Podcasts about skagit county

En este episodio de Caminatas de las granjas, estoy hablando con Francisco Farias, dueño de Farias Farm en Burlington, WA. Aprendemos sobre su granja diversificada que él maneja con su familia y el porque y como ellos mantienen todo certificado orgánico. Más tarde en el episodio, platicamos en más detalle con Alejandra Contreras de Oregon Tilth una de las certificadoras del programa nacional orgánico en el estado de WA. In this episode we'll hear from Francisco Farias about his diversified certified organic farm, Farias Farm, located in Skagit County and owned and operated by Francisco Farias and his wife Lorena Reza Serrano. We'll learn about how and why they maintain their farm certified Organic. Later in the episode, we talk in more detail with Alejandra Contreras of Oregon Tilth, one of the certifiers of the National Organic Program in the state of WA. Este episodio fue apoyado por el Programa para la transición a la agricultura orgánica (TOPP) del Departamento de Agricultura de los Estados Unidos (USDA). TOPP es un programa de la Iniciativa de Transición Orgánica del USDA y es administrado por el Servicio de Comercialización Agrícola del USDA (AMS) Programa Orgánico Nacional (NOP).This episode was supported through the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Transition to Organic Partnership Program (TOPP). TOPP is a program of the USDA Organic Transition Initiative and is administered by the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) National Organic Program (NOP).

This Tales of the Magic Skagit podcast episode encompasses two topics, which while seemingly unrelated at first consideration, actually have a common theme: the past, present, and future of the Skagit Valley as viewed through an artistic lens.We start this episode off with Laynie Moran, the Skagit County Historical Museum's Collections Manager, who is heading up a first ever art contest and exhibit with the unlikely theme, "Everyone's a Critic." This upcoming exhibit could, however, also be called "Everyone's an Artist," since the goal of Laynie's project is to showcase art from anyone in the county, regardless of age or skill level, to contribute a work of art of their own creation. The only criterion for the entries, whatever the chosen medium, is that they adhere to the theme "The Past, Present, and Future of Skagit County." Entries are due by June 1, 2025, and the exhibit opens and voting begins on June 20. Details and registration forms are available at the museum and its website, www.skagitcounty.net/museum.On the subject of Skagit Valley's past, we turn next to Ann Maroney, the office and store manager at the museum, to learn about its current exhibit on the life of Lawrence (Laurie) Wells. In describing Laurie's life, it's hard to know where to begin. He was a largely self-taught artist whose works captured the beauty of his Skagit Valley home through an astonishing number of paintings across a variety media and styles. But he and his wife, whose love story is part of the exhibit as well, were also active in the early grange and socialist movements of the early 20th century. In addition, Laurie could justifiably be called the godfather of the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival, thanks to his promotion of the Magic Skagit's bulb farms and his landscape design skills in showcasing them decades ago.Suffice it to say that the museum's current exhibit, "Laurie Wells: A Skagit Original," is a multi-layered tribute to an individual whose deep and abiding love of where we live combines works of art with a glimpse into lesser known aspects of Skagit Valley history that will appeal to the eye, heart, head, and soul. And with the exhibit to come in June, Skagitonians of all ages are invited to celebrate Laurie Wells' legacy in a way he would have undoubtedly appreciated: through art.

Hello to you listening in Bow-Edison, Skagit County, Washington!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Wednesdays on Whidbey and your host, Diane Wyzga.“Being underestimated because of gender (or any other reason) is an advantage when you're a spy on the street trying to move around unobserved. Being underestimated is a problem for everybody when you are a woman in a national security community trying to make yourself heard about something important you have discovered.” [The Sisterhood - The Secret History of Women at the CIA by Liza Mundy]  Reading those words from The Sisterhood - The Secret History of Women at the CIA reminded me of all the ways in which women feel underestimated, personally as well as professionally. How do we correct that? It starts with unlocking the power of clarity and intentionality that is Your Who.We each have a particular story at the core of our lives: our Origin Story. Our Origin Story reveals how we got from There to Here. When we own our Origin Story we stand in courage and confidence.How so? By trusting the hardships we've faced and achievements we've won we connect with our self-worth, what we stand for, what we won't stand for, what we no longer fear. We have something to say because we discovered WHO we are. This gives us the power to be heard and listened to.CTA: If you're curious about how to make yourself heard by creating Your Who, email me (info@quartermoonstoryarts.net) OR tap the Link in the Episode Notes to schedule a no-obligation Discovery Chat. You're always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe, share a 5-star rating + nice review on your social media or podcast channel of choice, and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ Arrange your free no-obligation Discovery Call to learn more,✓ Opt In to my NewsAudioLetter for bonus gift, valuable tips & techniques to enhance your story work, and✓ Stay current with Diane on Substack as Wyzga on WordsStories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer's Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

As the court fight to protect thousands of acres of Skagit County farmland threatened by federal agencies' refusal to OK tidegate repair continues, a national farm group is throwing its weight behind the Skagit farmers' case. Norm Semanko, attorney for Family Farm Alliance, joins Dillon with the latest on the Skagit drainage district's lawsuit, and why his organization has filed a court brief in support of the suit.

Are you ready to uncover Skagit County's hidden treasures? Join host Scott Cowan as he chats with Kristen Keltz, CEO of the Skagit Tourism Bureau, to explore everything this remarkable region has to offer—from breathtaking landscapes and charming small towns to vibrant cultural events and unique culinary experiences. What You'll Discover in This Episode: Skagit County's Hidden Gems Think you know Skagit? Think again! Kristen shares the lesser-known highlights of the area, including delightful towns like Edison and Concrete, incredible hiking spots, and awe-inspiring views that stretch from the water to the mountains. Coffee, Food, and Local Flavor Whether sipping coffee at cozy shops like Penguin Coffee or enjoying a meal featuring locally sourced ingredients, Skagit County is a foodie's dream. Kristen dishes out her top recommendations to fuel your next adventure. The Iconic Tulip Festival and Beyond While the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival is world-famous, Kristen reveals why every season in Skagit County offers something special—from vibrant summer markets to winter birdwatching and holiday magic in its charming towns. Tourism's Role in the Community Kristen explains how tourism fuels Skagit County's economy and helps create lasting memories for visitors, highlighting the importance of sustainable travel practices. Why Skagit Feels Like Home From her early days in hospitality to becoming the CEO of the Skagit Tourism Bureau, Kristen's deep-rooted love for the region shines through as she shares what makes it unique. Why You Should Listen: Whether you're planning your next weekend getaway or love hearing about incredible places, this episode is packed with insights and inspiration. Kristen's passion for Skagit County will make you itching to pack your bags and discover this magical destination. Your Next Steps: Visit Skagit County: Plan your trip today! Explore hidden gems, savor local flavors, and experience a slower, more connected way of life. Explore Events: Visit Skagit Valley.com to check out its exciting lineup of events, from lighted boat parades to scenic winter hikes. Follow the Podcast: Don't miss a single episode! Subscribe to the Exploring Washington State Podcast for more stories, tips, and travel inspiration. Share the Love: Know someone who loves discovering new places? Share this episode and help spread the magic of Skagit County! Tune in now and discover why Skagit County is more than just a stop along I-5—a destination that deserves exploring. Click play and start your adventure!

Tom, Joey, and Bob of BeauMac are live in studio and are joined by Kevin John of Holiday Sports to talk about opening day ducks, bucks and rooster details from the Sage of Skagit County, they give you this week’s Northwest Outdoor Report, they are joined by Greg Sharrow of SharrowMarine.com to talk about the Sharrow propellers, then they end the show with Three River Marine Really? Where?

In this episode, host Joy Gilfilen sits down with Chris Hoke, the founder of Underground Ministries in Skagit County, Washington. Chris shares his inspiring story of working with gang members leaving prison and his passion for building meaningful relationships. He discusses the importance of reversing the cycle of incarceration and how his organization is providing practical support and resources to help individuals rebuild their lives, families, and communities. Tune in to learn more about Chris's work with Homeboy Industries, One Parish One Prisoner (OPOP), a program that pairs churches with incarcerated people to build relationships and support them as they re-enter their communities, and his groundbreaking approach to helping people stay out of prison.

After federal authorities blocked not one, but two seemingly straightforward fixes to tide gates protecting Skagit County farmland, troubling questions are surfacing about the true motives behind the decision. Skagit dairy farmer and dike district commissioner Jason Vander Kooy joins Dillon with details on the predicament that puts hundreds of acres of fertile farmland at risk of destruction.

September 2, 2008 started out as a normal day but it would eventually result in the death of 6 people and the permanent scarring of many more. We head to Alger, Washington to cover the 2008 Skagit County shootings committed by Isaac Zamora. Sponsors: The Waxing Crescent | Instagram | Facebook Simply Sage Dog Treats | Promo Code: TrueCrime15 Connect with Us _______________________ Sources: No one wants to help Isaac Zamora, and that's the problem 2008 Skagit County shootings - Wikipedia Convicted murderer Isaac Zamora wants to withdraw guilty pleas | FOX 13 Seattle State v. Zamora, 198 Wash. App. 44 | Casetext Search + Citator State to pay $9 million to victims of Zamora shooting spree Man accused of killing 6 in Wash. recently jailed State moves killer Isaac Zamora from mental hospital to prison | The Seattle Times IN RE: the Personal Restraint of: Isaac L. ZAMORA (2020) | FindLaw Skagit County shooting spree leaves 6 dead, including sheriff's deputy, 2 injured | The Seattle Times Personal Restraint Petition Of: Isaac Zamora :: 2020 :: Washington Court of Appeals, Division I Decisions :: Washington Case Law :: Washington Law :: US Law :: Justia Murder charges filed against Skagit shooting suspect Zamora heading for prison, not hospital – KIRO 7 News Seattle Skagit killing spree detailed courts.wa.gov State justices to Zamora victims' families: Jail not liable for killings Binschus v. State, No. 71752-9-I | Casetext Search + Citator Skagit County murder spree suspect: “I kill for God” | The Seattle Times Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On our last day of interviews at the Meyer Sign Fair History Booth during the 2024 Skagit County Fair, Don Wick and I were delighted to chat with a variety of folks who make the Fair the best annual venue in the Magic Skagit.  Our first interview was with the director of Skagit County  Parks & Recreation, Brian Adams. We learned about Brian's background and career at Parks & Rec, and his aspirations for the Fair's future. Our second interview was with one of our very favorite Fair entertainers, the beloved Wren the Juggler. We talked with Wren about how he got his start in juggling, and what makes the Skagit County Fair particularly special for him.  One of the things that Don and I had been missing during this year's Fair was the opportunity to talk with 4H kids. We finally got our chance when Miss Kylie Fitzgerald stopped by to tell us about the pleasures of raising a very special breed of sheep. Don's and my fourth interview of the day was with Madelyn Loy, who bears one of the most unique job titles of anyone we've interviewed to date: Noxious Weed Coordinator. Madelyn shared her organization's outreach efforts at helping rid our Magic Skagit of problem plants, and why this matters to an agricultural community. Our final interview of the day was especially heart warming. We were joined by another 4H youth who we first interviewed two years ago when she was 9. This was our third interview with a very special young lady named Savannah Pippin, who brought us up to date on her adventures in archery and her aspirations to become an astrophysicist. We plan to continue these annual conversations with Savannah as she continues to grow in grace. I'm still smiling.

On Day Three of the 2024 Skagit County Fair, Don Wick and I once again had the pleasure of interviewing some remarkable folks who each make a unique contribution to the Fair's success.  We started our interview series with Ron Stubbs, whose Hypnotic Mayhem has delighted and mystified audiences for more than three decades. But Ron is also a “talent buyer” for casinos throughout the country. You'll learn more about this talented gent (who grew up within walking distance of Don Wick's childhood home) and get some some insight into how hypnosis works from a guy who started off as a sceptic.   Our next interview was with Robert Demarais, who in addition to being the owner of Sound Cedar, a major sponsor of the Fair, has recently founded the Skagit County Fairgrounds Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping fund the operations of our beloved Fairgrounds through grants and donations.  For our third interview, Don and I were pleased to interview Kristen Keltz, who seven months ago became the president of the Skagit Tourism Bureau after having served as the CEO of the Mount Vernon Chamber of Commerce for fourteen years. We wanted to learn how one goes about promoting our beautiful Magic Skagit, but  we also wanted to know about Kristen's own history with the Skagit County Fair and her lifelong relationship with it.  If you've ever fantasized about running away and joining the circus, you'll find Don's and my fourth interview of Day Three to be especially interesting. Jason Barker, the ringmaster of Vuelta La Luna, brought his entire troupe with him to tell us their history and describe their unique talents. Meet Eros, Miss Ella, and Kendra — and discover how they came to embrace circus life. Our fifth interview was with Caitlin Villaroman, a volunteer with Sardis Raptor Center, which started as an all species    rehab organization and has since evolved into a rescue center for raptors ranging from bald eagles to eurasian eagle owls. Her participation at the Fair is part of her organization's education efforts. Young and old alike come away from Caitlin's daily presentations with a new appreciation for the amazing birds that call Sardis Raptor Center their home.  Please note that the sound quality of these recorded interviews is a bit rough. Don and I were competing with the 4H and FFA lifestock auction that was going on in the Pavilion where the Meyer Sign History Booth is located. Think of it as the ambient background of the Fair, and it certainly won't detract from your admiration of the folks we were fortunate enough to speak with today.  They're a part of what makes our Skagit County Fair a cherished annual event!

