The post Wind Advisory issued February 19 at 8:49PM PST until February 19 at 9:00PM PST by NWS Los Angeles/Oxnard CA appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) - Red lanterns and bright displays are welcoming visitors as Santa Barbara celebrates the Lunar New Year with culture, color and community connection.

At the Santa Barbara Public Library, a new exhibit is drawing families, students and longtime patrons alike.

The showcase features Chinese-language books alongside traditional decorations and cultural items that help explain the meaning behind the holiday — from symbols of luck and prosperity to the importance of gathering with loved ones.

For some visitors, it’s a chance to see their heritage reflected on the shelves.

For others, it’s an opportunity to better understand the traditions of neighbors and friends.

This year’s celebration also honors the Year of the Horse, a zodiac symbol associated with energy, strength and determination. Organizers say those themes resonate with a community that continues to grow more diverse and connected.

Beyond the exhibit, local festivities include cultural activities and family-friendly events designed to bring people together. Whether stopping by the library or attending a community gathering, residents are finding small but meaningful ways to ring in the new year.

As the celebrations continue, the message is clear: Lunar New Year is not just about turning the calendar — it’s about honoring heritage, sharing stories and welcoming a fresh start together.

The post Lanterns, Stories and Community: Santa Barbara Celebrates Chinese New Year appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

By Kit Maher, Lex Harvey, CNN

(CNN) — Florida lawmakers have passed a bill to rename Palm Beach International Airport after President Donald Trump.

The bill to rename the south Florida hub passed the state Senate Thursday with 25 votes in favor and 11 votes against, all from Democrats, two days after Florida’s House of Representatives passed the measure 81-30.

Congresswoman Lois Frankel, a Democrat who represents West Palm Beach, said in a statement following the vote it’s “misguided and unfair that the Republican-controlled Florida Legislature ignored the voices of Palm Beach County by pushing forward a bill to rename Palm Beach International Airport without giving County residents a real opportunity for input.”

The bill now awaits Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ signature. According to the text, the act would take effect in the beginning of July. The name change is also subject to the approval of the Federal Aviation Administration.

Trademark filings raise concerns among Democrats

Ahead of Thursday’s vote, some Democrats had raised concerns that the Trump family was looking to profit from the potential name change, after related trademark applications were filed last week by the private entity that handles licenses and trademarks for the Trump Organization.

Democratic Florida state Sen. Shevrin Jones quickly filed an amendment in a Senate companion bill to explicitly prevent the Trump Organization from profiting off the trademark, but it failed. “No president, Democrat or Republican should be able to benefit” from an airport trademark license, he said.

A spokesperson for the Trump Organization said that Trump and his family would not receive royalties or licensing fees from the renaming of the Palm Beach airport, and the House bill’s text specifies that the branding would come at no cost.

“To be clear, the President and his family will not receive any royalty, licensing fee, or financial consideration whatsoever from the proposed airport renaming,” said Kimberly Benza, Trump Organization director of executive operations. She stressed that the Florida bill requires a license agreement from The Trump Organization but that they are “willing to provide this right to his hometown county at no charge.”

Still, the trademark applications for “DONALD J. TRUMP INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT,” “PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT” and “DJT” raised eyebrows, given Trump’s known interest in renaming buildings, train stations or airports after himself, the broad scope of the applications and the potential for his family to profit.

Trump has also specifically pitched renaming Washington’s Dulles International Airport after himself, as well as New York’s Penn Station, CNN previously reported. And the Kennedy Center now bears his name, after a board stacked with Trump allies voted to change the institution’s name to the “Trump Kennedy Center.”

North Carolina GOP Rep. Addison McDowell introduced legislation to rename Dulles after Trump, which was cosponsored by a handful of Republicans and is still under discussion, according to a staffer of a member on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. But those efforts could be complicated by the Palm Beach airport renaming, since two airports named after Trump could cause significant confusion.

Trump, a native New Yorker, changed his residency to Florida in 2019, declaring his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach his permanent residence.

By Haley Britzky, CNN

(CNN) — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth railed against what he called the “Godless left” and praised “Western Christian” values and traditions in a headliner speech Thursday night at a Christian communicators conference in Tennessee.

“Under the leadership of President Trump, the military once again supports and trains our troops and tends to their spiritual health. You see, we train our troops, we no longer trans our troops,” Hegseth said to large applause from the crowd at the National Religious Broadcasters 2026 International Christian Media Convention in Nashville.

One of the first efforts undertaken by the Trump administration after taking office last January was to ban transgender people from joining the military, and remove transgender people who were currently serving in uniform.

“Gone is Godless and divisive DEI, gone is gender-bending equity and quotas, gone is climate change worship to a false God. We are one military, one fighting force, one nation under God. We are not in woke we trust, we are in God we trust,” he said.

Alexis Wilkins, a country singer and girlfriend of FBI Director Kash Patel, sang the National Anthem just before Hegseth’s address.

