Traci Mumford

It has drained its public pool, banned people from watering their lawns or washing their cars, and let the Little League fields go brown.

The mayor is now asking people to make sure they've worn their clothes three times before washing them.

Jack says that for other towns in the West, a lot of which depend on the strained Colorado River for water, Kearney is a preview.

Now, a few updates on the Trump administration, starting with the president's $1.8 billion fund.

The Times has learned that, at least for now, Trump is backing off his plans for that pot of money, which would have likely distributed huge sums to his allies.

The fund faced a pair of legal setbacks yesterday, but even before that, people familiar with the matter said Trump had spent days leaning towards scrapping the plan after it generated extraordinary bipartisan anger, including from some Republican senators.

Still, Trump could change his mind, and some Republicans signaled yesterday that they were wary he might eventually push forward again with the controversial fund.

Also, at the Pentagon, in a highly unusual decision, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has blocked the promotions of nine Navy officers in a move that appears to be part of his campaign to purge the Pentagon of leaders he's called woke.

He pulled three women and two Black men off the planned promotion list, as well as four white men, leaving a slate that has no women and appears to only include two non-white officers.

He made a similar move earlier this year, blocking the promotion of several army officers, two Black men and two women.

Peg says interventions seem to violate the rules governing a promotion system that's supposed to be apolitical and merit-based.

The decisions could also reshape the military's top ranks for years to come, leaving it with leaders that do not reflect the racial or gender makeup of its broader forces.

Hegseth has never publicly explained why he's blocked the promotions, and a Pentagon spokesman also declined to offer any explanation.

And yesterday, President Trump leaned on Israel to de-escalate its military campaign in Lebanon after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu threatened to hit Hezbollah targets in the suburbs of Beirut, causing thousands of people to evacuate.

Hours later, Netanyahu appeared to back off the threat, though this morning Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon have continued.

Israel's campaign in Lebanon is facing increasing condemnation around the world.

At an emergency meeting of the U.N.

Security Council yesterday, diplomats almost unanimously called for Israel to withdraw its forces.

The only country that didn't join in was the United States.

Today in California, it is primary day, and the big race to watch is the fight for governor.