Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has narrowly avoided a costly disaster.

When Meta bought the rights to more land in Bellevue, Washington, in 2020, it brought the company's potential footprint in the area up to more than 3 million square feet. After five years of expansions, subleases, and plan changes, Zuckerberg's company had to decide if it wanted to dive fully into the expansion it was offered or stay with what it had.

'The way for Washingtonians to fight back is to build a bolder Washington.'

Newly released details about Meta's plans in Bellevue’s Spring District now confirm that the tech company has avoided disaster by about a month. As reported by Downtown Bellevue, Meta is returning the rights for several blocks in the district to developer Wright Runstad & Co., which is considered turning the land into apartment buildings, instead of offices.

With Meta using only around 700,000 square feet of its current land leases, the relinquishment comes on the cusp of massive new corporate taxes that seem to be on the horizon from a state Democrat, who is openly socialist.

State Rep. Shaun Scott (D) hopes to counteract tax cuts by the Trump administration by issuing a new corporate payroll tax that will affect the largest companies in the state, including Amazon, Microsoft, and, of course, Meta.

Scott is a Democratic Socialist, according to a report by Axios, and is certainly living up to the "socialist" part of his title with the new 5% tax.

His proposal would tax private companies where employees earn more than $125,000 per year, with the new tax applying to salaries above that threshold. Any company with more than 50 employees, a payroll in excess of $7 million, and gross receipts over $5 million will also be taxed.

The tax would raise $5.5 billion over two years, according to Komo News.

Photographer: Allison Robbert/Bloomberg via Getty Images

The tax reportedly comes in direct response to money lost from the Republicans' H.R.1, aka the Big Beautiful Bill Act, which claimed from the outset that it would "reduces taxes."

Scott is, in effect, proving the bill to be true with his proposal.

"The way for Washingtonians to fight back is to build a bolder Washington: a Washington that defends the programs that people depend on, while the other Washington defunds them," he said, according to the Olympian.

The bill would take effect on July 1, 2026.

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For once, Medicare is trying something that actually saves money

Medicare is the second-largest program in the federal budget, topping $1 trillion last year. In 2023, it accounted for 14% of federal spending — a share projected to reach 18% by 2032. After years of ballooning costs, something is finally being done to slow the growth. A new Medicare pilot program, the Wasteful and Inappropriate Service Reduction model, borrows a successful private-sector tool: prior authorization. And that’s good news.

Medicare Part B premiums now sit at $185 per month — up 28% from five years ago and a staggering 76% since 2015. Last year, 12% of the 61 million Americans enrolled in Part B spent more than a tenth of their annual income on premiums. That burden is unsustainable.

In a system as expensive and fragmented as ours, no one can afford to keep writing blank checks for low-value care.

WISeR, set to launch in Ohio, Texas, Washington, New Jersey, Arizona, and Oklahoma, will require prior approval for a short list of “low-value” services — procedures that research shows are frequently overused, costly, and sometimes harmful.

To some, the idea of Medicare reviewing certain treatments before covering them may sound like red tape. But when done correctly, prior authorization is not a barrier. It is a guardrail — one that protects patients, improves quality, and helps ensure that both tax dollars and premiums are spent appropriately.

The goal of WISeR is simple: Cut unnecessary treatments and shift resources toward more effective, evidence-based care. Critics warn about the possibility of delays or extra paperwork, and those concerns are worth monitoring. But they don’t negate prior authorization’s potential to make U.S. health care safer, more efficient, and more financially stable.

Prior authorization directly targets some of the most persistent problems in health care. Medicare spends billions each year on low-value services. A 2023 study identified just 47 such services that together cost Medicare more than $4 billion annually. Those are taxpayer dollars that could be put to better use.

The private insurance market shows the same pattern: unnecessary imaging, avoidable specialist referrals, and brand-name drugs chosen over generics all contribute to rising premiums. Prior authorization, when used properly, reins in this waste by ensuring coverage lines up with medical necessity and evidence-based best practices. Research from the University of Chicago shows that Medicare’s prior authorization rules for prescription drugs generate net savings even after administrative costs.

Consider one striking example. Medicare Part B covers wound-care products known as skin substitutes. But an Office of Inspector General report found that expenditures on these products skyrocketed over the past two years to more than $10 billion annually. Meanwhile, Medicare Advantage plans — which rely heavily on prior authorization — spent only a fraction of that amount for the same treatments.

DNY59 via iStock/Getty Images

More importantly, prior authorization helps promote evidence-based medicine. It curbs outdated clinical habits and reduces financial incentives to overtreat. Health plans consistently say that prior authorization aligns care with gold-standard clinical guidelines, particularly in areas prone to misuse.

Of course, the system must be designed responsibly. A well-functioning PA process should be transparent, fast, and grounded in strong clinical evidence. Decisions should be made in close coordination with the patient’s treating provider. The appeals process must be straightforward. And both public and private payers should be held accountable for improper denials or harmful delays.

