Valley Solutions

Merced’s languid lion

Merced Sun Star. Mountain lion captured in north Merced. 
Synopsis: The mountain lion spotted on Ring cameras roaming a neighborhood south of El Capitan High and north of Merced College last week had made itself comfortable in a tree near Cottonwood Creek. That’s where a resident saw the big cat on Friday afternoon. The Dept of Fish & Wildlife responded, tranquilized the lion and shipped him back to the mountains in hope he’ll stay there.

Westside Connect. Wildlife officials confirm single lion sighting in Gustine; monitoring continues.
Synopsis: A week after a home video system showed a mountain lion walking across a driveway in a Gustine neighborhood, state officials say that has been the only sighting of the lion. So far. That hasn’t stopped social media from lighting up with other reports.

61,000 drivers are parked

Cal Matters. Immigrant truck drivers were supposed to get their licenses back; why DMV is stalling. 
Synopsis: An estimated 61,000 immigrant truck drivers have lost or soon will lose their commercial truckers licenses. They’re asking why CA hasn’t acted on their behalf to renew the licenses. Many of those seeking renewals are also asylum seekers or are covered by DACA and fear deportation. The Trump Dept of Transportation claimed the group has more accidents than native-born drivers, though it has offered no data to support the claim.
MAD Take: Every June and July “Help-Wanted” signs start popping up all over the Valley as trucking companies look for drivers. Who will haul the milk, melons and tomatoes to market? Those products can’t wait for bureaucracy to act.

To endorse, or not to …

Politico. CA Playbook: Trump backs Hilton.
Synopsis: Trump says Steve Hilton is a “truly fine man” who can rescue California from “hell” and is his pick for governor. The endorsement might doom Hilton’s candidacy. The best chance for Republicans – who make up about 25% of CA voters -- was to have two candidates finish atop the top-two “jungle primary,” eliminating any Democrats from the November ballot. If the state’s Republicans follow their leader’s suggestion, Chad Bianco will be eliminated and a Democrat will be on the November ballot. Since there are twice as many registered Democrats in CA as there are Republicans, well, the implications are obvious.

Sacramento Bee. Why the Sacramento Bee won’t be endorsing veteran Democrat Doris Matsui.
Synopsis: Editorial page editor Marcos Breton says The Bee has a strict rule requiring candidates to appear before the editorial board before endorsements are made. The Bee offered two opportunities to meet with Matsui – both with challenger Mia Vang – but Matsui declined. The Bee even suggested a “virtual interview” similar to those conducted with 50 other candidates, also with Vang. Agan, Matsui declined. She became “the only frontline Democrat who has declined to meet with us.”

Actually, 61 are running

Turlock Journal. The choice for next CA Governor is down to 61 people. 
Synopsis: Columnist Mike Lynch, a longtime political consultant, points out that there are 61 gubernatorial candidates on California’s ballot. But we each have only 1 vote in the June 2 primary. Among those candidates are 24 Democrats, 12 Republicans, 23 No-Partiers, 1 Libertarian and 1 Peace candidate. Lynch offers this advice: Mail in your ballot at least 7 days before election day, or risk it not being counted. Better yet, drop it off at a vote box.

Tough questions for Tom

Turlock Journal. Rep. McClintock talks gas prices, war in Iran, tariffs, affordability. 
Synopsis: Reporters Joe Cortez and Kristina Hacker sit down with 18-year Congressman Tom McClintock, whose Fifth Congressional District has gotten even redder under reapportionment. First question: “Why did I pay $5.50 per gallon at the gas station?” McClintock pointed to the war with Iran, which he expects to be finished shortly. Even that, he says, won’t bring down gas prices in CA. He says we’re down to 9 refineries and 2 of those are closing. As for Iran, McClintock believes they were building a bomb and had to be attacked. If you’re hurting now economically, just wait. In fact, he’s predicting a landslide for Republicans in 2028. Bottom line: All bad things are the fault of Democrats; all good things accrue to the greater glory of Donald Trump.

Less help for forests, farms

Morning Ag Clips. Trump budget would cut USDA funding by $4.9 billion. 
Synopsis: The Trump administration has proposed cutting discretionary funding for the US Department of Agriculture by 20%. According to ag reporter Chris Clayton, the 92-page proposal “focuses as much on what the Trump administration opposes rather than what the administration supports.” The document uses the word “rural” 12 times but bashes “woke” programs 34 times. It uses the term “New Green scam” 21 times and decries DEI programs 26 times and bashes transgender farmers 16 times. Trump has once again targeted the “Food for Peace” and “Food for Education” programs for complete elimination. Both programs make direct payments to farmers. Last year, Trump tried to cut $7 billion from the USDA’s budget, but Congress rejected that plan and funded the department at the same levels it had funded the USDA under the Biden administration.
MAD Take: If Congress is acting as a bulwark against Trump spending cuts in rural America, it would seem important to have someone willing to stand up to Trump representing you in Congress. Not someone whom Trump has endorsed.

Successful Farming. Trump budget would cut USDA funding by $4.9 billion. 
Synopsis: Another story that juxtaposes Trump’s request for $1,500,000,000,000 to fight his wars with his administration’s desire to cut $4,900,000,000 from support for farming in America.

