1. The state house Democratic caucus voted to oust Seattle-area state Rep. Sharon Tomiko Santos (D-37, S. Seattle) from her caucus leadership position as house whip on Friday. Santos' Dem house colleagues replaced her with Rep. Kevin Van De Wege (D-24, Clallam, Jefferson, and parts of Grays Harbor counties). The whip is the fourth top spot in the caucus.

The move was most likely vengeance: Santos voted against the revenue package last year, pissing off her colleagues because her 'No' vote—out of synch with her South Seattle district in its own right—forced state Rep. Dawn Morrell (D-25, Puyallup, Summit, Fife) to provide the 50th vote. Morrell is now losing by 39 votes in her conservative district to right wing odd ball Hans Zeiger.

The caucus, perhaps only symbolically at this point, voted to retain Morrell as caucus chair, the third ranking spot.

2. The Democrats also voted on Friday afternoon to make Rep. Pat Sullivan (D-47, Renton Highlands, Kent, Covington, Black Diamond) the Democratic house majority leader, the second spot behind house speaker Rep. Frank Chopp (D-43, Seattle).

Sullivan, a popular moderate, who works well with liberals and conservatives alike, will replace retiring Rep. Lynn Kessler (D-24). Sullivan beat out conservative Rep. Jeff Morris (D-40, San Juan, Skagit, and Southwest Whatcom) for the powerful job.

Immediately after the vote, Morris went on a Twitter tirade, accusing his caucus of veering left.

Liberals swept house Democrat leadership positions today. Im Out of leadership. I'll have to put TheRostrum [his twitter account] on hiatus come January. 7:01 PM Nov 19th

I had no idea elections had shifted the D caucus so far to the left. With the GOPs shifting so far to the right Where is middle going to be? 7:05 PM Nov 19th

Shocking thing is all 10 of 11 freshman went to the lliberal side of the caucus. K. Lytton [his new district seatmate, Kristine Lytton, who's replacing retiring Rep. Dave Quall] said she was voting for me. 9:06 PM Nov 19th

A few hours later, criticizing Derek Stanford and Luis Moscoso, the two newly-elected Democratic reps from the 1st Legislative District (Bothell, Woodinville, Mountlake Terrace), for being liberals, Morris tweeted:

That is total flip for 1st District. Two moderate D's for two liberal Democrats. 9:09 PM Nov 19th

Stanford and Moscoso are replacing conservative Democrats Al O'Brien and Mark Ericks (two of the most conservative Democrats in the house caucus).



For good measure, Morris also blasted his colleagues, calling them "vultures," for already moving conservative Rep. Kelli Linville (D-42, Western Whatcom County) out of her office. Linville, the house ways and means chair, lost her reelection bid to Republican Vincent Buys.

3. The Seattle Times reports : Seattle Public Schools changed its estimate of the number of graduating high school students who were college-ready from the shocking 17 percent they'd been using publicly for two years to the less shocking, although still not too impressive, 46 percent.

4. Nothing against the sidewalk dance steps on Broadway on Capitol Hill, but this is too cool: St. Paul, Minnesota's  Sidewalk Poetry project.