Jim Brunner

Jim Brunner

@jimbrunner.bsky.social

Seattle Times politics reporter Got a tip? Signal: 206-214-8789 https://www.seattletimes.com/author/jim-brunner/

6.5K followers650 following545 posts

Jim Brunner reposted

David Corn
@davidcorn.bsky.social

This is a matter that a congressional investigation could clearly find out what happened.

The Editorial Board@editorialboard.bsky.social

1. The Wall Street Journal and CBS News confirmed that Elon Musk was involved in the decision to stall out Starshield, the military version of Starlink, when Ukraine needed it most. www.cbsnews.com/news/elon-mu...

cbsnews.comMusk chose to restrict Ukraine's access to SpaceX satellite network, sources sayA decision by Elon Musk led to restrictions on Ukraine's use of SpaceX's satellite communications network, people familiar with the matter told CBS News.

Jim Brunner reposted

Jake Grumbach
@jakemgrumbach.bsky.social

Replying to @jakemgrumbach.bsky.social

We found that as of right now 73% of your campaign donation goes back to the consultants and vendors (!!!), four times more than just 20 years ago. Only 13% to ads. Even I was shocked.

Jim Brunner reposted

The Downballot
@the-downballot.com

The team at @fiftyplusone.news obliterated not one but two "polling" firms this week: one that admitted to faking its data just as 50+1 about to publish an exposé, and another (with ties to the first) that vanished into thin air after 50+1 started investigating it. Follow them. It's a must.

FiftyPlusOne.news@fiftyplusone.news

NEWS: The website and social media accounts for pollster SoCal Strategies have been taken offline after FiftyPlusOne reached out to the firm Tuesday to verify data quality and potential ties to Wedgewood Polls, which admitted to fabricating data this week. blog.fiftyplusone.news/p/more-polls...

blog.fiftyplusone.newsMore pollster funny business uncovered by FiftyPlusOneA shady pollster from sunny California just disappeared from the internet
Jim Brunner
@jimbrunner.bsky.social

Bluesky barely rates here. 4%

John Gramlich@johngramlich.bsky.social

From new @pewresearch.org study: Partisan differences in Americans' use of various social media platforms Notably, there are no major differences in use of X/Twitter: 20% of Republicans and 19% of Democrats say they use it. www.pewresearch.org/internet/fac...

Jim Brunner reposted

The Western Edge
@thewesternedge.bsky.social

After ballot boxes in Oregon and Washington were bombed in 2024, an investigation ran cold. New records show election workers and even local news directors got in on the hunt for who did it... but turned up nothing. www.thewesternedge.media/p/the-alien-...

thewesternedge.mediaThe Alien Man and The Mystery of the Ballot Box FiresNew public records obtained by The Western Edge offer insight into a set of ballot box fires that shook the 2024 presidential election in Oregon and Washington.

Jim Brunner reposted

Mike Baker
@mikebaker.bsky.social

NEW: O.J. Simpson. A secret informant. The missing murder weapon. An accomplice tale. And law enforcement records that were kept secret for 30 years — until now. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/18/u...

nytimes.comO.J. Simpson, a Secret Informant and a Decades-Old Mystery (Gift Article)An “extremely reliable” informant told authorities about the missing murder weapon, according to newly unsealed records. The informant’s brother told The Times his sibling was at the crime scene.
Jim Brunner
@jimbrunner.bsky.social

NEW: 'Millionaires tax' supporters, including Gov. Ferguson, insist it won't be expanded to lower incomes. But some Democrats are not sticking to the script & say they want a broader based income tax. www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...

seattletimes.comWill Dems expand WA’s ‘millionaires tax’? Some are talking about itSupporters of WA's 'millionaires tax' insist it's not a Trojan horse for a broader state income tax, But some prominent Democrats have gone off script.
Jim Brunner
@jimbrunner.bsky.social

Westneat: In the latest Civiqs tracking poll of Washington state, Trump’s approval is at 25%, with disapproval at 69% — a net negative 44 points. “Maybe Richard Nixon got that low, right before he resigned?” says longtime pollster Stuart Elway... www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...

seattletimes.comIt’s the ‘black hole theory’ as Trump hits historic low in WAPresident Trump’s poll numbers have sunk so low in WA they form a sort of political “event horizon,” a black hole that can’t be escaped, Danny Westneat writes.

Jim Brunner reposted

Karen Yourish
@karenyourish.bsky.social

NEW: President Trump has cast doubt on U.S. elections at least once on 440 days of his second term, nearly three-quarters of his days in office. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

nytimes.comAll the Ways Trump Has Attacked Elections In His Second Term (Gift Article)President Trump has attacked the integrity of U.S. elections on more than 70 percent of the days since he returned to office, repeatedly making false claims. Here’s how he does it.

Jim Brunner reposted

Kate Starbird
@katestarbird.bsky.social

The latest “rigged election” strategy from the Trump administration involves producing a series of strategically timed arrests of non-citizens for alleged voter fraud & promoting those events to feed the false narrative that non-citizen voter fraud is widespread. uwcip.substack.com/p/federal-fr...

uwcip.substack.comFederal Fraud Charges Resonate With Debunked Non-Citizen Voting NarrativesA flurry of recent charges and press conferences amplifying alleged non-citizen voting make a small phenomena seem bigger

Jim Brunner reposted

ProPublica
@propublica.org

NEW: The Trump administration keeps denying and downplaying that immigration agents have been detaining Americans. It’s wrong. We’ve found more than 500 U.S. citizens have been held against their will, including handcuffed or held at gunpoint.

projects.propublica.orgMore Than 500 U.S. Citizens Have Been Detained, Including Handcuffed or Held at Gunpoint, in Trump’s Immigration Crackdown — ProPublicaThe government doesn’t track how often immigration officers detain U.S. citizens. So ProPublica did. We’ve found more than 500 Americans who were held against their will during this Trump administrati...

