Tap:Â Screw your ORCA card. You can use your credit card or digital wallet to pay for all Sound Transit services. Eventually, tap-to-pay will be expanded to Kitsap Fast Ferries and the King County Water Taxi.
Fraud? According to progressive advocacy group Invest in Washington Now, someone is tampering with the official testimony record on the millionairesâ tax. As Nathalie wrote yesterday, the group confirmed nearly 38,000 duplicate sign-ins and 100 impersonations. State Sen. Victoria Huntâs name was put down and sheâs the billâs co-sponsor! Not too sly.
Tukwila Says ICE Out: As ICE seeks to expand its detention centers, Tukwila City Council voted 7-0 to ban the construction of new correctional and detention centers for the next six months to a year. SeaTac passed a similar ban earlier this month, and city Councils in Seattle, Burien and Renton are considering them as well.
Yale is closed. The right turn lane from eastbound Denny Way to southbound Yale Avenue is closed for I-5 construction until March 20th. This will suck for a lot of people.
Weather: Weâre partly sunny with a 30 percent chance of rain after noon. High of 47. On and off rain looks likely to âtil Saturday.
Close Your Eyes and Pretend Youâre at Zoo Tunes: The summer lineup includes Belle and Sebastian playing âIf Youâre Feeling Sinisterâ, Pavement, the Mountain Goats, Jason Isbell, Courtney Barnett (with Built to Spill), the Breeders, and more. Tickets go on sale this Friday.
Even More Exciting: The State of the Union is tonight. Are we watching?
The US Womenâs hockey team isnât. They declined President Donald Trumpâs invitation for logistical, not political, reasons. Most of the team didnât arrive in the states on a commercial flight until late yesterday. The menâs team arrived earlier on a charter plane to Miami, but itâs unclear if theyâll attend either. Trump joked that heâd be âimpeachedâ if he didnât invite both teams.
Chicago named a snowplow âAbolish ICE.â The other five winners of the annual âYou Name a Snowplowâ contest are âStephen Coldbert,â âPope FrĂo,â âThe Blizzard of Oz,â âSvencoolie,â and âCaleb Chillems.â A record 39,000 people voted in this yearâs contest.
Did Kristi Noem make up a cannibal? The Homeland Security Secretary told an absurd story on Fox News last summer: The US had deported a maneater who (for lack of pretzels?) began to eat himself on the flight home. At the time, The Intercept was unable to confirm any details about the story, but now they know itâs a lie for sure. Three federal law enforcement officials told the site that the entire story was fabricated. A DHS spokesperson said Noem had heard the story from an air marshal. âAsked if the story came from Noem or the U.S. Marshals, one official was unequivocal: âNoem.ââ
Related: Remember when Trump couldnât stop talking about the âlate, great Hannibal Lecterâ at his rallies for no conceivable reason?
Silence of the Lamb! Has anyone ever seen The Silence of the Lambs? The late, great Hannibal Lecter is a wonderful man. He oftentimes would have a friend for dinner. Remember the last scene? Excuse me, Iâm about to have a friend for dinner as this poor doctor walked by. Iâm about to have a friend for dinner. But Hannibal Lecter. Congratulations. The late, great Hannibal Lecter. We have people that are being released into our country that we donât want in our country.
This addled mind is considering war with Iran.
Karma: Emails show author and guru Deepak Chopra was bosom buddies with Jeffrey Epstein. The two talked frequently between 2016 and 2019, the year Epstein was arrested for running a sex-traffacking ring and sexually abusing girls, and arranged several meetings at Epsteinâs properties. On two occasions, Chopra encouraged the sex criminal and financier to bring his âgirlsâ on international trips. Itâs unclear if Epstein accepted his offer. CNN has more.
Tips: âTodayâ host Savannah Guthrieâs family is offering up to $1 million for information that leads to Nancy Guthrieâs recovery. The 84-year-old was kidnapped from her Tucson home nearly a month ago.
Clarification: Sound Transit let us know that KUOW misreported that tap-to-pay was also coming to Washington State Ferries. They've updated and so have we. Also, do not screw your ORCA card if you're getting senior or income-qualified transit fare discounts. You'll still need it.








