There is no question we’ve made some progress since the Nisqually quake traumatically reminded us that we live in a region that belongs to the Pacific Ring of Fire. Yet there is also a lot that remains to be done.
Monthly Archives: February 2021
Last Week In Congress: How Cascadia’s U.S. lawmakers voted (February 22nd-27th)
The week’s major votes included House passage of the American Rescue Plan and Senate confirmation of three Biden Cabinet nominees: Jennifer Granholm, Tom Vilsack, Linda Taylor-Greenfield.
U.S. House passes Biden administration’s American Rescue Plan to combat COVID-19
The vote on final passage was two hundred and nineteen to two hundred and twelve. All Republicans voted nay, and all but two Democrats voted aye.
U.S. House passes sweeping wilderness protection bill that includes PNW’s Olympics
The Protecting America’s Wilderness and Public Lands Act designates approximately 1.5 million acres of public land as wilderness and incorporates more than 1,200 river miles into the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System.
Manka Dhingra’s “duty to intervene” police accountability bill gets State Senate approval
Senate Bill 5066 would require officers to intervene when they see a fellow offer engaging in excessive force. It would also require officers to report wrongdoing to their superiors.
Ailing Fry’s Electronics is no more: Chain goes out of business after thirty-six years
The eclectic brick and mortar retailer, which was able to remain a going concern for years after the demise of competitors like Circuit City and CompUSA, has itself reached the end of the line after thirty-six years in business.
Kevin Mather’s departure from the Seattle Mariners was absolutely necessary
The ex-club president proved, repeatedly, that he doesn’t have the qualities needed in a leader. It was absolutely necessary that the Mariners sever ties with him.
The Texas-sized politics of calamity: Disasters put a spotlight on elected officials’ negligence
Will the country wake up to the need for infrastructure modernization following the horrors in Texas, or will we see right-wing politicians escape responsibility and go on demonizing clean renewable energy?
The airbrushing of the late Rush Limbaugh: A mocking, racist demagogue is depicted as shy, private, and “enormously generous”
For decades, Rush Limbaugh heaped abuse on people as a syndicated practitioner of hate speech. Now he’s gone. His contemporaries in right wing media are now trying to memorialize a Rush who never existed.
Proposal to fund childcare with a capital gains tax advances in the Washington State Senate
In a historic vote, the Washington State Senate’s Ways & Means Committee approved a progressive tax reform idea NPI has been championing for years.
Tim Eyman concedes that judge’s sentence won’t keep him out of Washington politics
Eyman’s convenient pivot away from **Help me — Attorney General Bob Ferguson is trying to ban me from politics for life!** to **Full steam ahead — nothing’s gonna stop me** was entirely predictable.
Murray and Cantwell take up gavels in the Senate as heirs to Scoop and Maggie’s legacy
With Democrats now running Congress’ upper chamber again after over a half-decade of Republican control, each veteran senator chairs an influential Senate committee.
Last Week In Congress: How Cascadia’s U.S. lawmakers voted (February 8th-13th)
The week’s major votes included the Senate’s failure to convict Donald Trump of inciting an insurrection against the United States and confirmation of Denis McDonough to head the VA.
Despite Republicans’ depravity, Donald Trump is and shall always remain guilty of treason
Donald Trump is guilty. He may not have been convicted of his treachery by the requisite two-thirds of the Senate as the Constitution requires. But he did the crime and he will rightly be remembered by history as a criminal and a traitor.