Valley Headlines

Election season is in full swing

Modesto Bee. Union members join Dolores Huerta and Lt. Gov. Kounalakis in Modesto for Gray rally.
Synopsis: Reporter John Holland writes that some 200 union members were on hand in Modesto on Saturday, among them the Grand Dame of the UFW, 94-year-old Dolores Huerta. Valley girl Eleni Kounalakis, who is running for governor next year, was also on hand. Union members from Modesto, Hilmar, Patterson and across the northern Valley came to the rally and were enthusiastic in describing their canvassing efforts.

Merced Sun Star. John Duarte vs. Adam Gray for Congress: Why experts are watching this election.
Synopsis: Gillian Brassil offers her usual approach, leading her story with the thoughts of Cook Political Report and Sabato’s Crystal Ball. She eventually quotes the candidates but doesn’t offer any fact-checking when Duarte says the solution to America’s most pressing problems is to “drill, baby, drill,” which ignores record-setting oil production first under Obama then again under Biden.

Roll Call. ‘When the mud hits the fan’: Rep. John Duarte talks water.
Synopsis: Saying he doesn’t really believe in climate change, Duarte explains some other goofy ideas on water and weather. Among them: a) Water shortages “are completely tied to policy choices we’ve made.” B) Drought “is not about climate change … and I can prove that today.” But he didn’t. c) More dredging of our rivers will help in flood protection. Every credible engineer in the state knows reinforced channels make flooding worse, not better. The best solution is floodplain restoration, which captures groundwater, helps habitat and keeps communities safe from flood water. Duarte is worried about in-river sediment, but not a bit about sediment collecting behind dams making them less effective and safe. There’s more.

Fresno Bee endorses Salas

Fresno Bee. Editorial: Valadao vs. Salas: Here’s how The Bee endorses for District 22.
Synopsis: This endorsement was inexplicably buried deep on The Bee’s Opinion Page. After having picked David Valadao over TJ Cox in 2020, the Bee reverts to form and recommends Rudy Salas to represent a district that is 75% Hispanic. It’s a rematch from 2022, when Valadao won by around 4%. Among the things The Bee did not like was Valadao’s vote to impeach Alejandro Mayorkas, to investigate Joe Biden for unspecified impeachable somethings, his support for climate poison, etc.

Bureaucratic battle delays Sites

Courthouse News. CA Sites Reservoir project hits troubled waters in permitting process.
Synopsis: Reporter Alan Riquelmy provides the most concise and understandable story on this issue. He reports that the “denial stems from a back-and-forth over documents between governmental agencies, including the State Water Resources Control Board, Sites Project Authority and US Army Corps of Engineers.” A federal permit is required when any water is discharged into “the waters of the United States,” which includes the Sacramento River. The Corps would not certify that the water coming out of Sites would be of sufficient quality – even though the water will have been removed from the river for storage in the reservoir.

Without farm bill, aid needed

Successful Farming. Lawmakers consider farm aid as Farm Bill remains stalled.
Synopsis: Reporter Ryan Hanrahan says that some elected officials – including Senate Ag Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow – are looking into providing direct-aid to farmers. It’s necessary mainly because Congress has failed for two years to pass a revised Farm Bill. “Farmers can’t wait for Congress to reach an agreement on a five-year farm bill. We cannot afford to wait past the end of the year,” said Sen. Jerry Moran of Kansas.
MAD Take: John Duarte has been in Congress for two years as the farm bill has languished. You’d think a man who sells himself as a “farmer” would have made passage of the Farm Bill his top priority. Instead, Duarte sponsored legislation – HR 4417, the EATS Act – that guaranteed CA’s 40 Democrats would never vote for the bill.

More news on the Tuolumne

Modesto Bee. Bulldozers rip up Tuolumne River banks east of Modesto; the goal is better habitat.
Synopsis: John Holland offers coverage of the Tuolumne Trust’s projects along the river. Eventually, he also mentions the 10x larger projects financed by TID, MID and SFPUC and overseen by River Partners. In 10 years, the districts will invest a combined $80 million in habitat improvements, floodplain restoration and riverbed reshaping near La Grange. This coverage follows a story done by Joe Cortez in the Turlock Journal on Monday.
MAD Take: in this very long story, John offers a broad overview of the plight of salmon and the role played by those trying to restore the Tuolumne – a minor player for salmon compared to the Sacramento. John’s approach is deeply rooted in the orthodoxy of the 1990s, when environmentalists blamed the Tracy pumps as the biggest danger to salmon. He offers one sentence that bass also “prey on salmon,” but puts more blame on pollution, warming water and the pumps. He makes no mention of the fact that bass are thriving as other fish falter; bass make up 97% of the Delta’s entire biomass.

