Dramatic events involving a just-released Western State Hospital patient and a stolen school bus clearly illustrate the dangerous impacts of the police “reform” measures jammed through by Democrat lawmakers during the 2021 legislative session. The extreme package was hastily created (with nearly no involvement from law enforcement agencies) by Democrat lawmakers attempting to placate their violent liberal supporters who rioted in Seattle last summer. The far-Left continues to celebrate the success in defunding the police, despite the surge in crime we all see.

In what will likely be the first of many such incidents threatening the safety of Washington residents due to the poorly constructed ”reforms”, a recently released mental patient stole a school bus in Leavenworth on Saturday, and was soon pursued by law enforcement on Highway 2.  Besides stealing a vehicle, the suspect also committed driving infractions, yet law enforcement stated the new police reforms laws forced them to stop pursuit because the situation did not meet the criteria for police to pursue a vehicle.

The suspect drove approximately 90 miles to Moses Lake, where he abandoned the stolen bus and hitchhiked 150 miles to Chewelah (50 miles North of Spokane).  There he stole a large tractor and drove it into the home of his estranged wife (who luckily was not home). Once committing his final violent act, the suspect was finally arrested.  Fortunately, this time, the liberals’ poorly devised police reform bill did not cause a serious tragedy.   (Brandi Kruse Facebook and Chelan County Sheriff’s Office media release)

A spokesperson for the Kennewick Police Department claims that limits on weapon options available to officers during a crisis situation, which are part of the state’s new police reform bill, unnecessarily prolonged a dangerous situation they were involved with on Monday.  Police were unable to stop a woman who was wielding a knife (and slashing tires of multiple police vehicles) because they could not use a 37-mm impact baton, which the department had previously used to subdue a suspect from a distance. But liberals from Seattle decided the baton was a bad thing, so the Democrat-passed reforms now prohibit it from being used.

Because the woman continued to pose a threat, police had to instruct nearby businesses to lock their doors. The woman finally crawled under a truck where officers are able to get close enough to taser and subdue her. Fortunately, this time, the liberals’ poorly devised police reform bill did not cause a serious tragedy. (Tri-City Herald)

A man who apparently admitted to stealing guns in Idaho was able to escape capture by simply crossing into Washington State, where police say the Democrats’ new police reform laws kept them from pursuing the suspect.  Kootenai County (Idaho) Sheriff’s officers said they were informed by Pullman police that they could not follow up without probable cause.  Thus, Democrat legislation has now made Washington State a safe haven for criminals.

This goes along with previous liberal measures which attract homeless individuals, those suffering from chemical dependency, and those in the country illegally.  Yet, at the same time, liberal anti-business tax measures are not only dissuading employers from moving into the state, they are also encouraging many to leave. And the decaying and unsafe conditions of downtown Seattle has soured many large conventions and business gatherings from coming to the city and spending their money in local businesses. Does anyone else think our state’s liberal establishment has gotten everything backwards? (KHQ-TV)

Just-released poll numbers reveal that Washington State residents don’t agree with Governor Jay Inslee when he shamelessly boasts that he just “won the Super Bowl” with his politically divisive one-man rule during the COVID pandemic (now on Day 514).  In fact, the survey numbers are worse than they initially appear since the pollster, Stu Elway, has a reputation among many conservative analysts for often oversampling liberal residents.  Yet, in a poll taken July 13-17 (after Inslee’s statewide self-promotion tour), only 15% of respondents describe the governor as doing an excellent job, while far more than twice that many (37%) believe his eminence is doing a poor job.

Overall, only 45% of Washington residents have a positive opinion of Governor Inslee, while 54% have a negative view.  These poll numbers reiterate the point that Governor Inslee missed a golden opportunity to unite Washington residents during the pandemic, and decided instead to make several politically divisive decisions which likely caused the virus to spread and kill more Washingtonians, and have damaged how the public views his actions.  (Crosscut/Elway Poll and Shift)

Once again, special needs students have been let down by the Seattle Public Schools and members of the teachers union.  Many students who enrolled in the school district’s Summer Staircase program have returned to classes, only to find them empty and with no qualified instructor. One student was left alone in a classroom with an iPad. This is due to many teachers deciding against returning for the four-week program, which was intended to help students catch up after falling behind during the district’s prolonged reliance on distance learning (caused by teachers unions ignoring health officials advice to return to the classrooms).

Many affected parents are upset with the school district for failing to adequately communicate with them about the staffing problems.  A school district spokesman refused to comment on specific problems, and said parents could discuss their concerns directly with school administrators.  Yet, many parents claim they have been unsuccessful in their numerous attempts to contact teachers, principals, and school district administrators. (Seattle Times)

This strange story could only be found in the bizarro world of Seattle politics: Seattle City Councilmember Kshama Sawant says her supporters have obtained enough signatures to place her recall on the November ballot.  Some 10,739 valid signatures from voters in Seattle 3^rd Council District are needed to place Sawant’s recall on the ballot. Last month, the Recall Sawant campaign said they had 9,000 signatures.  Yet Sawant’s supporters believe the recall campaign was going to delay turning in signatures, so that the recall question would be on a low-turnout special election next February, and not on this November’s ballot (which is expected to draw considerable interest due to a competitive mayoral campaign).  Since Sawant evidently has more support among those who can only be bothered to vote in high-profile elections, the councilmember’s supporters began collecting their own recall signatures to ensure the recall will happen this Fall. Today, Sawant’s campaign said it has collected an additional 2,047 signatures. (MyNorthwest)

Spokane Mayor Nadine Woodward declared a housing emergency in her city and authorized several administrative actions to increase the number of housing units.  Mayor Woodward cited the significant increase in housing prices and the reduced number of apartment vacancies in her emergency declaration. Among the immediate changes will be reducing the timeline for city review of housing plans from six weeks to two weeks, placing a priority on hiring city staff to process reviews, using more consultants to speed up the process, and providing incentives to encourage commercial spaces to be converted to residential areas.  The mayor also sent a series of measures to the Spokane City Council to gain legislative approval on items she believes will help address the emergency. (Note: Shift will be interviewing two Spokane City Council candidates later this week to further discuss the city’s housing crisis.)  (KHQ – TV and City of Spokane Emergency Proclamation)

Shift is hearing from Olympia insiders that a special session of the Washington State Legislature will occur in September.  The primary agenda item will be the passage of a transportation funding package.  Lawmakers are still praying for federal financial assistance with funds for the Columbia River bridge and the Highway 2 trestle, to help reduce the costs of their own plans. September is the target date, as that is evidently when Senator Steve Hobbs (D – Lake Stevens), the Chair of the Senate Transportation Committee, is available. With all of the immediate problems with the Democrats’ police reform measures (see “State” section above for three incidents already from this weekend), we wonder if lawmakers will take this opportunity to also address some obvious needed corrections in that faulty legislation.

This week’s Newsmaker Interview is with Representative Alex Ybarra (R – Quincy). The second term Central Washington legislator has been at the forefront of the immunization efforts of farmworkers through his involvement with the Center for Latino Leadership.  Representative Ybarra has raised concerns about recent agriculture bills written and passed by Puget Sound liberals with little to no experience in farming.  And what is worse, Democrat lawmakers do not feel compelled to even ask questions of those the bills would most impact.

As the Ranking Member on the House Education Committee, Representative Ybarra is one of the Republican’s leading proponents in stopping the liberal establishment from pushing their racist Critical Race Theory onto our school children.  Rep. Ybarra discusses these issues, plus reforming the governor’s emergency powers, the impact of a Low Carbon Fuel Standard on our state farmers, and recent wildfires. (Click to read full Newsmaker Interview)

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