The Washington State Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) has put out a $1.6 million “Request for Proposal” (RFP) seeking a contractor “to plan and implement a strategic marketing campaign” supporting the Democrats’ failed Long-Term Care payroll tax (i.e. “WA Cares”).  If you remember, one of the first acts of the 2022 legislative session was lawmakers voting to delay implementation of the tax scheme (which greatly benefits the union bosses and bank accounts of the Democrats’ major campaign donors at the Service Employees International Union, which takes dues from home care workers) until after the November elections.

The payroll tax was to begin being collected at the start of 2022, but was delayed due to massive confusion among employees and employers, and the realization that hundreds of thousands of workers in Washington State were going to be forced to pay into a plan which they would never be eligible to receive benefits from.  This even compelled Democrat lawmakers to recognize that the poorly developed (by current Democrat House Speaker Laurie Jinkins) scheme was going to be a very difficult issue to defend before the voters this fall, so they punted its implementation to July 2023.

It is interesting to read in the RFP that the Inslee Administration wants the contractor to market the plan to three distinct groups.  The first is ”near-retirees (those born before 1968).” This is a segment of the population which would be forced to pay into the plan but will not be able to receive benefits, for a worker needs pay the payroll tax for 10 years to be eligible.  The second two target groups are the LGBTQ+ community and women.  This is obviously done for political reasons. They want more activists to support the plan, which the Republicans have pledged to repeal if they gain control of the legislature. The Democrats are using taxpayer money to target women, for this tax is among the many issues (along with public safety, homelessness, inflation, and education) where Democrats have lost support among suburban women.

It is not a coincidence that the RFP for the marketing campaign, which includes TV, radio, and online ads, mailers, and other promotions, states that the campaign is to begin this upcoming August 1^st, which is just as legislative campaigns are ramping up for the primary and general elections.  Thus we can consider this $1.6 million a tidy campaign donation from Washington State taxpayers to Democrat legislative candidates, all of whom support this incredibly flawed and potentially very expensive plan.  This is a clear example of the top-down, “we know better than you do” governing method preferred by the Democrats. They force upon the taxpayers a plan which benefits the Democrat party instead of being lawmakers who respond to the needs of the taxpayers. (Washington State DSHS RFP, Shift’s Newsmaker Interview, KUOW/NPR, and Shift Article)

Car thefts have increased 93% in Washington State since the July 2021 implementation of the Democrats’ disastrous anti-police legislation, and the state is currently on pace to have more than 50,000 cars stolen before the end of this year. The data was released by the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs. The major reason for this huge increase in stolen vehicles is Democrat legislators voting to prohibit police from pursuing criminals, even when officers believe the car is stolen or that a non-violent crime has been committed.

Democrats caved into the demands of their anti-police supporters during the 2022 legislative session (thanks to Senators like Manka Dhingra)  and refused to pass a “fix” to their 2021 anti-police package, even though they well-knew that thousands of citizens’ lives were being negatively impacted by forbidding police to pursue criminals.  Thus, we can expect to see auto thefts continue to climb (along with auto insurance rates) as long as the Democrats control state government. (KOMO News)

Liberal policies in Seattle have caused conditions to deteriorate to the point where QFC grocery stores on Capitol Hill must place locks on the freezers that contain ice cream products to prevent them from being stolen.  Reporter Jonathan Choe visited two of QFC’s Capitol Hill locations, where he had to call customer service to unlock the case so he could purchase a pint of ice cream.  Evidently ice cream is the favorite food of many individuals who are high on illegal drugs.  A store employee informed Choe that the stores were forced to install the locks due to losing up to $30,000 a month from stolen merchandise.  Choe also spoke with new security officers QFC has hired who have been trained to detain individuals who are caught conducting criminal activities. According to the officer, as the result of this change in store policies, criminals now know they will be arrested and have stopped entering the store.  (Jonathan Choe Twitter)

Republican Senate Leader John Braun says that a recent poll by the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce reveals that even the normally very liberal residents of Seattle are lining up more with the priorities of the Republicans than with the Democrats in the Washington State Legislature. Senator Braun said the poll demonstrates that Seattle residents want lower taxes, more police, and an effective plan to reduce homelessness, which is exactly what the Republican lawmakers have sought in Olympia. Senator Braun said that it is telling that 67% of Seattle residents are considering moving out of the city. He said they only have the Democrats to blame for Seattle’s quality of life issues. (Centralia Chronicle)

Former Spokane City Council President Ben Stuckart took time away from committing ethics violations to write a factually incorrect op-ed on why the four lower Snake River dams should be torn down.  The former councilman was a constant source of news items for Shift, as he consistently was being investigated for ethics violations and his campaign supporters routinely broke election laws.  In 2019, he lost a close race to Nadine Woodward to become Mayor of Spokane.

Stuckart’s entire Spokesman-Review opinion piece (which is part of an organized Democrat effort to focus attention on the Snake River dams and away from their multiple policy failings before the elections) is based on the false premise that the dams are causing the extinction of the salmon.  Fish counts at the dams his campaign supporters routinely broke election laws. While Stuckart repeats the false claim that “Those dams burn salmon to generate their power,” the government estimates that 98% of all salmon make it through the dams as they migrate.  Government scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration assert that it is very likely the salmon would have a higher mortality rate if they had to migrate through a free flowing Snake River than climbing the improved fish ladders at the dams.

And like all Democrats, Stuckart fails to mention the devastating impact tearing down the dams would have on the region’s economy and thousands of farmers.  He only has to drive a few miles outside of Spokane to see the huge impact wheat farming has on the economic survival of the “Inland Empire”. Without the dams, the efficient and clean-energy method of transporting the wheat to market by barge would be eliminated. (Spokesman-Review, Shift, and Wheat Letter Blog)

Governor Inslee’s Depart of Transportation is dragging its feet to clear up a large homeless encampment that continues to grow on its property, leaving Spokane residents and Mayor Nadine Woodward frustrated.  Residents of the East Central neighborhood say they don’t allow their kids to play outside as the camp near I-90 continues to grow. Many are considering moving.  Mayor Woodward is working to open shelter space to move the encampment residents and warns they had better leave the encampments.  The mayor said those in the encampment need to be held accountable for their actions. “At some point, we need to be able to tell people — listen, you can’t make this decision for yourself. We’re going to step in and make it for you.” (KXLY)

Will 2022 be the year Republicans take control of the Washington State Legislature?  Polls are showing that voters (especially suburban women) are growing increasingly frustrated with the Democrat Party’s failed public safety, homelessness, education, and tax policies. They are further irritated at the elitist attitude displayed by Governor Inslee (now on Day 774 of his undemocratic abuse of emergency orders) and legislative Democrats who have enabled the governor’s abuse and have repeatedly sought to remove public involvement in the political process.

Here is Shift’s early overview of which legislative districts the GOP has targeted to reach voters ready to change their party preferences in the 2022 elections.  In the Senate, the Republicans will need to pick up three or four seats (depending on whether current Democrat Senator Mark Mullet decides to caucus with the GOP) to gain control.  And in the House, Republican Leader JT Wilcox and his colleagues will need to take nine seats away from the Democrats to make him Speaker for the 2023 legislative session.  (Click to read full Shift article)

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