Prop 36: Two valid arguments

Cal Matters. CA needs Prop 36 to help bring accountability to the fentanyl crisis.
Synopsis: Tom Wolf, a drug-recovery specialist former addict, says Prop 47 was an abject failure resulting in an increase of 28% in retail theft and a 55% re-offend rate for those pushed into drug-diversion programs. At the same time, fentanyl became the drug of choice for addicts resulting in 107,000 overdoses and 11,000 OD deaths in 2 years. “Fifteen people I once knew are now dead from drug overdose. Yet, when I walk the streets of SF today, I still recognize drug dealers I knew 6 years ago.” Prop 36 will undo that damage while offering real off-ramps. “Accountability and compassion together saved my life. We can have both.”

Cal Matters. There are prison rehab success stories across CA; Prop 36 puts future ones at risk.
Synopsis: Felix Valdez, a reformed addict now working for Caltrans, writes about the program that saved his life after 13 years in prison – Project Impact. It was funded by Prop 47 and would be eliminated under Prop 36. He says programs like Project Impact have saved CA over $1 billion since Prop 47 was approved. If it passes, Prop 36 will result in mass incarceration, hopelessness and more crime. “Instead of shuttering these programs and putting their funding at risk through Prop 36, the state ought to be doing everything it can to assist people on their journeys to remake their lives.”
MAD Take: Two compelling statements. Tough choice.

Walters scoffs at any gas plan

Cal Matters. Newsom can’t prove price gouging at the pump but wants new refinery law.
Synopsis: Dan Walters, so often a friend of refineries, points to the study done by Severin Borenstein – president of the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business – that found a 43-cent “mystery surcharge” for gasoline that drivers outside of California don’t pay. But he ignores that data and says the governor’s special session on bringing down gas prices is a publicity stunt. At least Dan points out that Republicans are complicit in higher prices and that their solution – eliminating gas taxes – will be ruinous for CA roads. Eventually, Dan swerves off course and starts grumbling about test scores and water.

Lots of threats at schools

GV Wire. Fresno, Madera schools face shooting threats as social media trend sparks lockdowns.
Synopsis: A wave of social media posts threatening shootings nationwide has manifested in Madera and Fresno. Snapchat, TikTok and Instagram are the preferred websites for posting these (so far) empty threats. Eventually, authorities fear someone will be seriously hurt due to the threats.
MAD Note: There were similar threats posted concerning Manteca and Los Banos schools over the past few days, along with Stockton, Sacramento and Lodi. A few kids are being arrested.

Judge halts water board actions

Cal Matters. Kings County growers celebrate ‘monumental win’ in water fight with state.
Synopsis: Rachel Becker writes that Kings County Superior Court Judge Kathy Ciuffini ruled against the water board for trying to curtail groundwater pumping in the Tulare basin. She said the board has gone too far in invoking “underground regulations” in trying to fulfill the requirements of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act. The water board says it will appeal. The ruling stops the board from requiring fees of $300 per well and $20 per every acre foot of water pumped. The Kings County growers had been the first to be fined under SGMA.  Water district official Dusty Ference called it a monumental win.

Maven / DWR. Improving the lives of Californians: DWR marks 10 years of SGMA.
Synopsis: A self-congratulatory press release talking about SGMA even as a county judge knocked the pegs out from under the state’s first major enforcement test.

When fashion meets a horse

Ag Daily. Supermodel Bella Hadid brings cutting horses to NY Fashion Week.
Synopsis: Bella Hadid and pro rider Adan Banuelos did a live, NYC demo on horseback to promote their brands, Kemo Sabe and Teton Ridge. Promoters turned Gansevoort Street into a makeshift arena, where Banuelos and Hadid put their mounts through their paces. Hadid competes in jumping and dressage, frequently being the best-dressed competitor. If you like the horsemanship seen on Yellowstone, you’ll like the video.