The High Ground: Voices from Eastern Washington

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Grant Fredericks

The Ground We Tend Together

The Ground We Tend Together

On a soft June morning in Spokane’s Peaceful Valley, the garden is already awake. Dew glints on strawberry leaves. A robin skips between rows of kale. And in a corner of the community plot, not far from the river, two children lift the lid of a cedar box. Steam

The Quiet Liquidation: What the Land-Sale Bill Reveals About America’s Vanishing Stewardship

The Quiet Liquidation: What the Land-Sale Bill Reveals About America’s Vanishing Stewardship

A Premonition in the Pines At the northeastern edge of Washington State lies the Salmo-Priest Wilderness, untouched and elemental. It is one of the last places where the original ecology of the Inland Northwest still breathes: ancient cedars, grizzly bears, the rare echo of woodland caribou. For tribal communities, it

The Quiet Bill That Could Unravel Campaign Finance Law

The Quiet Bill That Could Unravel Campaign Finance Law

In the pantheon of modern political tools, few are more consequential, and less understood, than the nonprofit. These tax-exempt entities, ostensibly created to serve the public good, have long walked the fine line between civic engagement and political influence. With the introduction of the partisan bill H.R. 2501, that

What the River Remembers

What the River Remembers

The Fight for the Lower Snake, and the Future of the Land It Fed The Lower Snake does not rage. It does not roar. But it endures. Along its quiet bends near Lower Granite Dam, where slackwater curls around concrete and turbines hum without notice, the river moves with the

Washington’s EV Future Is Thriving … But Trump and Baumgartner Are Trying to Kill It

Washington’s EV Future Is Thriving … But Trump and Baumgartner Are Trying to Kill It

F The Voice of a State on the Move If Washington State could speak, its voice might come from a mechanic in Moses Lake retraining on electric drivetrains. Or a logistics manager in Spokane quietly building out EV infrastructure for rural fleets. Or a union apprentice in the Tri-Cities learning

Baumgartner Backed the Cuts. Then Tried to Take Credit for the Fix

Baumgartner Backed the Cuts. Then Tried to Take Credit for the Fix

A Quiet Betrayal, Then a Sudden Conversion The bipartisan H.R. 879 was introduced in January 2025 to respond to a 2.83% Medicare cut that had just taken effect. The Washington State Medical Association, the American Medical Association, and rural health providers nationwide urged Congress to act quickly to

Washington Cities Push Back Against ICE Enforcement

Washington Cities Push Back Against ICE Enforcement

On a warm June evening in Spokane, former City Council President Ben Stuckart stood in front of a Homeland Security van and refused to move. The vehicle carried two young men: César Pérez, a Venezuelan asylum seeker, and another man believed to be a Colombian national, both facing sudden detainment