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News >  WA Government

Cathy McMorris Rodgers voted top Republican on powerful Energy and Commerce Committee

UPDATED: Wed., Dec. 2, 2020

WASHINGTON – House Republicans elected Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers on Wednesday to lead the party on the influential Energy and Commerce Committee, making her the first woman to lead either party in the 225-year history of the panel with broad jurisdiction that includes health care, technology, energy and the environment.

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Malden, Pine City residents wait to rebuild as federal aid stalls

Tue., Dec. 1, 2020

Nearly three months after a wildfire destroyed 80% of homes in their small town, the residents of Malden are still waiting for critical assistance from the federal government.

News >  ID Government

‘This can’t go on’: Idaho Sen. Jim Risch poised to be top GOP voice on foreign policy, calls for cooperation to counter China

Sun., Nov. 29, 2020

WASHINGTON – The past four years have seen American foreign policy take a narrower view of national interests, with President Donald Trump often preferring to act alone. But a new report from Sen. Jim Risch makes the case for the U.S. to work more closely with its European allies to counter growing Chinese influence on the world stage.

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As GOP support for Biden transition grows, Northwest Republicans continue to back Trump lawsuits

Wed., Nov. 25, 2020

WASHINGTON – With President-elect Joe Biden’s transition officially underway on Tuesday, Republican lawmakers from Washington and Idaho mostly kept quiet or reiterated their support for President Trump’s effort to overturn the election results while a growing number of their GOP colleagues walked away from the Trump campaign’s faltering legal challenges.

News >  Nation

Inland Northwest tribes call for Congress to extend deadline for coronavirus emergency spending

Mon., Nov. 23, 2020

The federal coronavirus assistance granted to state, local and tribal governments in March must be spent by the end of the year. Tribal governments are joining a chorus of government officials asking Congress to extend that deadline as the virus continues to spread and needs are growing. 

News >  WA Government

Central Washington Congressman Dan Newhouse tests positive for COVID-19

UPDATED: Wed., Nov. 18, 2020

WASHINGTON – U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse, a Republican who represents Central Washington, announced Wednesday he had tested positive for COVID-19 a day earlier, becoming the eighth lawmaker to test positive since Congress returned from recess last week.

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Spokane leaders call on Congress to act as COVID-19 relief talks stagnate and deadline looms

UPDATED: Wed., Nov. 18, 2020

With the coronavirus relief measures Congress passed in March set to expire at the end of the year, Republicans and Democrats are still at loggerheads over a new stimulus package while Americans are on the verge of losing a critical safety net just as COVID-19 numbers swell across the country.

News >  WA Government

Washington GOP lawmakers decry Inslee’s statewide restrictions as COVID-19 cases climb

UPDATED: Wed., Nov. 18, 2020

WASHINGTON – After Washington’s new statewide restrictions on businesses and gatherings went into effect Tuesday and Wednesday, the three Republicans who represent the state in Congress criticized Gov. Jay Inslee’s move and called for more local control to keep businesses open.

News >  Spokane

After 14 years in refugee camp, family faces new challenge: Adjusting to life in Spokane amid pandemic

Sun., Nov. 15, 2020

Just before 8 p.m. on the last day of September, eight weary travelers touched down on the tarmac at Spokane International Airport and caught their first glimpse of their new home, more than 7,000 miles from the refugee camp where they had spent the past 14 years.

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Idaho Sen. Jim Risch weighs in on changing tone in Congress and a Biden presidency

UPDATED: Mon., Nov. 16, 2020

WASHINGTON – With the Senate back to work after an election that saw a strong showing from GOP congressional candidates, U.S. Sen. Jim Risch said Friday he was confident Democrats and Republicans will come together to avert a potential government shutdown but less optimistic about lawmakers striking a deal for another coronavirus relief package before the end of the year.

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Northwest Republicans react to Biden win, Trump’s cheating claims

UPDATED: Tue., Nov. 10, 2020

WASHINGTON – Republican lawmakers from the Northwest have declined to accept President-elect Joe Biden’s victory and are instead backing a barrage of Trump campaign lawsuits without directly endorsing the president’s allegation that the vote was rigged.

News >  Nation/World

Northwest lawmakers, Washington secretary of state react to Trump’s cheating claims as Biden closes in on victory

UPDATED: Fri., Nov. 6, 2020

WASHINGTON – Northwest elected officials urged calm and stressed the sanctity of the U.S. voting process Friday as Democratic candidate Joe Biden, leading his opponent by more than 4 million total votes amid historic turnout, appeared on the brink of winning the 270 electoral votes needed to reach the White House while incumbent President Donald Trump continued making evidence-free claims about cheating by Democrats.

