Is Eileen Quiring the next Ann Rivers?

Regular readers are well aware of the situation concerning Sen. Ann "Gas Tax" Rivers ("R"-18).

Rivers is responsible for having a hand in literally billions of dollars in higher gas and property taxes as well as increased tab fees.

Screen capture from Rivers' 2012 campaign web site

Now, that in and of itself isn't particularly unusual except for two minor (relatively speaking) details:  first, she claims to be a Republican.  Second, she had pledged as a part of her campaign to be elected to the Senate that she would OPPOSE any such increases on gas taxes and tab fees, now among the highest in the country, thanks in large part to her.  The property tax increases came about when she sold us out to the teachers under the guise of the bogus State Supreme court decision known as McCleary.

It didn't stop there, of course.  Many school district's teachers decided last fall to engage in a little old fashioned extortion because the massive raises the legislature bent us over for just weren't enough... so they held our children hostage by going on strike.

In several of these districts, the idiots running them promised these scum SO MUCH money that now their budgets are shot to hell and the end result of that is massive layoffs... except these same districts who screwed their constituencies are now going BACK to the democrat controlled legislature to demand they jack our property taxes AGAIN.

For example, Vancouver School District just caved to support staff extortion and, already $11.4 million over budget, agreed to a contract with THOSE extortions that will likely mean even MORE millions in debt.

And who's gonna pay for that?

And the democrats, being the democrats, are wholly owned by the teachers unions so we can expect the legislature to roll over and nail us AGAIN, with even HIGHER taxes, aka "the McCleary fix."

Why am I setting the table like this?

Well, I make no bones about it.  I supported our new council chair, Eileen Quiring, wholeheartedly, but I began to notice some cracks in her "conservative" facade during the most recent council sellout on the CRC scam.

During the recent council betrayal of the citizenry of this county, it was certainly expected that the RINO's on the council and the non-Republican chair, Marc Boldt (Who was thankfully and unceremoniously thrown out on his ass when he could only manage a horrific 22% of the vote) would throw us under the light rail car by rabidly doing what their downtown mafia masters told them to do and they did not disappoint.

Two councilors stood up to the bum's rush.  They were the aforementioned Eileen Quiring and Jeanne Stewart.  Both came out strongly opposed to supporting the most recent go-round of the CRC/Loot Rail scam.

But when the time came to actually vote on that garbage resolution, how did now-Chair Quiring vote?

She was a "yes."  Stewart was the only "no."  So, Quiring went with the RINO clique and Boldt, managing to hang Stewart out to dry.

I was stunned.  I let her know that I was pissed.  And even though I'm a nobody, she asked if I could meet with her before a Republican Women's function, which I agreed to do, so we could discuss this situation.

When I asked her about it, she told me point blank that she couldn't explain why she did it. I thought that response odd; I, for one, want every elected official to know why they do EVERYTHING they do.  But I also was willing to give her a chance... and I understood she was in the middle of her campaign and political battle... the alternatives were absolutely unacceptable, so I made the decision and told her I was not going to make an issue of it on this blog that nobody reads.  And until now, I haven't.

As time went on, ultimately, we got the desired result: it was close, but as local readers know, Quiring pulled it out and won the day.  So far, so good.

But by winning, she vacated her council seat in district 4.  That meant district 4 required a replacement.

There were several candidates who put their names forward.  Ultimately, 3 were chosen for consideration by Quiring and the other 3 councilors, two RINOs (Blom and Olson) and a rabid leftist hack, (Temple Lentz.)

Those 3 chosen were John Ley (who was the GOP's first choice) followed by Brook Pell, President of the Republican Women/Co-Chair of Quiring's campaign and finally, the guy who got the gig, ultimately, Gary Medvigy.

I immediately predicted Medvigy would get the gig.  The two RINOs and the leftist whack job would control the outcome: they had the votes.

For her part, Quiring had ENDORSED Pell to get her selected as a finalist.

But when the time came, Quiring voted for Medvigy.

Pell had worked HER butt off to get Quiring elected... and this is the thanks she gets.





How does that work?  When you endorse someone and then vote for someone else, how is that NOT "voting against the woman you endorsed?"

Does "simple math" determine what's right and what's wrong?

If she would throw her endorsed candidate under a bus by failing to vote for her after endorsing her because of "simple math," how many MORE times will "simple math" determine the outcome?

As the only "conservative" on the council now, the math will ALWAYS be against her.  It would have been against her regardless of who she voted for.  But is that any reason to bail on your commitment?

Kalup Veneman posted a saying attributed to John Quincy Adams that seems strangely appropriate:

“Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost.” 

Precisely.

Chair Quiring had an opportunity to excel that day and she blew it. 

