A group of six taxpayers has filed a lawsuit to invalidate an executive order issued by Gov. Chris Gregoire last year.

“We believe Gov. Gregoire’s climate change executive order is an unconstitutional order,” said Michael Reitz, director of the Evergreen Freedom Foundation’s Constitutional Law Center, who represents the taxpayers in this case. “Gov. Gregoire violated the doctrine of separation of powers by snatching a failed bill out of the legislative process and issuing it in the form of an executive order. If the governor wants to pass laws, she’s in the wrong branch of government.” read more »

Oh! No! She’s back. In my view, the best thing that ever happened to Kitsap County government is the day Chris Endresen drove out of the parking lot for good. Endresen’s vindictive, “my way or the highway” manner will not fit in well at the Puget Sound Regional Council. Director of Economic Development?

This has got to be some kind of a joke.

KING 5 News has been running an investigative series on waste in the Ferry System almost daily for the past several months. It’s carefully documented numerous outrageous abuses, including employees being paid to travel to and from work, being paid triple time, and taxpayers providing double housing for employees who work in the San Juans. It also exposed the fact Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond replaced one of management’s sharpest negotiators because the ferry unions demanded it. read more »

I don’t have a lot of heartburn about using tolls as a way to pay for specific projects. And I openly admit, my adamant opposition to tolls in general was quelled significantly by the way the Tacoma Narrows Bridge has alleviated the monumental problems we had there.

However, if you don’t believe tolls will become a way of life, WSDOT is already advertising on the radio, that Time-Of-Day-Tolling will begin shortly on the 520 Bridge. What that means is, the amount of the toll will depend on the time of day and traffic congestion. read more »

Democrats Vote Down 5 Percent Rule…

In a bid to stem taxpayer losses for bad loans guaranteed by federal housing agencies Fanny Mae and Freddy Mac, Senator Bob Corker (R-Tenn) proposed that borrowers be required to make a five percent down payment in order to qualify.

His proposal was rejected 57-42 on a party-line vote because, as Senator Chris Dodd (D-Conn) explained, “…passage of such a requirement would restrict home ownership to only those who can afford it.”

Am it just me, or am I missing something here?

I’ve found watching liberals getting so self-righteously spun up over the Arizona immigration law to be highly amusing political theater. Seeing them falling all over themselves to condemn Arizona and calling for boycotts of the state has been a pleasant diversion from other, more serious things, going on in my life.

When you ask those who are so snobbishly offended if they’ve actually read the law, most openly admit they haven’t, but say all they know is that it’s wrong. What’s funnier is watching them stammer pompously when you tell them all Arizona did was basically take the existing federal immigration law — the one the Obama administration refuses to enforce — and change the words “United States of America,” to “State of Arizona.” read more »

Last evening, representatives of the Kitsap Regional Library (KRL) came to the Port Orchard City Council and shared their proposal for an upcoming 10-year, $33 million Levy. While an ambitious proposal, that I would otherwise support, it is a blatant insult to the City of Port Orchard and the residents of South Kitsap County. read more »

As soon as Obamacare was signed into law, Attorney General Rob Mckenna — a Republican — announced he would join in a lawsuit with several other states challenging the constitutionality of the measure. The challenge is based on the 10th Amendment and the Commerce Clause of the Constitution, that says the Federal Government doesn’t have the constitutional authority to force citizens to purchase a private product i.e. health insurance. Unlike Social Security and Medicare, where the Federal Government imposes taxes for the purpose of providing a specific service, Obamacare requires private citizens to purchase health insurance or face a fine. read more »

This was forwarded by a friend. I’m not professing an opinion one way or the other, but thought it was worth sharing as it provides some food for thought — or at least for those thinking people with an open mind who aren’t blindly harnessed to any specific political philosophy…

Dr. Hunt is a social and cultural anthropologist. He has had nearly 30 years experience in planning, conducting, and managing research in the field of youth studies, and drug and alcohol research. Currently Dr. Hunt is a Senior Research Scientist at the Institute for Scientific Analysis and the Principal Investigator on three National Institutes of Health projects. He is also a writer for American Thinker. read more »