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FRIDAY, June 10 -- Safeco CEO Mike McGavick: Rock star or greedy hypocrite?
— In today's Seattle P-I -- Second-guessing, again -- Editorial: Tossing out the gas-tax increase (with Initiative 912) means throwing away hopes for crucial transportation projects across the state, along with thousands of family-wage jobs. Citizens should lend their signatures to correct the Legislature when it has failed to act in the best interests of the state, not when it has succeeded. Learn more.
— In today's Bremerton Sun -- CAFTA opponents target Bainbridge Island, Rep. Jay Inslee -- Leafleting and doorbelling planned Saturday to urge undecided Inslee to vote "no." Learn more.
— Today from AP -- Machinists union wants Boeing to share the wealth as contract talks begin
— Today at BusinessWeek online -- Fantastic plastic -- Boeing thinks its new 787, built mostly of plastic composites, could remold the airline industry. Already one of the fastest-selling commercial jets in history, the plane is playing a key role in a remarkable reversal of fortune between Boeing and Airbus.
— In today's Spokesman-Review -- Spokane's domestic-partner benefits face opposition -- Group turns in signatures to put the issue on the ballot. Mayor West had threatened to veto it. (Insert joke here.)
— In the Walla Walla U-B -- For longtime workers, Dayton asparagus plant closure marks end of an era
National news: — In yesterday's Washington Post -- Public workers under fire -- MUST-READ Meyerson column: America has a problem with its public employees. They are not downwardly mobile enough. Policemen, firefighters, teachers, hospital nurses -- they still belong to the one part of the U.S. economy where the New Deal hasn't been repealed. There are a number of reasons public employees have been able to preserve the kinds of benefits and, in some instances, living standards that were once more common to American workers generally, but chief among these is unions.
— In today's St. Louis P-D -- AFL-CIO: Bang! Right in the foot -- Editorial: The secession movement might divide labor into two rival groups. They could end up spending as much energy carping at each other and stealing each others' members as they would pushing working people's interests. That would be a shame, because the AFL-CIO stands as the nation's most powerful voice for ordinary working stiffs.
— In today's NY Times -- Losing our country -- Krugman column: The middle-class society I grew up in no longer exists. Meanwhile, almost every one of Bush's domestic policies seems intended to accelerate our march back to the robber baron era. It's not a pretty picture -- which is why right-wing partisans try so hard to discredit anyone who tries to explain to the public what's going on.
— Today from AP -- Senate GOP considers raising retirement age for Social Security
— In today's Seattle Times -- "Ethics" chair Hastings in rare spotlight for link to DeLay lobbying scandal 
— In today's Detroit News -- Northwest Airlines seeks scabs in case flight attendants, mechanics strike

THURSDAY, June 9 -- Think Before You Ink: Urge union members not to sign I-912
— In today's Seattle P-I -- 225,014 signatures on Initiative 912 could help trash the gas tax
— In today's Yakima H-R -- Tree Top, union (IBT 760) in contract talks affecting 400 workers
...plus -- Corrections clerks (also IBT 760) picket at Yakima County jail -- The nearly 40 employees who work in the jail have been without a contract for five months now.
— In today's Everett Herald -- Brightwater chief warns against delay -- But Snohomish County Council doesn't appear ready to back away from two "emergency ordinances" designed to delay the project.
— In yesterday's Columbian -- Secretary of State Sam Reed: Let felons vote
— In today's Tri-City Herald -- Rep. Chandler unsure of role after being dumped as House GOP leader
— In today's Seattle Times -- Rossi's in great position to be the GOP's next ...? -- Balter column: If he runs for U.S. Senate, he'd be part of the Bush-Frist amen chorus. Plus, he wouldn't be able to run from his very conservative positions on social issues. So look for a gubernatorial rematch in 2008.
Boeing news: — In today's Everett Herald -- Boeing talks with IAM begin Friday -- In 2002, the sniping started on the first day. But this time, the atmosphere has changed. Boeing has recalled 2,500 IAM members in the past year, and there's a sense the company has regained its momentum.