Rivers also had a number of excuses has to why she broke her pledge to those of us who voted for her.  Now, she's boiled it down to merely saying she's "reframed her thinking."  Her "reframed thinking" has already cost the people of this district and this county millions of dollars with tens of millions more to go.

Rivers' problem is that NONE of her excuses justified her actions.

And Quiring is going to be hard pressed to justify her failure to stand up for her choice... a woman who worked so hard for her... who was endorsed by her... but who was dumped by her when it really, really mattered.

When Rivers betrayed us on the Gas Tax/Tab Fee scam, it was, she claimed, a difficult choice. Clearly, as her betrayals mount up in number, size and scope, it's become progressively easier.

Is this our future?  "Simple math" over principle?

It's the kind of thing Rivers does to us all the time.  Is this what we can expect from Chair Quiring?

Quiring tells us NOW: 

There were three good candidates for this position. Brook had my endorsement because I know and trust her and believe she would represent the 4th district well.

After the public interview process of the candidates, my colleagues moved to appoint Mr. Medvigy and I agreed. I believe he is qualified (perhaps even overqualified) for this position and during the public interview process, he showed a very good understanding of county government and many of the issues that we face in Clark County. It was clear to me that he had done his homework.

Now that the appointment has taken place I look forward to working with my fellow council members for the betterment of Clark County.

My response?

"Brook had my endorsement because I know and trust her and believe she would represent the 4th district well."

That's matters far more... geometrically more... than ANY of the General's qualifications. In fact, it matters more than any other criteria.

Because you know what? You DON'T know that about HIM, do you? You can only GUESS because, relatively speaking, he's only been here about 60 seconds and has precisely zero political background you could use to judge how "well" he would represent this district.

What are you going to do when he DOESN'T "represent the 4th District well?"

So, instead of voting for the sure thing, you bailed because you can do "simple math."

Well, so can he.  Does that mean your "simple math" will result in always going along with the majority instead of standing up for the people?

Here's the thing; I'm sure board RINOs like Blom and Olson are all of those things as well, qualification wise, when it comes to county government.

But they have been an unmitigated disaster.

His level of understanding is not NEARLY as important as his unknown political philosophy.

Blom was elected without any of the criteria you discuss. So this guy just becomes another member of the RINO Amen chorus and, "doing the math" (which should NEVER be the basis for a vote) what does his "understanding" get us then?

Eileen, sometimes your lack of political understanding frightens me.

Absolutely nothing written here justifies violating this commitment.

A genius leftist who knows every nut and bolt about county government would be a miserable addition to the other leftists on the board. Technical knowledge in a political position is nice to have. But the Number One issue is what do you do with it.

We see what a leftist like Olson has done with it.

This guy has zero breadth or width of the battle's we've fought here.  His involvement in the GOP has been essentially zero.  But he's got a "gee whiz" resume' and he sounds like a FINE casket salesman... makes you think you NEED the bronze handles.

And for all of what he knows... you have zero idea of what he will do with this knowledge.

We see what a leftist like Olson has done with it.

All of that notwithstanding, none of this justifies your failure to stick to your commitment and I'm not going to forget this.

So now, we seem to have a county chair that makes decisions, according to her, based on her ability to do simple math.  Sadly, in this case, it seems to be of the Common Core variety.

Would one of the other two candidates have won?  Nope.  Would a decision to stick with an endorsed candidate have made any difference in the outcome?

Not in the vote, it wouldn't.

But in every other way that it mattered, it absolutely would have.

Instead, we get political expediency.  And I am SO sick of the excuses of those we elect as they "reframe" their thinking in an effort to justify their betrayals.

Sadly, that is what I believe we have here, since Chair Quiring has seem to have forgotten that the pilot of an aircraft doesn't need to know how to rebuild the jet engines on his plane, but he or she DOES need to know how to take off, go in a certain direction, and land.

There's no question that the General knows how to take off and land.  But we have zero idea of the destination or how many stops he'll take along the way.  And when he fails us as Blom and Olson have failed us so many times, Chair Quiring will own part of that.

Is it time to censure our congresswoman?

With her most recent betrayal of joining with 7 other Republicans and the entirety of the democrat House Caucus in voting to reopen government, it's fairly clear that anyone paying attention can see that her post election mea-culpa, an election where she managed to lose Clark County by a substantial number as a result of then-Party incompetence and her own inability to vote like a Republican, essentially made zero real difference to her and from that debacle, taught her nothing.

Here's what she told us in Clark County Today after her humiliating defeat in the largest county in her district by far:

“Humbled.” 

That’s the word Jaime Herrera Beutler uses most often following her re-election to Washington’s 3rd Congressional District for a fifth term. 

Humbled, in part because it was her narrowest win since her first run for the seat. Also humbled because, after eight years representing her district, voters are still willing to give her a chance.

"Give her a chance?"