News >  Nation

‘Let’s hope that we will be less divided’: Longtime Coeur d’Alene Democratic leader optimistic about potential Biden presidency

UPDATED: Fri., Nov. 6, 2020

Mary Lou Reed has been around to see plenty of division in American politics, but she had never seen a president like Donald Trump. The Coeur d’Alene resident, former Democratic Idaho state senator and environmental pioneer is optimistic that a Joe Biden presidency could unify the nation, set a good example for a new generation of political leaders and restore civility in Washington, D.C.

News >  Nation/World

Trump looks to Supreme Court as path to victory narrows. Election law experts say that’s unlikely to work

Thu., Nov. 5, 2020

WASHINGTON – After falsely claiming he had already won the election while several key states were still counting votes, President Donald Trump on Wednesday suggested he would seek the help of the Supreme Court to secure a second term and launched a legal offensive in three pivotal states. But election law experts said it was unclear whether an election-deciding case would reach the justices.

McMorris Rodgers wins ninth term; surprises lacking in Washington, Idaho congressional races

UPDATED: Wed., Nov. 4, 2020

As Election Day came to a close with no clear outcome in the presidential race and control of the U.S. Senate still undecided Tuesday night, Washington's congressional races did not appear to have any surprises in store, while Idaho remained a bastion of congressional Republicans.

Idaho’s Republican incumbents on way to securing victories in congressional races

UPDATED: Tue., Nov. 3, 2020

As Election Day came to a close with no clear outcome in the presidential race and control of the Senate still undecided, Idaho remained a bastion of congressional Republicans as all three of the state's GOP incumbents appeared headed for decisive wins Tuesday.

News >  Nation

Whether Trump or Biden wins, the U.S. will have its oldest president ever; should that matter?

UPDATED: Mon., Nov. 2, 2020

Presidential historians and experts on aging say that while the candidates' advanced age has important implications for the presidency, it should not be disqualifying, and the fact that the two men are roughly the same age means voters can look to other factors to decide between the two septuagenarians.

News >  Nation

Senate Republicans accuse tech CEOs of anti-conservative bias in hearing on ‘26 words that created the internet’

Thu., Oct. 29, 2020

WASHINGTON – With Election Day less than a week away, the CEOs of Facebook, Google and Twitter on Tuesday appeared virtually before a Senate panel where lawmakers grilled them over their influence in the election and a once-obscure law that has drawn criticism from Republicans and Democrats.

News >  Nation

NW tribal leaders react to Trump, Biden plans for Native American communities

UPDATED: Wed., Oct. 28, 2020

WASHINGTON – With Election Day fast approaching, President Donald Trump released his first policy road map for Native American communities on Oct. 20, roughly two weeks after Democratic candidate Joe Biden unveiled his own policy agenda for tribal nations.

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As Senate confirms Barrett to Supreme Court, Democrats mull reshaping courts

UPDATED: Tue., Oct. 27, 2020

WASHINGTON – The Senate confirmed Amy Coney Barrett to become the newest Supreme Court justice Monday evening, capping a successful run of judicial appointments for Republicans that has transformed the federal judiciary in President Donald Trump’s first term.

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Cantwell unveils report on threats to local news ahead of tech CEOs’ Senate testimony

UPDATED: Tue., Oct. 27, 2020

WASHINGTON – Sen. Maria Cantwell, the top Democrat on the Senate Commerce Committee, released a report Tuesday detailing the threats posed to local journalism by tech companies, a day before the CEOs of Facebook, Twitter and Google are set to testify before the committee.

News >  WA Government

Facing growing scrutiny from Congress, tech companies have sought to influence regulation. Here’s how much money they’ve given Northwest lawmakers

UPDATED: Sun., Oct. 25, 2020

WASHINGTON – When the Justice Department slapped Google with an antitrust lawsuit this week, it signaled the dawn of a new era of stricter government scrutiny of the companies collectively known as Big Tech, including Facebook, Apple, and Washington-based Amazon.

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‘Let’s put politics aside and get it done’: Northwest lawmakers weigh in on stalled COVID-19 relief talks

UPDATED: Thu., Oct. 22, 2020

WASHINGTON – After negotiators missed another deadline for negotiating a COVID-19 relief bill this week, all but confirming no deal will get done before Election Day, Democratic and Republican lawmakers from the Northwest on Thursday expressed mutual frustration and a growing sense of urgency as the pandemic drags on.

News >  Business

‘If the government is right, how is my world going to change?’: Justice Department sues Google, accusing tech giant of illegal monopoly

UPDATED: Wed., Oct. 21, 2020

WASHINGTON – In a landmark antitrust lawsuit filed Tuesday, the Justice Department and 11 states accused Google’s online search and advertising business of violating federal laws against monopolies and harming consumers, advertisers and competitors.

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As nation sees flood of voting-related lawsuits, here’s how Washington has handled the issues being litigated

Sun., Oct. 18, 2020

More than election-related lawsuits have been filed across the nation as disputes regarding mail-in ballots grow.