Por David Wright, CNN

El senador John Cornyn y el fiscal general de Texas, Ken Paxton, avanzarán a una segunda vuelta el 26 de mayo en las primarias republicanas del estado para el Senado de Estados Unidos, según proyecta Decision Desk de CNN, lo que prolonga un enfrentamiento costoso y divisivo que ha atraído una amplia atención nacional.

Mientras busca un quinto mandato en el Senado, Cornyn se enfrenta a la mayor presión de su carrera política por su posición en el Partido Republicano y su aparente lealtad al presidente Donald Trump.

Por su parte, la accidentada historia personal de Paxton presenta sus propias complicaciones.

Ni Cornyn ni Paxton superarán el 50% necesario en las primarias del martes para evitar una segunda vuelta. El representante estadounidense Wesley Hunt, quien lanzó su candidatura al Senado en octubre, no avanzará.

Trump no respaldó a ningún candidato antes de las primarias del martes.

El posible respaldo del presidente podría ser decisivo en una segunda vuelta, donde se espera que los aliados de ambos candidatos presionen a la Casa Blanca para limitar el daño, ya que los demócratas de todo el país experimentan un aumento de entusiasmo

Y aunque los demócratas no han ganado una carrera estatal en Texas desde los años 1990, el partido se siente envalentonado de cara a las elecciones intermedias de este otoño, después de haber conseguido ya este año un escaño en el Senado estatal que durante mucho tiempo estuvo en manos del Partido Republicano en Fort Worth.

Cornyn es un conservador con una larga trayectoria en la política republicana de Texas, que sirvió en la Corte Suprema del estado y como fiscal general del estado antes de su elección al Senado en 2002.

Anteriormente se desempeñó como líder republicano del Senado y perdió una candidatura para el máximo puesto de liderazgo del Senado en 2024 ante el senador John Thune de Dakota del Sur.

Pero su relación con el presidente Donald Trump ha sido tensa en ocasiones. Cabe destacar que criticó las acciones del presidente el 6 de enero de 2021, calificando de “imprudente” el lenguaje de Trump en torno a los disturbios.

También ha eludido las críticas de muchos republicanos estatales por su trabajo con los demócratas. Fue abucheado en una convención republicana en Texas en 2022 por su papel en la negociación de un paquete de medidas para la seguridad de las armas. Trump lo llamó “RINO” (republicano solo de nombre) en Truth Social.

En 2023, Trump predijo que Cornyn perdería su próxima campaña de reelección, vinculándolo con alguien mucho más crítico del presidente en público.

“¿Quién es peor senador, John ‘El Estirado’ Cornyn de Texas, o Mitt ‘El Perdedor’ Romney de Massachusetts (Utah)?”, escribió Trump en redes sociales. “Ambos son débiles, ineficaces y muy perjudiciales para el Partido Republicano y nuestra nación. Incluso con una oposición moderadamente hábil, perderán las próximas elecciones”.

Romney se negó a buscar la reelección en 2024. Cornyn siguió adelante.

Muchos republicanos nacionales y aliados de Thune creen que Cornyn es su mejor apuesta para conservar el escaño en el Senado en Texas, un estado con una fuerte tendencia republicana.

Pero Paxton, fiscal general estatal durante tres mandatos, tiene un historial de apoyo a Trump —en particular por sus desacreditadas acusaciones de fraude electoral previas al 6 de enero— y fuertes vínculos con las bases republicanas del estado.

Turning Point Action, una filial de la organización cofun

SANTA MARIA, Calif. (KEYT) – Santa Maria Police are investigating two shootings that happened Tuesday, one near Santa Maria High School and the other at the Town Center Mall around 1 p.m.

The SMPD reported several gunshots near Lincoln Street and Park Ave. where they locked down the school as a precaution during an investigation.

SMPD officrs found evidence of the shooting at the 700 block of South Lincoln Street without any victims and determined the incident was unrelated to the school and held no student threat.

SMPD officers then lifted the lockdown and released students without incident, though a second shooting at the south parking structure of the Town Center mall happened during the first.

SMPD officers found evidence of the second shooting involving two vehicles and reported no injuries from either.

The SMPD is investigating both shootings, but it is unclear whether or not they are related incidents. Those with information on either are encouraged to contact the SMPD.