Welcome to the first Tales of the Magic Skagit podcast from the 2024 Skagit County Fair. Don Wick and I co-host the Meyer Sign Fair History Booth, and for our third year running we look for opportunities to sit down with folks at the Fair with good stories to tell. On Friday, August 9 (Day Two of the Fair), we start off with an interview with three members of an Anacortes-based West African drum ensemble led by certified Ghanian Master Drummer and flutist, Saeed Abbas. Joining Don and I for this interview is our Skagit Valley Youth History Project intern, Morgan White — herself a percussionist with Mount Vernon High School. Our second interview is with Jason Miller, the owner and publisher of a great upper Skagit newspaper, the Concrete Herald. We'll learn a bit about Jason's story and how the town of Concrete is doing. Our third interview is with Maddy Van der Kooy and Deb Eiderness, who are both involved in programs that provide resources and outreach to farmers dealing with stress — a more serious problem than you might think unless you're trying to make a living in farming in the 21st century. Our fourth interview is with the amazing cowboy comedian and trick roper Leapin' Louie, who is a new and fantastic addition to the Fair's entertainment lineup. You'll discover that his passion extends way beyond a humorous cowboy schtick. Don and I wind up the day with an interview with Skagit County Commisioner Ron Wesen who shares his own history and love for our annual Fair. We'll be back tomorrow with more interviews for Day Three. Keep it magic, y'all!

This is my love letter to county fairs everywhere...but most especially the Stanwood-Camano and Skagit County fairs. I originally wrote this during the throes of the Great Pandemic of 2020, when our beloved Skagit County Fair was suspended due to quarantine. I don't miss those days one bit.

Today's key for the Mt Baker Motosports side x side was for a farmer! We took calls and emails from all kinds of farmers but John the tulip farmer was pulled as today's winner! If you have ever enjoyed the tulips of Skagit County, you should give this a listen!

What’s Trending: Professor Stuart Reges was harassed and stalked at the UW’s “Liberated Zone. A major malfunction at the Skagit County hatchery led to the death of over 1 million salmon. Joe Biden announced that he’s visiting Seattle next week. ‘// Marjorie Taylor Greene is complaining that Fox News called her an “idiot.” Jason goes over some potential VP picks for Donald Trump. // A local newspaper is attacking Kristi Noem for another peculiar claim in her book in which she alleges she met Kim Jong-Un when that appears to be false.

Hello to you listening in Bow-Edison, Skagit County, Washington!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Wednesdays on Whidbey and your host, Diane Wyzga.“Being underestimated because of gender (or any other reason) is an advantage when you're a spy on the street trying to move around unobserved. Being underestimated is a problem for everybody when you are a woman in a national security community trying to make yourself heard about something important you have discovered.” [The Sisterhood - The Secret History of Women at the CIA by Liza Mundy]  Reading those words from The Sisterhood - The Secret History of Women at the CIA reminded me of all the ways in which women feel underestimated, personally as well as professionally. How do we correct that? It starts with unlocking the power of clarity and intentionality that is Your Who.We each have a particular story at the core of our lives: our Origin Story. Our Origin Story reveals how we got from There to Here. When we own our Origin Story we stand in courage and confidence.How so? By trusting the hardships we've faced and achievements we've won we connect with our self-worth, what we stand for, what we won't stand for, what we no longer fear. We have something to say because we discovered WHO we are. This gives us the power to be heard and listened to.CTA: If you're curious about how to make yourself heard by creating Your Who, email me (info@quartermoonstoryarts.net) OR tap the Link in the Episode Notes to schedule a no-obligation Discovery Chat. You're always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe, share a 5-star rating + nice review on your social media or podcast channel of choice, and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ Arrange your free no-obligation Discovery Call to learn more,✓ Opt In to my NewsAudioLetter for bonus gift, valuable tips & techniques to enhance your story work, and✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn.Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer's Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Hello to you listening in Bow-Edison, Skagit County, Washington!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Wednesdays on Whidbey and your host, Diane Wyzga.“Being underestimated because of gender (or any other reason) is an advantage when you're a spy on the street trying to move around unobserved. Being underestimated is a problem for everybody when you are a woman in a national security community trying to make yourself heard about something important you have discovered.” [The Sisterhood - The Secret History of Women at the CIA by Liza Mundy]  Reading those words from The Sisterhood - The Secret History of Women at the CIA reminded me of all the ways in which women feel underestimated, personally as well as professionally. How do we correct that? It starts with unlocking the power of clarity and intentionality that is Your Who.We each have a particular story at the core of our lives: our Origin Story. Our Origin Story reveals how we got from There to Here. When we own our Origin Story we stand in courage and confidence.How so? By trusting the hardships we've faced and achievements we've won we connect with our self-worth, what we stand for, what we won't stand for, what we no longer fear. We have something to say because we discovered WHO we are. This gives us the power to be heard and listened to.CTA: If you're curious about how to make yourself heard by creating Your Who, email me (info@quartermoonstoryarts.net) OR tap the Link in the Episode Notes to schedule a no-obligation Discovery Chat. You're always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe, share a 5-star rating + nice review on your social media or podcast channel of choice, and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Services I Offer,✓ Arrange your free no-obligation Discovery Call to learn more,✓ Opt In to my NewsAudioLetter for bonus gift, valuable tips & techniques to enhance your story work, and✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn.Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer's Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.

Matthew Williams: A Decade of Excellence in Emergency DispatchMatthew has dedicated over a decade of his career to the critical role of emergency dispatch, currently serving as a fire dispatcher at Skagit 911, also known as Cascade Dispatch. With eleven years of experience, Matthew has evolved from a 911 call taker trained by our host, Jennifer Darling, to a seasoned fire dispatcher. His commitment to excellence and continuous improvement in emergency response communication has significantly contributed to the safety and well-being of Skagit County residents.In our conversation, we uncover the intricate world of emergency dispatch, the evolution of technology in the field, and the personal challenges and triumphs faced by dispatchers.Specifically, we discuss:The transition from traditional dispatch methods to the ProQA system and its impact on emergency response accuracy.The challenges of adapting to new technologies and methodologies in dispatch.The importance of building strong relationships between dispatchers and field responders for effective emergency management.Strategies for managing the emotional toll of handling life-or-death situations over the phone.The critical role of continuous training and the unique approach to recruitment and retention in the dispatch profession.Matthew's initiative in creating a dispatch newsletter to foster community and share knowledge among emergency response teams.  

Robert Lee Yates Jr., also known as the Grocery Bag Killer, is an American serial killer from Spokane, Washington. Served in The US Army and Air National guard, he was married and had 2 daughters. From 1975 to 1998, he is known to have murdered at least 11 women in Spokane. He also confessed to two murders committed in Walla Walla in 1975 and a 1988 murder committed in Skagit County.

Today, we're taking you just beyond the breathtaking landscapes of North Cascades National Park to discover a hidden gem: Alpine RV Park. Located in picturesque Marblemount, Washington, Alpine RV Park is more than just a campground – it's a gateway to outdoor paradise in the Cascade Mountains of Skagit County. Nestled along the banks of the Skagit River, this RV park offers unparalleled opportunities for paddling, fishing, and hiking amidst stunning natural beauty.But that's not all – with North Cascades National Park just a stone's throw away, Alpine RV Park serves as the perfect basecamp for your wilderness adventures. Join us as we chat with Lee Jennings, one of the new owners of Alpine RV Park, about the park's rich history, exciting recreational activities in the area, and his ambitious vision for the future. From campground upgrades to community initiatives, Lee shares his passion for creating an unforgettable experience for guests.So, whether you're planning your next outdoor getaway or simply dreaming of scenic RV destinations, tune in to this great episode as your starting point for adventure in the great Cascade Mountains.Visit Alpine RV Park

Thank you to inspectify.com for sponsoring this weeks episode! This week on WSREIP we have a conversation with April Patterson, a realtor in the Skagit County area of Washington state, about real estate investing in the region. She highlights the unique aspects of Skagit County, it being a highly potential investment area due to its geographical location, situated about an hour drive north of Seattle and its proximity to military bases. Due to numerous military bases around, the region has a significant military and veteran population, creating consistent housing demand. April also elaborates on the importance of understanding the larger picture of a property's potential by learning to look past initial problems since it puts investors in a good position moving forward.  April Patterson April is a Realtor an a veterans advocate. She is a veteran of the United States Navy. She has been volunteering with veterans services since 2015. She earned her real estate license in 2021. She has had the opportunity to work with everyone from residential first time homebuyers (we call them "first time investors") to seasoned investors and developers. She do first time homebuyer classes through the Washington State Housing Finance Commission to help empower folks to take that first step into home ownership. She has extensive experience and knowledge of VA loans and veterans services/benefits allows her to educate veterans on how to start investing using the VA loan program. 00:01 Introduction to Real Estate Investing 00:34 Update on Latest Property 01:53 Understanding Property Potential 03:53 Sponsor Shoutout: Inspectify.com 04:48 Interview with April Patterson: Realtor and Veteran 05:37 Understanding Skagit County Real Estate 07:46 Investing in Multi-Unit Properties 17:37 Emerging Trends in Skagit County Real Estate 19:33 Conclusion and Contact Information

In this episode, April McEwen, River Restoration Project Manager at American Rivers, talks about a variety of dam removal projects she is involved in. She discusses projects she has done since our last podcast about the Middle Fork Nooksack Fish Passage in 2020 (Episode 7).  She talks in detail about the Barrel Springs and Kellogg Creek dam removal projects. April talks about the importance of partnerships and collaboration in both of these projects. Barrel Springs was completed last summer in Skagit County, Washington. This project involved removing a 12-foot-tall dam and providing access to a natural cold-water springs. The Kellogg Creek Restoration and Community Enhancement Project will include removing a dam that blocks 14 acres of habitat in Milwaukee, Oregon. NOAA has awarded 15 million federal infrastructure grant to the Kellogg Project for stream health, salmon, transportation, and access to nature. For more websites referred to in this episode please visit: nwfishpassage.com. Enjoy!    

Will Honea, Skagit County Senior Deputy Prosecutor, joins Dillon with the latest on the ongoing controversy over water management, fish recovery and farming in Skagit County.

KGMI's Jason Upton talks to Ashley Carr, director of the 'Because We Matter' exotic animal sanctuary in Skagit County, about the rescue's recent permitting troubles that threaten to close its doors after over 20 years in business.

KGMI's Dianna Hawryluk speaks with Elizabeth Olson Gillette about the recent rescue of nearly 3 dozen young bunnies from a dire situation in Skagit County.

The only incorporated settlement on Fidalgo Island, which is separated from the mainland by the Swinomish Channel, the City of Anacortes may be found in Skagit County on the far northern tip of Fidalgo Island in Puget Sound. Anacortes is connected to the mainland and to Whidbey Island to the south by means of bridges that carry highway traffic. An extensive history of Samish and other Northern Straits Salish peoples' presence on the area in and around Anacortes dates back thousands of years. In the 1860s, the first non-Indians began making a permanent settlement in the area. In 1891, the city of Anacortes became incorporated, and its economy was initially built on the industries of farming, fishing, and the processing of fish. After a prosperous period of time, these fields began to see a downward trend in the middle of the twentieth century. Listen now to learn more about the fascinating history of this Skagit County town!A special thank you goes out to Al Hirsch for providing the music for the podcast, check him out on YouTube.Find merchandise for the podcast now available at:     https://washington-history-by-jon-c.creator-spring.comIf you enjoy the podcast and would like to contribute, please visit: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/EvergreenpodIf you have any questions, episode ideas you'd like to see explored, or just have a general comment, please reach out at Historyoftheevergreenstatepod@gmail.comTo keep up on news for the podcast and other related announcements, please like and follow:https://www.facebook.com/HistoryoftheevergreenstatepodcastFind the podcast over on Instagram as well: @HISTORY_EVERGREENSTATEPODCASTYou can also find the podcast over on YouTube:http://www.youtube.com/@historyoftheevergreenstatepodThank you for listening to another episode of the History of the Evergreen State Podcast!

Episode Summary:In today's podcast episode, we sit down with Dave Klawer, the founder of Alma Cider and Bitters & Sharps Orchard. As the first certified pommelier in Skagit County, Dave's passion for cider is unmatched. He takes us through the journey of cultivating diverse cider apple varieties, resulting in unique and delicious ciders that reflect the essence of Skagit County. Beyond his orchard, Dave is also assisting us in the inaugural Camano Ciderfest, promising a celebration of all things cider. Join us as we explore Dave's cider-making expertise and his role in shaping the cider scene in Skagit County.Links to Things Mentioned in this Episode:website: https://almacider.com/IG: @AlmacidercoFB: https://www.facebook.com/almacidercoCider Class that Dave is Teaching: https://www.cloudmountainfarmcenter.org/workshops/cidermaking/Where to buy Alma Cider: https://almacider.com/pages/retailersGet tickets for Camano Ciderfest - www.camanociderfest.comCheck out the Camano Voice Link Tree ( https://linktr.ee/camanovoice )

On the last day of the 2023 Skagit County Fair, Don Wick and I interviewed Mark Howe with the Puget Sound Garden Railroad Society about the perennial joy of model trains. John Christianson shared the story of his beloved Magic Skagit nursery. Ann Ratcliff recalled her childhood on Samish Island and recounted what it took to become a Fair Princess in 1946 (or what it '45?). We learned about the mission of the Skagit Valley Beekeeping Association from member Rob Johnson...and last, but certainly not least, we closed out this year's series of Fair History Booth interviews with a fair volunteer whose epiphany many years ago on a ferris wheel ride at his first Skagit County Fair reminds us all of why our fair is such an integral part of who we are as Skagitonians. Don and I can't wait for 2024!s

On Day 3 of the Skagit County Fair, Don Wick and I had some wonderful conversations. We learned how one fair goer's traumatic experience ensured that gambling would never become a vice. We talked to a photographer with the ambitious goal of photo documenting all the county fairs in Washington. We interviewed the former mayor of Concrete, WA about the revival of a local newspaper, and we ended the day with a return interview of a young 4-H archer who is now teaching others the sport she has come to love.  This is why we come to the Fair!

