Jaime Herrera Beutler to Answer for Neglecting Her Constituents at Today’s #WA03Debate

Time and time again, Herrera Beutler has prioritized the needs of her corporate donors over helping people in Southwest Washington

For Immediate Release | October 9, 2020

SEATTLE -- After refusing to debate her in 2018, Jaime Herrera Beutler will finally face off in a live debate with her Democratic challenger, Carolyn Long. Live-streamed by TVW at 2pm this afternoon and organized by the League of Women Voters, the debate is sure to feature Herrera Beutler’s continued attempts to run away from her record prioritizing the interests of corporate PACs that have given her more than $1.6M during her time in Congress. 

Specifically, here’s the three most critical issues where Herrera Beutler has voted in favor of special interests at the expense of the needs of working families in Southwest Washington:

1. Herrera Beutler has repeatedly voted to strip health care from hundreds of thousands of Washingtonians -- and is proud of it: Herrera Beutler has taken $90,000 from the health insurance industry while bragging that she voted “more than 80 times” to dismantle our health care system by repealing the Affordable Care Act without a plan to replace it. If the ACA were repealed, 654,000 Washingtonians would lose coverage, 3.1 million Washingtonians would lose protections for their pre-existing conditions, and our state would lose $4 billion in federal funding.
2. Herrera Beutler’s claims about being bipartisan aren’t supported by her record: Flip-flopping on her attempt in 2016 to distance herself from the least popular president in a century, Herrera Beutler is now fully supporting Trump. And it’s not just her personal vote in this year’s election where she’s backing a president whose failed leadership on the pandemic has cost more than 210,000 American lives -- Herrera Beutler has voted with Trump 82% of the time in Congress and opposed his impeachment.
3. Herrera Beutler lied about her “defining moment” in Congress voting for Trump’s 2017 tax cuts for the 1% and big corporations and future generations of Southwest Washingtonians will pay for her dishonesty: Despite falsely claiming to the Columbian editorial board that the federal deficit was declining prior to the pandemic, the tax cuts Herrera Beutler was so proud of voting for in 2017 have now blown a trillion dollar hole in our federal budget. Even prior to the pandemic, the Trump administration was threatening cuts to Medicare and Social Security to pay for their tax cuts to the same big corporations that have helped Herrera Beutler remain in Congress for the last decade.

“Working families and seniors in Southwest Washington deserve someone who will fight for them in Congress during this crisis -- not someone who will keep prioritizing corporate interests during the worst economic crisis in a generation,” said Tina Podlodowski, Chair of the Washington State Democratic Party. “Carolyn Long is that leader, and I’m confident she’ll show in today’s debate why she’s the fierce advocate Southwest Washington needs.”

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Will Casey|Communications Director (he / him / his)

Washington State Democrats|615 2nd Ave., Suite 580, Seattle, WA 98104

Office|206.583.0664 Ext. 121 

  Trump Ending Stimulus Talks to Cause Immediate Harm to Families, Small Businesses

Trump’s stunning demand to end federal stimulus negotiations is wrong and will cause incalculable harm to the people of our state and our still-recovering economy

For Immediate Release | October 6, 2020

SEATTLE -- This morning, President Donald Trump announced that he instructed his team to end negotiations with Democratic leaders over an additional round of federal stimulus to help the economy before the November election. 

The economic harm of not passing additional and immediate federal stimulus is almost incalculable. According to surveys, 40 percent of restaurants will close within the next six months without additional aid. States like Washington that saw improving economic activity throughout the summer due to stimulus could see our economic recovery halted. And people on unemployment insurance who were able to continue paying their bills due to the additional $600 per week of aid will see that benefit end, hurting retail sales and people’s ability to pay their rent, mortgages, and other bills. 

The HEROES Act proposed by Democratic leadership in the House of Representatives would provide additional $1,200 stimulus checks, restore the $600 in weekly federal unemployment benefits, and provide critical funding for education, food stamps, and child care. As recently as Saturday October 3, Trump himself tweeted that “OUR GREAT USA WANTS & NEEDS STIMULUS. WORK TOGETHER AND GET IT DONE. Thank you!” 

Here in Washington, the state Republican Party and Republican legislative leadership have yet to make a statement on Trump walking away from stimulus negotiations towards a bill that would help Washingtonians weather the COVID crisis. As with many questions around their apparently unconditional support for Donald Trump, they dodge the issue and change the subject rather than respond. Washington state Republicans must explain why they are supporting a president who is refusing to help Washington families during such a dire time.