The post Santa Maria Police investigate two shootings Tuesday appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

By Jeanne Sahadi, CNN

(CNN) — Anyone watching the stock market’s response to world events this week may be feeling a little uncertain about their investments.

But if last year taught investors anything, it’s that volatility and dramatic drops in stocks from one day to the next are not reliable indicators of annual portfolio performance.

Despite extreme market volatility last year – especially in the spring of 2025 – the average 401(k) balance rose by 11% to $146,100, according to new data from Fidelity Investments, which analyzed nearly 25 million accounts.

It marks the third consecutive year that the average corporate workplace retirement account booked a double-digit percentage gain. That’s thanks not only to overall market performance but consistent savings habits by 401(k) participants, Fidelity noted.

The S&P 500, for instance, ended last year up 16.39% while the Nasdaq rose more than 20%. The S&P Aggregate Bond Index was up 2.91%.

Meanwhile, the average savings rate by participants was 14.2%, which was about the same as the prior year. That includes the average employee contribution rate (9.5% of their gross income) plus the average employer match (4.7%).

What the numbers tell us

Of course, the average balance of $146,000 across all age groups saving for retirement isn’t that high.

But it is considerably above the median balance of $34,400. The median, of course, is the midpoint below which half of all account balances are lower. This particular stat is across all 401(k) participants, regardless of age and time spent saving, among other factors.

The results are better if you look at accounts where participants have been saving for at least 15 years. Their median balance was $377,700.

On the highest end of the balance spectrum, 665,000 accounts ended last year with balances of $1 million or more, up from 537,000 in 2024. Per Fidelity, among the $1 million-plus accounts, participants had been saving an average of 25 years.

A read on Gen X

That may be one reason why the majority of the million-dollar-plus accounts (60.3%) belong to Gen Xers – who were born between 1965 and 1980 and are next in line to retire. (Millennials’ accounts, by contrast, make up 4.1% of the million-dollar-plus club.)

How Gen Xers as a whole are doing, however, is a mixed bag. On the one hand, they saved an average of 15.4% of their gross income last year. That includes a tenth of the cohort who were making catch-up contributions, Fidelity said. (Anyone 50 or older last year was allowed to save an additional $7,500 on top of the $23,500 federal contribution limit – while those between the ages of 60 and 63 were given a higher catch-up limit of $11,250.)

But such catch-up contributions may be needed for far more Gen Xers, since their median 401(k) account balance was just $67,100. While some Gen Xers may still have a defined benefit pension coming to them, most won’t. They entered the workforce just as employers were starting to switch away from company pensions in favor of self-directed 401(k)s.

How women are faring

In honor of Women’s History Month, Fidelity broke out some data pertaining to women participating in 401(k) plans.

Their average 401(k) balance – $119,500 – was up 22% over the past five years – better than the 20% increase across all participant accounts during the same period. But their median 401(k) balance last year was just $29,400.

The good news is that many are saving more than before, with nearly 40% of women upping their savings rate last year – including 47% of Gen Z women.

Por Federico Leiva, CNN en Español

Los amantes del diamante están ante su gran fiesta de 2026. Desde este miércoles 4 de marzo, las 20 mejores selecciones de béisbol del planeta se medirán en el Clásico Mundial. Serán 13 días a puro bateo, carreras, outs y bases robadas. Una oportunidad inmejorable para ver antes de tiempo a Juan Soto, Shohei Ohtani y Aaron Judge, pero ahora defendiendo los colores de sus países de origen.

Para esta edición, el torneo se repartirá entre cuatro sedes: San Juan, Puerto Rico; Tokio, Japón; y Houston y Miami, ambas en Estados Unidos. Cada ciudad será escenario de uno de los cuatro grupos en los que fueron divididas las 20 selecciones clasificadas (cinco en cada zona).

Grupo A – Sede en San Juan, Puerto Rico

• Canadá
• Colombia
• Cuba
• Panamá
• Puerto Rico

Grupo B – Sede en Houston, Estados Unidos

• Brasil
• Gran Bretaña
• Italia
• México
• Estados Unidos

Grupo C – Sede en Tokio, Japón

• Australia
• Taiwán
• República Checa
• Japón
• Corea del Sur

Grupo D – Sede en Miami, Estados Unidos

• República Dominicana
• Israel
• Países Bajos
• Nicaragua
• Venezuela

El hecho de que los partidos se repartan entre Houston, Miami, San Juan y Tokio prácticamente garantiza 24 horas de puro béisbol, debido a la diferencia horaria entre los territorios. Eso sí, a partir de cuartos de final toda la acción se trasladará a Estados Unidos.

