Hey – he did something right! Governor Inslee has finally delayed the ban on plastic bags which his fellow liberal Democrats jammed through at the end of the 2020 legislative session.  The ban, which will likely increase water and air pollution, was to begin  on January 1, and would caused even more strain for businesses already hampered by Governor Inslee’s emergency order restrictions.  Last March, many policy makers pointed out the obvious health and business concerns in imposing the ban at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.  They encouraged the governor to veto the bill, but Inslee refused to listen to anybody who challenged his “green” thinking, and instead sided with the environmental special interest groups (which have supplied him with plenty of campaign cash over the years).  The governor’s latest order delays the ban until February 1^st (as if 31 days is all that is needed for the ban to make any sense, or to resolve the many problems the ban will create). (OPB/AP and Washington Policy Center)

Gubernatorial candidate Loren Culp continues to waste his donors’ money mounting a baseless effort to overturn the 2020 election results.  Culp, whose campaign to become Washington State governor peaked in the primary, before he went on to lose the general election by 545,000 votes, continues to seek donations. He claims that the money is to mount a legal challenge which is not based on any evidence and no respected legal expert supports. Others think the money is flowing just to Culp and his collection of consultants to line their own pockets. Because Culp and his campaign refuse to answer any questions about the questionable spending, many people continue to wonder about where the money went,, since it primarily seems a financial windfall for a couple of consultants who had never before been active in Washington campaigns, and Culp himself. (Seattle Times, Secretary of State election results, and Culp Campaign Public Disclosure Commission reports)

The Washington Policy Center’s Jason Mercier again proves his well-researched claim that Governor Inslee’s proposal for an income tax on capital gains is unconstitutional.  The Kitsap Sun carried a Mercier op-ed pointing out that  a state income tax is unconstitutional in Washington, and the IRS and all other 49 states categorizes a capital gains tax as an income tax.  Also, every state which does have a capital gains tax does not consider it a reliable source of revenue.  Mercier’s research of publicly disclosed records also turned up the Democrats’ goal behind the current capital gains tax legislation “is to set up a lawsuit in hopes of imposing a graduated income tax without a constitutional amendment.” A constitutional amendment would require the vote of the public, which has previously defeated 10 income tax proposals. Winning a lawsuit only takes convincing 5 of the 9 liberal State Supreme Court justices to ignore existing law to advance their political agenda. (Kitsap Sun)

Brandi Kruse lashed out at those Seattle liberals predictably angry about the latest KOMO News report, “The Fight for the Soul of Seattle.”  The 90-minute documentary showed in vivid detail the failure of Seattle liberalism in combatting the growing drug, crime, and homelessness problems in the city – in fact, the problems have exploded and continue to grow under liberal policies.  As expected, many liberals claimed the problems do not exist to the extent shown in the report, and/or they claimed it was just right-wing propaganda from a Sinclair family-owned station. Apparently those complaining have not driven by any of the countless number of city parks and open spaces filled with tents, or looked underneath freeways and bridges to see the cruel reality the people featured in the KOMO report  are suffering. Kruse said, “Blaming a news organization for literally showing you pictures of what is happening in your own city is not only sad, but it is cruel, and it is lazy. These people exist.  They are not propaganda. They are humans and they are suffering.  Sometimes people need to be shown that suffering in painful vivid details, so they cannot ignore it anymore.  Because if you truly care about helping these people, it starts with acknowledging that there is a problem.  A problem that cannot be blamed on the press.  Because these problems aren’t fake.  The only thing fake is the outrage directed at those who care enough to be honest about what is really happening.” (Q13’s The Divide, KOMO’s The Fight for the Soul of Seattle, and Shift)

After Friday’s “sweep” of the homeless encampment in Capitol Hill’s Cal Anderson Park, families were seen playing in the park and local businesses experienced a sharp increase in customers.  The news report did, of course, find one Seattle liberal to quote who was against the sweep, saying it was cruel to force the encampment’s residents out during the holidays.  Apparently, she was unaware (or it didn’t fit her ideology) that every person living in the encampment had been provided numerous opportunities to receive shelter from city officials.  Those that stayed behind declined these offers, some because it would have required them to be drug-free.  This was the third time the park was cleared of a homeless encampment since it was the center of the CHAZ/CHOP last summer.  Local residents are hopeful city officials will be able to keep the park open and available for everyone not planning to spend the night to enjoy. (KOMO News)

The head of the Seattle Education Association (SEA) is blaming the Democrat politicians, which teachers’ union money has elected, for not stopping the spread of the coronavirus and for underfunding schools.  SEA President Jennifer Matter, while regurgitating the union’s usual selfish arguments (which ignore scientific data and health officials’ advice), demanded schools remain closed.  Ms. Matter then lashed out at the underfunding of schools (despite her union members being able to make an annual salary of $116,000, plus great benefits, working less than 40 weeks a year) in an op-ed that appears in the Seattle Times.  Yet it is the Democrat politicians her organization has financially backed who have controlled the Governor’s mansion and the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction since the mid-1980’s, along with both bodies of the legislature for two-thirds of that time, and thus control the funding of schools. And, since Governor Inslee has conducted one-man rule since March during the pandemic, Ms. Matter must be blaming the governor for failing to control the virus.  At the local level, one would also need to go back to at least the 1980’s to find the last Republican on the Seattle School Board.  If liberal Democrats are causing the Seattle teachers’ union so many problems, why do they keep supporting them in every campaign? (Seattle Times op-ed and Seattle School District Teachers Pay Schedule)

Seattle Times research of health records reveals that the COVID-19 death rate in Eastern Washington is twice the death rate on the West side of the state.  The mortality rate West of the Cascades is 33.6 deaths out of 100,000 residents, while the rate on the East side is 66.9 out of 100,000.  The research also found that both San Juan and Wahkiakum counties have experienced no deaths to the virus while Yakima County has a death rate of 118.9 per 100,000 residents. Yakima county has experienced 305 deaths due to COVID, which is nearly 10% of the state’s total. (Seattle Times)

According to the Washington Hospitality Association (WHA), at least 40 Tri-Cities restaurants and bars have closed due to Governor Inslee’s restrictive orders.  Nearly all of the closures are locally owned establishments. The WHA claims that more than 2,500 restaurants have closed across Washington State during the pandemic. (Walla Walla Union-Bulletin)

In an email from his campaign, Attorney General Bob Ferguson makes this proclamation – “When corporations no longer need to compete and innovate, consumers suffer.”  That is a curious statement from the big-government Democrat, whose desires to become Washington’s governor are a poorly kept secret.  While the AG is talking about Facebook in this case, does he extend this philosophy to government as well?  Does this mean Ferguson will support efforts to privatize many government services if it means that competition and innovation will improve services to residents? Nah, the unions would never let him get away with that. (Bob Ferguson Campaign email)

Shift’s Newsmaker Interview last Friday was with newly elected Senate Republican Leader John Braun (Centralia).  After a week of Governor Jay Inslee releasing his wish list – an “equity package,” a Low Carbon Fuel Standard, a state income tax proposal, and other higher-spending budget plans (all of which will make it more expensive to live in Washington State), Senator Braun provides his thoughts on the Democrats’ legislative agenda for the 2021 session. The Republican Leader, who has been the GOP’s chief budget writer, also gives his insight into what needs to be done for the thousands of Washington State employers and workers who have been negatively impacted by Governor Inslee’s shutdown orders, and on legislators’ efforts to stop any governor’s future abuse of their emergency powers. (Newsmaker Interview)

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