A full one-third of Washington State’s ferry fleet is offline, and no, this didn’t just happen. It’s the predictable result of years of Democratic leadership choosing glossy climate announcements over the unglamorous job of keeping ferries running.

According to reporting from the Seattle Times, 7 of 21 Washington State Ferries vessels are out of service, forcing riders back into reduced, pandemic-era schedules. Routes are slashed, sailings are canceled, and daily commuters are left stranded—again.

Why? Because Democratic leaders spent years fixated on experimental, battery-powered ferries while the existing fleet quietly rotted. The average ferry is over 40 years old, maintenance was deferred, and now the consequences are impossible to hide. Propellers falling off. Shafts overheating. Engines failing. Turns out press releases don’t keep ships afloat.

The poster child for this dysfunction is the Wenatchee conversion. What Democrats pitched as a $50 million, one-year green upgrade ballooned into an $86 million, nearly two-year fiasco—during which the system lost desperately needed capacity. And even after all that, the hybrid ferry has already spent time out of service. Green symbolism: achieved. Reliable transportation: not so much.

Governors Jay Inslee and Bob Ferguson insist electrification is the future, floating a $6.2 billion price tag by 2040. Maybe that’s a debate worth having—after ferries can actually cross Puget Sound without breaking down.

This isn’t a mystery or bad luck. It’s a case study in misplaced priorities. Democrats chased climate credentials and futuristic headlines, and Washington riders are paying the price with missed sailings, longer commutes, and a ferry system that’s literally falling apart. Read more at Seattle Red.

Washington Republicans are trying—again—to clean up the deadly fallout from a 2021 Democrat-backed law that put ideological signaling ahead of basic child safety. With the 2026 session approaching, Travis Couture has introduced House Bill 1092 to undo the worst consequences of the so-called Keeping Families Together Act.

That 2021 law dramatically restricted when Child Protective Services can remove kids from homes where hard drugs are present. Thanks to Democrats, active fentanyl use around children often isn’t enough—the state must prove “imminent physical harm.” Translation: wait until something worse happens.

HB 1092 restores a little common sense. It clarifies that CPS can act when hard drug use poses a serious danger—especially to babies and toddlers—while still preserving reunification once parents show documented sobriety and engagement in treatment. Protect kids and support recovery. Radical idea.

The stakes aren’t theoretical anymore. State data show 92 child deaths or near-deaths tied to the child welfare system in just the first half of 2025, many involving fentanyl exposure. Washington is on pace for its deadliest year on record—an outcome Democrats insisted wouldn’t happen.

The political context matters. As previously reported by Fox News, Democrats justified the 2021 law by claiming removals disproportionately affected Black families. But those interventions often saved lives, particularly infants exposed to narcotics.

HB 1092 is now in the House Human Services and Early Learning Committee. Couture says the urgency is undeniable. After years of watching tragedies pile up, Republicans are asking a basic question Democrats still won’t answer: how many children have to die before ideology takes a back seat to safety? Read more at Seattle Red.

Independent journalist Brandi Kruse recently interviewed Democrat state lawmaker Shaun Scott, and somehow the conversation veered straight into political parody. While defending socialism, Scott cited Cuba as a successful example.

Yes—Cuba. The country known for food shortages, political prisoners, ration cards, and people risking their lives on rafts to escape. According to Scott, that’s the model worth pointing to.

When your best defense of socialism requires praising an authoritarian regime that people flee rather than emulate, you’re not making an argument—you’re making the case against yourself. See the interview here.

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