“Why is Trump taking this opportunity to intentionally hold back our economic recovery and why are Washington state Republicans continuing to stand with him?” asked Tina Podlodowski, chair of the Washington State Democratic Party.“People are struggling. Families are having a hard time paying bills and small businesses are facing closure, due to a pandemic that’s not their fault. This is exactly the time when people need help from the federal government the most. Trump’s heartless action will cause incredible harm. Small business owners losing their dreams as they shut down their business, families losing their homes because they can’t pay the rent, and children going hungry because there aren’t enough food stamps. It’s more important than ever before that we elect new leadership that will get to work right away and get our recovery back on track.”

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Will Casey|Communications Director (he / him / his)

Washington State Democrats|615 2nd Ave., Suite 580, Seattle, WA 98104

Office|206.583.0664 Ext. 121 

GOP Rep. Vicki Kraft Compares Gov. Inslee to Hitler in Editorial Board Interview

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | October 1, 2020  

SEATTLE -- In an endorsement interview with The Columbian newspaper editorial board that was recorded and posted online by the paper, Clark County Republican Representative Vicki Kraft compared Gov. Jay Inslee to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, describing the “Stay Healthy, Stay Safe” executive orders as “acting as a dictator.”

Kraft further stated that “Hitler was a dictator. One man, dictating to his country and trying to dictate to the world, what needs to happen. Governor Inslee is acting as dictator. He alone has been the one person making decisions for every person in the 17^thlegislative district and across Washington.”

Kraft has been a vocal opponent of public health measures to combat the COVID pandemic since it began, claiming that it’s good if more people get infected with COVID-19, stating that she would refuse a COVID vaccine, and opposing social distancing and mask mandates that public health officials and doctors say will help stop the pandemic and allow us to resume normal activity more quickly. Kraft’s comments show a sustained and dangerous disregard for the facts and science around COVID-19 and her policy prescriptions would prolong the pandemic, hurt our economy, and lead to the deaths of countless more Washingtonians. 

The 17^th LD House race is expected to be close in the November general election – in the August primary, Kraft led her Democratic opponent Tanisha Harris by just 859 votes. 

“Kraft is one of the most reckless and dangerous politicians in the state, and she shows it again here,” said Tina Podlodowski, chair of the Washington State Democratic Party. “Not only is this comparison incredibly offensive, but advocating against smart and effective public health measures like this puts our whole community in danger. But Kraft doesn’t really seem to ever care about putting the people of Clark County at risk – whether it comes to gun violence, vaccines for kids, just about anything, Kraft always takes a wild and dangerous position, far out to the right wing. Politicians and organizations that associate with or support Kraft really need to take a good look in the mirror and think about who they are standing with and what that says about them and their values.”

Kraft’s full quote in the clip is as follows: 

“Thank you, Greg. Let me really be clear – first of all, I never saw, I’ve never seen yet, a Nazi flag. Maybe there was one there, who knows. You know what – somebody could have come and been the plant and be there with one, let’s just say it, right? That’s kind of the unfortunate, very pathetic political climate we’re in these days. If there was a Nazi flag there, along with the tons of US flags, US flag shirts, freedom, standing for our constitutional rights, people in shirts, that I’m surrounding myself with, that were there at that event – if there was a Nazi flag, let me tell you exactly what that would mean. Nazi represents Hitler. Hitler was a dictator. One man, dictating to his country and trying to dictate to the world, what needs to happen. Governor Inslee is acting as dictator. He alone has been the one person making decisions for every person in the 17^th legislative district and across Washington. The legislature has not, in any meaningful way, been involved in these conversations. That’s not bipartisan.”  

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Will Casey|Communications Director (he / him / his)

Washington State Democrats|615 2nd Ave., Suite 580, Seattle, WA 98104

Office|206.583.0664 Ext. 121 

WA GOP Must Denounce Trump’s Lies About Mail-in Ballots and Embrace of White Supremacists

Attacking the legitimacy of Washington state elections and emboldening political violence is still not enough to get the WA GOP to speak out against Trump

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | September 30, 2020  

SEATTLE -- During last night’s atrocious debate performance, President Trump once again repeated his false attacks on the integrity of elections conducted by mail-in ballots, which Washington state has been doing successfully for years without incident. He followed up those lies with doubling down on his empty threat to reject the results of the election if he loses due to millions of Americans voting safely by mail and rejecting his failed leadership. 

