KUNC-FM: Kirk Siegler
-
Many farmers are cheering government proposals to give thousands of seasonal farmworkers a path to legal status. But even if the bill passes, it won't solve the long-term trend of fewer migrants coming north to work on U.S. farms. Farmers will instead have to learn how to do more with less immigrant labor.
-
Republicans are meeting in a Democratic stronghold this week to talk about retooling their message. So far, there are sharp divisions among RNC delegates about the future direction of the GOP.
-
Amid deep budget cuts and layoffs, the nation's second-largest school district is spending $4.5 million to hire 1,000 new aides this year. The superintendent says he'd rather use the money to hire back teachers, but the shootings in Newtown, Conn., led to a change in priorities.
-
When Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa was elected in 2005, not only was he seen as a rising star in the Democratic Party, he also was L.A.'s first Latino mayor in more than a century. As Villaraigosa prepares to leave office, many Latino politicians and leaders are assessing the two candidates vying to succeed him. And while one has Mexican ancestry, neither candidate is seen as a product of L.A.'s Latino community or political establishment.
-
Discussing gun control is not easy in Wyoming, which has one of the highest rates of gun ownership in the country. But it also has the highest per capita suicide rate, and guns are usually involved. One grieving mother is trying to boost awareness while respecting the state's gun culture.
-
Wyoming has the highest suicide rate in the U.S., and two-thirds of the state's suicides are by firearm. Like much of the West, Wyoming's gun ownership rates are high, and gun culture is strong. The state's relationship with guns has made suicide prevention efforts tough, but that may be changing.
-
Almost 100 years ago, a water-supply diversion from Owens River helped quench Los Angeles' thirst some 200 miles away. L.A. thrived, but it drained the Owens Lake and created a salt flat that now pollutes the air. A century later, the finger-pointing continues, and this week, the city's water department is back in court over its cleanup plan.
-
Early March is when Yosemite National Park officials would normally be gearing up for the busy tourist season. Instead, they're figuring out how to cut $1.5 million from their budget because of the recent sequestration that forced across-the-board cuts. The National Park Service must now cut $134 million from sites around the country.
-
A meeting of finance ministers from the 20 leading industrial and developing nations wrapped up over the weekend in Moscow. The nations agreed to not to target the exchange rates of their respective currencies amid concerns that competitive devaluation could spark a currency war.
-
In the mornings, the lawn at Palisades Park is often covered with people in sweats and spandex, exercising in groups. But city officials are weighing a plan to muscle out the fitness classes.