A bombshell investigation reveals King County officials spent years ignoring fraud warnings while happily cutting checks to contractors who couldn’t prove they did any work—because accountability is apparently optional in Democrat-run bureaucracies.

It started when whistleblower Tom Fullum flagged a buried complaint about a contractor allegedly pocketing taxpayer money for job training programs that… didn’t really exist. His reward? Getting fired four days later. Nothing says “we take fraud seriously” like axing the guy who reports it.

The contractor, Gerri Hill, walked away with at least $314,000 in public funds tied to a $470,000 deal—despite listing “partners” who had never even heard of her. The county eventually canceled the contract, shrugged, declared no fraud, and—shockingly—recovered exactly $0.

Meanwhile, internal staff were waving red flags, warning of “blatant misuse of funds,” but the compliance team was too overwhelmed (or uninterested) to act. Translation: the system was broken, and nobody in charge seemed eager to fix it.

Now the fallout is getting serious. County leaders are warning the losses could reach tens—or even hundreds—of millions. Federal agencies like the FBI and DOJ have already come knocking, which is usually a sign things have gone just slightly off the rails.

Democrats in charge are now promising reforms—after years of ignoring warnings, missing oversight targets, and letting taxpayer money vanish into thin air.

Turns out “trust the system” works great… until the system is designed not to ask questions. Read more at Seattle Red.

Washington Democrats’ shiny new 9.9% income tax on high earners (SB 6346), signed by Bob Ferguson, is already heading straight into a legal buzzsaw—and not quietly.

State Rep. Jim Walsh is leading a “three-prong attack” to blow the whole thing up in court, starting with a basic argument Democrats seem to have conveniently ignored: Washington’s constitution requires taxes to be uniform. That’s not a suggestion—it’s been settled law since the 1933 Culliton v. Chase decision.

Problem? This tax singles out a small group of earners. Uniformity, meet political wishful thinking.

Even former AG Rob McKenna is jumping in, signaling this isn’t just partisan griping—it’s a serious constitutional brawl.

And here’s where it gets even more interesting: critics argue this “millionaire tax” is basically a full-blown income tax wearing a flimsy disguise. Remove one little section—the income threshold—and suddenly it’s a 9.9% tax on everyone. Oops.

Walsh is also floating a backup plan to take the fight federal, using the Dormant Commerce Clause—because apparently, when state Democrats push policies extreme enough, they don’t just break local rules, they start tripping national alarms too.

So while Democrats pitch this as a targeted tax on the rich, opponents see something much bigger: a legal test case that could crack open the door to taxing every Washington family.

And now, the courts get to decide whether this was bold policymaking—or just another expensive overreach dressed up as “fairness.” Read more at Seattle Red.

Almost immediately after Washington Democrats pushed through their new income tax on high earners, the state’s luxury housing market started flashing warning signs—literally.

According to data from the Northwest Multiple Listing Service, listings for homes priced at $2 million or more jumped 65% compared to the same day the year before. The day after lawmakers passed the tax, 53 high-end homes hit the market—up from 32 the previous year.

Coincidence? Democrats would really like you to think so.

Realtors aren’t buying that spin. Many told The Center Square their clients were already making moves specifically because of the new tax—apparently not thrilled about being the state’s newest revenue source.

To be fair, Windermere economist Jeff Tucker urged caution, noting that single-day data can be noisy and that listing a luxury home usually takes time. Translation: maybe don’t panic over one day’s numbers.

But even Tucker conceded the broader trend—high-end listings are up this year.

And that’s the part Democrats can’t explain away.

Because whether it happened overnight or over a few weeks, the signal is the same: when you target a specific group with a brand-new tax, don’t be surprised when that group starts looking for the nearest exit.

For a policy sold as “taxing the rich,” it’s off to a strong start… at encouraging them to leave. Read more at Center Square.

Washington Democrats are rolling out a $112 million electric vehicle voucher program to boost commercial EV sales—right as demand is sliding in the wrong direction.

State officials admit new EV sales have dropped to their lowest level in over a year, with used EV sales also down. The explanation? High costs, low supply, and the disappearance of federal incentives. In other words, the market isn’t exactly begging for more electric trucks.

No problem—just plug the gap with taxpayer cash.

The new voucher program, funded by the Climate Commitment Act, is designed to push medium- and heavy-duty EV adoption. But there’s a catch (actually, several): these vehicles are expensive, take longer to charge, travel shorter distances, and carry less cargo. Minor details—unless you’re actually running a trucking business.

Even better, the state is subsidizing the vehicles… but not the charging infrastructure needed to use them. So buyers can get help purchasing a truck they may struggle to operate. Brilliant planning.

State officials also quietly admitted there wasn’t much appetite this session for more EV spending—likely because Washington is staring down a budget deficit. But apparently $112 million still made the cut.

Meanwhile, mandates like the Advanced Clean Trucks rule continue forcing dealers to sell EV trucks whether the market is ready or not, setting up a familiar dynamic: government requires something consumers aren’t demanding, then spends millions trying to fix the problem it created.

The program launches in April, giving Washington another shot at jumpstarting EV adoption.

Because if there’s one thing Democrats won’t electrify, it’s the idea of letting the market decide. Read more at Center Square.

Please consider making a contribution to ensure Shift continues to provide daily updates on the shenanigans of the liberal establishment. If you’d rather mail a check, you can send it to: Shift WA | PO Box 956 | Cle Elum, WA 98922

Forward this to a friend.  It helps us grow our community and serve you better.

You can also follow SHIFTWA on social media by liking us on Facebook and following us on Twitter.

If you feel we missed something that should be covered, email us at [email protected].