Por Christian Edwards, CNN en Español
En las últimas décadas, Estados Unidos y Rusia rara vez han respaldado al mismo candidato en una elección extranjera. Viktor Orbán, de Hungría, fue una excepción. Pero, al final, apoyaron al perdedor.
Para la Casa Blanca, Orbán, una referencia para los populistas de derecha, era clave en su impulso por una Europa más nacionalista y “afín”. Para el Kremlin, Orbán era el principal obstáculo a los esfuerzos de la Unión Europea por armar a Ucrania y reducir su dependencia de los combustibles fósiles rusos.
Pero ahora, el presidente de Estados Unidos, Donald Trump, y su homólogo ruso, Vladimir Putin, tendrán que prescindir de su aliado en Budapest. El Gobierno de Fidesz, liderado por Orbán, sufrió una contundente derrota mientras los votantes se volcaron hacia el partido opositor Tisza, de Péter Magyar, con una participación récord. La campaña de Magyar denunció la corrupción y el clientelismo que florecieron durante los 16 años de Orbán en el poder, y pidió romper con Rusia y mejorar las relaciones con la Unión Europea.
“Nuestro país no tiene tiempo que perder”, dijo Magyar a periodistas en Budapest el lunes. “Hungría está en problemas. Ha sido saqueada, traicionada, devastada”.
Si la victoria de Magyar fue un golpe para Trump y Putin, también fue un gran alivio para Europa. “Estoy muy feliz. Creo que estoy más feliz que tú”, dijo el primer ministro de Polonia, Donald Tusk, en una llamada con Magyar el domingo por la noche. El presidente de Ucrania, Volodymyr Zelensky, vilipendiado durante la campaña de Orbán, felicitó a Tisza y afirmó que Ucrania está “lista para avanzar en nuestra cooperación con Hungría”.
Cuando el nuevo Parlamento húngaro se constituya en los próximos 30 días, Magyar enfrentará importantes desafíos internos, desde impulsar la debilitada economía del país hasta reducir el control de Fidesz sobre los medios de comunicación y el poder judicial. Pero el próximo primer ministro también tendrá que equilibrar las exigencias de tres potencias —Estados Unidos, Rusia y la Unión Europea— que en los últimos tiempos han mostrado gran interés en los asuntos de Hungría.
El rumbo que trace tendrá consecuencias mucho más allá de sus fronteras.
Orbán, descrito alguna vez por Steve Bannon como “Trump antes de Trump”, desarrolló lo que se considera un “modelo” de gobernanza iliberal. Se presentó como defensor de la libertad de expresión y de los “valores tradicionales”, y criticó lo que llamó la influencia corruptora de la Unión Europea.
Además de respaldar las campañas presidenciales de Trump, Orbán cortejó al movimiento MAGA, posicionando a Budapest como una sede europea para los conservadores nacionalistas. A su vez, el Gobierno de Trump apoyó su campaña electoral, incluso con la participación del vicepresidente J. D. Vance en persona.
En respuesta a una pregunta de CNN en una conferencia de prensa en Budapest, Magyar dijo que la derrota de Orbán también fue “una gran derrota” para sus partidarios estadounidenses. “Orbán era su figura emblemática”, afirmó. “Era el cerebro intelectual detrás de esta lucha contra Bruselas”.
En un golpe al impulso al Gobierno de Trump por una Europa más cercana a las ideas de Orbán, Magyar dijo que su Gobierno no respaldará la infraestructura ideológica que Orbán construyó mediante generosas subvenciones estatales. Por ejemplo, el Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC), una institución educativa que, según críticos, forma a conservadores nacionalistas y que Vance visitó recientemente, se financia con una participación del 10 % en la mayor empresa de petróleo y gas de Hungría.
CARPINTERIA, Calif. (KEYT) – The City of Carpinteria does not have any cannabis farms within its limits but angry residents fed up with odors are taking in all the air impacts, which may be changing soon.
A Santa Barbara County deadline to install multi carbon technology or "scrubbers" to filter the odors out has been missed by nine operators.
The sites were visited by inspections on April 1st and 2nd.
On April 3rd, letters went out to revoke the cannabis business licenses.
According to Daisy Weber with Supervisor Roy Lee's office, the businesses that failed were:
| - Blue Whale Agriculture, Inc. | - K&G Flowers, LLC |
| - Bosim 1628 Management Company, LLC | - Life Remedy Farms, Inc. |
| - Bronco Management, LLC | - New Generation Farms, Inc. |
| - CKC Farms, Inc. | - Pacific Grown Organics, LLC |
| - G&K Produce, LLC | |
The Board of Supervisors required the scrubbers in March under a new ordinance.
Other methods to reduce the odors had failed after years of issues and complaints to the county and even city leaders who did not have a direct legal option to respond.
Supervisor Lee, district representative and a former councilmember, said he believed the operators had enough time and "enough was enough."
There is now an appeal option for operators to present evidence relating to their lack of compliance. In some cases it could be supply chain delays.
If not appeal is filed in ten days, the license is officially revoked.
The operator will be able to continue business during the appeal. That hearing is required to take place in 60 days and the appeal hearing officer has 30 days to issue a determination.
