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FRIDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2011
Council fights again, this time over I-1125 BY NAT LEVY nlevy@bellevuereporter.com
The Bellevue City Council did not take a position on Tim Eyman’s Initiative 1125 after a deadlocked vote Monday night. The non-decision came after the council listened to a showdown over the issues between Eyman and 48th District Rep. Ross Hunter (D-Medina), the chair of the state Ways and Means committee. After more than an hour of discussion and testimony, three councilmembers - Conrad Lee, Don Davidson and Kevin Wallace indicated that they
didn’t want to vote on the measure and that they would rather leave it to the people. Three other members (John Chelminiak, Claudia Balducci and Grant Degginger), agitated by the debate, halted the discussion when they voted against a procedural motion to continue the meeting. They also criticized their fellow councilmembers for not taking a stand on the initiative they said will destroy many of the transportation projects the city has worked hard to put together over the last decade. “This is not an out-there position to take,” Balducci said. “That fact that we’re
struggling to take a position shows how far this council has drifted from being a transportation leader.” Jennifer Robertson, who had to leave the meeting early, said she would rather see the council working on solving Bellevue problems, not arguing about a procedural vote. But, she also noted she had concerns about the effect of the initiative on the regional transportation system. Eyman’s initiative would restrict tolling measures set to be employed on the SR-520 bridge in December, and could potentially prevent light-rail from crossing the I-90 bridge.
Romney visits Microsoft, talks trade, innovation
The initiative has become a high profile issue on the Eastside with powerful interests bankrolling the debate. Bellevue developer Kemper Freeman has been the primary donor to Eyman’s initiative at approximately $1 million. Donors to anti-I-1125 campaigns include Microsoft, the Seattle Mariners and Puget Sound Energy. Eyman said his measure was important to protecting the integrity of toll funds from politicians who, he said, would like to use the money to pay for other projects, or [ more COUNCIL page 13 ]
CAT-astrophy Poor economy, human irresponsibility breed big problem – abandoned cats
BY NAT LEVY nlevy@bellevuereporter
BY ROBERT WHALE
The United States must push for the most productive work force in the world and pursue more free trade to remain a top economic power, Republican presidential hopeful and Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney told a crowd of Microsoft employees Oct. 13. In his speech to 200 employee donors to the company’s political action committee, Romney promised to crack down on international trade “cheaters” like China. “As long as trade rules and regulations are fair, America can compete and win anywhere in the world,” he said. Romney’s speech was part of a tour through the Puget Sound area, where he attended a fundraiser at the Grand Hyatt in downtown Seattle. Romney began his 20-minute speech with a story about his failed attempt to recruit a young man named Steve Ballmer to his management consulting firm, only to have Ballmer turn him down to begin his Microsoft venture. Romney represented a tough stance
rwhale@auburn-reporter.com
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, right, shakes hands with Carl Albrecht as he greets the crowd after a trade address at Microsoft in Redmond Oct. 13. CHAD COLEMAN, Bellevue Reporter
on China, saying he would label the nation a “currency manipulator” for intentionally devaluing its money to push their prices down and hurt international competition. Romney said the government has the tools to crackdown on this sort of problem, but has hesitated in doing so. “We don’t need new legislation; we need a new president,” he said. Romney saluted the hard work of Microsoft employees and other private enterprises. He lauded the productivity of the American workforce.
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Without the greatest population and landmass, the United States has to depend on productivity and innovation to remain at the forefront of the world economy. He said their efforts will propel the United States forward into the “century of America.” “With you work, and my work, together we can keep America as it was destined to be, the hope of the earth,” he said.
Nat Levy can be reached at 425-4534290.
Connie Welker, a cat lover all her life, joined a local cat adoption organization four years ago. But Welker doesn’t especially want the public to know which one right now. And when you hear what she deals with every day, you’ll know why. Welker has a big problem, but cats aren’t it. People are her migraine. Stark human irresponsibility is cramming shelters, rescue organizations, humane societies past the bursting point with felines, creating a terrible situation in King County and across the nation. “It was bad to start with because I didn’t realize there were that many animals, especially cats,” Welker said. “But in the last year-and-a-half, it has been devastating. There are so many stray animals out there, particularly cats, that I wouldn’t even begin to know where to start to name a number. How bad is it? The Humane Society in Bellevue, which adopted out 250 cats in September, has a 6-to-12 month waiting list. MEOW, a large rescue organization in Kirkland, has a 150-cat waiting list. Homeward Bound doesn’t even bother to make a waiting list anymore. The economy has much to do with the problem.Too many people who are losing their homes put off finding a place for their pets until the moving trucks are literally [ more CATS page 13 ]
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