Governor's Race 2008: 

Supreme Court justices: Don't exempt Rossi from campaign laws -- (column by Justices Robert F. Utter and Faith Ireland) -- Our commitment to the laws that promote honesty and openness is what led us to take legal action against Dino Rossi and the Building and Industry Association of Washington. We do not take this action lightly. But we believe there is evidence that shows the BIAW and Rossi have both committed serious violations of campaign finance laws, and these violations are depriving the voters of a clean and fair election. Read more. 
▪  In today's Olympian -- BIAW pumps another $4.1 million in Rossi campaign war chest -- The move gives Republican Dino Rossi's biggest backer as much as $5.2 million to spend down the stretch as Rossi tries to unseat Gov. Gregoire. The BIAW has already spent more than $2 million to elect Rossi. In a related move, the Republican Governors Association in Washington, D.C., gave its local PAC $3.5 million in the past week, boosting its war chest for Rossi to $7.5 million.
▪  In today's Seattle Times -- BIAW, Republican Party give Rossi money edge -- Rossi's own campaign has consistently trailed Gregoire in fundraising. But the independent campaigns, which are not allowed to coordinate with the candidates, completely change the picture.
▪  What that Rossi money is paying for... In today's Seattle P-I -- Gregoire and missing sex offender TV ads -- Records show the number of sex offenders unaccounted for in Washington state has decreased 16% since Gregoire took office, in part because of increased funding she supported for "face to face" sex offender monitoring. In fact, Gregoire has signed 25 bills related to sex offenders since taking office, including measures increasing the penalties for offenders who fail to register with local law enforcement.

Presidential Election 2008:
▪  In today's NY Times -- Poll says McCain hurt his bid by using attacks -- The McCain campaign’s recent angry tone and sharply personal attacks on Sen. Barack Obama appear to have backfired and tarnished McCain more than their intended target, the latest New York Times/CBS News poll finds.
▪  In the Boston Herald -- Labor warns McCain about crowds -- AFL-CIO President John Sweeney warns about the increasingly angry crowds coming to McCain's campaign events: "When rally attendees shout out such attacks as 'terrorist' or 'kill him' about Sen. Barack Obama, when they are cheered on by crowds incited by McCain-Palin rhetoric -- it is chilling that McCain and Palin do nothing to object."
▪  In the Wall Street Journal -- McCain is asked to denounce supporters' outbursts -- Sweeney: “In a world where unspeakable violence is too often promulgated by extremists, it is no small or trivial matter to call someone a terrorist–or to incite potentially dangerous individuals toward violence.”
▪  At AFL-CIO Now -- Trumka video topping YouTube charts -- A speech by AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka, in which he addressed the issue of race in this election, went viral a couple of weeks ago and has generated a national debate on race, the economy and the elections. Since then, the video clip of his speech has received more than 400,000 views and now is rated YouTube’s 79th all-time, top-rated videos in the news and politics category.
▪  At TheGreatSchlep.com -- Sarah Silverman urges young Jews to schlep to Florida for Obama -- Viewed by millions, comedian Sarah Silverman's humorous, profanity-strewn plea for young Jews to persuade their grandparents to vote for Barack Obama is an Internet sensation. (WSLC Reports Today LOVES Sarah Silverman.)

Other State Election News:
▪  In today's Everett Herald -- Want worse congestion? Vote for I-985 (editorial) -- Initiative huckster Tim Eyman and his cohorts have laid an egg with I- 985, which we strongly urge voters to reject.
▪  In today's (Longview) Daily News -- I-985 won't help solve state's traffic problem (editorial) -- I-985 is poor public policy and a lousy deal for rural Washington. We urge voters to reject the measure.
▪  In today's Tri-City Herald -- Initiative 985: No (editorial) -- It's is a bad deal for Eastern Washington.

Local News:
▪  In today's Seattle P-I -- King County issues layoff notices to 237 workers -- The layoffs are part of Sims' efforts to balance the 2009 budget with a $15 million cut in general operations spending. The county told 126 workers Tuesday that they would be laid off Dec. 31. It told 111 others that they would be laid off June 30, unless the county is provided with new ways to raise money.
▪  In today's Everett Herald -- Millgard Manufacturing closure in Marysville will affect 80 workers -- The door and window factory's closure is set to happen over a 10-week period starting Oct. 24.
▪  In today's Everett Herald -- $21 million budget shortfall projected for Snohomish County -- A predicted revenue shortfall of $9 million has grown to $21 million in recent weeks. That's about 10% of the $210 million general fund budget on which the county operated this year.
▪  In today's Oregonian -- Daimler to close ex-Freightliner plant in Portland, shedding 900 jobs -- The plant that for two generations told the world that Portland built trucks called Freightliners will close in June 2010, a victim of low demand for the product and shifting economic realities.

