SENATE WING of U.S. Capitol building (Shutterstock).

Congress is “halfway there” in appropriating enough money to operate the federal government, as the U.S. Senate on Friday approved a $460 billion spending package on a bipartisan 75-32 vote.

President Joe Biden is expected to quickly sign the resolution, which should fund the national government through the end of fall.

Still undone is a resolution covering funding for the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security.

The funding sticks with spending levels negotiated last year between Biden and former Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy.

“This isn’t a bill I would have written on my own,” said Sen. PattyMurray (D-Washington), chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee. “But this is a strong bipartisan package that sustains vital resources that matter in people’s lives.”

No UFOs or UAPs, says Defense Department

Are there extraterrestrial aliens up there flying around in flying saucers or other spacecraft?

Not that Uncle Sam is aware of.

A report issued Friday from the Department of Defense’s All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office said it found “no evidence” of unidentified flying objects or unidentified anomalous phenomena (the current term) that came from anywhere but Earth.

The report indicated that sightings were the result of misidentifications. In the recent past, UAP sightings might have been “classified experimental technology” from the U.S. or other nations.

The first volume covered the period from 1945 to Nov. 1, 2023. A second volume will be issued covering information assembled since then.

Santos says he will try again

GEORGE SANTOS

George Santos, the former Congressman ousted from the House of Representatives for lying about his past, his education and even his ethnicity on his way to being indicted on 23 counts of federal crimes, isn’t done with politics.

On Friday Santos posted on social media that “I want to announce that I will be returning to the arena politics and challenging Nick,” referring to Rep. Nick LaLota, a Republican.

Santos had flipped a typically Democratic district in the 2022, but after he was ousted the district was recaptured by Democrats. The district he now will compete in leans more Republican and is represented by LaLota.

Oregon will recriminalize drug use

A bill that will again make possession and use of illegal drugs a crime will be signed into law by Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek, a Democrat.

POSSESSION and use of certain drugs will be recriminalized in Oregon (Shutterstock).

The new law will allow for a misdemeanor sentence of 180 days for drug possession. It repeals a measure approved by voters in 2020 that sought to treat drug addiction as a public health concern, instead of a criminal offense.

Since 2020, drug overdoses in Oregon have risen sharply and the open consumption of drugs in the public has become widespread in Portland and other cities in the state.

 A study suggests that passage of the bill would result in an additional 1,333 new convictions yearly for people possessing methamphetamine, fentanyl or cocaine,

 Another 533 people could be jailed if their probation was violated by drug use.

Weather: Clouds from both sides now …

The West Orange County area will be under a cloud for at least the next three or four days. The forecast for Saturday is for partly cloudy skies with a daytime high of 72 and a  overnight low of 49. Sunday should have morning fog with afternoon clouds and a high of 69 (51). On Monday the temps will drop to 66 (52) with partly cloudy skies. Tuesday will have morning clouds and some sun in the afternoon with a high of 67 (52).