Jim Brunner reposted

Phil Lewis
@phillewis.bsky.social

WASHINGTON (AP) — DC judge permanently dismisses case charging ex-Olympian with vandalizing Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.

Jim Brunner
@jimbrunner.bsky.social

Absolutely dismal numbers for Tina Kotek...

Alex Zielinski@alexzee.bsky.social

"OPB’s poll suggested the governor has only a slightly better image than Trump among Oregon voters: a 38% favorability rating to the president’s 37%."

Jim Brunner reposted

Jim Lokay
@jimlokay.com

If you want to really know how the outrage machine gets fired up: 1. Schmitt plans to drop “bombshell” on Smith 2. Someone plants story that Schmitt is a Vance VP contender to run same day 3. Right-wing Twittersphere gets talking points 4. Schmitt steps in it 5. Scheduled tweets go out anyway

Jim Brunner reposted

Sahil Kapur
@sahilkapur.bsky.social

A phenomenal moment in the Senate. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., claims he has evidence Jack Smith went to a HAWKS game in Atlanta. Smith denies it. Schmitt declares he has busted Jack Smith for perjury. Smith, vexed, says he went to HAWKEYES game in Maryland. WATCH IN FULL, UNINTERRUPTED

Jim Brunner
@jimbrunner.bsky.social

That impact statement was preserved on the ballot by a 4-4 split state Supreme Court decision. If that had gone the other way, tax supporters would be sweating bullets right now...

Jim Brunner
@jimbrunner.bsky.social

Truly bonkers stuff from @propublica.org report on Trump's initial idea for virtually shutting down mail ballots: "requiring all ballots to be delivered exclusively through certified mail." www.propublica.org/article/trum...

propublica.orgThe Untold Origins of Trump’s Plan to Sharply Restrict Mail-In VotingProPublica’s reporting reveals for the first time the extent of the White House’s role in trying to dictate how mail-in ballots are processed, spurring behind-the-scenes drama that played out for near...

Jim Brunner reposted

Aman Batheja
@amanbatheja.bsky.social

Politico: Trump is airing a pro-Trump midterms ad on TV that -includes “paid for by the U.S. government” disclaimer text -features a song by an artist who says they didn’t approve it’s use and are now looking for a lawyer

politico.comTrump administration launches pro-Trump TV ad ahead of midtermsThe 30-second ad, apparently paid for by U.S. tax dollars, features photos and videos of Trump, the American flag and military aircraft.

Jim Brunner reposted

Faine Greenwood
@faineg.com

Please read this article on the massive weirdos who are largely running the massively powerful and big-money AI industry in the U.S. today.

This post is unavailable.

Jim Brunner reposted

Mark Z. Barabak
@markzbarabak.bsky.social

NEW: Richard Nixon famously declared, ‘I am not a crook.’ Donald Trump, his poll numbers slumping toward Nixonian levels, is urging his supporters to act like crooks. His summons to "cheat like hell" in the midterm lays bare the president's cynicism and hypocrisy. www.latimes.com/politics/new...

latimes.comCommentary: 'Cheat like hell.' Trump's summons to supporters lays bare his cynicism, hypocrisyRichard M. Nixon famously declared, 'I am not a crook.' Donald J. Trump, his approval rating slumping toward Nixonian levels, is urging his backers to act like crooks in November's election.

Jim Brunner reposted

Freedom of the Press Foundation
@freedom.press

The Pentagon Papers case rejected a prior restraint aimed at specific documents claimed to pose national security risks. Anyone who argues "national security" are magic words justifying banning three news outlets should be laughed out of court and sanctioned.

washingtonpost.comTrump tells judge media ban is necessary to protect national securityAhead of a court hearing, the administration cited reports about the White House ballroom and the Iran war to defend its ban against CNN, MS NOW and Politico.

Jim Brunner reposted

Peter Baker
@peterbakernyt.bsky.social

The first architect on Trump's ballroom who quit last year had clashed with the president on design flaws, arguing that the plan violated building safety codes. "I am the code," Trump replied. www.washingtonpost.com/investigatio...

washingtonpost.com‘I am the code’: Trump clashed with ballroom architect over safety issuesJames McCrery II resigned in October after warning that the president was insisting on designs that violated fire and safety codes.

Jim Brunner reposted

Kate Starbird
@katestarbird.bsky.social

Rumors about “rigged elections" are now a fixture of U.S. elections, leading to diminished trust in election results & democracy (broadly). These rumors can sometimes be hard to debunk, esp. in their early stages. Our UW team has identified the 6 common ways that election integrity rumors mislead:

Jim Brunner reposted

McSweeney's
@mcsweeneys.net

"Unions might be a good idea at other workplaces, but it just so happens that they’re actually not a good idea at this workplace—where, coincidentally, I just so happen to own a substantial share of the company’s equity." buff.ly/xIVz3wT

buff.lyI Support Unions, but They’re Just Not the Right Fit for the Company I Happen to Own“Unions might be a good idea at other workplaces, but it just so happens that they’re actually not a good idea at this workplace—where, coincidentally, I jus...

Jim Brunner reposted

Matthew Gertz
@mattgertz.bsky.social

1. This is a naked attack on press freedom by a president who hates it. 2. There are limits to the president's ability to carry out this threat thanks to the First Amendment. 3. It's also a threat to the "Other Fake News Media Outlets" who can face similar punishment based on their reporting.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com

Trump: "I am proud to announce that, effective immediately, I am banning Fake News CNN, MSNOW, and Politico ... from the White House as a result of their constant 'reporting' FAKE NEWS!"