Late yesterday, the Building Industry Association of Washington dumped another $4 million into the governor’s race, bringing their spending on behalf of Dino Rossi to an astounding $7 million. That’s $7 million from BIAW alone, apparently the largest such “independent” expenditure in state history.
This is a stunning, disturbing and potentially game changing development that will allow the BIAW to saturate the airwaves with vicious attack ads, quite possibly swinging this election to Rossi. And without that type of layout, the BIAW has clearly made the decision that a Governor Rossi would be well worth the price of any fines it will pay for its illegal activities.
Will our state’s editorialists express the appropriate outrage out this effort to deceitfully buy the governor’s mansion? Sadly, I’m guessing not.
I hope they dump in another 20 million. Because Dino is going to wake up on the November fifth as irrelevant as he is today.
Rossi is going to be a victim of an Obama landslide in this state. The “born salesman” is nothing more than a born loser in Washington politics.
What is the profile of someone who would vote for Obama, and then two seconds later vote for the bought and paid for whore Dino Rossi? Please, Sarah Palin would have a better chance of winning.
The Gregoire campaign should show a picture of Rossi, then Palin, with a simultaneous voice over of them explaining their positions on abortion. Then a quick blurb asking why they are both being investigated while running for office.
Palin and Rossi, two peas in the Republican pod. The Republican pod people.
” … the Building Industry Association of Washington dumped another $4 million into the governor’s race, bringing their spending on behalf of Dino Rossi to an astounding $7 million.”
Now you know why homes cost so much! How many homes did BIAW members build this year? If we assume they built 7,000 homes, then the BIAW’s political contributions to Rossi’s campaign added $1,000 to the price of each home.
#4 No it didn’t. they used illegal alien labor.
1.
Answer: Puddypudpuller
The Master Builders Association should offer homebuyers a checkoff option. If the homebuyer wants to make a $1,000 contribution to Rossi, he checks a box on the contract form. If the homebuyer doesn’t check the box, the builder reduces the price by $1,000 and BIAW and Rossi don’t get the money. Sounds fair to me!
Where is this money coming from? Are any builders still solvent? Is BIAW bankrupting its members to save Rossi’s worthless skin?
Let’s suppose Rossi loses, and builders all over the state sit down, look at the bills piling up on their office desks, and scratch their heads. In two election cycles, BIAW will have spent somewhere between $10 million and $20 million of their money — and gotten absolutely no return. Zip. Nada. Profitless. A 100% loss.
At some point, the builders will see BIAW as a bad investment, and rethink their membership in BIAW. In hard times, paying dues to an unproductive organization must look like an expense that can easily be eliminated.
I would guess Tom McCabe senses this election is do-or-die. His organization’s survival may depend on a Rossi win. The magnitude of his spending and the tone of his ads do have the mark of desperation on them. Yes, Tom McCabe has the look in his eyes of a hunted animal. Like a riverboat gambler with everything he owns on the table, he can’t afford to lose, because defeat means bankruptcy, ruination, financial death. If Rossi loses, McCabe and his BIAW will vanish into the night.
That’s what’s behind all of this.
The money comes from skimming off a piece of the L&I they collect from paychecks. Odds are they’re also laundering contributions from the national Chamber of Commerce and other such far-right organizations.
@7
Lets hope so.
You mean to tell us that BIAW wasn’t enjoined from additional money-floods while they’re being investigated for illegal collaboration with Dino?
Oh, sorry, that may have been the “separate” Master Builders.
@9 Yes, I would say so. That’s too much money to just come from BIAW’s L & I vigorish. Add money laundering to the other charges. And prepare a nameplate for Tom McCabe’s reserved room at Monroe Reformatory.
Since Gregoire’s not going to be able to match this kind of spending on the airwaves, we need to launch an effective word-of-mouth neighborhood campaing to make sure everyone understands how the BIAW is trying to buy this election, and how false the ads are.
And special attention needs to be paid to the young Obama voters. They need to be educated with respect to the “down-ticket” races, including the governor’s race.
One thing that didn’t help was that U.W. classes began only about a week before the voter registration deadline. Lots of potential voters might have been missed. We need to re-build the Democratic party from the ground up, with lots of local involvement at every level, so we can counter the GOP spending on the airwaves.
GOP’s Worst Investment Ever?
Here’s something that might provide some perspective on BIAW’s $7 million investment in Rossi:
“The Republican National Committee, growing nervous over the prospect of Democrats’ winning a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate, is considering tapping into a $5 million line of credit this week to aid an increasing number of vulnerable incumbents, top Republicans say. With party strategists fearing a bloodbath at the polls, GOP officials are shifting to triage mode, determining who can be saved and where to best spend their money.”
(Quoted from Politico under fair use.)
