Week in Review: politics, elections, and tech

Bill Radke discusses the week’s news with freelance journalist Joanne Silberner, Seattle Times Patrick Malone, and Puget Sound Business Journal’s Alex Halverson

Congressmember Pramila Jayapal headed up an effort to send President Biden a letter this week that asked for a more "proactive diplomatic push" for a cease-fire and felt that direct negotiations with Russia could be needed. 29 other lawmakers signed the letter. After it was delivered, Jayapal received considerable pushback from fellow Democrats and asked for the letter back. Why the letter, and why the reversal?

There are notable races in Washington for the 2022 midterm election, including a U.S. senate seat, as well as races in the 3rd and 8th district. Have we learned anything from these and other campaigns? Do the polls teach us anything?

Microsoft and Zillow both announced that they would be making layoffs this week. Zillow announced 300 layoffs and Microsoft did not disclose details, in yet another sign of a cooling economy. What are their specific reasons for this decision, and is this a sign of something bigger going on in tech?

Meta, Facebook’s parent company, was ordered to pay a $25 million fine for violating Washington state campaign finance laws by a King County judge. Washington state law requires companies that run ads are required to maintain financial records and release them to requesters in a timely manner. The judge ruled that the company had violated that 822 times since it was sued for the same reasons by Bob Ferguson in 2018. What effect does that have?

Recent wildfire smoke had a significant impact on the health of individuals, especially those with respiratory issues. But people in vulnerable communities say Seattle did not do enough to protect them and needs to be better prepared for wildfire smoke. What should the city do to help keep people safe?