The effects of more coal trains coming through Spokane and the rest of Washington, as well as possible increases to global warming of that coal being burned in Asia, must be studied before a new terminal can be built near Bellingham, a state agency said…
MSNBC, though liberal commentator's Rachel Maddow's blog, is featuring Spokane Valley state Rep. Matt Shea after he appeared at a survivalist rally over the weekend. Shea's comments at the rally, as reported by the Coeur d'Alene Press, are similar to ones he's made at other…
A joint federal and state study of the impacts of a proposed coal terminal on the Puget Sound will extend beyond the Bellingham area where it would be built and include communities like Spokane that will experience a sharp increase in traffic by coal trains.…
Another volley has been launched at the temporary status of the sales tax deduction on federal income tax returns. Once again, it comes from a Washington lawmaker. Rep. Doc Hastings, R-Pasco, filed a bill with Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla., Tuesday that would make permanent a…
When filing opened for elected offices in various towns and districts a couple months ago, a few attracted a large crowd of interested citizens and most drew one or two candidates. But some didn't get any takers. As in none. Zippo. Zilch. Empty space on…
Of the nearly 200,000 ballots Spokane County sent to voters this month, only about one in eight has come back in with one week left in the primary election for many local offices. Admittedly the primary ballot in many areas is short. Only two of…
Washington State Republican Party Chairman Kirby Wilbur resigned Monday afternoon, saying he was taking a job at a conservative youth organization that was too good to pass up. Wilbur, 59, a former conservative talk show host who still fills in on Seattle’s KVI radio, is…
OLYMPIA -- Washington does the best of any state in figuring out the benefits some state programs provide for the money it spends. A review of the states' track record on cost-benefit analyses by Pew Charitable Trusts, said the majority of states have a mixed…
LIFE magazine Last week's Spin Control blog was admittedly a little light on content because I was working on Sunday's story about the trials and tribulations of getting Washington's recreational marijuana system up and running. One of the more interesting interviews was with Mike Steenhout…
Meanwhile, at the Secretary of State’s office, someone filed an initiative to rename the fallen and resurrected Skagit River Bridge for initiative entrepreneur Tim Eyman. . . To read the rest of this item, or to comment, continue inside the blog.
OLYMPIA – These are the dog days of the summer around the state capital. It’s not as uniformly sunny as Eastern Washington. But morning fog and low clouds – a pattern Seattle’s television weather heads describe with the more elegant-sounding title of “marine layer” –…
Cantor: Spokane-bound. AP photo House Majority Leader Eric Cantor is scheduled to be the special guest at a campaign fundraiser for Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers next month. He'll be making an appearance at the annual Pink Flamingo Barbecue on Aug. 8 Tickets for the barbecue,…
Talking Points Memo boils Thursday down to less than two minutes, and even manages to find a clip that manages to mention the week's two most pervasive 24-hour-network-news events: Anthony Weiner and the royal baby.
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Indecision Political Humor,The Daily Show on Facebook The Daily Show had lots to mock after weeks of royal baby coverage, culminating with several days of delivery and presenting of the new prince. Having John…
House Republicans seem to be leaving little to chance as their members prepare to spend the August recess among their voters. A “planning kit” explains how to maximize exposure and minimize contrary opinions on issues like health care reform. In the kit’s introductory letter to…
Flanked by earthmovers and pickups, with the Riverfront Park gondolas gliding overhead, Scott Morris talked fondly Tuesday of the year 1889, city parks, Spokane and the company he runs, Avista. “We, in a sense, grew up together,” Morris said to a gathering of about 50…
Up in the Yukon, the Whitehorse City Council knows how to draw folks into the live broadcasts of its meetings. Maybe the Spokane City Council could get more viewers to its sessions if it had a commercial like this. Of course, a snappy commercial is…
OLYMPIA -- Listening to the discussions over state budgets over the last several years, one might have thought that Washington state spending was growing faster than Usain Bolt on steroids. At least, that seemed to be the position of some Republicans who pointed to rising…
OLYMPIA – Retail sales in Washington jumped 8 percent in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period in 2012, hitting about $26 billion for all taxable sales, the state Department of Revenue reported Monday. Double-digit growth in taxable sales for construction,…
The Washington Post today has a great read about a new federal rule so broad that it requires a Missouri magician who pulls a rabbit out of a hat to write a disaster management plan to explain how he will protect his rabbit in case…
OLYMPIA — Washington voters will be asked in November what they think about five tax increases. What legislators do with that knowledge is pretty much up to them, because the taxes are already law, and the election itself won’t change that. . . To read…
OLYMPIA – Whether you are for or against stricter background checks on gun sales, you'll have a chance in the coming months to support your position by signing an initiative to next year's Legislature. If both Initiative 591 and Initiative 594 get the required signatures,…
U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers and her husband Brian Rodgers are expecting their third baby in December. A reader called to ask if that will make the Eastern Washington Republican the first member of Congress to have a third child while in office. We suspected…
Transparency in government is a great ideal, but like so many things it can be somewhat less than ideal in practice. Take, for example, the edict of Initiative 960 that the Office of Financial Management let the public know the cost of legislation that could…
From this morning's paper: The next time you change the ring tone on your cellphone, consider choosing the sound of a cash register ringing. Or maybe The Beatles’ song “Taxman.” Washington cellphone users have the dubious distinction of paying the second-highest taxes in the country.…