National News:
▪  In today's Washington Post -- 1 in 4 working families now considered low-wage -- The ranks of low-wage working families increased by 350,000 between 2002 and 2006, raising their numbers to nearly 9.6 million, or more than one in four of the nation's working families with children.
▪  In today's Seattle P-I -- Economic boom left out working poor, but bust won't -- The state's working poor missed the economic growth of recent years -- their ranks remained largely unchanged -- and now they face an even grimmer future as the region teeters on the edge of a recession.
▪  In today's NY Times -- Banks' bailout unlikely to crimp executive pay -- Compensation experts say that provisions intended to curb eight-figure pay packages, though politically prudent to appease public anger, will probably have little real impact on how executives are paid in coming years.
▪  In today's LA Times -- Stricter regulation of business sought, Americans say -- A new survey finds that nearly 70% of Americans in each of a wide range of demographic categories say the lack of controls is responsible for the nation's economic problems.
▪  In today's Washington Post -- Gods that failed (Meyerson column) -- What do economic conservatives believe now that their beloved deity, unregulated capitalism, has failed? What's become of the glories of privatized Social Security? Of the merits of 401(k)s vs. defined-benefit pensions?

Employee Free Choice Act news:
▪  In The Oregonian -- Employees should have free choice (op-ed by Univ. of Oregon professor ) -- Under federal law, people who want to form a union have to go through a Labor Board "election" process that looks more like elections in the old Soviet Union than like anything we would call American. There is no free speech, no equal access to media, none of the basic things that make an election "free and fair." Employees are forced to attend mass anti-union presentations. Not only are pro-union employees not given equal time, but they can be forced to attend on condition that they keep their mouths shut. If they ask a question anyway, they can be fired on the spot. Employers can plaster the workplace with anti-union leaflets, banners, and notices while banning pro-union employees from doing the same.
▪  In the American prospect -- George McGovern and the Employee Free Choice Act -- Why has McGovern suddenly emerged as an opponent of the pro-union EFCA? The answers lies in the way Organized Labor screwed him over in 1972. All the concern over the possible implications of EFCA would be fair enough if these same folks evinced even an ounce of anxiety over the reality that workers are being threatened, intimidated, and even fired if they dare try and organize.
▪  In the LA Times -- U.S. Chamber of Commerce targets Al Franken and his pro-labor stand -- The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has spent $1.44 million in Minnesota, most of it on sharp-edged ads attacking Franken over his support of labor’s position on the Employee Free Choice Act

The following guest column by Justices Robert F. Utter and Faith Ireland, who collectively served for 30 years on the Washington Supreme Court, appears in today's Seattle Post-Intelligencer: 

DON'T EXEMPT ROSSI FROM STATE CAMPAIGN LAWS

Of all the leadership qualities we have a right to expect from elected officials, openness, integrity and honesty are the most critical.

Campaign finance laws were enacted to reduce the influence of special interests by shining a spotlight on financial support for candidates. This allows voters to judge whether a candidate might be beholden to one special interest or another.

Our commitment to the laws that promote honesty and openness is what led us to take legal action against Dino Rossi and the Building and Industry Association of Washington. We do not take this action lightly.

But we believe there is evidence that shows the BIAW and Rossi have both committed serious violations of campaign finance laws, and these violations are depriving the voters of a clean and fair election.

In late July, the state attorney general brought suit against a subsidiary of the BIAW for illegal campaign fundraising designed to support Rossi's candidacy for governor. The bipartisan Public Disclosure Commission also found the BIAW's fundraising for attack ads in the race committed "multiple apparent violations" of law in building its "war chest" to support Rossi.

We believe the evidence upon which we base our legal action shows Rossi was not just a beneficiary of those illegal activities, but was a knowing and active participant. The evidence shows, moreover, that the attack ads of the BIAW are not really "independent" of their beneficiary, Rossi.

The attorney general's suit claims that the illegal fundraising campaign involved solicitation of 15 local building groups, targeting the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish counties for the largest contribution. When the group's leadership met to discuss the BIAW's request for a donation, the three top officers acknowledged they had received calls from Rossi. The written minutes reflect that Rossi discussed whether and when the group would give to the BIAW's campaign fund. When a candidate makes such calls while a solicitation is pending, he is encouraging the contribution, regardless of what he said on the call.

If the meeting minutes are correct and there was improper coordination, this is a very serious matter. It would mean Rossi and BIAW broke the law. It would mean that the BIAW's expenditures on Rossi's behalf were legally limited to $2,800. Instead, it has spent more than $2 million supporting his candidacy.

This is an important issue for all political races. Special interests are increasingly supporting candidates through "independent expenditures" that are not subject to contribution limits. These "independent" campaigns also tend to contain the most vicious and dubious negative attacks, since the benefitting candidates can say they have no control over the messages.

If we want open government, we cannot tolerate candidates and special interest groups teaming up to break campaign finance laws.

Washington campaign laws are in place to ensure our elections are fair and open. And so the voters understand the interests behind campaigns. The rules must be enforced to ensure those special interests cannot buy undue influence in our government. The laws are designed to serve and protect the interests of all citizens. Without enforcement, our laws are meaningless.

Justices Robert F. Utter and Faith Ireland collectively served for 30 years on the Washington Supreme Court and decided more than 15 Supreme Court cases involving campaign finance.