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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Spin Control

WA Lege: The day after

OLYMPIA -- It is the day after the night before at the Capitol. Not quite a ghost town 12 hours after the gavel came down for the legislative session, but very little trace of what was here for the last four and a half months.

There are no lobbyists stalking the hallways, iPhones in one ear while they type on laptops with the free  hand. Almost no legislators, and staff members are packing up offices for what almost everyone hopes will be a long wait before they have to return. (Overheard in the Capitol Dome coffee shop: Migrating legislative staffer to permanent Capitol staffer: "So I told (my boss). Hey, you just voted to cut my pay. Thanks a lot.")

A smattering of tourists are making the rounds. The most action of the day will probably be the noon concert in the Rotunda by the LaVenture Middle School Concert Band. If they'd only booked in a day earlier, they would've had a much bigger audience.

Next big day on the legislative calendar: June 16, when the Economic and Revenue Forecast Council updates its numbers for state revenue over the next two years.



Jim Camden

Jim Camden joined The Spokesman-Review in 1981 and retired in 2021. He is currently the political and state government correspondent covering Washington state.

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