Free Republic

The unexpectedly rapid acquisition of Twitter by multi-billionaire Tesla entrepreneur Elon Musk was roundly denounced by Democrat partisans. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) called the transfer of ownership "dangerous for democracy. Musk's vow to open Twitter to uncensored speech will expose innocent people to the unfiltered opinions of unqualified critics of government-approved points of view. The protections previously provided by the Twitter platform will be eliminated. People won't know what to think." Commerce Committee Chair Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash) wants to call Musk before her committee "to see if he is really qualified to take over what had been a reliable...

GAO report reveals that by 2039, climate change will cost U.S. taxpayers more than $1 trillion Click HERE to watch Senator Collins’ floor remarks on the GAO reportNote to assignment editors and news directors: Click HERE for high-quality video of Senator Collins’ floor remarks on the GAO reportWashington, D.C. - In the wake of Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, Maria, and Nate; the multi-year drought across the west; and the wildfires in the nine western states, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) published a new report requested by Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA) on the economic impacts of climate change....

Senate Democrats have unveiled legislation to alleviate Puerto Rico’s debt woes, urging that the island be allowed to declare bankruptcy on all of its debt. The bill, released Monday, would allow the U.S. territory to restructure its $72 billion in outstanding debt and create a fiscal oversight board for the island. “For the 3.5 million American citizens living on the island of Puerto Rico, time is running short,” said Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), one of the bill’s sponsors. “Congress has to act immediately to fix the federal funding shortfalls and give Puerto Rico the tools it needs to fully restructure...

The reporter who was interviewing President Obama when he famously swatted a fly is suddenly the buzz of DC, thanks to a New York Post gossip item about his marriage. According to unnamed "spies" for Page Six, CNBC Washington correspondent and New York Times writer John Harwood has split from his wife Frankie Blackburn, and it's all because of an alleged romance with Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) The Post's March 5 column quotes anonymous "well placed sources" who claim Harwood managed to keep the sordid details out of one DC paper "by sobbing to a reporter until he agreed to...

The RNC may regret its approval of John Harwood as lead moderator for Wednesday night’s GOP presidential debate on CNBC if past history is any guide. The CNBC anchor and New York Times columnist admitted he and a producer helped make Rick Perry’s infamous “oops” moment even worse. ... Harwood’s past takes on Republicans versus Democrats also reveal the potential for biased questioning at Wednesday night’s debate. A Harwood interview with Kentucky Senator Rand Paul was so one-sided it actually caused the Paul to press back: “Don’t you have something better to read than crap from people who don’t like...

Sen. Maria Cantwell engaged in a very public maneuver on the Senate floor Thursday, withholding her vote in favor of the big trade bill until she got assurances that there would be a vote on renewing the Export-Import Bank. Afterward, explaining the fervency of her support for the Ex-Im Bank, she told such a howler that even the Capitol press corps, not empowered to actually call a senator a liar, made sure to offer readers the opportunity to reach that conclusion on their own. The Democrat from Washington state, where Boeing is the single largest employer, said her support for...

“We appreciate the President’s decision to come to Snohomish County, and we look forward to joining him on April 22nd as he meets with community members,” Murray and Cantwell said. “We are confident that President Obama will see what we have seen: The tremendous resolve and determination of the people of Oso, Darrington and Arlington in the face of tragedy. “The President’s visit is another important step in demonstrating the federal government’s ongoing commitment to supporting the families, first responders, volunteers and businesses, as they recover from this disaster. We appreciate the decision to make major disaster resources available and...

Maria Cantwell is single, young (by Congressional standards) and, according to the Huffington Post, the sexiest Senator in the land. She's also, if the scurrilous gossip-mongers at The New York Post are to be believed, part of the reason CNBC correspondent and New York Times writer John Harwood's marriage is ending. Neither Harwood nor Cantwell confirmed the affair rumors to Page Six. But if its "D.C. insiders" are correct -- and really, who would ever question the validity of anonymous sources dishing to a gossip columnist -- then it wouldn't be the first time Cantwell's been linked to a married...

"Talk is circulating about an eye-opening new book on the Obama administration set to come out tomorrow. Confidence Men, by Pulitzer-prize winning author Ron Suskind, suggests that a handful of power-hungry, Wall Street-loving advisers undermined the president's quest for financial reform, according to an early look at the book by New York magazine. To boot, these advisers, including the "insubordinate" Tim Geithner and the "monomaniacal" Larry Summers, were "pretty awful to women," says New York's Adam Moss. A number of women, in contrast, come off as heroes--among them our own Sen. Maria Cantwell."