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SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — Santa Barbara is moving closer to adopting new rules on short-term rentals, a proposal that is highlighting a growing divide among community members.
The ordinance would regulate vacation rentals like Airbnb and VRBO, an issue that has been debated for years by the Santa Barbara City Council.
Some residents say short-term rentals are disrupting neighborhoods.
Brandy Zender, who lives in Santa Barbara, says she has experienced ongoing issues near her home in a high coastal fire hazard zone.
“Quite frankly, it's people that want their homes for homes versus people who made this their business. I'm fighting for my home and they're fighting for their business.”
Zender says visitors staying in nearby vacation rentals have caused safety concerns and disturbances.
“Drug paraphernalia thrown over our fence line. People breaking in our fence line, people climbing over our fence line, people backing into trees.”
Short-term rentals—defined as stays under 30 days—are currently mostly prohibited in residential areas, but some continue to operate.
Zender says she would support limited use under stricter rules.
“In a perfect world, I'd like to say yes, but I'm also fair… I think the home share model does offer an opportunity… but we’re limiting that to 4 people.”
City officials say the proposed ordinance aims to create clear rules and protect housing.
“This has been something that the City Council has been discussing for many years,” said Community Development Director Allison DeBusk. “They have concerns about not only the nuisance impacts, but also the loss of residential units and also the loss of neighborhoods.”
The proposal would:
- Require permits for short-term rentals
- Limit where rentals are allowed
- Increase enforcement on illegal listings
Not all residents agree with stricter regulations.
Some say short-term rentals provide more affordable options for visitors and support the local economy.
“Short term rentals are filling a different niche than hotels fill,” said Santa Barbara resident Jarrett Gorin. “They are a more affordable form of occupancy… and if we cut out a huge segment of that… it's going to have impacts that cascade through our economy.”
Others are calling for more collaboration before a final decision is made.
“A more democratic process, really,” said resident Tiffany Haller. “We all need to get together, sit at the table and talk about what the problems are and solve it.”
The Ordinance Committee will continue hearing public input at its next meeting on April 21.
The proposal could then move to the full City Council for a final vote.
For now, the debate underscores a key tension in Santa Barbara—balancing neighborhood stability with tourism and economic activity.
The post Santa Barbara moves closer to regulating short-term rentals, dividing community appeared first on News Channel 3-12.
By Andy Rose, Lauren Mascarenhas, Danya Gainor, CNN
(CNN) — For the second day in a row, a director of Camp Mystic — the rural Christian summer camp in Texas that was overwhelmed by flood waters last year — broke down in tears in a courtroom when asked about Cile Steward, one of the 27 girls and counselors who died in the disaster.
“I wish we had more information” before a decision was made to evacuate the camp, Edward Eastland testified Tuesday as he answered questions about the hours leading up to the catastrophic July 4 flooding at the camp’s Guadalupe River campus and the chaos that followed.
“All the information was there … if y’all had just stayed awake and looked, right?” responded Brad Beckworth, an attorney representing the Steward family.
The three-day hearing is part of a civil lawsuit brought by the Steward family and comes after Travis County District Judge Maya Guerra Gamble initially ordered the temporary shutdown of the camp’s flooded areas, saying the closure is necessary to preserve evidence.
Camp Mystic is challenging the continuation of the temporary injunction as it plans to open again this summer at its neighboring Cypress Lake location, which is on higher ground. It separately appealed the decision to an appellate court in March.
Although he remained composed for most of his time on the stand, Eastland began sobbing when asked about his rescue efforts and the Stewards’ 8-year-old daughter, whose body has not been recovered.
“I don’t remember her being there,” Eastland said when asked if he saw Cile Steward that night. “It was…” he began before his voice trailed off in tears.
Later on Tuesday during a somber moment on the stand, Mary Liz Eastland, Edward Eastland’s wife and the camp director in charge of the nursing staff, testified about her actions as the camp where she spent more than three decades — first as a camper then as a staff member — saw floodwaters rise.
“You knew the property. You knew the flood lines. You knew access points. Your children knew them. And these were first-year campers,” Christina Yarnell, another attorney representing the Steward family, said to Mary Liz Eastland. “You had 34 more years of experience than Cile. She needed your help, and you abandoned her, didn’t you?”
“Yes,” she replied.
When asked why she didn’t do more to help the campers, Mary Liz Eastland spoke about being physically unable to reach them due to the flooding.
“I knew I couldn’t get ahold of them,” she said.
The Stewards’ attorneys said in a statement that Tuesday’s proceedings produced testimony “highly relevant to any parent and any State of Texas regulator deciding whether children should ever be allowed to be in the Eastlands’ care again — and we encourage all of them to read every word before making any decisions.”
Judge’s decision could shape evidence available at upcoming trial
Two months after the Steward family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Camp Mystic and its owners, Tuesday’s hearing marked an early-stage fight to preserve key evidence from the July 4 floods before the case moves forward. Gamble, the district judge, is deciding whether to continue her order last month that temporarily shut down the camp’s flooded areas.
At issue is whether the Texas camp can continue rebuilding after the floods tore through cabins and fields, or if it must preserve what the Stewards describe as critical physical evidence, including campers’ sleeping cabins, floodwater markings, building access routes and communication systems that were in place at the time of the disaster.
The