Politics Frank Blethen’s Estate Tax Lobbying (And His New Gay Agenda)
A lot of people, myself included, have been wondering whether estate tax foe and Seattle Times publisher Frank Blethen is now putting pressure on Washington Sen. Maria Cantwell to vote in favor of the federal estate tax repeal (a measure that’s currently being pushed by Republicans in Congress).
With Cantwell in a potentially tight re-election race, any lobbying from Blethen could carry the implicit suggestion that the endorsement of this state’s largest newspaper is contingent on Cantwell voting for the estate tax repeal. Today David Postman took the ballsy step of ringing up the Times’ über-boss and putting the question directly to him:
He told me, “This is the whole issue, is Maria responsive to D.C. Democratic party bosses or is she responsive to the people of the state of Washington?”Blethen said he and his lobbyist, Jill Mackie, have lobbied Cantwell as well as Patty Murray and the state’s House delegation. He also lobbies the congressional delegation from Maine, where the family owns newspapers.
Blethen said he knows that people in the newsroom are uncomfortable with his political activity on the estate tax. He said editor Mike Fancher has made it clear on many occasions and said former Managing Editor Alex MacLeod was “far less subtle. He just looked me in the eye and said, ‘You shouldn’t be doing this.’ And I’d say, ‘Your job is to make sure we don’t affect anything you do.’ “
Does it pose a conflict to lobby a senator who will soon be looking for an endorsement from the paper’s editorial board?
“No, it doesn’t. All of our endorsements are based on a whole range of public policy issues and their philosophies on them, as well as their past behaviors on them.”
Uh-huh.
And it gets even more interesting:
Blethen has a new angle on lobbying for repeal of the estate tax. He wants to enlist gays and lesbians in the campaign for repeal.He said that especially with last weeks’ state Supreme Court decision upholding a gay marriage ban, same-sex couples should be concerned about what the estate tax hit would be. If they could marry, even under the current law, there would be a partial exemption on an inheritance. Now in Washington state there’s no chance of that.
“If you’re a couple and you’re trying to preserve assets for a surviving spouse and children you get a 100 percent hit.”Blethen said the estate tax has not been a primary concern for gays and lesbians. But now that the gay marriage fight has ended, for now at least, he said there could be increased interest in the issue. Log Cabin Republicans, the organization of gay Republicans, supports repeal of the tax.
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"Religion sucks. Religious people suck. Wipe your ass with the Torah and piss on Christ. Religion is a farce."
There you have it. Isn't he a witty and insightful 13-year-old? What a bright boy!