If the democrats would ever send up a well-funded candidate who was close to mainstream, instead of the downtown Portland leftists they usually run, HERRERA WOULD HAVE LOST.

"Give her a chance?"

How many "chances" does she get?

"Humbled?"

Indeed.  She was returned to office because her only skill is sadly convincing people that she's actually doing something.  Had a well-financed conservative ran against her, she wouldn't have survived the primary.

Think in terms of Marc "22%" Boldt.

But when I ask those people foolish enough to expect a different outcome from her after proving that she puts herself ahead of everyone else has she has for the 11 unfortunate years she's been in elective office, I have yet to hear from any of them what accomplishments she can point to that have made any substantial difference of any kind in the 3rd Congressional District.

Her fails pile up in a Mount Everest variety of height compared to a Hockinson Hill smattering of successes, none of which resulted in anything of note.

Failure one:  This moron joined with our two fringe-left nutjob senators in condemning then Candidate Trump over an 11 year old tape.

Failure two: She announced that she was refusing to vote for the President, instead, making it clear she intended to write in RINO Speaker Paul Ryan, who shares her views in sabotaging President Trump's agenda in the House as her next failure shows.

This resulted in hundreds of write-in votes for others instead of her.  And you can bet that our resident leftist congresswoman will repeat her voting performance in 2020 as well, again refusing to vote for President Trump.

Failure three: she has continued to insult the President since he was elected, as if jamming a stick in HIS eye will certainly result in some benefit for this congressional district, again putting herself ahead of her constituents.

Failure four:  When the vote mattered, after repeatedly voting to kill the hated and damaging Obamacare, she stupidly voted to CONTINUE Obamacare, once again joining with her leftist colleagues.

Failure five:  In the face of additional efforts by the state of Oregon to enslave residents of Washington State by further extorting additional tens of millions of dollars from our commuting population through tolling already paid-for freeways in addition to their usurious state income tax, an inability to get a bill to stop this theft out of the House because of her incompetence and low standing within the GOP Caucus due to her demonstrated lack of intellectual capacity and her eagerness to trash the current Administration.

How a Member of Congress cannot even get a bill through a House that HER party controls goes to her incompetence OR the fact that she SUPPORTS Oregon's extortion.  And her excuse... that it died because neither of our senators would support it?

That is utterly foolish claptrap by a woman looking for an excuse.  It frankly smacks of a lie... not that they wouldn't support it; that much is very true.  But that, as a result, the bill didn't survive?

That simply doesn't pass the straight face test.  If they chose to aid Oregon in their theft, that would be on them. It, in fact, would certainly serve to alienate much of SW Washington come their reelection efforts.

Instead?

Nothing.  And that's what you get when you have a congresswoman who's very big on mailing it in.

Failure six:  In her now over a decade in elective office, she has failed to do anything to address the issues confronting us concerning cross-river transportation.

She has offered no plan, no vision and no idea.  She has come out in favor of tolling, ala the recently resurrected CRC, so that, had she her way, we would ultimately wind up paying tolls to sit in traffic over a bridge we do not need, do not want, and cannot afford; all so we can THEN pay additional usury to the State of Oregon as a direct result of her years-long failure to act Congressionally to gain control over this stupidity.

So, I ask the question: how many more times must she vote with the democrats on major Republican bedrock legislation before we act?  How many more times does she get to vote democrat when we NEED her to vote like a Republican?  How many years of inactivity must we tolerate?

There's the questions.  And I believe it's time those questions be put to her.

If she is to insist on sounding, acting and voting like a democrat, that is certainly her privilege.  But she cannot realistically expect to engage in that garbage under the banner of the Republican Party.

Still living in the empty cranium of a former party chair.

Yes, it's pretty clear that the most recent past party chair disaster simply can't let go.

He maintains delusions of mattering... and control... over issues that simply do not concern him.  He wants back in so badly he obsesses over it.  And that is never... ever... going to happen.

Politically, Gellatly is a nothing, a nobody.  He STILL hasn't figured out that has no more say.  His incompetence can no longer infect the local party.  In fact, I'm really sure that the AG's office will find it rather refreshing to be dealing with competent, sober adults instead of what they've BEEN dealing with: drugged out, cult-style leadership that frankly has been an embarrassment to GOP politics here locally.

Most recently, he babbled about the likely illegal action of the Whitman County GOP in their effort to overturn the lawful election of a PCO they hung out to dry, one James Allsup. 

One can agree or disagree with the WCGOP's actions, or Allsup's, for that matter; those are not for this post.

But the irony of a liar; someone charged with Theft 3 on 4 different occasions with multiple DUI's to boot and a self-confessed cocaine user WHILE PARTY CHAIR, even MENTIONING the word "integrity?"

That tends to speaks for itself.

