In Camelot!

In the darkest, deepest reaches of enemy territory, the Queen summoned up the moldy ghosts of Camelot to try and revive her faltering campiagn.

According to the Lewiston Tribune, at a campaign speech in Clarkston yesterday, the Governor said:

"I first met Michelle when she visited Washington a few months ago," Gregoire said. "She reminded me of Jacqueline Kennedy. Like Kennedy, I'm predicting she will be loved and respected around the globe. As a child, I was inspired by John F. Kennedy, and I see that same kind of inspiration coming from Barack Obama. That's why I think he's the right choice. It's time for America to get new leadership."

Yep, JFK inspired the young Chris Gregoire so much, just 3 years after his assassination, she joined a sorority at UW (later becoming president) that only allowed girls that were white and Christian.

No doubt the Queen was prompted to make such an absurd comparison by Obama's "Ich Bin Ein Beginner" speech and Michelle Obama's "Jackie" sartorial makeover. Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy.

Gregoire's Kennedy connection is as strained and incredulous as BHO's own fanciful tale of JFK bringing his father over from Kenya.

Interview with Terry Rossi

Before the start of today's Lentil Festival Grand Parade, I had a chance to ask a few questions of Washington gubernatorial candidate Dino Rossi's wife Terry, the day after the latest primary ballot count gave Dino a commanding 50% to 43% lead over Chris Gregoire here in Whitman County.

Tom: Did you have any lentil chili?

Terry: No, I had to attend an event in Spokane last night. I understand the lentil chili was gone in an hour. They say they need to get a bigger bowl for next year!

Tom: With all the traveling that Dino does around the state, does Dino ever listen to an MP3 player?

Terry: No. But when he's driving he always presses the button on the steering wheel to scan for radio stations.

Tom: Does Dino have a favorite type of music?

Terry: No, he likes a lot of different music.

Tom: As the person closest to Dino, can you tell us what keeps him going through the negativity and lies the other side is spreading?

Terry: Dino is very grounded, with a strong moral compass. He knows that the things that the other side is saying are wrong. I encourage all of your readers to go to factcheck.dinorossi.com to learn the truth about claims that Dino cut unemployment funding for domestic abuse victims and voted against a Patient Bill of Rights.

My thanks to Terry Rossi for taking a few minutes to chat with me today. She is a charismatic and energetic campaigner and will make a great First Lady of Washington!

Join Palousitics.com Team 129

The Dino Rossi for Governor campaign yesterday launched the newest and fastest way for people to build grassroots support. The Team 129 action network, named after the 129 votes that Dino lost by in 2004, allows people to create and measure their own online support network with the goal of bringing new leadership to Olympia that will start fixing real problems… for a change.

I have created a Palousitics.com account, and I'm going to see how much impact we can create in this governor's race. I have already sent some readers an e-mail. If you would like to take part in this effort, contact me here. The goal is for Palousitics to have the biggest impact of anybody in the state.

There are also groups you can join at Team 129. There is already a WSU Cougs for Rossi group, a Young Republicans for Rossi group, a Farmers for Rossi group, a Washington Businesses for Dino, and a Whitman County for Rossi group. But we should get a 9th District and Pullman group going and maybe a WSU College Republicans group as well.

Live From The Lentil Festival

The primary is over, and now the parade season begins for political candidates.

First stop: this weekend's National Lentil Festival here in Pullman.

I'll be in the Grand Parade Saturday at 11:00 AM with Terry Rossi, wife of our once and future Governor Dino Rossi. I hope to be able to manage a short interview with Ms. Rossi. If you would like to march along with us, e-mail me here.

I'll also be checking in with updates on all the politicking at the Lentil Festival.

See you there!

Going Nuclear

In Benton and Frankin Counties, where the Tri-Cities are located, Dino didn't get less than 65% of the primary vote. Only Adams County (Othello), which borders Hanford, was higher.

Got Areva?

A Vote for the Queen is Another Vote for Obama?

