No masks at this State of the Union.
No masks at this State of the Union. Getty Pool

Biden delivered his first State of the Union last night: The president covered a lot ground—the war in Ukraine, rising inflation, what life would look like post-pandemic, his bipartisan infrastructure bill. He announced that his administration would ban Russian planes from U.S. airspace, and he laid out his "test to treat" coronavirus program, which will give out free antiviral treatments to those who test positive for COVID-19.

Other notable moments include Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) heckling Biden, and the president mixing up Ukrainans with Iranians. Reuters sums up the night below:

The Texas primaries were also last night: That miserable, Republican fuck and current Texas governor Greg Abbott made it through despite facing challenges from the right. As did Democrat Beto O'Rourke. Abbott and O'Rourke will face off for governor in what is likely to be a pretty bloody battle for the top spot. Current Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton—the asshole who wrote that transphobic legal opinion—is facing a runoff for his spot against George P. Bush, the commissioner of the Texas General Land Office, while the Dems are also facing a three-way runoff to head to the general. The New York Times has some key takeaways here.

More Seattle Public Library director search drama: Chad Helton, a finalist for the position, resigned from his role as Minnesota's Hennepin County Library director in February amid controversy over the fact that he was doing his job from Los Angeles, reports the Seattle Times and Star Tribune. While SPL's board is mum on whether or not they knew of his resignation, Helton did not mention it in his interview with the Times, nor during the public forum earlier last month. The board is set to "advanc[e] the selection process" today.

UPDATE: Looks like interim SPL chief librarian Tom Fay got the job—congrats!

I know you've been waiting: The State Department of Licensing is back online after a massive data breach that caused the site to go offline for more than a month, reports KOMO. Currently, at least 650,000 Washingtonians with current or expired licenses issued by the department are "watching and waiting to find out if their information was compromised."

Oh my god: Last night, I attempted to get J. Kenji López-Alt's limited edition K²FC burger, which he made for Li'l Woody's Burger Month, and shit was wild. Li'l Woody's turned off its phones and website because the restaurant was experiencing such a high volume of people trying to get this damn good-lookin' sandwich. I heard from a friend that their Capitol Hill location had a mob of people outside during dinnertime just to get their paws on this celebrated chef's creation. I'm really considering getting this bad boy at 11 am when they open! Why can't we all be chill!

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Three tons of space junk on course to collide with the moon: Parts of a leftover rocket will hit our beautiful moon at 5,800 mph on Friday, leaving a crater "that could fit several semitractor-trailers," reports AP. The junk was initially thought to belong to SpaceX, but now many believe the rocket remnants are from a Chinese rocket launch back in 2014. Chinese officials deny this.

A carjacking that started downtown ended with a crash outside the Starbucks Roastery on Capitol Hill: Police say there were investigating reports of a stabbing at 3rd and Union yesterday afternoon when they noticed a black Lexus speed off near the crime scene, reports CHS Blog. Apparently, the owner of the vehicle got jacked while picking up a rideshare and leapt through the car's open window as the suspect sped away. No one was seriously injured after all of this.

Some updates on Ukraine: As Russia continues to pummel Kharkiv, both sides say they are "ready to resume talks aimed at stopping the fighting." Meanwhile, a Russian missile struck a government building in Kharkiv with rescue workers pulling 10 people from the wreckage. The teen who tracked Elon Musk's private jet is now tracking Russian billionaires on a new account. Ukrainian officials say that Russian forces destroyed artifacts at the Ivankiv Historical-Cultural Museum just north of Kyiv, including around 25 works by beloved Ukrainian folk artist Maria Prymachenko. An emergency plan says that the hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian refugees have the right to live and work in the European Union for up to three years.

Larry David pulls documentary about himself right as it was scheduled to premiere: According to a tweet from HBO Documentaries, David "has decided he wants to do it in front of an audience." Must be nice!

Highway 18 near Auburn closed due to landslides: Thanks to all the rain in the region over the past few days, the soft soils around us are pretty loose, with some of it sliding onto the highway last night, reports the Seattle Times. It'll likely take at least two days for the soil to stabilize following the showers on Monday as we can expect more (but less intense) rain today.

Storyville Coffee workers are unionizing: Baristas and bakers at their Pike Place Market and Queen Anne locations filed a petition to unionize on February 17, reports the South Seattle Emerald. According to a public statement, the workers are calling for "a livable wage that reflects the skill set of each barista and baker." The two Storyville Coffee locations join at least five other Starbucks stores in Seattle in pushing for unionization. Huzzah!

MLB canceled opening day: For the first time in 27 years, the league will lose regular season games as the labor dispute between players and management collapsed before the deadline, reports The Guardian. It's apparently the ninth work stoppage in baseball history and the fourth that has canceled regular season games. The labor wave is strong across all industries.

Anyone got a spare $16 million? Capitol Hill's Sam Hill mansion is up for sale for the first time since 2017. The joint is named after businessman/philanthropist/lawyer Sam Hill. It was built by architectural firm Hornblower & Marshall in 1910, though it recently went through renovations. It's made of so much stone that it looks like it belongs in Gotham or something, but it has a beautiful view of Lake Union (and a hot tub!!!!).

For your listening pleasure: The Marías' "Over the Moon." Devastated that their Seattle show is sold out.