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When retiring state Sen. Reuven Carlyle, D-Seattle, gave a farewell speech the other day, he called on future politicians to not be so scorched earth and partisan, and instead pursue a gentler philosophy he dubbed “smart incrementalism.”
Yes, you can just hear the call-and-response campaign rally for that: “What do we want?” “Gradual steps!” “When do we want it?” “Eventually!”
Indeed Carlyle was blasted as milquetoast by some activists, who want dramatic change (they are called “activists,” after all).
But as the legislative session came to an end, the exchange got me thinking: Did state lawmakers inch along incrementally this year, or did anything of lasting consequence happen in Olympia?
I came up with four big things they did, or said, that we’ll still be talking about in the months and maybe years to come:
They fundamentally reset the size of government — and it was hardly incremental. Unexpectedly swimming in revenue, lawmakers spent almost all of it. The size of the two-year budget now is 24 percent larger than the last one.
This is a trend for Democrats. Since they took total control of the Legislature five years ago, Democrats have pushed spending for the general state budget up a meteoric 50 percent, from $42.7 billion in 2017 to $64.1 billion today.
It’s an unprecedented surge of spending, and it’s the new baseline. Democrats defend it as addressing myriad needs and new programs. My only point here is it’s a lot more government than we’ve paid for in the past, to a degree that it’s almost certainly unsustainable under our current tax structure.
It’s going to force a fundamental choosing. Keep it up by, say, taxing the rich? Or start slashing. Voters ultimately will decide.
The mother of all big government projects just got serious.
It didn’t get a ton of attention or debate, but lawmakers put $150 million into what they’re calling “ultra high speed rail” linking Vancouver, B.C., Seattle and Portland.
I’m a major skeptic of the need for a new right-of-way serving only 5,000 riders a day, when we could improve and electrify the existing tracks.
This train’s leaving the station, though, politically speaking. The $150 million down payment is to lure the feds to kick in up to $700 million, at which point the imperative to spend that money will outstrip any rational analysis of the project.
The state, after years of dithering, has finally stepped up on homelessness.
This also didn’t get much attention, but lawmakers poured more than $800 million into shelter, housing, crisis beds and mental health services, all for the homelessness emergency declared more than six years ago and mostly passed off as a local issue until now.
This is a big shift, and while the commitment isn’t enough to solve the problem, it should make a tangible difference — if these strategies work.
Finally, a cultural phenomenon: Lawmakers doubled down on their parties’ worst tropes.
You may have heard that Rep. Robert Sutherland, R-Granite Falls, proudly recounted in a speech how he had told a Capitol security officer “(Expletive) you, you’re not gonna shut us down,” when the guard asked him for proof of a negative COVID test to enter the building.
It’s typical of the fake-grievance culture that’s taking over some of the GOP. Everything is against you — even a guard who is just doing his job.
You may also have heard that Sen. Marko Liias, D-Lynnwood, lashed out at the governor of a neighboring state for opposing one of his policies: “The fact that she dares say a word is just a joke.”
To his credit, Liias apologized. Still, his outburst was an example of an imperiousness among some ruling progressives. Everybody is dumber than you — even a governor (who ended up being right, by the way).
The Resentment Party versus the We Know Better Than You Party: It’s not a good look all around. Yet it’s increasingly a flavor of both local and national politics.
It’s almost enough to make one want to take to the streets for some of that good ol’ incrementalism.
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