When structured this way, prior authorization is far more efficient than the current “pay-and-chase” model, where Medicare pays first and tries to recover improper payments later.

Prior authorization already works in the private sector. It can work in Medicare.

Public and private payers have an obligation to steward the dollars they spend — whether those dollars come from taxpayers or premium-payers. In a system as expensive and fragmented as ours, no one can afford to keep writing blank checks for low-value care. When implemented wisely, prior authorization keeps coverage aligned with medical necessity, elevates the value of care, and helps deliver better outcomes at a sustainable cost.

How police nailed driver accused of doing donuts in stolen car amid street takeover — even after giving cops the slip

A northwest Washington state sheriff's deputy spotted a black sports car taking over the intersection of 112th Street South and Pacific Avenue South doing donuts around 12:30 a.m. Saturday, the Pierce County Sheriff's Office said. The intersection appears to be in Parkland, which is about 20 minutes south of Tacoma.

However, as the deputy approached the intersection, the vehicle took off, officials said.

Deputies knocked on the door of a residence, and a male answered and claimed his friend had dropped off the Corvette earlier and did not know anything about it, officials said.

The deputy attempted a traffic stop, but the vehicle failed to stop, and the deputy was unable to catch up to it, officials said.

The deputy used his radio to share the vehicle's direction of travel, and a sergeant picked up the pursuit — but lost sight of the car, officials said.

However, the sergeant later learned a black Corvette was listed as stolen and numerous other jurisdictions had similar encounters with the vehicle but were unable to catch it, officials said.

About an hour later, another deputy spotted a black Corvette in the area where police lost sight of it, officials said, adding that the Corvette matched the description of the vehicle that eluded deputies earlier.

Deputies soon learned the Corvette was stolen — and was the same vehicle they had been chasing, officials said.

Deputies knocked on the door of a residence, and a male answered and claimed his friend had dropped off the Corvette earlier and did not know anything about it, officials said.

But a bit more investigation revealed that the male being questioned had a social media account containing videos of him driving the stolen Corvette and doing donuts and other reckless driving crimes, officials said.

Image source: Pierce County (Wa.) Sheriff's Office bodycam video screenshot

Deputies arrested the 21-year-old suspect for eluding, possession of a stolen vehicle, and obstruction of a law enforcement officer, officials said, adding that the male also had warrants in another jurisdiction for reckless driving and unlawful exhibition of speed.

"It's probably not a good idea to record yourself in a stolen vehicle doing donuts — and then post it to your social media," Dep. Carly Cappetto wisely warned on the sheriff's office clip.

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Catholic defiance of Democrat law pays off, sparing priests from the choice of jail or excommunication

Bob Ferguson, the Democrat governor of Washington state, signed a bill in May that would have compelled Catholic priests to break the seal of confession or face up to 364 days in jail and a $5,000 fine.

Catholic bishops in the Evergreen State fought back — and came out victorious on Friday with the reinforcement of the Trump Justice Department.

Background

Senate Bill 5375, as ratified by the self-identifying Catholic governor and scores of other Democrats in the legislature, required any person operating in an official supervisory capacity with a nonprofit or a for-profit organization who has "reasonable cause to believe that a child has suffered abuse or neglect" to notify law enforcement or the Department of Children, Youth, and Families.

'Priests should never be forced to make the impossible choice of betraying their sacred vows or going to jail.'

The law mandated, however, that no one except for members of the clergy had to report abuse when that information was obtained solely as a result of a privileged communication.

"SB 5375 modifies existing law solely to make members of the clergy mandatory reporters with respect to child abuse or neglect," U.S. District Judge David Estudillo noted in his July ruling. "However, other groups of adults who may learn about child abuse are not required to report. Parents and caregivers, for example, are not mandatory reporters."

Estudillo noted further that a parallel piece of legislation that went into effect on July 27 also exempted university attorneys from divulging child abuse information if it has something to do with their clients.

Washington State Gov. Bob Ferguson (D). Photo by JASON REDMOND/AFP via Getty Images

"A law is not neutral if the government 'proceeds in a manner intolerant of religious beliefs or restricts practices because of their religious nature,'" Estudillo noted. "Here, clergy were explicitly singled out."

Not only was the law discriminatory, it would have both invited the government into the confessional and put priests at risk of automatic excommunication.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church maintains that "every priest who hears confessions is bound under very severe penalties to keep absolute secrecy regarding the sins that his penitents have confessed to him" and "can make no use of knowledge that confession gives him about penitents' lives."

The Code of Canon Law — cited in the May 18 complaint filed by Archbishop Paul Etienne of the Archdiocese of Seattle, Bishop Joseph Tyson of the Diocese of Yakima, and Bishop Thomas Daly of the Diocese of Spokane — similarly underscores the inviolability of the sacramental seal, noting further that a "confessor who directly violates the sacramental seal incurs a latae sententiae — automatic — excommunication reserved to the Apostolic See."