According to an interview in The Stranger, the Queen fears she won't be able to grab ahold of Obama's coattails in November:

I think Senator Obama has brought out a new generation of voters that have not voted before. And some of these folks -- I know, because I’ve talked to them -- feel they’re engaged to voted for Senator Obama and then they’re done, failing to recognize the important of, he can’t do much of anything alone, if he doesn’t have a Congress he can work with, if he doesn’t have governors he can work with, if governors don’t have legislatures they can work with.

So I think our job is to convince these folks, it isn’t good enough to be engaged by saying, “I’m going to vote for president of the United States.” You’ve got to get engaged and look down the ticket and ask yourself, “Who are these folks and do I want to support them?” So I think that is going to be very important.

Yep, she's running scared. In what figures to be a Democratic year, especially in deeply Blue State, it's not a good sign that an incumbent Democratic governor is essentially whining that "a vote for me is another vote for Obama."

My daughter was over at the Capitol Hill Block Party in Seattle a few weeks back and was astonished that the Queen showed up to introduce the band "Vampire Weekend" (possibly due to her resemblance to one of the undead.) As noted above, she begged the thousands of twentysomethings in attendance to vote for Obama AND her.

The problem for the staid 61 year-old bureaucrat, a big government apparatchik since 1969, is that she inspires about as much enthusiasm in young people as Count Chocula, not Count Dracula.

As David Postman of the Seattle Times points out, liberals in King County may vote for Obama and then stop at the top of the ticket, as they did with Kerry back in 2004.

FOX NEWS: The Queen's Institutional Corruption

Ask the Queen Why She Hates Pullman

Dino Rossi and Queen Christine have both agreed to take questions from YouTube users and answer them. The deadline to submit video questions is August 12. More info can be found here.

Someone needs to ask the Queen why she supports the destruction of the Pullman economy. Her reinstitution of the death tax and the Department of Ecology's imposition of Phase II stormwater permitting, even though Pullman is a "bubble" community, threaten to drive future Schweitzer Engineering Labs expansion out of town.

"Oppose a political view, but don't try to suppress it"

Rossi sign vandalism in West Olympia, from Thurston Opinions


Rossi sign vandalism in Winthrop, from HorsesAss.Org
After years in the national political wilderness, Democrats are out for revenge and to make sure that they maintain a "permanent majority." The method they seem to have chosen to accomplish these goals is to destroy free speech, at least the free speech of those who disagree with them.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi supports the revival of the "Fairness Doctrine," which would silence conservative talk radio and blogs. Presidential candidate Barack Obama has stated that he wants to "change the political climate" that allows people to criticize his wife. Obama supporters even managed to shut down blogs unfriendly to the Obamesssiah.

We've seen in it Washington as well, where Democrats have enjoyed a majority for years. In 2005, two Seattle radio hosts were successfully sued and muzzled by environmentalist wackos opposed to the initiative to repeal the 9 1/2 cent gas tax hike. Last year, the Washintgon Public Disclosure Commission considered putting regulations on political blogs.

Now, as Cav reported last week, the Democrats are going after the Building Industry Association of Washington, the only business group in Washington with the stones to stand up to Queen Christine.

I have never met BIAW Executive Vice President Tom McCabe, but we have mutual friends. It sounds like we believe in the same things and employ the same "tell it like it is" style. Richard Davis, writing in the Everett Daily Herald says:

BIAW executive vice president Tom McCabe has remained something of an Olympia outsider, rarely engaging directly in the city's collegial coalitions and compromises. In addition to battling with labor unions, state agencies and environmental activists, he has been known to throw sharp elbows at other business groups who pursue less combative strategies.

BIAW doesn't always play nice.

And why should they, when the opposition engages in lies, exaggerations, slander, fear-mongering, and vandalism? You can't play nice when you are dealing with ideological extremists.
As Davis states:

Now comes this lawsuit, another attempt to curtail BIAW's political speech. However you feel about the group, you should not want them silenced this way.

My God, is that we have come to in this country? "Liberal fascism" is not just the title of a book.

In any case, the Daily Herald resport that McCabe says the lawsuit "isn't going to slow us down." And reast assured, attacks on this blog aren't going to slow us down or shut us up either.

