Valley Headlines

Newsom to Texas: Back off or else

Merced Sun Star. Gavin Newsom links CA redistricting to Texas: State ‘will not sit by idly.’
Synopsis: California’s governor doesn’t appear to be backing away from his threat to call for a special election to redraw California’s Republican Congressional contingent out of existence. If Texas gives up its plan to get rid of all the Democratic districts, Newsom said he is willing to stand down. Unfortunately, Newsom’s message appears to be falling on deaf ears. The Texas governor is threatening to arrest Democrats unless they allow him to get a legislative quorum and pass a bill to kill 5 Democrat-held congressional districts. “We’re not going to roll over and we’re going to fight fire with fire,” said Newsom while standing next to state AG Rob Bonta. They were celebrating the filing of 28 lawsuits against the Trump administration so far this year. CA’s other Dems are lining up in support. “I think our country is in a moral crisis, and that’s not a ‘turn the other cheek’ moment,” said Assemblymember Isaac Bryan. Said Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas says “our voters will be empowered to push back” on Texas.

This isn’t good government

Fresno Bee. CA Democrats can make a bad redistricting situation even worse.
Synopsis: Columnist Tad Weber writes, “Bad government does not lead to good government.” Basically, weaponizing congressional district maps is bad government. Districts are supposed to be redrawn every 10 years, but Trump is insisting they be redrawn in Texas to eliminate Democrat-held districts and give him a majority in the next Congress. He fears that if Democrats take control of the House, he might have to compromise. Tad prefers Kevin Kiley’s idea to ban any redrawing of district congressional map in any state before the next census. Some might believe Kiley is trying to protect his own seat, but it might work. Regardless, “Good government can only be achieved when the people’s representatives do the right thing.”

Stockton plans Maritime Museum

Stocktonia. ‘Every kid is going to visit’: Stockton Maritime Museum envisions downtown home.
Synopsis: The USS Lucid, a retired Navy minesweeper, has been fully restored and soon will be on display in downtown Stockton. It will be anchored adjacent to a 5,000 square-foot museum with space for large gatherings and a reconstitution of the Colberg Boat Works -- where tugs, patrol craft, barges etc. were built for 100 years. It will all be near Weber Point with bars, restaurants and shops expected to follow. Restoration of the Lucid required 12 years and required federal money and state regulatory forbearance.

Dreamers will lose insurance

Cal Matters. 2,300 CA Dreamers are about to lose their healthcare coverage.
Synopsis: Less than a year after Dreamers were invited to sign up for Covered California health insurance, the undocumented immigrants who arrived in the US as children are about to lose it. Most have insurance through employers or institutions, but about 2,300 buy coverage through Covered California. The Trump administration decided to end that Biden-era program, saying the “dreamers” – whose immigration status remains protected -- must find coverage elsewhere by Aug. 31. The executive director of Covered California called the action “deeply unfair,” noting the Dreamers pay into the program. Federal authorities said the move would lower costs, but people who deal with facts say the opposite is true. By law, Dreamers are under age 36 -- the age group that pays into insurance pools while taking the least. Meanwhile, monthly Covered CA premiums will rise $101 next year.

How many food trucks?

Modesto Bee. Food truck courts are popping up all over the Central Valley; are there limits?
Synopsis: Merced and Ceres have each approved three applications for food-truck plazas (aka, grub hubs). In Merced, that brings the total to six. Ceres’ first plaza was approved last April, but two more were approved this summer. The food-truck explosion began in 2019 in Modesto. Ceres planning commissioner Gary Condit loves the trucks but is wondering how many is enough. “You have to balance traditional mom-and-pop restaurants with this new trend,” he said. Promoters say the plazas provide unique locations for families to gather and choose from a wide variety of foods. Others say trucks provide an entrepreneurial opportunity for “disadvantaged communities.”

Will city mask or unmask?

Modesto Bee. Modestans want action on controversial mask ordinance; what will it take?
Synopsis: Reporters Trevor Morgan and Kathleen Quinn look at the fallout from the No Kings and Ice Out protests in June. While the larger No Kings protest was peaceful at Graceada Park, a few hours earlier Modesto police made six arrests at the Ice Out event in downtown – five for violating the city’s rules against wearing masks to hide identity. Since then, people have been showing up at city council meetings demanding changes to those rules. The ACLU and First Amendment Coalition both demanded the regulation be rescinded. Councilmember Chris Ricci, who spoke at No Kings, wants the Community Police Review Board to make a recommendation before the council acts. At least 3 other councilmembers agree. If that happens, the city manager would review the recommendation then bring it to the council. Bottom line: The wheels of government grind slowly.
MAD Take: Not to sound contrarian, but many jurisdictions – including the state of California – are preparing to tell law enforcement that they can no longer mask their identity. Seems everyone should get on the same page – no masks, or masks for everyone.

Tariffs better with wine?

