Washington News Headlines

Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), top Democrat on the Senate health committee, delivered the following remarks at a press conference regarding the Congressional Budget Office’s (CBO) new score for the Senate Republican Trumpcare bill: After weeks of secret...

Tuesday, June 27, 2017   LOCAL   ► From David Bacon — A new farm worker union is born — The signing of the contract with Sakuma Brothers Farms was a quiet end to four years of strikes and boycotts, in which these workers had organized the first new...

Take action Wednesday at noon outside Columbia Bank’s Tacoma HQ   TACOMA — The Washington-based Freedom Foundation, a right-wing tax exempt organization with the mission of defunding and destroying unions, refuses to disclose its donors. But over the...

Monday, June 26, 2017   MUSLIM TRAVEL BAN   ► BREAKING from AP — Supreme Court reinstates Trump travel ban, will hear arguments — The Supreme Court is letting the administration mostly enforce its 90-day ban on travelers from six mostly Muslim countries,...

SEATTLE — There are just five days left for the Washington State Legislature to agree on the 2017-19 budget before much of the state government shuts down on July 1. This extended political stare-down is costing precious taxpayer dollars and also costing...

Friday, June 23, 2017   THIS WASHINGTON   ► From Teamsters 117 — Teamster Jessica Poston speaks out at a rally for state workers — Teamster Jessica Poston, a counselor at the Washington Corrections Center for Women, joined several other state employees...

UPDATE (June 26, 2017) — There’s STILL no budget deal with just 5 days until the state shutdown. Call 1-800-562-6000 and leave a message for your State Senator to STOP THE SHUTDOWN and pass a budget! The following is from the All In for Action coalition,...

For all the enthusiasm I hear from my party about saving endangered species, I wish there was a little more sympathy for the most endangered creature of all – the Democrat who represents a rural district. There aren’t many of us left, and the way things...

Thursday, June 22, 2017   THIS WASHINGTON   ► KOMO News — Third overtime session begins with shutdown looming — The second special session ended with no agreement and lawmakers immediately went into a third overtime session with June 30 as the deadline....

It takes a lot of time and dedication to build a good reputation but it takes only one bad choice to destroy it in an instant. As state treasurer, I carry this lesson with me every day as I work with other state officials and dedicated treasury staff to...

We have poll results out from our first Wire Poll, and some suggested topics to share for this fall’s first Re-Wire Policy Conference. So, while summer is just days away, we’ve got a few things we think are worth keeping your eye on as you find time to...

For Trump to keep his promises, he must force GOP to make it less ‘mean’   By LEO W. GERARD WASHINGTON, D.C. (June 21, 2017) — Donald Trump is right. The House health insurance bill is “mean, mean, mean,” as he put it last week. He correctly called the...

Wednesday, June 21, 2017   THIS WASHINGTON   ► In today’s (Everett) Herald — With state budget impasse, countdown to shutdown is on — An exchange between the chief House and Senate budget writers Tuesday doesn’t bode well for those counting on lawmakers...

The Washington State Wire conducted a telephone poll of likely voters in the Seattle mayoral primary coming up in August. The poll was in the field for four days over this past weekend.  It had 475 respondents with a margin of error of +/- 4.0%. You can...

Much has been made of the new look of the Washington electoral map resulting from the 2106 election. Like the national election pattern, Donald Trump won acres while Hillary Clinton won voters. Although Trump’s 37% was the lowest Republican vote for...

The Washington State Economic and Revenue Forecast Council released its quarterly state revenue forecast today. According to Chief Economist and Executive Director Steve Lerch, the General Fund-State (GF-S) revenue forecast has been increased by $81...

Tuesday, June 20, 2017   BOEING   ► In today’s Seattle Times — Paris Air Show: Boeing stacks up more MAX 10 orders and offers detail on ‘797’ — Boeing said that the fuselage of its proposed next new airplane will be made from carbon fiber composite…...

The green space in Seattle has been caught up in a decade of delays and financial woes. Its ribbon-cutting came on the 50th anniversary of Monterey Pop.
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In response to the withdrawal of the lawsuit against Mayor Murray, former U.S. Attorney Jenny Durkan released the following statement: Mayor Murray and his husband Michael are friends, and I know how painful and difficult this time has been for them. I...

Council unanimously approved a resolution  committing the City of Seattle to uphold its portion of the United States’ former commitment to the Paris Climate Accord, and reaffirming Seattle’s target to reduce City greenhouse gas emissions 58 percent below...

For the third time, legislation that would reverse the Hirst Decision has passed out of the Senate. Senate Bill 5239 seeks to reverse the Hirst Decision, which some Republicans legislators claim has unfairly hurt their constituents by potentially raising...

The Martin Luther King Jr. County Council voted unanimously today to appoint Javier Valdez as State representative to the 46th District seat held by Jessyn Farrell. Farrell recently resigned from her State House seat to campaign full time as a candidate...

Today, Emerge Washington announced that it has hired Karen Besserman as its new executive director. The 18th Emerge America affiliate, Emerge Washington officially launched in May, and will serve as the premier political leadership training organization...

Moore Information’s recent survey asked voters in the Sound Transit District how they would vote again if given the chance. When asked if they would approve the increased care tabs, sales tax, and property taxes for transit and light rail, 51 percent...

Ben Stuckart has announced that his is withdrawing from the Congressional race, citing family health issues. In the announcement, Stuckart recommits to the citizens of Spokane, who he currently serves as City Council President, admitting that he had...

The purpose of the re-launched Wire is to build a platform for political and economic voices across the spectrum of Washington State’s economy.  We do that through this curated email twice a month, through our podcast we’ve launched, and through our...

The capitol press corps is going on a collective “fishing expedition.”  That’s the term for when individuals or organizations make a wide request for public information hoping to catch anything in the metaphorical net. They have submitted a public...

Jenny Durkan, first-time candidate and former U.S. Attorney appointed by President Obama, announced that her campaign has raised more than $163,000. Jenny received donations from 650 individuals in less than three weeks as a candidate for Seattle mayor....

Today Representative Matt Manweller introduced legislation to privatize The Evergreen State College and called for the Human Rights Commission to open a formal investigation into Evergreen: These so-called campus activists want to set us back 50 years to...

Today, the White House announced its intent to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement on climate change. Over 190 countries, from China to India to the EU, have signed the agreement and committed to taking actions to reduce their greenhouse...

Have you ever heard someone in this state say, “I wish Washington were more like New Jersey?” You’re more likely to see Bigfoot. But the Washington State Supreme Court has left state government at a crossroads. Unless caution is observed, Washington will...

A retired F.B.I. investigator is digging into records and rediscovering old varieties in trees left stranded when family orchards failed in the 1800s.
Washington