Trump’s lies are nothing less than an assault on American democracy itself, and even Republicans in Washington state must speak out to defend the legitimacy of our elections. If they continue to follow the lead of senior statewide Republican elected official Kim Wyman and refuse to call out his un-American refusal to accept the results of November’s election, they are dangerously undermining public confidence in our democracy and the crucial norm of a peaceful transition of power. 

Loren Culp, Matt Larkin, JT Wilcox, Mark Schoesler, and every candidate for office in Washington state running as a Republican owes Washington voters reassurance that they reject these false attacks on our elections and must make a public commitment to accepting the results of our safe and secure election conducted by mail.

Even more concerning was Trump’s refusal to denounce white supremacist militias that have been stoking politically-motivated violent conflict across the country. This is not a new idea for the president who claimed there were “very fine people on both sides” of the outbreak of violence in Charlottesville that killed peaceful protester Heather Heyer and refused to condemn Kenosha shooter Kyle Rittenhouse. He knew what he was doing, and the gleeful reaction from the specific violent militia he called to arms during the debate was entirely predictable. Worse, his campaign doubled down on Trump’s comments this morning, clearly signaling that they have no intention of even trying to suppress right-wing political violence.

Despite the president refusing to take responsibility for deescalating political violence, his dereliction of duty doesn’t exempt WA GOP leaders from their obligation to do the same. This is particularly true of GOP candidate for governor Loren Culp, who has literally embraced members of a similar militia to the group Trump promoted during last night’s debate. Culp has gone as far as topay them $7,000 for undisclosed fundraising expenses, but hasn’t spoken out against their intimidation tactics in patrolling peaceful protests. In the wake of Trump’s refusal to denounce white supremacists, Culp’s silence is deafening.

WA GOP candidates must do better than their state party chair, who refused to directly account for the president’s call to action for the Proud Boys that has already become a fundraising boon for the militia group. If any Washington state Republican wants to claim any measure of credible leadership in our state, they must unequivocally tell the Proud Boys and every other far-right militia group to stand down, not “stand back and stand by.”

“What we witnessed from Trump last night should alarm every American voter and no elected official should let Trump’s assault on our democracy go unanswered,” said Tina Podlodowski, chair of the Washington State Democratic Party. “We’ve seen the WA GOP and their candidates up and down the ballot resort to racist fearmongering about law and order for months, but that has to stop -- today. We can’t treat our country’s proud tradition of peacefully transferring power after elections like a game -- they need to speak up now and commit to accepting the results of November’s election, plain and simple.”

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Will Casey|Communications Director (he / him / his)

Washington State Democrats|615 2nd Ave., Suite 580, Seattle, WA 98104

Office|206.583.0664 Ext. 121 

  

Improving Budget Outlook Shows Inslee Leadership, GOP Irresponsibility

With the state budget outlook improving by more than $4 billion, it’s clear that GOP calls to slash essential state services were unnecessary and irresponsible

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | September 23, 2020  

SEATTLE -- The state’s Economic and Revenue Forecast Council released its September revenue forecast this morning, showing that Washington's economy is beginning to recover, with 190,800 new jobs being created and nearly a billion dollars more than originally forecast coming in as state revenue over the past three months. All told, the state’s revenue forecast for the 2019-23 budget window improved by $4.6 billion. 

Thanks to Gov. Jay Inslee’s leadership and patience, this improving economic news means Washington can focus on continuing to help rebuild our economy in a way that supports working families through this crisis. Earlier this year, before having the full economic picture, Republicans made rushed calls for cuts at a time when the state needed to be focused on providing services to those in need.  

In June, GOP budget leader Sen. John Braun of Centralia said of budget cuts that “Sooner is better, the easiest decisions we have are in front of us right now. We don’t need any more information.” House Minority Leader J.T. Wilcox of Yelm and Senate Minority Leader Mark Schoesler of Ritzville both called for a special session to cut the budget as early as May. 

If these Republican leaders had had their way, the legislature could have made billions of dollars in unnecessary cuts to the state budget. Since much of the Washington state budget is constitutionally protected, the areas available to be cut include essential services like mental health, support for child care providers hit hard by the pandemic, and higher education. 

The Forecast Council has also highlighted the importance of supplemental federal unemployment insurance benefits, currently being blocked in the U.S. Senate by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Passing an extension of the federal supplemental benefit would help ensure the economy can continue to grow and recover, and is a major priority of Washington’s Democratic Congressional delegation. 

