Washington: Nancy Pelosi

On Friday, the State House passed a bill to give workers higher unemployment benefits. Soon, the Senate is expected to follow suit:
Those temporary increases would take effect in May, the earliest the state Employment Security Department can implement, said Rep. Steve Conway, D-Tacoma, chairman of the House Commerce and Labor Committee and prime sponsor of House Bill 1906. They would remain in place until Jan. 3, 2010, then drop back down to the regular range.
Although the higher benefits are just temporary, it is good to see the state government stepping up to help its people in these harsh economic times, trying to salvage our deteriorating economic security.

FROM LES BLUMENTHAL IN OUR D.C. BUREAU

WASHINGTON - So the White House says its version of the stimulus bill, or as Democrats now call it the recovery bill, will create or save 79,000 jobs in Washington state. In a state-by-state breakdown, the administration said 90 percent of those jobs will be in the private sector.

Last week, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the House version of the bill would create or save nearly 100,000 jobs and shave 2 percentage points off the state's current 7.2 percent unemployment rate.

The White House has been cranking up its press machine over the past several days, meeting with reporters from various regions of the nation.