The greed of Governor Inslee and Democrat lawmakers is on full display as they refuse to help lower- and middle- income workers by suspending/reducing the state’s high gas tax.
State
Liberal greed is on full display as Governor Jay Inslee and Democrat lawmakers refuse to consider a gas tax break. As many predicted…given the choice between helping lower- and middle- income families who are struggling due to skyrocketing gas prices (and the price increases on nearly all goods due to higher transportation costs) or ensuring that the state’s coffers continue to overflow with taxpayer money, Governor Inslee chose to ignore the financial concerns of Washington residents and instead pushed a false argument which even the national head of his own party doesn’t believe. Yesterday President Joe Biden announced that he was asking Congress to suspend the 18.4 cents-per-gallon federal gas tax for three months and encouraged states to follow his example.
Responding to the president’s statement, a spokesperson for Governor Inslee simply pushed disinformation with the false argument that if Washington State suspended or reduced its 49.4 cents-per-gallon gas tax (the third-highest state gas tax in the country), oil companies would immediately raise the price at the pump the amount of the tax savings. If this argument were true, then states with lower gas tax rates would have the same gas prices as those with a higher gas taxes – which they don’t. Clearly the governor is attempting to push his political narrative that the economically unlikely greedy actions of oil companies is somehow worse than his actual greedy actions of taking money from hard-working Washingtonians to pile more surplus tax money into the state coffers so he can try to spend it next year.
It was revealed on Tuesday that the state continues to run unexpected surpluses of taxpayer money – the latest projection adds another $1.46 billion, which is more than enough to cover a 6-month suspension of the state’s gas tax if the Democrats cared about the people of the state as much as they care about their special-interest donors. We should also note that the liberal greed of taxpayer money has already funded the doubling of the size of state government during Governor Inslee’s nine years in office.
To Governor Inslee, it is obviously more important for the state government to collect taxpayer money to keep expanding the number of state employees (so more union dues are available to fund Democrat campaigns) than it is for lower- and middle- income households to put affordable food on the table, provide clothing for their children, and pay their bills in these times of raging inflation. And while a few Democrat lawmakers say they are willing to “consider” some form a tax relief, the reality is no Washington Democrat lawmaker is willing to stand with the Democrat president and help families who are suffering due to expensive liberal energy and economic policies which are shrinking workers’ paychecks. (Seattle Times, Yahoo News, AP News, and LEAP annual budget figures)
Chris Vance is claiming to be an Independent in his vanity campaign for the 31st District Legislative District Senate seat, yet all of his hosts for an upcoming Seattle fundraiser are very liberal Democrats. Vance knows that to run as a Democrat in 2022 he would have to defend the party’s failed policies on public safety, the economy, taxes, energy, education, homelessness, emergency powers, and Long-Term Care tax, so he labels himself an “Independent” in his race against Republican Senator Phil Fortunato. Yet his actions are typical of any Democrat. His June 30th fundraiser is hosted by Former Democrat Governor Gary Locke, Democrat Senate Floor Leader Jamie Pederson, Democrat Senate Pro Temp Karen Kaiser, and Democrat King County Assessor John Wilson. And of course like all Democrats, this fundraising event will be in Seattle.
It is interesting to look at Vance’s Public Disclosure Commission contributions report. He lists 31 contributions above $250. Most of them come from Seattle (the only two from within the 31st Legislative District came from Vance himself) and they include two $1,000 contributions from the Washington Education Association (that well known “independent” organization). Other contributions come from such liberal stalwarts as Bobbie Bridge, Peter Goldman, Dorothy Bullitt, the Justice for All PAC, and the Washington State Council of County & City Employees. With this type of support, it is very obvious that Vance has totally sold out to the Seattle liberal establishment and that he will support liberal Seattle policies if he is elected. Why isn’t he honest with the voters of the 31st Legislative District and rightfully label himself a Democrat? (Vance Fundraiser Invite and Washington State Public Disclosure Commission report)
Western Washington
Seattle’s Interim Police Chief Adrian Diaz blasted the divisive decision by the Seattle Pride organizers to ban police officers from participating in this weekend’s Pride Parade. The decision to discriminate against police officers was made by Seattle Pride’s Executive Director Krystal Marx, who last year was defeated in her re-election bid to the Burien City Council by 8% after she announced her support for the reckless “Defund the police” movement. Seattle police officers have marched in uniform in the parade since 1994 and all other City of Seattle departments are allowed to participate.