The Moral Imperative of Blowing a Billion Bucks

Back in 2005, the Queen stated that repealing the 9 1/2 cent tax increase would have been the rejection of a moral imperative. $2 billion of the new gas tax was slated to fix or replace the ageing Alaskan Way Viaduct in Seattle. Lives and the state's economic vitality were at stake. The Queen and the Democrats asked us to remember the Nimitz Freeway in Oakland and Hurricane Katrina.

So what about that "moral imperative?"

The Seattle Times reported today:

The state Legislature budgeted $2.8 billion last year to replace Seattle's deteriorating Alaskan Way Viaduct with another elevated roadway.

But a large chunk of that money already has been spent. About $1.1 billion has been either spent on or committed to several viaduct projects, with still no decision about how to replace the viaduct in downtown Seattle. And it's not clear that the remaining $1.7 billion will be enough to finish the viaduct replacement.

Yes, that's a one followed by nine zeros. $18 million alone was spent on an environmental impact study which is "on ice." Just think of what else that $18 million could have been spent on: affordable housing projects, fixing unsafe roads in Eastern Washington, etc.. And it was just pissed away. And we thought the Seattle monorail project was a giant money hole.

How stupid are the people in this state to keep voting for Democrats? They cannot lead. They certainly cannot address pressing transportation, crime, health care, housing, and education issues. They can only follow what labor and environmental interests tell them to do. One thing they can do, however, and well, is spend money like drunken sailors and stick taxpayers with the bill.

The new broom of Dino Rossi is going to have sweep Olympia clean.

Better

Here's Dino's first TV spot:

Quote of the Day

"Obviously, I need a partner on Puget Sound in the White House," [Queen Christine] said said.

"The other thing I'd like to see is Hanford, the largest cleanup site in the country. I need a partner."

- "Gregoire's Puget Sound push doesn't quite float," Seattle-PI, July 25, 2008

Well, she couldn't be referring to the Obamalord. He doesn't even know about Hanford.

Read the whole article from the PI. The Dems are very worried that the Queen is off-message and out-of-touch, with her ads claiming credit for something Tim Eyman did and saying Washington is immune from the current economic slowdown. I guess the Queen figures working families in Washington are not feeling the pain at the pump even though we are paying the highest gas tax in the country thanks to her and the Democrats.

"State's business friendliness debatable despite magazines"

The Queen has lately been touting what a wonderful place Washington is to do business. Ed Schweitzer, Eastern Washington's most prominent businessman, disagrees. So does Carl Gipson of the Washington Policy Center. In an editorial published in the Bellingham Herald, Gipson provided a reality check:

Is Washington state truly friendly to businesses? It depends on whom you ask. Some reports say Washington has a favorable business climate, yet other measures show our state isn’t anywhere near the top end of business-friendly states. Which are correct? There is no definitive answer, but examining the criteria used by the different reports might shed some light on this controversial subject.

The good news is that none show Washington at or near the bottom in overall business friendliness. However, several troubling statistics exist.

You may have heard that Forbes Magazine ranked Washington state as the 5th best state for business. Forbes is a respected national business magazine. Washington’s leaders should be proud of the good press. Does Forbes saying we’re number five truly make it so? Is the debate about our business friendliness over? Let’s take a closer look at Forbes’ criteria.

Washington ranked particularly well (4th) in Forbes’ “labor rank,” a criteria measuring educational attainment, net migration and population growth. We ranked 4thin the “growth prospects” category, a criteria that judges the prospects of individual income growth and business start-ups. For years Washington state has been ranked as a state with a high start-up rate, but we’ve also been ranked as a state with one of the highest business failure rates.

Forbes ranked us 5th in the “regulatory environment” category; something the hundreds of small business owners Washington Policy Center has worked with over the years might object to.

Where we didn’t score particularly well was in the “business costs” (33rd), “economic” climate (16th) and “quality of life” (32nd) categories. I’m curious as to how we can rate so well overall and yet be ranked so low in categories that include the cost of actually running a business.

