decade ago that reduced prison sentences for nonviolent crimes. and that's the part newsom and some other democrats are fighting. all right. new developments in the case of a

former ufc champion charged with attempted murder and assault. the santa clara county district attorney's office says cain velasquez pleaded no contest this morning. velasquez is accused of shooting at a man during a high speed car chase in south san jose in 2022. the person he chased was accused of molesting velasquez's close relative at a daycare. velasquez's trial was set to start in september. our partners at the bay area news group report. under his plea, he will not face a mandatory life sentence. the man accused of molesting velasquez's relative is still facing felony charges. now your voice, your vote and the countdown to the democratic national convention. this is a live look at the convention floor in chicago. empty right now, but it will be filling up come monday. today the economy is the focus of the campaign. vice president kamala harris's first major policy rollout of the campaign is focusing on affordability, a topic that's,

of course, been the focus of multiple attacks by former president trump. abc news reporter perry russom explains harris's pitch. >> reporter today, vice president kamala harris in north carolina breaking down her economic agenda, building up the middle class will be a defining goal of my presidency. her plan includes up to $25,000 in down payment support for first time home buyers who paid their rent on time for two years. expand the child tax credit, providing up to $6,000 per child in the first year of life, and create the first ever federal ban on price gouging for food and groceries. >> my plan will include new penalties for opportunistic companies that exploit crises and break the rules. >> former president trump yesterday accusing harris of breaking the economy. >> she destroys everything she touches and if she wins, your finances and your country will never recover. >> today, trump, facing criticism after saying last

night the presidential medal of freedom he gave to miriam adelson in 2018 is much better than the congressional medal of honor given to soldiers. >> we gave miriam the presidential medal of freedom. that's the highest award you can get as a civilian. it's the equivalent of the congressional medal of honor. but civilian version. it's actually much better because everyone gets the congressional medal of honor that soldiers, they're either in very bad shape because they've been hit so many times by bullets or they're dead. >> trump's running mate, j.d. vance today. >> i don't think him complimenting and saying a nice word about a person who received the presidential medal of freedom is in any way denigrating those who received military honors. >> and we have some new polling from abc news and ipsos about the personal favorability of both candidates for vice president. tim walz leads the way at 39%. j.d. vance is at 32%. perry russom abc news, washington. >> and in a few minutes, we're going to dive deeper into the economic plans from both campaigns and get an expert's

take on the state of our economy, so don't miss that. all right, turning to your accuweather forecast a cooler weekend ahead. abc seven news meteorologist drew tuma has a look at the big changes on the way, and one reason to really savor the sunset. tonight. >> our sunsets are going to get earlier and earlier around here. >> so tonight our sunset is at exactly 8 p.m. when fall begins here on september 22nd, our sunset at 705, and then we quickly start losing some daylight hours heading towards the winter solstice on december 21st. that is when we have our sun setting at 4:54 p.m. so the nights are getting longer and we're getting shorter daylight hours as we head towards fall and winter out there. this afternoon though, it's nothing but sunshine inland. very nice temperatures will get you into the upper 80s lower 90s for daytime. highs around the bay shoreline. it's sunny, it's mild, upper 70s, a few spots topping out at 80 degrees. and even along the coast we have lots of sunshine and temperatures in the low 70s. now

just like the past couple of afternoons, onshore flow continues to strengthen as we head towards 4 or 5 p.m, those winds gusting about 20 to 35mph. so highs in our microclimate starting in the south bay 70s and 80s, 81 in san jose, 88 in morgan hill, 77 for sunnyvale. the coastline looking great today. we're in the 60s for half moon bay, pacifica 80, redwood city across the city. today it's bright. it's windy this afternoon with gusts up to 30mph and the north bay. it's warm. 73 stinson, but 85. in petaluma, 92 in calistoga, the east bay. it's bright and warm. 75 berkeley, 78, in san leandro, but 81 castro valley and inland. today we're in the mid 80s to the mid 90s, so above average for this afternoon. overnight tonight, temperatures in the 50s and 60s. but we have some widespread drizzle. we're tracking first thing tomorrow morning. so just be aware that where we see some of this drizzle it could be steady for a period of time tomorrow morning. that's why

