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For all of the discussion of how the new arena in SoDo would hurt traffic, you’d think this would be a bigger deal.

Coal trains can easily be 8,000 feet long, which means that it takes more than 6 minutes to clear a street crossing when traveling at 15 mph, a pretty typical speed in an urban area. Then factor in 30 seconds of street closure time for warning signals to sound or crossing arms to stop traffic, plus 30 seconds to re-start traffic after the train has cleared the intersection. Add it all up and you get this: Bellingham’s new loaded coal trains would completely cut off street intersections by somewhere between 105 minutes and 125 minutes of every day.

I don’t want to be disingenuous here. I support more rail infrastructure at the port and oppose the coal trains for non-traffic reasons much more than this. Still, if the trains come, hopefully they come with more infrastructure to mitigate this.

8:58: I am listening to Mitt Romney right now…and he is shamelessly lying about the impact of the patient protection and affordable care act. I didn’t hear anything about “death panels” but the same old bullshit lines:

“Obamacare puts the government between you and your doctor”

“Higher deficits.”

“Causes you to lose the insurance you like”

“Or return to a time when you could chose the insurance you like,”

“Obamacare is a job killer”

…and others.

Yawn.

Most of his claims have been shown false by the fact checking web sites.

9:06: Gov. Gregoire is on KUOW now, pointing out how “going back to the status quo would bankrupt our businesses, our families, and the state.”

9:09: Goldy takes the SCOTUS decision as a sign that Rob McKenna is a crappy lawyer:

Remember, McKenna was instrumental in initiating the lawsuit that forced today’s ruling, and spoke confidently on the campaign trial that he and his fellow attorneys general would prevail. He was wrong.

“Our precedent demonstrates that Congress had the power to impose the exaction in Section 5000A under the taxing power, and that Section 5000A need not be read to do more than impose a tax. This is sufficient to sustain it.”

Even though an overwhelming majority of constitutional scholars had weighed in that the mandate appeared to be constitutional, perhaps it is unfair to use this ruling to impugn McKenna’s legal acumen. Perhaps McKenna merely made the political calculation that the conservative majority on the court would ultimately prove be just as politically unprincipled as he is, and thus toss out the ACA regardless of clearly established precedent?

Perhaps. Not that that take is any more flattering.

The point is that under McKenna’s leadership the attorney general’s office has an established track record of championing losing, politically motivated cases and opinions.

9:15: Obama is on now. He goes through a list of the major advantages.

“Young Americans can stay on their parents insurance”

“Seniors receive discounts on prescriptions”

“No insurance? Then you will be insured starting in 2014.”

“No discrimination by preexisting conditions”

“People who can afford insurance should take the responsibility of buying it”

“I didn’t do this because I believe it is good politics. I did it because it is good for America.”

Not much new there. Essentially, Obama and Romney stuck to their previous points.

9:23: The gods of politics are to be worshiped and thanked for giving us a Republican nominee who, while a Governor, passed the model of universal health care that he must now fight against. I think this angle has been downplayed to date because of the uncertainty of the SCOTUS decision. Now, it’s ripe….

9:26: The real “Death Panel” would have been SCOTUS if they had struck down Obamacare. Hopefully, today’s ruling will help us claw our way back to the top of the list for health statistics….

9:28: Rep. Jim McDermott is on KUOW. He is happy.

“John Roberts…is fantastic” (Okay…maybe I’ve changed the meaning there.)

“People have been trying to do this since 1935…huge victory”

“Rob McKenna has egg on his face.”

9:31: Republicans have been chanting “overreach, overreach, overreach” like they are in a fucking trance. What the SCOTUS decision shows us is that they were engaged in a collective reach around!

9:34: Steve Scher on KUOW is now interviewing some wingnut (part of the lawsuit) who claims that today’s decision means Americans have “lost their freedom.” Sure…they have lost the freedom to go bankrupt from medical costs. Freedom from watching the most disadvantaged Americans suffer for want of health care. Freedom from the constant worry about how to get health insurance….

9:40: Okay…finally back to Goldy’s point above. He is right that McKenna was shown by the SCOTUS decision to be a lousy lawyer. McDermott is right, “Rob McKenna has egg on his face.” But I stand by my statement that McKenna is a winner by this decision. A little egg on his face is nothing compared to dealing with the actual consequences to real voters had the lawsuit succeeded.

9:49: Paul Constant posts this hilarious CNN moment:

10:20: Josh Marshall:

I have some thoughts on the politics of this — mainly because the politics is what I have some expertise to speak about. But that will be my next post. Before I do that I wanted to state very clearly that the politics of the decision pales before its substance, a fact that I suspect will get little attention today. This decision will have a massive effect on the lives of literally millions of people. Mitt Romney may have joked yesterday that the White House was “not sleeping real well” last night. But a lot of people tonight and in the future will sleep a lot better for this result. Young people, people with pre-existing conditions and mainly people who through the chaos of the health care market simply find themselves with no coverage.

That’s the big deal.

10:33: Apparently, FAUX News joined CNN in jumping the gun. They heard or read that the court didn’t find the Commerce Clause argument convincing and assumed the whole thing would be struck down. TPM does a medley:

10:40: Obama speaks:

10:45: Gov. Christine Gregoire’s statement on today’s SCOTUS ruling. (Livestreaming for now.) Gregoire eviscerates Rob McKenna!

10:56: Rob McKenna releases a say-nothing statement on today’s ruling. As one of two people who initiated the lawsuit, you’d think he’d have a hell of a lot more to say than that. I suspect he is just relieved that the whole potential nightmare for his gubernatorial campaign is over.

11:06: Justice Ginsburg’s opinion quoted from Gov. Christine Gregoire’s brief,submitted in reaction to McKenna joining the lawsuit. “We tried healthcare without a mandate and it [became]…a death spiral.”

11:09: I, for one, look forward to the forthcoming law with its tax incentive to eat broccoli.

11:14: Seattle PI’s Joel Connelly summarizes some of the PPACA’s benefits for Washingtonians:

About 52,000 young people have been able to stay on their parents’ health insurance programs until the age of 26.

The law has provided that families seeking insurance cannot be denied coverage because of a child’s pre-existing condition. Nor can insurers place lifetime limits on spending for an individual’s health care.

More than 100,000 small businesses in Washington are now eligible for a federal small business tax credit designed to make it easier and more economical to provide employees with health care.

“I look forward to the day not long from now when more than 800,000 people in our state will be able to use our Health Benefit Exchange to get health insurance they need but currently must go without,” said Gov. Christine Gregoire.

The Supreme Court has largely upheld the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA).

My limited understanding from media coverage is that the ruling on the “mandate” is narrow. The crux of the argument: The U.S. government can tax. Period. Since the mandate is a tax incentive, it’s not outside the constitutional scope for congress to enact such a tax incentive for people to purchase insurance.

Two quick points. First, we see once again, that Democrats lost the battle of words by the fact that the tax incentive provision became known as a “mandate.”

The fact is, it isn’t a mandate. It is an incentive. You are not mandated to purchase insurance. Rather, you pay a tax if you can afford but don’t purchase insurance. Or, put another way, you avoid paying a tax if you have insurance.

The word “mandate” is one of those wingnut terms of art (like “death tax”) that is factually inaccurate, but is fantastic for stoking emotions. It makes for good hate-stoking.

The second point. Of the thousand and thousands of words I’ve read on the constitutionality/unconstitutionality of the PPACA after the lawsuits were announced, one of the best was written by none other than Goldy:

See, the recently passed health care reform legislation does not require that all U.S. citizens purchase insurance, it merely provides a tax incentive to those of us who do. If you are not covered by an employer, and if you have not purchased your own individual policy, and if your income is above certain levels, and if you don’t hail from a state that has opted out of this mandate by implementing its own qualified health insurance system, you will be required to pay an additional federal tax, starting at the greater of $95 or 1% of income in 2014, and rising to $695 or 2.5% of income in 2016, up to a cap of the national average premium on a bronze plan. Both the minimum tax and the cap will increase by the annual cost of living adjustment.

