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Dianne Feinstein made history. Now she could get honored with a post office?

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Dianne Feinstein made history. Now she could get honored with a post office?

After a barrier-breaking career over more than a half-century that took her from being the first woman mayor of San Francisco to the longest-serving female Senator in U.S. history, California’s late Sen. Dianne Feinstein may be honored with a post office named for her.

Democratic Sen. Alex Padilla, who, along with California’s junior senator, this week proposed naming a San Francisco post office after Feinstein, said it is just “a first step” in commemorating her.

“I think it’s going to take a number of honors to live up to the legacy of Senator Feinstein. So there’s other types in the works,” Padilla said in an interview.

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Still, some quickly saw the proposal as a commemoration that falls short of Feinstein’s gravitas.

“It is kind of a consolation prize rather than a signal honor,” said Ross Baker, emeritus political science professor at Rutgers University. “Naming a post office is kind of an inside joke in Congress… It’s very, very easy to do.”

The late senator died at the age of 90 in September. During more than 30 years as a U.S. senator, Feinstein played pivotal roles in creating multiple national parks, sponsored the 1990s assault weapons ban and led Democrats on both the Senate Intelligence and Senate Judiciary committees. She launched into the history books in 1978 when, as president of the San Francisco board of supervisors, she took over as the city’s leader after the mayor was assassinated. In 1992, she became the first woman to represent California in the Senate.

Recognizing someone with a post office is a fairly common occurrence on Capitol Hill. In both the House and Senate, a state’s entire delegation has to agree to the name change before the bill will be considered. So far this Congress, 150 bills have been filed to rename post offices, many in honor of members of the military who died in combat. In the last Congress, California post offices were named for an Oxnard civil rights activist, the “Pasta King” of Sonoma County, a Compton Medal of Honor recipient who died during the Vietman War and former San Diego Rep. Susan Davis, among others.

No money is included as part of a post office renaming bill. The signage outside the post office does not change to reflect the new name. Friends, family or civic organizations are left with the responsibility to pay for a sign to put up noting the commemoration.

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“All that’s done typically is a little plaque that’s put inside the post office. And so it’s more trivial than trivial,” said Arizona State University politics professor Steven Smith. “It’s a weird form of commemoration.”

Instead, many prominent members of Congress are memorialized in more obvious, lasting ways, such as renaming courthouses, federal parks, or federal buildings. There is the Thad Cochran United States Courthouse in Jackson, Miss., for instance, and the Richard Shelby Federal Building and Courthouse in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Former Rep. Edward Roybal, who represented Southern California for 30 years and co-founded the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, was recognized with the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building in Los Angeles and the Edward Roybal Campus of the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta.

The San Francisco post office Padilla and Sen. Laphonza Butler proposed naming for Feinstein is near the Embarcadero with a view overlooking the Bay Bridge. It’s on the ground level of the Rincon Center, which Feinstein oversaw redevelopment of as mayor in the 1980s.

Padilla would not describe any other efforts underway to recognize Feinstein, beyond saying they might be related to her desert conservation work.

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“We’re not at that level of detail yet, but something else,” he said.

California Reps. Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael) and Mike Thompson (D-St. Helena), filed legislation to rename the main trail in Headwaters Forest Reserve after Feinstein last year. She helped broker the 1999 deal that bought the land for the reserve from Pacific Lumber, protecting the redwoods it contained. Five months later, the bill has not been considered by the House Natural Resources Committee.

In January, the San Francisco Airport Commission voted unanimously to name its international terminal in honor of Feinstein.

In 2006, Dianne Feinstein Elementary School opened in San Francisco. At the time she told the San Francisco Chronicle that her connection to the campus would help students “look at government in a much more personal way than they otherwise would have.”

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US military announces another deadly strike against ‘narco-terrorists’

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US military announces another deadly strike against ‘narco-terrorists’

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The U.S. military announced another deadly strike against a vessel that it alleges was involved in “narco-trafficking” efforts.

“On April 19, at the direction of #SOUTHCOM commander Gen. Francis L. Donovan, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations,” U.S. Southern Command indicated in a post on X.

“Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Caribbean and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations,” the post continued.

US MILITARY KILLS 2 SUSPECTED CARTEL OPERATIVES IN LATEST EASTERN PACIFIC LETHAL STRIKE, SOUTHCOM SAYS

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The U.S. military announced that it killed three “narco-terrorists” in a strike in the Caribbean on Sunday, April 19, 2026. (@Soutcom via X)

SOUTHCOM indicated that the attack killed three men.

“Three male narco-terrorists were killed during this action. No U.S. military forces were harmed,” the post noted.

President Donald Trump’s administration has carried out dozens of deadly strikes against vessels of alleged “narco-terrorists.”

US MILITARY CONDUCTS MORE DEADLY STRIKES AGAINST VESSELS OF ALLEGED ‘NARCO-TERRORISTS’

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Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Francis L. Donovan, nominee for commander of U.S. Southern Command, testifies during his Senate confirmatino hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 15, 2026. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)

In a completely different part of the world, amid ongoing tensions between America and Iran, the U.S. attacked an Iranian-flagged cargo ship on April 19.

“Guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance (DDG 111) intercepted M/V Touska as it transited the north Arabian Sea at 17 knots enroute to Bandar Abbas, Iran. American forces issued multiple warnings and informed the Iranian-flagged vessel it was in violation of the U.S. blockade,” U.S. Central Command noted.

US SEIZES IRANIAN SHIP AFTER OPENING FIRE; PAKISTAN TALKS IN DOUBT

President Donald Trump on the South Lawn of the White House before boarding Marine One in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, April 16, 2026. (Graeme Sloan/Sipa/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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“After Touska’s crew failed to comply with repeated warnings over a six-hour period, Spruance directed the vessel to evacuate its engine room. Spruance disabled Touska’s propulsion by firing several rounds from the destroyer’s 5-inch MK 45 Gun into Touska’s engine room. U.S. Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit later boarded the non-compliant vessel, which remains in U.S. custody,” CENTCOM noted.

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Uproar over mama bear killing could help launch a state wildlife coexistence program

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Uproar over mama bear killing could help launch a state wildlife coexistence program

A month after a public uproar over a mama bear being euthanized after swiping at a resident in Monrovia, state lawmakers are considering mandating the use of nonlethal ways to help allow wildlife and humans to coexist.

Sen. Catherine Blakespear (D-Encinitas) said she believes the bear’s death, and the state’s decision to kill four wolves last year that were preying on cattle, raised public concern.

“That made everybody realize we have to do better here,” she told The Times on Thursday. “We need to recognize the importance of seeing ourselves, humans, as part of a larger ecosystem that includes animals and plants and our world and trying to protect it.”

Senate Bill 1135, introduced by Blakespear, would direct the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to create the Wildlife Coexistence Program, which would provide public education, offer technical assistance and maintain a statewide incident reporting system. It would help communities deploy nonlethal devices to deter predators, like barriers or noise and light machines.

At a legislative hearing on Tuesday, Blakespear told the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Water that a three-year state initiative offering similar services was seeing positive results — until it was discontinued two years ago after funding ran dry. She said it was time to implement a permanent program.

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“Human population growth, habitat loss and the growth of industry across California inevitably leads to interaction between humans and wildlife,” Blakespear told legislators. “No two animal species are the same and each has unique behavior patterns and territories. SB 1135 recognizes these differences and gives communities the tools to prevent conflict and respond when it occurs.”

The bill would also rename a state program that reimburses ranchers who lose livestock to wolves, calling it the Wolf-Livestock Coexistence and Compensation Program. It would require ranchers seeking compensation to show they were using nonlethal deterrents approved by the department.

Sen. Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield) stressed that life in rural areas is different than living in a city. She said some families and cattle ranchers have a genuine fear of predators.

“When these baby calves drop on the ground and then two wolves start ripping them apart, it’s not the prettiest thing you’ve ever witnessed,” said Grove, who abstained from voting on the measure. “These wolves are not puppies.”