Day 2 at the Fair History Booth yielded some delightful interviews for Don Wick and me...starting with a return visit from Finn, one of the very first interviews we did at last year's fair. We also spoke with Connie, who shared her memories of competing in the annual Fair Parade (she and her sister took home the first place trophy three years in a row!). We spoke with Dwight and Tom about being bringing light to people's lives through a motorcycle ministry, and Jill told us about her organization's ministry to bring better health to our Magic Skagit community. We also interviewed the 2023 Tulip Ambassador, Carter, about what it took to earn his title, and we ended the day with a precocious 8 year old name Bryson. We love the Fair!

On Day 1 of the 2023 Skagit County Fair, Don Wick and I talk to some young fair goers about the things that bring them joy. For "cousins" Charlotte and Cassidy, it's fair food (especially deep fried Oreos); for Liberty Brooks, it's raising and showing Holland Lop bunnies; for Maddy Durkin, it's being the Sedro-Woolley Rodeo Queen; and for mother and daughter Genevieve and Emma, it's the pleasures and challenges of small family farming and 4-H. You're going to feel better about the world after giving our first broadcast from the Meyer Sign Fair History Booth a listen.

Dry weather and water use restrictions have hurt crops in Skagit County and elsewhere across Washington state. Skagit dairy farmer Jason Vander Kooy joins Dillon with details on the drought's impact, and how the state's tardy declaration of a drought emergency affects crop losses.

Art and technology share a symbiotic grace in the glass spacecraft, rockets, and scientific apparatus of Rik Allen. Most of his work is made primarily of glass and metal, which expresses a paradoxical symbiosis. The relationship between the rigid strength of metal with the inherent fragility of glass creates an alluring tension. While many of his pieces reference his curiosity about science, they also convey humor, simple narratives, and a lightheartedness that is embodied in much of science fiction's antiquated vision of the future. The theme of “futuristic antiquity” reflects Allen's interest in the literary fictional worlds of Jules Vern, H.G. Wells, Arthur C. Clark, and Isaac Asimov and their influence on the scientific community. His sculpture is also inspired by the accounts of early scientific pioneers of the 19 and 20th centuries, such as Nicola Tesla, Robert Goddard, Wernher von Braun, and other great scientific minds. Born in Providence, Rhode Island, Allen earned a BA in Anthropology from Franklin Pierce University, New Hampshire. His earliest and formative glass studio experiences and education came as a studio assistant in Providence, working with a number of wonderful artists to include Daniel Clayman, James Watkins, and Michael Scheiner. Allen relocated to Washington in 1994, where he joined the William Morris team at the Pilchuck Glass School for 13 years, specializing in engraving, cutting, and finishing glass sculpture. Allen has had numerous solo exhibitions of his sculptures throughout the country, including at the Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame, the Museum of Northwest Art, Traver Gallery, Blue Rain Gallery, Schantz Gallery, and Duncan McClellan Gallery. His sculptures have been acquired for a number of public and private collections, including Glass Museum in Tacoma, Imagine Museum, Toyoma Institute of Glass, Blue Origin, Boeing, Amazon and SpaceX. In 2016, his work appeared in a feature cover story published by American Craft magazine and in 2018, he was awarded “Grand Artist of the future” by Imagine Museum. In 2005, Allen established a glass and sculpture studio with his wife, artist Shelley Muzylowski Allen at their property in Skagit County, Washington. In addition to being artists, the couple has taught internationally at the Toyama Institute of Glass in Toyama, Japan, and the International Glass Festival in Stourbridge, England. They have also taught nationally, including the Penland School of Craft, Pittsburgh Glass Center, and at Pilchuck Glass School. A lifelong Star Trek devotee – whose earliest memories of creation involved making scotch tape and cardboard phasers and communicators – Allen was contacted by Eugene (Rod) Roddenberry, son of Star Trekcreator Gene Roddenberry and current spokesman for Trekkies everywhere. Intrigued by Allen's work after seeing a piece one of his friends owned, Roddenberry commissioned a sculpture of the original series' Starship Enterprise. The sculpture was to reflect the basic design of the original Enterprise, but also incorporate Allen's personality into a sculpture that was of his own original design and overall interpretation. Allen, in collaboration with wife Shelley, has created and will install two large public sculptures, Sticken (the Orchard Octopus) in September, and Heronious One in November in Bellevue, Washington. He will have an exhibition of new work in spring 2024 at Blue Rain Gallery in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and will collaborate with Dave Walters this fall.   

There's an overgrown cemetery nestled in the farmland of the Cascade foothills of Skagit County. It's the burial grounds for Northern State Hospital, a long-shuttered state mental institution.

July 15 & 16, 2023 will mark the 19th annual Skagit Valley studio tour known as Northwest Art Beat. Presented by Skagit Artists (www.skagitartists.com), a non-profit organization that promotes the visual arts by developing economic and networking opportunities in Skagit County, the event that takes place on the third weekend of July. This year, NW Art Beat (www.nwartbeat.com) is featuring 15 Skagit Valley art studios, showcasing 19 artists from Skagit, Snohomish, and Whatcom counties. These studio venues will showcase a wide variety of artwork, including ceramic, glass, jewelry, stone, metalwork, woodwork, photography, acrylic, watercolor, oil, mixed media, and woodcut print making. In this Tales of the Magic Skagit podcast episode, we'll hear from two of the artists whose studios are on the tour map for 2023: Maria Wickwire and Sarah Dalton. We'll talk about the NW Art Beat event, the mission of Skagit Artists, and the personal artistic journeys that Maria and Sarah followed to become part of the organization and the artistic mission it embraces. A map of the 2023 studio tour locations is available online at www.nwartbeat.com/map.html

5pm - Biden's Efforts to Eliminate Student Debt are Because He's Losing the Black Vote // 'I have never seen anything like this': Caterpillar invasion underway on Skagit County island // John & Shari Make the Talkers Magazine Heavy 100 List (#69) // Stephen A Smith Wants to Replace Pat Sayjak // John's Whoopie Impression // Know-It-All Quiz // LETTERSSee omny.fm/listener for privacy information.

