Role reversal? Where have the Republicans gone on the county commission?

.
When Tom Mielke ran for commissioner, it was on a simple, populist-based platform of no I-5 Bridge replacement, no light rail and no tax or fee increases.

So, imagine my dismay when I discovered that Mielke wants to jack up our fees for vehicle ownership in the midst of a recession?

Mielke urges higher vehicle fees to fund road projects
Boldt says he’d back effort if property taxes are reduced

By Stephanie Rice
Columbian staff writer

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Here’s how badly the county needs money for future road projects: Clark County Commissioner Tom Mielke, a conservative Republican who owns nine cars, supports increasing vehicle licensing fees.

Mielke said Tuesday that increasing licensing fees would take the burden off developers from having to pay as much in traffic-impact fees.

He quickly added that he would like to balance a fee hike with reducing property
tax rates so homeowners would not pay as much for roads, either.

He said he’s encouraging county staffers to figure out a specific proposal.

“I don’t know how to do it,” Mielke said.

His fellow Republican, Commissioner Marc Boldt, said he supports increasing licensing fees on the condition property taxes were lowered.

They both feel all drivers, and not just property owners and developers, should shoulder more of the burden of paying for roads.

By state law, commissioners could raise the $43 annual vehicle licensing fee by $20 without putting it to a public vote.

If voters so approved, the fee could be raised by as much as $100.

Commissioner Steve Stuart, a Democrat, would be the board’s lone “no” vote. He said the county needs to work with existing funds, ranking projects on a need-based scale that favors safety and attracting business development.

More:

I've got to tell you: I'm not interested in the least in taking "the burden off developers from having to pay as much in traffic impact fees."

Boldt has long since lost many of the Republican tenets of his political upbringing, having voted to allow the county to confiscate our weapons in the event of a declared emergency, having voted for a sales tax increase for meth treatment without referring said tax to the voters; and his lie to me, personally, that he would make sure there was an advisory vote on the bridge project/loot rail when he never intended such a vote to take place; helping to insure that we're burdened with an additional $1300 a year for each of the 65,000 that will come directly out of our local economy.

He rarely supports Mielke's heretofore conservative ideas and has repeatedly failed to even second Mielke's multiple motions for an advisory vote, either with the county or at the CRC.

That he would go along with this under the facade of reducing our property taxes is as much a shell game as the idiot democrats screwing us with an income tax. Any such reduction would be temporary, and therefore worthless.

That brings us to Stuart, who suddenly finds himself in a re-election race, although how much of a race it turns out to be remains to be seen.

Stuart is well aware of his vulnerabilities; his corruption with David Barnett and his slavish desire to throw us under a bus while jamming us with a toll for a bridge with loot rail that we neither need nor want does expose him to some vulnerability... since corruption and massive tax or fee increases during a horrific recession aren't particularly politically attractive to the 65,000 commuters, Stuart's aura of invulnerability is as much a facade as Boldt's Republicanism.

So, here we have the role-reversal. Mielke and Boldt want to jack up our fees. Stuart, in genuine political fear for his future, takes the hero position of "no" on this issue... almost as if it were set up as an election ploy to strengthen Stuart's effort at re-election.

Because whether that was the plan or not, this is the practical outcome.

In the article, Stuart's assumption of a what would otherwise be a Republican political position seems so reasoned and well thought out, since he is, of course, correct.

Why Mielke is throwing this political lifeline to Stuart is beyond me. Why Mielke is carrying this water for the development community who so cavalierly ignored him in 08, giving him essentially no money to run on, is simply beyond me.

Causing the people of this county to pay increased fees so developers get a break will do nothing to increase housing construction; the issue isn't development fees which are all passed on to the buyer anyway. Instead, the issue is the difficulty in getting financing and the uncertain financial future of those who might be interested in buying homes.

In short, screwing the people of Clark County to increase developer profit margins will not have the desired effect unless the economy of this county where unemployment continues to hover in the stratosphere improves, along with the financing available to buy these houses once built.
.

Tom Mielke nailed it: It's time to get past Dino.

.
I've been writing here for some time that Dino will not be running for the Senate. His intransigence and arrogance has actually, IMHO, cost the GOP any reralistic chance of winning.

I wrote one client this morning in response to something Dick Morris wrote in an article:

Rossi continues to avoid the issue.

Ultimately, there’s still no good scenario for the senate in this state.

Dino’s foot will remain, directly or indirectly on the money hose. That is; if he announces for the Senate, people will give him money and the big donors in particular will dry up for anyone else. If Gregoire gets the Solicitor General gig (And I wouldn’t be surprised if we heard even more noise about that soon… not that she will get it, but the dems want Rossi to chase his tail while continuing to shut off the money flow to the rest of the field) I seriously doubt that the announcement would be made at any time that would elevate Owen before October 4, when he would get 25 additional months to hold Rossi (and everyone else) at bay.

