An American lake that was drained 100 years ago to create farming land has reappeared – causing havoc, sparking feuds and fuelling concerns about the impact of climate change.
California’s Tulare Basin produces a significant proportion of the United States’ supply of almonds, pistachios, milk and fruit. But now it resembles an ocean, and people are worried.
Months of storms have pummelled the area and saturated the basin’s soil, which sits about halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles.
The rains have led to floods that have damaged towns and deluged farms and have begun to refill what was once the sprawling Tulare Lake.
“This is a slowly unfolding natural disaster,” Jeffrey Mount, a senior fellow at the Water Policy Centre of the Public Policy Institute of California, told NBC. “There’s no way to handle it with the existing infrastructure.”
And more water is on the way, it is feared.
Experts say a months-long, slow-burning crisis will play out next.
A historic snowpack looms in the mountains above the basin – as it melts, it is likely to put downstream communities through months of torment.
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The flooding, which follows several years of extreme drought, showcases the weather whiplash typical of California, which vacillates between too wet and too dry.
The influence of climate change can make the state’s extremes more intense.
‘Impending monster’ in the mountains
In the farming communities that dot the historic lake bed, accusations of sabotaged levees, frantic efforts to patch breached banks and feuds – common occurrences during flood fights in the area – have started already, said Matt Hurley, a former manager for several water districts in the Tulare Basin.
“The problem this year is it’s just begun. We may have water running at or near our flood level – in all of our streams, through August or September,” Mr Hurley said.
“This impending monster – a 50-foot-plus deep snowpack that we haven’t seen in 75 years – is sitting up there, and we just don’t know how fast it’s going to turn into water and come out of the mountains.”
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California officials have geared up for a long fight against flooding. Nearly 700 people were assigned to help with the emergency response just in Tulare County, where floodwater has damaged more than 900 structures so far.
The flooding could also spell disaster for farmworkers and those who live in the rural communities that dot the Tulare Basin.
“This is a low-income community. People are not out here stocking up food. They go pay cheque to pay cheque in a lot of cases,” said community organiser Kayode Kadara, from the nearby town of Allensworth.
“All we’ve heard so far is with this unprecedented snowfall, what we’ve seen so far is a baby flood.”
Joe Biden has met with Xi Jinping for the last time as US president, where the Chinese leader said he is “ready to work” with Donald Trump.
Speaking at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Lima, Peru, Mr Biden said the US and China’s relationship should be about “competition, not conflict”.
“We haven’t always agreed, but our conversations have always been candid and always been frank,” he said.
“We’ve never kidded one another. These conversations prevent miscalculations, and they ensure the competition between our two countries will not veer into conflict.
“We’ve been level with one another. I think that’s vital.”
But despite Mr Trump’s proposed measures, Mr Xi said his country’s goal “of a stable, healthy and sustainable China-US relationship remains unchanged”.
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“Our commitment to mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and… cooperation as principles for handling China-US relations remains unchanged,” he added.
The Chinese president then said the country is “ready to work with the new US administration to maintain communication, expand cooperation and manage differences, so as to strive for a steady transition”.
Neither Mr Xi nor Mr Biden responded to a question about whether there were concerns about Mr Trump’s proposed tariffs.
The president-elect has also named several China hawks to his transition team, such as Senator Marco Rubio as secretary of state and Representative Mike Waltz as national security adviser.
Former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson says the health scare in June, which forced the postponement of his boxing match with Jake Paul, almost cost him his life.
“I almost died in June,” Tyson wrote on X, adding that he “had 8 blood transfusions. Lost half my blood and 25lbs in hospital”.
The 58-year-old, who lost to the YouTuber-turned-boxer in a unanimous points decision in Texas, tweeted that the situation was far worse than people had realised.
Following Tyson’s recovery, after reportedly suffering an ulcer flareup, he reflected on the result of the fight.
“This is one of those situations when you lost but still won… no regrets to get in the ring one last time,” he said.
That contrasts with Tyson’s comments after the match in which he refused to confirm whether it would be his last fight.
“It depends on the situation,” Tyson said before suggesting a fight with Paul’s older brother, Logan Paul, who was standing near him in the ring.
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Critics argued that the revised match – which involved fewer and shortened rounds, as well as heavier gloves – fell short of entertaining.
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0:30
Paul beats Tyson by unanimous decision
Some claimed it appeared more like a glorified sparring session.
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It was Tyson’s first sanctioned pro bout since 2005, when he lost to Kevin McBride and then went into retirement – only briefly reappearing for an exhibition match in 2020 against Roy Jones Jr.
Paul has plenty to prove
Paul, 27, still has plenty to prove. The social media influencer wants to be a championship fighter and compete for a championship belt within two years. “I think it could happen in the next 24 months,” Paul said.
“I truly, truly believe in my skills and my ability and my power. And the cruiserweight division is seemingly open for the taking on that timeline,” he added.
The only professional match he has lost so far has been to Tommy Fury, the less-accomplished brother of former heavyweight champion Tyson Fury.
But there are questions about when Paul will fight a contender in his prime, as opposed to former champions or mixed martial artists.
Intriguingly, in the days before his fight with Tyson, Paul mentioned super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez, considered one of the best boxers in the world.
According to reports, the Texas bout earned Paul $40m (£31.7m) versus $20m (£15.8m) for Tyson.
Netflix said 60 million households worldwide viewed the contest on its streaming platform, and nearly 50 million tuned in to watch the undercard which saw Ireland’s Katie Taylor beat Puerto Rico’s Amanda Serrano.
