I will be covering politics in Pullman, Whitman County, Washington State and at the national level, especially if it connects to Eastern Washington. I attended a Whitman County Commission meeting to gain knowledge about local issues. Currently the most pressing issue is budget cuts as Washington State faces a $5 billion deficit. Also, the cost of the criminal justice system and public safety in Whitman County is highly debated. Eastern Washington is putting forth legislation in regards to school equalization levees because schools on the West side of the state are receiving more funding due to higher population levels and tax dollars than those in Eastern Washington.
A new Representative of District 9 was elected and sworn in on Monday morning at the County Commission meeting. Don Cox is the new representative. His platform and experience is with higher education. It will be interesting to see how he works with the education system in Whitman County. The budget for 2009 for Whitman County is still being decided and union contracts are currently being settled. In regards to national news I would likely focus on how the economic crisis is impacting Whitman County. Some County Commissioners are also putting forth a bill to have the power to impose an increase in sales tax without a public vote.
In addition to county and city politics I would like to focus on the activities of the Young Democrats and Young Republicans of Washington State University. I will explore how the groups are staying engaged post election frenzy. Also I will look at how WSU students stay connected to both county and city politics and if there is active communication between the two groups. WSU students are undoubtedly impacted by the current economic crisis and it will be interesting to explore this issue. President Floyd is holding press conferences on the current budget cuts. I will not cover this as a one time event but rather focus on the ongoing changes in admissions, class offerings, and financial aid made available to students.
Whitman County recently elected a Democratic County Commissioner. This is monumental because the last Democratic County Commissioner was in office over sixteen years ago. Whitman County is traditionally conservative and I will observe if differences take place as local government works in conjunction with the new Obama Administration. To cover this beat I plan to attend City Council, County Commission, and Young Democrat/Young Republican meetings.
Three Proposed Story Ideas:
How the economic crisis and budget cuts are affecting students and WSU.
The equalization of education levee and how this legislation is handled at the state level.
The Obama Administrations’ bail out plan and how this will affect people at WSU and in the Pullman area.
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