Gov. Jay Inslee is running for president: Itâs official everybody. First he was exploring the idea, then we didnât hear much about it, then, after some light teasing, he releases this video. His single defining issue is addressing climate change and that can only be a good thing for the Democratic primary. Will he win? I mean your guess is as good as mine, but itâll be tough for a guy from Washington with little name recognition to beat out political heavyweights like Kamala Harris, Cory Booker, Elizabeth Warren, and Bernie Sanders. My God there are so many candidates. Inslee plans to keep his job as Governor while campaigning and hasnât ruled out running for a third term, so even he knows heâs a long shot. Check out this Seattle Times recap of his political career.
VIDEO: This is our moment, our climate, our mission â together, we can defeat climate change. That's why I'm running for president. Join #OurClimateMoment today https://t.co/zg8ILGyk0Z pic.twitter.com/pUZVxyzfc5
â Jay Inslee (@JayInslee) March 1, 2019
Sawant and Durkan clash over how to address homelessness: The councilwoman accused the mayor of retaliating against the controversial shelter operation, SHARE/WHEEL, by shortening their contract after they opposed her pick to lead the Human Services Department. Durkanâs pick for HSD was the acting director before this promotion, but activists want Durken to hold a more exhaustive search for the position. Weâre a long way from a âMission Accomplishedâ banner hanging over Pike St.
Video surfaces of Portland Police and Patriot Prayer: The Guardian has obtained a video showing a police officer approaching Patriot Prayer leader Joey Gibson with information that if they leave now, there wonât be any arrests. âTheyâve arrested the other side, so itâs not singling you guys out,â the officer said. The Portland Police have been criticized for having too friendly a relationship with the right-wing group, this is some of the first video evidence to support that.
Bezos come back, we can make this work: If you didnât sing that like a 90âs R&B song in your head then I donât know whatâs wrong with you. Breakups are hard. Theyâre even harder with millions of dollars and tens of thousands of jobs on the line. Bezos recently went through a breakup of his own so this split with New York must be especially tough. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo isnât giving up though. Heâs essentially standing outside Bezosâs window with a boombox listing all the tax breaks and union busting power New York state will give them. Only time will tell how this love story will end.
the onion is always right pic.twitter.com/y0o9fI3FgV
â Mike Rosenberg (@ByRosenberg) February 28, 2019
Looks like Inslee wonât be the only one announcing: All signs point to Beto OâRourke announcing his presidential candidacy sometime in the next few days. He was recently defeated by Ted Cruz in a run for Senate, but now he has his sights set a bit higher. People seemed to like his folksy, media-savvy campaign for Senate, so maybe a Democratic candidate from Texas isnât the craziest thing in the world.
Your freezing struggles were not in vain: We set a whole bunch of records last month, so all that snow and cold was worth it. Oh, you donât care about weather records? Well then I guess it definitely wasnât worth it.
âď¸February 2019 Seattle statsâď¸
*Coldest month in 28 years
*5th-coldest February on record
*2nd-snowiest February on record
*Snowiest month in 50 years
*7th-snowiest month on record
â Seattle Weather Blog (@KSeattleWeather) March 1, 2019
Pakistan has handed back captured Indian pilot: As a gesture of peace between the two nations. The pilot was shot down earlier this week in the first "publicly-acknowledged dogfight between the two countries in 48 years." Pakistan and India still may hate each other but for now the fighting between them has stopped. Itâs a bit terrifying how quickly and easily this fighting flared up between two nuclear armed countries. There is by no means peace, but at least they arenât shooting rockets across the border anymore.
In negotiations with the Taliban, women donât want to be forgotten: In the all male negotiations with Taliban leaders, diplomats, and the Afghan government, there is disagreement about what peace would look like. But over 700 Afghan women gathered to remind these negotiators not to sell them out. âWe want peace," the women said, "but not at the cost of our rights,â according to the New York Times. If the Taliban controlled the territory, they could bring back harsh, inhumane laws that restrict the rights of women to learn, move about freely, and vote.
Japan now has the worldâs largest Starbucks: But no matter how big they make it, the coffee still sucks. I mean donât get me wrong, I drink it, and then remember how much I despise it.
Coffee and tea lovers, rejoice: The world's biggest Starbucks has opened in Japan with both offerings @Starbucks_J pic.twitter.com/ZvQXwvCUkC
â TicToc by Bloomberg (@tictoc) March 1, 2019
This weekend's best Seattle entertainment options include: A nexus of two porcine-related occasions (National Pig Day and Lunar New Year) at Pike Place's Pig Day Out, the womxn-focused music festival Belltown Bash, the Nordic Lights Film Festival, and plenty of Mardi Gras celebrations.