I made a mistake when I posted the details of our general meeting. Bruce Harrell’s campaign staff will pay us a visit at our meeting, seeking an update on his behalf. He has another commitment during our meeting. Sorry about the confusion.
Apr 16
Senator Margarita Prentice Newsletter – 4/15/2011
From Senator Prentice:
Happy Spring, Daylight Savings time, and April Fools’ day! April 1st means there are 23 constitutional days remaining in the regular 2011 session. The recent budget forecast predicts continued declining revenues – $800 million less than expected – so the hardest work is still ahead. You can try out your ideas to balance the budget via the Senate Democrats website using the Governor’s budget calculator by clicking here.
http://blog.senatedemocrats.wa.gov/prentice/sen-prentice-e-newsletter-4-1-2011/
Apr 15
Kathy Keene retirement party
Trading big slugs for big cockroaches
The slugs are slimier, but the roaches move much faster. That won’t stop Kathy Keene from going to Florida, fortunately for them and unfortunately for us.
Burien City Council Member and Water Commissioner Kathy Keene is retiring to Florida. There will be a retirement party at the regular Drinking Liberally night at Mick Kelly’s, 436 SW 15nd St in Burien on Wednesday April 27th. Starts at about 7PM. Let’s share some memories and wish Kathy a great retirment. Maybe a betting pool on how long she’ll stay out of local Florida politics? My guess would be about three months.
Apr 14
Dow Constantine Earth Day Celebration
Please join Joanna Grist, Savitha Pathi, Kevin & Jennifer Wilhelm, Gary Young, Washington Conservation Voters, and King County Executive Dow Constantine in celebration of Earth Day.
Wednesday, April 20th 2011.
5:30-7:30pm
More details here Continue reading
Apr 13
Newsletter – April 2011
The newsletter for April 2011 has been posted. View it here: 2011_04_April
Apr 12
General Membership Meeting – April 2011
Our monthly meeting is almost here. This month, we’ll have Dr. Bobby Virk speaking on the effects of budget cuts on adult dental health. We will also discuss resolutions on Social Security, Medicare, and police shoulder cameras. We will also be visited by Bruce Harrell’s campaign staff… Bruce Harrell is seeking our endorsement. Also, chicken dinner at 6:30pm for $6.
More details below:
Apr 12
National Debt by President
While discussing things like our nation’s yearly budget and the debt ceiling, it’s important to put things into perspective. The party that built up most of our National Debt is now the party that’s screaming that we cannot raise the debt ceiling. Take a look.
From: http://maddowblog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/04/11/6449899-mr-obama-please-report-to-the-front-desk
Apr 12
Resolution in Support of Requiring Seattle Police Officers to Wear Body Cameras While on Duty
11th LD Democrats Resolution 2011-02
Resolution in Support of Requiring Seattle Police Officers to Wear Body Cameras While on Duty. Given that there have been recent incidents of use of excessive force by Seattle police officers, the resolution endorses a requirement that all police officers wear a body camera during the hours they are on duty.
2011-2 Resolution on the use of body cameras
Please discuss via comments.
Apr 11
Sen. Chase’s “Clawback” bills will put tax breaks to the test
Bob Hasegawa was a sponsor of the state House version of this bill.
Most state government programs are under regular review – if they don’t work, they don’t last.
The same cannot be said about tax expenditures – tax breaks given to corporations and placed on services in perpetuity. Many of these expenditures have been on the books for years. Some work, some don’t, some continue to serve a purpose and others are no longer necessary.
The bottom line is that these expenditures cost the state over a billion dollars in lost revenue per biennium with little to no oversight of their net benefit to the state.
Sen. Maralyn Chase, D-Shoreline, introduced Senate Bills 5922 and 5923 which will provide oversight of tax expenditures through audits. If it is learned that the tax subsidy no longer serves its purpose or the entity hasn’t live up to its end of the bargain, the state will be able to recoup money through a so called “clawback” provision.
Apr 09
What Planned Parenthood Actually Does…
From the Washington Post (Ezra Klein):
With Planned Parenthood being either the major obstacle to a budget deal or one of the major obstacles to a budget deal, it’s worth taking a minute explaining what they do — and what they don’t do.
As you can see in the chart atop this post, abortion services account for about 3 percent of Planned Parenthood’s activities. That’s less than cancer screening and prevention (16 percent), STD testing for both men and women (35 percent), and contraception (also 35 percent). About 80 percent of Planned Parenthood’s users are over age 20, and 75 percent have incomes below 150 percent of the poverty line. Planned Parenthood itself estimates it prevents more than 620,000 unintended pregnancies each year, and 220,000 abortions. It’s also worth noting that federal law already forbids Planned Parenthood from using the funds it receives from the government for abortions.
The rest is here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ezra-klein/post/what_planned_parenthood_actually_does/2011/04/06/AFhBPa2C_blog.html?wprss=ezra-klein
Apr 08
House Democratic Caucus
Zack Hudgins created a great video about what it means to be a representative:
Apr 07
IAM Rally in Olympia
The IAM is having a labor rally in Olympia on 4/8/2011. A labor rally bus for Olympia will leave from the IAM Hall (9125 15th Pl S, Seattle) at 9:30 AM and return at 3PM. Please call the Guevarras at 206-683-0667 if you would like a seat See http://www.iam751.org/ for details.
Apr 05
Resolution Against the Privatization of Medicare
Resolution Against the Privatization of Medicare. Access the resolution by using the following link:
Apr 05
Resolution Against Cuts to the Social Security Administration Budget for 2011
Resolution Against Cuts to the Social Security Administration Budget for 2011. Access the resolution by using the following link:
