Wednesday, August 7, 2019

ELECTION

► In today’s Seattle Times — State Sen. Liz Lovelett, Daniel Miller lead in 40th district Senate seat — Tuesday’s results put Lovelett comfortably ahead with nearly 48% of the vote and Republican Daniel Miller in second place with 30%. Democrats Carrie Blackwood had about 21% and Greta Aitken earned less than 2 percent.

EDITOR’S NOTE — Facing this special off-year election, Sen. Liz Lovelett — who had a 100% labor voting record in 2019 — was the only candidate to earn endorsement from the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO in the 2019 primary election. (Our state’s regional Central Labor Councils endorse candidates for city and county office.)

THIS WASHINGTON

► In today’s Seattle Times — Primary election tests new voter system, but ‘everything went according to plan’ — Washington’s same-day voter-registration law and new elections system faced a major stress test Tuesday as voters around the state returned ballots for the primary election. The new statewide voter management system, VoteWA, had a rocky rollout this spring, but county auditors Tuesday said it was running smoothly as the 8 p.m. election deadline came and went.

► In today’s (Everett) Herald — That ride on the ferry is going to cost more — and then more — The Washington State Transportation commissioners Tuesday approved hikes for passengers and cars this fall and again next spring.

► In today’s Olympian — Gov. Inslee, you’ve had an impact, but it’s time to come home (editorial) — Dear Governor Inslee… It’s time to turn the page, and get back to your day job in Olympia.

THAT WASHINGTON

► From The Hill — Stocks plunge amid rising trade tensions, recession fears — Stocks plunged Wednesday morning amid rising trade tensions and concerns about the health of the global economy.

► In the Washington Post — Trump’s trade war keeps punishing farmers. But farmers remain optimistic. — The Chinese Ministry of Commerce confirmed Monday that Beijing is canceling all purchases of U.S. agricultural goods in retaliation for President Trump’s pledge to slap 10 percent tariffs on $300 billion of Chinese imports. The move piles on to a punishing year for farmers, who’ve been assailed by a combination of bad weather and Chinese counterpunching in the trade war. Trump, keen to keep faith with a stalwart portion of his base, signaled Tuesday that the Agriculture Department would hand out more aid next year to farmers suffering from trade-war-related dislocations — on top of the roughly $25 billion the administration disbursed last year or will this year.

NATIONAL

► From the Guardian — Amazon touts high wages while ignoring issues in its warehouses — Amazon won praise when it raised its minimum wage to $15 an hour in October 2018. Since then, the company has responded to criticism over its working conditions by claiming it is an industry leader in compensation, but a Guardian investigation has revealed many workers take issue with this messaging, as serious workplace issues remain that they say are still not being addressed. They include claims workers are being punished for injuries; the elimination of bonuses and stock options, which has lessened the impact of the wage rise; poor working conditions; higher productivity demands and the hiring of temporary workers who do not have the same benefits as Amazon staff.

► A related story from the PSBJ — Bezos sells another $1B in Amazon stock during Wall Street tumble — Jeff Bezos on Monday sold another nearly $1.1 billion in Amazon shares, bringing his total stock sales in the past week to nearly $3 billion.

► From the IAM — Machinists, IBEW reach tentative agreement with General Electric — Negotiating committees for the IAM and IBEW at General Electric reached a tentative agreement with the company that offers significant improvements to the company’s proposal that was previously rejected by the membership. The IAM and IBEW committees recommend the membership vote to accept the latest contract offer.

► From The Hill — Walgreens to close about 200 U.S. stores: SEC filing — As of last year, Walgreens operated about 9,560 drugstores and employed about 240,000 people.

► From The New Yorker — Why doctors should organize (by Dr. Eric Topol) — Because of the unique technological moment at which we live, we may not see an opportunity like this one for generations to come. We have a chance to affect the future of medicine; to advocate for patient interests; to restore the time doctors need to think, to listen, to establish trust, and build bonds, one encounter at a time. For these purposes, and in these times, an organization of all doctors is necessary. Rebuilding our relationships with our patients: that is our lane.

► From Last Week Tonight — Prison labor — John Oliver explains how prisoners make and spend money, and how companies can profit at the expense of their families.

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