With harvest season a few weeks away, nut growers in the Central Valley are already weary of new higher tariffs on some of their products, such as pistachios. And they worry that if the international market dries up, it could lead to a supply glut and falling prices. In addition, China...
Valadao Among GOP Lawmakers Critical of Trump's Putin Summit
WASHINGTON (AP) — "Bizarre." ''Shameful." ''Disgraceful." That's the swift and sweeping condemnation directed at President Donald Trump on Monday after he sided with Russian President Vladimir Putin during a stunning appearance in Helsinki — and that's just from the Republicans. Lawmakers in both major parties and former intelligence officials appeared...
U.S. Following Familiar Path to War with Iran
The Cato Institute's Christopher Preble sees troubling similarities between warnings about threats posed to America's interests by Iran and the build-up leading to the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Writing for The National Interest, Preble points to the efforts by top U.S. officials to make the case for war while relying on information and...
Senate Intelligence Panel Refutes Nunes' Findings on Russia
WASHINGTON — A bipartisan Senate committee said Tuesday that U.S. intelligence agencies' assessment of Russian activities during the 2016 presidential election was based on "sound" analysis not swayed by politics, the Associated Press reported. The January 2017 intelligence assessment said Russian activities in the run-up to the presidential election represented...
Hillary, Russians & Amanda Renteria. What a Senator Wanted to Know.
Why did Amanda Renteria’s name come up in a recent congressional hearing about the Clinton email scandal? Some people point to a Russian document of highly questionable reliability. The document alleges that Renteria participated in a meeting that could be considered unethical. But despite long-held doubts by the FBI about the...
Right and Left Both Attack Merit-Based Society: Zakaria
Before merit-based systems became a dominant force in the way most modern societies are organized, individual advancement was determined largely by one's connection to those in power. In that era, Washington Post columnist Fareed Zakaria says, "people moved up in the world through a clubby, informal system that privileged wealth,...
Et Tu, George Will? A Debate on Abandoning the GOP
For more than four decades, George Will represented the voice of conservative thought, through his Washington Post column and television appearances. But, the tenure of Donald Trump in the White House may have broken the Pulitzer Prize winning columnist. In his recent Post piece, Will said maybe a Blue Wave...
Trump Ally on Girl With Down Syndrome: 'Wah Wah'
WASHINGTON — A former campaign manager for Donald Trump has created a stir by dismissing a story about a girl with Down syndrome with a sarcastic "Wah wah." Corey Lewandowski appeared Tuesday on Fox News Channel to discuss President Trump's hard-line immigration policy, which has led to the practice of...
Herman Cain on Blue Wave, #MeToo, National Anthem & Trump
Herman Cain has a lot to say. GV Wire caught up with the businessman, talk-show host and former presidential candidate during a recent Fresno visit. Cain, a staunch conservative, doesn’t believe a Blue Wave is coming in the November elections. Noting that Democrats were in power during the Obama administration,...
Primary Gives Trump and Newsom Something They Agree On
It's doubtful that President Donald Trump and California lieutenant governor and top gubernatorial vote-getter Gavin Newsom agree on anything. But as CALmatter's Dan Walters writes in his June 7 column, both men got their wish in Tuesday's election: John Cox advanced to the November gubernatorial runoff. Walters offers his analysis that...