It must have been a slow news day for the folks deciding what is news over at the state’s largest newspaper. Otherwise, it’d be hard to justify even sending a reporter to an event where Attorney General Bob Ferguson does what he always does – raise money from his special interest friends by attacking Donald Trump. There is nothing new here, though the Times still led its local edition with the key insight that at “a packed fundraising lunch Tuesday at the Seattle Convention Center, Ferguson and his supporters brought up Trump early and often.”

Of course, what else could be expected under the headline “Ferguson hits Reichert on abortion rights — and Trump — at big Seattle fundraiser”? Perhaps the only real news broken was that one of AG Ferguson’s first actions would be to add to the state’s bloated bureaucracy by “creating a new, cabinet-level housing department” to try and respond to all the housing problems caused by Democrat policies.

Fortunately for the AG, the lame-duck governor took a break from his job-hunting tour (next stop, Dubai) to dubiously claim that a fourth term of his policies under Ferguson’s direction was “our dream.” You can read on to see if anyone else’s dreams were answered at this crucial event here… Seattle Times.

The campaign season has ended, but that just means that liberal mischief-makers in Spokane can turn their attention back to City Council meetings.  And although Spokane public radio reported that “the Spokane City Council acted on several important measures” in its last official meeting of the year, the reality is that the Democrat majority actually punted on the two main decisions before it.

First, the Democrats “postponed a decision to extend the city’s contract with the Salvation Army to operate the Trent Avenue shelter for unhoused people this winter”, because that was proposed by the outgoing mayor they don’t like. Instead, they “scheduled a special legislative meeting within their December 14 study session” to see if they can reward their friends in the homelessness industrial complex instead of honoring the Trent agreement. You can read on to see how the “council also postponed until December 14 a decision about whether to remove a proposition from the February ballot” as they try to avoid voter input on their gerrymandering here… Spokane Public Radio.

Perhaps it says enough about the current state of affairs in Seattle that the city has finally approved, after two years of arguing, a plan “to start testing a system next year that’s designed to alert police to the sound of gunfire”. Perhaps in a competently managed city such a decision as outlined in Axios-Seattle would have taken weeks, not years – or not been needed at all because random gunfire wouldn’t such a public nuisance.

Of course, this being Seattle, there have to be concerns that the technology could prove effective at catching criminals, which would bad for some on the Left, even though “Seattle has set a new homicide record in 2023, with 71 reported so far this year.”  Read on to see how this is not yet a done deal as “city officials will still need to complete a racial equity analysis and surveillance impact report before using the technology” here… Axios-Seattle.

The liberal folks on the Everett City Council should be used to operating in relative anonymity, given their part-time status and lack much to do. However, one veteran member is ending that solitude in the last month of her two-decade career, as the Everett Herald reports, by proposing “to prohibit other members from holding another public office, like in the state Senate or House.”

This motion struck a nerve with State Representative Mary Fosse, who happens to be the “only City Council member to hold another elected position.” Rep. Fosse’s arrogance shines through in her claim it’s a blow to democracy that “I’m being targeted in this way instead of leveraging the knowledge that I have.”

See if you agree that this dispute seems to point to something deeper, with Rep. Fosse impugning her colleague’s entire career by noting it’s “a little heartbreaking that somebody that has sat in a seat for almost two decades has the desire to bring down a working mom as her legacy” here… Everett Herald.

Shift will leave with little comment, because it is just too damn frustrating, the Washington State Standard reporting that “Washington late last month paid a $100 million court-ordered fine for failing to provide mental health services to people in jail.” You can read on to see how the state had better become accustomed to paying fines instead of treating the mentally ill, since a U.S. District Court judge “has fined the state about $400 million so far in the Trueblood case” here… Washington State Standard.

Just in case you felt that your taxes were too low, or that you need help from the folks on the King County Council to help you decide what kind of art is worth your support, the Seattle Times assures us “King County’s arts and culture sector is getting a major boost.” That boost is coming thanks to your money, through “a new levy that will provide hundreds of millions in funding to arts, heritage, science and historical preservation nonprofits over the next seven years.”

It has taken the rich donors who fund many of the region’s arts groups decades to push this tax through to grab taxpayer help for their own favorite causes. And to show you how swell she is, 30-year public servant Jeanne Kohl-Welles shares that “I have to say, in leaving the council in a few weeks to retire, there couldn’t have been a better measure for me to sponsor” than a tax that will last long after she’s gone for art you never knew you needed here… Seattle Times.

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