But the GREATEST irony of all of this is what this moron wrote next.  It's kinda like that idiot from CNN (Acosta) standing in front of a section of border wall and pointing out that it was all calm in an effort to discredit the president over his demands that a wall be built.

Here... look at them for yourself:







The irony?

Had Gellatly been vetted in ANY WAY, his criminal record of theft charges and his multiple DUI's would have come to light along with his bench warrants and other legal issues... which would have easily kept HIM from EVER BECOMING THE CHAIR OF THE GOP.

That's the problem with leftists and RINOs. They only want to apply their standards to others... and never themselves.  It's the same variety of astounding hypocrisy he's known for.

Now, I don't know anything more than anyone else about Allsup, save he's become an establishment/RINO lightening rod because, among other things, he participated in the infamous "Charlottesville" riot that resulted in the death of a counter protester.  Here's Wiki's take:

But Allsup's issues are his to deal with.  I have pointed out that the Whitman County GOP has no legal ability to summarily overturn the results of the elective process, but that is not an endorsement of Allsup's politics any more than observing that Druggy Dave involving himself in the Proud Boys protests (And many feel the same way about them as they do Allsup) is an endorsement of their positions.

There are many differences between me and Allsup, not the least of which is I would have been in court the NEXT DAY.  But that's neither here nor there...

The local has-been simply cannot seem to get me out of his head as I remind everyone of who he is and the damage he's done to the county GOP while simultaneously pointing out that he has no say, no involvement and frankly, that no one cares what he thinks.  That's a direct result of his efforts to remain the one thing he most definitely is not: relevant.

Davey, who shortly before his long-overdue exit from the political scene stupidly ran a censure motion against me that lasted for all of what, 3 weeks, even before I was a MEMBER of the local GOP, engages in mental masturbation over some miracle action coming along that would do the same thing to me as they did to Allsup.

But then, Druggy has never been very big on those who oppose him, doing all he can to silence anyone who doesn't share his peculiar views on anything.

That perspective is much more antifa than it is Republican, of course: silencing the opposition is something they're very big on doing... or in Druggy's case, TRYING to do.

So, what Davey is doing and is going to do, is stand in the back of the room and throw grenades at everyone doing the heavy lifting of repairing the damage he caused.  And, as always, if anyone who CAN do something about the terrible shape Druggy left us in actually DOES something about it, Druggy won't like that and, well, we can expect more grenades.

You might want to take a look at this example of how helpful our local scumbag is planning on being to assist in fixing the stupid shape he left the party in when he was over.

He'll continue to attack, to criticize, to do everything he can to assure that the GOP becomes as worthless as it was because of his tenure.

Well, Druggy; here's your chance:  Be Bold you worthless punk: Stop feeling sorry for yourself.  Stop believing you were anything but the disaster I've documented.

You've blown the first option of leading.  And your battleship-sized arrogant ego won't allow you to follow... so do us all a favor and get the hell out of the way.  You bury yourself deeper with each whine and each snivel.  You're out.  You're gone.  You ain't coming back.

In fact, go hook up with the democrats.  With your record and how much you tried to help them during your horrific tenure, I'm sure they'd love to have you.

And, once again, I never thought I'd say this... but props to Carolyn Crain for at least trying to be the adult in the middle of that kindergarten.

Looks like we finally get the reason Rivers is selling us out on the CRC Scam... and the "art" of "reframed thinking!"

Readers likely know that back when Sen. Ann "Gas Tax" Rivers was actually a Republican who listened to her constituency over the special interests who control her now, she played a pivotal role in killing off the CRC.

In fact, Rivers was christened "Bridge Killer" by no less a luminary then Willamette Week:

Bridge End

Oregon backers of the CRC think they've won the day. They haven't met Ann Rivers.

That was the headline back then... "back then" meaning March 5, 2013.

Before the massive, record gas tax and tab fee increases she voted for.

Before the unconscionable property tax increases she arranged, which raped property owners for additional billions, not only here but across the state... (Myself? the better part of $1000)

Select quotes in the article from "used to be" Ann Rivers:

"It's almost been like a timeshare sales pitch: 'If you don't buy now, by God, you'll never be able to get it at this price!'" Rivers says. "We need some sanity on this."

....

Now Senate majority whip, Rivers says the project's costs aren't worth shaving only a minute off the rush-hour commute from Portland to Vancouver.

....

"This is not a project about congestion relief, not a project about freight mobility," Rivers says. "All those things were shells. It's about light rail."

....

King and Rivers served on an oversight committee on the project. "The deeper we looked, the more questions we had," Rivers says. "We would wait and wait and wait, and never get the information we wanted."

....

But Rivers says she won't let the opportunity to kill the CRC slip away. She's taken no chances, working her Senate colleagues on the issue and trying to keep her fellow Republicans together. 

"My shoulders have gotten very broad and strong from being the only one saying, 'No, no, no,'" Rivers says. "And now others are beginning to join me."

