Newsletter: In a long hot week, Trump is indicted again while Angelenos carry on the search for barely affordable housing

Good morning. I’m Maret Orliss, assistant op-ed editor, filling in for Paul Thornton. It is Saturday, Aug. 5. Let’s look back at the week in Opinion.

What’s that? Another indictment issued against former President Trump?

You’d have to live under a rock to miss the Department of Justice’s announcement Tuesday that Trump was being indicted on four felony counts connected to his lies about the 2020 election and the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, including conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, conspiracy against rights and obstruction of or attempting to obstruct an official proceeding.

Our senior legal affairs columnist, Harry Litman, brought his experience as a former DOJ prosecutor to his expert analysis of the “insurmountable odds” he thinks Trump faces in this case.

The editorial board weighed in on the significance of the issues behind this indictment, making the point that, “Of all Trump’s actual and alleged misdeeds, trying to overturn an election stands out as uniquely damaging to democracy — and uniquely disqualifying.”

And columnist Jackie Calmes observes that while the former president’s election lies may have brought about this indictment, his constant mendacity has worked in his favor when it comes to keeping his supporters loyal.

In local news, the struggle to find affordable housing in Los Angeles was brought to light in a personal essay by sisters Jennifer and Paula Nazario, who describe their challenges buying a home after their family of four lived in a 450-square-foot studio apartment for 25 years. Even programs for lower-income prospective buyers like them couldn’t help.

We’re interested in hearing about your own experiences navigating Southern California housing — good, bad and in between. Send us a note.

More from this week in opinion

From our columnists

• Robin Abcarian: Need a respite from Trump, DeSantis, the Bidens and global warming? Check out “Suits”
• LZ Granderson: Why “school choice” was doomed when it became a cover for segregation
• Jean Guerrero: Jose Cervantes left Delaware to see his dying father in Mexico. What happened changed his family’s fate

From the Op-Ed desk

• Long COVID is debilitating to me and 65 million other people. Where is the urgency to treat it?
• Florida’s sea temperature hit 101. What does that mean for the world’s oceans?
• “Oppenheimer” only makes it harder to control nuclear weapons

From the Editorial Board

• Heat waves are disasters. Why don’t they get federal disaster relief?
• Are L.A. leaders trying to sabotage homeless housing in Venice?
• Affirmative action ruling demands earlier intervention for equal college access

Letters to the Editor

• Trump’s indictment over Jan. 6 will determine the fate of our democracy
• How to keep the San Gabriel Mountains free of trash
• Senators’ health issues are a concern, but Biden and Trump aren’t slowing down