Forbes is not the only national study to rank Washington particularly friendly to business. The Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council ranked Washington the 4th best state in tax systems for small businesses. That sounds like even better news right?

But wait a minute.

The SBE Council had sixteen different sets of criteria including personal income tax, corporate income tax, AMT taxes, property taxes, gas tax and so on. What is notable about the SBE Council’s ranking system is that out of the sixteen measures, Washington only registers in eight of them. Washington has no personal income tax, corporate income tax and several of the other taxes that states were ranked by, and therefore Washington has an artificially high ranking.

Washington ranked perilously low in the categories for which there is data. We came in 25th in property taxes, second-to-last in sales, gross and excise taxes (includes our B&O tax), 43rd in unemployment taxes, 46th in gas taxes, and our state’s estate tax was not ranked using a comparison of percentages among other states but only by the fact that it exists. That Washington received the highest marks among taxes we do not have, and mid-to-worst among taxes we do have, should be kept at the forefront of the discussion.

The Tax Foundation ranked us 11th overall. We tied for first in the personal income tax category (because we don’t have one) but when they account for our B&O tax we came in at 31st. We also ranked dead last in their sales tax measure. The unemployment insurance and property tax rankings were not much better.

The American Legislative Exchange Council ranked our economic outlook at a worrisome 31st. Here too we ranked tops in the income tax standings, but fell to 25th for property taxes, 49th in the sales tax burden and 28th in the estate tax.

Despite the tax and regulatory burdens faced by entrepreneurs in this state, thousands of businesses open each year. But the pool of people willing to risk their livelihoods and their capital is finite – at some point the cost of doing business will become prohibitive. In 2007 the state’s business community paid almost $15 billion in taxes – an increase of 36% since 2002. At what point does the business community look for better, cheaper options and friendlier states?

During this election season, as rankings are being thrown about remember that while the business cli-mate may be good for some, it certainly is not great for everyone. The data in these reports show where we need the most improvement.

State Democrats Cover Up Queen's Sleaze

Here's a shocker. The Democratic-controlled Washington Legislature has refused to conduct an investigation into Wampumgate, the payoffs that the Queen received from Indian casinos for axing a proposal to force the tribes share revenue with the state.

House Speaker Frank Chopp (D-CYA City) said:

These kinds of tactics, designed to divide the people of Washington state rather than unite us, are not what the legislative process should be focused on.

Really?? As Chris Cargill at the KXLY blog points out:

While there may not be a beneficial reason to open such an inquiry, to say this isn’t what the legislative process is all about is laughable. What is the Washington legislative process about?

Is it about opening a legislative debate on impeaching the President, which the legislature has NO say in whatsoever?

Is the legislative process about trying to force a national change in the Electoral College system?

Is it about trying to secure a new Arena for the Seattle Supersonics?

Is it about trying to ban plastic bags?

Is it about banning the kind of dishwashing detergent people in Washington can use?

Is it about naming a frog the official state amphibian?

The legislature tackled all of these issues in its last session. So its pretty laughable when the Speaker of the House, in essence, claims the legislature has better things to do.

No, the true business of the Democratic dictatorship in Olympia is simply to stay in power, no matter what it takes.

One Washington

I said from the beginning that we are one Washington, and we’ve torn down the Cascade Curtain.

- Queen Christine, "Major strides have been made in economy, education, health care," Tacoma News-Tribune, June 29, 2008

A collection of environmental groups is asking its supporters to thank Gov. Chris Gregoire "for standing up for our health, safety and our environment by raising concerns over nuclear wastes from a uranium enrichment plant," once proposed for Richland.

- "Environmentalists praise Gregoire for raising concerns about Areva plant," Tri-City Herald, July 17, 2008

Now we know which "one" the Queen was talking about.

The Queen of Tax and Spend

The Seattle Times today damningly skewered Queen Christine's continual claims of being "fiscally responsible:"

As much as anything, Gov. Christine Gregoire's first term in office is notable for one number: $8 billion.

That's how much state spending has increased since Gregoire, a Democrat, was elected in 2004.