On this week-in-review, Crystal is joined by Chair of Sierra Club Seattle, long time communications and political strategist, Robert Cruickshank!  They cover WA gubernatorial candidate Bob Ferguson's controversial and publicly-mocked  endorsement from former Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best, an escalating battle over an illegal encampment between the Burien City Manager and King County Executive legal counsel, how a proposed “Renter's Bill of Rights” from Tacoma for All is gathering signatures in Tacoma for a local initiative, the Seattle City Attorney and a right-wing councilmember's plan to rush through a restart of the failed War on Drugs, Seattle's new tree protection ordinance and the first meeting of the Seattle Social Housing Developer Board..  As always, a full text transcript of the show is available below and at officialhacksandwonks.com. Find the host, Crystal Fincher, on Twitter at @finchfrii and find today's co-host, Robert Cruickshank, at @cruickshank.   Resources Sarah Reyneveld, Candidate for King County Council District 4 from Hacks & Wonks   @BobFergusonAG on Twitter: “I'm grateful to have the support of former Seattle Police Chief”   @davidstoesz on Twitter: “I recently had a long email exchange with the AG's office about why they didn't investigate Best's and Durkan's missing texts, a felony”    “King County Executive accuses city of Burien of 'lease scheme' to evict people from homeless encampment” by Nia Wong from Fox 13 Seattle   “King County expresses 'substantial concerns' about City of Burien's intention to sweep campers off city-owned lot; won't allow police to help” by Scott Schaefer from The B-Town Blog   “Burien City Manager responds to King County's letter warning that police won't help with encampment sweep” by Scott Schaefer from The B-Town Blog   “Dueling Tenant Rights Measures Square Off in Tacoma” by Kevin Le from The Urbanist   “Tacoma city officials discuss updates to Rental Housing Code” by Lionel Donovan from KING 5   “Slog AM: Seattle City Council Rushes to Vote on Drug War Reboot, Tacoma Landlords Try to Squash Tenant Bill of Rights, and DeSantis's Twitter DeSaster” by Hannah Krieg from The Stranger   “Here's how the new drug possession law in Washington is different that what was on the books“ by Jim Camden from The Spokesman-Review   “Washington's War on Drugs Starts Up Again in July” by Ashley Nerbovig from The Stranger   “'Real people being represented': Seattle's social housing board is just getting started” by Joshua McNichols, Libby Denkmann & Noel Gasca from KUOW   Find stories that Crystal is reading here Transcript [00:00:00] Crystal Fincher: Welcome to Hacks & Wonks. I'm Crystal Fincher, and I'm a political consultant and your host. On this show, we talk with policy wonks and political hacks to gather insight into local politics and policy in Washington state through the lens of those doing the work with behind-the-scenes perspectives on what's happening, why it's happening, and what you can do about it. Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get the full versions of our Friday almost-live shows and our Tuesday topical show delivered to your podcast feed. If you like us, the most helpful thing you can do is leave a review wherever you listen. Full transcripts and resources referenced in the show are always available at officialhacksandwonks.com and in our episode notes. If you missed our Tuesday topical show, I chatted with Sarah Reyneveld about her campaign for King County Council District 4 - why she decided to run, the experience she brings as a public sector attorney and community advocate, and her thoughts on addressing frontline worker wages and workforce issues, the need for upstream alternatives in the criminal legal system and substance use crisis, how to improve policy implementation, climate change and air quality, and budget revenue and transparency. Today we're continuing our Friday almost-live shows where we review the news of the week with a co-host. Welcome back to the program, friend of the show and today's co-host: Chair of Sierra Club Seattle, longtime communications and political strategist, Robert Cruickshank. [00:01:30] Robert Cruickshank: Thank you for having me back, Crystal. It's always fun to be on the show. [00:01:33] Crystal Fincher: Always great to have you on the show. So this has been an eventful week, but wow - last night, there was a little event that popped up that kind of took the notice of everyone who follows politics basically in Washington state, whether they were on the progressive side, conservative side, or somewhere in-between. That was Bob Ferguson's announcement of his endorsement by former Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best. Why did this attract so much attention, Robert? [00:02:03] Robert Cruickshank: Because Carmen Best is one of the most controversial figures in Seattle right now, coming out of the summer of 2020. And as Alexa Vaughn, for example, noted - she runs The Needling - this was posted on the anniversary of George Floyd's murder. And when Minnesota police murdered George Floyd three years ago, as we recall, it sparked a major wave of protest here in Seattle to demand reforms here. And in that response, that protest, Mayor Jenny Durkan and Chief Best systematically deceived the public, deleted their texts in what ought to be a felony, and essentially got away with it. Carmen Best then left her job as Police Chief of Seattle and is now making a fair amount of money as a TV pundit. And so Carmen Best, coming out of that summer, is seen as one of these leaders who sided with the cops against people demanding urgently-needed reform, and is seen as avatar of we-need-to-get-tough-on-crime policies - who has a very poor reputation among a lot of people in Seattle, including Ferguson's base. And that's what happened yesterday, in the reaction, was Ferguson's base - progressive people in Seattle who've been cheering him on as he takes on Trump, as he takes on big corporations - all of a sudden surprised to see him just bear-hugging one of the most notorious figures in recent Seattle history. [00:03:29] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, and adding on top of that - the challenges during those protests, the deleted texts that you mentioned, but also the tear-gassing of neighborhoods. I don't think people understand how radicalizing that was for some neighborhoods in Seattle. They didn't tear-gas protesters. They tear-gassed entire geographical areas. People in their homes couldn't breathe, were severely impacted by that. And where do you go at that point in time? There are protests out on the street. You're at home with your kids, with your family, and getting tear-gassed in your home. That's what happened in Seattle, and people have not forgotten that. That was a radicalizing moment. I think you've seen instances afterwards in just relations and demonstrating that the trust with the police department is completely evaporated. Neighbors banding together to question people being detained for what seems like no reason because they no longer view them and the police as being on the same side after that. They felt attacked. You aren't attacked by people you trust - yeah. [00:04:33] Robert Cruickshank: Well, they were attacked. They absolutely were. And you talk about the stories of tear-gassing the neighborhood. I will never forget hearing at one of the City Council meetings in early June 2020, when this was all going on, a father who lived in an apartment on Capitol Hill talking about how the tear-gas got into his apartment and his newborn baby started crying and having fluid coming from its nose and mouth because it couldn't handle the tear-gas that had seeped in. This is an example of just complete disregard that Carmen Best had for the public. When the Council tried to ban the use of tear-gas, ban the use of blast balls that had been fired at peaceful protesters in June 2020, Carmen Best spoke out against that. So it is a legacy of attacking - with vicious weapons of war - the people of Seattle engaged in peaceful protests during this crucial moment in our City's history. And for Bob Ferguson to tout her endorsement comes off as the state's leading law enforcement guy - that's what he is as Attorney General - embracing Carmen Best and her narrative of what happened. And I think it's a real wake-up call and a shocking moment that maybe needed to happen. Bob Ferguson has had 11 years in office of very good press. He's fought hard for LGBTQ rights. He's fought hard to ban assault weapons. We talked about his lawsuits against Trump and against big tech companies. And rightly, he's gotten a lot of credit for that. But we haven't seen much about his other views on other issues. He hasn't been asked to take a stand on housing, transit, policing. I don't believe he weighed in, at least certainly not in a loud public way, on the question of what to do about the Blake decision. And so as he's launched his "exploratory campaign" for governor, racking up endorsements all over the place - literally left and right - Pramila Jayapal and Carmen Best. He hasn't gotten a lot of scrutiny yet. I think yesterday's move to announce the endorsement of Carmen Best means he's going to start getting a lot of scrutiny. I think the honeymoon for Ferguson, at least in Seattle, is over. Now that may not be a bad thing in Ferguson's political calculation, but I think you saw the governor's race shift substantially yesterday. [00:06:41] Crystal Fincher: I think so too. What do you think went into this political calculation to seek, and accept, and publicize this endorsement? [00:06:51] Robert Cruickshank: I think Bob Ferguson is trying to shore up his right flank. He's probably looking at what he saw south of the border in Oregon last year, where the Oregon governor's race was dominated by questions of public safety. He's seen similar things happen around the country where Democrats are attacked on this. I think he is also seeing that right-wing Democrats, like Mark Mullet, are making noise about running for governor. I think Ferguson feels he has to shore up his position on the right and the way that he can do that is by touting law and order. And in fact, the day before he announced Carmen Best's endorsement, he also announced the endorsement of Federal Way Mayor Jim Ferrell, who had run for King County Prosecutor last year - losing to Leesa Manion. And Ferrell ran on a more law and order right-wing approach, so there's clearly a calculated effort here by Ferguson to show - at least maybe the media and a certain segment of the electorate - that he's not like those other Democrats. He's not a Seattle Democrat who's, in the parlance on the right, soft on crime. He's going to be tough on this stuff, and I think it means that quite a lot of scrutiny now should be directed his way in terms of asking him where he stands and what he believes on the major issues of crime and public policy. [00:08:03] Crystal Fincher: That makes sense. When you see this, especially with such a - at least from the online vocal right - also such a backlash from them. This is one of those where you look at the ratio and people are like, My goodness - there was not a positive reaction to this. It was pretty negative across the spectrum. It was universally negative across the spectrum. Who does this help him with? Who do you think - there's their calculus - but in reality, do you think this helps with anyone? [00:08:36] Robert Cruickshank: I think that Ferguson has been waging a low-key but significant effort to try to win the support of The Seattle Times. He was a supporter of legislation in Olympia this year that would have created some tax breaks for media companies, including The Seattle Times, and Times lobbied hard for it. The bill was also sponsored in the Senate by Mark Mullet, so I think Ferguson is looking at this - trying to make sure that he has The Seattle Times in his corner, certain right-wing Democrats in his corner. But they're not a huge portion of the electorate. The sense I have is Ferguson wants to try to just clear the field as much as he possibly can in advance of the actual election. But there is a huge risk here because in building that coalition, you can't alienate another piece of it. Now, all of a sudden, he's got Seattle voters, who are pretty shocked by the Carmen Best endorsement, taking a second look at Ferguson. That's going to give an opportunity to someone like Hilary Franz, who launched her campaign but otherwise hasn't had much energy or momentum - gives her an opening to maybe try to win some of those Seattle voters over. [00:09:42] Crystal Fincher: There's another element of this that I find interesting, and actually this is the element that I would be concerned about backfiring over the long term - that it could play into a narrative that could turn out to be harmful. It's that - while questions were swirling around what happened with the East Precinct and how that happened, finding out the texts were deleted - which is a significant crime, really - and lots of people asking, Hey, Bob Ferguson, why aren't you investigating this? And him saying, I can't. But as has been covered several times - again recently - he has either referred, or spoken up, or suggested that in other instances. And so if a narrative catches on that - Yeah, Bob's tough if he doesn't have a friend doing something - you know, if a friend is doing one of those things that lots of people find objectionable, it's a different story if it's a friend. If it's a different story, if it's a donor, perhaps. It's a different story - that kind of thing. I would be concerned about that kind of narrative catching on. And so that to me is why - I don't understand - realistically - look, if you're trying to project law and order, he could have done what Jim Ferrell did. That didn't work for Jim Ferrell, but it didn't have this kind of backlash where - hey, different police chiefs - but to choose Seattle's Carmen Best, it just - my goodness, that is an unforced error, it seems. Lots of time left, more than a year in this campaign. Who knows who else is going to get in the race? Lots of time, so I am in no way suggesting this is fatal. He obviously financially enjoys a significant advantage and there's lots of time left. We have seen plenty of politicians at all levels step in it and make their way out. So I'm not saying that this is damning, but it's certainly - to your point - is going to invite more scrutiny than there had been before. [00:11:42] Robert Cruickshank: It is. And I was thinking about this earlier today - we haven't had a contested primary for governor on the Democratic side in Washington state in nearly 20 years. Last time was when Ron Sims and Christine Gregoire ran against each other in 2004. Inslee didn't have a challenge in 2012, and obviously hasn't been challenged since. We might have one now and I think that would be healthy - healthy for the Democratic Party, healthy for the state - to have different ideas out there, candidates running on policy and having to have discussions and debates about that. I think it'd be really helpful. Ferguson has had a lot of momentum early. He's racked up a ton of endorsements, as we've talked about, but he hasn't really been challenged on policy and he hasn't - made very few statements on policy. It was surely a deliberate thing on his campaign's part. That needs to change - that'll make Ferguson a stronger candidate in the general election. And it'll make all of us - whether we're big D, small D Democrats, or just voters who care about the direction of our state - better off when there's a real policy discussion happening in the primary. [00:12:42] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely. We will continue to follow what's going on with the gubernatorial race, but in the meantime, in the City of Burien, there is a really contentious situation going on right now between the Burien - really interestingly - between the City and King County Executive's legal team. Can you just cover what is going on here? In a nutshell, what is the issue and what's currently happening? [00:13:13] Robert Cruickshank: Yeah, the City of Burien - and it seems to be the City Manager in particular in Burien - is trying to sweep a homeless encampment. Now, here in the western United States, we're governed by a Supreme Court - or not, I'm sorry, not a Supreme Court decision, that's important - a Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision, which is one level below the Supreme Court, against the city of Boise, saying that you cannot sweep a homeless encampment without having made real good faith offers of shelter to those people you're trying to remove. At some point, one would imagine some city somewhere will try to take that to the US Supreme Court, which would be a nightmare, because I don't think we'd get a good ruling out of that. But here in the western US, we are all governed by that decision - which is binding from the Ninth Circuit - which means you can't just sweep people without giving them a place to go. That doesn't justify sweeps, but that's the legal ruling that cities operate under. Now, what Burien appears to have tried to do was redefine a city park as a dog park - as private park - in order to get around having to actually offer shelter. Because they don't have an offer, they have nowhere to go - that's why encampments exist - they exist because people have nowhere else to go. And so the City Manager said this is the plan we're going to do. Well, King County Executive's Office slapped down Burien pretty hard and said - You can't do that - that violates the court ruling - and we're not going to provide police support. Burien, like many cities in King County, many smaller cities, doesn't have its own police force. They contract with the King County Sheriff's Office. And the King County Sheriff's Office, after 2020 charter reform, the Sheriff is now appointed by the Executive. So the Executive now has more direct control over the King County Sheriff's Office than it had before. And so what Dow Constantine's office is saying is - We're not going to have police there to help do your sweep. Without police, you're going to have a hard time actually getting people to move. The City of Burien is striking back. The City Manager is disagreeing with this. But interestingly, people like Hugo Garcia, who are on the City Council in Burien, are saying - This is not us. We didn't authorize this. This is the City Manager going out and doing this on his own. And so now you have really a fight over power in Burien and who actually controls these important levers of city government - when it comes to people's shelter - is in question here. So Burien has a lot to sort out. [00:15:28] Crystal Fincher: A lot to sort out. And a little context further with this is - where the encampment is now - arrived there because Burien did previously conduct a sweep at one location that was city-owned. And because sweeps don't do anything to solve homelessness - housing solves homelessness - in an entirely predictable turn of events, the people who were swept wound up in an adjacent city lot because there's nowhere else to go. There was no offer of housing, no shelter. Where do you think they're going to go? Obviously, they're just moving place to place. We know that's how this works - over and over again - it's been covered several times, just locally here. So that happened. And so the Council in a 4-3 - they kind of have a 4-3 moderate to conservative majority there - they decided to enter into a lease with a private entity, and who billed themselves as dog park caretakers, in an attempt to allow them to trespass the people who are on that property as private owner-operators, basically, in a way to get around the City's requirement to do that. Well, that was just blatantly an end-run attempt, which Dow Constantine - wisely and following the law - decided not to adhere to. But now this is an interesting situation. As you said, there are councilmembers who said - Wait, wait, wait, this is not happening. The response to the King County Executive's legal advisor is not coming from us. The City Manager decided to respond on their own. The lease with the C.A.R.E.S. Organization - Burien C.A.R.E.S. Organization - is not executed yet. We don't think it should be. We need to reconsider and talk about this. But it's a legitimate issue. And Burien - frankly, there are a number of cities skirting the requirement to provide housing. That's why we see the whole theater around - they were offered housing and they refused, even if they know that the housing is not adequate, even if they know the shelter is available - them trying to check that off as them basically - checking on their list - okay, we have technically done the thing that will not get this sweep called unconstitutional, hopefully. Even though when it has been brought to court, it's been successfully challenged before. So we'll see how this continues to unfold. But it's kind of a - the equivalent of a constitutional crisis, almost - in a city, like a charter crisis. Who does actually have the authority to do this? Can the city manager act, in his capacity, response to this? Can he act independently of the Council on this response? Who knows? They were talking about an emergency meeting. We'll see what results from that. But certainly a lot of people and organizations are paying attention to this. And it is - it's a conundrum. [00:18:24] Robert Cruickshank: It is. And I think it is another example of the ways in which the regional approach to solving homelessness isn't working right now. The King County Regional Homelessness Authority lost its executive director last week and is spending a lot of money, but what is it showing for it? It's taking forever to get people into shelter. The idea behind the regional approach is - this is a regional problem - let's pool our resources and act quickly to cut through all the bureaucratic silos so we get people into shelter. It's what we all want. It's not happening. And I think - yet again, we're seeing another grand effort to solve homelessness not succeed because we haven't actually tackled the root of it. We're not funding enough supportive, permanently supportive, temporary shelter, whatever it is - it's not being done. The state isn't kicking in the money that's needed. It's hard to get the permitting. It's hard to find the zoning because we've been glacially slow to change zoning. We finally got some of that fixed here in the 2023 session, but - Ed Murray declaring a state of emergency over homelessness in 2015. I remember when I moved to Seattle, a little over 20 years ago, we were in the middle of the 10-year plan to end homelessness. We have these grand efforts that go nowhere. Meanwhile, people are in crisis. People living outside, whether it's in the cold of winter or the heat and smoke of summer, aren't getting their needs met. These are our neighbors who deserve shelter. And government just trying to pass the buck, just trying to appease a few cranky people who don't want to see a tent, but not giving people the help that they need and have needed for a long time. And we need to find actual solutions to get people housed and pay what it takes to do it. Otherwise, we're just going to keep seeing more stuff like this happen. [00:20:01] Crystal Fincher: We are. And we have to contend with the use of resources here. Burien's in a bind now. If they do buck this - and there's been some early talk - we don't need the Sheriff, we can stand up our own department. The reason why they haven't stood up their own department is because it's prohibitively expensive. And they're already spending a significant portion - I think almost half of their general budget - on policing currently. And so the money that we put into these sweeps, the money that we put into litigation, and the challenges of just working through this is all money that is being spent on things that we know are not going to do anything to make this problem better. At the most, you can make it disappear only in the sense that - yes, you sweep someone from one location, they're going to move to another one. Lots of people hope they just move to another one in another city so they don't have to deal with it, but they do. And now every city - look at housing prices, which are the biggest determinant of our levels of homelessness. Lots of people, employed people, families cannot afford housing. There is nowhere for them to go. So if we continue to waste our resources on the things that don't work, we don't have the resources for the things that do. And we're hearing excuses - Oh, we would love to do this. We would love to have more supportive