Even so there were some technical glitches. More than 90,000 users reported problems on Netflix at its peak, according to the website Downdetector, which tracks outages.
But MAGA supporters seem ready to wait for the Trump dynasty to carry on in power – “Barron Trump President 2044” merchandise is already on sale on the internet.
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Having guided his father on to the voter-rich “manosphere” of internet sites, Barron has become Donald’s favourite son and the main repository of the Trump family’s political ambitions – if he wants the role.
Young, blonde, with handsome Slavic looks, and towering over his 6ft 3in father, Barron, at least 6ft 7in, is a cult figure with the MAGA faithful who talk of his “aristocratic bearing”.
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This year, when he made his first, rare, appearance at a campaign rally, his father suggested his other sons watch out for the competition he represents.
Overtaking his older half-siblings – Don Jr, Eric and Ivanka – in the pecking order is a remarkable metamorphosis for the mommie’s boy who seemed on the brink of tears nine years ago at his father’s first victory rally in New York City.
This year at Mar-a-Lago, Barron and his mother were the First Family elect, the first on to the stage with the president-elect.
Barron was singled out for thanks by his father. The young male voters Barron directed his father to woo had indeed made a significant contribution to the Republicans’ across-the-board victory.
The Wall Street Journal reported a shift to the right of some 28 points toward Trump in this group.
According to the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning, 56% of male voters aged 18-28 backed Trump in 2024, up from 41% in 2020.
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How Trump won the election
In the last campaign, Jared Kushner was in charge of the internet, then in his 30s.
This time a 27-year-old Republican consultant called Alex Bruesewitz produced a list of possible podcast appearances, which Trump immediately referred him to his youngest son: “Barron knows this stuff very well”.
Barron and his 18-year-old best friend, Bo Loudon, whose parents appeared on TV’s Wife Swap, then guided Trump to spend hours talking to hosts such as Logan Paul, Adin Ross, the Nelk Boys, Theo Von and, of course, Joe Rogan.
Trump’s interview with the comedian Theo Von has been viewed 15 million times.
His appearance on Joe Rogan has notched up 50 million views on YouTube alone, far more views than the presidential debates and convention keynote speeches.
There are now recriminations in the Democratic camp because Kamala Harris turned down her invitation to go on Joe Rogan for fear of “a backlash with some of our progressive colleagues”.
The left-wing independent Senator Bernie Sanders is almost a lone voice on the left arguing that cancelling right-of-centre outlets is counterproductive.
Trump burnished his celebrity on The Apprentice but was quick to understand that newer media outlets are the way to reach younger voters.
“They don’t grow up watching television the same way as we did. They grow up looking at the internet and watching a computer, right,” he noted.
Jamie Tahsin of Vice, who has spent five years studying the ultimate online bro Andrew Tate, describes Barron as “chronically online”.
The looser conversational style of these podcasts suited Trump, who came across as less aggressive, partly because he was not challenged or asked to talk about policy detail.
He was in tune with their typical obsessions of sports, bling, macho anti-woke posturing, trucks, wrestling and cryptocurrencies.
Barron follows all this stuff and seems to be most interested in cryptocurrencies.
He joined his father and brothers to launch the World Liberty Financial.
On a livestream with two of WLF’s other founders, Chase Herro and Zachary Folkman, Trump commented: “Barron knows so much about this. Barron’s a young guy but he knows it. He talks about his wallet.”
Herro is also known for running the Date Hotter Girls service and crypto markets have soared since Trump’s re-election.
The name Barron, with its aristocratic overtones, has long appealed to Trump.
When he was making his way as a businessman, Trump used to call reporters claiming to be “John Barron”, a colleague of Trump’s, who would then go on to praise Trump’s various enterprises.
Then he gave the name Barron to his son.
Barron appears to share the family fondness for money-making schemes but it is not obvious yet that this diffident and polite young man has political ambitions. Those who know Barron say he is quiet, gentle and considerate – the opposite of a MAGA frat boy.
Barron went to three high schools as his father moved around the US. He has just started as a freshman at New York University’s Stern Business School. When fellow students teased him asking how he voted, he declined to say he is a Republican.
As so often his mother, Melania, spoke up for him, also without being partisan. She posted a picture of her son in the polling booth captioned “Voted for the first time – for his dad”.
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Earlier Melania publicly turned down the invitation for Barron to speak at this year’s Republican Convention. His cousin Kia took the gig instead. Barron himself has no public social media presence.
Melania and her parents did much of the work raising Barron. They came to the US from Slovenia, then part of Yugoslavia. Barron speaks fluent Slovenian and as a small boy he spoke English with an accent like his mother.
His father claims he also speaks Chinese. Like her, he is an enigmatic figure, though he dresses in a suit and tie for his public appearances and is unlikely to appear in a coat emblazoned with “I don’t really care do you.”
America may be a republic rather than a monarchy, but dynasties still matter. They accumulate wealth and political know-how. Two generations of the Bush family were elected president.
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Don Jr and Eric are keen, but not very bright, even in their father’s estimation.
Eric is concentrating on the commercial side of the Trump empire, while his wife Lara, currently co-chair of the Republican Party, may be in line for a job in the next administration.
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Don Jr goes down well with the MAGA faithful but lobbied hard for JD Vance to be vice president, scoring an own goal by recruiting someone likely better placed to follow his father into the White House.
Tiffany was brought up by her mother, Marla Maples, in California and largely stays away from campaigning.
That leaves the burden of expectation on the shoulders of Barron.
The world will have to wait until 2044 to see if his own ambitions, his mother, and his father’s legacy, leave him with a shot at the presidency.