Since becoming Defense secretary more than a year ago, Hegseth has routinely broken from precedent with past defense secretaries who largely shied away from political commentary in public. On Thursday, he told the convention’s crowd that “the other side is fueled by godless and toxic ideologies, foreign to the western way of life, with tolerant hearts filled with rage and hate.”

Throughout the speech, Hegseth touched on many of his signature culture war talking points, including treatment of transgender service members; climate change; abortion; and the ending of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Hegseth’s address came on the heels of a visit by self-described Christian nationalist preacher Doug Wilson to the Pentagon for part of the military’s monthly Christian prayer service. Hegseth is the most prominent follower of Wilson’s in the Trump administration.

Hegseth mentioned the monthly prayer services on Thursday and said the “left wing shrieks, which means we’re right over the target.”

The convention on Thursday included a ceremonial color guard from the 101st Airborne Division’s band, according to a release from NRB. Ceremonial support by the military can typically be requested for civic, business or community events. A US Army page for requesting ceremonial support from the Army Military District of Washington, for example, says religious services and events “detrimental to the interests or values of the armed forces” are not authorized for support.

The 101^st Airborne Division did not respond to questions from CNN on Thursday regarding the event.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

The post Hegseth rails against ‘Godless left’ in political speech to Christian convention appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

Por Lauren Said-Moorhouse

El comunicado del rey Carlos fue rápido y contundente. Con un mensaje que no deja lugar a ambigüedades, el soberano fue enfático al señalar que “la ley debe seguir su curso”, reafirmando su compromiso con el orden institucional y el sistema judicial. Este pronunciamiento oficial busca dar claridad sobre la posición de la familia real frente a los procesos legales en marcha.

Horas antes, su hermano había sido arrestado en su casa en una finca privada propiedad del monarca, Sandringham, al norte de Londres. Incluso según los estándares de una familia acostumbrada a la controversia, fue un acontecimiento sorprendente.

Breve, con poco más de 100 palabras, la respuesta del rey —en su propio nombre— no podría haber sido más clara. “Mi familia y yo continuaremos en nuestro deber y servicio para todos ustedes”, concluía. En otras palabras: antepondré mi deber con el país a cualquier simpatía residual que pueda sentir por mi hermano menor.

Se entiende que el príncipe William y Catherine, la princesa de Gales, respaldaron la declaración: los miembros más altos de la realeza unidos en la estrategia.

Las tácticas del rey para abordar las acusaciones que están surgiendo en torno al expríncipe Andrés han sido contrastantes con las de su difunta madre, la reina Isabel II.

Andrés fue, según se informa, su hijo favorito, y los críticos han dicho anteriormente que no actuó lo suficientemente rápido para responsabilizar a Mountbatten-Windsor por las repercusiones de su amistad con el delincuente sexual convicto Jeffrey Epstein.

Muchos se han preguntado por qué le permitió usar el Palacio de Buckingham como escenario de su desastrosa entrevista con la BBC en 2019, en la que trató de restar importancia a las acusaciones de conducta inapropiada. Otros se han preguntado por qué la difunta Reina habría proporcionado a Andrew millones para llegar a un acuerdo civil por agresión sexual presentado por Virginia Giuffre en 2021.

A pesar del pago, el expríncipe Andrés siempre negó todas las acusaciones de Giuffre y dijo que no recordaba haberla conocido, a pesar de haberse tomado una fotografía con ella.

En contraste, el rey Carlos ha sido más decisivo al tratar con su hermano desde que ascendió al trono en 2022. Según se informa, había estado explorando opciones para sacar a Andrew de su residencia en Windsor mucho antes de despojar a su hermano del estatus de “príncipe” y desalojarlo de la propiedad real en octubre.

Es notable que Carlos no describió explícitamente a Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor como su hermano en la declaración publicada el jueves.

Ni el rey Carlos ni el palacio fueron informados con antelación del arresto de Mountbatten-Windsor, dijo una fuente real a CNN. El arresto bajo sospecha de conducta inapropiada en el cargo público no indica por supuesto culpabilidad, pero marca otro momento extraordinario en la prolongada caída en desgracia de Andrew.

La policía dice que ha sido liberado pero que permanece bajo investigación. No se han presentado cargos.

El expríncipe no ha respondido públicamente a las últimas acusaciones surgidas tras la publicación de millones de documentos por el Departamento de Justicia de EE.UU. relacionados con Epstein. Mountbatten-Windsor ha negado repetidamente todas las acusaciones de conducta inapropiada y ha dicho que nunca vio ni sospechó ninguno de los comportamientos que se le imputan a Epstein.

No ha hecho comentarios sobre las recientes acusaciones de mala conducta inapropiada en el cargo público.

Pero los eventos de este jueves, que comenzaron con una caravana de vehículos policiales sin identificación llegando te