Good Morning! We’re trying on the type of spring climate that out-of-towners don’t consider exists right here: Highs within the mid 60s, partly cloudy, small likelihood of rain. I’m guessing even Charles Mudede can’t discover a strategy to complain about it at this time. However earlier than you get out and luxuriate in this good strolling climate, let’s do the information.
The GOP Desires Us Pregnant and Barefoot: We already knew that JD Vance and Elon Musk have been obsessive about us having extra (white) American infants. Nevertheless it’s additionally turn out to be clear that they’re not prepared to extend entry to childcare to assist that spike in baby-making. Why? As a result of they need mother and father (ladies) at house. In accordance with the New York Occasions, the White Home is workshopping methods to encourage mother and father to remain house, together with “giving extra money to households for every baby they’ve, eliminating federal tax credit for daycare, and opening up federal lands for the development of inexpensive single-family houses.” This, in fact, comes on the expense of packages that do assist precise working mother and father. Which can nonetheless be nearly all of mother and father. As a result of it’s not the Nineteen Fifties, and we’re in late-stage capitalism over right here.
Extra Gentle Rail! The Two Line simply acquired three and a half miles longer. Over the weekend, we acquired two new gentle rail stations, at Marymoor Park and downtown Redmond. However the connection between the One and Two traces remains to be a figment of Dow Constantine’s creativeness proper now. His finest guess is that it’ll open in the summertime of 2026.
Library Disaster: You recognize the Washington Speaking Guide & Braille Library in South Lake Union? That’s a part of the Washington State Library system, and financially, they’re screwed. Trump has already yanked federal funding from library methods across the nation, and now, based on the Washington Secretary of State’s Workplace, the state funds that’s sitting on Governor Ferguson’s desk doesn’t embrace any of the $6.7 million they requested for. Their workplace introduced this morning that over the previous two weeks, they delivered 47 at-risk-of layoff letters to Washington State Library (WSL) staff. The Speaking Guide & Braille Library, our state’s solely accessible library service for individuals with print disabilities, faces a number of the worst cuts—and should must be closed to the general public. Feeling good about not taxing the wealthy, Ferguson?
Tariff Replace: Trump and China have lastly gotten uninterested in their big recreation of Uncle, and are available to a non permanent commerce settlement. For the following 90 days, Trump is predicted to decrease the tariffs on Chinese language imports from 145 p.c to 30, and China will decrease tariffs on American items to 10 p.c from 125. Perhaps we’ll begin seeing extra ships within the port once more. The grasshoppers are lonely.
Flying’s About to Get Bizarre: Newark Airport, one of many busiest airports within the nation, has had two radar outages in as many months. And on Sunday, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned that the identical factor is seemingly to occur at extra US airports as we head into the summer season journey season, and mentioned he would make a plan with main airways to cut back the variety of flights going by way of Newark. This looks like a great time to remind everybody that DOGE reduce 400 employees from the FAA this yr.
Trump Desires a New Jet: And the royal household of Qatar desires to provide it to him. Particularly, they need to give him a $400 million tremendous luxurious Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet that may function Air Drive One throughout his presidency, after which be donated to his presidential library after his time period. If (when) it goes by way of, will probably be the most important present ever given to the US from a international authorities. Is it authorized to simply accept one thing so priceless from a international energy? Pam Bondi and Pete Hegseth say it’s, however everybody else is fairly apprehensive. “Even in a presidency outlined by grift, this transfer is surprising,” Robert Weissman, a co-president of Public Citizen, instructed the New York Occasions. “It makes clear that US international coverage beneath Donald Trump is up on the market.” Want one thing from Trump? Give him one thing shiny.
A New Sort of “Refugee”: Keep in mind how Trump worn out our whole refugee program after which doubled down by defying a courtroom order to assist resettle the 12,000 refugees who had flights booked to the US when the ban went into place? Properly this morning, 49 white South Africans will land in DC as the primary wave of Trump’s model new Afrikaner refugee program. Simply to verify we’re all on the identical web page: Afrikaners are about 7 p.c of the inhabitants in South Africa, however they personal three quarters of the non-public land within the nation; and so they have been the beneficiaries of a half-century lengthy Apartheid system that allowed the white minority to dominate the nation. Unsurprisingly, assist teams, immigrant rights activists, and the South African authorities have all known as the initiative an absolute mockery of our refugee system (which it’s). However the Trump administration simply loves themselves a little bit “reverse racism.” So that they’ll be throwing these white people a little bit social gathering on the tarmac later at this time.
Hostage to Be Launched: Hamas introduced yesterday that it’s going to launch the final dwelling American hostage in Gaza. The hostage, Edan Alexander, is an Israeli-American twin citizen who moved to Israel to serve within the army after highschool, and he was captured from his army submit through the October 7 assaults. This would be the first hostage launch since Israel shattered the ceasefire in March. Trump might be within the Center East on Tuesday, and Hamas hopes it’ll kickstart a brand new ceasefire earlier than Israel makes good on its plans to grab the complete Gaza Strip. Israel, predictably, has no plans to cease bombarding Gaza throughout negotiations. Greater than 50,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza.
Time to Ring within the 2025 Election: The submitting deadline was on Friday, which suggests our metropolis election season has formally begun! This yr, we’ll be voting for mayor, metropolis lawyer, and metropolis council districts 2, 8, and 9. This election has every little thing you’d count on from a Seattle showdown, from progressive challengers to shitty poll initiatives from Brian Heywood. Test again in all through the week—we’ll provide the full rundown of the candidates, the initiatives, and the races we’re actually enthusiastic about.
Republicans Are Nonetheless Making an attempt to Lower Medicaid: They launched a proposal late on Sunday that might take protection away from 8.6 million People and hike the prices for tens of millions extra. It requires individuals to pay extra charges, provides extra paperwork, and features a work requirement for childless adults. The GOP has by no means seen a poverty tax it doesn’t love.
Watch Your Fingers: Igloo needed to recall 130,000 coolers as a result of they have been taking off individuals’s fingertips. Apparently the tow deal with can pinch your hand in opposition to the cooler, and it’s actually resulted in a number of amputations. Irrespective of what number of instances I learn that, I’m nonetheless unsure how that’s attainable. However for those who purchased an Igloo cooler between January 2019 and January 2025, do your poor fingers a favor and ask Igloo for a free alternative deal with.
Hegseth Nonetheless an Fool: Among the passwords that Protection Secretary Pete “Wanna Be a part of My Group Chat” Hegseth used to register for web sites have been uncovered in cyberattacks on these websites and are available on the web. If he was utilizing regular, safe channels to debate conflict plans, that’d be NBD—he’d simply be getting a whole lot of spam calls on his private telephone. However as a result of he’s failed to make use of the safeguards which can be constructed into our NATIONAL SECURITY SYSTEMS, there’s no telling what individuals can get entry to.
Often I need to provide you with one thing to ease into your Monday, it doesn’t really feel like that type of day. So right here’s “Boss” by Little Simz, to get your power up.