Now, some might argue that this is still a mandate to engage in some sort of economic activity because it targets a tax at those who refuse, but one could easily flip this perception around. What it really is, is a flat, 2.5% federal income tax — much along the lines of what is already imposed to fund Social Security and Medicare — but for which the law provides a substantial exemption to those who choose to purchase private health insurance.

And don’t attempt to bog down this discussion in jibberish over whether this is a “tax” or a “fee” or a “penalty” or a “mandate” or whatever. The courts have long been consistent that lawmakers need not jump through such semantic hoops; if a law is constitutional worded one way, it is constitutional worded another, as long as the practical application is the same. And clearly, our tax laws are filled with provisions intend to encourage some economic activities and discourage others.

Along these lines, a better analogy than Troll’s theoretical handgun mandate would be our current home mortgage interest deduction. The federal government does not actually mandate that we all take out big mortgages to buy homes and condos, but it grants huge tax advantages to those who do, essentially penalizing renters. Think about it: with the extra tax revenue from eliminating the home mortgage interest deduction, the federal government could lower the base tax rate on all of us.

So, if the health insurance mandate-cum-exemption is unconstitutional based on the contention that it compels individuals to engage in an economic activity, then so too would be the home mortgage interest deduction, and any number of other federal tax incentives. And I sincerely doubt that McKenna would choose to join a lawsuit seeking to deny Washington homeowners this very popular deduction.

If the “mandate” is unconstitutional, so is the mortgage interest deduction. After all, it “mandates” that you take out a mortgage loan, or pay a tax penalty.

Finally…winners and losers: First, this secures Obama’s legacy. Even though the PPACA was only one of many solid accomplishments of Obama’s first two years, this one is more defining and will positively, directly touch the lives of more Americans. (Ironically, candidate Obama opposed a “mandate” while he was campaigning against Clinton in 2008.) Second, this takes away Romney’s arguments that “Obama didn’t do anything” when he had a Democratic House and Senate.

Likewise, Democrats win by getting through another great social program. This is, after all, the real reason why Republicans oppose this largely Republican-designed program.

On the other hand, this is a win for conservatives, in that they will certainly be motivated by hatred, anger, fear of “socialism” largely out of the misconception that the government is now “forcing them to do something.”

The other big winner is Rob McKenna, who by losing the lawsuit he claims to have co-founded, dodges a huge bullet. Who wants the vote for the prick that kicked you off your parent’s insurance, or the asshole that quadrupled your insurance costs because of a pre-existing condition?

The final big winner is America—we have now joined most of the rest of the civilized world by making health care available to the poorest of our citizens. A reversal would have been a tragedy for untold millions of Americans. The PPACA is far from perfect, but it’s almost certainly better than what we had.

WordPress (or more likely user error) seems to have eaten my last post, so here again is the link to info about the rallies after tomorrow’s Supreme Court decisions.

Attend a rapid response event near you!

This Thursday, the US Supreme Court is expected to rule on Rob McKenna’s partisan challenge to the Affordable Care Act – President Obama’s health care reform law. It’s perhaps the most anticipated Supreme Court ruling in our nation’s history.

Regardless of the outcome, we’ll be ready. Please RSVP on Washington Community Action Network’s web site.

Thursday, June 28 outside the Attorney General’s offices around the state

– This chart of Congressional wealth is one of those charts that shocks you with things you could have guessed.

– The Seattle Great Wheel looks like it will be pretty neat.

– This idea for filibuster reform is a bit overly complex. But in general it’s solid.

– WTF, SPD?

– Clearly this is not Romney’s party – yet, anyway. Other Republicans’ willingness to buck and rebuke him signals not bracing political independence – party leaders haven’t had the guts to stand up to the birthers in their ranks – but insecurity about their November prospects. A lot of Republicans seem to have their eye on November – of 2016.

– Spoke and Food

I like Darcy Burner, but unlike a lot of bloggers, I’m willing to wait and see who gets through the primary. I don’t live in the district so I don’t have to choose. And a lot of the candidates have done good things. Still, I’m encouraged by things like this in my email box.

I’ve heard Republicans lie. I’ve heard Fox News manipulate the truth. I’ve heard plenty of outrageous things. John Koster proved that through either ignorance or willful rejection of reality, Republicans can still shock me.