“Washingtonians should be thankful that Republicans didn’t get their way, and the legislature didn’t make unnecessary and irresponsible cuts to the very services that are helping our economy recover right now,” said Tina Podlodowski, chair of the Washington State Democratic Party. “Families right now are still counting on support from the state to help us get through this pandemic together, and Governor Inslee is working hard to help get our economy back on track without having to decimate the state budget. Perhaps Republicans think that cratering Washington’s economic recovery will help them politically, but the responsible thing to do is to keep us on a course for growth. We need to beat the COVID pandemic and support the families and small businesses of Washington, not cut services they count on and abandon them in a time of crisis.”

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Will Casey|Communications Director (he / him / his)

Washington State Democrats|615 2nd Ave., Suite 580, Seattle, WA 98104

Office|206.583.0664 Ext. 121 

From: Will Casey <will@wa-democrats.org> 
Sent: Friday, September 18, 2020 9:21 AM
To: Cvc <cvc@wa-democrats.org>
Subject: ICYMI: Culp Wildfire Conspiracy Claims Make National News

Culp Wildfire Conspiracy Claims Make National NewsIn Case You Missed It: Culp Claims Wildfires Are ‘Coordinated Arson’

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | September 18, 2020  

SEATTLE -- Republican gubernatorial candidate Loren Culp was caught spreading false conspiracy theories about “coordinated arson” being responsible for the wildfires in Washington and Oregon, a statement that made national headlines in the Huffington Post. The video, posted to Culp’s YouTube account, includes the following exchange:

“I know statewide there’s about 600,000 acres that have burned,” Culp said. “And a lot of them have apparently been set intentionally ― like this one. A couple people have been caught so far. Hopefully they investigate the heck out of this.”

“It’s something bigger,” one of the homeowners responded.

“To have that many fires set all over the state, it’s gotta be coordinated,” Culp added.

Law enforcement and firefighters have repeatedly stated that rumors of organized arson are false, and the Okanogan County Sheriff specifically stated that there’s no evidence that the Cold Springs fire, near where Culp’s video was shot, was the result of suspected arson by politically-motivated activists. 

When confronted with the statement, Culp’s campaign manager Christopher Gergen attacked the press, calling it “ridiculous” to have to answer questions about Culp pushing discredited conspiracy theories regarding an ongoing statewide tragedy. 

Culp has previously questioned the science behind climate change while the fires are ongoing, using similar ‘global cooling’ talking points as President Trump used when California state officials pled with him not to ignore the science of climate change. Culp spreading these false conspiracy theories, on top of his denial of climate science and embrace of Donald Trump, shows how unfit he is to serve in the governor’s office. 

“At a time when law enforcement and firefighters are trying to prevent the spread of disinformation and false rumors about these wildfires, Loren Culp is amplifying them,” said Alex Bond of the Washington State Democratic Party. “In times of crisis and tragedy, Washington voters expect leaders who will rely on science and the facts, and not undermine first responders by spreading bogus right-wing conspiracy theories.” 

Read the story from the Huffington Post here: 

GOP Candidate For Washington Governor Claims Wildfires Are ‘Coordinated’ Arson

Loren Culp, the Republican challenging Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee, appears to echo right-wing conspiracists rather than official data.

By Chris D’Angelo

Loren Culp, the Republican nominee running to unseat Washington Gov. Jay Inslee (D), is pushing a conspiracy theory that many of the wildfiresraging in the Pacific Northwest are the result of a coordinated arson campaign.

In a 13-minute campaign video posted to Culp’s YouTube late Wednesday, the gubernatorial candidate talks with two homeowners in a neighborhood that apparently was charred by the Cold Springs fire, near Omak. 

“I know statewide there’s about 600,000 acres that have burned,” Culp said. “And a lot of them have apparently been set intentionally ― like this one. A couple people have been caught so far. Hopefully they investigate the heck out of this.”

“It’s something bigger,” one of the homeowners responded.

“To have that many fires set all over the state, it’s gotta be coordinated,” Culp added.

Culp and his campaign manager, Christopher Gergen, had a similar discussion in a Facebook Live video on Tuesday. 

“There’s word ― and I don’t know if you can speak to this ― there is word that these fires were set intentionally,” Gergen said. “That it wasn’t due to lightning strike. Do you have any insight into that?” 

“When I talked to the firefighter and the rancher in Okanagan County, he said that it had been set intentionally,” Culp responded, without elaborating.

Culp provided no evidence of an organized effort, and HuffPost found no reporting to indicate that the Cold Springs wildfire or any other blaze in Okanogan County, on the Canadian border, were the result of suspected arson. 

