Good afternoon, all. As promised, I’d post if any endorsements came out, and I see that one did (from afar over here in Idaho).

Says the Ed Board:

Melious

And she has already put this knowledge to work for the community, currently serving as a member of the Whatcom County Planning Commission.

In addition, Melious has an attitude of inclusiveness. She told our board she believes there is a middle ground in a lot of the community battles and she said she wants to help find that balance. Doing so, she said, will allow our community to make decisions that don’t just end up in protracted court battles after they are made.

We encourage Melious to be more up-front about her stances going into the general election. It’s important that voters know everything they are going to get from her as a council member before they cast their ballot.

Full op-ed, over here.

Good evening, everyone.

Well now, what a hectic week, no? I’ve been working nights all three days this week. Tomorrow and Friday, I’ll be on vacation in Idaho spending time with my family for my birthday and for my wife’s baby shower.

There may very well be a few tidbits that might get posted here … like upcoming Herald endorsements. I’ll read the paper each morning to see if any come out. I’ll also check my e-mail perhaps once a day just to see if there’s something to post to feed your need.

Other than that, the blog will be dormant until I’m back on Monday. For now, I go to prepare for the Bill Mize Forum tonight.

Enjoy your Wednesday evening.

The redux between Democratic U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen and Republican opponent John Koster has landed in the boxing ring this week as the campaigns take jabs at each over over campaign donations and polling data.

In one corner, Koster and the National Republican Congressional Committee are swinging at the Everett congressman for accepting $24,000 in contributions from a political action committee controlled by U.S. Rep. Charlie Rangel, who faces multiple ethics violations in the House.

In the other is the Larsen campaign, circling and weaving around the Snohomish County Councilman’s criticism by pointing out $12,000 in campaign donations Koster received during the 2000 election from now-jailed former U.S. Rep. Duke Cunningham, who is serving more than eight years on a variety of felony convictions, and indicted former House Majority Leader Republican Rep. Tom Delay.

The political sparring even at this more local level has the feel of a big-media national race where heated rhetoric and spin can often be the norm from all camps.

Read the rest of this entry »

Via the governor’s office:

OLYMPIA – Gov. Chris Gregoire has directed that flags at all Washington state agency buildings be lowered to half-staff Tuesday, August 3, in memory of U.S. Army First Lieutenant Robert N. Bennedsen of Vashon Island. Bennedsen died July 18 in Afghanistan of injuries he sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his convoy.

Flags should remain at half-staff until close of business Tuesday, or first thing Wednesday morning, August 4.

Congress amended the U.S. Flag Code to give governors the authority to lower flags when a state resident in the military is killed in the line of duty. Other government entities, citizens and businesses are encouraged to join in this recognition.

*UPDATE* - Overstreet has issued a press release on this, right here.

Republican state House candidate and wife, Jessica, welcomed a new addition to their family last night, according to Republican Vincent Buys on Facebook this morning.

Buys congratulated Overstreet on the birth of Paisley Grace Overstreet.

With the birth of Paisley, the Overstreets now have five children. Also in the family: Jake, Savannah and twin sons Honor and Justice.

A big congratulations to the Overstreets!

Via CNN.com:

In reviewing this case, we have determined there were procedural issues with the 2009 investigation that merit re-opening the case,” the police department said in a statement announcing the investigation had been re-opened. “There should have been command level review at the time on the specifics of this case and decisions on whether the investigation should go forward.”

A renewed investigation “will only benefit Mr. Gore,” Kreider said at the time. “The Gores cannot comment on every defamatory, misleading, and inaccurate story generated by tabloids. Mr. Gore unequivocally and emphatically denied this accusation when he first learned of its existence three years ago. He stands by that denial.”

Read the full story, right here.

Brett Bonner’s Whatcom Information Center has come out with a press release today criticizing the Bellingham City Council for not following proper procedure when they formed the city’s Transportation Benefit District.

During the July 12 meeting, where the council had their third and final vote on the issue, Councilman Seth Fleetwood requested, and the council majority supported, that a “whereas” in the declaration section of the ordinance that stated TBD projects would be funded with a voter-approved sales and use tax increase.

Council members Gene Knutson, Stan Snapp and Barry Buchanan voted against Fleetwoods proposed amendment as well as against the entire ordinance.

Fleetwood did this because he said he’d heard from some constituents concerned about imposing a sales tax, which many regard as a regressive tax that harms low-income residents more than the wealthy.

The council has other funding options in the state law that allows for creation of a TBD aside from the sales tax increase. Those include creating development impact fees, a non-voter-approved $20 car tab, or going to voters for a $100 car tab.

Fleetwood never mentioned these issues during the first vote to create the TBD on June 21 when they had a public hearing, too. Nor did he mention at all wanting to remove this language during the July 16 daytime work session the council had before the third and final vote. He did explain his reasoning at the night meeting when he proposed the amendment, saying people in the public had contacted him.

The council did vote on the ordinance on June 21 because it needed to prepare to get something on the ballot, but with the knowledge they’d have to make some changes. The deadline to get something in front of the Whatcom County Auditor’s Office for the November ballot is August 10.

