Crosscut articles of the past 10 days with the most clicks.
Crosscut articles of the past 10 days with the most reader comments.
Posted Mon, Mar 10, 10 p.m.
U.S. Highway 2 between Everett and Stevens Pass is widely regarded as the most dangerous in the state, and yet getting money appropriated for making it safer seems to be an uphill battle. Could that be because local Republican legislators keep voting against highway taxes?
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Posted Thu, Dec 13, 10 p.m.
One of Washington's most powerful politicians has been returning campaign contributions. That might not mean much at this early stage, but the Seattle Democrat, who chairs the powerful House budget committee, won't say she's definitely running again, either.
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Posted Tue, Nov 20, midnight
No sense waiting: With failure of Proposition 1 in metro Puget Sound, they say, guidelines need to be established for the inevitable use of tolls to pay for transportation improvements.
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Posted Fri, Sep 21, 10 p.m.
Two top-level departures signal preparation for Chris Gregoire's 2008 re-election bid, politicos say.
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Posted Mon, Jul 23, 11 a.m.
As a seasoned executive and lawyer, Gov. Chris Gregoire proves to be a tough customer. But workload alone is an issue. Three people have held the job in two years.
READ MORE 3 COMMENTSPosted Thu, Jun 14, 8 a.m.
Chris Gregoire hasn't officially announced a re-election bid, and possible GOP opponent Dino Rossi hasn't agreed to a rematch, but the fundraising and rhetoric are under way.
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Posted Mon, May 21, midnight
She's the Senate majority leader, she's from Spokane, and a serious run might necessitate a run for treasurer, first, to gain statewide name recognition.
READ MORE 3 COMMENTSPosted Mon, May 7, 11 a.m.
A Denver businessman has been coordinating campaign contributions in a number of states, including Washington and Oregon, to affect legislative races.
READ MORE 5 COMMENTSPosted Sun, Apr 22, 11 p.m.
The legislative session in Olympia is over, and the Democratic agenda is enacted. Here's a quick assessment of the ruling party's 105-day reign.
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Posted Thu, Apr 19, 7 a.m.
Meet Speaker Pro-Tem John Lovick, former state trooper.
READ MORE 1 COMMENTSPosted Mon, Apr 16, midnight
Frustrating for some, Speaker Frank Chopp's moderate agenda is designed to leave no one vulnerable when election time rolls around.
READ MORE 2 COMMENTSPosted Thu, Apr 12, 9 a.m.
Some major elements are still in flux: who gets covered and how to pay for it.
READ MORE COMMENT NOWPosted Thu, Apr 12, 9 a.m.
One rep says a public subsidy is dead, but you never know.
READ MORE 2 COMMENTSPosted Fri, Apr 6, 9 a.m.
The Washington Department of Corrections examination of what led to the deaths of three law officers is an account of mistakes, bureaucracy, misfortune, and systemic problems.
READ MORE 3 COMMENTSPosted Wed, Apr 4, 2 p.m.
A radio report from Olympia has been posted.
READ MORE COMMENT NOWPosted Tue, Apr 3, 11 a.m.
The speaker of the Washington House sits for an interview.
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Posted Sun, Apr 1, 3 p.m.
Speaker Frank Chopp has gone invisible to the public, but we are about to see how well he can keep his large majority together.
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Posted Wed, Jul 16, 3:28 p.m. 2008
Praise the Lord and release the hounds — because our good state Legislature has enacted a law which makes it legal once again to use dogs to hunt cougars. Now, I didn't even know cougar hunting was legal in Washington — minus Cougars wearing crimson — but apparently, it is. While the bill was actually passed by the Legislature in February, the Department of Fish and Wildlife will hold a public meeting on Friday to discuss whether the pilot program should continue for another three years.
Meanwhile, Micheal Reitz of the Evergreen Freedom Foundation has compiled a list of some other curious laws enacted by the Washington Legislature this year. My personal favorite: Violators may face up to $1,000 or up to a year in jail for selling raw or unprocessed huckleberries without a permit.