Washington State Patrol reported arresting two men earlier this month for allegedly starting brush fires, both in the Tacoma area, about 150 miles southwest of Okanogan County, and a third man was arrested on suspicion of arson in a wildfire near Eugene, Oregon. But multiple law enforcement agencies, including the Okanogan County sheriff, have been forced to dispel rumors swirling online of an organized arson attack by antifa, an umbrella term for loosely affiliated anti-fascist groups, to cause catastrophic blazes. 

Asked if Culp was parroting internet falsehoods, Gergen said in an email Thursday that “Mr. Culp didn’t say Antifa or any other group ― far right or far left ― set the fires. Individuals did. And this has been widely reported ― even in the [mainstream media].”

Gergen told HuffPost that Culp “was sharing what he’d read and heard from credible sources” in fire-affected communities. Gergen also leaned into the conspiracy that the fires were the result of a coordinated, intentional effort.

“Multiple arson attempts on this scale isn’t typical,” he said. “In fact, no one can remember a time when we had this many arson attempts. That seems coordinated. Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t. But it certainly seems that way.”

He called HuffPost “ridiculous” for inquiring about the claims and accused this reporter of “trying to spin Mr. Culp’s statements to make him look bad or uninformed.”

This month, hundreds of wildfires have consumed a combined 5 million acres in California, Oregon and Washington. At least 33 people have died and tens of thousands of residents have been displaced. Climate change is making wildfires in the West worse by driving up temperatures, fueling drought and drying out vegetation. 

“At a time when Washington communities are being devastated by fires and working to defeat COVID, we need to be focused on stopping the spread of fires and the virus, not the reckless conspiracy theories of Loren Culp,” Inslee campaign spokesperson James Singer said Thursday.

Inslee, who centered his failed 2020 presidential bid on combating the worsening climate crisis, has in recent days highlighted the role climate change plays in driving extreme wildfires. In an open letter to Donald Trump this week, Inslee slammed the president for his denial of climate change and refusal to address it, which he said “will accelerate devastating wildfires like those you’re seeing today.”

Culp, a vocal Trump supporter and self-proclaimed “law and order” candidate, is the police chief of the small northeast Washington town of Republic. He received national attention in 2018 when he announced that he would not enforce a voter-approved state initiative to tighten gun laws, including raising the age requirement to purchase a semiautomatic rifle to 21. 

More recently, he’s opposed Inslee’s COVID-19 stay-at-home orders and mask mandates and dismissed the link between climate change and devastating wildfires. 

“In the ’70s there was the big scare about global cooling,” he said in a Facebook Live video Wednesday. “It was on the national news. Global cooling, we’re all going to freeze to death. And then it was global warming, we’re all going to burn up.”

Will Casey|Communications Director (he / him / his)

Washington State Democrats  615 2nd Ave., Suite 580, Seattle, WA 98104 Office|206.583.0664 Ext. 121 

