MONDAY, APRIL 30  ▪  Edwards' union member town hall at noon tomorrow in Seattle
-- IMPORTANT: Bridge closure/traffic revision near the IAM Hall and parking information (see below). Union members interested in attending should contact their local unions for tickets.
▪  In today's Seattle P-I -- Edwards remains true to his roots (Connelly column) -- The plight of middle-class Americans losing ground in the global economy is "critical to our security," Edwards argued. And reviving the labor movement is "a crucial component, not just for the unions but for the country." It's a salient message for Seattle and Everett, once blue-collar towns where the middle class is being squeezed out the door.

Immigration reform rallies:  ▪  Seattle march tomorrow at 3 p.m.
▪  In the Seattle P-I -- Immigrants will take to the streets Tuesday 
BELLINGHAM  ▪  In today's Bellingham Herald -- Immigration march, fiesta set Tuesday -- Participants will gather at noon in Cornwall Park in Bellingham for a march to the Whatcom County Courthouse, then return to the park at about 3 p.m. for a potluck fiesta with speakers and music. 
YAKIMA  ▪  In today's Yakima H-R -- Valley Hispanics debate direction of rally -- Demanding a just immigration reform and a halt of illegal raids, Yakima Valley residents will pound the pavement Tuesday beginning at 3:30 p.m. at Miller Park, North Third and E streets.
▪  In today's Yakima H-R -- Minutemen to keep eye on protesters -- Those on the other side of the immigration issue say they'll be there "with flags and signs and cameras and camcorders."
▪  In today's Yakima H-R -- Reform rally is proper, but breaking law is still wrong (editorial) -- We think a proposed boycott of retailers by Hispanics Tuesday is both short-sighted and misdirected.
SALEM (Ore.)  ▪  In today's Salem (Ore.) S-J -- Immigrant-rights backers plan citizenship rally -- Demonstrators will gather on the steps of Oregon's State Capitol at noon Tuesday in Salem.

Local news:
▪  In today's Spokesman-Review -- Free trade demands better U.S. labor law (Rick Bender column) -- Among free-traders, objections are no longer about America imposing basic labor standards on other nations. Now, it's about them imposing these internally accepted standards upon us.
▪  In the P.S. Business Journal -- Carpenters union flexes its muscles in contract talks -- Northwest carpenters flexed their organizational muscle with two rallies that drew bigger-than-expected crowds, a show of strength that may stand them in good stead in major contract discussions.
▪  In the Seattle P-I -- With DOT chief's resignation, future of transportation even more uncertain -- Governor Gregoire will name the next secretary, but didn't indicate when that might happen. 
▪  In today's Kitsap Sun -- Commissioner to quit post for Cantwell job -- Kitsap County's Chris Endresen will resign her position in June to head up the state office of U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell.
▪  In today's Oregonian -- In Oregon, payrolls grow, but not paychecks -- While job growth has been spectacular during Oregon's economic recovery, per-capita personal income growth has lagged. 

Legislative news:
▪  In today's Spokesman-Review -- Family benefits good for us all (op-ed) -- (Former Colorado Rep. Pat) Schroeder told me she was happy to hear about Washington state's bold move (on paid family leave), but she wishes the federal leave act had paid time off in it, too. She wishes smaller companies were not exempt. She wishes business people would quit making the argument that family leave creates an undue hardship. "No one says you can't have a heart attack, because it will hurt the small-business man," she said.
▪  In Sunday's Everett Herald -- Legislative session marked by change, results (Gov. Gregoire op-ed) -- This year, we maintained a simple, but strong, agenda: we cannot grow our economy if we don't have skilled workers; we cannot educate students if they are not healthy and safe; and we cannot move our state forward without investing in our future.
▪  In the PSBJ -- Business groups knock health-insurance "connector" plan -- A new state agency will connect health insurers and small businesses looking for coverage for their employees. The idea is to make buying insurance easier and possibly cheaper for employers and employees. 
▪  In today's Oregonian -- Oregon unions aim to redo public safety board -- They say the safety panel is top-heavy with chiefs and sheriffs and doesn't have enough of their peers on it.  

National news:
▪  In today's LA Times -- UFCW enlisting powerful allies in government -- To provide added leverage in grocery contract talks, L.A.'s powerful labor movement and its allies among elected officials are exploring ways to use local government to pressure supermarkets to boost pay and benefits.
▪  In today's SF Chronicle -- "Open skies" allow airline industry jobs to fly away (op-ed) -- Today, the United States is expected to formally approve a new "open skies" aviation trade deal with the European Union. Aviation workers are deeply concerned that this agreement is a down payment on a broader Bush administration strategy to allow foreign control of our airlines and decision making that threatens thousands of American jobs.
▪  In today's NY Times -- Expensive lesson for Maine as health plan stalls -- When it became the first state in years to enact a law intended to provide universal health care, one of its goals was to cover the estimated 130,000 residents who had no insurance by 2009, starting with 31,000 of them by the end of 2005. So far, it has not come close to that goal. Only 18,800 people have signed up for the state’s coverage and many of them already had insurance.

Last Throes update:
▪  Today from AP -- U.S. death toll in Iraq passes 100 -- Five U.S. military personnel were killed over the weekend, pushing the U.S. death toll past 100 in the deadliest month so far this year. 
▪  In today's LA Times -- Congress' vote on Iraq war is only a prelude (news analysis) -- A September progress report on the troop buildup could make things a lot harder for Bush and Republicans.
▪  Of the 3,350 U.S. troops killed in Iraq so far, 3,211 have died (see a list) since President Bush declared "Mission Accomplished" and an end to major combat operations in May 2003; 2,889 have died since Saddam's capture. Five-and-a-half years after 9/11, Osama bin Laden is at large.
▪  The WSLC's affiliated unions have called for an end to the U.S. occupation of Iraq.