World leaders breathed an audible sigh of relief that the United States under President Joe Biden is rejoining the global effort to curb climate change, a cause that his predecessor had shunned over the past four years.

Led by Cheney, 10 House Republicans back Trump impeachment

In moments of crisis, of war and terror, of loss and mourning, American leaders have sought to utter words to match the moment in hope that the power of oratory can bring order to chaos and despair.

Washington Legislature convenes under tight security

Twitter bans Trump, citing risk of violent incitement

A Republican West Virginia state lawmaker has been federally charged for entering a restricted area of the U.S. Capitol after he livestreamed himself rushing into the building with a mob of President Donald Trump’s supporters. Other arrests have been made and are coming. Twitter also permanently suspends Trumps’s account due to the risk of further incitement of violence.

When President Trump-supporting insurrectionists stormed the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to overturn the presidential election on Wednesday, Jan. 6 2021 the nation was shocked, but not unwarned. A series of dress rehearsals of sorts have played out in statehouses in Michigan, Oregon, Idaho and elsewhere in recent months, with armed protesters forcing their way into buildings.

Race double standard clear in rioters’ Capitol insurrection

Fallen wet leaves cover the hood and roof of an Acura SUV after a rain storm , Friday, Nov. 6, 2020, at the corner of Sharp Avenue and Dakota Street in Spokane.

Judging by the plywood, it’s shaping up to be an Election Day like no other.

A great blue heron catches a fish in Cannon Hill pond on Spokane’s South Hill,Tuesday, Oct 6, 2020. The bird has become a frequent visitor to the pond recently and is favorite subject of local photographers and spectators.

Bees make a beeline on to a sunflower growing in Lupito Flores’ back yard near the corner of Ivory Street and Thurston Avenue, Tuesday, Sept. 1, 22020, in Spokane, Wash.

An osprey approaches a juvenile in a nest above Hauser Lake, Idaho on Monday, Aug. 10, 2020. Young osprey make their first migration alone, instinctively knowing where to go without following their parents.

Despite hikers on the Centennial Trail , swimmers cooling off in the Spokane River and other distractions, a great blue heron stands virtually motionless in the shallows of the south bank of the river east of the Division Street Bridge, intent on snatching up a fish to eat under the overhanging trees, Friday, July 31, 2020.

Holly Mullen, left, and Carol Whitcomb take a lunch break from painting the colorful scenes in the Ferris Perennial Garden at Manito Park, Friday afternoon, July 24, 2020, in Spokane. They met at the park to celebrate Whitcomb’s recent 70th birthday.

Laura Wiens and her granddaughter Emma Wiens, 10, put their brushes to canvas as they paint an idillic scene in the Manito Park’s perennial garden on Wed., June 3, 2020. Laura, who lives in Crescent City, California, is visiting family in Spokane. She bought a painting easel for Emma and is helping her learn the fine art of oil painting.

Four-year-old Whitman Pyle waves at pedestrians while he follows his dad, Whitworth University grounds manager Brandon Pyle, right, back to the Grounds department office on a mostly deserted college campus, Friday, May 15, 2020. Brandon Pyle sometimes lets Whitman, and his electric truck, come to work with him.

Our new series Enterprising Spirit documents how businesses and workers are managing the economy’s slow return to life after its sudden shutdown in March – and adapting to new challenges ahead.

The transportation department of East Valley School District arranged 22 buses to spell out the year as a way to honor this year’s graduating seniors. A small sign reads “Congratulations/#Quarantined” The buses were arranged on the field of the former Mountain View Middle School, which is now a training facility for the Spokane Sheriff’s Department.

On Track Academy is honoring its 260-plus graduating seniors with a display of their photos on the fence at the school. The photos will stay up for a few weeks until the senior class has a drive-through viewing, then the signs will be given to each graduate. The school offers alternatives to mainstream high schools with programs that are customized to each student.