— In today's Seattle P-I -- Boeing's 20-year outlook for jetliner deliveries: Up and up
— Today from Bloomberg -- Air Canada may cancel $6.1 billion Boeing order, if its pilots don't settle
— In today's Seattle P-I -- Airbus orders might dry up before next week's Paris Air Show
Wild, Wild West update: — In today's Spokesman-Review -- West wants recall petition tossed -- The mayor's lawyers, who may end up being paid for by taxpayers, argue that the petition is flawed.
...plus -- Thousands of West's e-mails to be made public -- Parental advisory... explicit content.
— In today's Seattle P-I -- Trying to sell Spokane amid scandal -- Virgin column: The local Chamber of Commerce says its more than 50 CEOs "have told us that they would not have their jobs today if they had done what Jim West has already admitted to doing... The community needs a new CEO."
National news: — In today's Washington Post -- Public workers under fire -- MUST-READ Meyerson column: America has a problem with its public employees. They are not downwardly mobile enough. Policemen, firefighters, teachers, hospital nurses -- they still belong to the one part of the U.S. economy where the New Deal hasn't been repealed. There are a number of reasons public employees have been able to preserve the kinds of benefits and, in some instances, living standards that were once more common to American workers generally, but chief among these is unions.
...plus -- Support for Bush's Social Security plan dwindling -- A clear majority of the public does not believe Bush's assurances that partial privatization will protect the system without cutting benefits. Polls suggest Bush's ongoing campaign to not only failed to win support for his proposals, but instead his public standing on the Social Security issue is lower now than it was in mid-January.
— In today's NY Times -- Bush warns of repercussions on Social Security inaction -- Next two-month push of legislative maneuvering is likely to determine the fate of his effort to privatize Social Security.
...plus -- Latest confirmed justice nominee Janice Rogers Brown sees slavery in liberalism
— Today from AP -- Uninsured force costs higher -- Report: Washington employers and workers pay $1,206 more a year in family health coverage because of the costs of the uninsured.
— Today from AP -- Massachusetts probes longshore unions' payroll -- Locals accused of issuing union cards to 2-year-old children in a scheme to give them higher wages as adult dockworkers.

WEDNESDAY, June 8 -- SEIU 775 urges action against anti-union home-care firm
— In today's Seattle P-I -- Boeing, IAM to talk contract -- Talks begin Friday, when the company and the union sit down in Seattle.  IAM 751 President Mark Blondin said his membership has identified the top issues as better pension benefits, followed closely by health care and then jobs and job security.
— In today's News Tribune -- Boeing could reach labor peace; climate for contract talks seems friendly
— In the P.S. Business Journal -- One union set to picket Boeing, another set to vote -- SPEEA will picket Renton HQ over Onex layoffs in Wichita as IBEW 271 will vote on Onex's "best and final offer."
— In the Seattle Weekly -- 787 hiring outsourced -- The state has awarded its first major contract from the $3.2 billion Dreamliner deal to Accenture, a tax-dodging company incorporated in Bermuda.
Digesting Dino's Defeat: — In today's Seattle Times -- After ruling, it's all over but the sniping -- The state Supreme Court's chief justice objected to Rossi and Vance's political characterization of the court. Even one of Rossi's closest supporters, BIAW's Tom McCabe, said he was perplexed by the notion.
— In the Seattle Weekly -- A fraudulent finish -- Rossi should have apologized to Washington state. After seven months of irresponsible rhetoric and fruitless litigation, he finally ended his bid. He did not, however, take personal responsibility for his headline-grabbing, whiny, and expensive litigation. Instead, he took a page out of Tom Delay's playbook, making an ad hominem attack on the integrity of the state's highest court. It was as baseless as the rest of his legal arguments and should serve as a reminder that Rossi is deeply wedded to the radical right-wing agenda emanating from D.C.
— Editorials in the Yakima H-R and Tri-City Herald -- Dino right to concede, but took a cheap shot at the court.