some areas could pick up a few hundredths of an inch of precipitation. a lot of cloud cover tomorrow morning. it's also a cooler afternoon on the way, so planning out your entire weekend the better of the two days, if you're thinking about doing anything outside, is going to be on sunday tomorrow. it's all about that widespread cloud cover that morning drizzle. it's also a cooler afternoon. we're going to drop our temperatures about ten degrees from our daytime highs today to tomorrow. then on sunday we lose a lot of the cloud cover and we will see warmer weather. so here's the accuweather seven day forecast. sunny and warm today. cloudy cooler drizzle tomorrow. sunday. it's warmer and brighter and we'll keep that warming trend going. tuesday summer warmth is back guys. >> all right what we were talking about the 2024 presidential race is focused on affordability. but can these proposals actually pull it off and help you. and economist weighs in on the policies on the table and helps us see the big picture with our economy. plus, when a popular bookstore burned down, its competition sent out a lifeline. how other booksellers

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kamala harris unveiling her economic plan. former president trump has already honed in on inflation and high costs earlier this week. let's take a look at how the two candidates policies compare. so on taxes. trump has said one of his main goals will be extending sweeping tax cuts passed during his administration in 2017 that would otherwise expire next year. he also wants to end taxes on social security benefits. harris is proposing tax cuts benefiting the middle class, mostly reviving measures passed during the first two years of biden's term. and

she'll expand the child tax credit for middle class and lower income families with children in their first year of life. both candidates have proposed ending certain taxes on tips, though trump's proposal goes further than harris. both candidates have also discussed cutting prices on everyday purchases. trump's plan hasn't been specific beyond directing federal agencies to use every tool they have to stop inflation and boosting oil and gas production. harris is calling for a federal ban on price gouging. so exactly what is really new or impactful in each candidate's proposals, and how could they potentially benefit you? are there downsides ■to wht they're suggesting? joining us live now to talk about the economic policies being highlighted, chris thornberg, founding partner of beacon economics, a group that provides data analysis to government agencies, businesses and nonprofits across the political spectrum. hey, chris, thanks for joining us. >> oh, great to be here. >> so what do you make of trump and harris's economic policies as unveiled? so far? what do

they reveal to you about what the candidates think americans need and want right now? >> well, obviously, what we see here is both sides continuing to dive into the populist themes that have been such a dominant part of politics, really over the last decade or so, both are talking about reducing taxes, although on who depends on who you're talking to, and both of course, continue to discuss high prices and what they may or may not be able to do about it. now, the problem here, of course, is that neither one of them are talking about that 800 pound gorilla in the room. >> wait, is it the d word? >> fiscal deficit we're running? >> yes, it's the d word. yeah, exactly. so, yeah. they're not, because i don't know if it's just a hard concept for people to understand or if it's not as relevant they deem to people's lives. but let's get back to that. i want to drill down on what hara's proposed today. some of her key points. right. you

mentioned the cost of things going up, so she rolled out, he, i'm going to try to stop price gouging. so first, is that the main reason why prices have gone up so much at the store? and how would you ban that? like who decides what constitutes gouging? >> well, that's exactly right. and to be clear, look, there's been this idea that inflation has kind of risen in a vacuum, that it was something that just landed on our shores, when, of course, that's not how it works. there's an old didion economics that inflation is a consequence of too many dollars chasing too few goods. that's exactly what this nation has experienced over the course of the last couple of years. as a result, of course, of the excessive fed stimulus coming in after the pandemic. now, the fed has taken a lot of cash off the table, and lo and behold, price growth has slowed down quite a bit. the last reading we got, the cpi number is below 3% year over year, and it pretty much seems as if inflation is in the rear view mirror. but of course, neither candidate is letting go of this because it is a hot button topic and everybody's looking for that

hot button topic. ergo, though, both putting out proposals to honestly deal with the problem that seems to have passed, which all by itself i think is an interesting situation. this nation finds itself in. >> yeah, but it hasn't passed as far as people's mentalities and how people feel. there's always a catch up period, right? so people want to hear how can you put more money in my pocket? the other part of what she proposed is to expand the child tax credit to $3,600 per child, and 6000. that's a whole lot. if you have a baby under one. i imagine that's popular with parents. but let me just ask you, if you take less from some, you got to take more from others. presumably if you're going to balance your balance sheet. so who so who pays? or is this more of the d word again? >> well, that's exactly right. look neither party is having any real conversations about this out of control federal budget deficit, we know taxes have to go up and spending has to come down, but there are so many special interests that, have locked in their position that