El formato de la competencia es simple: cada equipo jugará contra sus cuatro rivales de zona una vez, y al terminar, los dos mejores seleccionados de cada grupo clasificarán a los cuartos de final. Tanto los cuartos como las semifinales y la final se jugarán a partido único, con lo cual no hay margen de error: el que pierde se vuelve a casa.

Grupo A

4 de marzo – Taiwán vs. Australia (10 p.m., hora de Miami)

5 de marzo – República Checa vs. Corea del Sur (5 a.m. de Miami)

5 de marzo – Australia vs. República Checa (10 p.m. de Miami)

6 de marzo – Japón vs. Taiwán (5 a.m. de Miami)

6 de marzo – Taiwán vs. República Checa (10 p.m. de Miami)

7 de marzo – Corea del Sur vs. Japón (5 a.m. de Miami)

7 de marzo – Taiwán vs. Corea del Sur (10 p.m. de Miami)

8 de marzo – Australia vs. Japón (6 a.m. de Miami)

9 de marzo – Corea del Sur vs. Australia (6 a.m. de Miami)

10 de marzo – República Checa vs. Japón (6 a.m. de Miami)

Grupo B

6 de marzo – Cuba vs. Panamá (11 a.m. de Miami)

6 de marzo – Puerto Rico vs. Colombia (6 p.m. de Miami)

7 de marzo – Colombia vs. Canadá (11 a.m. de Miami)

7 de marzo – Panamá vs. Puerto Rico (6 p.m. de Miami)

8 de marzo – Colombia vs. Cuba (12 p.m. de Miami)

8 de marzo – Panamá vs. Canadá (7 p.m. de Miami)

9 de marzo – Colombia vs. Panamá (12 p.m. de Miami)

9 de marzo – Cuba vs. Puerto Rico (7 p.m. de Miami)

10 de marzo – Canadá vs. Puerto Rico (7 p.m. de Miami)

11 de marzo – Canadá vs. Cuba (3 p.m. de Miami)

Grupo C

6 de marzo – México vs. Gran Bretaña (1 p.m. de Miami)

6 de marzo – Estados Unidos vs. Brasil (8 p.m. de Miami)

7 de marzo &#

By Rocio Munoz, CNN

(CNN) — The US military began conducting operations with Ecuador targeting “designated terrorist organizations” in the Latin American country, the Pentagon announced Tuesday, marking a new front in the Trump administration’s efforts to curtail drug trafficking.

US Southern Command said in a statement that the actions represent “a powerful example of the commitment of partners in Latin America and the Caribbean to combat the scourge of narco-terrorism” and emphasized that both countries are taking “decisive action” against groups that it claims have sown violence and corruption across the hemisphere.

The announcement appears to mark an expansion of the Trump administration’s Operation Southern Spear, which has so far killed 151 people in strikes on alleged drug boats in the Eastern Pacific and Caribbean.

CNN has reached out to the White House for comment.

The Pentagon did not specify what the new operations would entail or which groups they would focus on. A short video posted to social media by US SOUTHCOM showed individuals boarding a helicopter.

Los Lobos and Los Choneros, two of Ecuador’s main criminal organizations, were designated as foreign terrorist organizations by the US State Department last September.

SOUTHCOM Commander Gen. Francis L. Donovan in a statement praised Ecuador’s armed forces for their “unwavering commitment” and “courage and resolve” in the fight against drug-trafficking.

Meanwhile, Ecuador’s Ministry of Defense said on social media Tuesday that a “new phase against narco-terrorism and illegal mining” had begun.

“The Ecuadorian Armed Forces will continue to firmly combat organized crime alongside strategic allies, for the security of Ecuadorians and the peaceful future of our families,” the ministry wrote on X.

The announcements come one day after Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa met with Donovan and other defense officials from both countries at the Government Palace in Quito to coordinate actions against transnational organized crime and strengthen hemispheric security.

According to the Ecuadorian presidency, the meeting addressed initiatives to strengthen controls, information sharing, and operational coordination at airports and ports.

Noboa’s administration has maintained a close relationship with Washington focused on security, through cooperation agreements and US interest in establishing a military base in Ecuador – a proposal that was rejected in a referendum last November.

The-CNN-Wire
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