California could see little of $12B fed farm aid
The Chronicle 's ROLAND LI: "California stands to gain little from a $12 billion federal aid package for U.S. farmers facing new tariffs, according to state agriculture groups."
"The three-pronged program, set to begin in the fall, includes direct financial support for farmers, government purchases of excess crops for food banks and other programs, and more marketing funds."
"The U.S. Department of Agriculture said producers of “soybeans, sorghum, corn, wheat, cotton, dairy and hogs” would qualify for direct aid. That appears to largely benefit Midwestern states, said Richard Waycott, CEO of the Almond Board of California, which has 7,000 growers as members."
Gavin Newsom holds huge lead over John Cox in California governor's race, poll finds
Sacramento Bee's ALEXEI KOSEFF: "Gavin Newsom, the Democratic lieutenant governor, holds a commanding lead over his Republican rival, businessman John Cox, in the race to be California’s next governor, according to the Public Policy Institute of California."
"In a new poll released Wednesday, 55 percent of likely voters favored Newsom, compared to 31 percent who would pick Cox. More than than three months before the November election, only 9 percent of respondents were still undecided."
"Mark Baldassare, president and CEO of PPIC, said Democrats quickly coalesced around Newsom after an open, and sometimes bitter, primary in which millions of them voted for other major candidates, like former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and state Treasurer John Chiang. About 86 percent of Democratic likely voters in the poll supported Newsom, significantly narrowing the path "
De Leon remains far behind Feinstein, poll shows
Saacramento Bee's TARYN LUNA: "Kevin de León made small gains with likely voters in California’s U.S. Senate race, but still trails incumbent Dianne Feinstein by a hefty margin."
"The Public Policy Institute of California’s poll reported that a fifth of likely voters have no intention of weighing in on the Democrat-on-Democrat race. Nearly half of Republicans and a quarter of independents said they won’t vote."
"Feinstein won the support of 46 percent in the PPIC poll, almost double de León’s 24 percent. Feinstein led among all ethnic groups and in all regions of the state — by more than 20 points in San Francisco and Los Angeles. De León, however, had a slight edge among Republicans who said they intended to vote for one of the Democrats."
Firefighters in deadly Ferguson fire confront brutal conditions
Sacramento Bee's SAM STANTON: "The first time Yosemite National Park closed because of wildfires, the iconic tourist attraction was celebrating its 100th birthday in 1990 and three major blazes shut down access for nine days."
"On Wednesday, authorities shut down the popular Yosemite Valley portion of the park and told visitors to get out because of the unpredictable and difficult Ferguson Fire that has been chewing up forest and grasslands since it erupted 25 miles west of the park on July 13."
"The closure is expected to last at least through Sunday, with fire officials saying they are making a concerted effort to stop the fire’s advance through extremely steep, rugged terrain that makes battling the 60-square-mile fire particularly difficult."
READ MORE related to Energy & Environment: How one couple saved Muir Woods from becoming a dammed reservoir -- The Chronicle's BILL VAN NIEKERKEN; Arson suspect arrested as fast-moving fire destroys structures, threatens hundreds more near Idyllwild -- LA Times's ANGEL JENNINGS/ALENE TCHEKMEDYIAN/LAURA NEWBERRY; Arson suspect arrested as fast-moving fire destroys structures, threatens hundreds more near Idyllwild -- LA Times's ANGEL JENNINGS/ALENE TCHEKMEDYIAN/LAURA NEWBERRY
Trump and EU declare cease-fire in trade war
AP's DON LEE: "President Donald Trump and European Union leader Jean-Claude Juncker agreed Wednesday to a trade war cease-fire under which the administration would back away a threat to impose high tariffs on imported cars and rethink duties already placed on imported steel and aluminum."
"In return, the EU will make unspecified purchases of U.S. soybeans and liquefied natural gas, the president said."
"After a White House meeting, the two men also vowed to work toward eliminating all tariffs on many industrial goods, a resumption of dialogue that could help repair fractured relations between the longtime allies."
Trump's top Medicare official slams 'Medicare for All'
AP's RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR: "The Trump administration's Medicare chief on Wednesday slammed Sen. Bernie Sanders' call for a national health plan, saying "Medicare for All" would undermine care for seniors and become "Medicare for None."
"The broadside from Medicare and Medicaid administrator Seema Verma came in a San Francisco speech that coincides with a focus on health care in contentious midterm congressional elections."
"Sanders, a Vermont independent, fired back at Trump's Medicare chief in a statement that chastised her for trying to "throw" millions of people off their health insurance during the administration's failed effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act."
Bay Area home prices flat since May, but up a staggering 12.9% year over year
The Chronicle's KATHLEEN PENDER: "The median price of a Bay Area home was $875,000 in June, matching the all-time high set in May, while sales dropped precipitously to the lowest level for the month of June in four years, according to a CoreLogic report released Wednesday."
"The median price of a new home, resale or condo in the nine-county region was up 12.9 percent from June of last year. Sales, meanwhile, were down 2.2 percent from May and 9.2 percent from June 2017, according to the real-estate information firm’s report."
