DAILY NEWS
SeaTac recount, WA backs Boeing, Republican rigging, Jimi’s 71st…
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
LOCAL
MORE coverage from Huffington Post and the New York Times.
ALSO at The Stand — Labor urges Port of Seattle not to join suit against SeaTac Prop 1
► In today’s (Aberdeen) Daily World — County approves raises for Teamsters union — Support staff workers in the Grays Harbor County Sheriff’s Office will see raises giving them an extra $4,000 a year on the low end or about $7,000 on the high end of their experience under a new contract approved Nov. 18 by the county commissioners.
► In today’s News Tribune — Food stamp cuts put extra stress on food banks over holidays — With rising food prices, stagnant wages and cuts to benefit programs, the number of people who rely on food banks and soup kitchens is on the rise.
BOEING
STATE GOVERNMENT
► In the P.S. Business Journal — Olympia hearing: Public criticizes Catholic hospital mergers — Members of the public voiced their opposition at a hearing Tuesday to the recent wave of Catholic and secular hospital mergers and affiliations, calling for greater transparency on hospital services and changes that occur as a result of the partnerships.
AFFORDABLE CARE ACT
IMMIGRATION REFORM
► In The Hill — AFL-CIO backs immigration fasters — The AFL-CIO announced Wednesday that it was backing activists fasting in protest for immigration reform. The fasters have called for events to be held across the country next week in support of immigration reform.
► In The Hill — Obama feels heat on deportations as frustration from allies mounts — The charged subject of deportations has moved to the center of the immigration debate as President Obama has come under growing pressure from allies to review his administration’s policy.
► In today’s NY Times — Pressure and passivity on immigration reform (editorial) — President Obama and Congress fail to act on passing reform, and the suffering of families continues.
NATIONAL
► From McClatchy — Employees plan protests at 1,500 Walmart stores on Black Friday — As part of their effort to win a $10-an-hour minimum wage, Walmart employees plan to disrupt operations at 1,500 of the company’s stores on Black Friday, hitting the retail giant in the pocketbook on the biggest shopping day of the year.
ALSO at The Stand — Black Friday protests at Walmarts across U.S. — OUR Walmart invites all union members and community supporters in the Puget Sound area to attend the Black Friday protest starting at 10 a.m. at the Factoria Mall Walmart, 12620 SE 41st Pl. in Bellevue. There will be other actions around Washington and the rest of the country. Click here to find a different Black Friday protest near you!
► In today’s NY Times — New rules would rein in nonprofits’ political role — The Obama administration on Tuesday moved to curb political activity by tax-exempt nonprofit organizations, with potentially major ramifications for some of the biggest and most secretive spenders in American politics.
► From AP — Wisconsin officials decide to move ahead with union elections — Wisconsin officials decided to move ahead with annual “recertification” elections that will allow school workers to decide if their unions should retain the last shred of negotiating power Republican Gov. Scott Walker left them.
► From Biz Journals — D.C. council committee passes minimum wage increase — The minimum wage in the District would increase to $11.50 per hour by 2016 under a bill approved by a D.C. Council committee Monday afternoon. The bill is expected to reach the full D.C. Council on Dec. 3.
► In today’s NY Times — The war on Thanksgiving (editorial) — Consumerism has encroached on the day itself, with retailers opening even earlier than in past years to get a bigger jump on Black Friday and forcing their employees to work on the holiday.
TODAY’S MUST-READ
How is this possible? National Republicans have waged an unrelenting campaign to exploit every weakness and anachronism in our electoral system. Through a combination of hyperpartisan redistricting of the House, unprecedented obstructionism in the Senate and racist voter suppression in the states, today’s GOP has locked in political power that it could never have secured on a level playing field.
T.G.I. THANKSGIVING
► Let us give thanks today, on what would have been his 71st birthday, for Seattle’s own Jimi Hendrix, the greatest rock guitarist who ever lived…
The Entire Staff of The Stand™ will be taking the rest of the week off for the holidays. We’ll be back on Monday, Dec. 2.
The Stand posts links to Washington state and national news of interest every weekday morning by 10 a.m.