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KAMALA HARRIS IS BIDEN’S CHOICE FOR VICE PRESIDENT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 11, 2020                            BIDEN-HARRIS: READY TO LEAD Joe Biden is running to restore the soul of the nation and unite the country to move us forward.  Joe knows more about the importance of the Vice Presidency than just about anyone, and he is confident that Kamala Harris will be the best partner for him to finally get the country back on track.   Since Donald Trump became president, he has made everything worse. He has pursued economic policies that reward wealth over work and benefited corporations and his buddies over working families. He has walked away from American leadership on the national stage. He has used division and stoked hatred for political purposes to pit Americans against one another.    Joe knows that we can’t just return to the way things were - we have to build back better. From her track record of managing through multiple crises to standing up for the people who need it most, Joe knows that Kamala will be ready to tackle the work that is needed to heal our country on Day One of the Biden-Harris Administration.     KAMALA’S BIO The first Black and Indian American woman to represent California in the United States Senate, Kamala Harris grew up believing in the promise of America and fighting to make sure that promise is fulfilled for all Americans. Kamala’s father immigrated to the U.S. from Jamaica to study economics and her mother immigrated from India. Kamala’s mother told her growing up “Don’t sit around and complain about things, do something,” which is what drives Kamala every single day.   Kamala started fighting for working families  in the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office, where she focused on prosecuting child sexual assault cases. From there, she became the first Black woman elected as San Francisco’s District Attorney. In this position, she started a program to provide first-time drug offenders second chances with the opportunity to earn a high school degree and find a job.   In 2010, Kamala became the first Black woman to be elected California Attorney General, overseeing the country’s second largest Justice Department, only behind the U.S. Department of Justice. In this capacity, she managed a $735 million budget and oversaw more than 4,800 attorneys and other employees. As California Attorney General, Kamala fought for families and won a $20 billion settlement for California homeowners against big banks that were unfairly foreclosing on homes.   Kamala worked to protect Obamacare, helped win marriage equality for all, defended California’s landmark climate change law and won a $1.1 billion settlement against a for-profit education company that scammed students and veterans. Kamala also fought for California communities and prosecuted transnational gangs who drove human trafficking, gun smuggling and drug rings.   Since being elected to the U.S. Senate in 2016, Kamala has introduced and co-sponsored legislation to help the middle class, increase the minimum wage to $15, reform cash bail, and defend the legal rights of refugees and immigrants.   Kamala serves on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence that deals with the nation’s most sensitive national security and international threats.  She also serves on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee where she oversees the federal government’s response to natural disasters and emergencies, including the Trump administration’s response to COVID-19.   On the Senate Judiciary Committee, Kamala has held Trump administration officials accountable and was a powerful voice against Trump’s conservative judicial nominations.   Kamala graduated from Howard University, where she was in the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority, and earned a law degree from the University of California, Hastings College of Law.   Kamala has been married to her husband Doug for the past six years. She is the stepmother of two children, Ella and Cole who are her “endless source of love and pure joy.”   KAMALA’S PARTNERSHIP WITH JOE BIDEN Kamala Harris served as California’s Attorney General at the same time as Joe Biden’s son, Beau, was serving as Attorney General for Delaware. The two grew close while fighting to take on the banking industry. Through her friendship with Beau, she got to know Joe Biden. From hearing about Kamala from Beau, to seeing her fight for others directly, Joe has long been impressed by how tough Kamala is. Particularly on the Senate Judiciary Committee - which Joe used to lead - Kamala has distinguished herself as a fighter on behalf of the American people, on issues ranging from corruption, to women’s rights and election interference. Kamala doesn’t hesitate to take on powerful people and powerful interests, and that’s exactly the kind of leader Joe wants by his side to rebuild this country and restore the soul of the nation.   KAMALA’S RECORD OF RESULTS FOR WORKING FAMILIES    COVID-19 and Health Care Kamala has worked to address the racial and ethnic disparities resulting from  the Trump’s administration’s failed response to the pandemic by introducing the COVID-19 Racial and Ethnic Disparities Task Force Act. Kamala’s legislation would establish a team of policy experts, regional leaders, and federal officials to develop policy and funding prescriptions based on demographic data to combat issues facing minority and underserved communities. Kamala has a record of taking on corporations who are defrauding the health care system. As Attorney General, she oversaw a $241 million settlement against Quest Diagnostics, for overbilling California’s insurance program for 15-plus years. Education As Attorney General, Kamala obtained a $1.1 billion judgement against for-profit Corinthian Colleges for predatory practices that saddled students with debt and useless degrees. Kamala co-sponsored Senator Elizabeth Warren’s bill to allow students with existing debt to refinance at the interest rates available to new borrowers.   Environment As Attorney General, Kamala took on big oil companies and went to court to defend the Obama-Biden Clean Power Plan and New Source Standards. As Attorney General, Kamala sued corporations like Chevron and BP for damaging the environment, and won. And, she sued corporations for their role in exposing Californians to excessive levels of diesel. As San Francisco District Attorney, Kamala created the first-ever unit focused on environmental justice.   Kamala Fighting for Women Kamala was the first woman elected to serve as both San Francisco DA and California AG. As a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Kamala has grilled Trump’s extreme anti-choice judicial nominees, like Brett Kavanaugh. As Attorney General, Kamala cracked down on the sex trafficking of women into California and prosecuted sexual assaults.  In her year in office, she eliminated the backlog of untested rape kits. And, as District Attorney, she worked with community leaders to establish a safe house for victims of human trafficking -- the first of its kind in San Francisco.

Under Trump, Republicans are the Party of QAnon

Hi all,

Here’s some info sure to make you sit up straight and wonder what it will take for people to disavow the current occupant in the White House....

Val Torrens, 23rd LD Chair

++++++++++++++++ 

From: Will Casey <will@wa-democrats.org> 

Sent: Tuesday, September 15, 2020 1:23 PM

To: Cvc <cvc@wa-democrats.org>

Subject: RELEASE: Under Trump, Republicans are the Party of QAnon

 

Under Trump, Republicans are the Party of QAnon

From the White House to the Statehouse, Dangerous Conspiracies are Being Amplified by the GOP

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | September 15, 2020

With less than 50 days until the general election and more than 200,000 Americans dead due to the coronavirus pandemic, the GOP has chosen to spew conspiracies and misinformation in the absence of any concrete policy proposals to address the crises facing the nation. 