MOREPosted Mon, Jul 14, 3:09 p.m. 2008
Timber! The Seattle Times has a series of special reports about the lack of oversight in the logging industry and the cost to state taxpayers. According to the report, no one checked when Weyerhaeuser started clear-cutting unstable slopes, some of which eventually slid and cost millions of dollars to clean up. Naturally, David Goldstein at Horse's Ass blames Republican-led deregulation. ... MOREPosted Tue, Jul 8, 2:23 p.m. 2008
David Postman had a busy morning. First, The Seattle Times chief political writer reported the proper way to describe the death with dignity "assisted suicide" initiative. Then he dropped a political firebomb, reporting the state's political parties haven't yet given up trying to ax the "top-two" primary, with both Republicans and Democrats claiming the entire '08 election won't count. I thought that headache was over. Turns out it's just getting started. ...
Posted Mon, Jul 7, 1:23 p.m. 2008
Chris Mulick at the Tri-City Herald has today's top story, reporting this morning that Tim Eyman's Initiative 985 and the Service Employees International Union-backed Initiative 1029 would – if passed by voters in November – increase the state's budget deficit by an estimated $300 million.
MOREPosted Wed, Jul 2, 1 p.m. 2008
Today's the day of reckoning for the city of Seattle and the SuperSonics. Judge Marsha Pechman will rule at 4 p.m., and we'll know who wins this OK Corrall shootout. Mayor Greg Nickels will hold a press conference at 5 p.m. to discuss the decision (live on the Seattle Channel). Here are the pre-announcement perspectives: state Rep. Bob Hasegawa, Seattle Times columnist Danny Westneat, Stranger writer Josh Feit, Crosscut writers Ross Anderson and Sue Frause. ...
MOREPosted Mon, Jun 30, 1 p.m. 2008
Tri-City Herald reporter Chris Mulick digs deep into Washington state's bungled attempt to land a $2 billion uranium enrichment plant, along with its 400 high-paying jobs. According to Mulick, Gov. Chris Gregoire chose not to pursue bidding for the plant, deciding instead to play it cool politically. As a result, Idaho got the plant. Washington lost the money. And Dino Rossi just got more ammo for his campaign. Still, Gregoire's got a sizable lead in the polls, at the moment. ...
MOREPosted Fri, Jun 27, 12:24 p.m. 2008
Gov. Chris Gregoire unleashes her latest "hit" campaign on GOP challenger Dino Rossi today, primarily attacking Rossi's state Senate record. Now, of all outlets that would come to the defense of a Republican, the first place not to look would be a local left-leaning blog like Horse's Ass. But after yesterday's political circus surrounding Gregoire's previous ad, backhandedly comparing Rossi to TV mob boss Tony Soprano, Horse's Ass blogger David Goldstein rushes to Rossi's defense. ...
MOREPosted Wed, Jun 25, noon 2008
Lefty blogger David Goldstein at Horse's Ass has been battering the local media lately. Yesterday, he unleashed on Seattle Post-Intelligencer reporter Chris McGann for his coverage of Gov. Chris Gregoire's now infamous state gambling compact. Today he asks Crosscut's Ted Van Dyk to apologize to Gregoire for his own coverage of Casino-gate. ...
MOREPosted Tue, Jun 24, 12:06 p.m. 2008
Eric Earling at Sound Politics responds to Gov. Chris Gregoire's recent assertion that the Building Industry Association of Washington "is the most powerful special interest lobby" in the state, pointing to the Dem's own PACs as evidence. In case you missed the Top of The News, Gov. Christine Gregoire's donors won big-time after they helped her squeak out a victory in 2004. ...
MOREPosted Mon, Jun 23, 11:38 a.m. 2008
From today's edition of The Seattle Times comes this report from The Los Angeles Times, in what could be the first many reports profiling John and Cindy McCain's ties to the nation's big-time beer brewers. ...
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