Democrat lawmakers let down their extreme “green” friends during the 2015 legislative session. House Democrats did not even bring Jay Inslee’s cap-and-tax scheme to a vote. Inslee could not muster enough votes to pass the scheme out of the Democrat-controlled state House, so Democrats leadership did not bother bringing it to a vote.
And, Democrat lawmakers even agreed to Senate Republicans’ consumer protection provision—what Inslee labeled a “poison pill”—as part of the transportation package. As a result, Inslee can no longer bypass the state Legislature and jam his fuel mandate through by executive order.
Rather than pump more and more of taxpayers’ hard earned dollars into ineffective “green solutions,” the transportation package prioritizes road construction and highway funding. That, apparently, infuriates greenies. Check out a recent blog entry on a far-left green website,
“When Jay Inslee was elected governor of Washington in November 2012, euphoria swept over the state’s environmental and climate community. Finally a governor who would make climate one of his priority issues!
“In the wake of the 2015 legislative session the mood could not be more different. Not only was the governor’s carbon cap-and-trade bill turned back, failing to gain even a vote in the Democrat-controlled House let alone the Republican Senate – A transportation package which effectively barred implementation of a low-carbon fuel standard also empowered one of the largest highway building binges in state history…
“A state challenged to maintain its existing roads opted for massive growth of new highways while allocating only $1.3 billion to maintenance and a paltry $657 million to alternatives such as bike lanes, van pools and transit over the 15-year life of the package…”
Oh, the horror of state lawmakers producing a transportation package that prioritizes actual solutions to traffic congestions rather than… bike lanes. Though the extreme greenies are certainly upset with Democrat lawmakers, they are also lashing out on Inslee and, surprisingly enough, extreme environmental organizations. It appears that even our green governor and his supporters have not escaped their wrath. Via the blog,
“But ultimately, the draw of an 11.7-cent gas tax increase conceded by the Republicans, new road construction favored by business, labor and ports, and Sound Transit funding, caused Inslee to back down…
“The environmental community still stood in opposition, but only to the “poison pill,” not to highway expansion. They were willing to sign off on new roads to gain transit funding. Emails sent by both Washington Environmental Council and Climate Solutions contained the same language…
“In the end, the governor, legislators and mainstream environmental groups such as Washington Environmental Council and Climate Solutions went along with the highway lobby and global warming lock-in.”
Notice the entitled language used. The extreme green groups were “willing to sign off on new roads.” As if the permission of these green groups is needed in order for lawmakers to fund the roads taxpayers actually use as part of their daily commutes.
The blog post goes on to demand, “How did this happen?” Of course, by “this” the blog is referring to a transportation package that prioritizes roads. Via the blog,
“How did this happen? I believe it goes to a theory of change that does not envision or work for the deep social and economic transformations needed to truly address the climate crisis. Instead of building demand for systemic change from the bottom-up, by real community organizing and public education, it works from the top-down. Elect good politicians. Preserve access. Work for incremental reforms that at best fall short of the scientific necessities for climate stabilization. Hope and pray we can eventually gain the political power to do the job that needs to be done. Meanwhile cut the deals that we must. Even if the final outcome is irrational and moves us backwards, as has been boldly underscored with the transportation package…
“In the Washington legislative session just ended climate was roadkill, thrown under the road builders’ bulldozers by the governor and Democrat legislators, enabled by their environmental community allies. This should tell us all we need to know about shallow theories of change, and move us to work for something deeper. ”
That “deeper” change is to start at the local level. Rooting the cause of extreme environmentalist “in actual local communities” could “make the difference in elections and hold politicians’ feet to the fire to support real change after they are elected,” according to the blog.
Here’s another idea. Perhaps if these extreme greenies step outside of the deluded world they live in, they’ll realize and understand the day-to-day issues that effect working families across Washington State. They’ll understand that taxpayers are fed-up with the broken promises of transit agencies. And, they’ll understand that taxpayers don’t want more bike lanes for a simple reason: bike lanes won’t get them home faster after a long day at work.
If extreme greenies believe prioritizing roads and highways is “irrational,” they really need to examine what they view as rational.