"The Bay Area continues to defy expectations that prices would drop — or at least moderate — this year as a result of rising mortgage rates and the federal tax law that limits the benefits of homeownership, especially in high-cost markets. “If a couple bought a median price house (in San Francisco), they probably lost $35,000 to $40,000 in deductions,” said Patrick Carlisle, chief market analyst with Compass Real Estate."
Suspected BART killer charged with murder, father of slain teen calls for justice
The Chronicle's EVAN SERNOFFSKY/MEGAN CASSIDY: "Heads bowed and tears streaming down, dozens of Nia Wilson’s relatives and friends packed into an Alameda County courtroom Wednesday to see the man accused of stabbing the vibrant teen to death three days earlier on an Oakland BART platform."
"John Lee Cowell, 27, appeared only briefly during the afternoon hearing, wearing red Santa Rita Jail-issued clothing with hands shackled at his sides. He was charged with murdering Wilson, 18, and attempting to murder her 26-year-old sister, Lahtifa."
"Among the packed gallery were Nia Wilson’s mother, father, brothers, sisters, cousins, aunts and uncles. They held each other and cried, still struggling to process Sunday’s shocking killing at the MacArthur BART Station."
READ MORE related to Public Safety: Man arrested fore threatening to blow up San Bruno City Hall, police say -- The Chronicle's MICHAEL CABANATUAN
Top Trump health official takes swipes at ACA, single-payer in enemy territory
LA Times's CHAD TERHUNE: "Stepping into the land of the Trump resistance, Seema Verma flatly rejected California’s pursuit of single-payer healthcare as unworkable and dismissed the Affordable Care Act as too flawed to ever succeed."
"Speaking Wednesday at the Commonwealth Club here, the administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said she supports granting states flexibility on healthcare but indicated she would not give California the leeway it would need to spend federal money on a single-payer system."
“I think a lot of the analysis has shown it’s unaffordable,” Verma said during a question-and-answer session following her speech. “It doesn’t make sense for us to waste time on something that’s not going to work.”
California soon may be first state to require public universities to offer abortion pills
CALmatters' ELIZABETH CASTILLO: "Jessica Rosales recalls plunging into a downward spiral after discovering that her birth control had failed and she was pregnant. A financially unstable third-year student at UC Riverside, she immediately sought an abortion —something the campus student health clinic did not provide."
"Instead she was referred to private medical facilities off campus. One wouldn’t accept her insurance; the other didn’t provide abortions. Her grades slipped, she said, and she frequently slept the days away to escape her circumstances. Eventually she traveled six miles to a Planned Parenthood clinic that performed the procedure. Ten weeks had passed."
“My situation could have been avoided if the student health center was there and provided medication abortion for students on campus,” Rosales said."
House conservatives bring impeachment resolution against Deputy AG Rosenstein
AP's MARY CLARE JALONICK: "A group of 11 House conservatives on Wednesday introduced articles of impeachment against Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, the Justice Department official who oversees special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation."
"The move comes after months of criticism aimed at the department — and the Russia investigation in particular — from Trump and his Republican allies in Congress. Trump has fumed about Mueller's probe and repeatedly called it a "witch hunt," a refrain echoed by some of the lawmakers. The impeachment effort is led by North Carolina Rep. Mark Meadows, who talks to Trump frequently and often defends him to his colleagues."
"It is unclear whether there will be enough support in the party to pass the impeachment resolution, as Republican leaders have not signed on to the effort and are unlikely to back it.
'Get me a Coke!' Probing the Trump-Cohen tape
AP's ANNE FLAHERTY: "The audio recording of President Donald Trump and his then-lawyer, Michael Cohen, captures the two men discussing hush money payments to a former Playboy model alleging an affair."
"Here's a look at the recording , including what it reveals and what it doesn't:"
"IT'S QUICK AND CASUAL — AND RELATED TO THE CAMPAIGN"
READ MORE related to POTUS45: With the release of a recording, Michael Cohen makes clear he's flipping on President Trump -- LA Times's CHRIS MEGERIAN; Putin's soccer ball for Trump had transmitter chip, logo indicates -- Bloomberg's VERNON SILVER; Pompeo firmly opposes Russian claims on Crimea and Ukraine, but struggles to explain Trump -- LA Times's TRACY WILKINSON; Michael Avenatti gets judge to bar media from his testimony on Newport Beach law firm's bankruptcy -- LA Times's MICHAEL FINNEGAN
GOP state lawmaker Jason Spencer resigns after bonkers 'Who Is America?' appearance
HuffPo's DOMINIQUE MOSBERGEN: "Georgia state Rep. Jason Spencer (R) has reportedly announced his resignation ― two days after the airing of a wild “Who Is America?” episode in which the lawmaker was seen exposing his buttocks and yelling a variety of racial epithets."
"Spencer, who’d faced mounting pressure to resign following the airing of the Showtime program, said he would vacate his seat on July 31, according to a letter submitted to Georgia House Speaker David Ralston, reported CNN and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution."
"Ralston said in an earlier statement that Spencer had “disgraced himself and should resign immediately. Georgia is better than this.”
