Uno Reverse: Oop, Mayor Katie Wilson has changed her mind on who will lead Seattle City Light (SCL) after blowback from the Seattle City Council and unions. Earlier this year, Wilson chose to replace Bruce Harrell-appointed SCL CEO Dawn Lindell with Dennis McLerran. Critics pointed out McLerran had no utility experience and apparently this is a must for running a utility. Wilson has decided to install McLerran in the deputy general manager role instead, and will appoint current chief operating officer and SCL veteran Rob Santoff as leader. So, Wilson is willing to listen, or… unwilling to bloody her knuckles in a political fight.
Digging in Those Couch Cushions: Sound Transit found a way to make the West Seattle light rail extension more affordable! Last fall, budget estimates hovered at the simply too high $6.2 to $6.5 billion range. (We might as well write off West Seattle for good and keep our$6.5 billion, right? Well, no.) Sound Transit’s plan to cut costs (switch the construction method, optimize a station differently, eliminating crossover and tail tracks) should file the budget down to a respectable $4.9 to $5.3 billion, reports The Urbanist. Isn’t affordability beautiful?
ICE Arrests Spike in Tri-Cities: Data from report from the University of Washington Center for Human Rights shows a dramatic increase in Immigrations and Customs Enforcement arrests in the heart of Washington’s agricultural production areas. All Washington counties saw an increase in ICE arrests last year, but the Tri-Cities counties were outliers. ICE made 126 arrests combined across Franklin and Benton Counties—66 in Franklin and 60 in Benton. Those numbers doubled Franklin County’s 2022 ICE arrest numbers. Benton is another story. According to the Tri-City Herald, “Benton County’s arrests ramped up from three arrests in 2022, five in 2023 and four in 2024 to 60 arrests in 2025.”
Throw ‘Em a Sports Betting Bone: Lawmakers could green light a bit of legal college sports betting in Washington state. Currently in Washington, sports gambling is only allowed on tribal casino grounds and had previously prohibited any bets on collegiate sports sponsored by Washington institutions. Now, you can bet on your student athletes! Yay? A bill awaiting Gov. Bob Ferguson’s signature would unshackle gamblers and allow them to bet on the Washington Huskies, the Gonzaga Bulldogs, or, if they’re idiots, the Washington State Cougars. Stick to cheese.
Goodnight, Legislative Session: The short 60-day session is done. Lawmakers can finally leave Olympia to hibernate at home. On the last day, legislators approved a balanced $80.2 billion supplemental operating budget. Sure, it took raiding the rainy day fund and making big cuts to child care and early learning to get it there, but it’s balanced, okay? And it should get us to next year’s session, which will see lawmakers trying to plug an $878 million budget hole. That’s a problem for future them. All that remains is Gov. Bob Ferguson and his bill-signing pen.
The Weather: Cool, wet weather will continue. There’s even a flirty little snowflake icon in today’s weather report. That could mean spotty lowland snow Friday morning. Wait. I just looked out the window. It’s actually snowing!
We’re lucking into a flake or two here, but the mountains. Oh, the mountains. They’re seeing the snow they’ve been thirsting for all season. One to three feet of snow could fall through Saturday evening. Get thee to an Ikon Pass.
It Is a Confusing Time to be the Weather: The United States is dealing with all types of extreme weather all at once. The Southwest is broiling in a heat dome. Hawaii is drowning in downpours. The Great Lakes region is going to be buried in snow and freezing after a different storm brings an Arctic chill to the Midwest and the East. Plus, there’s weather whiplash. It was 86 degrees in DC earlier this week, but it snowed yesterday. Former National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration chief scientist Ryan Maue told the Associated Press that “extreme weather” is happening in all 50 states. As a reminder: This is not how it used to be.
Possible Act of Terrorism: A gunman opened fire on a classroom at Virginia’s Old Dominion University on Thursday. He was a former Army National Guard member who was jailed for eight years after attempting to aid the Islamic State, the Associated Press reports. One person was killed and two were injured before two ROTC students subdued the shooter and, as FBI Dominique Evans said, “rendered him no longer alive.” She added: “I don’t know how else to say it.” In my experience, the word “killed” always works.
Synagogue Attack: An armed man rammed his vehicle into Temple Israel synagogue in West Bloomfield Township outside of Detroit, Michigan. He drove through a hallway. Security shot and killed him. Authorities have identified the attacker as a naturalized citizen from Lebanon.
Want to Feel Bad? There’s a young Florida gubernatorial candidate energizing young voters. Sounds good except the politics of James Fishback, 31, are rancid. He mixes “extreme conservatism and economic progressivism.” He is racist, anti-Semitic, and embraces the politics of Nick Fuentes, a Nazi. And the youth love Fishback (Fuentes, too). This New York Times story about the Fishback craze paints a bleak picture for the future of the Republican party after Trump.
Worrisome: While denouncing CNN‘s coverage on the war in Iran, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said that the “sooner” Paramount Skydance Corporation CEO David Ellison takes over the network “the better.” Last month, Ellison and Paramount reached a deal to acquire CNN’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery. Ellison insisted CNN would maintain its editorial independence, but Hegseth seems to think it’s on its way to being state media. He had some helpful pointers for us all. Before this Secretary of War gig, he was Mr. TV, you know.
Hegseth: “Some in the press can’t stop. Allow me to make suggestions. People look at the TV and they see banners, ‘Mideast War Intensifies.’ What should it read instead? How about, ‘Iran increasingly desperate.’ More fake news from CNN. The sooner David Ellison takes over that network, the better”
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) March 13, 2026 at 5:15 AM
Four Dead in Refueling Crash: On Thursday, the four crew members aboard a US military refueling aircraft died when the tanker crashed in western Iraq. The circumstances of the crash are under investigation, though “neither hostile nor friendly fire were involved in downing the aircraft,” the BBC reports.
Keep an Eye on Your Ass: Colorectal cancer is hot right now. It’s the cancer that’s killing the most people under 50. So, if you’re pooping blood, go to the fucking doctor. But, seriously, pay attention to symptoms like “pencil thin” bowel movements, frequent pooping, and blood. Since this isn’t the age group that gets regular colonoscopies, doctors aren’t catching these things. So, the young people keep waiting to get their bleeding hole checked out and, as they wait, the cancer progresses. It’s not hemorrhoids, babe, it’s ass cancer.
A Song for Your Friday: Enjoy winter’s last gasp. Spring is next week. Technically.
