Slog

News & Arts

Line Out

Music & the City
at Night

« A Caucus Day Message from Rick Sant… | Saturday Morning News: Caucuses, To… »

Saturday, March 3, 2012

Politics / War / Olympia "No Revenue, No Budget!"

Posted by Goldy on Sat, Mar 3, 2012 at 8:56 AM

"Congratulations Mr. Minority Leader, you fooled me," an emotional Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown exclaimed last night just before the final 25-24 vote approving the Republican coup budget. Earlier, a parade of angry Democrats took to the floor to express their shock and disappointment at the Republicans' brazen subterfuge:

"It is a narrow, extremist agenda that is being shoved down our throats tonight."
— Senator Ed Murray (D-Seattle)

"Last year I was proud, this year I am disgusted."
— Senator Kevin Ranker (D-San Juan)

"I am embarrassed and appalled."
— Senator Tracey Eide (D-Federal Way)

"We can't negotiate in good faith when we don't have credibility and trust."
— Senator Karen Keiser (D-Kent)

Throughout this session and the last, Democrats negotiated in good faith with their Republican counterparts on a number of crucial issues, yet in the end, the Republicans failed to return the favor. Having secured many of the compromises and reforms they demanded (four-year budgeting, teacher evaluation, state control of teacher health care benefits, permanent suspension of I-728, etc.) the Republicans then turned around—with the aid of three Democratic turncoats—to, as Senator Murray aptly put it, shove the rest of their extremist agenda down our throats.

Well, I hope the Democratic leadership in both houses fully understands that the time for bipartisan cooperation and compromise is over. The Republicans are playing hardball, and as every major leaguer knows, when their pitcher beans one of your batters, your pitcher has to bean one of theirs. Otherwise, they'll just bean all your batters without fear of retribution, until your entire team is brushed back six feet off the plate.

The proper response to this treachery isn't for the House Democrats to meet the Senate Republicans somewhere in the middle between their two budgets. No, the correct response is to up ante.

"No revenue, no budget!" That is the slogan I suggest Democrats adopt throughout the remainder of these budget wars. Democrats twisted themselves into knots, fucking over their own constituencies, to give Republicans a no-new-tax budget. The Republicans had their chance, but that option should now be irrevocably taken off the table. Without at least the closing of a glaringly nonproductive tax loophole like the mortgage interest profit exemption for out-of-state banks, there is absolutely nothing to talk about.

Honestly, Dems. The Republicans think you're a bunch of pussies. In fact, they're counting on it. They think if they bean you a few times, you'll just back off the plate. And they'll keep on beaning you until you start whipping fastballs at their heads. Because that, alas, is how this game is played.

FacebookShare

Comments (28) RSS

Oldest First Unregistered On Registered On Add a comment

Democrats? Play hardball?

Posted by unpaid reader on March 3, 2012 at 9:18 AM

and the republicans are right. the D's are abject failures in terms of leadership. Gregoire has been a nightmare, and Lisa Brown ought to resign after this fiasco is resolved. if you really care about the poor in this state, then act like it. understand the pathology of your opposition. if Lisa Brown was the lead negotiator for a business in a merger negotiation, she'd get fired over this. abject failure. she should be deeply, deeply ashamed. please post the email addresses of her and other senate leadership. the flying monkeys will take care of the rest.

Posted by rtm on March 3, 2012 at 9:20 AM

That will win the Democrats lots of votes.

Posted by Goldy is the Democrat's best strategist. on March 3, 2012 at 9:23 AM

But the Dems are taking the "moral high road" isn't that more noble. This is part of the liberals' problems, they don't fight to WIN they fight to "change hearts and minds."

Posted by Sargon Bighorn on March 3, 2012 at 9:25 AM

Republicans would love the Democrats to adopt that slogan. They may even pay Goldy's salary to go work for them to implement it.

Posted by Whodunit? on March 3, 2012 at 9:35 AM

Goldy, I think at one point last night (this morning?) I think Ed Murray made the point that if the Senate Republicans expect to see any more reforms then they should know that Dems have demands, too.

I think your "Special Session" headline should have said "Special Sessions".

Step 1, the Dems must make reform demands on tax loopholes and 1% income tax, and every other new tax they can think of.
Step 2, insert them into the budget.
Step 3, move the policy bills for those tax changes forward.
Step 4, gie the red counties the government they can pay for, and not a fucking dime more. If your life is shitty in redneck country as a result, move. Enabling republicans results in what you got last night. They will both take your money and stab you in the back, Lisa Brown.
Step 5, 1 through 4 should be done in perpetual Special Sessions called by the governor. She has nothing to lose, but Rob McKenna does, no fundraising for you!

Want Levy Equalization, then pay for it with an income tax. Pretty simple stuff.

Posted by MrBaker

on March 3, 2012 at 9:45 AM

It's a "plate", not a "base".

Posted by DOUG.

on March 3, 2012 at 9:50 AM

Rodney Tom has got to go.

Rodney Tom for State Senate (D)
P.O. Box 594
Medina, WA 98039
Email: Rodney@rodneytom.com
Phone: 425-466-1030

Rodney Tom for State Senate Campaign
P.O. Box 594
Medina, WA 98039
Phone: 425-250-8211

Posted by MrBaker

on March 3, 2012 at 9:52 AM

The only thing left is for some viking solutions. #burnitall

Posted by sisyphusgal on March 3, 2012 at 10:09 AM

goddamn i wish i were a republican

it must be fun to be party of a political party that has its shit together

too bad they are somewhere between dangerously atavistic and outright evil

Posted by Swearengen on March 3, 2012 at 10:16 AM

If you put 15 Democrats in a room, you'll get 20 different opinions.