neither party has really any political capital or room to navigate. and so they're just ignoring it. but americans don't think the deficit is important. they're not going to think the deficit is important. ergo, we have this game of who can outspend the other. well, that can only go on so long. the question is, is at what point in time do these global bond markets turn around and look at the united states and go, yeah, this isn't sustainable, guys. you're going to have to really get your house in order here, or we're going to stop lending you money at these relatively cheap rates. >> i'm just going to hide my credit card bills and not look at what's piling up. that's the idea here. and of course, i don't want to, you know, make people feel like i'm picking on harris. it's just that she proposed her plans today. so we're taking a deep dive. but trump, of course, is basing a lot of what he's saying on tax cuts. right. and of course, if you have tax cuts, 20-17, you know, most people's i think went down right. but corporations, the very most. so if they keep it up, if they extend it, i think i read they'll add about 2 trillion to the deficit by 2028. first of all, is that correct?

and then second of all, help us understand why we should care about that as individuals. >> right? well, you know, this is both the, the perversity and the danger of government debt because we always think of government debt as being somebody else's problem. but it's not it's all of our problems. >> why? why is my problem? explain it to me. so i understand, because if the federal government needs to pay off its debt, it's coming to you to get that cash, and it's either going to come to you and raise your taxes, or it's going to come to you and cut your benefits and that of course, is when americans really start to experience the implications of government debt, >> these are serious problems. you look at the history of the globe, and it's this kind of public debt that builds up in the background that so often finds itself at front and center in terms of the political turmoil that can, in some cases, tear a nation apart. i mean, you can go back to even the french revolution and look at the role that debt played in bringing

down, of course, that 100 hundreds of year old regime, this is a serious issue. but again, you know, one of the truest things trump ever said at the very beginning of his 2016 campaign, someone asked him about the federal debt and he said, oh, people don't care about that anymore. tragically, he was right. yeah. but again, at what point in time do you global bond markets blink? we haven't seen it yet, but we know somewhere out there at some point in time we're going to have to come to grips with reality. now that may not be in the next couple of years, in which case this kind of tendency to simply up the stakes, we're going to cut taxes, we're going to increase various sorts of public support mechanisms. will increase. but again, this parade will inevitably have to come to an end. >> right? sort of like climate change. you can keep saying it's somebody else's problem, kick it down the line. but eventually, eventually, it catches up. i want to look at the other proposal, harris said. maybe a $25,000 aid and down payment to

first time home buyers. and i wonder you know, of course that could help some people. but i wonder if also that addresses the core key issue, right. that of supply being a problem. >> right. well, and to be clear, i mean, this one actually, i think makes a lot of sense, at least from a political point of view. first of all, let's be clear. we were talking about $25,000 for a first time buyer. that's not helping anybody in california, because your median price of a house here is well over $700,000. if you get to the urban areas higher than that. yeah. in other words, $25,000 doesn't amount to much, but it does mean a lot in places like central pennsylvania and central wisconsin, places where obviously miss harris wants to get her feet underneath her and get some some political capital moving. and in those economies, i think that $25,000 will mean a lot. and yeah, i do think it will help ramp up overall housing production. obviously, we can increase the demand for new homes. we'll get the

builders to build more new homes. and ultimately that will start to unwind. some of the housing shortage problem that our entire nation is finding. so to me, a decent idea. >> thank you for reminding me that not everyone pays the prices that we do here for housing. exactly. okay, so how much does any president move the needle when it comes to the economic good times or bad times? i think a lot of people think maybe presidents can do a lot, but there's so many forces that are beyond their control. is it like, hey, are you just lucky or unlucky when you're in office, whether it's on an up cycle or down cycle, or explain how much they can actually stop right there. >> you nailed it. you don't have to say anything else. you nailed it right there. 100% pure luck of the draw. look even these plans they're talking about, this may be a wish list, but we all know as soon as they get into washington, dc, it turns out that all those guys down the street from them guys and gals down the street from them, called congress, were the ones who actually make this decision. and one of the things, you know,

