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Good Morning, Portland! Portland temperatures could hit a balmy 60 degrees today. AND there was a dim glow of sunrise this morning, when I got up at 6 am. I'm cautiously optimistic. Now, let's rage!

IN LOCAL NEWS:
• On Thursday night, Oregon's 2024 short legislative session concluded. It proved notable for the collaborative, bipartisan attitude lawmakers showed, which led to the passage of a number of major policies, like the decision to recriminalize possession of small amounts of drugs, and campaign finance limits. OPB reporter Dirk VanderHart noted that Republicans succeeded in stalling two bills—one on corporate health care another on book bans—to death.

• Multnomah County Board of Commissioners passed a resolution Thursday, calling for a cease-fire in Gaza. The decision comes approximately six months after the county commissioners conflicted with their constituents and one another over what lights to shine on the Morrison bridge, in response to Israel's war on Hamas, which has in the months since killed an estimated 30,000 Palestinians.

• One of the hiccups of the new Amazon Just Walk Out stores at Moda Center... the OLCC doesn't allow self-serve alcohol! Abe Asher reports on this grab n' go debacle. 

• For fans of thinking about a play for days and weeks after: Third Rail Repertory's deft adaptation of Sanctuary City by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Martyna Majok is a gorgeously directed and acted mosaic of lived experience. Theater critic John Rudoff reviewed the play, which is currently staged at CoHo Theatre.

• If you don't know how convoluted the US immigration system is, the marketing for Julio Torres' movie Problemista can help:

@a24 The maze #Problemista ♬ original sound - A24

• The Friday morning ticket drop arrives in just an hour! Our EverOut calendar team put together a list of seats you should scoop this morning—what do I think looks good? THANK YOU FOR ASKING. I would personally call attention to Life Be Lifin' starring Monét X Change at Aladdin Theater and the addition of Brother Comatose to 2024 Americana Harvest Fest on Topaz Farm.

• Last year's Farewell Festival gave is a lot of new favs. Win tickets to this year's by entering our ticket give away—YOU'RE WELCOME.

 • A note I left myself earlier in the week reads: "It's time to PUMP the HUMP." I believe this refers to the 2024 Hump! Film Fest: Part One, which presents Portland audiences with an opportunity to watch a selection of erotic film shorts at Revolution Hall this weekend and next. The Mercury is part of the company that puts it on, and I like to call us "the best little news publication an amateur pornography festival built," but it's really just one of the money-making schemes that sustains us.

IN NATIONAL NEWS:
• And now for the President Biden State of the Union Energy Levels Discourse: Psyche! I don't care about that. Biden gave his annual State of the Union address last night. Opening the night with a short history story à la Rachel Maddow, he harkened back to Franklin Roosevelt's 1941 "Four Freedoms" speech, which urged Congress and the American people to abandon the isolationist mindset they'd been in since WWI, and get out there and punch some nazis, to paraphrase. Biden stated that moving away from an isolationist mindset was also his goal, fired shots at "a former Republican president," and spent a good amount of time contrasting his policies and efforts with those of former President Donald Trump. Biden wants to support Ukraine (standing ovations) and reinstate federal protections for the right to abortion (standing ovations). In last night's speech he stressed that the economy is good, so good, and American ingenuity is good (so good). He proudly called himself the first American president to stand on a picket line. Somewhere in there he saved a factory in an American small town—which is somewhat customary for the State of the Union. 

• The US economy added 275,000 jobs in February. Yeah, the portrait is more complicated than that, and the jobs in abundance right now are actually frontline and blue collar jobs, Glassdoor’s chief economist told the New York Times.

• Associated Press reports  that a new investigation into the devastating 2022 school shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas found that none of the City of Uvalde police officers violated department policy. The report was commissioned by the city council and conducted by a former police detective from Austin, so I'm not sure who it's meant to convince?

• Sad news for my ET-lovin' friends:

• [THING] Speed Comparison set to Katy Perry's "Dark Horse ft. Juicy J" is really becoming a niche TikTok phenomenon. I've been watching this dinosaur one during bouts of sleeplessness, and it never fails to sooth my weary soul. This is the only non-cursed speed comparison video because  it's not common knowledge how dinosaurs actually moved—for comparison, the dog one.

@amazingocean5 Dinosaur Speed Comparison , Which dinosaur do you think can run the fastest?  #speed #compassion #animals #explore #dinosaur #dinosaurs #fyp ♬ Dark Horse(抖音版) - 宸荨