Cal Matters. CA wine industry torn on Trump tariffs. 
Synopsis: Do tariffs help or hurt the wine industry? Depends on whom you ask. Many winemakers, restaurateurs and others are asking Trump to exclude tariffs on European wine and wine-making supplies such as cork and oak barrels. Others say European winemakers are subsidized by their government and anything that makes their wines more expensive than US wines is good. One Delta grower pointed out that many of the major labels had been buying concentrate from South Africa and Australia, leaving CA grapes on the vines. But most US wine is sold through wholesalers who also carry European labels; with the drop in sales for all wine, those wholesalers are going out of business. Trump recently announced a deal with the EU, but that deal didn’t include wine.

Farms.com. Mexico tariffs delayed, higher duties set on Brazil and Canada.
Synopsis: Higher Trump Tariffs hit US allies Canada, Brazil, India and Taiwan among others on Friday. Canada now has 50% tariffs, Brazil 25% and India 20%. Oh, and 39% for Switzerland. But Trump backed off Mexico, giving the nation an extension.

Successful Farming. Brazil chooses local relief over retaliation for US tariffs.
Synopsis: The Trump administration made so many tariff exceptions on Brazilian goods that the government decided not to invoke retaliatory tariffs on US goods. Instead, it is offering the impacted industries direct aid and continuing to negotiate. Brazil is also said to be considering suspension of royalty payments on pharma patents, media copyrights and other intellectual property.
MAD Take: “Direct aid” to industries? Isn’t that another way of saying “subsidy,” which is what Americans say they hate in other countries? Looks like we’re forcing Brazil to adopt them.

Merced PD finds zoo sign

Merced Focus. Merced PD recovers Applegate Zoo sign following community tip. 
Synopsis: With a flair for the dramatic, Merced PD detectives came to the city council meeting Monday night with a “gift” – the recovered Applegate Zoo sign that had been stolen earlier this year. Police recovered the sign about a week ago, but kept it secret until Monday. The sign was found in a vacant residence following a tip. Members of the city council had offered a $500 reward, but no one claimed it. A $4,000 replacement sign has already been installed, but the council believes it can find a safe place for the original. No arrests were made.

Preparing for deportation

Fresno Bee. Fearing ICE raids, Fresno families prepare for a loved one being detained. 
Synopsis: As ICE raids continue in CA, many families are being proactive by making plans for the care of their citizen-children, property and bank accounts. In many cases, one spouse is a citizen. “My husband and older kids have my lawyer’s phone number in their phones, so they know who to call,” said Galvia Juarez, who is in the midst of the immigration process. She has four kids, from ages 1 to 17. And she wants them to remain in the nation of their birth. She’s doing this because, despite her efforts to become a citizen, “I don’t feel safe or at peace to live my normal life.” The Valley Watch Rapid Response Network has lawyers standing by to respond to detentions. One attorney, who is a citizen, said she became fearful when a veteran and US citizen was detained and held for three days in Camarillo without access to legal advice. The Mexican consulate is also working with immigrants.

Fresno Bee. Some Californians carry passports in fear of ICE: ‘We’re being racially profiled.’
Synopsis: Some legal residents are carrying their passports as the simplest way to prove citizenship. Others carry copies out of distrust of federal agents. Attorneys also recommend carrying copies, not the originals, out of fear of theft. “This is the first time I renewed my passport not for travel but for proof of citizenship,” said Paul Liu. He says an uncle was “disappeared” by communists in China and held in prison for 30 years. One first-generation American carries his passport but fears the nation is moving toward establishment of internment camps similar to those used in World War II. Many interviewed for this story declined to be identified out of fear.

Supervisor: No ‘woke bulls—t’

Fresnoland. Fresno County supervisor takes aim at Pride Month and ‘other woke bullshit’ Tuesday.
Synopsis: Fiery Fresno supervisor Garry Bredefeld says he has the votes to change the way Fresno County recognizes and participates in holidays. This stems from Bredefeld’s anger over seeing a display celebrating Pride Month in a public library. He called that “political ideology,” and has vowed to get it removed. A year ago, supervisor Steve Brandau created a committee to review all public library books pertaining to gender issues. The state banned such committees, so his plan died. Now Bredefeld has stepped in to demand “the library be free of having political ideologies and gender ideologies shoved down the throats” of visitors. The vote might come down to supervisor Nathan Magsig, who won’t say how he’ll vote.

Turlock shelter reopened Friday

CBS13. Turlock’s We Care shelter back open, but future remains uncertain.
Synopsis: We Care re-opened the doors of its 49-bed men’s shelter on Friday after a month’s closure. The city council voted 3-2 not make a token $1 donation that would have secured a state grant for $267,000, enough to operate the shelter for most of the year. The Stanislaus Community Foundation, Untied Way and Kaiser Foundation contributed $100,000 to reopen the shelter.

Valley invaded by rodents

Fox26. Rodent invasion threatens Central Valley orchards, causing millions in damage for farmers.
Synopsis: A plague of squirrels, rats and gophers are overrunning nut farms across the South Valley, and it’s getting worse every year. Fresno County Farm Bureau CEO Ryan Jacobsen said this is the worst year he’s ever seen. “They’re doing permanent damage to trees. They’re going after irrigation systems” and even wiring on tractors and cultivators. He said damage ranges from $110 million to $300 million. Farmers are outgunned, relying on traps and chemicals.
MAD Take: Has anyone tried playing a flute?