Tuesday, August 29, 2017

HURRICANE HARVEY

► From the Texas AFL-CIO — Texas Workers Relief Fund — A fund has been established to assist workers and their families displaced and experiencing other hardship as a result of Hurricane Harvey and its devastating floods. Your tax-deductible donations are encouraged to this fund operated by the Workers Assistance Program, Inc. in conjunction with the Texas AFL-CIO.

► From the Texas AFL-CIO — Texas working people step up in worst storm ever — As Hurricane Harvey and its remnants bring unprecedented flooding and damage to a huge portion of Texas, working people in the state are going above and beyond their duties to help one another, Texas AFL-CIO President John Patrick said. Patrick said the heroism of First Responders and the persistence of many others working through the storm have saved lives even as wind, rain and extensive flooding destroy or damage property. Union members across the state have stepped up to look out for others as the storm proceeds.

LOCAL

► From Teamsters 117 — Woodland Park Zoo schooled by their education department employees — They have been fighting for better wages and respect for a long time with little success. The majority women team of developers, coordinators and specialists finally said enough and began a union organizing campaign. They collected over thirty signatures and petitioned for union representation with Teamsters Local 117 filing with the NLRB. They delivered their boss a letter requesting voluntary union recognition signed by 100% of their department, but what they got in response from the management was an anti-union campaign… It all culminated in the final vote on Wednesday. The result was an incredible 83% in favor of the union.

LEARN MORE ABOUT FORMING A UNION — If you don’t have a union at your job, learn more about how to organize one. Today’s economy is so out of balance, with all the economic gains going to the top. By joining together in a union, workers can negotiate for better wages, working conditions, and a voice on the job. You can make it happen at your workplace! Click here to get started.

► In today’s Yakima H-R — Judge gives preliminary approval of $600,000 wage settlement for Yakima Valley dairy workers — A Yakima County Superior Court judge has given preliminary approval for a $600,000 settlement for a group of dairy workers at a Lower Valley dairy. Jose Martinez-Cuevas and Patricia Aguilar, on behalf of the group of nearly 300 workers, filed a class-action lawsuit against the DeRuyter Brothers Dairy of Outlook in December claiming the company failed to provide adequate meal and rest breaks and that workers were not paid for all time worked.

THIS WASHINGTON

► In today’s Spokesman-Review — Eyman’s suit falls flat (by Jim Camden) — Eyman is unhappy with a decision by the state attorney general’s office that a package of tax increases the Legislature passed in the late, great, triple OT session needs but a single repeal or maintain box on the ballot… Eyman represented himself in front of Thurston County Superior Court Judge Chris Lanese in his request for a court order forcing multiple items on the ballot. Ruling that Eyman hadn’t made the request soon enough, Lanese said no dice. Eyman has decided to appeal to the Washington Supreme Court, although it appears he’s learned at least one thing from his time in court Monday: there’s some truth to the old adage that an attorney who represents himself has a fool for a client.

THAT WASHINGTON

► From Reuters — Tough choice for Trump if Congress refuses border wall financing — President Donald Trump is unlikely to win congressional support for funds he wants for a proposed U.S.-Mexico border wall before an Oct. 1 deadline, meaning he may have to choose between backing down on a key campaign promise or shutting down the government.

► From Reuters — Trump renews threat to scrap NAFTA going into next round of talks — U.S. President Donald Trump renewed his threat to scrap NAFTA and ripped on trading partners Canada and Mexico in a tweet early on Sunday, days before the three countries were scheduled to hold a second round of negotiations on rewriting the 23-year-old agreement.

COUNTDOWN TO IMPEACHMENT

► In today’s Washington Post — Top Trump Organization executive asked Putin aide for help on business deal — A top executive from Donald Trump’s real estate company emailed Russian President Vladi­mir Putin’s personal spokesman during the U.S. presidential campaign last year to ask for help advancing a stalled Trump Tower development project in Moscow, according to documents submitted to Congress on Monday. The request came in a mid-January 2016 email from Michael Cohen, one of Trump’s closest business advisers, who asked longtime Putin lieutenant Dmitry Peskov for assistance in reviving a deal that Cohen suggested was languishing.

► In today’s NY Times — Moscow tower deal could make Trump president, ally said — Felix Sater, a Trump associate, promised to engineer a real estate deal for a Trump Tower in Moscow with the aid of President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia. “We will get Donald elected,” he wrote.

► From Politico — Republican floats measure to kill Mueller probe after 6 months — Rep. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) is pushing an amendment to severely curtail special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into the Trump campaign’s ties to Russia.

T.G.I.T.

► The Entire Staff of The Stand is feeling a little verklempt because we are taking our youngest — our beautiful daughter — to college later today. This one is for her.

The Stand posts links to Washington state and national news of interest every weekday morning by 10 a.m.