If, for whatever the reason, such an announcement is made sooner; the people who would have given money to Rossi for his Senate run will now do it for his Governor’s run, although with smaller limits for the governor’s race, (Looks like $3200 total,
split in half for the primary and the general) that would still leave $1600 to donate for a senate race (Federal limits to $4800.)

Either way, the clamp remains firmly in place, and unless one of the GOP candidates wins Power Ball, there isn’t going to be the where-with-all to get this done.

You can always have the fastest car in the race. But without the gas to run it over the finish line… you finish last. The only way this would work would be for Dino to hold a press conference announcing he was running for anything (Senator OR Governor), while endorsing (and working hard for) a candidate he wanted to win.

And how likely is that?

Morris probably doesn’t know about the stranglehold Rossi and the Bellevue Mafia have on the cash. In an otherwise equal world, Rossi’s failure to act could be overcome. But at this point, the GOP candidates are “squabbling for the crumbs off Longshank’s table,” so to speak. And because there are so many other candidates, and the one with the possibility of self-funding (Aker) has his overseas manufacturing exposure (40% of his product comes from China) and Didier politically to the right of Genghis Khan (ala Ellen Craswell) there appears to me to be little else left.

The GOP has had a golden opportunity here. Bungling, the parochialism of the Bellevue Mob and blinders as to the political reality has taken this seat out of play… no matter what Rossi does. If he were going to announce… the King County Lincoln Day Dinner (Saturday) would have been a time to do it. Had he announced back in February, this would be a completely different discussion

Mielke, on the other hand, took a different tack:

Dear Members of the State Committee

I am very disappointed that Dino Rossi is playing political games with the Republican Party.

We have the ability to take this seat in the Senate away from the democrats, but Rossi's failure to make a decision has badly hurt our chances.

We have other candidates who've been in the race for a long time now and who've been taking Sen. Patty Murray to task over and over on the things she is doing and not doing. Some have been paying for TV in Seattle and other areas exposing Murray's voting record. I am concerned that Rossi's failure to make a decision has been holding up contributions that would normally be going to other viable candidates. Rossi has held back with his finger in the wind long enough and it is hurting and jeopardizing good Republican candidates who can actually win this
race.

Enough is enough, Rossi would be getting started way too late to have a successful campaign himself if he announced now... He needs to get out of the WAY and let others run... or we will have lost any chance to take this seat away from Murray when she is the most vulnerable she is ever likely to be.

Dino has hurt us all by waiting for no good reason; financial, political or strategic. All he's done is anger a lot of the base because he refuses to make his plans public and that makes him look indecisive while a lot of us see this fantastic opportunity slipping away because of Rossi.

I, for one have had enough.

Tom Mielke
Clark County Commissioner
District 1
(GOP)

I know Tom. I was his consultant in his successful 2008 run where the GOP took control of the county commission for the first time in 30 years... and did it in a county that went for Obama roughly 52-46% in a campaign where he was outspent about 3 to 1. I know him as both a rabid Rossi supporter and a politically pragmatic figure in elected office for four terms in the Legislature and in his first term as a commissioner.

I am in complete agreement with his observation that we've let this opportunity slip away. And unfortunately, nothing can be done to get it back, thanks to Rossi, his intransigence and his arrogance.
.

Boldt/Mielke to support Bridge/Loot Rail advisory vote.

.
As our local government clowns have wasted 10's of millions of dollars; as our despicable rag of a paper has attempted to jam this thing down our throats as those who've lied to us (Tim "The Liar" Leavitt) and those corrupted (Steve "Cold hard cash, Mr. Barnett" Stuart) have taken it upon themselves to ram all of this down our throats without our say.

Well, this November, we will get out chance. I directly discussed this situation with Clark County Commissioner Marc Boldt and he agreed to put a non-binding, county-wide advisory vote on the ballot this November as part of the general election.

This is great for two huge reasons: first and foremost is that the people... the people who will actually pay the bills, will FINALLY get a say.

But second: every candidate and incumbent running this November (You listening, Steve "Unmarked bills, Mr. Barnett" Stuart?) will have to take and defend a position that so far, they haven't had to take or defend.

I look forward to the reaction from the various people who, while not having to pay the tolls this project will bring, want to ram this down our throats and the throats of the 65,000 commuters who WILL have to pay this price. I'm sure it will be classic.
.

So, the county plans to verify worker citizenship? Weren't we already doing that?

.
So... is it the typically poor writing of the local paper? Or is it the disturbing revelation that the county has not been confirming the citizenship of the county work force?

The only aspect of the new policy that I find myself in disagreement with is this:

The commissioners asked Tuesday for a proposal by Jan. 1 to start feeding the Social Security numbers of new deputies, secretaries, janitors and other county workers into the federal E-Verify database.

My operative concern is for the word "new." Why is it just "new?" Why doesn't this apply to all current and retired county employees as well?

