After
loss, the fight to label modified food continues [New York Times]
Advocates
for the labeling of genetically modified food vowed to carry their fight to
other states and to the federal government after suffering a defeat in
California on Tuesday.…The backers of the measure, known as Proposition 37,
said on Wednesday that they were encouraged it had garnered 4.3 million votes,
even though they were outspent about five-to-one by opponents. They are now
gathering signatures to place a similar measure on the ballot in Washington
State next year.…Still, there is no doubt the defeat in California has robbed
the movement of some momentum. Until Tuesday’s vote, labeling proponents had
been saying that a victory in California, not a defeat, would spur action in
other states and at the federal level. The defeat greatly reduces the chances
that labels will be required, according to L. Val Giddings, a senior fellow at
the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, a Washington organization
supporting policies that favor innovation. “I see little potential that the
defeat in California could result in any increase in pressure for labels. ”
California
Democrats say they won supermajority control of Legislature [Sacramento Bee]
Democratic
legislative leaders declared Wednesday that they had captured a supermajority
of each house, the first time in more than 100 years that the party has wielded
such power. With all precincts counted, Democrats led in enough races to clear
that two-thirds threshold, which would allow them to pass tax increases without
needing GOP votes. Such a supermajority would also allow Democrats voting as a
bloc to place constitutional amendments on the ballot or override vetoes of
Gov. Jerry Brown. Assembly Republicans held out hope that they could reverse
the trend in two races as ballot-counting continued.…Even with a supermajority,
Democrats might not vote unanimously on taxes or other controversial
legislation, given the growing number of moderate and business-friendly
members.
Latino
role in election to fuel new immigration reform push [Los Angeles Times]
The
outsized role that Latino voters played in securing victories for President
Obama and Democratic Senate candidates has energized the effort to rewrite
America's immigration laws, but opposition in Congress, particularly among
House Republicans, remains a significant hurdle. In his election-night victory
speech, President Obama specifically mentioned "fixing our immigration
system" as a priority — along with reducing the deficit, reforming the tax
system and reducing the country's use of imported oil. Latino leaders made
clear they planned to hold Obama to that, noting that the president had
promised in his 2008 campaign to push for reform but did not deliver.…Unlike
2009, when Democrats shied away from a congressional fight over reforms that
would have created a path to citizenship for some illegal immigrants, the
political dynamics in the coming year favor aggressive moves by the White House
and the Democratic leadership.
What
Obama's victory means for business [Wall Street Journal]
Corporate
America never was among those chanting "four more years." Some
business leaders had backed Mitt Romney hoping the Republican would pursue
lighter regulation and business-friendly changes to the tax code. After
President Barack Obama's victory, CEOs say they are looking for a softening of
the standoff between Congress and the president that characterized much of his
first term in office. Here is a rundown of what a number of key industries may
see during President Obama's second term:…Mr. Obama's re-election likely means
four more years of policies that have benefited agribusiness. Those include
support for corn-based ethanol and free-trade agreements that have expanded
agricultural exports.…The second term, however, is also expected to present
some challenges for the industry. The administration has already been
criticized in the Farm Belt for its tougher line on environmental regulations,
and it is seen as less friendly to mergers that could further concentrate
segments such as meat processing.
San
Francisco rejects Hetch Hetchy plan [Modesto Bee]
San
Francisco voters soundly rejected a measure that might have led to removal of
the 89-year-old Hetch Hetchy Reservoir from Yosemite National Park. Proposition
F on Tuesday's ballot got a "no" from 182,268 voters, or 77.4 percent
of the total. The defeat eases concerns at the Modesto and Turlock irrigation
districts, which operate Don Pedro Reservoir downstream on the Tuolumne River
from Hetch Hetchy.
Commentary: Levees alone won't
secure California's water [San Jose Mercury News]
Some
people discount the risk of earthquakes in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River
Delta. They say building levees taller and wider will protect the region's
towns, farms, gas lines, highways and the water supply that serves 25 million
Californians. They accuse the Department of Water Resources of exaggerating the
need to shift the state's major water project pumps from their current location
along south Delta channels. In fact, the department would be irresponsible to
ignore the powerful forces threatening the Delta, its ecosystem and the water
supplies that sustain much of the state's economy. In coming decades, the
rising Pacific Ocean will push salty tides higher into the Delta from the west.
Storms that fall increasingly as rain, not snow, will swell the rivers that
empty to the Delta from the east. Squeezed in the middle are 1,100 miles of
levees, earthen embankments that make farming possible in a low-lying region
that was once marshland.
http://www.mercurynews.com/opinion/ci_21952433/mark-cowin-levees-alone-wont-secure-californias-water
Ag
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