This blog is designed to give readers a glimpse of our editorial-page operation and how we make our decisions. We’ll let you know who we’re meeting with, what they’re telling us, what events and issues we’re looking at. We’ll also pass on information and observations that may not make our print editions. In addition to the editorial board members who post on this blog, the board includes Publisher David Zeeck, Executive Editor Karen Peterson and Managing Editor Dale Phelps.
Editorial board bloggers
Editorial page editor Patrick O’Callahan oversees the online and printed opinion sections of The News Tribune. He came to The News Tribune in 1987 and has worked at Washington newspapers since 1979. E-mail him at patrick.ocallahan@thenewstribune.com
Editorial writer Cheryl Tucker, in addition to writing commentary, manages the daily production of the editorial and op-ed pages and edits letters to the editor. She began her journalism career in 1974 at a Virginia newspaper and came to The News Tribune in 1978. E-mail her at cheryl.tucker@thenewstribune.com.
Editorial writer Kim Bradford manages the online opinion section of The News Tribune and writes commentary. She joined The News Tribune in 2005 after working 11 years at newspapers in Washington and Maryland. E-mail her at kim.bradford@thenewstribune.com.
Guest bloggers
Editor emeritus David Seago retired from The News Tribune in 2008 after 41 years at The News Tribune. E-mail him at sds99@harbornet.com.
Richard Davis’ column on state politics frequently runs in the print edition of The News Tribune. He was president of the Washington Research Council, a statewide think tank, from 1986 through 2006. Currently, as a principal with The Simeon Partnership, Inc. he coordinates the activities of the Washington Alliance for a Competitive Economy, a business coalition founded by the Research Council, the Association of Washington Business and the Washington Roundtable.
Karen Irwin of University Place, a mother of four, has been a frequent contributor to The News Tribune's print editions. She has also written for Seattle's Child, Puget Sound Parent, the Tacoma Weekly, the Fayetteville Observer Times and the political blog Right Meets Left. She graduated from California Lutheran University with a degree in English literature and is currently working toward a history degree.
Michael Allen, professor of history at the University of Washington Tacoma, was born and raised in Ellensburg. He served with the U.S. Marines in Vietnam from 1969-70. He has written five books, including the prize-winning "Patriot's History of the United States: From Columbus' Great Discovery to the War on Terror," "Rodeo Cowboys in the North American Imagination" and "Western Rivermen, 1763-1861: Ohio and Mississippi Boatmen and the Myth of the Alligator Horse." Allen lives in Tacoma and Ellensburg and has three children.
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Hilarious: Palin and Biden hyping each other's debating prowess.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin said she expects a challenging debate next month when she faces a Democratic opponent who was elected to the Senate when she was 8 years old.
“Sen. (Joe) Biden has tremendous amount of experience,” Palin said in an interview scheduled to air Thursday on Fox News Channel’s “Hannity & Colmes.” “I think he was first elected when I was like in second grade. He’s been in there a long, long, long time.”
Lowering expectations is typically part of the political gamesmanship before a debate. Biden has said he has debated “an awful lot of tough, smart women” and Palin will be no exception.
Cue Amy Poehler (who in my book isn't getting near her fair share of the praise for that hilarious Saturday Night Live skit last week). I was reminded of her temper-tantrum take on Hillary Clinton this morning when I opened my e-mail to find a message waiting from the folks at Northrop Grumman and Airbus parent EADS (hit "read more" to see it).
Give these guys credit for persistence. Three months after they lost the contract to build the new Air Force aerial-refueling tankers and one week after the Pentagon said it won't take new bids until after a new president is in the White House, the Northrop Grumman folks are still calling themselves "America's Next Tanker" and arguing for a quick rebid of the contract. At least the twice-daily e-mails once sent to the press have become less frequent.
No question that time is of the essence, but so is a fair process that selects the best plane. The Airbus group is making hay over the comment by General Norton Schwartz that awarding the tanker contract could take four years – a comment that bears some explanation. That's the possible worst-case timeline if the Defense Department throws out the work that already has been done and begins the process again from a cold start. That's not what Boeing has requested, at least not yet.
This year’s presidential candidates have thrown unfair attacks at each other, but these pale in comparison to what’s going on outside their campaigns. The hacking of Sarah Palin’s private email account is an example of the viciousness some partisans are engaging in, especially on the Internet.
A deal ought to be a deal: If Lakewood officials committed to providing security at the city’s Sound Transit station, it should do so. Even without Sounder Service, the station’s express buses will be providing an immense service to Lakewood commuters.
If you have comments or questions about these topics, please email them to patrick.ocallahan@thenewstribune.com. Editorials represent the consensus view of The News Tribune's editorial board.
Want to sit in on a daily ed board meeting? Email cheryl.tucker@thenewstribune.com to make an appointment.