Chief Diaz described the decision as “discriminatory, demeaning, hateful and antiquated.” Meanwhile liberal politicians such as Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell have refused to comment on the exclusionary actions of the Seattle Pride organizers. We should note San Francisco Mayor London Breed announced she would not participate in her city’s Pride activities after organizers there made a similar decision.
KTTH radio host Jason Rantz (who is openly gay) also sought comment from Seattle Pride sponsors about the discriminatory actions taken by the event organizers. Thus far Starbucks, Alaska Airlines, T-Mobile, Chateau St. Michelle, and Tito’s Vodka have refused to comment on their support of discriminating against police officers. (MyNorthwest, Seattle Pride, and King County 2021 Election results)
Wealthy Seattle environmental groups continue to raise money threatening to tear down the four dams on the lower Snake River in Southeast Washington, yet they appear to spend far less time on the impact of the three dams on the Skagit River which provide them with power. The environmentalists make false claims that go against the expert findings of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration scientists regarding the impact that tearing down the Snake River dams would have on Chinook salmon, which are the primary food source for Puget Sound orcas. At the same time they appear to ignore the obvious impact the Skagit River dams have on the Puget Sound’s Chinook salmon population (since the Skagit drains directly into Puget Sound, unlike the Snake River which drains into the Columbia River which meets the Pacific Ocean about 150 miles south of the Strait of Juan de Fuca).
Seattle City Light is quietly attempting to renew the federal license for 30-to-50 years for the three Skagit River dams which provide the city with cheap, renewable hydro-electric power, and have made vague promises about doing something to help salmon migrate up the river. The city’s renewal application is due later this year.
Side note on the Seattle Times article on the application process. The writer repeats the environmentalists’ false claim that there has been a significant loss of snowpack in Washington’s mountains. This claim is not supported by scientific data, which shows that in 14 of the past 17 years the snowpack has been above average, including this past year. (Seattle Times, Washington Policy Center, and Todd Myers Twitter)
The man who intruded on Seattle’s Sand Point Elementary on June 2nd had his misdemeanor charges dropped by a judge who ruled he was not mentally competent to stand trial. Yet felony charges (burglary and assault of a child) filed by the King County Prosecutor will still go forward. The case made headlines due to the school’s principal choosing not to provide evidence to police officers, thus denying them the ability to arrest the man as he continued to trespass on school property. The man then fled the scene and was arrested later for assaulting a delivery driver and attempting to steal his vehicle. Thus far there has been no public statement made by the Seattle School District over its investigation into the pathetic actions of the principal. (KOMO News and MyNorthwest)
Eastern Washington
Governor Inslee continued his war against the state’s family farmers by having his Washington State Department of Health (DOH) propose new rules on manure management which was previously regulated by other state agencies. The Department of Agriculture and Department of Ecology currently regulate the storage and disposal of animal waste through the Dairy Nutrient Management Act and the Federal Clean Water Act. Yet the DOH seeks to impose more regulations on farmers allegedly focusing on controlling odor, fly attraction, and rodents. Pam Lewison of the Washington Policy Center claims, “In addition to duplicated effort, the proposed rule is a violation of the state’s Right to Farm Law, which prohibits requiring farm owners from odor management – a primary component of the proposed rule.” (CenterSquare)
Shift Article
Actions by Governor Jay Inslee and the Democrats in the Washington State Legislature will cause the privilege of driving in Washington State to be even more expensive in the coming days and months – and this is intentional, as they proudly implement their reckless liberal policies in the coming days and months. When the Democrats jammed through their party-line $17 billion transportation package last March, their Senate Transportation Committee Chair Marco Liias (Edmonds) falsely proclaimed it was funded “without punting the cost to working families.” Yet next week those who require a wide variety of services from the Washington State Department of Licensing will experience the biggest increases in fees in state history.
Senator Liias also conveniently forgets that a major part of the funding for the Democrats transportation package comes from funds extracted from consumers through their ineffective “Cap and Trade” energy policy – which is projected to cause the price of gas to rise by an estimated 46.4 cents a gallon in the coming weeks and months. The Democrats’ transportation package was the first in Washington history which was not passed with bi-partisan input and support because the liberals in the legislature chose to ignore responsible Republican suggestions to fund the transportation package by using surplus revenue and not dramatically raising fees to hurt lower-income workers the most. (Click to read full Shift Article)
Overheard on the Internets
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