Jolt
Afternoon Jolt: Democratic Leadership Sides with Social Service Advocates
Today's winners: The Economic Future Coalition
A coalition of social service groups, unions, health care advocates, and other lefties showed up on the opening day of the legislative session in Olympia with 28,000 signed petitions and 50 sign-waving folks, crowding the hallways outside the house and senate chambers.
Both house speaker Rep. Frank Chopp (D-43, Wallingford, Capitol Hill) and, a bit later, senate majority leader Sen. Lisa Brown (D-3, Spokane), took about 20 minutes to meet with the group and hear their message: Repeal corporate tax loopholes to help balance the budget instead of relying entirely on cuts, as Gov. Chris Gregoire's budget does.
Brown, who came out of the chamber to the large capitol hallway to meet the group, started by saying, "Wow, I couldn't have invited all of you back into my office."
She said she "totally agrees" that an all-cuts budget is a bad idea. "People always say we have to align our spending with our revenues. How about aligning our revenues with our expectations of the quality of life we want in Washington State?" Brown said to cheers. Concluding that she would fight for a "humane and compassionate budget."
Chopp, who invited the group back into a house caucus room wasn't as explicit about lining up behind the group's call to focus on ending loopholes and raising revenue, but he was clear that he would go to the mat to save the Disability Lifeline.
This too won big cheers from the crowd, which included people like Lynne Treat, a retired nurse from Chehalis who can't afford her $3,000-a-month health care bills on her $2,800-a-month income.
Treat, and her group, have reframed the debate.
Today's loser: Jean Berkey. Obvs.
Newly elected state Sen. Nick Harper (D-38, Everett) overcomes an attempt by the GOP and a trio of Democrats—including now-former Sen. Jean Berkey's close pal Sen. Jim Kastama (D-25, Puyallup)—to deny him his seat.
A coalition of social service groups, unions, health care advocates, and other lefties showed up on the opening day of the legislative session in Olympia with 28,000 signed petitions and 50 sign-waving folks, crowding the hallways outside the house and senate chambers.
Both house speaker Rep. Frank Chopp (D-43, Wallingford, Capitol Hill) and, a bit later, senate majority leader Sen. Lisa Brown (D-3, Spokane), took about 20 minutes to meet with the group and hear their message: Repeal corporate tax loopholes to help balance the budget instead of relying entirely on cuts, as Gov. Chris Gregoire's budget does.
Brown, who came out of the chamber to the large capitol hallway to meet the group, started by saying, "Wow, I couldn't have invited all of you back into my office."
She said she "totally agrees" that an all-cuts budget is a bad idea. "People always say we have to align our spending with our revenues. How about aligning our revenues with our expectations of the quality of life we want in Washington State?" Brown said to cheers. Concluding that she would fight for a "humane and compassionate budget."
Chopp, who invited the group back into a house caucus room wasn't as explicit about lining up behind the group's call to focus on ending loopholes and raising revenue, but he was clear that he would go to the mat to save the Disability Lifeline.
This too won big cheers from the crowd, which included people like Lynne Treat, a retired nurse from Chehalis who can't afford her $3,000-a-month health care bills on her $2,800-a-month income.
Treat, and her group, have reframed the debate.
Today's loser: Jean Berkey. Obvs.
Newly elected state Sen. Nick Harper (D-38, Everett) overcomes an attempt by the GOP and a trio of Democrats—including now-former Sen. Jean Berkey's close pal Sen. Jim Kastama (D-25, Puyallup)—to deny him his seat.