housing. We would love to have more behavioral health supports. We would love to have more people to help shepherd them through this. Well, then stop spending the resources on the things that don't work, and start spending them on the things that do. That's not an excuse when you're making the decision to spend the money on the things that don't work and that are harmful - that should be a point of accountability right there. And instead they're using it to excuse and explain their actions - it doesn't fly. And I hope they do have a robust conversation about this. I know there are definitely councilmembers there who want that to happen, who want to focus on providing housing, and working collaboratively with the King County Executive to get that done. But the majority of the council, unfortunately, did not take that position at that time. I hope some come around and see the light. [00:22:04] Robert Cruickshank: I agree, and I think ultimately this is where the state needs to step in - you talk about how this is a problem everywhere. I took a train up to Vancouver, British Columbia, earlier this year and you could see under overpasses along the entire route, including in Canada, people living in tents, people trying to make - get themselves shelter under an overpass, whether it's rural Skagit County or the suburbs of Vancouver. This is a problem everywhere because we haven't built enough housing. We know that homelessness is primarily a housing crisis. When you don't build enough housing, when you don't have enough affordable housing, you get homelessness. There are the other reasons why an individual may wind up or stay in homelessness - people who have mental health needs, people have drug addictions - and a lot of that develops when you're out on the streets. Plenty of people fall into homelessness without being addicted to a single drug, without having any outward signs of mental illness. But once you're on the street, in what is a fundamentally traumatic situation where you are unsafe and do not have security or shelter, it becomes very easy to develop those other problems. And so housing is that essential piece of solving homelessness, solving addiction, solving all these other things that people need help with. And it's not being done. And asking cities to solve it themselves without giving them the financial support from the state government, or certainly not coming from the federal government - we're about to see massive spending cuts out of the stupid debt ceiling deal. Once again, it falls back on the State Legislature, and ultimately on our next governor, to figure out how they're going to solve it. Because when you leave it up to cities, you're going to get bad decisions. You're going to get things like we're seeing in Burien right now. It has to be solved at a higher level. [00:23:48] Crystal Fincher: It absolutely does. In another city development, there is an attempt to put a tenant's bill of rights on the ballot in the City of Tacoma. What do they want to do, and what would this mean for renters? [00:24:01] Robert Cruickshank: It's a really great thing. I think what you're seeing in Tacoma is a group coming together called Tacoma for All. And what they're trying to put together is something they call sometimes a tenant bill of rights. It's also been called a landlord fairness code. You do a number of great things such as requiring six months notice for all rent increases, relocation assistance for rent hikes over 5%, no school-year evictions of children and educators - that's a great thing to do because the last thing you want is for educators and families and students to be thrown out during the school year. It would ban deadly cold weather evictions, so if we're having a cold snap or a bunch of snow, you can't evict people out into the snow. It would cap excessive and unfair fees and deposits and ban rent hikes when there are code violations. Seattle has a lot of these things already, but Tacoma doesn't. And what a number of renters and advocates have seen in Tacoma is the need to bring those protections to Tacoma, especially because the state didn't do it - the state didn't act on a rent control bill that had been proposed earlier this year. So you're seeing a group of people come together with strong support from labor, from elected officials like Yasmin Trudeau and others, to make the Tacoma for All initiative a reality. They're getting some pushback from the City, obviously, which - the mayor doesn't really want to do this and offered a vague compromise solution but didn't provide details. And the organizers said - No, we're going to go ahead with our own initiative - which I think is the right thing to do. I believe there are three pieces to the stool of solving housing. You need more supply from the private sector. You need more supply from the public sector - things like social housing, public housing. And you also need renter and tenant protections. And Washington has started to add some more private supply, but we need more tenant and renter protections across the state. And so with the State Legislature failing, you're seeing people in Tacoma step up to act on their own, and I think it's a great thing to do. [00:25:53] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely. They're in the middle of collecting signatures - early in the month, they had about half of them that they needed. They need to collect a total of 8,000 by June 15th to submit to the City, and they're actively signature gathering now. The Council could take action to put what they propose on the ballot - like you said, they're signaling that they're going to propose something, obviously. They're feeling the need to do something since there is something on the table right now, but don't know what it is. And it does not go as far - at least the indications based on what has been discussed in work groups so far - do not go as far as the Tacoma For All group's does. And it just doesn't seem like it's going to have the teeth. And so they're prepared to take this all the way, to try and collect all of the signatures - they're recruiting volunteers. And so it'll be great to see this get on the ballot and to have a full conversation about it. I do hope the City tries to take an approach that works because this is attempting to solve a real problem. And completely applaud Tacoma For All for stepping up to really address this problem. This is not a partisan issue. This is just a straight affordability issue. And it affects all of us, even homeowners who are happy with the way that their home price is appreciating - and it has quite a bit, I think home values have almost doubled in Tacoma over the past 10 years - but it's making sure that the teachers in our community, the pharmacists in our community, our transit drivers, everyone who is our neighbors, everyone who we rely on to make our communities thrive, really, rely on affordable housing. If your kid gets sick, do you want to be short a nurse because they couldn't afford to buy a million dollar home, an $800,000 home on an average salary? Lots of people are facing this and we have to contend with this. Displacement is already happening, especially on the Hilltop - it is an issue. It's not speculative. It's not in the future. It's happening now and it needs to stop. They can take action to help reduce the harm here. And I really hope they do. [00:28:04] Robert Cruickshank: Exactly. And I love that they're taking inspiration from what has happened in Seattle. A lot of these elements of Tacoma For All come from policies Kshama Sawant has championed. And Sawant, being the very clever strategist that she really is, fought hard for genuine rent control, has been denied it because the State Legislature won't do it. So she said - Okay, I'll go find other ways - any possible thing we can do under the rights that the City has, we're going to do it to protect renters. And it's worked. Not completely, but she can get these policies done and they provide some assistance to renters in Seattle. And Tacoma looking at that saying - Yeah, let's do that too. It's a good example of things we can do with stopgaps, but we still need the state to step in. California and Oregon have passed statewide rent stabilization laws capping annual rent increases. Washington needs to do the same. It is an urgent thing too. You mentioned being a homeowner - I'm a homeowner. My annual rent, so to speak, is capped. If you have a fixed term mortgage - 30 or fixed - that doesn't go up. It might go up a little bit because of property tax changes, but even those are capped - unfortunately, by Tim Eyman. So homeowners have essentially rent stabilization, but renters don't. And I think it's only fair that renters have those same protections too. [00:29:24] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely. Now for the City of Seattle - bouncing back here - Seattle is looking to double down on the War on Drugs. What are they talking about, and how did we get here? [00:29:35] Robert Cruickshank: So this is Ann Davison and Sara Nelson and Alex Pedersen, the right wing of Seattle City government, trying to revive the War on Drugs. They believe that the answer to the fentanyl crisis, and in some ways the answer to visible homelessness downtown, is to criminalize. Let's go back to the War on Drugs - if you're using drugs, if you're a drug addict, the answer isn't treatment, it's jail. The irony here is that a lot of us progressives argue that what needs to happen is - these people need housing, they need treatment, give them a shelter, give them a room with a door that locks. Well, that's what Ann Davison wants to do - she just wants to put them in jail. Jail is a type of housing, but it's not the type of housing that's going to solve someone's addiction. In fact, it's going to make it worse, it's going to add more trauma, it's going to make it harder for that individual to escape the cycle of addiction and whatever other problems they're facing. But there is this desire among Seattle's right, which feels a little bit resurgent - over the last 10 years, the right wing in Seattle was on the back foot as we had a lot of really progressive policies come into place and they were wondering how do they strike back and now, they think they found their answer in really leveraging public concern about public drug use. But we know for an absolute fact that criminalizing the use of drugs does not solve drug problems, it does not end addiction - it's been conclusively demonstrated. Interestingly, the City Council, rather than put this to the usual committee process, is bringing it directly to a vote early next month. That could be read two ways - it could be read as either the City trying to do this quickly and put it into place before the public can react against it, or it's also possible that you have a majority in the Council that doesn't want to do this and wants to kill it quickly before it gets too close to the primary in August. Who knows? But it's an example of this absurd desire among certain people in Seattle to just go back to Reaganism - it's crack down on homelessness by jailing people for sleeping in a tent, crack down on drug abuse by jailing anyone smoking fentanyl. This is just stuff we thought we left behind, but it's an important reminder to those of us who are progressive that we're always going to have to deal with right wingers, even in our own city, even in a deep blue city like Seattle. People are going to keep trying to find ways to poke that electric fence to see where there's a weakness and where they can try to really roll back the progressive policies that they hate so much. [00:32:11] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, it's - people who listen to the program regularly know how I feel about this whole thing. It is just really a shame. It is also as important as ever for you to contact your councilmembers, contact the mayor - let them know exactly how you feel about this. I think sometimes, especially in Seattle, it's easy to take for granted once progress has been made, that it's settled. Similar to - we thought Supreme Court law was settled, right? Everything is in flux. And there are people working actively to dismantle the progress that has been made. And counting on people being asleep - they know that they're in the minority. That's why they can't say what they really believe loudly and proudly all year long. And they do tend to strike in these ways that tend to minimize public engagement, support, time - trying to rush this through and let's just get it done. We see this done over and over again. And so I just hope that people understand that there really is a threat of this happening - that Seattle isn't above this, it's not beyond this. This is not something that we can take for granted. And I do encourage everyone listening to contact your City councilperson - contact all the Council people - and let them know where you stand on this, because there's going to be an upcoming vote in early June. And right now it looks like - it seems like - they're leaning towards criminalization and seems like they're leaning towards expanding the criminalization options even from where they were before. So please get engaged. [00:33:43] Robert Cruickshank: I think it's also important to - anytime you encounter a City Council candidate - to make it clear where you stand as well. Because these are - as the campaigns really start to kick into gear here after Memorial Day, as they sprint towards the August primary - we're going to have to tell these people running for the seats, especially where there isn't an incumbent. Quite a few districts like District 1, District 3, District 4, District 5 - let the people know that you are not a fan of criminalizing drugs. You do not want to go back to the Drug War. A lot of Seattle's state legislative representation voted against the gross misdemeanor provisions in the Blake fix that finally came out of the Legislature earlier this month. That was courageous of them - it's a good thing they did. We need to show similar leadership here in Seattle rather than just waltz back down the path of Reaganism. [00:34:32] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, absolutely. Also in Council action this week was a tree ordinance that was passed. How did this develop and what ended up passing? [00:34:42] Robert Cruickshank: Yeah, this has been in gestation for a long time. I remember we were talking about tree ordinance back when Mike McGinn was mayor, but it finally came to pass this week. And what the ordinance does - I credit the Harrell administration for this, and I credit Dan Strauss as well for finding a good middle ground that isn't perfect, but a middle ground that tries to harmonize tree policy and housing policy. What's really been going on is a number of people who don't want new density in our city have seized on the idea of trees as the way they can block housing. Oh, we're going to cut down all these trees to build housing. Oh, isn't this terrible? The way we can stop the density that we don't want is to make it almost impossible to remove a tree. And in their mind, a healthy urban forest is threatened not by the climate crisis, but by development. Now, we know this is wrong. The City's own research shows very, very clearly that new development is not a major factor, it's a very tiny factor in the loss of trees in Seattle. The main source of tree loss is in natural areas and parks. And why is that happening? Because the climate crisis. We had, as everyone remembers, that awful heat wave in the summer of 2021. And you saw those cedars go brown afterwards. We then had 120 days without rain in 2022 - that further stressed the trees. And some of these are old, majestic trees planted over 100 years ago in our parks and natural areas that are struggling now to survive in the climate crisis. That's where we're losing trees. Where do we need to get trees, build more trees, plant more trees? In City-owned right-of-way, and especially in southeast Seattle. So the answer here should be rather than give in to what the NIMBYs want and make it almost impossible to build anything new - you've got to harmonize these things. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the IPCC, which produces those annual reports, has said numerous times that more urban density is a core element of solving the climate crisis, of reducing carbon emissions. And yet some of these NIMBYs want to use trees to undermine that. Now, we can't have one climate policy undermining another. We need to find ways to bring tree protections and housing construction together. And that's what the Harrell administration and Dan Strauss have tried to do. I know there are some housing advocates, who I respect, who are unhappy with some of the exact details of how this went down. I get that. At the same time, I and the Sierra Club believe it's a reasonable compromise that isn't going to hold back housing production. It'll help us have a healthier urban forest while avoiding blaming new density for loss of trees, right? This is a climate crisis issue. If we want to keep our great firs and cedars and other tall trees we love in the City, we've got to tackle the climate crisis. We have to build higher. We have to build denser. That's how we reduce the carbon emissions that is making everything so much hotter and putting these great trees under stress. [00:37:46] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely. And I think we're seeing a part of a trend here, we're seeing a tactic as part of an overall strategy. And that is from NIMBYs and from the right to co-opt progressive language, to co-opt traditionally progressive causes - and use those to try and sabotage development. And so we've seen this manifest in Seattle with different things or to get their way in a public way - we saw it with bike lanes in West Seattle - they're hard to get, but oh all of a sudden now that it could potentially displace some people who are living in campers, we're all for implementing a bike lane and an accelerated delivery timeline right here, right? We see - we've seen ADA regulations used to - in lawsuits - used to stifle transit mobility improvement. And it's really critically important - and you basically said this - to not give in to the - well, no these are more important than disability access, or this is more important than making sure we do have adequate trees. They want to create the friction between these two groups who are fighting for resources and rights and access. And the key thing to do is to basically join together in solidarity and saying both of these are necessities for our community. We need clean air, and we need everyone to be able to access everything required to live, right? So how do we figure that out? Not we just don't do one, or we just don't do the other. We fight and discount what's needed for the true issue. If we actually get together with people who are being used to do this, we can figure out solutions better and cut out the kind of astroturf middleman, who's just using a different group to try and get their way. It's really cynical, it's really just shameful - but we're seeing this happen a lot. And I - some people's immediate reaction is - I really want this, so I'm going to dig my heels in and say that other thing is bad it doesn't matter. And that's a trap that they want you to fall into, and that's a trap that hurts us all moving forward. We have to work together and make sure that we get our needs met and sometimes it's hard to thread that needle perfectly. Sometimes it's going to leave a lot to be desired, but we really need to keep working to make sure that everyone is getting what they need to be supported in this community. Also an exciting development with Seattle's social housing board having their first meeting. What happened there? [00:40:23] Robert Cruickshank: Yeah they - after the passage of Initiative 135 earlier this year - it created a new board to oversee the social housing authority. And this board is not comprised in the usual way - like typically a City commission or City board is - the mayor gets to make a bunch of picks the City Council gets to make a bunch of picks and they can pretty much pick whoever they want to. In this case though, the initiative stated that the board members had to come from certain backgrounds - he had to pick someone with urban planning experience, he had to pick someone who understands Passivhaus design which is very environmentally friendly. But most importantly, you have to pick a number of people with lived experience as renters or as unhoused folks - and that is what happened with this board. And it's a majority of people, I believe, who are not homeowners. And the idea here is to have this board represent the people, or at least the type of people, who would actually live in a social housing project once we get it built. So they had their first meeting, came together, they elected their leadership. Councilmember Tammy Morales was there and has been really the driving figure in getting this done, and I think one of the few - unfortunately - people on City Council who's really been strongly behind this. I think other councilmembers have been much more hesitant. But social housing is a key part of the solution - there's a great article in the New York Times earlier this week about Vienna - and Vienna has a ton of social housing, and it works really well in having a mix of incomes together, living in the same building where everyone's pulling together to help build a great community. It also includes space for people who are very low incomes or who are formerly homeless, so I think it's really exciting to see this process get underway - a board that is working well together, at least at the start. It seems like Initiative 135 is getting off to a great start, but the bigger question obviously going to be - How do you fund the construction of social housing? The people who wrote the initiative were advised, and I think correctly, that they couldn't do both at the same time - they couldn't create the social housing authority and have a funding source. Well now, we need the City to step up - and this is another thing that we're going to have to see City Council candidates talk about - Initiative 135 passed by pretty healthy margin in the City, it passed in every single Council district. So Council candidates should be on board, but if you talk to some of these folks - they're not all on board. So one of the things that I hope becomes a major issue in the City Council elections this fall is - how are you going to make social housing a reality, how are you going to fund it here in Seattle - because the public clearly wants it and there's clearly a huge need for it. [00:43:00] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely. The public does want it - even at the forums that have happened so far - and we know that most people in the public are not tuned into elections yet but there are some who are - and shoring up this early support and making an early impression, especially in a crowded primary, makes a difference. And I will tell you, every forum that I've seen or been at - the public there has had questions about social housing. How are you going to secure funding, how are you going to make sure this implementation goes smoothly? They want to know about it, they want to know how they're going to support it. I fully anticipate this to be a significant issue throughout this entire campaign and beyond. The public voted for it, they want it, they're really curious about it, they're excited about it. And this is something that they feel could potentially put a dent in housing prices and start a blueprint - expand upon the blueprint - of what it looks like to implement this in our state and throughout the region, so really exciting. And with that, I will thank you all for listening to Hacks & Wonks on this Friday May 26, 2023. The producer of Hacks & Wonks is Shannon Cheng. Our insightful co-host today is Chair of Sierra Club Seattle, longtime communications and political strategist, Robert Cruickshank. You can find Robert on Twitter @cruickshank. You can follow Hacks & Wonks @HacksWonks, and you can find me @finchfrii, with two I's at the end. You can catch Hacks & Wonks wherever you get your podcasts - just type "Hacks and Wonks" into the search bar. Be sure to subscribe to get the full versions of our Friday almost-live week-in-review and our Tuesday topical show delivered to your podcast feed. If you like us, please leave a review. You can also get a full transcript of this episode and links to the resources referenced in the show at officialhacksandwonks.com and in the podcast episode notes. Thanks for tuning in - talk to you next time.