I long for those days when Rivers actually gave a damn what her constituents, of which I am one, actually wanted or thought... the days when her word was her bond.  I grieve for the loss of that senator, who became what she so utterly despised when she first started out... now, completely out of touch with those she would govern in favor of those who would use her for their ends.

Those days of her integrity are long gone.

Now, I've occasionally wondered what flipped her from "Woman of the people" to "Woman of the downtown mafia."

Lou "Industrial-Sized Just for Men" Brancaccio provides a little insight into the sell-out with his most recent garbage piece beating the drum for his favorite scam.

Now, Rivers has proven herself to be, well, "flexible" when it comes to mundane issues like "integrity."  There's no question that, when properly motivated, she'll betray those who elected her in a heartbeat.

This appears to be one of those "proper motivations."

You see, each and every issue cited in the Willamette Week article?

Remains just as important today as it did then.

And just as unchanged.

Yes, the bridge is old.  And yes, the bridge remains safe.

As the Oregon Supreme Court ruled, safety is not and never has been an issue in the bridge replacement debate.

The ENTIRE reason to replace this bridge has ALWAYS been light rail and light rail alone.

Back in the day, Oregon's Mafia Governor Kitzhaber famously told us that "no light rail" meant "no bridge."

Back then and now, our blithering idiot of a governor, Inslee, has said and continues to say the same, as does that whack job running Oregon.

Now, all of this is to provide background for the obvious flip Rivers made from steadfast opposition to this scam to steadfast support.

Lefty Lou Brancaccio has always been one for ramming this multi-billion dollar waste of money down our throats.  So, he's done all he can to kill or cripple any of the many other options that make geometrically more sense than this rip off, no matter what the evidence is to the contrary.

Unlike Rivers, Lefty has not shown her variety of flexibility.  He support has been rabid, he's assaulted those wise enough to oppose his idiocy by using his column, and continues to use it as a cudgel whenever he can against, for him, the hated David Madore who also did all he could to kill this scam.

So, here's the latest installment of Lefty's effort to screw us, in this case, using the completely out of touch Sen. Ann "Gas Tax" Rivers.

OK, let’s be fair, an east county bridge isn’t a bad idea. It’s actually a good idea. But timing is everything, and it was clearly the wrong time five years ago. Opening that discussion up back then simply muddied the water in Vancouver’s attempt to get an Interstate 5 replacement bridge moving. 

And although I suspect the east county bridge chatter back then wasn’t the main reason talks for a new I-5 bridge collapsed, it was a player. 

So here we are today, five years later. Ironically, there now is a contingent of politicians who are trying to revive the discussion on an I-5 bridge replacement. Maybe even a peek at an east county bridge, as well. 

I spoke with state Sen. Ann Rivers, R-La Center, Friday about these new bridge talks. 

Rivers is a key player in all of this because she was instrumental in getting an I-5 bridge replacement killed five years ago. 

So what has changed for her? 

“I’ve reframed my thinking to exclude the congestion piece of it.”

Sigh.

You know, you can support most ANYTHING if you just get rid of the parts you don't happen to like.

And based on her record of billions in tax increases Rivers has hammered us with, she has a proven track record of "reframing" her thinking.  See, her vote to jack up our gas taxes and tab fees when she pledged to oppose them to get elected?

THAT'S an example of "reframing her thinking."

All she did was "exclude" the "integrity" part of her campaign pledge.  And then, all she had to do was "exclude" what her constituency wanted and voted for her for.

Voilà!  "Reframed thinking!"

In fact, it's the EXACT same thing leftists in Congress have done when it comes to a border wall that most all of them have voted for and spoke for in the past.  Why, they've just "reframed their thinking!"

Who can forget what one famous senator said about illegal aliens a few years back?



That bore not the slightest resemblance to Obama after he was elected president or, for that matter, democrats now.

A CLASSIC case of, well, "reframed thinking!"

Just like the Senator formerly known as "Bridge Killer."

You can turn a Volkswagen into a Rolls Royce if you just... "reframe your thinking!"

In this case, the "reframing" has merely involved eliminating THE most critical element of any cross-river transportation project, congestion relief... an issue Rivers has made clear she could care less about.

It's like saying, "if you got rid of that engine, that would be a pretty good car."

Kinda sounds like a Nazi "reframing their thinking" about World War 2.  "I've reframed my thinking about concentration camps and killing Jews."

So now, what both Rivers and Babbling Brancaccio are advocating is that instead of sitting in traffic now without paying extra for the privilege, we should get to sit there and pay $2000 a year or more to start for the opportunity.

Really doesn't justify much, does it?

That’s important, because the back-and-forth on bridge replacement over congestion relief was a huge distraction, she said. 

“Who cares if it doesn’t reduce congestion? We need a new bridge.”

