Sound Politics

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The Democratic civil war over taxes Apr 18, 2025

Show notes

Democrats released their plan to cover the state's multi billion dollar budget gap this week. Notable progressive proposals like the wealth tax and a payroll tax weren't a part of that plan. Did the progressive wing lose out to big business? And what does a hacked crosswalk button have to do with all of this? KUOW's Jeanie Lindsay and Seattle Times’ Jim Brunner talk about the latest tax proposals and whether the push to tax the rich is still alive.

And just a note, since we recorded this episode, Gov. Ferguson has released his response to the legislature's tax plan, you can read about it here: https://www.kuow.org/stories/tension-over-new-taxes-mounts-in-olympia-as-ferguson-slams-latest-pitch-from-democrats

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/politics.

Sound Politics is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is Gabriel Spitzer. Our producer this week is Hans Anderson. Our hosts are Scott Greenstone and Libby Denkmann.

And we want to hear from you! Send us your politics questions by emailing soundpolitics@kuow.org or give us a call at 206-221-0511.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Gary Locke says WA will be caught in the China crossfire Apr 11, 2025

Show notes

The U.S. stock and bond markets are continuing to see uncertainty amidst President Donald Trump's flips in tariff policy. While the tariffs placed on a majority of countries have been paused, those in China are continuing to rise as the two nations retaliate against one another.

Hosts Libby Denkmann and Scott Greenstone are joined by former Governor, Secretary of Commerce, and Ambassador to China Gary Locke to get his insights on what an economic clash with China could mean for Washington state's economy -- the state exports more products to China than anywhere else.

But that’s not all. Today the show is local but international: international trade policy... international relations... international students on visas, whose work and study here in the U.S. just got upended.

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/politics.

Sound Politics is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is Gabriel Spitzer. Our producer this week is Alec Cowan. Our hosts are Scott Greenstone and Libby Denkmann.

And we want to hear from you! Send us your politics questions by emailing soundpolitics@kuow.org or give us a call at 206-221-0511.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

All's Faire in love and trade wars Apr 03, 2025

Show notes

This week, President Trump announced a slew of international tariffs. The United States will levy a 10 percent tax on goods imported from all trading partners except Canada and Mexico. That's just the start: there are an additional, higher tariffs on the European Union, Japan, India, China, and many, many more countries. Washington state could be in for some special pain: one in four jobs here is tied to international trade.

Even though Canada was spared from the latest round of international tariffs, the relationships between the United States and our neighbors to the north has become frosty. And it couldaffects everything from sales tax revenue to who shows up to local Renaissance Faires.

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/politics.

And we want to hear from you! Send us your politics questions by emailing soundpolitics@kuow.org or give us a call at 206-221-0511.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sound Politics gets overwhelmed Mar 27, 2025

Show notes

Scott got overwhelmed this week trying to keep track of everything happening in our political sphere. And where does he turn to when he feels overwhelmed? Email newsletters. The world condensed into less than 2,000 words.

So this week, he's joined by two newsletter writer-reporters, Axios Seattle reporter Melissa Santos and Washington Observer publisher Paul Queary to discuss their favorite stories you might've missed.

Plus, we tackle one big story with a Washington connection you may not know about: it wasn’t just an Atlantic editor that got Pete Hegseth’s text messages – it was also a former Washington state Republican candidate.

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/politics.

Sound Politics is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is Gabriel Spitzer. Our producer this week is Sarah Leibovitz. Our hosts are Scott Greenstone and Libby Denkmann.

And we want to hear from you! Send us your politics questions by emailing soundpolitics@kuow.org or give us a call at 206-221-0511.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Now's your time to yell (questions) at us Mar 24, 2025

Show notes

Hey Sound Politics listeners. We're here in your feed because we want to know: what questions do you all have in this kind of bonkers political moment?

Curious about what happens when lawmakers ignore court rulings? Why are the governor and the legislature getting a raise right now? Other burning politics questions you've been dying to have answered?

Let us know: email soundpolitics@kuow.org, or leave us a voicemail at 206-221-0511.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Is this the year rent limits pass? Mar 20, 2025

Show notes

For years, progressives have tried to fight the rising cost of living by instituting a kind of "rent control" – what proponents call "rent stabilization." Basically, a limit on how much the landlord can raise your rent.

It's a divisive issue, even in the Democratic party -- in fact for years, it was Democrats that kept killing attempts at rent limits. But this could be the year that rent stabilization actually comes to pass.

