Washington Liberals

Over the past 30 years, our political leaders have pursued increasingly immoral, unconstitutional, and destructive policies: fraudulent wars, torture, rampant corruption and mismanagement, reckless deregulation, tax cuts for the rich, erosion of civil liberties, bailouts of culpable billionaire corporations, outsourcing of jobs and profits, dismantling of public journalism, fixed elections, corporate personhood, and prosecution of…

In order to obtain emergency funding for public transit, the King County Council, specifically, Larry Phillips, has proposed a congestion fee of $20 to be charged for every automobile.  I am writing in strong opposition to this fee and hope that others will also oppose this regressive tax and testify at the upcoming hearings unless…

Prominent conservative David Brooks has some harsh things to say about the Republican Party in this New York Times editorial: The Republican Party may no longer be a normal party. Over the past few years, it has been infected by a faction that is more of a psychological protest than a practical, governing alternative. The…

Last Friday, Linda Boyd, Robert Sargent, and I (Don Smith) had a meeting with 8th CD US Congressman Dave Reichert (R), at his Mercer Island office. This was the third time that I’d attended a meeting with Reichert. Each time we told him we were loosely affiliated with MoveOn. The affiliation with MoveOn has been…

[Note from the editor:  Last Friday, the author (Linda Boyd), Robert Sargent, and I had a meeting with 8th CD US Congressman Dave Reichert (R), at his Mercer Island office.  My report is here.  — Don Smith] Representative Reichert, It  was a pleasure to meet with you on Friday and to express my views about…

On June 22, I attended a public forum, “Law and Politics:The State Budget—Searching for Long-Term Sustainability”, at the Rainier Square Atrium in downtown Seattle. The panelists were Representative Reuven Carlyle (D-36), Washington State Legislature Representative Bruce Dammier (R-25), Washington State Legislature Paul Guppy, vice president for research, Washington Policy Center Marty Loesch, director of external…

“The top five U.S. banks paid staff a combined $119 billion for 2010, according to bank consolidated income statements.”  from this Reuters article: Compensation seen rising among bankers: poll.  Add in Goldman Sachs and the compensation comes to about $140 billion. According to Dollars&Sense Wall Street financiers received $20.8 billion in bonuses last year on…

Last weekend I hosted a free screening of the movie Inside Job at the Kent Library. This documentary shows us how the financial industry pillaged the American economy during the Banking Crisis of 2008. One of the key causes of the Great Recession was the transfer of assets from the balance sheet of banks to…

According to this LA Times article Deficit battle shaping up as GOP victory President Obama began his bargaining about raising the deficit limit from a position that already gave Republicans most of what they want:   way more spending cuts than tax increases. Even if Obama were to gain all the tax-law changes he wants,…

Residents of King County should try to attend special public meetings of the county Transportation, Economy, and Environment Committee to discuss proposed cuts in bus and trolley service. Wednesday, July 6, 6:00 p.m. Kirkland City Council Chambers 123 Fifth Avenue, Kirkland Tuesday, July 12, 6:00 p.m. King County Council Chambers 516 Third Avenue, 10th Floor,…