As The Bee's Robert Rodriguez reported in today's water story, actor and comedian Paul Rodriguez appeared via a live remote Tuesday evening from on Fox News' Sean Hannity show, along with Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Visalia. Speaking from a farm field in Huron, Rodriguez and Nunes were surrounded by dozens of residents.

"Right where we're at, this used to be an almond orchard," Rodriguez said. "We grew some of the sweetest almonds ever. Now it's firewood."

Take a look at the full interview here:

Rodriguez is a member of the Latino Water Coalition, which blames environmental pumping restrictions in the Delta for the Valley's rising unemployment rates. But one economist issued a report this week that disputes those claims, saying the foreclosure crisis is a much bigger drag on the San Joaquin Valley's economy.

Jeffrey Michael, who runs the Business Forecasting Center at the University of Pacific in Stockton, says the housing construction collapse has cost the region 47,000 jobs, compared with only 6,000 jobs lost in 2009 as a result of water shortages.

"There is ample evidence that the drought impacts on employment are grossly overstated," Michael says in the report, called "Fish or Foreclosure." Read his findings here.