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Eye On Olympia archive for Jan. 1, 2008

FRIDAY, JULY 25, 2008

The Pam Roach Report...

...is coming. Roach, the often controversial state senator, will soon be blogging from Beijing.Representing Gov. Gregoire, on August 7th I will present the leaders of Sichuan Province, our sister state, with the promise of a new, privately-funded school building. she writes. She's primarily in China,…

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TUESDAY, JULY 22, 2008



Jobs down slightly...

Mixed news on the economy:The seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate rose slightly in June, from 5.3 percent to 5.5 percent, according to the state Department of Employment Security. The number of jobs is holding steady, the agency says, but more people -- particularly recent graduates -- are…

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MONDAY, JULY 21, 2008

106 days to go...

Republican response to the ethics complaint filed earlier today by Democrats against state Attorney General Rob McKenna:"The state Democrats are so desperate to resuscitate the floundering campaign of their lackluster and ethically-challenged attorney general candidate, John Ladenburg, that they've wildly fired a shot in their…

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Rolling on roads near you...

The "National Bush Legacy Bus Tour" is rolling into Boise today, according to its website, and from there heads to Seattle.Touted as a "45-foot, 28-ton museum on wheels," the bus is no traveling presidential library. Painted on the outside:"The Bush legacy: Economy in crisis, endless…

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Meanwhile...

I return, tanned, rested, and astonished at all the stuff that's happened in the past week. In no particular order:-The Seattle Times' Andrew Garber has a good overview of where the $8 billion in new spending under Gov. Gregoire went. From the story:• About half…

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MONDAY, JULY 14, 2008

The also-rans...

Barring a stunning election surprise, it will be Gregoire versus Rossi on the November ballot. But there are eight other folks in the running, most of whom you've probably never heard of.Among the contenders:-an oft-arrested "international man of diplomacy,"-candidates promoting hemp, holistic medicine and year-round…

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FRIDAY, JULY 11, 2008

This day in history...

From the Secretary of State's "This day in history" website function:This Day in Washington HistoryJuly 11, 1889People living on the North Side of Spokane complained that unsupervised prisoners from chain gangs were roving around the city, bothering and frightening people. Some had roved so far…

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THURSDAY, JULY 10, 2008

WEDNESDAY, JULY 9, 2008


Endorsements and counting coup...

The Pierce County sheriff's deputies' union last night endorsed Attorney General Rob McKenna for re-election after interviewing both McKenna and his Democratic opponent, Pierce County executive (and former local prosecutor) John Ladenburg.Political reporters get a lot of "endorsed by" press releases this time of year,…

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Update from the Sunshine Committee...

From this morning's paper:OLYMPIA – Despite concerns by open-government advocates over two recent court rulings, a state task force looks unlikely to recommend changing the law that allows public officials and attorneys to keep some of their discussions and work secret."It's not broken, so please…

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MONDAY, JULY 7, 2008


Today Thimphu, tomorrow Olympia...

The national assembly of Bhutan has banned lawmakers from toting their laptops into the capitol, Thomson Reuters reports, "for fear they might spend their time playing computer games."Lawmakers in the Himalayan kingdom, which until recently was a monarchy, overruled objections by lawmakers who said the…

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IdahObama?

Bumperactive, an online bumper-sticker maker ($4.50 each), is trying to design Barack Obama bumper stickers for every state.There's "'bama for Obama" (Alabama, yes), "GumbObama" (Louisiana), a Cheeseheads-themed "Obama Favre" for Wisconsin and, for Arizona, "Re-elect Senator John McCain 2008." (Emphasis on "senator.")In this field of…

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THURSDAY, JULY 3, 2008

And they're in...

I-1029 has turned in nearly 317,000 signatures, according to campaign manager Jeff Parsons.Parsons said he's confident that the measure will withstand any challenge regarding the initiative-to-the-legislature wording error on the form. (See below)"With almost 317,000 people signing this, it's definitely something people want," he said…

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SEIU's Initiative 1029: Uh-oh...

In 50 minutes, proponents of Initiative 1029 are scheduled to deliver thousands of petitions to the Secretary of State's office in Olympia. Presumably, they'll have enough signatures to get the measure -- which would mandate more training and background checks for some health workers --…

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TUESDAY, JULY 1, 2008

BIAW shifting ad strategy to TV...

Gov. Chris Gregoire's campaign says that the Building Industry Association of Washington, fresh from a month of radio ads, appears poised to launch new anti-Gregoire ads on TV. The group's been checking media-buy records at TV stations."It is no surprise that Republican Dino Rossi's biggest…

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Short takes and breaking news from the Washington Legislature and the state capital.



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