A troubling theme has emerged this past legislative session that should concern all Washingtonians regardless of political affiliation. The majority party in the state House has continually voted …
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By Peter Abbarno, R-Centralia
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4/14/23
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Most things in schools really pick up pace after spring break.
There are so many during and after school events to attend, but also many of our traditional school celebrations that we want the …
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By Brian Wharton
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4/11/23
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Drugs in our state are clearly more lethal than firearms. Just look at King County, where 83 people were fatally shot in 2022, but more than 1,000 people fatally overdosed.
With that disparity …
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By John Braun
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4/7/23
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On 10 occasions, Washington state residents have voted down proposals to create income taxes in Washington state and, until Friday, the state constitution was always interpreted to prohibit the …
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By Chad Taylor
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4/4/23
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Salmon are a keystone species in the Pacific Northwest — a central part of the food chain and our way of life.
Throughout the region, salmon runs are imperiled by the cumulative effects of …
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By Ed Johnstone
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4/4/23
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If ever there was a time for building up Washington’s rainy-day reserves, this is it.
Warning signs continue to flash on an economy that has endured unprecedented stress during the last …
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By Kris Johnson
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4/3/23
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Washington is unlike any other state when it comes to the number of homeless residents. Not in a good way.
In December, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development issued its Annual …
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By Sen. John Braun, R-Centralia
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3/31/23
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I’m going to start this “turn off your phones” column with a call to first spend 80 minutes watching your screen.
A movie called “Childhood 2.0” is definitely worth …
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By Brian Mittge
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3/28/23
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Do you like the show “Yellowstone” or its spinoffs, “1883” and “1923?”
If you have not seen them, you should give them a try. Western TV shows and …
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By Richard Stride
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3/28/23
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The no-new-taxes operating-budget proposal introduced in the Senate this session is a welcome turnaround.
To be clear, there is no more need for new taxes this year than there was in either 2019 …
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By Sen. John Braun, R-Centralia
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3/24/23
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In the race to “electrify everything,” there are glitches which may derail the plan over the next 20 years. One is a shortage of skilled electrical workers needed to rewire homes, …
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By Don C. Brunell
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3/21/23
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“It’s much more agreeable to offend and later ask for forgiveness than to be offended and grant forgiveness,” Friedrich Nietzsche once said.
I would agree, wouldn’t you? …
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By Richard Stride
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3/21/23
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After trying for more than a dozen years to impose a carbon tax in our state, legislative Democrats succeeded in 2021. That’s the now-infamous session which also gave our state a new income …
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By John Braun
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3/21/23
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Earlier this month when President Joe Biden fastened the Congressional Medal of Honor around retired U.S. Army Col. Paris Davis’ neck, it was a welcome pause to the endless venomous rhetoric, …
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By Don C. Brunell
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3/14/23
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While the people were barred from the state Capitol during the 2021 legislative session by the pandemic and a tall metal fence, majority Democrats made several policy decisions that have caused great …
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By Sen. John Braun
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3/14/23
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Washington’s housing affordability crisis hurts every corner of the state. We’ve all heard stories. Nurses and grocery store employees can’t afford to live where they work. Young …
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By Kris Johnson
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3/14/23
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As we nudge closer to spring break in early April, there are clear messages we have in schools.
First, we must finish the school year at the highest achievement levels possible. Our students …
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By Brian Wharton
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3/7/23
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Students in our K-12 public schools are clearly struggling with the “three Rs” — reading, (w)riting and (a)rithmetic.
Only 32.6% of the fourth graders and eighth graders tested …
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By Sen. John Braun
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3/7/23
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One year from now, in February 2024, we will mark the 50th anniversary of federal Judge George Boldt’s ruling in United States vs. Washington, which affirmed tribes’ treaty-reserved …
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By Ed Johnstone
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2/28/23
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For many Washingtonians, the 2023 property tax statements that came in the mail this month produced the same “sticker shock” they’ve felt when buying things like groceries and fuel.
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By Sen. John Braun
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2/27/23
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