Episode 268: On November 18, 1987, Jay Cook, 20, and Tanya Van Cuylenborg, 18, a young couple from Vancouver Island, went on a road trip to Seattle, Washington. Unfortunately, they were never seen alive again. Their bodies were discovered weeks later in separate locations. Tanya had been raped, shot, and left in a ditch in Skagit County. Jay was found strangled in the woods near Monroe, about 60 miles away. The case went unsolved for over three decades until 2018, when authorities were able to use genetic genealogy to identify a suspect. He was arrested and charged with the murders. The man pleaded not guilty. In 2021, after his trial, the man was the first to be convicted using genetic genealogy. The couple's killer was subsequently sentenced to life behind bars. Sources: The Murder of Jay Cook and Tanya Van Cuylenborg - Unsolved Mysteries The disappearance of Tanya Van Cuylenborg and Jay Cook: Following a decades-old cold case - CBS News Sheriff's Office Seeks Information for Unsolved 1987 Murders | Snohomish County, WA Sheriff's Office Detectives Seek the Public's Help to Identify Suspect in 1987 Double Homicide Cold Case | Snohomish County, WA Arrest Made in 1987 Double Homicide Cold Case | Snohomish County, WA 2018 Annual Report | Skagit County Sheriff's Office Suspect arrested in 1987 deaths of a young couple from BC | HeraldNet.com My cousin, the killer: Her DNA cracked a 1987 double murder - Victoria News Parabon NanoLabs: Engineering DNA for Next-Generation Nanotech, Analytics, and Forensics GENSCO | Home Chelsea Rustad | AMA : IAmA How DNA Expert CeCe Moore Solved 109 Cold Cases Is murder in your DNA? - The Fifth Estate season premiere - YouTube Killer of Tanya Van Cuylenborg and Jay Cook Sentenced | CBC News Life in prison for 1987 killer of young Canadian couple | Seattle Weekly Man convicted in the murder of Saanich couple left DNA on zip tie in 1987 – Victoria News Man appealing genetic genealogy murder conviction was a violent child, his family told police | CBC News State Of Washington, Respondent V. William Earl Talbott II Conviction for 1987 murders of Tanya van Cuylenborg and Jay Cook overturned | CBC News) Guilty verdict in 1987 killings of Saanich couple restored | CTV News The Forever Witness by Edward Humes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Shocking Story of Serial Killer Robert Lee YatesRobert Lee Yates Jr. (born May 27, 1952) is an American serial killer from Spokane, Washington. From 1996 to 1998, Yates is known to have murdered at least 13 women, all of whom were sex workers working on E. Sprague Avenue, in Spokane. Yates also confessed to two murders committed in Walla Walla in 1975 and a 1988 murder committed in Skagit County. In 2002, Yates was convicted of killing two women in Pierce County and sentenced to death, but his death sentences were commuted to life without parole after Washington State outlawed the death penalty in 2018. He is currently serving life in prison at the Washington State Penitentiary.the shocking story of serial killer robert lee yates,serial killer,robert lee yates,serial killers,robert yates,robert lee yates jr,robert lee yates victims,monster in my family,robert yates serial killer,spokane washington,spokane serial killer,true story,spokane serial killer: robert lee yates,serial killer family,monster,happy face killer,robert lee yates documentary,serial killer stories,true crime stories told by youtubers,true crime youtubers channels