I bet her constituents do.  But it's also pretty clear she could care less. How a so-called "representative of the people" could be so blind is yet another symptom of the complete ownership of our Senator by the special interests over the demands of her constituency.

And I have to wonder: If Rivers is so far gone that she's willing to actually IGNORE her constituents, then what the hell is she doing in office?

Since the ONLY reason to replace or add a bridge over the Columbia River is to "reduce congestion," then how could defending that element of this issue be considered a "huge distraction?"

And, of course, by babbling "who cares if it doesn't reduce congestion" she is also admitting that she doesn't give a damn about freight mobility, either.

In 2013, Rivers said "... the project's costs aren't worth shaving only a minute off the rush-hour commute from Portland to Vancouver."

What happened to that?  How did it go from "aren't worth shaving only a minute" to ignoring that altogether?  It wasn't worth it THEN, but is absolutely worth it NOW?

You have GOT to be kidding me.

Now these billions of dollars ARE suddenly worth shaving a minute off the commute time?

How did THAT happen?  And why?

She’s right, of course. There are plenty of other reasons to replace the aging Interstate 5 Bridge. And as Rivers noted, a new bridge should reduce traffic accidents, which will reduce congestion.

She's wrong, of course.  And this is the purest of the pure bullshit these two ladled out in Lefty's column.

There is precisely no other reason to replace it.  None.

The bridge is safe.  If it wasn't, it would be closed. Oregon's ongoing failure to do ANYTHING about the Delta Park bottle neck, combined with the failure to provide ANY additional bridge capacity to bypass Portland is at least 1000% more responsible for the congestion on the bridge then Lefty's bogus "accidents" claim.

Rivers agreed that five years ago talking about an east county bridge was a distraction.

Of course she did.  She has to make up as many excuses as possible for ripping off her district again, but I'm cursed with having actually worked WITH her to kill this scam and what *I* know is that the east county bridge played exactly ZERO part in getting that done.  And Lefty needed her to say that so he could beat on Madore a little more.

If she's claiming otherwise now, she is flat-out lying.  We rarely, if ever, even MENTIONED the east county bridge issue. And, for example, the east county bridge doesn't merit any mention in the Willamette Week article... so how much of a "distraction" could it be?

This is just more of Lefty's effort at image rehab for Rivers, and God Knows she needs it. Remember: there's nothing they won't say to get what they want.  And this is them... doing that.

And although it’s OK to note it in discussions today, she said the focus must be on replacing the Interstate 5 Bridge.

Damn decent of her to give her approval.  And no, the focus does NOT have to be on an unaffordable, unneeded and unwanted bridge replacement. It needs to be focused ONLY on congestion relief... and anyone involved in this that refuses to even consider congestion relief is unfit for elective office.

And that means you, Rivers.

When I asked her about light rail, she said it could be a deal-breaker for her. It’s old technology, and she believes younger people are trending against it.

"Could be?"

What the hell does "could be" mean?

She knows going in that Oregon will not accept a bridge without loot rail on it and neither will that moron governor we have.

Yes or no.  Up or down.  It's like being pregnant: one is, or one isn't.

Remember: loot rail is the ONLY reason this project is under discussion.  Anything else Rivers says to the contrary is a lie.

There are others, of course, who oppose light rail, but she’s not sure if there are enough votes to get it approved over their objections.

Try us.  And enjoy running for reelection, Rivers.  We'll be waiting.

Another contentious issue ­— tolls to help pay for a new bridge — is not something that should derail the project, Rivers said.

Of course not.  Because you know what?

NONE of the politicians raping us with this scam will have to pay those tolls to go to work. Lefty Lou Brancaccio won't have to, either... so one wonders: how easy is it for those who won't ever have to pay to jam tolls down our throats?  They are SO good at spending OUR money that THEY won't have to pay.

SO, what this idiot would have us do is pay her massive tolls to CROSS the bridge, only to have Oregon extort ADDITIONAL massive tolls to subsidize THEIR socialist state.  So, Rivers doesn't care if our wallets get raped TWICE on one trip.

Perhaps "Gas Tax" can tell us why that's OK, eh?

She’s not opposed to tolls, in part, because it’s a bedrock conservative view. 

“You use it, you pay for it.”

So is integrity and keeping your word, proven commodities she lacks.

Not to mention that SHE won't have to pay for it, right?

Kinda looking like she needs to "reframe" her thinking about being in politics.

I concluded my conversation with her by asking where we’ll be five years from now. 

“We should be on our way to construction.” 

Let’s hope so.

Let's hope NOT.

God how I loathe either people or politicians who screw us at no cost to themselves and no responsibility or accountability to those they would govern.  Rivers, likely, would claim that such is what elections are for.  But when she loses her next election, will that, in any way, stop this monstrosity from being built?

