MAYBE
Mojave Cottonthorn (Tetradymia stenolepis) Native, spiny, perennial, deciduous shrub that grows in Desert woodland, Creosote-bush or Saltbush scrub plant community at elevation 600--1700 m. Stems are "unevenly tomentose, becoming +- glabrous in stripes below spines. Leaf: main leaves 2--3 cm, tomentose or becoming glabrous, forming +- straight spines. Clustered leaves are 10--30 mm, +- oblanceolate, tomentose or silvery-hairy."
Jepson eFlora https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=5298
Jepson Key to Tetradymia: https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_keys.php?key=629
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MAYBE
Longspine Horsebrush (Tetradymia axillaris var. longispina) A.k.a. Cottonthorn or Horsebrush. Native, perennial, deciduous, spiny shrub that grows in desert scrub habitat. Stems are white-evenly tomentose. Leaves are linear to oblanceolate, persisting as stiff spines. Pale yellow flower heads grow in the axles of the spines. Fruits are densely long-white-hairy.
Jepson eFlora https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=8478
Baja California Plant Field Guide, Jon P. Rebman, Norman C. Roberts, 3rd. ed, 2012, pp.
California Desert Wildflowers, Philip A. Munz, 1975, p.
Shrubs and Trees of the Southern California Deserts. Jim W. Dole and Betty B. Rose, Foot-loose Press, 1996, p.
Cacti, Agaves, and Yuccas of California and Nevada. Text and photos by Stephen Ingram. Cachuma Press, 2008. pp.
Plants of Southern California: Regional Floras http://tchester.org/plants/floras/#abdsp (a comprehensive website)
Native and Introduced Plants of Southern California by Tom Chester http://tchester.org/plants/index.html