The Shocking Story of Serial Killer Robert Lee YatesRobert Lee Yates Jr. (born May 27, 1952) is an American serial killer from Spokane, Washington. From 1996 to 1998, Yates is known to have murdered at least 13 women, all of whom were sex workers working on E. Sprague Avenue, in Spokane. Yates also confessed to two murders committed in Walla Walla in 1975 and a 1988 murder committed in Skagit County. In 2002, Yates was convicted of killing two women in Pierce County and sentenced to death, but his death sentences were commuted to life without parole after Washington State outlawed the death penalty in 2018. He is currently serving life in prison at the Washington State Penitentiary.the shocking story of serial killer robert lee yates,serial killer,robert lee yates,serial killers,robert yates,robert lee yates jr,robert lee yates victims,monster in my family,robert yates serial killer,spokane washington,spokane serial killer,true story,spokane serial killer: robert lee yates,serial killer family,monster,happy face killer,robert lee yates documentary,serial killer stories,true crime stories told by youtubers,true crime youtubers channels

There's pride in eating locally grown food. But land to grow that food is disappearing. Preservation efforts, like the Skagit County Farmland Legacy Program, works to protect farmlands.

What's Trending: Preparation for potential riots over the Tyre Nichols killing.Big Local: A robbery at a gas station in Snoqualmie and a Skagit County pastor is leading a double life. // A Tacoma woman stands up to attackers at a gas station. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this midweek show, we present Part 1 of the Hacks & Wonks 2022 Post-Election Roundtable which was live-streamed on November 15, 2022 with special guests political consultants Dujie Tahat and Kelsey Hamlin. In Part 1, the panel breaks down general election results with discussion of why the feared Republican red wave did not materialize and what lessons Democrats should learn and act upon to maintain and increase the structural advantages they now hold across Washington state. The example of Marie Gluesenkamp Pérez's surprise win in the 3rd Congressional District can be a roadmap for Democrats looking to expand into other areas, and the increase of Democratic majorities in the State Legislature point to the importance of institutional support for candidates outside the conventionally-accepted norms who aren't afraid of being bold. Stay tuned for Part 2 of the roundtable releasing this Friday for more election analysis! As always, a full text transcript of the show is available below and at officialhacksandwonks.com. You can follow Hacks & Wonks on Twitter at @HacksWonks. Find the host, Crystal Fincher on Twitter at @finchfrii and find today's co-hosts, Dujie Tahat at @DujieTahat and Kelsey Hamlin at @ItsKelseyHamlin. More info is available at officialhacksandwonks.com.   Resources Hacks & Wonks 2022 Post-Election Roundtable Livestream | November 15th, 2022   Transcript   [00:00:00] Bryce Cannatelli: Welcome to Hacks & Wonks. I'm Bryce Cannatelli – I'm the Post Coordinator for the show. You're listening to Part 1 of our 2022 Post-Election Roundtable that was originally aired live on Tuesday, November 15th. Audio for Part 2 will be running this Friday, so make sure you stay tuned. Full video from the event and a full text transcript of the show can be found on our website officialhacksandwonks.com. Thank you for tuning in! [00:00:38] Crystal Fincher: Good evening and welcome to the Hacks & Wonks Election Roundtable - Post-Election Roundtable. I'm Crystal Fincher - I'm a political consultant and the host of the Hacks & Wonks podcast. And today I'm thrilled to be joined by two of my favorite hacks and wonks to break down what happened in this 2022 general election. We're excited to be able to livestream this roundtable on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube. Additionally, we're recording this roundtable for broadcast on KODX and KVRU radio, podcast, and it will also be available with a full text transcript on officialhacksandwonks.com. Our esteemed panelists for this evening are Dujie Tahat. Dujie is CEO and Managing Director of DTC. He's a political and cultural strategist with deep expertise across emerging and established nonprofit advocacy organizations, legislative and electoral campaigns, and Fortune 500 companies. They've developed countless strategic messaging and narrative guides that center Black, Indigenous, and people of color, immigrants, queer folks, elderly Washingtonians, and those experiencing homelessness across a range of issues from environmental justice to housing and labor rights. Informed by their background organizing in the Yakima Valley then among artists and social justice advocates in and around Seattle, Dujie has built a career ensuring people at the margins are pulled to the forefront of political power building, organizational priorities, and communication strategies. Welcome, Dujie. [00:02:17] Dujie Tahat: Thanks, Crystal - that sounds very impressive. [00:02:19] Crystal Fincher: It does sound very impressive, doesn't it? Kelsey Hamlin is a Principal Consultant at DTC. She's a communicator, organizer, and researcher who worked for four years as a journalist across the Puget Sound before switching over to nonprofit and campaign work. Much of her skillset centers writing, strategic messaging, design, and politics. She's both covered the Legislature and worked to advance policies through it, coordinating with legislators and lobbyists, gathering data and research, and organizing testimony across coalitions that position proposals for the best success as conditions change. Kelsey's personal advocacy, chosen journalistic coverage, and work focus on social justice and the moments, legalities, and policies that touch people's everyday lives. She treasures keeping things accessible to all in spite of deliberately convoluted and racist systems. Welcome, Kelsey. [00:03:16] Kelsey Hamlin: Thank you, and thanks for having us both here. [00:03:18] Crystal Fincher: Yes, and we were going to have Djibril Diop join us this evening, but he actually had an emergency pop-up, so we are thinking about him and his family and wish them the best. I'm Crystal - I'm a political consultant. I also have the Hacks & Wonks podcast and am excited to get to breaking down and talking about what happened on Election Night. We will start with the Congressional races and one of the biggest upsets, if not the biggest upset, in the country with - in the Third Congressional District, Marie Gluesenkamp Pérez defeating MAGA Republican Joe Kent. So we now see that this is - the race has been called for Marie, she is back in Washington DC now doing her orientation - but this was a long shot. Looking at this race, why was she able to be successful, Dujie? [00:04:17] Dujie Tahat: Yeah, I think that Marie Gluesenkamp - I think that coming out of Election Night, John Fetterman, the new senator from Pennsylvania, got a lot of headlines for progressive populism and running a campaign of good fundamentals. I think everything that got him to the Senate, you could say about Marie's campaign as well. It was really strong in terms of messaging. She came up against an opponent who was clearly unfit for the office that they were seeking. And I think, not for nothing, voters are smart enough to see through that. The fundamentals for that campaign were really, really good. I think the ecosystem, the progressive ecosystem, also came together and rallied around Marie Gluesenkamp, which is a really fantastic thing and obviously, every little bit mattered for her race in particular. I'm really, really interested in seeing her brand of progressive populism begin to take hold within Washington state in particular. I think that our Democratic Party infrastructure is a little bit afraid to go left sometimes. And I think she's laid out a pretty strong and compelling case for what it might actually look like to lead, to be really, really forward with your values. I'm really excited by that campaign and the implications for future races. [00:05:44] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, absolutely - and Phil Gardner, who managed that campaign and did an excellent job, talked about this not being a fluke. This wasn't a chance. This wasn't a shock to them. They had a plan. They nailed strategy. They nailed execution - just from the outside looking in. And their take on it, just seeing what Marie Gluesenkamp Pérez said - how did you win this race? What did you do to win people who may not have always voted for Democrats, may generally vote Republican? - and it really is two parts. They made sure they knew how awful - they made sure that everyone knew how awful Joe Kent's views were, and they were extreme. And they gave them an alternative they can be enthusiastic about. And I think, to your point, Dujie, that is the key. It wasn't just, hey, this guy is really bad and scary bad - and to be clear, he was scary bad. But that's not enough, and you have to paint a vision of what you're going to do for people in the district, how you can help people. This is a district that is both suburban and rural, and she had to reach people in all of those areas. And really, it was her strength in the rural areas that allowed her to hang on in this race - when we've seen in prior years, late ballots have allowed Republicans to overtake Democrats in this area. As you looked at this race, Kelsey, what did you see? [00:07:20] Kelsey Hamlin: Yeah, we definitely had a couple of folks in Clark doing other campaign stuff. And when push came to shove, once Marie made it through the primary, a lot of folks on the ground were - point blank - we're going to pivot and focus on this campaign, because that's where the movement needs to happen and that's what we're going to focus on, because it's that important. So on the ground, you just saw door knocking, you saw volunteers really putting their feet in and digging in their heels to make sure that she made it. And ultimately, that's because she went out there and talked directly to people. You see that with AOC, you see that with Fetterman - and so at the end of the day, what matters is these conversations that Democrats choose to have with people or not with people, and where they choose to have those - because Marie was popular across Clark County, not just in the specific town hubs or city hubs. She was popular in various setups and demographics and in different land use areas, so it wasn't like she stuck to one place and called it good. [00:08:29] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, absolutely. And in part of a plan, part of a memo that Phil Gardner shared was a breakdown of just kind of what it's going to take to win. And it says to beat Kent and win the election, Marie Gluesenkamp Pérez needs the resources to accomplish three goals. The first one was maximize Democratic turnout in vote-rich Clark County - certainly maximizing in the more Democratic areas was necessary. But also number two - show up everywhere and make the race closer in rural areas. One third of the voters in the district live outside of Clark County in rural areas, and so improving on past performance was absolutely vital. Marie hails from one of those counties, knows how to connect with those voters. She is a rural voter and has talked about her frustrations of being painted with a broad brush as either nonexistent or only concerned with a narrow set of issues. And she talked about everything passionately from abortion to health care coverage, to the economy, to the extremism - back and forth. And then the third thing on the list was build a cross-party coalition for this unique election, recognizing that there were going to be a lot of disaffected people who had traditionally voted Republican, but never for a Republican like Joe Kent, and really giving them an alternative - to her point - that people could be enthusiastic about, not just - well, let me choose between the lesser of the evils. But someone who actually painted a vision for what life could be and how life could improve in that district. And mission accomplished in that way, and so that was absolutely exciting to see - was as excited about that race personally as any of them that I worked on this cycle - just really incredible to see. And then, we've talked through on the show a lot of times, but we had the Senate race with Patty Murray and Tiffany Smiley. We had another competitive Congressional race between Kim Schrier and Matt Larkin. As you look at those, as you heard some of the rhetoric about whether a red wave was coming, how close this may be, seeing some of the polling showing it being a very close race - how did you evaluate this race and were the results surprising for you, Dujie? [00:11:01] Dujie Tahat: Yeah, I think my main takeaway - and I think Schrier's race was a good sort of object lesson and - is that some of the fundamental structural advantages the Democratic Party has in Washington state are set. All the polls had Schrier winning by 6, even though she wasn't securing a majority - and basically all the entire undecided block came over to the Schrier camp and she ended up winning by 6. I think that for decades now, everybody whose job it is to elect Democrats focused on swing districts, particularly suburban white women. And as the sort of national politics has gotten really rancorous and Republicans have basically turned off that block here in Washington state, I think that block is increasingly more and more entrenched, and I think you see that come through in all of these national races. I think when we dig into some of the legislative races here shortly, too, I think you see the same thing bear out. But I think Schrier, I think for a number of reasons - because of the district she represents in particular, because of its historic swinginess, because of I think also the decisiveness of that outcome, she won by over 6 points, which I think holds with what everyone predicted - all of the FiveThirtyEight projections were around that same mark. I think that that's a really good bellwether in terms of where we're at, and I think it also provides a really interesting opportunity to think about - all right, what's our job now? If that stuff is true - if it's true that we have the sort of structural advantage, now what do we need to do? And I'd like to echo back to showing up everywhere, which is how Pérez won her district. [00:12:51] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely. What about you, Kelsey? [00:12:55] Kelsey Hamlin: Yeah, I'm really proud of our firm for kind of calling out and seeing that the entire red wave rhetoric was really just fluff. It was just fluff and nice things to say for the GOP to get out there - that a lot of folks were rather mindlessly just proliferating out into the ether and making a big sensation of it across a lot of outlets and polling places. And yeah, I think we were pretty clear that it wasn't going to be as dramatic as it was painted out to be. At max, there are about 2-4 places where we were really watching to see and knowing it was going to be close. But outside of that, we weren't worried about Democratic majorities here in Washington state anyway - and especially too with our Legislature - I know there was a lot of moving parts for our state, but yeah - we saw the whole red wave thing and saw right through it for what it was. Dujie namely had a post about that from our firm pretty early on, and I think as soon too as the primaries came in - once you collected the votes along party lines for how that was going to play out in the general, it practically played right along party lines - with the only time that that did not was in the 42nd LD. So I think Washington is - Washington Democrats have more space for growth and Washington Republicans have hit their ceiling at this point, which is really good news for us as long as we decide to capitalize on it instead of just repeating talking points from the other side. [00:14:37] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, I absolutely think that is correct and the framing of this and these races especially is curious. And I think moving forward, there is some introspection about who we listen to, what kinds of polling firms and what kinds of polls do we take to be serious and credible, exploring - okay, is what I'm talking about backed by data? Do we see anything besides a couple of firms with strong house effects saying something, or is this shown across the wider spectrum and ecosystem of polling and conversations? - so interesting to see. In these races, certainly abortion - humongous issue with the Dobbs decision - was it just about that or was it about other issues too? [00:15:40] Kelsey Hamlin: Yeah, I feel like it's silly that we silo abortion the way we do. I think that, as a topic of conversation, has come up more and more in the past couple of weeks. But it's never only about abortion. Abortion itself isn't only ever about abortion. The decision to keep or not keep a would-be child is an economic decision at the end of the day. It's a very - do I have enough money to put food on the table for a whole another person in my life? Do I have enough money to put them in daycare when I have to go to work if I'm a single mom, or if I'm a mom who already has three kids? These decisions are ones that people make in very highly contextual situations that are not solely about abortion. So when we're talking about whether or not we're going to force people to have births and carry them to term no matter what's happening to them, that conversation is pretty silly and detached from reality. So when it comes to voters, the top of my things were inflation - we can't talk about inflation and abortion as if they're separate. They have to do with each other. We're not sitting here in our lives and being like - hmm, am I going to invite another child into my life, but then not thinking about the fact that food costs so much more now, and rent costs so much more now, and insurance costs so much more now - all these things are what we as everyday people factor into our lives about all of our decisions. So it's never just about abortion at the end of the day. [00:17:12] Dujie Tahat: Yeah, I think Kelsey is sort of spot on, right? I think that abortion is a - one, it is protecting the right to abort if you want that. But it is also a placeholder for, I think, fundamentally an attack on freedom. I think about all of the ways that like Republicans have basically ceded freedom as a core value as they've adopted proto-fascist policy positions. And I think - and related to what Kelsey was saying, I think nationally the second and third top-of-mind issues for voters in some early exit polling was abortion and threats to democracy. And I think the thing that threatens both of those are just our core fundamental freedoms, like the choices that we get to make about my own body and then what we as a collective sort of decide for ourselves. And I think, related to also - Republicans have hit a ceiling here in Washington state. It's because they've ceded - to the extent that's true - it's because they've ceded a lot of that ground. Now, it's up to us on the left, it's up to Democrats to actually take that and then paint a positive vision. What does it actually mean to be a party of freedom? And with progressive values - bundle that up with other progressive values and tell a different story, beyond abortion access. What does abortion access actually get us? What is that future and how are we going to get there? [00:18:40] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, absolutely. Now we have a slew of legislative races, and the Legislature - this is really interesting this year. Because early on this year, there was a lot of talk about being very concerned about a number of these races, a number of these districts across the state and control of the State Legislature. So we have - in the beginning of the year, it was just like - okay, the 5th, 10th, 26th, 28th, 30th, 42nd, 44th, 47th - several battleground districts. And at the end of the day now - as we looked at the primary results in those, they were certainly encouraging. But even throughout the general, pretty hard fought general elections - a lot of these races had - were very competitive, had quite a lot of spending in these legislative races. I guess looking at a number of them, what overall was your take in the Legislature? And then we might talk about some of these individual races. But overall, how did you see that shaping up early on, and what is your take on how things wound up? [00:19:59] Dujie Tahat: Yeah. I think a good starting point is contrasting the results of 2022 with 2014, which is the equivalent midterm during a Democratic President. And in 2014, the Senate majority, Democratic majority flipped 25-24, even though it was not a real majority because Rodney Tom was doing his majority caucus thing with the Republicans. They lost the majority. At the same time, the House majority shrank from 54 to 40, setting the table for basically a decade of prioritizing political decisions protecting swing districts over maybe doing the right thing. And that was the context in which I think people were walking into this year. And people were afraid - we have bigger majorities than we had in 2013. And everyone is, and we have a historically unpopular president. You have this increase - a really high enthusiasm, even though it's a small sliver - of far-right noisemakers - we'll call it that. And the most amazing thing is that we increase majorities in both of the houses, right? The - I think for me, and I think that in addition to and maybe on top of just increasing majorities on both houses, I think looking at the Senate side in particular, because that's the highest leverage races is - of the 25 Senate races total that happened this year, Democrats only lost seven of them, five of which a Democrat didn't even run in, right? So you want to talk about showing up everywhere, I think it starts right there, right? There's a - I think there's another, based on some analysis Kelsey did - of the 120-something races in the Legislature, a full third of them had no Democrats running. Republicans had twice, nearly twice as many, first-time candidates running. I think we have to get - we have some structural advantages here, but it means nothing if we don't get back to the fundamentals and one of those fundamentals is showing up everywhere. Because it has a compounding effect of - we had some races and we worked out in Eastern Washington. I grew up in Eastern Washington. And when you don't run races, if you don't show up over and over again - when you show up finally with an argument, it doesn't actually land. And so I think that there is this - to my mind, having the structural advantage is great. We have that now. We prioritized that because everybody has been afraid of 2014 repeating again. We have baked that in over the last decade. But now, again, everybody's job whose it is to elect Democrats has to really have some introspection and some self reflection about - what does it mean now that we have these majorities? Now that these things are set - at least our base is - the people who we thought were persuadables have more or less become our base. Who now is the next set of persuadables? Because we need to keep growing that, otherwise we're going to be in the same position as the Republicans are in. [00:23:06] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, I think that is - I think that makes a lot of sense. And coming into this year, I think you're right - people were in a different mindset - obviously looking at trying to hold on and feeling like they're going to be more on defense. Especially with more of a traditional midterm election field - just those oftentimes are tougher for the party in power. But to your point, the map seemingly has expanded. And Republicans look like they may have challenges with recruiting and being as competitive as they have been in all of these districts before. So it seems - one, it's a mandate for action. People elect people to do things and to make things better, so certainly voters are expecting action. But to your point, this allows the party, organizations, allies to really look at the state and look at how things are on the ground. I look at the 17th and 18th Legislative Districts, which didn't wind up being winning districts for Democrats. But these are districts that have been close and that are still close - 48%-52%, 49%-51% races. And that if there is sustained activation on the ground, if there are candidates running at all different levels, if there are field programs even in off-years, and just real engagement with voters in those districts - in two years, that's ripe for turning blue in a number of these districts across the state. I think that needing to show up and talking with voters, we have a blueprint right there with what Marie Gluesenkamp Pérez just did. Showing up is half the battle. And really connecting and talking with voters there really makes a difference. What did you see here, Kelsey? [00:25:11] Kelsey Hamlin: Yeah, along a very similar vein - you mentioned the 17th and 18th LDs - what I noticed when I ran a lot of data right before, and then right after the primaries - something as a pattern that I noticed was that in these districts where Democrats and Republicans along party lines were - where there was a ton of candidates - they were really close at the end of the day. But then you look at the funds that are given to the Democratic candidates in those districts, and it's comparatively really low. So I'm looking at, again, post-primary finalization election going to general numbers. You're seeing someone who got 45% have about $7k at the end of the primary and their challenger has $92k at the end of the primary - at the same time. And you're seeing a lot of situations where these are winnable districts - they are really close with people that do not have the funds to make it closer. And at the end of the day, you need funds on a campaign - a lot of people don't know this because campaigns are a black box in the public's eye, but the amount of money that it takes just for sheer voter outreach, just for calling people, just for texting people, just for getting to the doors with some literature for folks to look at and reference for later costs a lot of money. And so does all the postage that you add to for all of the mailers that you send to people - costs a lot of money. And so $7,000 at the end of the primary isn't even going to reach one-third of the voters that you need with mail. So it's stuff like this where I really wish, as a pattern, the Democratic Party was a lot more willing to invest funds in candidates who are showing up in these districts with or without the party backing them - have cropped up and said, I'm going to do this because it needs to happen. And then we need to meet them where they are and show up to make sure that it happens and it pushes through at the end of the day. You see that also in Skagit County - there's a race there that's really close, but not maybe not the best narrative set, but regardless - a 49.99%-47.64% race right now. And that's against - I might be looking at the wrong numbers - but very close. [00:27:29] Crystal Fincher: Is that the Shavers race in the 10th? [00:27:31] Kelsey Hamlin: Yes. [00:27:31] Crystal Fincher: Yeah. [00:27:32] Kelsey Hamlin: Yeah - that's a Republican and a Democrat. And to me - I come from Skagit County, so I've always known that on the ground, it had every potential to shift blue. And we know too, with the last presidential primaries, that that was an overwhelmingly pro-Bernie district. So there's places where all of these patterns are happening, we can see on the ground and in data numbers that this is a place where Democrats can expand - and then it's not happening on the money side and it needs to. We need to quit operating with fear and with gatekeeping to only fund people that don't even need the funds at the end of the day - some of them are operating without a challenger and they still got more than some of our swing candidates. So that's a pattern that I see. [00:28:17] Crystal Fincher: Well, and, that's a flip one, because there was actually a lot of Independent Expenditure spending in the 10th Legislative District and a number of these others. And part of the - part of, as you talk about, campaigns are like a black box to a lot of people - and it actually takes a village to elect a candidate is kind of the thing. It takes the campaign and all of their supporters, all of their donors and their operation. In legislative races, the State Party with the Coordinated Campaign often works in conjunction with them, also with the Congressional races. And then there's Independent Expenditures - I work a lot with Independent Expenditures - and that's where that these organizations, who can't coordinate with the campaigns directly, but can participate in electioneering activity in these districts. And so when you see commercials sometimes and you hear "No candidate authorized this ad, this was paid for by some other entity" - that is an Independent Expenditure and there was a lot of Independent Expenditure spending in this district and a number of other districts - to your point, because keeping them is so important and really activating in these districts is so important. I think another thing that was notable to me, just overall, before we talk about some individual races was just looking at the candidates that were running. And I don't know about you two, but I certainly have heard more than my share of statements like - this guy's an ideal candidate. And by that, they mean - usually - older guy, business owner, veteran, well-off, often - just this is someone Republicans can like and warm up to - it feels like code for that. And it's usually just a version of some veteran business owner - someone who they feel can connect with white, suburban, and rural America. But what we're actually seeing is that candidates who are Black, Indigenous, people of color, queer candidates are actually activating voters in suburban and rural areas to a greater degree than some of those white male business owner veteran type candidates. Higher turnout, higher percentages that they're getting, so they seem to be activating the base needed to win to a greater degree. And now whether that's because they're oftentimes more willing to speak more strongly to issues, more boldly to issues, many issues that they may be closer to feeling the impacts to than other people in the community and understand the urgency of addressing some of those things - whatever that is, voters and all types of voters, whether they're, white, Black, Brown seem to respond at this point in time, at least in over the past couple of cycles, to those candidates as much as anyone. So I do hope that as, especially as consultants, and we have these conversations and we're talking to candidates who are interested in running, that we don't discount someone who may live in a rural area but is Black, someone who may be in a suburban area but is Latino, someone who may be in an area but is queer - those are the candidates who are energizing voters and pumping up turnout and building the winning coalitions of today. That's my two cents on that one. [00:32:14] Dujie Tahat: Can I ask you a question, Crystal? [00:32:15] Crystal Fincher: Yeah. [00:32:16] Dujie Tahat: I'm thinking - even in hearing what you're saying, I think - as an ecosystem - IEs, the party apparatus - everybody's job is to elect Democrats, right? I think we overcorrect and over rely on voters with a high propensity for voting, right? So and you're seeing that, I think, in Washington state - that would be places like South King County, east of Lake Washington, basically the outer Seattle metro area. And it feels like we're maybe at a point potentially where that is now, like what I'm saying earlier, that's maybe part of our structural advantage now, maybe we've done that. I'm curious what you see as what would it take, framing-wise, courage implications - what would it take for all of our various apparatuses to be like - okay, now we have to maybe shift towards motivating - instead of propensity to vote, it's likelihood to vote if they're motivated, right? Give them something to vote for in other places like Skagit or in Yakima, or just some of these places where we haven't built much of an infrastructure. [00:33:27] Crystal Fincher: I think - to your question, right now is the perfect time to be having those conversations, because I do think that we're at a point where we can pivot to basically offense, and offense everywhere on the ground in the state. And I do think that - I think for the Democratic Party's survival overall - that if we only focus on talking to people who have been frequent voters, that we're missing out on so many others. And there are plenty of reasons why people don't vote and don't vote with regularity. And the worst thing we can do is sit from a place of judgment, which I don't think - I know that you guys are not, but there have been others in this ecosystem who have - and understand that we better be coming to people with solutions that improve their lives on a daily basis and change they can feel. So some of that - talking about action in the Legislature, action from people who have been elected - so they come back and they say, you put your faith in me to make a positive change, here is that change. And that they're doing things that people can feel on the ground, which won't be everything that everyone does all the time. Sometimes people do things that affect different people and different populations, and sometimes I may feel it and sometimes I may not. But there better be things going on that everybody can feel, there better be something you can point to and be like - okay, I heard you, I see what you're going through, and I have taken action to ease a burden that you were feeling and to make things better. So I think it really starts with governing for everyone in the district now. And whether people are documented or undocumented, whether people are of voting age or not of voting age, and whether people are regular voters or not - that you're governing for everyone in the district and taking tangible action that they can see. And connecting with those people and being in community and conversation, I think, is a very important thing. We see turnout increase when people are engaged. We've seen turnout increase, sometimes not even attached to a candidate, but attached to an initiative or an issue in an area, and people turning out for something that they can see - okay, this makes a difference. But we also have to contend with some of the reality that people have heard a lot of rhetoric from a lot of people for a while. And sometimes they're just like, okay, everybody promises something. Until I see something, I'm going to tune out. And there's a lot that's not easy to see, right? And sometimes there's inaction that makes it easy not to see anything. So I think it is really action coupled with connection and community. And listening - I think that we have a mandate to listen as much as we do to act, and to be in community and just to say - okay, what are you going through? I'm not in your specific situation, but tell me what you're feeling, tell me what your challenges are, and let's see if we can do something about it. The more that people are doing that in community - and I think of Emily Randall, I think of Jamila Taylor, I think of April Berg, I think - there's so many that I can name that I know do a great job of that now. And that's just a model to emulate for even more people. Did that answer your question? [00:37:15] Dujie Tahat: Yeah. Yeah, totally. I love the - govern first. Do good things. [00:37:21] Crystal Fincher: Do good things. [00:37:22] Dujie Tahat: Yeah - good things. Take the credit for it, show up and talk to everybody - yeah, fundamentals. [00:37:31] Crystal Fincher: And lots of people think that political consulting and like we're sitting here, you know, with wizard hats on in the background and crunching numbers and coming up with magical stuff - and really it's just about trying to inform people about who someone is. And to let people know that there is someone who wants to help, but also making sure that they're out there and talking to people and in community. And I guess I will also say - for people who are political consultants - that we also have a responsibility in this whole thing. And who we choose to work for, who we choose to work with, the people who we lend our time and talent to help get elected - that matters, and the candidates that we choose to work with matter. It's really consequential and so, there's also just accountability to be had on our part too for what we put out there, who we help do things, and all that. I do think that that is valid and that we all have to answer for what we're doing and what direction we're moving. [00:38:57] Bryce Cannatelli: You just listened to Part 1 of our 2022 Post-Election Roundtable that was originally aired live on Tuesday, November 15th. Audio for Part 2 will be running this Friday, so make sure to stay tuned. Full video from the event and a full text transcript of the show can be found on our website officialhacksandwonks.com. The producer of Hacks & Wonks is Lisl Stadler. Our assistant producer is Shannon Cheng, and our Production Coordinator is Bryce Cannatelli. You can find Hacks & Wonks on Twitter @HacksWonks, and you can follow Crystal @finchfrii, spelled F-I-N-C-H-F-R-I-I. You can catch Hacks & Wonks on iTunes, Spotify, or wherever else you get your podcasts - just type "Hacks and Wonks" into the search bar. Be sure to subscribe to get our Friday almost-live shows and our midweek show delivered straight to your podcast feed. If you like us, leave us a review wherever you listen to Hacks & Wonks. You can also get a full transcript of this episode and links to the resources referenced in the show at officialhacksandwonks.com and in the podcast episode notes. Thank you for tuning in!