In an interview that will air on Sunday on King5, a question was asked about Congress addressing marriage equality. I answered that not only should we repeal DOMA, but we should go further and provide all married couples with all of the Federal benefits of marriage.

I was stunned by what followed.

John Koster jumped right in with an outrageous statement.

“…there is no Federal Defense of Marriage Act…”

Yes, of course on one level, it’s another fundraising appeal. Still I’m glad the heat is directed to Koster, and not the other Democrats.

Now look, I love primaries and I have no problem with them getting a bit rough and tumble (there are important issues at play). But these are the sort of things I love most about primaries. Even if Rudderman wins, all of Darcy Burner’s supporters (who bother to open their email, and read it) will have seen this. And if any media (beyond HA) mention it, even better.

– Decline to sign the charter schools initiative.

– Vincent Chin would have been 57 today. But the Michigan man never made it out of his 20s. Instead, 30 years ago this week Chin was brutally murdered when he was bludgeoned with a baseball bat wielded by two white, jobless auto workers who thought Chin, a Chinese-American man, was Japanese.

– Lou Dobbs is a horrible person [h/t].

– If evangelicalism were primarily a theological tradition, then British and American evangelicals would be more similar than they are. But American evangelicalism has ceased to be mainly a theological category. It’s now mainly a political subculture, a tribe.

– Pennsylvania State University, as an institution, decided that protecting Joe Paterno’s reputation and winning a few more football games was more important than stopping the ongoing rape of young boys.

– Give me a rambling rover.

I don’t think it is. I mean we’re a secular country. So our laws don’t reflect one doctrine or one religion over another. And Christians who oppose letting anyone getting married clearly aren’t the oppressed minority they seem to think they are.

Still, it’s nice to see the push back from the Christian community beyond just a live and let live attitude. Joel Connelly has an interesting piece on the Minnesota anti-marriage equality constitutional amendment. After noting the official Catholic Church position, he talks about Catholics who oppose the amendment:

Three retired priests recently sent a letter to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune under the heading, “Catholics of Minnesota, you have a choice. There is not just one way for Catholics to vote in November.”

Rev. Tom Garvey, a priest for 55 years, spoke to Minnesota Public Radio about Nienstedt’s edict, saying: “That was a terrible thing, such an injustice to say you cannot disagree with me on this matter.”

And in other religions, the officialdom is getting on the right side of history.

Five synods of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ECLA) have voted to oppose it. The United Methodist Church in Minnesota has come out against it.

The proposed amendment “would prevent one group of committed couples and their families from pursuing ordinary legislative or legal means to gain the support and protections afforded to all others,” said a resolution passed by the Minneapolis Synod of the ECLA.

– Oh, that kind of marriage equality.

– I didn’t know anything about the story of the story KIRO ran about the Leschi custodian. But the response from the Washington News Council makes me glad there’s at least some type of accountability.

– The Interurban Trail in Edmonds.

– This influx of cash followed a major effort by Zimmerman’s supporters to cast him as the real victim, a poor man being railroaded by the justice system and major media outlets. They flooded comment sections and social media with racist horseshit, tried desperately to dig up dirt on Martin and discovered that he was, get this, a fucking teenager, and did whatever they could to violently shove the media narrative in the other direction because it made their guy look bad and didn’t make the young boy he had killed look bad enough.

– Another 36th District debate.

– How have you been celebrating National Pollinator Week?

I should start out by saying that Mars Hill have been good neighbors since they opened a church in my neighborhood. They’re a part of the community, and it’s appreciated. That said, what the fuck [h/t]?

“Mark started the meeting by telling us he was convinced that I had demons,” says Amy, “and then he went on to add that my demons were ‘sexual demons’.”

Amy describes Mark’s demeanor toward her as a “fiery tirade”. During this encounter, Mark told Amy he believed that every one of her sins were “sex based.” He said that the demons inside her were out to destroy every one of the marriages in their circle of friends.

Really, I don’t know what to say (other than muttering “sex demons?” repeatedly under my breath, and that’s probably not helpful).

