Greetings Conservatives!
Thank you Ed Kilduff
and all those who showed up to hear him
A knowledge of Hirst and the water wars in this state is essential to understanding the political situation in our state (see below).
School Board
A number of people have asked about this. This is not a partisan election and the party is taking no position on this. If you want advice, I recommend checking with your PCO for unofficial guidance. The list of PCOs is here.
You can find the voter’s guide here.
Kim Wyman Cancer Update
I received a note from Susan Hutchison:
“Dear State Committee and E-Board,
Just heard from our Secretary of State that a medical exam and her surgeon have confirmed that her cancerous tumor is gone! There will be more tests to be sure all cancerous cells have been eradicated, but this was the news they hoped for today. The treatment Kim has endured for months has been grueling, and she and her family are so grateful for your prayers and support. Please share this happy news!
–Susan Hutchison”
I couldn’t be happier about this.
State Budget Fiasco and the Hirst Decision
As you likely know, there has been a fierce fight in the state legislature over the budget over the last couple months (slash forever). The Special Session ended this week.
Predictably St. Sen Ranker attacked the Republicans this week here. He’s been in the paper a lot lately. I should note that if I could pick a legislator that is unliked by local Republicans he would be it.
The state legislature did fail to pass a budget, though it seems vanishingly unlikely that in this very democratic state that the blame belongs to Republicans. It appears to me that it was Democratic recalcitrance on fixing Hirst that sunk the deal.
For a more balanced take, the conservative Washington Policy Center has a conservative take on this with considerably more detail here. They also wrote about Hirst and the budget deal in some detail here. State Rep Vicki Kraft sent out an email update about the state legislature’s budget fight.
Speaking of the liberal Seattle Times, they noted that the state legislature needed to fix Hirst — which was the subject of our event on July 15th. I am skeptical (but hopeful) that they will fix it properly. If you missed our event you can read Ed Kilduff’s article here.
The Yakima Herald had an excellent article on Hirst as well, though not in reference to the budget deal: “Court water-well ruling imposes undue burden on rural families”
News Digest
A number of people sent me links related to Health care this week. Lynda Gerpheide, our Vice Chair, wrote a peice on Dr. Geyman’s presentation last week, enttitled “Dr. Geyman’s Lopez “Crisis in Healthcare” has a crisis in credibility.” Because of where I work I should state that this is her work alone. She also sent me Townhall’s article “The Nightmare of Single-Payer Healthcare” Many conservatives have expressed concern about these issues to me. Prager U has a video on this as well.
There’s a benefit for SJ Hospice today 5 pm, Island Guardian reports.
Emergency ferry schedule in effect through end of month (Sounder), which added information to San Juan ferries on the fritz. On that matter, note “WSTC discusses proposal to increase ferry rates” (Island’s Weekly)
OPAL Community Land Trust sponsored St. Sen Ranker and Lt. Gov. Cyrus Habib’s visit. They put a letter in the paper, “Thanks for supporting affordable housing rally.” You can read the Journal’s report on St Sen Ranker’s visit here.
There have been a wave of editorials and letters after the new state law against distracted driving went into effect. Colleen Armstrong’s editorial was especially poignant. It’s nice to have an editorial by her that I liked. If you want details about the law one could do worse than this (Seattle Times).
The Seattle Times published an article titled “Keep a close eye on new state agency for children, families.” If the liberal Times is skeptical, it just confirms that this is silly. It’s not clear to me how you improve the lives of children in a box like that, you have to improve the lives of families.
Calendar:
SJC Council Tuesday Meeting
July 25, 2017, 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM @ Council Hearing Room
Board of Health Meeting
July 26, 2017, 11:30 AM - 2:00 PM @ Council Hearing Room
Marine Resources Executive Sub-Committee Meeting
July 27, 2017, 11:30 AM - 1:30 PM @ Small Legislative Conference Room
Building Advisory Council Meeting
July 27, 2017, 11:45 AM - 1:00 PM @ Large Legislative Conference Room
SJC Public Hospital District #1
July 27, 2017, 5 pm @ 55 Second Street, Friday Harbor
Veterans Advisory Board Meeting
July 28, 2017, 11:45 AM - 1:45 PM @ Large Legislative Conference Room
SJC Council Monday Meeting
July 31, 2017, 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM
—
Nathan Butler
Chair, San Juan County Republican Party
Cell: (360) 298-4489
Email: sjcrpchair@gmail.com
“No matter how conservative your views may be, unless you do something about it you really aren’t that conservative.”