On today's episode, we will cover the pro's and con's of renting versus buying and de-bunk the common fears of taking the leap into homeownership. With special guest, Dani Scamehorn of Bellingham & Skagit County, WA. Featuring your host Jessica Randolph, President of The How To Buy A House Class™, a women-owned business providing free home-buying classes for all.Learn more and sign up for an-in person class in your city at https://www.howtobuyahouseclass.com/. Follow us at https://www.instagram.com/thehowtobuyahouseclass/.#1 Home Buying Class in the US | Accessible Home-Buying Education

What's Trending: A robbery and sexual assault occurred in Kirkland, Twitter users will have to pay $20 to keep blue checkmark,.Big Local: Some voters received damaged ballots in Kittitas County and Some voter anomalies occurred in Skagit County. // The New York governor's race is heating up and the left is denying any crime crisis. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hour 1 -- your chance to win Carlson's Legendary Lyrics, questions and speculation that Europe's big Nordstream oil pipeline might have been sabotaged but by who/whom?, locally gas prices have jumped by about 9-cents a gallon in the last week and refinery capacity is to blame, one of Italy's former prime ministers--a political opponent of the newly elected PM, Giorgia Meloni--tells American news media/pundits that saying she's the return of Benito Mussolini is "fake news", CNN's Don Lemon gets shut down on climate change beliefs by NOAA acting director, Celebrity Stacy political ad in Georgia Governor's race, King Co. Exec. Dow Constantine now wants a new property tax levy upwards of $1.25 billion for mental health treatment but two KVI hosts are skeptical of the plan. Hour 2 -- good news on the updated condition of a WSP Trooper (from Walla Walla) shot in the face by an assailant last week, a montage of American news media really distorting the political beliefs of Italy's newly elected female Prime Minister , what the Italian Prime Minister has actually been saying in campaign events that mirrors the political divide in America, so what is Washington getting for our $10 billion state tax surplus?, GUEST: KOMO 4's meteorologist Kristin Clark has been monitoring the strength and path of Hurricane Ian about to hit western Florida, why Clark says the north east quadrant of the hurricane is the most dangerous for rainfall and storm surge, CNN's Don Lemon gets rebuffed by NOAA Director when asking about Hurricane Ian and climate change, the remarkable survival story of two brothers in their 70s who climbed out of a crashed small plane in a heavily wooded portion of Skagit County. Hour 3 -- Seattle was once the fastest growing big city in America but the population is now shrinking, students are leaving the Seattle schools at twice the rate of other school districts in WA, the protests in Seattle's CID continue against King County officials "trying to sneak in" a proposed 400+ bed homeless shelter, the "harm reduction" philosophy of homeless drug addicts in Seattle is failing, PSBJ report says people are moving out of Seattle/King Co. to Pierce and Snohomish Counties, the utterly confounding assertion by Pres. Biden that people should get a COVID vaxx to prepare for hurricane season, promising new research in slowing the decline from Alzheimer's disease, why research and development spending is so important, the growing mystery of Nordstream Pipeline ruptures now in three places and why Carlson thinks this is a sabotage, the CIA has previously warned German gov't about possible security risks to Nordstream, why Donald Trump looks prescient today about Nordstream Pipeline opposition in the past, other European governments are saying Russia may have damaged the Nordstream pipe under the Baltic Sea, 8 stolen cars discovered at a single property in Parkland WA south of Tacoma and the stolen cars are from cities all over Puget Sound.

What's Trending: A study into election integrity in Mason County, the Tacoma City Council is fighting a multi-pronged battle against homelessness and a Sounders player is forced to make an apology. // Big Local: SeaTac airport is set to increase its staff, a Skagit County initiative is supporting migrant farmers and a Tumwater was shot in a grocery store parking lot. // The left is coming after Nikki Haley for being conservative. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Robert Lee Yates Jr. (born May 27, 1952) is an American serial killer from Spokane, Washington. From 1975 to 1998, Yates is known to have murdered at least 11 women in Spokane. Yates also confessed to two murders committed in Walla Walla in 1975 and a 1988 murder committed in Skagit County.   Intro/outro music is titled 'LOSE' from New Totally Radical by EXIT MINDBOMB  

Mason Thompsen is a 20-year-old programmer living in Skagit County. He put his mind to it and strove forward when he was young, releasing a game when I was 15 and working on another title now. While life has not been a piece of cake for him, he believes that just goes to show that anyone, no matter where they come from or what situations they face, can accomplish their dreams if they stick to their motivation and stay determined.Mason's company is currently a sole proprietorship that he has just listed under his name. He's been on television before, both in an advertisement for coconut Kenney's and one for the local pacific science centre when he was young, and holds an amateur radio licence. He grew up on a farm with two parents and three other siblings. He and his older sister are adopted, while his two younger siblings (one brother and one sister) are born naturally.Mason Thompsen's mother got aggressive brain cancer in 2019, and he separated from her in order to ease the financial burden on her, moving in with his grandparents and then struggling for a little while on the streets before finding a place at the local Cascades Job Corps.Mason's goal for the future is to release a AAA title and to get hired at a professional studio, as well as to get his bachelor's in Computer Science. As for right now, he's pursuing an A+ certification, has an IC3 certification, and is looking to enrol in Skagit Valley College next year. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In this episode, Amber covers the Spokane, WA serial killer Robert Lee Yates.  Yates murdered at least 11 women in Spokane. Yates also confessed to two murders committed in Walla Walla in 1975 and a 1988 murder committed in Skagit County. Robert Yates lead what seemed to be a normal life and target women in the sex work industry; because of this, he got away with his crimes for years.Amber was drinking a Sauvignon Blanc from Inti.  She really enjoyed this one even though she prefers a red over a white most days. Amber pulled her sources from:www.ranker.com / Laura Allan / June 14, 2019www.en.wikipedia.orgwww.serialkillerinfo.com / Rick Jr. Paulson / May 8, 2018www.cinemaholic.com / Noor Malhotra / August 29, 2020Then Erika covers the kidnapping of Patricia "Patty" Hearst.  Patricia is the granddaughter of the American publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst.  In 1974, she gets kidnapped by the Symbionese Liberation Army or the SLA.  What she does while being held captive is what's up for interpretation.  Was she forced into partaking in some serious crimes, or did she participate willingly? Erika was drinking a 2010 Reserve Chardonnay from Akiyoshi.  Super tasty and refreshing! Erika pulled her sources from:www.fbi.govwww.history.com / Patty Hearst kidnapped by the Symbionese Liberation Army / February 2, 2021 / A & E Television Networkswww.nydailynews.com / The kidnapping, crimes and trial of Patty Hearst / September 16, 2021www.famous-trials.com / Famous Trials: Patty Hearst Trial (1976): An Account / Professor Douglas O. Linderwww.en.wikipedia.orgBuzzsprout affiliate link:https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=1303834