— In today's Seattle P-I -- Wrong, Dino: Your arguments were totally lame (Horsey cartoon)
— In today's News Tribune -- Dems want their money back, with 12% interest -- Secretary of State's office still has the party's $730,000 hand-recount money, but wants to refund it with 2% interest.
Indigestion over Dino's Defeat: — In today's King Co. Journal -- Election's over, so stop sniping -- Editorial paraphrased: Seven months and $2.5 million later, our boy Dino officially lost. One day after his "honorable and gracious" decision to give up, Democrats have no right to be angry. (Wah!)
Other local news: — In today's Tri-City Herald -- NLRB certifies decert vote at Pasco's Tyson plant
— In today's Seattle Times -- King Co. workers' insurance costs to be tied to their health habits
— In today's Spokesman-Review -- Spokane Co. Jail faces budget crisis; health care, OT costs blamed
— In today's Bellingham Herald -- Medic One talks continue -- Whatcom County will pay a portion of unemployment benefits for some Bellingham firefighters if there is no agreement by year's end.
National news: — Today at AFLCIO.org -- CAFTA: A bad deal for farmers
— In today's Washington Post -- Federal workers more efficient than private contractors -- The federal government spent $110 million last year to determine whether 12,573 federal jobs could be done more efficiently by private contractors, with in-house workers winning 91 percent of the time. AFGE President John Gage: The Bush administration should "finally acknowledge the superiority of the in-house workforce it has so slandered and bullied over the last several years."
— Today from AP -- Volume of underfunded pensions spikes -- Lax reporting rules created by Congress, coupled with corporate America's eagerness to take advantage, have left millions of workers' and retirees' pension plans underfunded without their knowledge.
— In today's LA Times -- Airline execs seek revised pension rules -- CEOs say taxpayers will have to bail them out unless airlines get greater latitude to spread out the payments they are required to make.
— In today's NY Times -- Downsizing at General Motors comes as no surprise to workers
— In today's SF Chronicle -- Costs of health care drag America down -- Lazarus column: GM spelled out why U.S. manufacturers are getting their economic butts kicked. It has nothing to do with our workers' productivity or the quality of our products. It's because our health care system is killing us.
...plus -- S.F. hotels' latest offer gets frosty reception from UNITE HERE
— In today's LA Times -- Joining up to dodge a dead end -- With no hope of a good job or money for college, many heartland teens are enlisting in the military in search of economic security.
— In today's NY Times -- In American fiction, a long history of fixation on the social gap -- There is an un-American secret at the heart of American culture: for a long time, it was preoccupied by class.

TUESDAY, June 7 -- Rossi had no choice but to end low-road legal fight, Bender says
— In today's Seattle P-I -- Election 2004 is finally over -- Editorial: Rossi's decision to walk away from a last-ditch fight was right. But he spoiled his moment of grace with a cheap shot, claiming the "political makeup of the Washington state Supreme Court" would not allow him to prevail on appeal.
...plus -- After spending millions, Rossi winds up losing 4 votes
— In today's Seattle Times -- A fraudulent election that never was -- Editorial: This case is over. Gregoire is governor. It is time for members of the losing party to put this matter behind them.
— In today's Olympian -- Judge's ruling was decisive -- Editorial: Judge Bridges' decision is a clear indication it's time to put the 2004 election behind us and move forward as a state.
...plus -- GOP Governors Assn. asks Gregoire to resign -- UPS must've lost the Gracious Loser memo.
Boeing news: — In today's King County Journal -- Boeing hiring spree continues -- With 635 new jobs last month, the company has now added 5,361 jobs since June 3, 2004, when Boeing ended its 27-month string of consecutive layoffs in the area. Its total work force in this state is now 58,124. 
— In today's LA Times -- Air Force push for Boeing tanker deal is detailed -- An internal e-mail exchange among four senior Pentagon officials reads: "We all know that this is a bailout for Boeing."