The same sponsor of a failed stabilization bill last year – then-Representative, now-Senator Emily Alvarado – is taking another shot at this.

Engrossed House Bill 1217 passed out of the House this week. That’s as far as earlier versions of this bill got last year -- and there’s buzz this year that the Senate could let this version of the bill safely parachute onto the Governor’s desk.

To hear more about the divide around this bill, Sound Politics hosts Libby Denkmann and Scott Greenstone were joined by State Senator Emily Alvarado, the prime sponsor of HB 1217, and Emily Thompson, a partner with GMD Development, which specializes in affordable housing.

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/politics.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Republicans' unlikely ally: Gov. Ferguson Mar 14, 2025

Show notes

Republicans might have more influence this legislative session than they have in almost a decade.

A big reason why is Governor Bob Ferguson. The newly elected Democrat has been warmer toward the GOP point of view than the previous administration was, pushing to close the state’s budget deficit through cuts rather than raising more revenue from taxes.

That’s a welcome change for Rep. Travis Couture, the Republicans’ lead budget wrangler in the state House. He says Ferguson has been more aligned with, and welcoming of, Republican ideas than his predecessor was – but just how much actual power the Republican caucus will have over the final product remains to be seen.

Rep. Couture joined Sound Politics hosts Scott Greenstone and Libby Denkmann to talk taxes, Medicaid, mandates, and what it’s like to be in a “mixed marriage” (his wife is a Democrat).

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/politics. Sound Politics is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is Gabriel Spitzer. Our producer this week is Hans Anderson. Our hosts are Scott Greenstone and Libby Denkmann.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The graveyard shift: lessons from WA's dead bills (so far) Mar 07, 2025

Show notes

It’s an old saw in Olympia: A lawmaker’s job is not so much to pass good bills, but to kill bad ones (because there are just a lot of bad ones).

Good or bad, this time of year is “Bill Killing Season” at the state capitol, having just passed two deadlines for the hundreds of policy and fiscal bills introduced this session. Bills that haven’t passed out of committee by then are generally considered deceased.

Olympia correspondent Jeanie Lindsay joins host Scott Greenstone to say an elegy for a new state flag, a bill to measure methane from cows and a resolution to the age-old geoduck vs razor clam debate.

A push for universal free school lunches failed to thrive. A measure to offer unemployment insurance for undocumented immigrants didn’t make it. And an effort to revoke preferential treatment for Tesla withered on the vine (liberal Tesla drivers, as Scott found, are not OK right now).

We run down the legislative casualties – and note a few survivors! – on this week’s episode of Sound Politics.

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/politics. Sound Politics is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is Gabriel Spitzer. Our producer this week is Alec Cowan. Our hosts are Scott Greenstone and Libby Denkmann.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The governor's honeymoon is over with Democrats Feb 27, 2025

Show notes

In Olympia, the Democrats' honeymoon with Gov. Bob Ferguson was short -- and it's now over, says Rep. Kristine Reeves, the chair of the Legislative Black Caucus.

Ferguson has laid out his plans for closing a multi-billion dollar shortfall while still boosting spending on hiring police and largely avoiding new taxes. But plenty of his fellow Dems are not yet onboard with a plan that leads with cuts instead of new revenue.

The party is also fractured on how and whether to make those investments in law enforcement. The Legislative Black Caucus, for one, wants two new dollars spent on community services for every dollar that pays for more police.

Kristine Reeves represents south King County in the state House and is chair of the Legislative Black Caucus. She joins Libby Denkmann and Scott Greenstone to break down the budget talks, and spill a little tea on how the various Democratic factions are getting along in Olympia.

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundpoliticsnotes. Sound Politics is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.Our editor is Gabriel Spitzer. Our producer this week is Hans Anderson. Our hosts are Scott Greenstone and Libby Denkmann.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Firings and bad vibes hit PNW's federal workers Feb 20, 2025

Show notes

From closed trailheads topower outages, the firing of federal workers could have a big effect on us here in the PNW.

KUOW investigative reporter Ashley Hiruko joins Sound Politics Scott Greenstone and Libby Denkmann to discuss the potential impact of the firings, and what it’s like inside federal government buildings right now -- from Seattle’s VA hospital to the National Labor Relations Board.

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundpoliticsnotes.

Sound Politics is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

Our editor is Gabriel Spitzer. Our producer this week is Sarah Leibovitz.
Our hosts are Scott Greenstone and Libby Denkmann.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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