no matter who wins this election, what i do know is americans are going to be just as bitter and divided post-election as they are pre-election. and that means really trying to create any momentum for any kind of new legislative uh- whatever demand desire is going to be incredibly hard. so in so many ways, these are really just pipe dreams. there are ways of announcing your intentions. the real question is, is who's going to get washington, d.c. to pull together again so we can actually start fixing something? and of course, this broken governance system of ours. >> chris, i feel like i learned a lot from this conversation, but i'm not sure i feel any better. in fact, i'm pretty sure i don't. uh- chris thornberg, founding partner of beacon economics. thank you so much. >> my pleasure to be here. >> all right. coming up. these aren't your usual college dorms. a major makeover leads to swanky new digs for south bay students that could be a national

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hey, flex. considering there's a heatwave, it's kinda chilly in here. oh, that's because i'm pre-cooling the house with the ac before 4 pm. then i'll turn our thermostat to a comfortable 78 or higher that way i could stay cool later. ooh, what about me? you're never cool. oh.

a dorm building for students. take a look. the building has been fully converted and made ready for the semester in just nine months time. abc seven news south bay reporter lauren martinez got to see how this style of college life will look. >> what once was a historic downtown san jose hotel is now transformed into college dorm rooms. on thursday, san jose state university celebrated the opening of spartan village on the paseo. >> it is unlike anything that sdsu has ever built. the speed alone and the scope of its completion are unprecedented. >> in four months, sdsu converted the south tower of the signia by hilton, formerly the fairmont, into student housing. the 13 floor luxury hotel tower will house 700 undergraduate

students. >> it's really amazing. it's really spacious in there as well, and i honestly love it. >> the name of the suites are still on the doors. the desks, wardrobes and beds are new, but the couches and other furnishings remain from the insignia. >> the curtains for sure. they're like really nice blackout curtains. now i get a view of like the whole city. i can see the hills. it's just a lot more peaceful. >> and once you step inside the marble bathrooms, they scream. this was a hotel room. >> having my own bathroom. i have a shower with a glass door. i have a bathtub. i have this big vanity sink. >> spartan village on the paseo is the region's largest post-pandemic conversion from a commercial space to a residential. >> this is a national model, certainly a statewide model of what you can do in an extremely expensive, high cost area to ensure that you can have enough housing for your students. >> local and state officials are credited with getting the project funded and completed on

time. >> most of us have been to san francisco and seen the integration of universities in the san francisco urban center. this beats them all. >> the inaugural students move in friday. 124 affordable beds are for students in need. >> this is why we do what we do in higher education. this is fun. >> in san jose lauren martinez, abc seven news. >> musical weekend ahead at golden gate park, kicking off a new tradition. plus, the 40 niners are starting fresh this season with a focus on diversity. you'll see all of their first preseason games

cover east bay booksellers in oakland's rockridge neighborhood is a total loss after the fire last month. other bay area bookstores are working together to help. organizing a gofundme that's raised nearly $220,000. they're also planning a fundraiser in berkeley on sunday, featuring local authors. it will be another busy concert weekend in san francisco. the inaugural golden gate park concert series starts tomorrow. tomorrow's featured artists will be system of a down and deftones. several road closures inside golden gate park are expected. the 40 niners are getting ready for their preseason home opener on sunday. the team is starting out the season with a focus on diversity. featuring an all female public announcer team and performances highlighting different cultures. today on midday live, laura johnson, the senior director of game presentation and live events for the niners, joined us to talk about the programing shift. >> we know we have a diverse fan base. i mean, the faithful are represented here in the bay are,

are diverse and we are a global brand. so we always want to make sure that we're programing accordingly. as we see our fan base continue to grow throughout the area, of course practice is in full swing as the 40 niners get ready to start fresh. >> the game against the new orleans saints on sunday will be the first game played at levi's stadium since the nfc championships. hopefully we'll have a great season. thank you so much for joining us. world news tonight with david muir starts right now. and i'll see you back here for abc seven news at four at 4:00. t four at 4:00. >> linsey: tonight, hurricane ernesto takes aim at bermuda and is making an impact along the east coast. vanderpump vanderpump kamala

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