Posted by Fifty-Two-Eighty

on March 3, 2012 at 10:24 AM

I hope Lisa Brown changes her tune on levy equalization and the entire subsidization of GOP Washington.

And I really like the idea of perpetual special session to keep the Robster from raising money. Lovely, that.

Posted by moretent on March 3, 2012 at 10:56 AM

waaaaahhhhhh Republicans don't respect the process!!!! *had already planned to disrespect Republican caucus process*

Posted by Reader01 on March 3, 2012 at 12:08 PM

@ 10, The Dems have their shit together have they not been running the state for the past 30 years? Or do you not like facts

@ 11 The GOP is the same way to an extent, not as big of a tent but a big tent.

Posted by Seattle14 on March 3, 2012 at 12:17 PM

and as every major leaguer knows, when their pitcher beans one of your batters, your pitcher has to bean one of theirs. Otherwise, they'll just bean all your batters without fear of retribution, until your entire team is brushed back six feet off the plate.

No, the point to any baseball game is to WIN, not to start fights to satisfy the preschooler in you. To use the baseball metaphor, how about stepping up to the plate and getting a grand slam? A grand slam would be meaningful tax reform or properly funding education. It takes courage to step up and hit (and not just fight) when the other side is playing hardball.

Posted by Teslick on March 3, 2012 at 12:35 PM

@11: Also true of Jews, I might tell you.

Posted by venomlash on March 3, 2012 at 12:36 PM

You wanna know how to get the Republicans? They pull a knife, you pull a gun. They send one of yours to the hospital, you send one of theirs to the morgue. *That's* the way! And that's how you get the Republicans. Now do you want to do that? Are you ready to do that?

Posted by Daddy Love on March 3, 2012 at 1:02 PM

Time to redline all the tax-subsidized Eastern Washington counties.

Posted by Will in Seattle

on March 3, 2012 at 2:22 PM

@17, the Republicans have the arsenal locked up already, in the form of a budget that was actually passed. The time for an armed conflict is over. The Dems can only plead for surrender terms now.

Posted by sarah70 on March 3, 2012 at 2:22 PM

@19, the House can refer that bill to WM committee and gut it, pass it back at 11:59 pm on the last day of session.

The House bill was referred to Senate Ways & Means on 3/2.
http://apps.leg.wa.gov/billinfo/summary.…

Not much point in a surrender when you control the calendar.

Posted by MrBaker

on March 3, 2012 at 3:01 PM

Will @18: OK. And they'll redline all your food. Yeah, that will work out well.

Posted by Fifty-Two-Eighty

on March 3, 2012 at 3:08 PM

Godly, we are a bunch of pussies, at least in this state. That's the problem.

Posted by floater on March 3, 2012 at 3:14 PM

No revenue, no budget + No more subsidies for the east side. Make control of taxes local and let the small government, big services teabag crowd eat their own lunch.

Posted by The Third Rail on March 3, 2012 at 4:03 PM

@21 really? Exactly what percentage of your food supply do you think comes from within the state?

Posted by The Third Rail on March 3, 2012 at 4:05 PM

@20, they will go directly into a special session. The Governor will have to order one because she won't have a decent budget bill to sign by next Wednesday. So we have no idea what the "last day" will be.

Posted by sarah70 on March 3, 2012 at 4:29 PM

A point that is particularly galling is that for all of the Republicans talk about being "ignored" and how all of this was necessary because the Democrats wouldn't incorporate any of their ideas - it's simply not true.

A side-by-side of the two budgets has been posted here - it's even reasonably legible (thanks Publicola):
http://publicola.com/wp-content/uploads/…

If you don't have a lot of time - scroll to the bottom; it's only eight pages. The "Grand Total" line? $208M - that's the difference between the original budget and the only that had to be developed in secret and introduced with a coup because Democrats can't be trusted.

And that $208M is the difference in the CUTS. To be very, very clear about this, the Democrats had agreed - in addition to the four-year-budget and all - to $564M in cuts, and the Republicans want $773M. BOTH budgets are all-cuts.

And even that $208M is a fiction. Look a little further up page eight, under "Natural Resources". The only difference between the Democrat column and the Republican column is the $67M assigned to "MTCA Related Shifts". MTCA stands for "Model Toxics Control Act" - defined here (http://www.ecy.wa.gov/pubs/9406.pdf) and "innovative CITIZEN MANDATED toxic waste cleanup law".

So one-third of this $208M - this totally unreconcilable gulf that required the Republicans to throw the legislative schedule into chaos and complicated every political dealing for the foreseeable future - one-third of that is achieved by taking the money that was being used at the direction of Washington State citizens to clean up hazardous waste.

You want to guess whether the problems of dealing with that waste are going to get any cheaper while this program is zeroed-out? You think that cleaning up toxic waste is just another big-government scam?

There was no point to this. The budget the Republicans introduced isn't some pure expression of fiscal sensibility that had to be nailed to the door and accepted as revealed truth. This doesn't make sense when looking at the very limited policy disagreements between the two bills.

This was an expression of political power. Those behind it - to paraphrase Jon Stewart - "Have mistaken not getting everything they want all the time with being oppressed."

More...

Posted by Stephen McCandless on March 3, 2012 at 5:09 PM

The first thing I would do is strip Rodney Tom of his senate chairmanship. That will shape up the rest of those stupid road killed.

Posted by Why are there cars? on March 3, 2012 at 10:54 PM

To strip someone of a committee chairmanship requires a majority vote of the Senate, which the Democrats don't have. If Tom, Jim, or Tim, were really turncoats, they would strip all the Democrats of their chairmanships. Welcome to the minority.

Posted by BradpWa on March 4, 2012 at 8:34 PM