SF Chronicle. These CA research stations prepare for fire risk; Trump is shutting them down. 
Synopsis: The Trump is proposing the closure of six US Forest Service research stations in California. The cuts are part of a major national reorganization that would leave only two research stations in the state. Experts say such closures would leave the state ill-equipped to deal with wildfire and drought threats. Scientists say the research stations have been instrumental in showing how forests change and adapt to a changing climate and how they recover after wildfire. The closures would be in Fresno, Chico, Fort Bragg, Mount Shasta, Anderson and Hat Creek. They’re among 57 research facilities being shuttered across 31 states, leaving only 20 operational.

Morning Ag Clips. USDA extends pause on funding projects for biodigesters and CEA.
Synopsis: The Dept of Ag said it is extending its “pause” on awarding loans or loan guarantees to build methane digesters through Dec. 31, 2026. The department says 28% of those who have already borrowed money to build the digesters are in arrears.

Next crop of pistachio leaders

CA Ag Net. American Pistachio Growers announces 2026-27 LeadOn class.
Synopsis: American Pistachio Growers listed members of its 16^th annual leadership cohort. Madera’s Jeff Anderson of Meridian Growers chairs the selection committee. Among those selected are DJ Ellsworth of Meridian Growers, Madeline Bollengier of Naraghi Farms in Escalon, Matthew Mattos of Terra West Group in Modesto, Adam Collins of Peacock Nut Co. in Hughson, Henry Woolf of Mike Woolf Farming in Firebaugh, and Joseph Brewer of G3 Enterprises in Modesto.

MID won’t act; state must

Valley Citizen. Byrd Investigation: Why the state must step in. 
Synopsis: Publisher Eric Caine writes that after nine months of inquiry and investigation, Modesto Irrigation District has proved itself unable or unwilling to get to the bottom of how director Larry Byrd watered more than 100 acres of nut trees. Technical proof, eye-witness accounts and clear indications refute his explanation of where the water came from. Yet, the district board has been unable to proceed because either Byrd voted on his own behalf or another reluctant board member refused to act. This constitutes the board’s failure to protect the district’s water and a “gross disservice to MID ratepayers.”

No transparency, no democracy

Cal Matters. CA shouldn’t price the public out of public records; democracy is at stake. 
Synopsis: David Snyder, head of the First Amendment Coalition, writes about the wrong-headed, corruption-shielding and likely unconstitutional legislation written by Bianca Pacheco of Downey that would allow public agencies to impose fees on those requesting information from the government. The law would make it far too expensive for common folks to request official data and documents. That will make it impossible to keep tabs on what officials are doing. The law would allow agencies to charge hourly fees for the gathering and reviewing data, materials, documents and video. The agencies themselves would set the limits and determine the costs to be charged. It gets worse: While the law would exempt “journalists” from charges, it allows the agency to determine who is a journalist and who is not – meaning bloggers and website owners would have to pay. With traditional media fading into oblivion, it is citizen-journalists who most frequently expose the nefarious deeds of officials.

Lamenting the cost to comply

Merced Focus. Merced College claims The Focus has cost them thousands for asking questions. 
Synopsis: Merced College says it has spent $20,000 satisfying public records requests from The Merced Focus and its partner KVPR over how the college handled complaints against a dean. Over 18 months, the Focus and KVPR submitted multiple requests for data and information. Those stories showed that the school spent $26,000 investigating Dean John Albano after complaints from faculty and staff in 2024. Complaining about the cost of compliance, said Jim Boren, director of the Institute for Media and Public Trust at Fresno State, is a common “ploy to divert attention away from the public record.”
MAD Take: The school spent $46,000 investigating a specific dean’s activities. That says more about the school’s internal controls than it says about those digging into misconduct. Money well spent.

8 teams vie for baseball title

Modesto Bee. Modesto tournament gets professional twist in 55^th year. 
Synopsis: The 55^th Dick Windemuth Easter Tournament starts today at John Thurman Field. The four-day baseball festival has eight teams with games starting at 8:45 a.m. through 4:15 p.m. Playing on a professional field changes strategy for high school coaches. The outfield and foul territory are larger than high school fields. Competing this year are Beyer, Modesto, Denair, Ceres, Le Grand, Delhi, Ripon Christian and Davis.
MAD Note: Back in 2017, The Bee sent reporter Joe Cortez out to the tourney to ask the players, “Who was Dick Windemuth.” The resulting video remains entertaining, even if it provides a reminder that all fame is fleeting. One kid was close, guessing the legendary coach was connected to The Bee. True enough. His daughter, Susan, was a newsroom exec for years, frequently laying out award-winning front pages.

Party time … after class

Modesto Bee. Where are CA’s top party schools?
Synopsis: Not exactly the list that every school wants to be on, but every aspiring student wants to know. As usual, UC Santa Barbara is No. 1 – the beach, the bars, Isla Vista. Online survey provider Niche quotes students saying their mantra is “work hard, play hard.” Others say UCSB’s party-school reputation just “won’t go away. There are parties, but it’s not the entire school.” The rest of the top 5: USC, San Diego State, UCLA, Chico State. At No. 10, BTW, was the Musicians Institute in Hollywood.