12:30 P.M., Tuesday, April 7, Update: Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly resigned Tuesday, according to two officials, just hours after he had publicly apologized for a profanity-laced upbraiding of the officer he fired as captain of the coronavirus-stricken USS Theodore Roosevelt, the Associated Press reported. The officials spoke on the...
Price Gouging Ordinance on Tap for Emergency Fresno Council Meeting Today
The Fresno City Council has a tentative emergency meeting today at 1:30 p.m. to discuss the COVID-19 pandemic. According to a news release from Council President Miguel Arias, the council will discuss declaring a state of emergency and an anti-price gouging ordiance. As of time of publication, no agenda has...
Cox and Valadao Will Do It All Over Again in November
Former Congressman David Valadao was the top vote-getter in Tuesday's 21st District primary and again will go toe-to-toe against Democrat Rep. TJ Cox in the November run-off. With 100% of precincts reporting at least partial vote counts as of 9:07 a.m. Wednesday, Valadao had captured 53.1% of the electorate while...
Valadao Makes Strong Showing for Cox Rematch; Nunes Will Face Arballo.
As expected, Rep. TJ Cox, D-Fresno, appears headed for a rematch with Republican David Valadao, the former congressman he upset in a tight 2018 contest. In returns from Tuesday night, Valadao was leading Cox in the 21st Congressional District race, 56% to 34%. Nearly 36% of precincts had reported. The...
Do Fresno Bee Endorsements Matter? Valadao, Cox Will Find Out.
Newspapers all over the country no longer endorse or, as The Fresno Bee says, "recommend" candidates in political contests. The Arizona Republic became the latest last week, writing that its readers "don’t want their daily newspaper or news website telling them which candidates and which party should get their votes." That...
Lucky Number? Why There's a Proposition 13 Back on the Ballot.
Just the mention of "Prop. 13" recalls the victorious image of Howard Jarvis celebrating the landmark property tax reform law that voters passed in 1978. Some have called it the "third rail" of California politics. Listen to this article: So, why is it back on the March 3 ballot? To...
Nunes, Costa Have Big Fundraising Edges. Cox vs. Valadao Is Tight.
Incumbents in two of the three congressional races in the central San Joaquin Valley have substantial fundraising advantages. The third race, meanwhile, is a virtual tie. Congressional campaign fundraising figures are in for 2019 from the Federal Election Commission. Jim Costa (D-Fresno) and Devin Nunes (R-Tulare) are up big in...
Dyer Has Big Edge on Janz in Fundraising, Media Spending
Jerry Dyer raised more money on Jan. 21 for his mayoral campaign than opponent Andrew Janz did for the first 18 days of the month. That is one takeaway from the latest round of financial disclosures for citywide races. Listen to this article: For the first 18 days of the...
We're Going to Get a Public Medical School, Costa Vows
Congressman Jim Costa says there finally is enough political will and money to open a long-needed publicly owned medical school in the San Joaquin Valley. Last week, Costa (D-Fresno) introduced the "Expanding Medical Education Act of 2020" in Congress. The goal is to leverage federal, state and private dollars to...
Free Rides for 3 Assemblymen, and Wild Cards in House Race
Fresno Republican Assemblyman Jim Patterson is unchallenged on the March ballot. So are Republican Assemblyman Frank Bigelow of O'Neals, and Democratic Assemblyman Adam Gray of Merced. But in a Valley congressional race that is expected to be highly competitive, two mavericks — a father and son from outside the region...