Another way of looking at it: The two-year general-fund budget has jumped 31 percent, to $33.6 billion. That's the largest percentage increase in the past 16 years.

Can the state of Washington afford such increases in what the Democrats so mockingly refter to as the "Bush Economy?" According to the Times, no:

Indeed, unless the economy quickly turns around, the state likely will face a multibillion-dollar shortfall next year.

What has the money been spent on? Political payoffs to her allies, the teachers and state employees unions. Again from the Times:

Half of the $8 billion increase in state spending during Gov. Christine Gregoire's term has gone to pay and benefits.

Some of it is from her own excess. The governor's office budget has more than doubled under Christine Gregoire, to about $73 million for the 2007-09 biennium.

Oh yeah, and about that promise the Queen made in 2004 not to raise taxes, the Times reports:

Gregoire and the state Legislature have approved tax increases that total about $150 million a year and reinstated an estate tax that brings in another $100 million annually.

That estate tax threatens to drive Schweitzer Engineering expansion out of Pullman. That figure does not include the 9 1/2 cent gas tax that was approved in 2005.

Queen Christine has dutifully paid off everyone who helped her win a 129-vote victory over Dino Rossi in 2004. But does Washington deserve a governor whose policies are dictated by those special interests which have the cash to keep the Queen in public office, the only job she has ever known?

It's time for a change.

Queen Christine Plays Checkers

It was a weird political twist in a Washington gubernatorial race already full of them; strangely reminiscent of Richard Nixon's famous 1952 Checkers speech, when then Senator Nixon denied receiving any personal gifts from supporters other than "a little cocker spaniel dog...our little girl-Tricia, the 6-year old-named it Checkers. And you know, the kids, like all kids, love the dog and I just want to say this right now, that regardless of what they say about it, we're gonna keep it."

According to Spin Control 2.0:

In describing her Republican challenger, the governor tried tying him to President Bush, which is something she's been doing for months now. According to The Associated Press, Gregoire said there's no difference between Rossi and Bush.

“He’s so enamored with George W. Bush, he named his dog ’W,”’ the AP reported Gregoire as saying. “I feel sorry for the dog.”

Hey, attacking Dino's dog is beyond the pale, the Rossi campaign complained.

“People in Washington want a candidate who will fix problems in our state, not an incumbent Governor who spends her time attacking her opponent’s dog. We’re going to keep talking about issues that matter like controlling spending, fixing our traffic congestion problem, and improving our schools,” said Jill Strait, Rossi spokesperson. “It’s sad that Governor Gregoire has already come to the realization that she can’t win by talking about her own record, so she resorts to the same tired old strategy being used by Democrats across the country -- to tie all candidates in our party to the President.”

And it wasn't Rossi that named the dog, it was his daughter Juliauna, in gratitude to the president for writing a letter telling Rossi to get their kids a dog.

So desperate to hang on to state office, the only job she's ever known, with no record of accomplishments and no plans for the next four years, the Queen has reached a new low trying to associate Dino with the President by going after the Rossi family dog. Who in the heck is calling the shots in her campaign anyway? A pimply-faced Young Democrat nutrootsers locked in his mom's basement?

January 2009 can't come fast enough so we can run the tyrant out of Olympia on a rail.

Quote of the Day

Michelle Obama brought her husband's message of change to Seattle Thursday, raising money for his presidential bid and for Gov. Christine Gregoire's re-election effort.

But when it came to Gregoire's campaign, Obama cautioned, "This election isn't about change for change sake."

And she added, "Don't change it if it ain't broken."

- "Michelle Obama brings change message to Seattle fundraiser," Seattle Times, July 18, 2008

BWWHAHAHAHAHA!! "This election isn't about change for change sake!!!" You'd better believe we're voting for change we can believe in in Olympia come November, Obamamama! It is broken, and we're gonna fix it.

"City puts brakes on stormwater ordinance; Manager says drafted ordinance will be re-evaluated to make sure it serves 'community as a whole'"

Hallelujah. Pullman merchants and property owners have a brief respite from the business-killing effects of the Department of Ecology's new stormwater mandates.