As with all things in the modern Republican Party, the disinformation started with the president. At a recent press conference,Trump refused to denounce QAnon when asked about the conspiratorial movement. Instead, Trump remarked that adherents to the QAnon conspiracy “love our country” and “like me very much.” This isn’t the first time Trump has given the nod to QAnon. During one afternoon in July, Trump retweeted posts from accounts supporting the QAnon movement 14 times. This is emblematic of a president who will embrace any type of extremist group as long as they follow the golden rule: loyalty to Trump.  

This embrace of conspiracy theorists directly undermines the president’s alleged “law and order” campaign focus. The FBI has labeled QAnon a “potential domestic terrorist threat” and their members have been linked to numerous acts of violence since its inception in 2017. 

Following the example set in the Oval Office, multiple members of the WA GOP have been voicing support for the QAnon conspiracy. 

Rep. Jenny Graham, a Republican in the 6th legislative district, posted an article to her Facebook account on a website called “Vaccine Impact” back in December of 2019. “Vaccine Impact” has since become an unabashed QAnon conspiracy site, perpetuating some of the movement's most bizarre claims. When asked about the post she doubled down, saying that "The trafficking is real, and sadly enough, so is the occult situation." 

Understanding the context for Graham’s irresponsible spreading of misinformation doesn’t exonerate her from dabbling in conspiracy theories: her original post was promoting the long debunked link between vaccines and autism -- in the middle of a pandemic that can only end with widespread vaccination. 

In another post earlier this year, Graham shared a video arguing that masks don’t work and hydroxychloroquine will cure the novel coronavirus -- again repeating the same false talking points delivered by Trump from the White House briefing room. After these facts became public, Graham followed Trump’s lead and went on an unhinged tirade against the reporter who had written the original story. 

While QAnon is a new phenomenon, conspiratorial thinking is nothing new to the WA GOP. Representative Matt Shea in the 4th legislative district has endorsed training children in an upcoming ‘holy war’ and has circulated an article claiming without evidence that Nancy Pelosi is planning a coup. Shea declined to seek reelection after being ousted from the Legislature’s Republican Caucus amid accusations of domestic terrorism, but his influence is clearly still widespread in Republican politics in Eastern Washington. 

Matt Shea’s handpicked successor Rob Chase is attempting to win the State Representative’s seat in the 4th district. Following in Shea’s footsteps, Chase has also spread conspiracy theories to his followers on social media ranging from QAnon, to chemtrails, to the establishment of a “New World Order”. When asked where he receives this information from, Chase merely remarked: "Usually, people send me YouTubes."

“The Washington GOP knows that their ideas no longer resonate with Washingtonians, so all they have left is baseless conspiracies to gin up fear among voters who they’ve spent decades convincing not to trust mainstream media,” said Tina Podlodowski, Chair of the Washington State Democratic Party. “But voters in Eastern Washington have better options than Republicans who spread misinformation during a pandemic: Democrats like Tom McGarry, Lori Feagan, and Lance Gurel who will deliver science-based policies to help working families get back on their feet and crush this virus so we can all safely go back to normal.”

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Will Casey|Communications Director (he / him / his)

Washington State Democrats|615 2nd Ave., Suite 580, Seattle, WA 98104

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Our online auction will be live on August 20th so you can see all of the great items that are being offered.  You will be able to start the bidding process August 27th.  Bidding will last until our fun filled Zoom Evening on September 10th.  Please tell all of your family and friends about it.  The more people bidding, the more money we raise.  This is our only fundraiser this year.

Just follow this link:   

www.charityauction.bid/kitsap23

Thank You for all of your support.