How many billions of our dollars is this fake Republican willing to waste?  Why does she want to hurt her constituency so badly?  What is behind the kidnapping of the conservative we first elected, only to replace her with this rabid RINO sellout sees, hears and speaks nothing reflective of the constituency that put her in the senate?

Where's Liz Pike when you need her?

Druggy still doesn't get it: what he thinks, wants or concludes about local GOP business simply doesn't matter.

It would appear that, perhaps, had Stacy Jesser actually won the GOP Chair race, her function would have been to be Gellatly's puppet and continue to allow the chemically enhanced one to call the shots.

Thank God that didn't happen.

Now, you may be asking yourself: what makes Hinton believe that.

Simple, really: this picture wound up coming into my possession.  It speaks for itself.



Once again, Gellatly shows that level of confusion, narcissism, superiority and arrogance that marked his horrific tenure as GOP Chair.

Davey, here's the problem: You've got no say.

You aren't some warlord.  You don't own any PCO's.  You have made it clear that as stupid a dullard as you are, you seem to think you can simply snap your snowy fingers and reassume control of an organization that pretty much made it clear... through its votes... that they want nothing to do with you.

What you think, what you want, however much you idiotically demand that the free speech of candidates be limited like the fringe-left nutjob you are?

NONE of that is going to happen.

Dude, you are OVER.  Now, we're (and notice I used the word "we're?"  That's because, unlike you, this effort includes ME) focusing on repairing the massive amount of damage you inflicted on the local GOP during the nightmare that was, well, you.

So, let me help you with that:

Of course, there is no such plan.  And, of course, you have no more of an idea as to what constitutes "normal people" than you do integrity.  That it pisses you off somehow merely goes to how right on both the schedule and the template to identify the 3 names for the council actually are.

But you simply seem unable to grasp the fact that as much as you pout?

You ain't got no say.

However much time we allow candidates to talk and how many rounds of voting?

However long WE (And that, thankfully, does NOT include YOU) like.  And however many rounds it takes.

And if that is all day?  Guess what?  That's none of your business.

I get that you're still butthurt over your cult membership losing the oh-so-carefully laid plan to keep control that blew up in your face: your humiliation was obvious and SO precious.

Further, of course, for YOU to expound on "reasonable" makes as much sense as Stalin expounding on democracy.

There is precisely ZERO need to amend anything.  And oh, those lessons you taught about ignoring the rules... like you did SOOOOO many times... why, they've really left an impression.

And as for who the Board had there or didn't have during the meeting there... that is, you guessed... ALSO none of your business. Whatever makes you think it is?

As for being "disruptive," no one disrupted more than you.  And when it comes to who was "through" [sic] off the Board in 2017, well, almost ALL of your cult was tossed of the Board in 2018, weren't they?

And when it comes to "nominating puppets," could you POSSIBLY be a bigger, rank, reeking hypocrite?

Odd that YOU had no problem getting YOUR puppets put into place, yet you bitch because you believe that someone else may be doing the same thing?  (Even though that's also untrue; they've just wised up to you)

And clearly, your ignorance ALSO extends to the process underway to find someone to take the 4th District seat.

Again, you stupidly babble: "Now their group is nominating every puppet they can find."

That's not how this works, moron.   Any individual interested in getting on the list has the right to run."Their group" isn't nominating spit.  These people nominate THEMSELVES, and while that may not have been the way YOU did business, that's the way THIS Administration gets it done.

They follow the rules, both letter... and intent.

Then you whine: "to try to have hours of speeches and multiple rounds of voting."

Well, of course, as ignorant and inexperienced as you are, that's how it's ALWAYS been done.  It was done long before anyone ever heard of your dumb ass, and it'll be done that way long after you're gone.

Now, Davey, do you get it?  You lost.  Your hand-picked replacements lost.  Your plan failed.

You're out, done, over, a spectator and trust me when I tell you this:

Nobody gives a shit what you think because; well, now that you're gone?

Nobody has to.

And remember, G.  You are ALSO gone.  And that's how you're gonna stay.

So, make sure to come on by on the 15th.  We won't even hire any strip club thugs as idiotic "security" to keep you out in the parking lot, where you so obviously belong... you know, like somebody we both know did to arrange the coup of October of 2017?

Another vote, another betrayal by Herrera. Think she's running for governor?

As regular readers know, Jaime Herrera has betrayed the GOP on at least two major issues, voting to continue Obamacare in the face of overwhelming Republican opposition after voting repeatedly to end it when it didn't matter because Obama was still in office and throwing in with the leftists to attack Candidate Trump when she hooked up with leftist Senators Murray and Cantwell to trash him.

Herrera's hatred and disdain for the president is public.  It is oft shown and illustrated.

