There may be five challengers for Josh Harder’s seat in congress, but judging by audience responses Wednesday night at Modesto’s State Theatre, the general election will be between Harder and Ted Howze. Howze has a couple of Republican rivals in the primary, but neither Bob Eliot nor Marla Livengood generated much excitement during a debate where the clear favorites were men who had already faced each other during the 2018 […]
Politics
Home Builders and Homelessness: Is there a relationship?
December 16, the Los Angeles Times reported that The Supreme Court of the United States rejected a request for review of a lower court decision in the case of the City of Boise Idaho Versus Martin. The court let stand a ruling that homeless citizens are entitled to sleep on public property when a city has no alternative shelter available. Logically, for the good of every community, homebuilders must partner […]
Hidalgo to Run for Modesto City Council
“The Council needs to change and start working together” Currently a field representative for state Senator Anna Caballero, Modesto resident Jennifer Hidalgo will run for a seat on the Modesto City Council, District 1, next election. Mani Grewal, the current councilmember for District 1, is running against Susan Eggman for termed-out state Senator Kathleen Galgiani’s seat. Hidalgo has broad local experience both as a job holder and volunteer. She’s been […]
Ongoing: Stanislaus County Whittles Away Wood Colony
November 2019 is the month construction begins on Phase 1 of the State Route 132 realignment, otherwise known as a two lane expressway. Sometime in the next 20 years, the plan is to upgrade the expressway to a four lane freeway connecting Freeway 99 and Interstate 580. During the 20 year multi-phase construction project, motorists will experience increasing chronic congestion due to construction, traffic signals, and too many cars using a […]
Doug Ridenour: Councilman Runs for Mayor
First term City Councilmember Doug Ridenour has announced that he is running for Mayor of Modesto in 2020, when his present term on the council expires. The city was required by a new law to delay elections for one year to make its Election Day match other elections; if he prevails in the next election, Mr. Ridenour will have served on the council five full years when he takes office […]
Josh Harder—Still Running at Warp Speed
About this time last year, insiders in California Congressional District 10 (CA-10) were predicting another win for Jeff Denham, the seemingly invincible incumbent with an eight year term of office and the overwhelming support of local farmers and business people. Denham’s win seemed so inevitable that even some of the district’s most influential Democrats were starting to show up at his fundraisers. Congressman Denham may have been leading, but his […]
Can Democrats Bring a Blue Wave to the Valley?
In retrospect, Jerry McNerney’s upset win over Richard Pombo in 2006 may have been an omen. A seven-term congressman with a high national profile and leadership credentials in the House of Representatives, Pombo’s loss to the low-key but high-integrity McNerney didn’t produce the Blue Wave Valley Democrats had hoped for, but it did show an increasing voter concern for rising corruption in government. Pombo had been tainted by a close […]
Trump Supporters in the Valley
The President of the United States has become a politically polarizing leader. Many people in the Valley either love him or hate him. Few are indifferent. President Trump’s supporters can’t be lumped into a “basket of deplorables,” as Hilary Clinton once asserted. Rather, his supporters are a diverse group who do not necessarily link their value systems with those of the president they support. The support of a president may […]
Josh Harder is Hard at Work
Almost a third of the way into his first term as the Congressman for California’s Congressional District 10, Josh Harder continues to set the same blistering pace he did during his campaign against heavily favored incumbent Jeff Denham. Whether he’s wading through wetlands in search of destructive rodents or visiting Valley classrooms to learn more about the current state of education, Harder has already set a very high bar for […]
“Toujours Babette”: An Open Letter to Ted Howze
Like many former Republicans, Babette “Toujours Babbette” Wagner couldn’t abide the party’s drift away from traditional conservative values toward and into the Trump abyss. Her recent encounter with Republican candidate for Congress Ted Howze prompted the following open letter. ed. Good day, Dr. Howze, As one of the people who helped with the event, I want to thank you for stopping by our neighborhood’s National Night Out (NNO) to introduce […]