Bloglander

FROM INLANDER.COM 
• A Spokane police officer has been put on leave for insubordination regarding furniture-moving
• The groundskeeper for the Spokane Indians has gone to the majors
• The shows we’re looking forward to in the New Year
• Washington state’s new poet laureate is from Spokane

• Otter unveils plan to provide healthcare to indigent
During the upcoming legislative session, Idaho lawmakers will consider a $30 million proposal from Gov. Butch that will cover people who are too poor to qualify for Obamacare subsidies nor Medicaid.

• Downtown police precinct closing
The city of Spokane is closing its downtown police precinct. The mayor says the move is to save money. Downtown businesses are unhappy.

• Unresolved in Sandpoint
After a dustup over “inflammatory language,” Sandpoint City Council has tabled a resolution intended to welcome refugees and signal that the town is welcoming place.

• Economy looking up
New employment data shows that payrolls are up and unemployment is down.

•Trump in Sanders’ home town
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump was in Burlington, Vermont, a city where Democratic presidential contender Bernie Sanders served as mayor. Protestors were present at the rally, and Trump suggested they be thrown outside into the frigid Vermont winter without their coats.

• Another twist in Chicago police shooting
Witnesses to the shooting of Laquan McDonald, who was gunned down by Chicago police, were strong-armed into changing their accounts, according to lawyer for the teen’s family.