— In today's Seattle Times -- As Boeing-Airbus competition heats up, jobs fly into China -- Jessica Hu, a petite 26-year-old, clutches a metal clipboard and inspects a bin of parts on the floor of a China factory. She monitors products, including wing parts for the Boeing 737. She earns about $3 a day.
Other local news: — Today from AP -- Kaiser's Spokane plant gets boost from Airbus deal
— In today's Tri-City Herald -- CH2M Hill may have to cut 350 jobs if DOE budget cuts for Hanford OK'd
— In today's Seattle P-I -- Teachers union objects to Hutcherson's church meeting on school grounds
— In today's King County Journal -- Cheney provides a $100,000 boost to Reichert's campaign war chest
National news: — In today's NY Sun -- AFL-CIO president vows to reach out to Republicans -- The change in political strategy was disclosed yesterday by a labor leader who has long advocated a more bipartisan approach, IAFF President Harold Schaitberger.
— In today's NY Times -- Bush presses Congress on CAFTA -- Democrats have been fairly united against it. Republicans who could normally be counted on to support free trade are also defecting, forcing Bush to put off a Congressional vote until well into summer, and perhaps longer.
— Today from AP -- Outrage over Schwarzenegger's plan to blame unions for California's problems -- Reporters listened to a conference call between the governor's political team and top contributors, in which the governor's media adviser said, "When you get to the point of 'These people are on your payroll and they are out to roll you every day,' that creates a kind of phenomenon of anger."
— In today's LA Times -- Teamsters' Coca-Cola contract includes better pay, benefits
— Today from AP -- GM plans to close plants, cut 25,000 jobs by 2008

MONDAY, June 6 -- ROSSI LOSES (again) -- WSLC Reports Today scoops entire state.
— In today's Yakima H-R -- Kill the gas tax? Ok, give us a good alternative -- Editorial: To say "just make do with existing money" isn't a viable alternative if existing money isn't enough to get the job done.
— In the P.S. Business Journal -- Restaurant boom -- "No question about it -- '05 is going to be a good year for restaurant openings, and '06 will probably be even better," said Arnold Shain, president of a local  restaurant consulting firm (who apparently didn't get the memo about our "job-killing minimum wage").
— In today's Everett Herald -- Pension defaults pile more hardship on workers -- Zoeckler column: U.S.  corporations have been allowed to underfund pensions and use the money for expansion, mergers and -- possibly -- lucrative bonuses and buyouts for senior executives. The losers are the workers.
— In yesterday's Aberdeen Daily World -- Truckers show solidarity for 1% fuel surcharge
— In Saturday's Oregonian -- Alaska Airlines ordered to pay fired supervisor -- A maintenance supervisor who said he was fired for refusing to put potentially unsafe planes into service gets $584,293.
— In Saturday's Spokesman-Review -- An interview with Jim West: "Everybody makes mistakes"
Boeing news: — In today's Seattle Times -- Airbus making all the right moves courting China
...plus yesterday -- Boeing stumbles in race for China
— In Saturday's Everett Herald -- Huge 777 deal in works; All Nippon may buy 53 to replace aging fleet
— In today's LA Times -- Boeing up the air in CEO search -- Mulally and Albaugh are still the favorites.
National news: — In today's Chicago Tribune -- AFL-CIO may lose biggest union (SEIU)
— In today's NY Times -- The mobility myth -- Herbert column: Put the myth of the American Dream aside. Tt's becoming increasingly difficult for working Americans to move up in class. The rich are freezing nearly everybody else in place, and sprinting off with the nation's bounty.
— In today's LA Times -- Trade tension may be rising -- Growing protectionist sentiments have escalated tensions between the U.S. and its trading partners and threaten to stall the free-trade movement.
...plus -- Railway workers sought as industry copes with exodus of retiring employees
...plus -- Teamsters end strike at Coke plants after last unit accepts contract offer
— In today's Seattle P-I -- Dean says Dems need to adopt old GOP tack in 2008 -- He touts longtime conservative mantras on "individual freedom" and "fiscal responsibility."