More than 30 organizations are supporting the legislation, including the National Wildlife Federation, Defenders of Wildlife, California State Assn. of Counties, Animal Legal Defense Fund and Citizens for Los Angeles Wildlife.

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The California Farm Bureau and the California Cattlemen’s Assn. are in opposition due to concerns over funding.

Last month, Blakespear sent a letter to the chair of the Senate Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review requesting $48.8 million to implement the legislation, with $25 million earmarked for addressing wolf encounters. Half of the money for wolf conflicts would go toward deterrents; the remainder would compensate ranchers for their losses.

Kirk Wilbur, vice president of government affairs cattlemen’s association, said the organization is concerned about that division of funding — especially if funding is reduced.

Wilbur told legislators Tuesday that the organization supports some aspects of the bill and was having productive conversations with Blakespear to address their concerns.

The bill ultimately passed the committee with a 5-to-1 vote and now heads to the Senate Committee on Appropriations.

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Human wildlife conflicts have made headlines in California recently, with a bear refusing to leave a basement for weeks in Altadena and a mama bear dubbed Blondie crossing paths last month with a woman walking her dog in Monrovia.

Blondie swiped the woman’s leg, and was subsequently euthanized by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Her two cubs were sent to the San Diego Humane Society’s Ramona Wildlife Center. The bear’s death upset many in the community, as thousands had signed a petition calling for other solutions, like relocation.

Deadly wildlife attacks on humans, however, are rare in California.

There have been six reported human fatalities from mountain lions since 1890, according to the state Fish and Wildlife Department. The agency recorded one human fatality from a coyote in 1981 and another fatality from a black bear in 2023. The department has no recorded human fatalities from gray wolves.

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Trump ally diGenova tapped to lead DOJ probe into Brennan over Russia probe origins

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Trump ally diGenova tapped to lead DOJ probe into Brennan over Russia probe origins

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The Justice Department is turning to former Trump attorney Joeseph diGenova to spearhead a probe into ex-CIA Director John Brennan and others over the origins of the Trump-Russia investigation, as the department reshuffles leadership of the sprawling inquiry.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has tapped diGenova to serve as counsel overseeing the matter, according to a New York Times report, putting a former Trump attorney in a key role in the high-profile probe. A federal grand jury seated in Miami has been impaneled since late last year.

The Department of Justice did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

DOJ ACTIVELY PREPARING TO ISSUE GRAND JURY SUBPOENAS RELATING TO JOHN BRENNAN INVESTIGATION: SOURCES

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Joseph diGenova represented President Donald Trump during special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call/Getty Images)

DiGenova, a former U.S. attorney in Washington, D.C., who represented Trump during special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, has repeatedly accused Brennan of misconduct tied to the origins of the Russia probe—allegations that have not resulted in criminal charges.

He also said in a 2018 appearance on Fox News that Brennan colluded with the FBI and DOJ to frame Trump.

The origins of the Russia investigation have been the subject of ongoing scrutiny by Trump allies, who have argued that intelligence and law enforcement officials improperly launched the probe.

BRENNAN INDICTMENT COULD COME WITHIN ‘WEEKS’ AS PROSECUTORS REQUEST OFFICIAL TRANSCRIPTS

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Joseph diGenova has previously said that ex-CIA chief John Brennan colluded with the FBI and DOJ to frame Trump. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call/Getty Images)

DiGenova’s appointment follows the ouster of Maria Medetis Long, a national security prosecutor in the South Florida U.S. attorney’s office. She had been overseeing the inquiry, including a false statements probe related to Brennan and broader conspiracy-related investigations.

As the investigation continues, federal investigators have issued subpoenas seeking information related to intelligence assessments of Russian interference in the 2016 election.

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John Brennan has denied any wrongdoing related to the Russia investigation. (William B. Plowman/NBC/NBC NewsWire via Getty Images; Alex Wong/Getty Images)

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Brennan has previously denied wrongdoing related to the Russia investigation and has defended the intelligence community’s assessment that Moscow interfered in the 2016 election.

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