Capitol Ideas: The Washington State House Democratic Caucus Podcast

Ah, Sweet 16. If Capitol Ideas were a person and not a podcast, it would be ready for a driver's license. This experiment kicked off in 2009 and it's been here ever since. Today's conversation features House Majority Floor Leader Monica Stonier, who's been a guest more than once over the years. Today she'll talk about her leadership position, working across the party aisle, and sponsoring groundbr...

Rep. Laurie Jinkins was chair of the House Civil Rights and Judiciary Committee when her colleagues changed her title to Speaker of the House of Representatives at the beginning of the 2020 legislative session. Since then she’s led the House through a pair of unprecedented remote sessions necessitated by the pandemic, overseen the creation of an impressive number of landmark laws, sat at the head...

If the Washington state operating budget were part of the Marvel universe, today’s episode of Capitol Ideas might be the origin story. We’re about to hear from Representative Steve Bergquist, vice chair of the House Appropriations Committee, in a conversation recorded just a few days before the House and Senate both voted to approve that nearly-seventy-billion dollar two-year spending plan.

What's the state of public education in Washington three years after we first encountered the word coronavirus? We'll hear about that and more from Rep. Sharon Tomiko Santos, veteran chair of the House Education Committee on today's Capitol Ideas.

Rep. April Berg has done a lot. In today's Capitol Ideas we'll get to know the lawmaker who chairs one of the Legislature's key standing committees, and we'll find out what she's learned during her three years in the House.

Today's Capitol Ideas touches on Washington's housing crisis, abortion rights in a post-Dobbs world, equity for foster youth, and plenty more. The guest is Rep. Emily Alvarado, and that means this is a high-energy, solidly informative, and very entertaining conversation.

Rep. Mari Leavitt’s 28th legislative district might have the heaviest concentration of military families in Washington, and as the daughter of a Vietnam vet, she’s got a special place in her heart for those constituents. In today’s Capitol Ideas you’ll hear about her bill to help newly arrived military spouses resume their careers in the Evergreen State. She’ll talk about her plan to save lives du...

Today’s Capitol Ideas is a wide-ranging conversation with 48th-district Democratic Rep. Vandana Slatter, chair of the House Committee on Postsecondary Education and Workforce. Two of her key bills, the creation of the Washington Climate Corps and the My Health, My Data Act, account for most of the episode, and this is one you won’t want to miss.

Washington needs between 150,000 and 250,000 additional housing units of all kinds to fully solve its housing crisis over the next several years. That’s a tall order, and a number of bills aimed at the issue will go through the House Local Government Committee. The new chair of that committee is Rep. Davina Duerr of Bothell, in Washington’s 1st legislative district. Davina is an architect, and a f...

The current group of majority House Democrats in Washington state features more of just about everything. More women. More people of color. More WOMEN of color. And more mothers of young children. That last "more" is what we'll talk about today. Our guests are Reps. Tana Senn and Liz Berry, who got together in 2021 and organized the Moms Caucus. The Moms have had a strong influence on legislation,...

Capitol Ideas is pleased to introduce Rep. Sharlett Mena. She's done policy and communications work in the Washington state Senate, Gov. Inslee's administration, and the U.S. Congress. We've got her now, as a brand-new state representative and member of the House Democratic Caucus. Today she talks about her life, her values, her legislative priorities, and more.

Teens who take part in Washington's legislative page program have a unique experience. They come to Olympia from all over the state, sponsored by a lawmaker, and spend a week learning about state government while helping out with everything from delivering important papers to carrying the flags in opening ceremonies in the House and Senate. In today's special Capitol Ideas, Spokane Rep. Marcus Ric...

A few days ago Capitol Ideas introduced Rep. Mary Fosse, and today we'll follow up with her seatmate from the 38th district, Rep. Julio Cortes. Julio brings a unique life story to the Legislature -- immigrant, public servant, athlete, social worker -- and we'll talk about all that and more in today's Capitol Ideas.

Today we’ll spend some time on Capitol Ideas with Rep. Mary Fosse of the 38th legislative district up in Snohomish County. This is Mary’s first session in the House but as a longtime community activist, a member of the Everett City Council, and a former legislative staffer, she knows how the place works. We’ll talk about that, and more, in today’s episode.

Week five of Rep. Joe Fitzgibbon's first session as Majority Leader of the Washington state House of Representatives coincided with policy cut-off, arguably the busiest week of the year. He still agreed to spend some time with Capitol Ideas, and now is your chance to get to know a remarkable leader.

Rep. Roger Goodman returns to Capitol Ideas today, seven years after his last appearance. As chair of the newly renamed House Community Safety, Justice, and Re-entry Committee, he’s busier than ever. Find out what he and his committee are working on in the 2023 legislative session in today’s conversation.

The Nothing About Us Without Us Act is Rep. Darya Farivar's highest-profile bill in her first year as a lawmaker, but it's not her only one. Get to know the 46th district's new representative, the first Iranian-American woman ever elected to the Legislature and a fighter for the underrepresented, in this Thursday edition of Capitol Ideas.

You might not know who she is, but Rep. Shelley Kloba probably cares more about your online privacy than you do . . . because she knows how little you've got. One of her big bills this session is the People's Privacy Act, and you'll learn why it's important in this episode of Capitol Ideas.

Rep. Marcus Riccelli dropped by the Capitol Ideas studio to talk about free school meals, protecting reproductive freedom, chipping away at the healthcare workforce shortage, and more.

Rep. Strom Peterson (D-21st, Edmonds) visits Capitol Ideas to talk about public safety, octopus farming, and his bipartisan approach to easing the housing crisis. This is one you don't want to miss.

Today we're talking with 10th-district Rep. Clyde Shavers: Annapolis grad, former naval officer, and brand-new state representative.

Rep. Lillian Ortiz-Self is a school counselor, a mental-health counselor, a state representative, and chair of the House Democratic Caucus in Olympia. Not surprisingly, she's passionate about education and young people. Give Capitol Ideas 15 minutes today and you'll hear all about it. And more.

Rep. My-Linh Thai came to America from her native Vietnam at 15. Years later she became the first refugee elected to serve in the state House of Representatives, and she began the 2023 session with a new title: Deputy Majority Leader. You'll meet her today, and you'll be glad you did.

Back in 2009, Washington State Rep. Timm Ormsby and Legislative Assistant Shannon Waechter were featured on the third-ever episode of a brand-new podcast called Capitol Ideas, talking about the teamwork necessary in a legislative office. We circle back today to find out what's changed, and what hasn't, now that 13 years have passed and, as chair of the House Appropriations Committee, Timm is the c...

Despite a tenure of just three years in the House, Rep. Jesse Johnson has been one of the Legislature's busiest and most respected members almost from the day he was first sworn in to fill a vacancy in the 30th district in January 2020. He's leaving the House at the end of his current term to play a bigger role in the life of his newborn son. In this special Capitol Ideas, Jesse reflects on his br...