Public sector unions are bankrolling virtually the entire campaign to kill Initiative 645, the measure that would repeal Washington’s new income tax.

According to Public Disclosure Commission records, three union contributions make up almost all the money flowing to “No on 645.” The Washington Federation of State Employees alone dropped $1 million — half the total. SEIU 775 Ballot Fund and SEIU Initiative Fund each kicked in $500,000. Beyond those three checks, the campaign has only a handful of tiny donations between $20 and $110.

These are the same unions that stand to benefit most from the tax. The 9.9% levy on income over $1 million is expected to generate $3–4 billion a year, most of which pours into the state general fund that pays for the programs, salaries, and contracts these unions fight to expand.

Let’s Go Washington founder Brian Heywood didn’t mince words: the exclusive union funding “tells you absolutely who’s going to benefit from an income tax.” They’re not spending big because they love children and small businesses — they’re protecting their access to the trough.

This is the predictable pattern under decades of one-party Democratic rule in Olympia. Unions help elect Democrats, Democrats pass taxes and spending that enrich the unions, and the cycle repeats. Now that voters have a chance to push back with I-645, the public-sector special interests are writing the checks to stop them.

Washington taxpayers should pay attention. When the groups that stand to gain the most from higher taxes are the ones funding the opposition, the “fairness” rhetoric starts to look a lot more like self-interest. Read more at The Center Square.

Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez is once again struggling to maintain her carefully cultivated “moderate” image in Washington’s competitive 3rd Congressional District.

While the House debated the National Defense Authorization Act, Perez voted against two straightforward amendments from Rep. Nancy Mace: one to ban biological males from competing on girls’ athletic teams run by the Department of War, and another to block taxpayer funding for transgender procedures for servicemembers. Even some House Democrats supported the measures. Roughly 70-80% of Americans oppose men in women’s sports, making this an easy vote for anyone actually in touch with voters.

Instead, Perez sided with the radical gender ideology wing of her party. NRCC Spokesman Christian Martinez put it bluntly: she is “for they/them, not for Washington families.”

This is the same representative who has spent years selling herself as a grease-stained mechanic fighting for working people — while her family’s auto shop sits across the river in Oregon and her record shows deep ties to the Washington State Democratic Party’s progressive apparatus. She’s facing a primary challenge from the further-left and trailing Republican State Sen. John Braun in recent polling.

In a purple district that could help decide control of Congress, Perez is caught between her progressive base and the voters who actually live in Southwest Washington. Her latest votes make clear which side she’s choosing. The “moderate” brand is looking more like a campaign prop every day. Read more at Seattle Red.

The Washington Supreme Court quietly rewrote jury selection so that a potential juror’s open distrust of police is a presumptively invalid reason to remove them from a case.

General Rule 37, adopted by the court in 2018, lists seven reasons that cannot be used to strike a juror if an “objective observer” might view race or ethnicity as a factor — including expressing distrust of law enforcement or believing officers engage in racial profiling.

Mason County Superior Court Judge Dave Stevens, who is running for the court’s Position 3 seat, calls the rule exactly what it looks like: judicial social engineering that never faces a public vote.

Before GR 37, a juror who admitted they could not be fair to law enforcement because they believed officers are corrupt or lie would be removed for bias. Now, if that juror is a racial or ethnic minority, the same admitted bias is protected. Stevens points out the double standard: jurors with strong religious views can still be struck, but certain groups enjoy special protection for anti-police attitudes.

The stakes are obvious in any case that relies on police testimony. A juror who walks in believing officers lie is already weighing that evidence before a single witness is sworn.

This is how the progressive-dominated Washington Supreme Court reshapes the justice system — not through open debate in the legislature, but through administrative rules most voters never hear about. Five seats are on the ballot this year. Primary ballots are already out. Voters who care about fair trials and equal treatment under the law have a rare chance to push back. Read more at Seattle Red.

Seattle City Council members unanimously approved a plan that would more than double the city’s transit-dedicated sales tax — pushing Seattle’s total sales tax rate to 10.7%, the highest among major U.S. cities.

If voters approve the levy in November, the tax jumps from 0.15% to 0.3%, adding another 30 cents on every $100 spent. The 10-year measure is projected to raise about $1.4 billion, most of it going to expand bus service in “underserved” neighborhoods under an explicit equity framework.

Councilman Bob Kettle was the only one expressing real concern about the cumulative tax burden on residents already facing high property taxes, utility rates, and cost of living. His attempt to scale the hike back was shut down.

Supporters, led by Mayor Katie Wilson and Councilman Rob Saka, framed the tax increase as an investment in working families and a “cleaner, more accessible future.” Critics note that Seattle already pours hundreds of millions into transit while reliability and ridership remain chronic problems.

This is progressive governance in action: ignore the existing tax load, reject any attempt at restraint, and sell another expensive levy as moral necessity. Seattle residents already pay some of the highest costs in the country. Now City Hall wants them to pay even more so politicians can claim they’re expanding equity one bus route at a time.

Voters will decide in November whether the highest sales tax in America is the price they’re willing to pay for more of the same. Read more at Center Square.

Even KUOW is recognizing what Shift WA readers know: Washington’s 3rd Congressional District is shaping up to be one of the most competitive House races in the country this fall.

Republican State Sen. John Braun is emerging as a strong, mainstream challenger to two-term Democrat Marie Gluesenkamp Perez. Braun focuses on pocketbook issues — keeping taxes low, controlling energy costs, and helping small businesses — and has been endorsed by President Trump.

Meanwhile, Perez continues to face questions about her carefully crafted blue-collar image and progressive voting record while fending off a primary challenge from the left. Recent polling has shown her trailing Braun in the purple district.

With primary ballots already in voters’ hands, this is one of the few true swing seats that could help decide control of the House. Braun’s combination of real-world business experience and legislative leadership is giving Republicans a genuine opportunity to flip the seat. Read KUOW’s take on the race here.