Yesterday,  she once again jammed a stick in the eye of both the president and the GOP by voting AGAINST the REPUBLICAN President she's made clear she despises AND the GOP by joining with all of the democrats and 7 other RINOs to reopen government.

Because clearly, Herrera doesn't care about border security, illegal alien crime or costs and the dead Americans they're piling up as a result.  Would she have voted this way if one of her family members had been slaughtered by an illegal?

How many of us have to die before Herrera figures it?

Is it any wonder she got clobbered in Clark County in this last election?  Did she learn nothing by her almost-defeat?

Of course, if she wants to put together a "progressive" voting record to appeal to Puget Sound while she runs for some other office in 2 years, say, "governor" (The current version is kinda, well, shaky) she might be suffering from delusions that this sort of "screw-you" vote will matter.

It won't.

Here's the vote record, that speaks for itself:

http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2019/roll021.xml

This is what betrayal looks like.

Why I cannot vote for Shane Bowman to replace Eileen Quiring.

Next week, the Clark County Republican Party will be preparing a list with 3 names on it to forward to the Clark County Council to fill the District 4 seat of Eileen Quiring, who is now County Chair.

Given the current make up of the council, which includes one massively partisan democrat  and two others who call themselves Republican but who vote like Jimmy Moeller, it's imperative that her seat be filled by a conservative.

For Eileen, her new job of County Chair is a tough enough burden to bear without adding a 4th council member who would vote like Jimmy Moeller.

Shane Bowman has served on the Battle Ground City Council for many years, including at least one stint as mayor.  He's now Deputy Mayor, voted into place by the other council members.

And there are a few reasons why I oppose him, and I thought I'd list them here:

1.  He was recruited by Sen. Ann "Gas Tax" Rivers to run against then incumbent State Representative Liz Pike (R-18) because Pike rabidly opposed River's support of the horrific gas tax and tab fee increases that Rivers had promised to oppose to get elected to the state senate... increases that he strongly supported, her pledges to oppose them notwithstanding... increases that amounted to $700 million for the citizens of this county.

Now, why did Bowman do that?  Because Battle Ground was bought by getting a nice piece of the gas tax/tab fee pie.

On many policy issues, Bowman said he wouldn’t be surprised if he aligned with Pike. He’s a conservative, he’s in favor of smaller government, more local control and not raising taxes.

But he did blast the incumbent for her stance against the statewide transportation package. The $16 billion package carved out about $600 million for Southwest Washington and included money for Battle Ground, including funds to widen Main Street/state Highway 502.

The package also raises the gas tax 11.9 cents per gallon in two steps. The package was needed in Battle Ground, he said.

“She could take a ‘no’ vote on it and throw everyone under the bus,” he said.

You see, Mr. Bowman seems to confuse "keeping your word" with "throwing everyone under the bus."

To me?  That means he's OK with political lies.

Remember, Rivers promised to oppose any effort to increase the gas tax and tab fees when she ran for the Senate, as this screen capture from her campaign website clearly shows:

Excerpt from Rivers campaign web site back in 2012

I've always found Bowman's effort to be rather childish and, of course, doomed to failure, as he was crushed by Pike in the primary.

2.  The majority of the 18th Legislative District overwhelmingly opposed the gas tax/tab fee increase and that clearly made no difference to either Rivers OR Bowman.

And that is not the kind of "I need to do the thinking for you/who cares what you as a constituent thinks" variety of representation I want representing ME.

3.  While Bowman voted "no" on the most recent effort by the Battle Ground City Council to DOUBLE the tab fee he supported and voted to ram down the throat of the people of Battle Ground... without asking them... it's fairly clear he did that so he could claim he was against that sort of thing.  But then the question becomes how many other taxes and fees has he voted to raise in defiance of his constituents and without asking them?  The list is long and distinguished, because if you do such a thing even once, that's once too many.

4.  I missed his positions in his PCO message on tolling, loot rail and replacing the I-5 bridge as opposed to getting additional bridges built over the Columbia River.

Could it be... that it's because he doesn't want us to KNOW his position on that vitally important issue to this county?

In fact, his PCO message talked a lot about what political jobs he's had for experience (And if that's important, then surely he'd support someone else who had already BEEN a county commissioner, wouldn't he?) and his business and so forth, but not a lot about would he would or would not do, what his positions on the issues confronting this county are and how he would address them.

Odd, that.  Must want to keep them a secret.

5. And, of course, who can forget Bowman's platform plank of putting a 15% sales tax on food to fund education when he was running against Rep. Pike??

Clearly, we do not need to replace a conservative like Eileen Quiring on the council with yet another candidate who fails to understand what the label "Republican" means.

If Bowman makes the top 3, given the proven hatred of conservatives by some on that council, that guarantees Bowman will be the choice.  And we cannot hang Eileen out to dry like that.

FWIW, that's my take.