Rare Cop W: After learning that US Border Patrol had accessed their Flock Safety surveillance data through a backdoor in the system, the Mukilteo, Auburn, Renton and Lakewood police departments all revoked external access to that data.
Street Vendor Shutdown: Remember Charles Mudede’s love letter to street food vendors? “Seattle is growing. We are becoming big. And with a big city, comes big, delicious food tents,” he wrote in our Food Issue. But apparently King County public health officials didn’t listen. They shut down 17 unpermitted food vendors selling around Lumen Field during the Seahawks game earlier this week. It’s the latest in the county’s efforts to crack down on “illegal” street vending, citing health risks and unfair competition for legal vendors.
Speaking of Shutdown: We’re on day 23 of the government shutdown. While Trump has been trying to keep it low key, Politico says the effects could soon become unignorable. His administration is “scrambling” to fund WIC, Head Start, and troops. Airlines have seen delays due to air traffic control staffing shortages. “The longer the shutdown stretches on, the more cracks will form,” Politico wrote.
Weather: Sporadic fog in the morning. Clouds and breaks of sun throughout the day. High of 63 degrees. Clouds, breeze and a touch of rain at night, and a low of 54.
Bad Teacher: In 2018, Meany Middle School math teacher James Johnson grabbed his 13-year-old student’s shirt, punched him in the jaw, dragged him across a table, and threw him out the classroom door. The next period, a student recorded him saying that he “had to punch a student in the face.” The student that he assaulted is 21 now, and his lawyers say he’s suffered a traumatic brain injury and has depression, PTSD, and memory loss, and has been unable to stay employed. And they say that based on Johnson’s (alleged) history of shoving kids in lockers, using profanity in the classroom, and sexually harassing teenage girls, the school district should have known that Johnson was a risk to students. So now, the student that he assaulted is seeking between $76 million and $124 million from Seattle Public Schools in damages in a King County Superior Court civil case.
We’re still doing this? On Tuesday, Tacoma City Council expanded the city’s homeless camping ban, building on the ordinance established in 2022. The original ban prohibited camping and storage of personal belongings within a 10-block radius around temporary shelters and all public property within 200 feet of the city’s natural bodies of flowing water. The new proposal expands the ban to areas within two blocks of public schools, parks and libraries, and adds buffers around permanent shelters.
Overnight Orating: Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley delivered a nearly 23-hour speech on the Senate floor, calling out President Trump for his authoritarian proclivities, prosecuting his political enemies and deploying the military to Portland. Merkley started speaking Tuesday and ended late Wednesday. “Trump is shredding our constitution,” he said.
From Portland to San Francisco: California’s Bay Area is the latest region facing federal agents in Trump’s anti-immigrant crackdown. More than 100 federal agents—including from U.S. Customs and Border Protection—they arrived today in Alameda, a city across the bay from San Francisco.
Here’s How They Were Greeted:
Think You Have Measles? The Washington Department of Health launched an online tracker this week showing locations where people with measles visited. The tool comes amid a marked rise in measles cases nationwide, after RFK Jr. decided that the MMR vaccine was more dangerous than a virus that, before we were inoculated against it, killed 2.6 million people a year. Washington has seen 11 confirmed measles cases this year, but hasn’t seen an outbreak, which is defined as three or more related cases.
New Pentagon Press Corps: After most major outlets refused to sign the Pentagon’s new media access policy, the “Department of War” unveiled a new press corps stocked with right-wing “news” outlets like the Gateway Pundit, the National Pulse, podcaster Tim Pool, Frontlines by Turning Point USA, and LindellTV run by “MyPillow” CEO Mike Lindell. It’s oozing with journalistic rigor, we hear.
Hit-and-Run in Ballard: Seattle police are investigating a fatal hit-and-run Wednesday night in Ballard. Officers responded around 9 p.m. and found one person dead at the scene, according to KING 5. Details about the crash and the identity of the victim haven’t been released.
Big Tech Funds Trump’s Ballroom: Trump is demolishing the White House East Wing for a $300 million ballroom. He said the renovation was funded by “some friends of mine.” Those friends turned out to be major tech, defense, and crypto companies like Apple, Palantir and T-Mobile.
The War (On Crypto) Is Over: At least, that’s what the White House said after Trump pardoned Binance founder Changpeng Zhao. Zhao was convicted less than a year ago for money laundering. He served four months in prison and paid a $4.3 billion settlement. The pardon comes on the heels of this report from the Wall Street Journal, which revealed Trump’s own family crypto company—which has generated about $4.5 billion since the 2024 election—was helped by “a partnership with an under-the-radar trading platform quietly administered by Binance.”