– I’m not sure zero tolerance is a good strategy for dealing with gun crimes. But the previous strategies clearly weren’t working.

– RIP Rodney King.

– If there is anything the Federal Reserve could be doing that it’s not doing — and there is — then they are to blame for this. For this multiplied by 14 million. For Ben Bernanke and his cohorts to be giving a single flying fig about the remote possibility of inflation right now really is obscene.

– If the Tea Party doesn’t want to be seen as racist, maybe don’t start off a rally with a racist joke.

– Lord Player says more homophobic nonsense.

– Publicola are back.

– Happy Solstice.

– This is the greatest headline in human history.

– Kill My Blues.

When Lee and I (and some other folks) used to do metacommentary one of our favorite blogs to make fun of was Reagan Wing. Nowadays, they’re pretty much just a Ron Paul blog. And is keepusfree upset with Rand Paul, but don’t criticize him.

Rand Paul a Traitor?

No. He endorsed a different presidential candidate than you. Unless that presidential candidate is Jefferson Davis, it ain’t treason.

Along with many of you in the Liberty Movement, I watched and listened with sick horror to Rand Paul’s endorsement of Mitt Romney. But thinking about it, in a political sense, in a global context of what is happening in our world, I would like to offer a hypothesis.

I think you’ll be surprised to learn that there’s a difference between vague half articulated conspiracy theories and a hypothesis.

We do not know the pressures that might have been brought to bear on Ron and Rand Paul. The power wielded by the enemies of the free people of the world is enormous and they have no scruples, no mercy, and no justice. In a perfect world, there might be a “John Galt” moment, where Rand steps aside to reveal the gun pointed at him. But that is a novel. Real life is not so clean.

I think the enemies of free people probably brought a bear to bear on Rand Paul. What I’m saying is watch out for his family getting mauled by a grizzly if he switches back to his father. It can’t possibly have anything to do with delegate math. I know the Ron Paul people think they’ll just overwhelm the national convention. But (a) they won’t, and (b) even if they did, maybe Rand Paul thinks it would be immoral (or just bad politics) to nominate someone who couldn’t win the majority of a single state. But you know what, fuck all that: mysterious forces.

If the Powers That Be can see our heroes brought low, it is to their great advantage and will serve them well. That someone breaks under the kind of pressure that they can exert is to be expected.

The pressure of winning the nomination. Wait, am I defending Mitt Romney? What’s wrong with me? It must be The Powers That Be. Anyway, it goes on like this for a while: they’re brave truth tellers, and it’s oh so tough. Then we reach the conclusion.

Rand Paul’s Cross

In this metaphor, Rand Paul is Jesus. But maybe, I’m being too over the top. It’s a fairly common metaphor that we all understand. It’s not like she called his father “Father” with a capital “F” or something.

Before you criticize Rand Paul, you should walk a mile in his shoes. The road he is traveling cannot be easy and will be rocky and dangerous. But his Father must have passed on some of his stalwart principles to his son, and he may yet serve us, even while he faces our ire and castigation for something which well may be completely out of his control, or may be a part of something we cannot yet see or understand. It may be the cross he has to bear and the sacrifice he has to make in order to continue in the fight at all. Only time will tell.

Or, he’s just a politician with some awful ideas that are closer to his dad’s. But since his dad isn’t going to win the nomination, he endorsed the other guy with horrible ideas.

On Friday David Brooks and Paul Krugman share space on the New York Times Op-Ed page. Sometimes, the contrast between the quality of writing is embarrassing. Today, I noticed the transitions between paragraphs. Here’s how Bobo starts each paragraph after the first:

I guess I’d say
But many Republicans
“We have a sense
To Republican eyes,
America’s economic stagnation
In America as in Europe
The welfare model favors
This is the source of Republican extremism
Mitt Romney hasn’t put it this way
Democrats have had trouble grasping
In his speech
Obama championed
This is what this election is about
Republicans and Democrats have different perceptions

Sometimes it ties the previous paragraph to the next one. But more often than not it’s jarring. Oh here’s a new idea. Maybe there are connections, but you’ll have to make them yourself. Compare that to K-thug.