 

From: Tina Podlodowski <tina@wa-democrats.org> 
Sent: Wednesday, July 29, 2020 8:37 AM
To: wsdcc@wa-democrats.org; exec@wa-democrats.org; cvc@wa-democrats.org; CCC@wa-democrats.org
Cc: Staff <staff@wa-democrats.org>
Subject: Two years to make happen, Two years to keep and expand...let's do this...
Importance: High

Dear Democrats,

As many of you know, it took two years to make significant changes to the DNC and the Presidential nominating process thanks to the the creation of the Unity and Reform Commission, and herculean efforts at the DNC to limit the influence of unpledged delegates (aka “super delegates”) plus so many more changes…

In the subsequent two years since the passage of those changes, a group of five of us have been working tirelessly to make these changes permanent, and, once a new DNC Chair is elected in 2021, to greatly expand these efforts. Our efforts, are detailed in this article: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/democratic-national-convention-superdelegate-reforms-joe-biden-bernie-sanders_n_5f20b72bc5b66a5dd6369389

I’m so proud to work with Ken, Jane, Larry and Trav and the Biden and Sanders Campaigns - and to represent the Washington State Democrats as Chair. I cannot begin to tell you how long, and how negotiated, and how many meetings and calls it took to get some very simple language to see the light of day (see below) in order to make lasting progressive change in our partyplus get agreement from a very diverse set of people and interests in our “big tent” party. 

Here’s the deal though - all of those URC Reforms WILL sunset at the close of the Democratic Convention unless the resolution we’ve authored passes at Convention Rules Committee this Thursday, July 30th.

I’m asking our four WA Rules Committee Members - Shasti Conrad, Girmay Zahilay, JulieAnne Kempf and John Frank - to please vote YES. And we are “whipping” votes across the country - in every state.

So stay tuned and track this at the Convention Rules Committee Thursday. It’s critical.

I wanted to send this today, as I know folks are disappointed that Medicare For All did not explicitly make it into the 2020 Platform. Remember - just because it’s not in the platform at this time doesn’t mean it can’t happen, or won't happen. (Or decriminalizing marijuana - I believe that should have been added and acted upon long ago too). Please stay engaged electorally NOW as we can get back the Senate and White House and have the trifecta for progress in Congress and for the Americans who desperately need us to make it so - don’t lose heart. Keep going. And remember, we are not monolithic in our thinking, or lacking in the ability to change both our actions and our party, and tear down unfair and racist institutions, laws and policies at the same time. 

Honestly, I didn’t think we could do this and make these reforms lasting and expanded and for many of you it likely feels like “insider baseball” - but it’s so critical for what we could accomplish as a Party  in 2021.  

Here’s to 6 days until our Primary, 97 days left until Nov 3rd, 500K call made by our Coordinated Campaign (thank a vol and FO!), and democrats who never give up. All of you.

And remember - take a phone shift: https://www.wa-democrats.org/organizingevents/

With gratitude,

Tina

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Submitted by
DNC Vice Chair, ASDC President and State Chair, Ken Martin MN
Chair Jane Kleeb, NE
Chair Trav Robertson, Jr., SC
Chair Tina Podlodowski, WA
Larry Cohen, DNC (MD), Rules Committee member

              WHEREAS, following the 2016 election, the Democratic National Committee (“DNC”), under the leadership of Chair Tom Perez, took substantial steps to ensure a more accessible, transparent, and inclusive 2020 Democratic presidential nominating process;

              WHEREAS, these reforms, which encouraged many states to move from caucuses to more inclusive primaries, led to an unprecedented level of voter participation in presidential primary contests across the country, allowing more Democratic voters to make their voices heard and increasing voter confidence in our nominating system;

              WHEREAS, these reforms helped inspire the largest and most diverse field in our Party’s history to seek the Democratic Party’s nomination for President;
              
              WHEREAS, the Rules and Bylaws Committee of the DNC (“RBC”) was instrumental in adopting and implementing the reforms that made the 2020 presidential nominating process the most dynamic and successful in our Party’s history;

              WHEREAS, the Democratic Party needs to continue to build off the successes of the 2020 primary reforms in creating the rules of the 2024 primary process and Democratic National Convention;

              THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the RBC must protect and continue the work started in 2017 to make improvements to the 2024 nominating process and Democratic National Convention and build on the successes achieved this cycle.  With the purpose and the goals of continuing to further accessibility, transparency, and inclusion in our Party, the RBC shall conduct a comprehensive and structured review of the presidential nominating reforms adopted by the DNC for the 2020 primaries to evaluate where even further reforms are needed, while maintaining the advances that have been made. This review should include considerations of the successes of each of the reforms adopted in 2018 in achieving the DNC’s goals, empowering rank and file Democrats, and strengthening and unifying the Democratic Party in the lead up to the general election. In conducting this review, the RBC should take steps to ensure public and stakeholder engagement in the process, including at least one public hearing and an opportunity to submit comments. This review and accounting should be completed by March 31, 2021.

Tina Podlodowski, Chair, Washington State Democrats

(she|her|hers)

For Scheduling Contact Anna Le (anna@wa-democrats.org) |206-583-0664 x110

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