Chehalis teen officially announces candidacy for governor
Ethan Brunton, 15, officially announced his candidacy to be the next governor of Washington on Wednesday, July 16. For the event, Brunton gave a short speech in the conference room of the Vernetta Smith Chehalis Timberland Library where he pitched himself as young, bold and "grounded in truth."
During the speech, he first addressed his age. While the young political hopeful is not yet eligible to take up residence in the Governor's Mansion, he will turn 18 just in time for the 2028 election. He said he sees his youth as an asset, noting his energy and disconnection from mainstream political establishments.
"I'm done waiting for change, so I'm stepping up," Brunton said. "Age doesn't define leadership; conviction does."
Brunton outlined his political platform, focusing his talking points on public safety, education and financial accountability and promising to fully fund the police, roll back government regulation and fight and advocate for the everyday worker and family.
Brunton delivered his speech with vigor and passion and made sure to give the event an air of patriotism, flying an American flag and asking attendees — which included just two Chronicle journalists — to stand for the national anthem to start off the event.
Brunton faces a few major obstacles as a gubernatorial candidate, with possibly the most significant being his age. While what he says about energy and new ideas stemming from his youth may be true, his young age also means he cannot yet accept campaign donations or participate in local elections as an active voter.
Brunton has also yet to develop a local following.
Brunton's campaign announcement comes early enough in the political cycle to give him plenty of time to keep working at it. The political hopeful has three years still to hone his skills, build his following and decide exactly what he plans to offer Washington state as a candidate for governor.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
16 minutes ago
- Yahoo
ICE Chief Doubles Down On Arresting Undocumented People With No Criminal History
President Donald Trump once promised to focus on the 'worst of the worst' as he sought to ramp up immigrant deportations, but a recent interview from his acting ICE chief underscored just how far the administration has departed from that vow. ICE is doubling down on arresting undocumented immigrants without criminal histories, Todd Lyons, the acting head of the federal body, told CBS's Camilo Montoya-Galvez in an exclusive interview. 'Under this administration, we have opened up the whole aperture of the immigration portfolio,' he said. 'If we encounter someone that isn't here in the country legally, we will take them into custody.' That approach marks a sharp break from the policies of the Biden administration, which directed agents to apprehend undocumented immigrants with criminal backgrounds, those who posed a national security threat and those who had entered the U.S more recently, CBS notes. It's also counter to claims that the Trump administration once made about focusing on those with serious criminal records, and prompted sharp blowback as ICE agents have targeted everyone from a high school student driving to sports practice to immigrants attending routine court hearings. Of the roughly 100,000 deportations ICE has documented between January 1 and June 24, about 70,000 involved a person with a criminal conviction, a CBS review of internal government data found. And just a small fraction of those who faced criminal convictions did so for violent offenses, Montoya-Galvez noted. (Living in the U.S. without documentation is a civil offense and not a criminal offense, Vanity Fair notes.) 'We can't look at it just based on violence,' Lyons said in the CBS interview. A July Axios review also determined that noncriminal ICE arrests increased in June, and that 'people without criminal charges or convictions made up an average of 47% of daily ICE arrests' in the early portion of that month. Lyons claimed in the interview that deporting immigrants who are 'the worst of the worst' was still a chief priority for the administration, and DHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Lyons also outlined other ways that ICE will ramp up enforcement as it receives a staggering funding infusion from Republicans' recent tax bill, which will make it the highest funded federal law enforcement agency in the U.S. The agency will continue workplace raids, despite the concerns that have been raised about racial profiling and the trauma they've caused for immigrant communities. It will also penalize companies that hire undocumented immigrants, he said. 'We're focusing on these American companies that are actually exploiting these laborers,' Lyons said. Lyons noted, too, that agents will continue to wear masks during enforcement actions, due to concerns for their privacy and personal safety, a move that has garnered criticism for shielding officers from accountability and inspiring fear in immigrants who are approached by them. 'I'm not a proponent of the masks; however, if that's a tool that the men and women of ICE use to keep themselves and their families safe, then I'll allow it,' he said. Such moves come as the president has reportedly set a goal of a million deportations by the end of this year, one which Lyons said was 'possible' to achieve as ICE's sweeping and controversial tactics continue unabated. 'We hear a lot about the administration deporting the worst of the worst. And as far as we can tell from all available data up to this point, the data has not really supported that,' Austin Kocher, a professor at Syracuse University, told ABC News in July. Related... Volunteers Flock To Support Migrants Targeted By ICE At Immigration Courts Army Veteran And U.S. Citizen Arrested In California Immigration Raid Old Clip Of Stephen Miller Praising Torture Resurface Amid Aggressive Immigration Enforcement
New York Times
18 minutes ago
- New York Times
Trump Urges Washington and Cleveland Sports Teams to Revert to Native American Names
President Trump urged the Washington Commanders on Sunday to revert to their former name and threatened to derail a deal for the N.F.L. team to build a new stadium in Washington, D.C., if it didn't submit to his demand. The Commanders dropped their 'Redskins' name in 2020 amid pressure from corporate sponsors and after lobbying by Native American groups, who argued that the team's name and logo amplified racist stereotypes. On Sunday morning, as he played golf at his club in Washington, Mr. Trump posted a message on Truth Social pushing the team to reverse course. 'The Washington 'Whatever's' should IMMEDIATELY change their name back to the Washington Redskins Football Team,' Mr. Trump wrote. In his posts, Mr. Trump also urged the Cleveland Guardians baseball team, which changed its name from the Cleveland Indians in 2021, to follow suit. In one post, Mr. Trump claimed, without evidence, that there was 'a big clamoring for this' and that 'our great Indian people, in massive numbers, want this to happen.' Hours later, in another post, Mr. Trumpthreatened to impose 'a restriction' on the Commanders by thwarting the deal announced in April for the team to build a new stadium in Washington. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Wall Street Journal
18 minutes ago
- Wall Street Journal
Europe Prepares for a U.S. Trade Fight
BRUSSELS—The European Union thought it was on the verge of a deal with the U.S. to keep tariffs in check. Now it is readying a counterattack. U.S. officials told the EU's trade chief this past week that they expect President Trump to demand further concessions from the bloc to get an agreement, including a baseline tariff on most European goods that could be in the range of 15% or higher, according to people briefed on the talks.
