NASHVILLE, Tenn. — American farmers, small business owners and wildfire survivors are among those who will suffer if Congress cannot agree on a new spending bill after President-elect Donald Trump abruptly rejected a bipartisan plan that included more than $100 billion in disaster aid. A mayor in Hawaii is watching...
Closures, Social Security Checks, Furloughs: What a Government Shutdown Might Mean
WASHINGTON – Congress has until midnight Friday to come up with a way to fund the government or federal agencies will shut down, meaning hundreds of thousands of federal employees could be sent home — or stay on the job without pay — just ahead of the holidays. Republicans abandoned...
Tesla Recalling Almost 700,000 Vehicles Due to Tire Pressure Monitoring System Issue
Tesla is recalling almost 700,000 vehicles because of an issue with the warning light on the tire pressure monitoring system. According to a letter Thursday from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the recall includes certain 2024 Cybertruck, 2017-2025 Model 3, and 2020-2025 Model Y vehicles. The issue is that...
Trump Wants Debt Ceiling in the Budget Deal. If Not, He Says Let the Government Shutdown.
WASHINGTON — Hours before the start of a federal government shutdown, President-elect Donald Trump doubled-down Friday on his insistence that a debt ceiling increase be included in any deal — and if not, let the closures “start now.” Trump, who is not yet even sworn into the White House, issued...
Visalia Police Arrest 8, Seize Guns and Drugs
Eight people were arrested and four firearms were seized in a citywide operation Thursday morning, the Visalia Police Department said in a statement. The targeted enforcement involved compliance checks at 29 locations, spearheaded by the department's Violent Crimes, Special Enforcement, Property Crimes, Narcotics, and Youth Services units. Among those arrested,...
Starbucks Workers Plan Strikes That Could Spread to Hundreds of US Stores by Christmas Eve
Workers at Starbucks stores plan to go on a five-day strike starting Friday to protest lack of progress in contract negotiations with the company. The strikes by baristas and other workers were scheduled to take place in Los Angeles, Chicago and Seattle and could spread to hundreds of stores across...
Did You Know Fresno County Doesn’t Have a Tax Assessor?
In this festive season, as I gather with friends and acquaintances, discussion inevitably centers on what I do not do as Assessor, which is the one thing almost everybody thinks I do — I do not collect taxes! The person responsible for collecting taxes has a very intuitive title: the...
Next Phase of Friant-Kern Canal Repairs Begins With Intense Scrutiny of Study Contract
Negotiations focusing on how Friant Water Authority will repay the Bureau of Reclamation for a $22.2 million study mapping out how to fix the northern and southern portions of the sinking Friant-Kern Canal began Wednesday in Fresno. "We anticipate these talks should go smoothly, and we look forward to the...
Visalia Police Arrest Suspect in the Shooting Death of 15-Year-Old
Detectives arrested Jorge Aroz, 20, in Visalia on Thursday morning for his alleged role in the 2023 murder of Isaak Sedillo, the Visalia Police Department said in a statement. Aroz was booked and charged with conspiracy and murder, according to authorities. The Homicide On March 13, 2023, Visalia police responded...
House Rejects Trump-Backed Plan on Government Shutdown, Leaving Next Steps Uncertain
WASHINGTON — The House rejected President-elect Donald Trump's new plan Thursday to fund federal operations and suspend the debt ceiling a day before a government shutdown, as Democrats refused to accommodate his sudden demands and the quick fix cobbled together by Republican leaders. In a hastily convened evening vote punctuated...