Never mind
In the remarks
You can see
So would getting rid of teachers, police officers, and firefighters help the American people?
But the more relevant question
First of all
And, if we had those extra jobs
The really decisive evidence
But recovery never came
And the point is
So the former governor
Actually, it’s kind of ironic
And that’s not just an inference
In fact
Needless to say

Whatever you think of Krugman’s argument in this piece, you can see the way he ties one paragraph into another pretty much every time.

My questions in bold Kathleen Drew’s are unbolded.

1) How will you make sure elections are fair?

Washingtonians expect a Secretary of State who is fair and impartial. Those are the characteristics I have shown throughout my career. I am not a career politician, I am an effective and experienced manager committed to fair elections and increased voter participation. I authored our state’s Ethics in Public Service law and served on our state Commission on Government Ethics and Campaign Finance Reform.

As Secretary of State I will ensure consistency and transparency in election processes across the state. I will require a paper trail for votes cast. I will increase auditing of equipment and processes to ensure that our election system is secure and accurate.

I will also implement consistent statewide policies on the use and distribution of ballot drop boxes so that they are available in communities and on college campuses across the state. I’ll reach out to all demographic groups in both urban and rural communities to encourage all eligible citizens to vote. Working together we can identify barriers that eligible voters face and eliminate them. However, all of these improvements will be at risk if we allow corporate interests to participate in elections without restriction or accountability. I’ll fight any efforts to suppress voting, such as those we’ve seen in other states. I strongly oppose the Supreme Court’s decision in the Citizens United case and support a constitutional amendment to repeal the decision. I also support passage of the DISCLOSE Act. I’ll work here in Washington State to increase transparency and accountability in the initiative process.

2) The last Democratic Secretary of State retired in 1964. What makes you think you’re going to finally flip that?

Both of the previous two Secretaries of State had statewide experience and worked in the executive branch of state government. I am the only candidate of any party in this race that has similar experience in state government, both as a policy advisor to the Governor and as a State Senator. I have a clear vision of why I am running and what I want to accomplish. I have the most active and effective campaign of any candidate and have been traveling across the state listening to voters’ concerns and ideas since November. I am the nominee of the Washington State Democratic Party and have been endorsed by dozens of organizations, state and local elected officials, community leaders and citizens from every part of this state. Many of these endorsements are listed below.

