Politics

As the president delivered the final State of the Union address of his term before a looming re-election battle, he looked out at a sea of angry and skeptical Republicans who had fought him on budgets, government shutdowns, and whether or not to raise the nation's debt ceiling.

And what did President Bill Clinton do in 1996?

He delivered his "the era of big government is over" speech, which The Washington Post summed up this way: "Clinton Embraced GOP Themes in Setting Agenda."

The Mayor of Oakridge, Oregon and three city councilors survived a recall election Tuesday. A financial crisis created turmoil at recent council meetings.

Mayor Don Hampton and councilors Rayetta Clark, Amy Kordosky, and Glenn Fortune are all still in office. But, for the mayor and councilor Fortune, the margin was narrow. Mayor Hampton attributes that to the widespread dissatisfaction people feel with government these days. Hampton says he's heard of the threat of recall used recently in other Oregon communities.

The state's election watchdog has proposed a fine against the Washington State Republican Party for campaign finance violations, including the failure to timely report $500,000 in contributions.

Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz wants some change in Washington D.C. and the best way to get it, he says, is by boycotting donations to political campaigns. In an open letter sent to Starbucks on Monday, he urged other company heads to withholding campaign contribution until President Obama and Congress solve the nation’s financial woes.  

SALEM, Ore. - Conservative Oregon initiative activist Bill Sizemore will serve 30 days in jail. The former Republican nominee for governor pled guilty Thursday to three counts of tax evasion.

Bill Sizemore was best known for his anti-tax initiatives. Now, it's a failure to file his state taxes over the course of three years that's sending him to jail.

He was set to go on trial next week. As part of the plea deal, Sizemore will serve 30 days in the Marion County jail. That's followed by three years of supervised probation, plus 100 hours of community service.

A national conference in Spokane focuses on something a lot of people fear is dying out: civility in American politics. Many see the January shooting in Tuscon as just one sign that the nation's civic discourse has been replaced with mudslinging, threats, and even violence.

Spokane itself was shaken by backpack bomb discovered along the route of a Martin Luther King Day parade.

But consider this: Incivility can sometimes play a positive role in democracy, at least according to some experts.

Kirby Wilbur is the new Republican Party chairman in Washington, unseating former state lawmaker Luke Esser over the weekend in a party's leadership vote. The former KVI talk radio host beat Esser by a vote of 69 to 36, with seven votes for Puyallup Republican Bill Rennie, according to The Seattle Times' Jim Bruener.

Despite GOP gains in the state, Wilbur told the Times the party's advances should have been bigger: 

State lawmakers are considering tighter restrictions on political action committees, or PAC's. The proposal stems from the case of a Seattle-based Democratic political firm now being sued by the Attorney General for campaign finance violations.