Morning Fizz
Touched a Nerve
Caffeinated News & Gossip. Your daily Morning Fizz.
1. As part of its parking mitigation program during construction of the downtown tunnel, the Washington State Department of Transportation plans to give shoppers up to four hours of free downtown parking on Mother's Day, this coming Sunday. Drivers (not just moms) who use one of five private downtown lots will be able to park for free between 9 am and 7 pm. The state will reimburse the lots' owners from WSDOT's $30 million parking mitigation fund.
WSDOT spokeswoman KaDeena Yerkan said she didn't know how much the agency planned to spend on the free parking. "We won't really know until we figure out how many people use it," Yerkan says.
Theoretically, though---assuming an average price for four hours of $14---if all 1,100 spaces in the promotion turned over once between 9 and 7, the state could be on the hook for more than $30,000. That's a tiny fraction of $30 million, but it raises the question: Is free parking the best use of taxpayers' parking mitigation dollars?
2. The standard position from most of the 1st Congressional District Democrats on the proposed coal train from Montana that would run to the Cherry Point port outside Bellingham is reserved skepticism, with the attitude, let's wait and see what the environmental impact statement says. (Though conservative state Sen. Steve Hobbs, D-44, Lake Stevens, breaks ranks and supports it.)
And now, breaking ranks from the left flank, longshot candidate Darshan Rauniyar says he's 100 percent against it. In a statement this morning, Rauniyar, a Nepalese immigrant, electronics entrepreneur, and active Democratic Party activist, said:
3. One last tidbit from the Washington State Labor Council convention this weekend where the WSLC endorsed candidates and released their annual legislative scorecards (as we noted yesterday Democrats such as Seattle Reps. Frank Chopp, Reuven Carlyle, and Jamie Pedersen, who voted for the GOP pension reform bill—a vote that got extra weight in the scorecard—did not get the WSLC endorsement regardless of how good they were on labor issues otherwise.)
Not a single Republican incumbent got a WSLC endorsement this year. Labor typically endorses a few GOPers—such as Sen. Pam Roach (R-31, Auburn) and former Reps. Shirley Hankins and Larry Haler of the Tri-Cities, Rep. Tom Campbell of Roy.
No Republicans this year, though. "On very basic issues such as collective bargaining, the Republican caucus just locked up in unison, no one was allowed to break away," WSLC spokesman David Groves said. "Not to mention the horrible Senate Republican budget that required not only the three Roadkill Dems but each and every Republican."
Fizz evidently touched a nerve talking to Groves about this. He sent a follow-up email elaborating on the WSLC's aversion to Republicans this year.
As opposed to many Democrats, such as Democratic speaker Rep. Frank Chopp (D-43, Seattle), conservative Rep. Hans Zeiger (R-25, Puyallup) voted against the pension reform bill. Not sure, though, if that explains the typo on the WSLC's scorecard—which lists Zeiger as a Democrat. (Thanks to the Washington State Wire for catching the gaffe.)
1. As part of its parking mitigation program during construction of the downtown tunnel, the Washington State Department of Transportation plans to give shoppers up to four hours of free downtown parking on Mother's Day, this coming Sunday. Drivers (not just moms) who use one of five private downtown lots will be able to park for free between 9 am and 7 pm. The state will reimburse the lots' owners from WSDOT's $30 million parking mitigation fund.
WSDOT spokeswoman KaDeena Yerkan said she didn't know how much the agency planned to spend on the free parking. "We won't really know until we figure out how many people use it," Yerkan says.
Theoretically, though---assuming an average price for four hours of $14---if all 1,100 spaces in the promotion turned over once between 9 and 7, the state could be on the hook for more than $30,000. That's a tiny fraction of $30 million, but it raises the question: Is free parking the best use of taxpayers' parking mitigation dollars?
2. The standard position from most of the 1st Congressional District Democrats on the proposed coal train from Montana that would run to the Cherry Point port outside Bellingham is reserved skepticism, with the attitude, let's wait and see what the environmental impact statement says. (Though conservative state Sen. Steve Hobbs, D-44, Lake Stevens, breaks ranks and supports it.)
And now, breaking ranks from the left flank, longshot candidate Darshan Rauniyar says he's 100 percent against it. In a statement this morning, Rauniyar, a Nepalese immigrant, electronics entrepreneur, and active Democratic Party activist, said:
Global warming is a severe crisis facing the planet, impacting the health and economic well-being of all of us. Democrats need to be unified in providing national leadership to reduce the burning of fossil fuels that are the direct cause of global climate change. I’m proud to stand with the Washington Environmental Council, Sierra Club Washington, People for Puget Sound and the Washington Conservation Voters in the fight to defeat this proposal. This is a defining issue of my campaign. Republicans in Washington have blocked efforts to reduce our carbon emissions and have waged a dangerous campaign of disinformation about the real threat posed by global warming. In Washington DC, I will take on the big energy companies and their right wing allies to create responsible policy that’s based on sound science.
3. One last tidbit from the Washington State Labor Council convention this weekend where the WSLC endorsed candidates and released their annual legislative scorecards (as we noted yesterday Democrats such as Seattle Reps. Frank Chopp, Reuven Carlyle, and Jamie Pedersen, who voted for the GOP pension reform bill—a vote that got extra weight in the scorecard—did not get the WSLC endorsement regardless of how good they were on labor issues otherwise.)
Not a single Republican incumbent got a WSLC endorsement this year. Labor typically endorses a few GOPers—such as Sen. Pam Roach (R-31, Auburn) and former Reps. Shirley Hankins and Larry Haler of the Tri-Cities, Rep. Tom Campbell of Roy.
No Republicans this year, though. "On very basic issues such as collective bargaining, the Republican caucus just locked up in unison, no one was allowed to break away," WSLC spokesman David Groves said. "Not to mention the horrible Senate Republican budget that required not only the three Roadkill Dems but each and every Republican."
Fizz evidently touched a nerve talking to Groves about this. He sent a follow-up email elaborating on the WSLC's aversion to Republicans this year.
The Republican Party has launched an all-out assault on unions in recent years. Every GOP presidential candidate has endorsed so-called “right-to-work” laws. And it’s pretty clear that the people funding that party, like the Koch Brothers, are pushing to eliminate collective bargaining rights as part of their agenda. I think that has hardened conservative union members against a party they might have previously supported for fiscal/social reasons before. In this state, moderate Republicans no longer exist.
As opposed to many Democrats, such as Democratic speaker Rep. Frank Chopp (D-43, Seattle), conservative Rep. Hans Zeiger (R-25, Puyallup) voted against the pension reform bill. Not sure, though, if that explains the typo on the WSLC's scorecard—which lists Zeiger as a Democrat. (Thanks to the Washington State Wire for catching the gaffe.)