Washington State Democratic Party Nominee
Washington State Labor Council
International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, AFL-CIO District 751
Washington Federation of State Employees
American Federation of Teachers, Washington
SEIU 1199NW
Teamsters Joint Council 28
UFCW 367
IBEW Local 77
IBEW Local 112
IBEW Local 483
Spokane Fire Fighters Union Local 29
EMILY’s List
NARAL Pro-Choice Washington
National Organization for Women
National Women’s Political Caucus of Washington State
King County Democrats
Pierce County Democrats
Snohomish County Democrats
Thurston County Democrats
Kitsap County Democrats
Grays Harbor County Democrats
Metropolitan Democratic Club of Seattle
1st Legislative District Democrats (Bothell)
5th Legislative District Democrats (Issaquah)
11th Legislative District Democrats (Renton)
15th Legislative District Democrats (Yakima)
22nd Legislative District Democrats (Olympia)
27th Legislative District Democrats (Tacoma)
30th Legislative District Democrats (Federal Way)
32nd Legislative District Democrats (Shoreline)
33rd Legislative District Democrats (Kent)
34th Legislative District Democrats (Seattle)
35th Legislative District Democrats (Mason, Kitsap, and Thurston Counties)
36th Legislative District Democrats (Seattle)
37th Legislative District Democrats (Seattle)
41st Legislative District Democrats (Bellevue and Mercer Island)
42nd Legislative District Democrats (Bellevue)
43rd Legislative District Democrats (Seattle)
45th Legislative District Democrats (Redmond)
46th Legislative District Democrats (Seattle)
47th Legislative District Democrats (Covington)
49th Legislative District Democrats (Vancouver)
Young Democrats of Washington
King County Young Democrats
Pierce County Young Democrats
UW Young Democrats
WSU Young Democrats
Adam Smith, United States Congressman (WA-9)
Robert Utter, Former Chief Justice, Washington State Supreme Court
Faith Ireland, Former Justice, Washington State Supreme Court
Jennifer Belcher, Former Public Lands Commissioner
Michael J. Murphy, Former Washington State Treasurer
Ron Sims, Former King County Executive
Jolene Unsoeld, Former United States Congresswoman (WA-3)
Rosemary McAuliffe, Washington State Senate (D-1)
Luis Moscoso, Washington State House of Representatives (D-1)
Derek Stanford, Washington State House of Representatives (D-1)
Andy Billig, Washington State House of Representatives (D-3)
Margarita Prentice, Washington State Senate (D-11)
Bob Hasegawa, Washington State House of Representatives (D-11)
Brian Blake, Washington State House of Representatives (D-19)
Mary Helen Roberts, Washington State House of Representatives (D-21)
Karen Fraser, Washington State Senate (D-22)
Sam Hunt, Washington State House of Representatives (D-22)
Chris Reykdal, Washington State House of Representatives (D-22)
Sherry Appleton, Washington State House of Representatives (D-23)
Christine Rolfes, Washington State Senate (D-23)
Steve Tharinger, Washington State House of Representatives (D-24)
Larry Seaquist, Washington State House of Representatives (D-26)
Jeannie Darneille, Washington State House of Representatives (D-27)
Laurie Jinkins, Washington State House of Representatives (D-27)
Tami Green, Washington State House of Representatives (D-28)
Connie Ladenburg, Washington State House of Representatives (D-29)
Steve Kirby, Washington State House of Representatives (D-29)
Maralyn Chase, Washington State Senate (D-32)
Cindy Ryu, Washington State House of Representatives (D-32)
Ruth Kagi, Washington State House of Representatives (D-32)
Karen Keiser, Washington State Senate (D-33)
Dave Upthegrove, Washington State House of Representatives (D-33)
Sharon Nelson, Washington State Senate (D-34)
Eileen Cody, Washington State House of Representatives (D-34)
Kathy Haigh, Washington State House of Representatives (D-35)
Adam Kline, Washington State Senate (D-37)
John McCoy, Washington State House of Representatives (D-38)
Mike Sells, Washington State House of Representatives (D-38)
Kristine Lytton, Washington State House of Representatives (D-40)
Marcie Maxwell, Washington State House of Representatives (D-41)
Jamie Pedersen, Washington State House of Representatives (D-43)
Hans Dunshee, Washington State House of Representatives (D-44)
Gerry Pollet, Washington State House of Representatives (D-46)
Sharon Wylie, Washington State House of Representatives (D-49)
Jim Moeller, Washington State House of Representatives (D-49)
Julia Patterson, King County Councilmember
Larry Phillips, King County Councilmember
Lloyd Hara, King County Assessor
Gael Tarleton, Port of Seattle Commissioner
Brian Sullivan, Snohomish County Councilmember
Stephanie Wright, Snohomish County Councilmember
Dave Gossett, Shohomish County Councilmember
John Lovick, Snohomish County Sheriff
Cindy Portmann, Snohomish County Assessor
Sonya Kraski, Snohomish County Clerk
Doug Lasher, Clark County Treasurer
David Peterson, Kitsap County Clerk
Sandra Romero, Thurston County Commissioner
Karen Valenzuela, Thurston County Commissioner
Shawn Myers, Thurston County Treasurer
Steven Drew, Thurston County Assessor
George Barner, Thurston County Port Commissioner
Mike Doherty, Clallam County Commissioner
Bruce Walker, Pacific County Assessor
Jean Godden, Seattle City Councilmember
Richard Conlin, Seattle City Councilmember
Bruce Harrell, Seattle City Councilmember
Tom Rasmussen, Seattle City Councilmember
Ray Stephanson, Everett Mayor
Lauren Walker, Tacoma City Councilmember
Ryan Mello, Tacoma City Councilmember
Anders Ibsen, Tacoma City Councilmember
Dennis Higgins, Kent City Councilmember
Dana Ralph, Kent City Councilmember
Joan McBride, Kirkland Mayor
Jim Cooper, Olympia City Council
Karen Rogers, Olympia City Council
Jeff Gadman, Lacey City Councilmember
Ron Lawson, Lacey City Councilmember
Cynthia Pratt, Lacey City Councilmember
Andy Ryder, Lacey City Councilmember
Carol Arends, Bremerton City Councilmember
Greg Wheeler, Bremerton City Councilmember
Leslie Daugs, Bremerton City Councilmember
Sissi Bruch, Port Angeles City Councilmember
Ken Hays, Sequim Mayor
Laura Dubois, Sequim City Councilmember
Gerald Robinson, Burien City Councilmember
Joan Cathey, Tumwater City Councilmember
Tom Oliva, Tumwater City Councilmember
Wayne Ehlers, Former Washington State Representative and Speaker of the House (D-2)
Valoria Loveland, Former Franklin County Treasurer and Washington State Senator (D-16)
Bill Smitherman, Former Washington State Senator (D-26)
Nancy Rust, Former Washington State Representative (D-32)
Harriet Spanel, Former Washington State Senator (D-40)
Pat Thibaudeau, Former Washington State Senator (D-43)
Dawn Mason, Former Washington State Representative (D-37)
Val Ogden, Former Washington State Representative (D-49)
Mary Ann Ottinger, Former King County District Court Judge
Mary Verner, Former Spokane Mayor
Cathy Pearsall-Stipek, Former Pierce County Auditor