Of course, if businesses don't bear the majority of the financial burden, then homeowners will. I just wish the ordinance would be finalized before November. That way, Pullman residents could adequately express their feelings toward the Democrats in Olympia that have forced this upon us.

From today's Moscow-Pullman Daily News:

Kevin Kirkman doesn't believe enough thought was put into the stormwater utility ordinance that was presented to the Pullman City Council in June.

Kirkman, who owns KIP Development in Pullman, said the ordinance doesn't provide incentives to developers that use the environmentally sound management practices already mandated by the city.

Kirkman was among a handful of residents who commented on the drafted ordinance, presented to the council June 3. The comments have led Pullman leaders and staff to shelve the ordinance until it can be tweaked to "best serve the community as a whole," city Stormwater Manager Rob Buchert said.

Kirkman said he has properties throughout Pullman designed in a "forward thinking way" to eliminate stormwater runoff with biofiltration devices and irrigation systems.

"We can't pay for a system to be installed, maintain it and then be charged a tax on it," he said. "We're discharging clean water and there was nothing in the ordinance that addressed that ... If you don't have any discharges, how can you be taxed on something that doesn't exist?"

The ordinance will be re-evaluated and returned to the council for final review in November, rather than August as originally planned. The utility is expected to be in place by spring.

"Once this thing is an ordinance, it becomes more difficult to change," Buchert said. "We want to make every effort to ensure that when we take this to council we have as much support as possible. If it takes a few more months to tailor this to meet Pullman's needs ... that's OK."

The utility ordinance was drafted in response to a municipal stormwater permit issued last year by the Washington State Department of Ecology. Its purpose is to manage the quality and quantity of runoff from development and to control stormwater discharge into sewer systems. The estimated cost for the city to meet requirements in the permit's first five years is $4.4 million.

A consulting firm for the city reported that single-family homes in Pullman have an average of 3,500 square-feet of impervious surface, and that amount has been determined as one equivalent billing unit at a cost of $7 per month. The draft ordinance was followed by a public comment period and only five members of the community formally voiced their opinion on the impending law.

Buchert said the limited feedback isn't enough to know if the draft ordinance is best for Pullman.

Most of the comments pertained to current city laws requiring developers to use environmentally sound stormwater management practices, such as retention ponds to help with water flow and biofiltration systems in parking lots with more than 10 spots. Buchert said the developers and business owners who commented would like their efforts to yield a credit on the stormwater fees.

In the draft ordinance, credits are offered to entities with National Pollutant Discharge and Elimination Systems - a permitting system through the federal 1972 Clean Water Act. Up to 20 percent credits also are available for commercial or industrial businesses that harvest rainwater and public and private schools that pledge to participate in stormwater or surface-water education.

"We definitely wanted to honor the comments submitted and go back to the drawing board on this thing," Buchert said. "Pullman has been discussing this for over three years, so I don't think we've rushed into everything, but we want to approach it as carefully and prudently as possible."

Kirkman hopes that's the case.

"I'm encouraged that there's going to be more thought put into this," he said. "It's going to have a real financial impact on property owners."

Buchert said many portions of the ordinance could be altered following further discussion, including the $7 billing unit.

"If there's any way we can think outside the box to get that rate lower, we'll do everything in our power to do that," he said.

Buchert said the city needs the income from the utility to help recover the costs associated with the permit, but added that big-ticket items such as equipment and additional employees will not be necessary until 2009. Until the utility is created, money will continue to come from the city's street budget.

"From a program management perspective I would have loved to have a budget yesterday, but we'll make it happen," he said. "It is coming. This thing is not going away."

Those BIAW Billboards: An Eastern Washington Perspective

KXLY reported last week that the Building Industry Association of Washington paid to have 61 billboards reading "Don't Let Seattle Steal This Election" put up all over Eastern Washington. Unfortunately, I have seen none up around Whitman County.

