Local Republicans see tide turning in Olympia

Lack of fiscal restraint by the Democratic majority in Olympia should pave the way for a Republican takeover of the state capitol.

That was the thrust of discussion at the Whitman County Republican Party’s biannual convention Saturday in the auditorium at the McGregor Co.’s Mockonema home office. More than 70 members of the local party attended the convention.

“November’s coming,” said Rep. Joe Schmick, R-Colfax. “And people are mad. Not just here, but across the state.”

Washington has about a $2.8 billion budget deficit, which Democrats in the House and Senate plan to balance by increasing taxes. The extended session of the legislature began its third week Monday with Democratic leaders in the house and senate working to iron out differences in budget bills.

A recent poll found only 35 percent of Washingtonians have a favorable rating of the legislature, said 9th District Sen. Mark Schoesler.

Local Republican legislators see that low rating as an opportunity to seize control of at least one house.

“Some Democratic committee chairmen are asking Republicans to be good to them when we’re in charge,” Rep. Susan Fagan, R-Pullman.

Schoesler, a Ritzville Republican who also chairs the Senate Republican Caucus’ campaign committee, predicted the GOP would take seats away from the majority this fall.

“Politically, we could not hire a consultant to do more goofy stuff than the Dems have done over the past couple of years,” said Schoesler. “We could not have scripted this more perfectly.”

Schoesler said inaction by the majority has cost the state billions of dollars and caused the need for tax increases. The 2009 legislature passed a budget it knew would not stay balanced amid a collapsing economy, he said.

“We were one billion in the pooper one week into the biennium,” said Schoesler.

He called at the time for a special session to cut spending to re-balance the two-year budget. But no such session was called.

In 2006, riding dissatisfaction with the national Republican party, Washington Democrats swept six contested races for the state Senate.

This year, Schoesler sees eight seats that could go the GOP way, and thinks dissatisfaction could swing that house to the right.

“If they could go six for six, why can’t I?” he asked in the McGregor lobby.

Which would be just fine with Schmick and Fagan.

“I’m tired of being in the minority,” said Schmick. “It is no fun. All you see is bad pieces of legislation.”

“We are a party of responsibility. We are a party of fiscal responsibility,” said Fagan. “We have good ideas, and we’re getting tired of having to just vote ‘No.’”

Local representatives called county Republicans to contribute heavily to the campaign funds of GOP candidates in disputed districts.

Schoesler pointed closer to home, in Spokane, where St. John native Mike Baumgardner is challenging incumbent Chris Marr for a seat in the Senate.

On policy, the party set a platform that staked the local position on a whole host of state and national issues.

Among them were the local party’s opposition to taxpayer funded abortions and euthanasia, breaching of Snake River dams and a call to loosen regulations and relax taxes, policies party members agreed have hurt the state’s economy.

Most heated discussion came when Art Swannack of Lamont proposed a new plank regarding public records policies in the local party’s platform.

Swannack, who ran for state representative last fall, proposed a plank that said the Whitman County GOP supports fee-free access to public records kept by state and local governments.

Local government officials past and present spoke against Swannack’s proposal.

“You can completely bog down the courthouse, city hall, school board meetings with endless public records requests,” said Jerry Finch of Pullman, a former county commissioner. “Look at the issues going on in Palouse as we speak.”

Due to a high number of public records requests at Palouse City Hall, Fagan introduced a bill earlier this session that would have allowed towns to charge for time spent filling such requests. The bill was shot down in committee.

“I know there are costs to each and every community from these laws,” said Swannack. “But when we restrict information to our citizens, we restrict freedoms.”

Kelly Messinger of Rosalia noted his town had to pay thousands in fines to settle a records request lawsuit. Those records were later turned over to state auditors, who found within them proof of several municipal accounting laws that had been violated.

In the end, Swannack’s proposal did not garner enough support to come to a full vote and was left out of the platform.

One issue added to the county party’s platform is support for development of wind, solar and hydroelectricity as clean forms of energy.

Before those forms of power generation were added to the list, proposed initially by Auditor Eunice Coker, the county’s platform recognized only nuclear energy as a clean technology.

In local election news, Whitman County Prosecutor Denis Tracy formally announced to the Republican crowd his intention to seek a third term as the county’s top attorney.

Tracy first took office in 2002, and was re-elected without opposition in 2006.

Most elected offices in the courthouse are up for election this year. Tracy was the last official to declare for another term. As of press time, no candidates had come forth to challenge any of the incumbents.

The county party also selected delegates to the state Republican Convention, which will be held June 10-12 in Vancouver.

Selected as delegates were Michele Beckmann of Steptoe, Ted Maxwell of Malden, Carmel Minogue of Pullman, Nannette Naught of St. John, Gayle Startin of LaCrosse, Darin Watkins of Palouse, Art Swannack of Lamont, Shan Kelly of Colfax, Susan Fagan of Pullman, Yoshi Smith of Pullman and Kelly Messinger of Rosalia.

Alternates to the state convention will be Harmon Smith of LaCrosse, Larry Cochran of Colfax, Elise Smith of Pullman and Jerry Finch of Pullman.