What's the most important news of the day? It's not the passage of the Wall Street bailout bill. It's not the pundits' reactions to last night's vice-presidential debate. No. The most important news item of the day is that Saturday, Oct. 4, is the last day to register to vote. So if you haven't already, do it. ...
Hot links: While Wall Street may be relieved that the federal government is rescuing them from disaster, the new law isn't exactly pork-proof. According to The Associated Press, the $700 billion bailout bill is loaded with earmarks. Apparently congressional leaders thought the only way to secure passage of the bill through the extremely divided House and Senate was to "sweeten the deal." Here is a nibble of the package's pork:
[The bill exempts] wooden practice arrows used by children from an excise tax of 39 cents per arrow. Oregon's two senators and two Wisconsin representatives previously introduced legislation calling for the action, saying the tax was meant for more expensive archery arrows and is untenable for makers of toy arrows that may cost only about 30 cents apiece. The bill would affect about a half-dozen manufacturers nationwide, including one in Oregon; the Oregon senators said they didn't seek its addition to the bailout, however. Cost: $2 million.Hot air: The latest Rasmussen Reports poll shows the state's hotly contested gubernatorial race between Democratic Gov. Chris Gregoire and Republican challenger Dino Rossi is tied. ...
Hot topic: The editorial board at the Seattle Post-Intelligencer says it's essential that voters approve the two city property tax measure for renovating Pike Place Market and improving the parks system to ensure Seattle's identity. ...
Something's wrong: Hours after Spokane Spokesman-Review editor Steven A. Smith announced his resignation due to deep budget and staff cuts, the paper's assistant managing editor said she's calling it quits, too. ...
Something's fishy: Washington state officials said yesterday that they're banning a pedicure procedure that uses toothless carp to nibble dead skin off of customers' feet. There go my weekend plans. ...
Something nice: Four Democratic candidates from two legislative districts in Washington state are pledging to run "clean campaigns" for the remainder of the race, saying they don't want inter-party battles to damage the Democratic ticket. Good luck, fellas. ...
Over here: P-I columnist Joel Connelly says Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama needs to pay close attention to Western states to ensure they don't slip from his grasp. ...
Over there: Democratic U.S. Rep. Jim McDermott was the only member of Washington's delegation in Congress to switch his vote in today's historic Wall Street bailout. Why? One reason, McDermott said, was the telephones in his office were melting from overwhelming volume of calls from angry constituents. ...
And finally, state officials want to make one thing clear: You are allowed to wash your car in the driveway, despite a USA Today story earlier this week which claimed the contrary. While the state's Department of Ecology urges citizens not to pour soapy water into storm drains, state officials told reporters that it has told local governments to "not issue tickets, fines or other penalties." ...