In his press release today (the full thing below), Bonner states:

The problem is that the proper procedure was not followed,” said Whatcom Information Center spokesperson Brett Bonner. “The car tab issue was never talked about before the council formed the Transportation Benefit District. We believe many citizens may have been misled. It may not have been their intention, but the council’s actions look like bait and switch.”

Is it true that proper procedure wasn’t followed? I rate that as being a false claim, and taking the language out did nothing to the actual law itself. More detail below on how “whereas” sections work versus the actual body of an ordinance.

But the spirit of public, transparent decision making may very well have been ignored by Fleetwood, who made a last minute change without telling the public at all that he was considering this prior to the nighttime meeting. Though the council traditionallyl doesn’t make changes to ordinances during the third and final reading, in this case, the council did make it clear that there would be a work session after the first vote and third and final could very well include changes.

Fleetwood could have mentioned this prior to that night, as the suggestion about considering other options came in to the council’s e-mail weeks prior from Eric Hirst, a local civic volunteer currently serving on the city’s Capital Facilities Taskforce.

Read the rest of this entry »

Republican Dusty Gulleson is asking people to join his Facebook fan page, a common request these days from hopefuls who would like to represent you.

Gulleson’s goal is 350 fans, and he says they’re 19 away from reaching that.

You can check out his page, right here.

Meahwhile, here are the Facebook pages of other candidates, just in case you were unaware:

40th House, Position 1:

Democrat Thomas Boucher.

Democrat Kris Lytton.

Republican Mike Newman.

Democrat Tom Pasma.

40th House, Position 2:

Republican John Swapp.

42nd House, Position 1:

Democrat Al Jensen.

Democrat Richard May.

Republican Jason Overstreet.

42nd House, Position 2:

Republican Vincent Buys.

Democratic Rep. Kelli Linville.

42nd Senate:

Republican Rep. Doug Ericksen.

Democrat Pat Jerns.

Whatcom County Councilman Carl Weimer says tonight’s council meeting will no longer include a scheduled vote on a proposal to restore nearly 700 acres of land to various urban growth areas.

Why? Because Nooksack and Sumas have pulled out of their request for some acreage to be restored.

Said Weimer:

Now the Council majority has to reintroduce a new ordinance that only includes the expansion of the Ferndale UGA and a small area in Birch Bay, and I’m guessing schedule another hearing. Quite the waste of time from visions of expanding UGAs by thousands of acres - West Blaine, Caitac, Yew Street Rd etc - to swapping a UGA reserve in Ferndale to a regular UGA. How many thousands of taxpayer dollars were wasted on this boondoggle that is already scheduled for next year? Now that’s some fiscally conservative planning.

Read the rest, over here.

*UPDATE* - It turns out that Overstreet, proclaiming on Facebook that he’s focusing on the issues, hasn’t called back reporter Zoe Fraley for the candidate Q&A interviews we do. It’s the one opportunity he’ll have to get his message out to so many people all at once. Unless, of course, he doesn’t want more people to learn about his positions. He has until noon tomorrow to contact her. Overstreet has also been called by me to find out why he’s so concerned about me getting his personnel file.

*UPDATE* - It appears that Overstreet is also using the records request as a way to solicit campaign donations from people - making it out as if this is a personal attack, which it’s not. It’s the job of a reporter. Does this mean Overstreet isn’t interested in being held accountable?

The Whatcom County Republican Party are spreading accusations that I’m biased and picking on Republican Jason Overstreet because I made a public records request for his personnel file with the city of Seattle.

Overstreet, a Blaine City Council member, is also a Seattle fire fighter.

On Facebook today, the Republicans posted, first, what looks to be a document that is super tiny that might be a records information sheet provided to Overstreet. Then they said “When the media can’t attack you on the issues, they go after your personnel file.”

In a follow-up, the party, I assume Chairwoman Luanne Van Werven as she appears to control the Facebook page, wrote:

Sam Taylor of the Bellingham Herald makes public disclure request for personnel file of candidate Jason Overstreet. Do ya think he also requested the personnel file of Jason’s democrat opponent?

The answer is, of course I did.

This is the first election I’ve had here where the two likely general election opponents are both public employees. That means my normal background checks also get to include checking personnel files with city governments.

Not only did I request Democrat Al Jensen’s personnel file, I requested it first and about a month before I requested Overstreet’s.

The city of Bellingham took three and a half weeks to provide me with the documents, but they eventually provided somewhere around 240 pages of Jensen’s file. I’m still reviewing it. And I have yet to receive Overstreet’s.

If someone runs for public office, they better expect me to look into their background. I do it every single election. It’s nothing new and I’ll never stop. Voters have a right to know as much information as possible about the people that they’re going to have representing them. If the Whatcom Republicans don’t want people to know Overstreet’s background, that’s too bad.

As usual, the Republicans are trying to sow some type of odd rumor about me being biased.

They’re wrong again.