A month after the bishops filed suit, the Trump DOJ intervened in the case, stressing that SB 5375 "deprives Catholic priests of their fundamental right to freely exercise their religious beliefs, as guaranteed under the First Amendment."

Victory

On Friday, the state of Washington settled the case, agreeing to make permanent a Biden judge's July injunction blocking the law.

The federal court handling the case further recognized that the Democrat law had infringed upon the Catholic bishops' free exercise of religion in violation of the First Amendment and may also have infringed upon their rights under the U.S. Constitution's Establishment Clause and the Church Autonomy Doctrine.

Mark Rienzi, president and CEO of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, which served as co-counsel in the case, said in statement obtained by Blaze News, "Washington was wise to walk away from this draconian law and allow Catholic clergy to continue ministering to the faithful. This is a victory for religious freedom and for common sense."

"Priests should never be forced to make the impossible choice of betraying their sacred vows or going to jail," added Rienzi.

"Preventing abuse and upholding the sacred seal of confession are not mutually exclusive — we can and must do both," stated Jean Hill, executive director of the Washington State Catholic Conference. "That’s why the Church supported the law’s goal from the beginning and only asked for a narrow exemption to protect the sacrament."

The WSCC added that "priests have been imprisoned, tortured, and even killed for upholding the seal of confession. Penitents today need the same assurance that their participation in a holy sacrament will remain free from government interference."

Blaze News has reached out to Ferguson's office for comment.

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Georgetown Calls In FBI To Investigate ‘Anti-Fascist’ Extremist Group

Georgetown University is seeking the help of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) as it investigates a series of flyers posted on campus that advertise a new chapter of an "anti-fascist" extremist group pledging to "do something more than symbolic resistance."

The post Georgetown Calls In FBI To Investigate ‘Anti-Fascist’ Extremist Group appeared first on .

Man gunned down in ER after he, girlfriend had altercation with shooter outside hospital: Police

A man is dead, and a woman was wounded after a shooter opened fire at them Wednesday night in a hospital emergency room in Tacoma, Washington, KIRO-TV reported.

Tacoma police said the apparent targeted attack took place just after 7 p.m. inside the emergency room of MultiCare Allenmore Hospital on South Union Avenue, the station said.

'I know that she's pretty shaken up because her boyfriend, I guess, like, pushed her out of the way, so she just watched him get shot pretty bad, you know.'

The female victim — a 21-year-old — was grazed by gunfire and is recovering, but her boyfriend was killed in the shooting, KIRO reported.

Medical workers attempted lifesaving efforts before the man was pronounced dead, the Seattle Times reported.

Police said the couple got into a fight with the suspect outside the hospital prior to the shooting, the station said, after which the suspect followed them into the ER and opened fire.

It's not clear if the fight prior to the shooting was verbal, physical, or both.

"I know that she's pretty shaken up because her boyfriend, I guess, like, pushed her out of the way, so she just watched him get shot pretty bad, you know," the female victim's uncle told KIRO in an exclusive interview. "I'm more worried about her mental and emotional state right now, more than anything."

In a statement released Wednesday night, a MultiCare Allenmore official told the station the hospital was on restricted access due to the shooting; by Thursday morning, the hospital was operating normally.

"The emergency department is open for walk-ins, but the waiting room remains closed due to a police investigation," the statement reads, according to KIRO. "Ambulances are still being diverted."

No hospital workers were hurt in the shooting, police told the Times.

Detectives and crime scene technicians were actively investigating the shooting as a homicide, police told the station, adding that no arrests have been made as of early Thursday morning.

Police on Thursday didn't immediately reply to Blaze News' questions regarding the shooter's physical description, if the couple knew the shooter, what sparked the altercation before the shooting, or what kind of gun the shooter used.

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For once, Medicare is trying something that actually saves money

Catholic defiance of Democrat law pays off, sparing priests from the choice of jail or excommunication

Background

Victory

Georgetown Calls In FBI To Investigate ‘Anti-Fascist’ Extremist Group

First-Of-Its-Kind Lawsuit Blaming Oil Companies for Woman's Heat-Wave Death Failed to Mention Her Heart Disease

Man gunned down in ER after he, girlfriend had altercation with shooter outside hospital: Police

Indiana Republicans vote with Democrats to block redistricting — despite Trump's threat to unseat them

Oxford Comms Guru, A Democratic Donor, Very Upset Over Free Beacon Report on Wes Moore

UC Berkeley Agrees To Rehire Israeli Professor, Pay $60,000 To Resolve Discrimination Lawsuit

Karoline Leavitt berates CNN's Kaitlan Collins over inflation and the economy

Background

Victory

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