The parents of a Yelm soldier killed in Afghanistan earlier this month have received cards from friends and strangers expressing condolences, and they’re grateful for the support. “As a father of someone killed, it is overwhelming,” said Lt. Col. Patrick Collins (Ret.). His son, Sgt. Sean Collins, was buried Wednesday at the Tahoma National Cemetery. Among that outpouring of empathy, two politicians inadvertently stung the family. One slight came in a letter of condolences the family received from the office of Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash. “Again, please accept my warmest condolences. May your memories of Bryn and the knowledge that...

The parents of a Yelm (WA) soldier killed in Afghanistan earlier this month have received cards from friends and strangers expressing condolences, and they’re grateful for the support. “As a father of someone killed, it is overwhelming,” said Lt. Col. Patrick Collins (Ret.). His son, Sgt. Sean Collins, was buried Wednesday at the Tahoma National Cemetery. Among that outpouring of empathy, two politicians inadvertently stung the family. One slight came in a letter of condolences the family received from the office of Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash. At first, the Collins family appreciated that Cantwell had taken the time to send...

There has been much talk recently about whether Republicans and Democrats in Washington can produce a bipartisan clean-energy and jobs bill. The answer is: We already have. We are leading a bipartisan effort to put a lid on carbon pollution and in so doing unleash a massive investment in clean-energy technology. If we can tackle this issue in a predictable, transparent and free-market way, we can create millions of high-paying jobs while limiting the worst effects of climate change and reducing both our dependence on foreign oil and the risk of another oil spill. We have authored a bill that...

Maria Cantwell has received a lot of glowing press for her work on the environment and bank regulation. But this week the New York Times came down on her hard for trying to protect a tax break for high-earning venture capitalists and private equity fund managers while an urgently-needed unemployment benefits extension bill lingers in the Senate.

WASHINGTON — Six West Coast senatorsinstroduced legislation Thursday that would ban permanently new oil-and-gas drilling off of the California, Oregon and Washington state coasts. Citing the catastrophic blowout now fouling the Gulf of Mexico, the six Democratic lawmakers called for making permanent what has been a long-standing moratorium on new Outer Continental Shelf energy exploration and development along the West Coast. “We simply cannot afford the risk posed by oil drilling off our magnificent coast,” Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., said. Boxer's Washington state colleague, Sen. Maria Cantwell, added that “it is simply unacceptable to risk irreparable harm to our coastal...

BUZZ---CNBC correspondent, and NYT political writer, John Harwood, split with spouse, dated Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash).....sources say Harwood sobbed to a reporter until he agreed to kill the story.

DC insiders are buzzing that John Harwood, a CNBC Washington correspondent and political writer for the New York Times, has split with his wife, Frankie Blackburn, and has dated Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) According to well-placed sources, Harwood has kept it out of one DC paper by sobbing to a reporter until he agreed to kill the story.

San Francisco - Over the last two years, three-quarters of San Francisco's uninsured adults have enrolled in a public program that guarantees access to medical services, an effort that is being touted as a national model during the rancorous debate over healthcare reform. More than 46,000 adults have enrolled in Healthy San Francisco since it was launched; this first-in-the- nation, city-run universal healthcare effort has received high marks in recent independent studies. The program is funded in part by an employer mandate, a controversial component of the plans under discussion in Washington. One analysis has concluded that this mandate on...

Today the Senate Finance Committee voted 12-11 to approve another amendment sponsored by Washington's Maria Cantwell. This one would allow states to use federal money to bargain with private insurers to provide low-cost health care to low-income Americans. That's quite a mouthful, I know. It's also quite an accomplishment. Cantwell's office is calling it a "public plan," and while the senator should be proud of slipping it through Finance, "public plan" is probably going a bit too far. As Ezra Klein writes, Cantwell's amendment.... ...allows states to negotiate with insurers on behalf of people between 133 percent and 200 percent...

Two sources mention that she will be available August 14th somewhere in Pend Oreille County. http://www.pendoreilleco.org/documents/Commissioners/07-13-09.pdf http://pugetsoundblogs.com/kitsap-caucus/2009/08/07/by-the-way-there-will-be-an-in-person-town-hall/

An upcoming speech on health care was touted last week by Sen. Maria Cantwell's press office. It was then delayed by a few hours. Then, the speech was deep-sixed as Cantwell flew to Spokane for the weekend. No mention of the speech has come this week, as the Senate wrapped up its work before the August recess. Has Washington's junior senator adopted a long-ago motto of Virginia Sen. Harry Byrd: Silence is golden? Cantwell is a member of the Senate Finance Committee. A bipartisan group of six committee members - not including Cantwell - is trying to hammer out a...