Roger Rabbit Commentary: Think about it — the RNC is borrowing $5 million in an attempt to stave off a filibuster-proof Democratic Senate. That’s less than BIAW is throwing at Rossi. And if Rossi loses? The GOP gets absolutely nothing for BIAW’s millions. Suppose, instead, the BIAW sent this $4 million to RNC to spend on the Senate races where the GOP has the best chance of saving a seat here or there — and it might take only one to keep President Obama from having a filibuster-proof Senate. Spending this $4 million on Rossi just might end up being the worst financial investment any Republican ever made — even if Rossi wins, because one governorship doesn’t begin to compare with filibuster-proof control of the U.S. Senate! And when you think about it this way, spending this money on Rossi is exactly what we Tom McCabe to do.
BIAW makes millions in profit from the Department of Labor and Industries. Its “members” get significant refunds on L&I workers’ comp taxes (even though they don’t have demonstrably safer workplaces), but those refunds pass through BIAW first, which takes a 20% cut for its political activities.
Unlike labor unions, you cannot opt out. If you want your refund, you must fund BIAW’s politics, whether you support them or not.
Employers who DON’T participate in this L&I rebate program are paying HIGHER L&I taxes than they would if the program didn’t exist. This rebate program that BIAW is scamming is costing non-participating employers across this state millions more in taxes. That’s a fact.
And yet, every time Democrats step up and say “this is wrong” and try to reform this L&I rebate program, they are accused of political payback by newspaper editorialists and media pundits. So they drop it.
In other words, this is a politically insulated cash cow of tax dollars used by the BIAW and other business lobbying groups (like the Farm Bureau) that can NEVER be shut down… at least until the Dems ignore the pundits, and do what’s right.
Maybe now that he BIAW has singlehandly attempted to buy the Governor’s Office with these L&I taxes, Dems will have the balls to shut this scam down once and for all.
Labor Goon spews:
“Unlike labor unions, you cannot opt out. If you want your refund, you must fund BIAW’s politics, whether you support them or not.”
There are 8 construction groups sponsoring Worker’s Comp. Retro Programs.
If a builder dislikes BIAW, they have 7 other groups they can join. Combined, the others are biffer than BIAW.
Keep lying goon…it may make you feel better, but it’s still a lie.
The truth is if Gregoire and “her” unions (some of which she had to create)were able to raise as much money as BIAW has, they would be doing the same thing.
Roger Rabbit: Your comment “If Rossi loses, McCabe and his BIAW will vanish into the night” will not happen. BIAW will just come back stronger!
News Alert: Satterberg to denounce BIAW “sex offender” ad on KING 5 News
I understand that KING 5 News will air a segment on its 5:00 news this afternoon featuring King County Republican Prosecutor Dan Satterberg saying the BIAW’s TV ads claiming the state has lost track of 1,300 sex offenders is “false.”
@17 Uh-huh. Someone who spends 7 million bucks of his supporters’ money with nothing to show for it will “come back stronger”? Are you a comedienne? Are you trying out for SNL? You’re either very funny or very nuts.
@16 Cynical, you seem to know a lot about BIAW, so maybe you can explain why Tom McCabe thinks Rossi is a better investment than saving the GOP from a filibuster-proof Democratic U.S. Senate?
Ohy, and by the way, I heard your Republican prosecutor is going to denounce BIAW’s lying ads!
Christine should just come out and say what Barak has said…she’ll take money from the rabbits and give it to the moles and groundhogs… Rabbits don’t need that much money and the others need to share in their wealth.
Then she’s in like flin.
@18 KING 5 News’ segment on sex offenders featured Mark Roe of the Snohomish County Prosecutor’s Office, not King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg. Roe told KING 5 News that Washington citizens are “safer” from sex offenders with Gregoire in the governor’s mansion than they would be with Rossi there. Also, the KING 5 News story is about ads sponsored by the Republican Governors Association, not BIAW.
Illiterate Fuck @21: The correct permutation of the expression is “in like Flynn,” dope! Were you raised in a trailer park? Were you home schooled? Wear the fuk du yu redneks git yur fonetick speling from ineway?
Cynical @ 16:
You sound like you know enough about this crooked L&I rebate program to know the truth: that the larger the retro program (and BIAW’s is the state’s largest, by far), the larger the refund. Anyone who “opts” to choose a different retro program is also opting to get less of their L&I tax money back.
BIAW has it rigged.
Cynical, do you think it makes sense for business special-interest lobbying groups to generate millions every year in profits from a government work safety program, despite no proof that its workplaces are any safer than non-participants? Do you think it makes sense that such a program should become a legislative “third rail” because any proposed changes to it are considered politically motivated?
And please answer the questions, don’t obfuscate by trying to draw some parallel with what unions, or somebody else, do. Stick to the topic and see if your defense of BIAW withstands the straight-face test.
I was taught by your mom while she sucked my dick. :-)
I also didn’t realize that you’ve never made a spelling error on this site or any other. You are awesome. Fuck ass.
Now that we have that out of the way…do you not think if she said that she’d win automatically? She should be leading all polls by 10 points, but isn’t. Strange huh?