Rep. My-Linh Thai is many things: a pharmacist, a mother, a PTA leader, a former school board director, a state representative, and an American citizen who came to the U.S. as a refugee from her native Vietnam at age 15. We'll talk about how all those experiences helped shape her philosophy of compassionate legislating, and how that approach to lawmaking makes her an effective member of the Legislature.

Capitol Ideas: The Washington State House Democratic Caucus Podcast

This week Rep. My-Linh Thai makes a return visit to Capitol Ideas. We'll hear about compassionate legislating, her unique approach to lawmaking that has its roots in her practice of Zen Buddhism.

Rep. Melanie Morgan makes an encore appearance in today's Capitol Ideas, and we'll talk about racial equity, the new Juneteenth state holiday, why passing bills is sometimes overrated, and reaching across the Cascades to make Washington's supposed east-west divide irrelevant.

The 2021 legislative session might be adjourned for the year, but Capitol Ideas will still be here to bring you interesting, informative, and sometimes provocative conversations with the diverse cast of majority Democrats who get things done in Olympia. Our leadoff guest for the interim season is 29th-district Rep. Melanie Morgan.

Brand-new state Rep. Tarra Simmons is an attorney, a former nurse, and a familiar face at the Capitol from her years of advocacy for laws designed to extend the American dream to communities that haven’t always been at the front of the line, including but not limited to persons formerly or currently incarcerated. There's a reason for that, but if you want to learn more you'll just have to listen.

Rep. Tarra Simmons is a survivor, and in this episode of Capitol Ideas you'll meet up with her on Day 99 of her legislative career. She's already well-established as an effective civil-rights champion, and today you'll find out why.

In a tragic and tumultuous year, relations between law enforcement and the communities they are sworn to serve have frayed beyond the breaking point. Police killings, brutally excessive uses of force, and militarization to the point where police officers resemble occupying forces...they've taken a toll. Rep. Johnson brought together citizens affected by police violence, law enforcement groups, lawmakers, and other interested parties to forge a solution. We'll talk about the results of his efforts today.

In just his second session, Rep. Jesse Johnson has shouldered the legislative load of reforming policing in Washington. He's taken giant strides this year, and we talk about them in this edition of Capitol Ideas.

It's been a little over a year since Rep. Shelley Kloba sat down for a conversation on Capitol Ideas. A lot has changed in that time, including the pandemic that forced us to record today's episode remotely. Something that hasn't changed is her commitment to the idea that you own your personal data, and it should be up to you how it's used and who uses it. We'll talk about that today.

Rep. Shelley Kloba is back, and she's still working to protect your digital privacy. We'll talk today about the long and winding road she's traveling to try to make the people's personal data privacy bill of rights a reality.

Of the thousands of farms in Washington, an agriculture-intensive state, fewer than 100 are owned by Black farmers. Rep. Melanie Morgan points to generations of systemic racism as a key reason for this underrepresentation, and is sponsoring legislation this year to enlist the state Department of Agriculture, schools, and other allies to help facilitate an increase in Black-owned family farms.

Rep. Melanie Morgan is sponsoring HB 1395, the Equity in Farming Act, to widen opportunities in agriculture for Black African Americans, Indigenous People, and other potential farmers of color.

Rep. Alex Ramel introduced the Healthy Homes and Clean Buildings Act this session to put Washington on track to meet its carbon goals by mid-century. It's a key piece in a package of legislation designed to turn the tide on climate change and reduce the staggering quantities of carbon belched out into Washington skies by countless thousands of buildings using natural gas, mostly for heating that could be done almost carbon-free by electricity. We're kicking off the 2021 season of Capitol Ideas by letting Ramel, a Democratic lawmaker from the 40th legislative district, tell us how the HHCB Act works, and why it needs to.

Healthy homes and clean buildings. Who could argue with that? Not Rep. Alex Ramel, who's sponsoring the Healthy Homes and Clean Buildings Act this session. Find out what it's all about in today's Capitol Ideas.

Rep. Davina Duerr was appointed last summer to the state House seat in the 1st district that came open when its previous occupant moved to the Senate to replace a departing member. This was her first session, but she's a quick study and, as you'll hear, she didn't sit in the back row and wait to be called on.

