Politics Archives - Page 18 of 19

City Council majority backs ordinance in closed meeting Council votes 4-3 on 'sit-and-lie' after barring ChicoSol from chamber

by Dave Waddell and Leslie Layton

After Mayor Sean Morgan cleared the raucous Chico City Council chambers Tuesday night, Chico police officers barred ChicoSol News Director Dave Waddell from re-entering the meeting – the only member of the local news media who was barred.

Officer Jeff Durkin told Waddell he lacked the proper press credentials to regain entrance to the chamber – despite Waddell showing him his driver’s license and his ChicoSol business card. Durkin stood with another officer, Drew Cooper, outside the frosted glass doors to the council chambers. On multiple occasions a television reporter opened the door and communicated amicably with Durkin, before it closed again — with ChicoSol journalists still on the outside. read more

Mechoopda design to become part of S.F. street mural Butte County contingent prepares for global action on climate change

photo by Karen Laslo

Ali Meders-Knight shows her painting next to the Mechoopda basket (lower right) that provided inspiration.

by Leslie Layton

When Ali Meders-Knight was asked to provide mural art for the local contingent at the upcoming San Francisco march for climate action, she thought of the basket designs used by her Mechoopda ancestors.

She thought about historical descriptions of the Northern Sacramento Valley, when birds and butterflies were so numerous they sometimes blocked any view of the sky.

And before that day was out, she had a painting that will be used as a template for a mural panel at San Francisco Civic Center. read more

Huber: Take time to do cannabis sales carefully Chico council hopeful visited pot-selling Colorado city

Scott Huber, a candidate in the Nov. 6 Chico City Council election, visited Boulder, Colo., in early August to find out first-hand how cannabis dispensary sales have gone there. ChicoSol News Director Dave Waddell explored with Huber in this Q & A what he learned and how it might apply to Chico and Oroville.

In 2016, California voters backed state Proposition 64 that allowed cities, beginning in 2018, to authorize the sale and taxation of recreational marijuana.

video by Guillermo Mash

ChicoSol: Tell us a little about the city you visited. read more

Protesters gather outside congressman’s pricey fundraising event

photo by Karen Laslo

Wes Owens, Raeanne Flores-Owens and Micha Lehner were among those protesting the conservative District 1 congressman.

Chico’s Raeanne Flores-Owens protested with about 19 other people Monday, saying that while Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale) was raising money for his re-election campaign, much of the Northern Sacramento Valley was burning. “We are covered in smoke, it’s hazy, our children can’t play outside,” she said of the Carr Fire’s impact.

The 110,000-acre Carr Fire has been identified as the most destructive fire in Shasta County’s history, and the weather system the fire is generating has been linked to climate change. Air quality in the northern valley today ranges from “unhealthy for sensitive groups” to “hazardous,” according to KRCR news. read more

A newly-elected president, a new beginning CSUC graduate says AMLO is a "beacon of hope"

by Floritzel Salvador

Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) has officially won the presidency with 53.5 percent of the national vote. This is a new and hopeful beginning for Mexico, and AMLO is a beacon of hope for someone like me.

Mexico is a country that has been plagued with brutal murders, disappearances and extremely low wages, and these conditions have forced many Mexican citizens to flee and cross the U.S. border.

I am currently in my home state of Oaxaca, Mexico, a beautiful state that is rich in culture and tourism. Yet, it continues to be one of the poorest states in all of Mexico. In Oaxaca, teachers who have been killed and brutally tortured have made international news, indigenous communities that should be valued and cared for have been forgotten. read more

Mexican left may win presidency Lopez Obrador's rhetoric hasn't changed in 30 years

photo by Gustavo Benítez courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO)

by Leslie Layton

In 1988, I traveled with Andrés Manuel López Obrador – the man expected to win Sunday’s presidential election in Mexico — during his gubernatorial campaign in the southern state of Tabasco. I covered his quirky, upstart campaign for the San Francisco Chronicle, often riding in the back of his family’s little Volkswagen, largely because I sensed that he’d eventually be influential nationally, if not someday elected president.

This is to suggest that this passionate, fierce and bloody presidential race has been in the making for a very long time, and because 30 years ago a younger López Obrador was already a skilled politician. He was charismatic and smart, and he seemed to just need the right moment to stake his claim to the presidency and deliver power to the Mexican left. read more