NPI's Cascadia Advocate

Offering commentary and analysis from Washington, Oregon, and Idaho, The Cascadia Advocate is the Northwest Progressive Institute's uplifting perspective on world, national, and local politics.

Monthly Archives: January 2018

Let’s bolster Washington’s public disclosure laws to combat abuse and signature fraud

Excerpt: Today, the Washington State Legislature held hearings on badly-needed legislation that would bring the activities of our underground signature gathering industry into the light by adding new reporting and compliance requirements to our public disclosure laws. Read our founder's testimony in support of these bills.
Written by:Andrew Villeneuve
Categories:Elections
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Victory! Breakfast After The Bell just sailed out of the Washington State Senate

Excerpt: Help is on the way for young Washingtonians who aren't getting enough to eat before the start of their school day. 2ESHB 1508, which would direct high-needs schools to offer Breakfast After The Bell programs to students, has just sailed out of the Washington State Senate with overwhelming support.
Written by:Andrew Villeneuve
Categories:Education, Healthcare, Legislative Advocacy, Policy Topics
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Transparency matters: States like Washington need to adopt a tax expenditure budget

Excerpt: It's no secret that Washington has an upside down tax code, but what is largely a secret is who benefits from all the tax exemptions currently on our books. Other states keep a list of their tax breaks and how much they cost, but Washington doesn't. Learn why it's imperative we start doing so by reading this post.
Written by:Steve Zemke
Categories:Legislative Advocacy
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Victory for gun responsibility! Washington State Senate passes bill banning bump stocks

Excerpt: The good news out of Olympia just keeps on coming! By a vote of twenty-nine to twenty, the Washington State Senate tonight voted to ban bump stocks, the now-infamous devices that were used in the horrific Las Vegas massacre, the deadliest mass shooting in American history.
Written by:Andrew Villeneuve
Categories:Civil Liberties, Policy Topics, Public Planning
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Landslide victory for Measure 101: Oregon voters protect state’s Medicaid funding

Excerpt: A right wing assault on healthcare funding in the Pacific Northwest fittingly ended in failure tonight with the conclusion of Oregon's January 23rd special election, in which voters were asked to decide whether new revenue needed to secure Medicaid matching funds should be retained or repealed.
Written by:Andrew Villeneuve
Categories:Elections
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U.S. Congress votes to reopen the federal government, reauthorize CHIP for six years

Excerpt: Today, majorities in each house of the United States Congress voted to reopen and fund the federal government through February 8th, 2018, as well as reauthorize CHIP for another six years, after Senate Democrats reached understanding with Senate Republicans regarding the fate of DACA.
Written by:Andrew Villeneuve
Categories:Legislative Advocacy
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Book Review: The airing of grievances in Donna Brazile’s “Hacks” comes at her true crime memoir’s expense

Excerpt: Read NPI's review of Donna Brazile's Hacks: The Inside Story of the Break-ins and Breakdowns That Put Donald Trump in the White House. The book has been portrayed in the mass media as a juicy tell-all, but a good chunk of it is actually a cybersecurity clinic that's worth reading.
Written by:David A Johnson
Categories:Elections, Media & Culture
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Washington State Republicans elect Caleb Heimlich as successor to Susan Hutchison

Excerpt: At a meeting in Moses Lake, the Washington State Republican Party's Central Committee tapped Executive Director Caleb Heimlich to take over from Susan Hutchison as its next Chair, the WSRP announced in a tweet earlier today.
Written by:Andrew Villeneuve
Categories:Party Politics
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Documentary Review: “Awake: A Dream From Standing Rock” is a sobering, crucial film

Excerpt: Read NPI's review of “Awake: A Dream from Standing Rock”, a documentary in three parts about the Dakota Access Pipeline protests at the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota.
Written by:Theresa Curry Almuti
Categories:Our Environment, Views & Reviews
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For the first time, the federal government has shut down under one party (Republican!) rule

Excerpt: Proving once again that they are utterly incapable of governing, the Trump regime and congressional Republicans collectively failed tonight to keep the federal government funded and open for business, resulting in the first government shutdown in the history of the United States under one party rule.
Written by:Andrew Villeneuve
Categories:Legislative Advocacy
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VICTORY! Washington Voting Rights Act wins approval in the state Senate for the first time

Excerpt: After having passed the DISCLOSE Act, same-day voter registration, and the capital budget earlier this week, our Senate today voted for the first time to adopt the Washington Voting Rights Act (SSB 6002), liberating a bill that had been stuck in the Senate Republicans' graveyard of progress for years.
Written by:Andrew Villeneuve
Categories:Civil Liberties, Elections, Policy Topics
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All systems go! Legislature *finally* sends capital budget to Governor Inslee’s desk

Excerpt: We have a capital budget! After many months and weeks of Four Corner negotiations, the Washington State Legislature has voted almost unanimously to authorize billions of dollars' worth of important, necessary projects that will strengthen our communities.
Written by:Andrew Villeneuve
Categories:Legislative Advocacy
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Hurrah! Same-day voter registration passes out of the Washington State Senate

Excerpt: Washington is one step closer to eliminating another barrier to voting tonight thanks to the state Senate's approval of a bill that allows in-person voter registration until 8 PM on Election Night as well as moving the deadline for registering online or by mail much closer to the deadline for returning ballots.
Written by:Andrew Villeneuve
Categories:Elections
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Washington State State passes DISCLOSE Act to expose dark money in politics — at last!

Excerpt: Washington State's newly minted Democratic Senate majority notched its first signature legislative win tonight, bringing Andy Billig's DISCLOSE Act to the floor for a vote and easily passing the legislation with the support of several Republicans.
Written by:Andrew Villeneuve
Categories:Open Government, Policy Topics
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