Good morning: A cloudy day will gradually give way to the sun and it may be the last we may see of it til Sunday. Expect a high of 66.
Climbing Accident in North Cascades: Four people were repelling down a steep gully when their equipment failed and they fell 400 feet. Three died from the fall. Hours later the lone survivor, unaware of just how seriously injured he was, walked back to the trailhead, got in his car, drove to Newhalem and called 911 from a pay phone. The Okanogan County Sheriff’s Office has not released the names of the dead climbers, but says they were 36, 47, and 63 years old. Two lived in Redmond, the third in Bellevue.
Trump’s Tariffs on China Hitting Seattle Truck Drivers: Whatever comes of the US and China’s temporary trade agreement, April’s tariffs slowed port traffic and imports won’t be back up for weeks. A problem if your job is hauling goods, truck drivers told The Seattle Times. China accounted for 40 percent of container volume in Seattle and Tacoma last year.
Not So Fresh or Ready: As of May 9, at least 10 people in the US have been hospitalized by a listeria outbreak in ready-to-eat food from California company Fresh & Ready Foods, which sells products in Washington. Symptoms typically start two weeks after eating contaminated food. The mildest cases are like a stomach flu, while the most severe can cause confusion, lack of balance and convulsions. Fresh & Ready has voluntarily recalled select items with use by dates between April 22 and May 19. Here’s a list. If you happen to have any of this stuff, throw it away.
Can barely wait to vote? The Young Democrats at UW are hosting one of the first candidate forums of the political season, writes Capitol Hill Seattle Blog. Tune online at 6:30 pm to hear from the candidates in the Mayoral, City Attorney, and City Council races. Check @youngdemocrats_uw (Instagram) for more details.
ICYMI: Nathalie and I looked into Republican millionaire Brian Heywood’s latest slate of ballot measures, which aren’t great. They’re bad, even: Heywood wants to repeal changes to his Parents’ Bill of Rights, ban trans girls from sports, take public school money and give it to homeschooled kids and kids in private school, and cap property tax increases.
The Lawyerbrarian of Congress: Todd Blanche, the lawyer who defended Trump in his 2024 criminal trial, was appointed the acting librarian of congress. Blanche took over for Randolph Newlen, who took over for Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden last Thursday after Trump fired her for the “concerning,” “woke” habit of supporting DEI and putting “inappropriate” books in the library for children. Strange they’d say that. As Politico writes, the Library of Congress “is not a lending library and researchers have to be at least 16.”
Trump Admin Screws Over Afghan Refugees: The same day the Trump administration welcomed white Afrikaners “escaping” a non-existant genocide in South Africa, it ended deportation protections for Afghans. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem cited “notable improvements” in their home country, which the Taliban still controls and where assassinations, arrests, and human rights abuses continue, a resettlement advocate told The Washington Post. Now the US may deport Afghans while the white Afrikaners skip ahead of thousands of others living in refugee camps around the world. It’s racist policy. As Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau told reporters, Trump made the exception for his ban on asylum-seekers because Afrikaners could be “assimilated easily” into the US.
But: The Episcopal Church’s migration service won’t go along with Trump’s plan to resettle them. Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe cited its commitment to “racial justice and reconciliation” and its historic ties with the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, which campaigned against apartheid (“apartness” in Afrikaans) in the 1980s and 1990s.
Mister Sandman, bring me a dream electoral victory (win, win, win, win): The only Iowa Democrat in statewide office, state auditor Rob Sand, is running for Governor next year. Sand, who looks like a giant boy or the Dead Poets Society’s oldest member, jumped into the race after Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds, a Republican, announced she wouldn’t seek reelection. Sand is apparently launching hard. (My partner, who briefly lived in Iowa, received no less than nine messages and four photos from his campaign yesterday). A Democrat could win Iowa (it was, after all, a swing state) but it won’t be easy. The whole Midwest is fixing to be a battlefield next year, writes The New York Times. Republicans are eyeing governor’s mansions currently occupied by Democrats in Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.
The Picture of Health: What better way to celebrate Mother’s Day than to take a dip in human piss and shit? On Sunday, Health and Human Services Secretary RFK Jr. posted photos of him and his grandchildren swimming in Rock Creek in Washington DC. Rock Creek is not known for its swimming on account of it being banned because of bacterial contamination from the city’s sewers (it's used to drain excess sewage and storm water during rainfall). It's unclear if he knew of the dangers, but I'd like to think he capped off the afternoon with an ice-cold glass of raw milk. I’ve heard it really balances the humors and shields the body from lingering miasmas.
Takes One to Know One: Asked about his intention to replace Air Force One with a $400 million luxury jet gifted to him by the Qatari royal family, Trump said only someone “stupid” would turn down such a great offer. Now we know what would have happened if Trump were King of Troy in 1184 BC and a bunch of nice men rolled an enormous wooden horse onto his gatestep. As many have already pointed out, it’s also absurdly, cartoonishly corrupt.