Meet Davina Duerr: architect, Bothell city councilmember, and a first-year state representative from Washington's 1st legislative district.

Democratic lawmakers have received thousands of emails, letters, phone calls, personal visits and, sadly, threats, in recent days from people hoping to derail Senate Bill 5395 (https://tinyurl.com/qqbg7dr). The House version of that bill, which requires age-appropriate, comprehensive sexual-health education to be part of the curriculum in public schools, was sponsored by State Rep. Monica Stonier of Vancouver. She visits "Capitol Ideas" today to talk about the actual content of the bill, the disinformation campaign that was mounted against it, and the "debate" that featured Republican lawmakers using language on the House floor that caused TVW, the state's public affairs television service, to post onscreen parental warnings.

Last week the Legislature approved Senate Bill 5395, which makes sexual-health education part of the public-school curriculum in Washington. Today's special "Capitol Ideas" features Rep. Monica Stonier in a candid conversation about the campaign to defeat the bill, a campaign that was fueled by misinformation, disinformation, and personal insults that may have marked a new low in the Legislature.

Given what’s gone on and is still going on in the world, ensuring the security and integrity of elections is about as important an idea as it’s possible to talk about in a representative democracy like ours. Rep. Gael Tarleton agrees, and she's been talking about it, and thinking about it, and doing something about it, for years. We've got her today, and what she has to say is worth listening to.

Today’s Capitol Idea is election security, and Democratic state Rep. Gael Tarleton of Seattle is the Legislature's recognized authority on the issue. Today's conversation is longer than usual, but the topic is that important. Stick around.

There's equality . . . and then there's equity. State Rep. Mia Gregerson is one of many lawmakers with equity on their minds, and it's an important issue in the Washington Legislature this year. Today she talks to "Capitol Ideas" about her hopes for an Office of Equity, and why it would matter.

Democratic Rep. Mia Gregerson of SeaTac dropped by the "Capitol Ideas" studio this week to talk about her bill creating the Washington State Office of Equity. In 12 minutes, you'll know more than you do now!

Before she became Rep. Amy Walen, today's guest on "Capitol Ideas" was Mayor Amy Walen of Kirkland. She has deep ties to her district on the east side of Lake Washington, and she brought her commitment to create affordable housing to Olympia. Reducing homelessness and boosting the state's inventory of affordable housing are key issues in the 2020 legislation, and Amy has several irons in that fire. We'll explore those efforts in today's conversation.

Well before Amy Walen (D-48th, Kirkland) took the oath of office to become a state representative in January 2019, she was a key player in Washington's efforts to reduce homelessness and increase supplies of affordable housing throughout the state. We'll talk about some successes, and some challenges she's faced, in today's "Capitol Ideas."

Today's "Capitol Ideas" is a sort of civics lesson, but more interesting than the ones you took -- or didn't take -- in high school. Chief House budget writer Rep. Timm Ormsby reflects on how a multi-billion-dollar state operating budget takes shape: the long days and even longer nights, the tough decisions, the unheralded bipartisanship and, again, more tough decisions. This is background you probably haven't heard before, and it's definitely worth 16 minutes of your time.

Spokane Rep. Timm Ormsby chairs the House Appropriations Committee and is head budget writer for the chamber. Today we talk with Timm not about the specifics of the newly released supplemental operating budget, but about the task, or privilege, of sitting in his seat and making decisions every day that could affect millions of Washingtonians.

Rep. Lisa Callen was an engineer helping to build the best airplanes in the world. She was a school board director. She was a lot of other things to admire, but now we've got her and she's a state representative from Issaquah, in Washington's 5th legislative district. Legislatively, 2020 has been the year of the child for Lisa. Listen in while we talk about that in this edition of "Capitol Ideas."

We're back and today's "Capitol Ideas" features a visit from Rep. Lisa Callen. Lisa is a Democrat, of course, from Washington's 5th legislative district. Whether they know it or not, at-risk kids in the Evergreen state have a champion in Lisa, and we'll talk about why in the next 15 minutes.

Welcome to Capitol Ideas. This is where we sit down with members of the majority Democratic caucus in the Washington State House of Representatives, to give listeners an inside look at important aspects of how their citizen Legislature works together for one Washington.

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Capitol Ideas: The Washington State House Democratic Caucus ...

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