Via The Nation:

The 400 richest families in America, who saw their wealth increase by some $400 billion during the Bush years, have now accumulated $1.27 trillion in wealth. Four hundred families! During the last fifteen years, while these enormously rich people became much richer their effective tax rates were slashed almost in half. While the highest-paid 400 Americans had an average income of $345 million in 2007, as a result of Bush tax policy they now pay an effective tax rate of 16.6 percent, the lowest on record.

Last year, the top twenty-five hedge fund managers made a combined $25 billion but because of tax policy their lobbyists helped write, they pay a lower effective tax rate than many teachers, nurses and police officers.

Read the full story, right here.

Q: Thoughts?

Via the Koster campaign this afternoon after a Mount Vernon event:

Koster

Washington’s Second Congressional District candidate John Koster signed the American Family Business Institute’s (AFBI) “Death Tax Repeal Pledge” at a press conference today. The event was hosted at Morrison Farms (Mount Vernon, WA).

By signing the pledge, Koster commits to vote for permanent repeal of the Federal Estate Tax, commonly referred to as the “Death Tax”.

AFBI’s President Dick Patten praised Koster for signing the pledge, saying “By supporting estate tax repeal, Koster will help save local jobs and businesses.”

A recent study from the American Family Business Foundation, AFBI’s research and education arm, found that repealing the Death Tax would increase nationwide employment by 1.5 million jobs. In Washington alone, repealing the Death Tax would add nearly 34,000 new jobs.

Read the rest of this entry »

Good morning all, first I’ve actually got to work night meeting the first three days of this week, and so posting will be generally in the afternoons.

However, this morning, I thought it was important to give you some fodder for your Monday and to fact check the other side of the aisle when it comes to bailouts.

Last week, we discussed claims by Republican John Koster that U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Everett, and other Democrats voted to created a permanent taxpayer bailout culture of Wall Street. The claim has been echoed by national Republicans, too, and PolitiFact has declared such a claim false.

However, PolitiFact also calls claims by Democrats that the era of taxpayer-funded bailouts has ended thanks to their Wall Street reform measures “barely true.” Rep. Larsen has made this same claim in attacking Koster for not supporting the measure.

Says PolitiFact:

Ultimately, our sources agreed that while the bill makes aggressive efforts to reduce the likelihood of bailouts, it doesn’t make them illegal. And short of, say, passing a constitutional amendment ruling out bailouts, any future Congress or administration would be able to act as conditions demanded.

… We agree that the bill takes genuine steps toward reducing bailouts. But we find it a stretch to argue, as Reid does, that the bill will “end” them. So we rate his statement Barely True.

Read the entire thing for yourself, right here.

As to the former, what Koster’s press release actually said was the bill “will likely open the door for permanent taxpayer-funded bailouts for Wall Street.” Far from being not “the truth” — given the fact that even the NYT says that deal-making, wiggle room, ad hoc remedies, latitude, and backdoor assistance will still encouraged, allowed, and arguably still provided — it’s a perfectly reasonable belief to have. We know from history that “give an inch, take a mile” is the rule of the day in DC, as in most political circles. Believing that if they can bail out, they will bail out, is not remotely unreasonable.

If you believe bailouts are good, fine. But let’s not pretend that — like Obama said — this bill prevents them from happening, or that it is somehow not “the truth” to believe that, under this bill, bailouts will be encouraged.

You can read Pudge’s full column on the debate he and I had about what a New York Times piece about how the new Wall Street reform bill means, right over here.

Good morning everyone, I hope you’re well. A gloriously-sunny day, the wife and I are off to our 32-week baby appointment this late morning and I’ve got four, count’em four, articles to write for the weekend!

With that in mind, posting will be sparse, but I’ve got some nifty political quick hits for you today. Also, one quick note. I’ve created a “Friday Quick Hits” under the categories section so it’s easy to find each Friday’s political gossip/rumors/tidbits all in one spot. I’ve added the previous FQHs to that section already.

Here we are:

• Frances Badgett, the former campaign treasurer for Whatcom County Councilman Dan McShane and former chairwoman of the Whatcom Conservation Voters, is expecting her first child. They’re having a girl, who is due December 6. A congrats to Frances and husband Kevin Cournoyer!

• Local campaign manager extraordinaire (who tells me that, lately, he’s been having to fend off prospective candidates for future races with “One race at a time!” e-mails) Riley Sweeney celebrated his 24th birthday this week. How’d he celebrate? With a trip to Jalapenos Mexican Restaurant near the waterfront. I know this, because my wife and I happened to actually be eating there the same time. Small world (I’m slowly killing the fantasy of how people think journalists get their tips).

• Bellingham City Councilman and 2011 mayoral candidate Barry Buchanan will be taking the Bellingham High School Alumni Band to the Ferndale Old Settlers Grand Parade Saturday, July 23. Buchanan and his wife, Judy, cofounded the alumni band 12 years ago and he’s been the drum major the entire time. It’s a big to-do these days, with a large squadron of band lovers also participating in each Ski to Sea Parade, too. The group is actually a 501 (c) 3 non-profit, too. Check out their website, right here.

As always, have any kind of tip for me? Share it with me at my e-mail or phone on the right sidebar.

Enjoy your Friday.