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The NPI team has arrived in Philadelphia and is ready to bring you three days of Netroots Nation 2026 coverage

Founded twenty years ago, Netroots Nation is an annual gathering of progressive organizers and leaders that aims to foster collaboration and skill development in advancing all of the causes that we care about. A delegation from the NPI team will be reporting regularly on the goings-on, including through our special NPI@NN podcast series. The NPI team has arrived in Philadelphia and is ready to bring you three days of Netroots Nation 2026 coverage is a post from NPI's Cascadia Advocate, the journal of the Northwest Progressive Institute. Published continuously since March of 2004, NPI's Cascadia Advocate provides thoughtful commentary and analysis on regional, national, and world politics. Keep The Cascadia Advocate going by making a contribution to sustain NPI's research and advocacy here.

Brian Heywood could become the man who financed WA’s first statewide vote backing an income tax in nearly a hundred years

The right wing mega millionaire is betting that Washington voters will nix the state's recently levied million dollar earners tax, given an opportunity to repeal it with Initiative to the People 645 (IP26-645). Heywood speaks as though he simply can't lose. But he made a similar bet in the 2024 cycle that backfired spectacularly, with his money helping prove that progressive ideas like the capital gains tax funding the Education Legacy Trust, the Climate Commitment Act, and the WA Cares Fund were actually popular with voters. Brian Heywood could become the man who financed WA’s first statewide vote backing an income tax in nearly a hundred years is a post from NPI's Cascadia Advocate, the journal of the Northwest Progressive Institute. Published continuously since March of 2004, NPI's Cascadia Advocate provides thoughtful commentary and analysis on regional, national, and world politics. Keep The Cascadia Advocate going by making a contribution to sustain NPI's research and advocacy here.

Book Review: The lie of the footprint in Auden Schendler’s “Terrible Beauty”

Schendler’s book challenges the effectiveness of incremental reforms and highlights the need for substantial systemic change, urging a shift from profit-centric capitalism to a more sustainable model. It succeeds as a corporate autopsy, but falls short as a roadmap. Book Review: The lie of the footprint in Auden Schendler’s “Terrible Beauty” is a post from NPI's Cascadia Advocate, the journal of the Northwest Progressive Institute. Published continuously since March of 2004, NPI's Cascadia Advocate provides thoughtful commentary and analysis on regional, national, and world politics. Keep The Cascadia Advocate going by making a contribution to sustain NPI's research and advocacy here.

Donald Trump’s lawless and corrupt regime dealt three big defeats in federal court as May 2026 draws to a close

On Friday, federal judges delivered three sharp rebukes to the Trump regime, reopening his sham IRS case, freezing his taxpayer-funded “Anti-Weaponization” slush fund, and ordering his name removed from the Kennedy Center. The rulings are not the final word, but they show that the courts can still enforce the law against corruption, self-dealing, and authoritarian overreach. Donald Trump’s lawless and corrupt regime dealt three big defeats in federal court as May 2026 draws to a close is a post from NPI's Cascadia Advocate, the journal of the Northwest Progressive Institute. Published continuously since March of 2004, NPI's Cascadia Advocate provides thoughtful commentary and analysis on regional, national, and world politics. Keep The Cascadia Advocate going by making a contribution to sustain NPI's research and advocacy here.

Sound Transit Board adopts resolution formally scaling back 2016 ST3 system expansion plan and declaring Ballard Link unfunded

At their May meeting, directors approved a resolution to adjust the agency's ambitious system expansion program amid a $34.5 billion fiscal shortfall. The new plan for the ST3 plan categorizes projects into several tiers: fully funded, partially funded, construction not affordable within existing resources, and defer until resources identified. Sound Transit Board adopts resolution formally scaling back 2016 ST3 system expansion plan and declaring Ballard Link unfunded is a post from NPI's Cascadia Advocate, the journal of the Northwest Progressive Institute. Published continuously since March of 2004, NPI's Cascadia Advocate provides thoughtful commentary and analysis on regional, national, and world politics. Keep The Cascadia Advocate going by making a contribution to sustain NPI's research and advocacy here.

Rob McKenna’s tall tales can’t change Washington’s fiscal reality: Apples-to-apples metrics show falling investment in state services

A May 24th KIRO commentary by Seattle's Morning News host Charlie Harger that’s built around former Republican Attorney General Rob McKenna’s soundbites refuses to accept a basic requirement of rigorous fiscal analysis: raw-dollar budget comparisons across eras always yield invalid conclusions because they start with bad inputs. Rob McKenna’s tall tales can’t change Washington’s fiscal reality: Apples-to-apples metrics show falling investment in state services is a post from NPI's Cascadia Advocate, the journal of the Northwest Progressive Institute. Published continuously since March of 2004, NPI's Cascadia Advocate provides thoughtful commentary and analysis on regional, national, and world politics. Keep The Cascadia Advocate going by making a contribution to sustain NPI's research and advocacy here.

Texas primary runoff results: Ken Paxton (R) ousts John Cornyn (R) for U.S. Senate; Christian Menefee (D) defeats Al Green (D)

In Texas's May 26th primary runoffs, Ken Paxton won the Republican U.S. Senate nomination, ousting longtime incumbent John Cornyn, the number two Republican in the Senate. Several Democratic nominations were also decided. Notably, Christian Menefee defeated Al Green in the 18th Congressional District. In statewide races, Mayes Middleton won the Republican nomination for Attorney General, and Bo French is ahead for Railroad Commissioner. Texas primary runoff results: Ken Paxton (R) ousts John Cornyn (R) for U.S. Senate; Christian Menefee (D) defeats Al Green (D) is a post from NPI's Cascadia Advocate, the journal of the Northwest Progressive Institute. Published continuously since March of 2004, NPI's Cascadia Advocate provides thoughtful commentary and analysis on regional, national, and world politics. Keep The Cascadia Advocate going by making a contribution to sustain NPI's research and advocacy here.

One dead, nine injured, nine unaccounted for after chemical vat implosion at Nippon Dynawave Packaging facility in Longview

The Longview pulp and paper mill had drawn repeated state and federal scrutiny before Tuesday’s disaster, including environmental violations, safety complaints, spills, equipment concerns, and multiple recent fires. One dead, nine injured, nine unaccounted for after chemical vat implosion at Nippon Dynawave Packaging facility in Longview is a post from NPI's Cascadia Advocate, the journal of the Northwest Progressive Institute. Published continuously since March of 2004, NPI's Cascadia Advocate provides thoughtful commentary and analysis on regional, national, and world politics. Keep The Cascadia Advocate going by making a contribution to sustain NPI's research and advocacy here.

Book Review: Alice Lovejoy’s debut tome Tales of Militant Chemistry reveals a lot about film, power, and industrial memory

Tales of Militant Chemistry connects film, war, labor, radiation, and industrial power in ways that feel impossible to unsee once you do. Alice Lovejoy’s research-heavy work provokes questioning the systems beneath everyday American life and the human bodies still absorbing the cost of “progress.” Book Review: Alice Lovejoy’s debut tome Tales of Militant Chemistry reveals a lot about film, power, and industrial memory is a post from NPI's Cascadia Advocate, the journal of the Northwest Progressive Institute. Published continuously since March of 2004, NPI's Cascadia Advocate provides thoughtful commentary and analysis on regional, national, and world politics. Keep The Cascadia Advocate going by making a contribution to sustain NPI's research and advocacy here.

Spectator 2026-05-07

Spectator 2026-05-14

Spectaor 2026-05-21