These billboards have been officially denounced by the Rossi campaign. But the intent of the BIAW is clear. Turnout in Eastern Washington could have made a difference in the 2004 election that was decided by 129 votes. Many voters on this side of the state stayed home because they felt Rossi didn't have a chance. The BIAW is trying to motivate people to vote this year by reminding them of what happened last time. Predictably, west side pundits are wringing their hands over this. Joel Connelly of the Seattle-PI wrote in a column earlier this week:

The "Cascade Curtain" is, at times, a frustrating fact of life for folks from Oroville to Asotin.

Washington went nearly a decade without a statewide officeholder from Eastern Washington. The drought was broken last December as Gregoire named Spokane-based Judge Debra Stevens to the state Supreme Court.

Our last governor from Eastern Washington, Clarence D. Martin, left office in 1941. We haven't had a U.S. senator from east of the Cascades since C.C. Dill, "Father of Grand Coulee Dam," left office more than 70 years ago.

Yet, the "Cascade Curtain" has shown holes of late, doubtless to the anger of demagogues and dividers.

Initiative 912, a bid to roll back the state's gas tax increase, was defeated in 2005, with Whitman and Walla Walla counties joining the "Wet Side" of the mountains in voting for transportation.

Huh? Connelly had a pretty good list of our greivances going until he mentioned I-912. Two counties, with strong Democratic contingents, voting to reject I-912 is no "hole in the curtain" (but it should be a lesson to Whitman County voters that we empower liberal Seattleites by voting against initiatives like I-912 and I-933.) In fact, I-912 is a perfect demonstration of our frustration with one-party Seattle rule. In 2005, the public was scared into voting against I-912 , the initiative to repeal the 9 1/2 cent gas tax hike, by images of Hurricane Katrina and the 1989 Loma Prieto earthquake intermingled with the Alaskan Way Viaduct in Seattle. Three years later, after internecine squabbling between the Democratic governor and the Democratic mayor of Seattle, nothing has been done to fix the Viaduct and no plan for doing so has been put forth. And there is still no word on what the $1.6 billion earmarked from the "emergency" gas tax increase to replace the viaduct is going to be spent on.

The Queen showing up for a press conference in Spokane to declare a state of emergency because of the wildfires there and say we are "one Washington" does not bridge the "Cascade Curtain" either.

The greivances we have in Eastern Washington go far beyond the 2004 election. That is just the most well-publicized example of Seattle getting its way, no matter what, and thus a simple and politically expedient way to coalesce the many issues swirling around.

Here's a perfect example. The Queen's campaign called a press conference last week to denounce the billboards and trotted out the President of the Washington State Labor Council, the executive director of the Washington Conservation Voters, and the communications director for NARAL Pro-Choice Washington.

Are you kidding me? The three special interest groups (big labor, tree huggers, and abortion activists) that probably most offend conservative Eastern Washingtonians the most? This is her "One Washington" strategy?

The biggest greivance we have in Eastern Washington against the Queen at the moment is the certainty that she is completely in bed with radical environmentalists to ensure their continued finanical support and to avoid offending the King County granola vote. For instance:

The Queen's handling of the Areva deal that cost the Tri-Cities thousands of jobs and millions of dollars in revenue.

The Department of Ecology's new stormwater mandates that threaten to drive future SEL expansion out of Pullman and costing thousands of jobs and millions of dollars in revenue

Proposals by the Democratically-controlled legislature to heavily tax our vehicles and stifle growth in the name of fighting "global warming."

The ill-fated "Yukon to Yellowstone" legislation that would have amounted to a huge Eastern Washington land grab by environmentalists.

Joel Connelly wondered if the BIAW's campaign to "pour salt into old social wounds" will succeed.

I'll let State Senator Mark Schoesler answer that, in comments he made in the Lewiston Tribune back on February 14, 2008:

Sen. Mark Schoesler, R-Ritzville, often has to hear west-side legislators preach about what eastern Washingtonians need. This session is no different.

A bill to promote the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative in eastern Washington passed through the Senate Wednesday, though it received almost no support from eastern senators, Schoesler said.

"It concerns me that Seattle senators say they know what's best for eastern Washington," Schoesler said.

It's time for a change. It's time to re-elect Dino Rossi as Governor of Washington.