DAILY NEWS
732 needs work, ‘rigged’ chickens roost, silent no more…
Tuesday, October 18, 2016
STATE ELECTIONS
ALSO at The Stand — NO on I-732: It’s a giant misstep on climate policy (by WSLC President Jeff Johnson)
► In the (Everett) Herald — I-1433’s leave policies would aid victims of domestic violence (by Traci Underwood) — For too many Washington women, not having access to paid time off can mean the difference between staying in a dangerous situation or having the time they need to get out from under an abuser’s control. Initiative 1433 will allow more than 1 million Washington workers to earn paid sick and safe leave and raise the state minimum wage to $13.50 over four years. That’s why I’m voting “Yes” on I-1433 this November, and I hope you do, too.
► In the PSBJ — State minimum wage hike backers are outraising opponents almost sixtyfold (subscription req’d) — Activists and unions have come out in droves to support the initiative on November’s ballot to raise Washington’s minimum wage, while just a handful of contributions have come in opposition from trade groups.
► From AP — A few competitive races could change control of Legislature — In the Senate, Republicans — along with a Democrat who caucuses with them — hold a 26-23 advantage but a few close races in that chamber give Democrats hope they can regain a slim majority. Democrats currently hold a 50-48 advantage in the House, and if they lose just one seat, they’ll be forced to share power with Republicans, something that last happened from 1999 to 2001. If Republicans pick up more than one seat they’ll take outright control for the first time since 1998.
LOCAL
► In today’s Seattle Times — Can we talk, even a little bit, about deep poverty? (by Jerry Large) — Little attention has been paid in this presidential campaign to the lives of the poorest Americans, even though more of us live in deep poverty than you might imagine.
TRANS-PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP
► MUST-SEE video from WRTV (Indianapolis) on Facebook — “I seen a lot of guys in there crying. They were hurt. They felt like it was ripped out from underneath us.” You can hear the anger in Draper Alumbaugh’s voice when he talks about losing his job of 13 years at Rexnord, which announced today it is moving 350 jobs from Indy to Monterrey, Mexico. Alumbaugh says the reason the jobs are going elsewhere can be summed up in one word – greed.
► From Yes magazine — Trump’s fake critique of trade deals leaves out workers (by Jonathan Rosenblum) — It’s not simply that Trump has effectively channeled workers’ pain and anger through his rhetoric. The harsh truth is that Trump gets traction on trade — and his glaring defects get a pass from many — because he’s filling a huge vacuum in the country’s political discourse. For years, neither of the two main political parties has articulated a vision of international trade that puts workers, communities, and our environment ahead of corporate interests.
NATIONAL ELECTIONS
► From TPM — Is Trump urging his gun-toting supporters to break voter intimidation laws? — It appears that some of Trump’s supporters are prepared to heed his call. Steve Webb, a 61-year-old Trump supporter from Ohio, told the Boston Globe he planned to go “watch” from his precinct. “I’ll look for… well, it’s called racial profiling. Mexicans. Syrians. People who can’t speak American. I’m going to go right up behind them. I’ll do everything legally. I want to see if they are accountable. I’m not going to do anything illegal. I’m going to make them a little bit nervous.”
► From The Hill — Some in GOP say Trump has gone too far
EDITOR’S NOTE — But not Cathy McMorris Rodgers. Yes, Washington’s Republican Secretary of State Kim Wyman calls Trump’s rhetoric “irresponsible,” but as the following column points out, it’s her party that created this phantom “rigging” notion. And now, the chickens have come home to roost.
► In today’s Washington Post — Trump poses an unprecedented threat to peaceful transition of power (editorial) — If he loses, Donald Trump says, it will be due to cheating that makes the result illegitimate. If he wins, he will imprison his defeated opponent. Many Americans may not have given much thought to what a breathtaking departure this represents, because until now we have had the luxury of never having to think about such things. We have been able to take for granted the quadrennial peaceful transition of power. No more.
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
NATIONAL
ALSO at The Stand — King County Council supports expanding Social Security, Medicare
► From Huffington Post — Nation’s largest seniors group is using conservative scare tactics on Social Security — Critics of AARP’s “Take A Stand” TV ad campaign say that the group, which has 37 million members across the country and incredible influence in Washington, is making Social Security’s financial challenges seem much more dire than they really are. In doing so, the group is playing right into the crisis framing favored by conservatives, who want benefit cuts to seem inevitable.
TODAY’S MUST-READ
The Stand posts links to Washington state and national news of interest every weekday morning by 10 a.m.