3) Sam Reed has been pushing to count the ballots that are received by election day (like in Oregon) rather than the ones postmarked by election day. Do you support or oppose this?

Although many are frustrated by the length of time it takes to get final election results, I do not support changing the due date for ballot returns. First, we have required ballots to be postmarked by Election Day for about 30 years. Changing this practice will disenfranchise many who have consistently voted in this state. Second, the legislature recently changed the primary date to ensure overseas and military voters could receive and return ballots by Election Day. We have had a system of requiring votes to be postmarked by Election Day and this will once again shorten the timeframe for our service men and women overseas. Third, we are facing federal cutbacks to our US Postal Service. The future of regional post offices is uncertain. If postal service declines, the impact on mailed ballots could mean additional days for delivery. Requiring the ballots to be dropped off or postmarked by Election Day provides for the most consistent statewide rule where voters do not have to guess when their ballots will be received.

4) What legislation, if any, will you lobby for as Secretary of State?

There are three crucial bills that I will lobby for and make Secretary of State legislation. All three were introduced last year, but did not make it into law.

1. HB 2205 / SB 6128 – Allowing 16 and 17 year olds to preregister to vote

As it stands, 40% of Washingtonians register to vote when they get their driver’s license. This system works well, but it currently precludes our sons and daughters who get their driver’s license before the age of 18 from participating in this successful program. Allowing them to preregister will increase access to voting and actively engage young people in the political processes.

This is a crucial bill and I’m honored to have the support of Rep. Billig, the prime sponsor of this legislation.

2. SB 6127/HB 2204 – Election Day Registration

This is a necessary step towards greater access that will allow all of our citizens to vote in elections, even if they have not registered ahead of the election. This policy needs a supportive Secretary of State who is willing to work with local Auditors to implement the plan and involve community organizations to assist in the efforts.

3. HB 2612 / SB 6381 – The Washington State Voting Rights Act

This bill will allow communities with a history of racism to work towards transforming their election system from an at large system to one that is district based and does not disenfranchise communities of color. I’m enthusiastic about working on this bill, having previously met with the students who led the research towards this effort and many of the stakeholder groups that are working introduce more fairness for all into our system.

– Seattle has black jobs and white jobs. If President Obama went down there and applied, he couldn’t get one of those jobs.

– More anti-abortion bullshit coming out of Texas.

– So far The Stranger’s map of free outlets is pretty bare. But it’s a good start.

– Republican members of the Senate think that the path to small business success is paved with the unpaid wages of working women.

– The Up Garden.

– I don’t know about you, but I think Lindy West wrote the greatest opening paragraph in the history of words.

– Let Mitt do the driving.

– How Feudalism works.