As for Commissioner Boldt's concerns.... and subsequent efforts to placate the so-called "League of United Latin American Citizens".... that's a crock as well.

If ONE job is held by an illegal alien, that's one job too many.... one county job... one private sector job.

Assigning some level of power or concern to illegal alien advocates is a bad idea. Bad for this community and bad for our economy.

Printing an obvious lie:

"Many municipalities are having problems with unemployment," said Maria Rodriguez-Salazar, a local LULAC leader. "And it has nothing to do with illegal immigrants. It has to do with greedy people who made some bad decisions."

and caving to the faux "victimization" agenda:

Also Tuesday, Commissioner Marc Boldt said the commissioners shouldn't have implied, in their earlier action, that illegal immigration is responsible for the county's unemployment rate.

The Sept. 1 resolution mentioned the local unemployment rate as a reason to check contract workers' identities electronically.

"It almost made the reader believe that we have high unemployment because we have undocumented workers," Boldt said. "And that's not true."

to further the leftist, illegal alien agenda gives this fringe group power they do not merit and assigns them a platform they do not deserve.

There are three, absolutely unassailable facts here:

First: They are not "undocumented workers." An undocumented worker is someone that doesn't have the paperwork to prove they have a legal right to work. That someone CAN have the right to work by citizenship.... they just don't happen to have the necessary ID.

We are not discussing those who have the legal right to work here, and I am getting sick of public officials who turn their backs on their legal responsibilities by kowtowing to political correctness.

We are discussing ILLEGAL ALIENS. ILLEGAL ALIENS HAVE NO RIGHT TO WORK HERE. THEY HAVE NO RIGHT TO BE HERE. And no amount of lipstick on that particular pig can change it. That local illegal alien advocates don't like the phrase "illegal alien" does not make it any less accurate or useful as a term of description.

Words have meaning. Illegal aliens are violating our laws. The prissy use of the term "undocumented workers" provides them with cover for being here and cover for breaking our laws... as if the issue was merely one of some paperwork snafu and not one of a deliberate choice to violate the laws of the United States.

Second: we have illegal aliens working in Clark County.

Third, contrary to the lie that illegal aliens do NOT contribute to our unemployment, the mere fact that an illegal alien is holding a job in Clark County during these difficult times by definition indicates that their presence here DOES, in fact, do the very thing they now claim it does not:

Contribute to the highest unemployment rate in the State of Washington.

Boldt needs to be a little less concerned about placating those who do not deserve it, and a little more concerned about enforcing the laws he's sworn to uphold.
.

Disturbing news about the County Commissioners: apparently, it really is who you know.

.
If the Columbian is to be believed (and they by no means HAVE a high believability quotient) there's goin's ons down at the county that are way over the line of corruption.

The article states:

Saying they hope to respark the economy, county commissioners are letting a few well-connected developers push aside costly new environmental rules that others are forced to follow.

Oh, really?

This, if true, is the kind of thing that sickens me about politics and politicians.

In this era of massive budget cuts and reduced revenues, our political leaders must go out of their way to avoid even the appearance of corruption.

For example, the democrat-controlled legislature engaged in obvious corruption when they gave the democrat newsletter called the Columbian and the others of similar ilk a massive cut in their business and occupation tax in the midst of a $10 BILLION budget deficit, guaranteeing the continued "love" of the media... since they bought and paid for it with our money, fair and square.

It's far too easy to be seduced by money. If our commissioners are giving anything approaching "special consideration" to those who financed their campaigns, then that amounts to "pay for play."

It's bad enough that the commissioners have us subsidize the developers by charging outrageous permitting fees to private landowners for additions and car ports.

But there is absolutely no excuse for this kind of corruption. And that is precisely what this seems to be.

Today's quiz question: what are they going to do about it?
.

Kudos to Benton and Mielke: Foes of bridge plans will rally in Portland

.
Kudos to Washington State Senator Don Benton and Clark County Commissioner Tom Mielke for coming out full force in their opposition to the massive waste and fraud known as the I-5 Bridge Replacement.

While some of the more ignorant are stuck on the bizarre idea that "SOMETHING" has to be done, the idea of replacing a serviceable bridge that accomplishes nothing but a massive and colossal waste of transportation dollars combined with sucking out as much as $100,000,000 per year from our local economy for bridge tolls, in addition to heaping yet another huge tax on our commuting public, ain't that.

If the outcome of any transportation project is not decreased congestion and increased freight mobility, then the result is an epic failure.

Unfortunately for the people, those who govern us here locally have fallen in love with this idea. It's unfortunate because "love" is not supposed to be a part of governance.

With those running our government that lose sight of their duty, such as the mayor of Vancouver, they become fixated on a goal and demand that everyone else sacrifice to achieve THEIR vision... a vision that we are not going to be allowed to impact.

There is precisely zero justification for replacing this bridge. As Commissioner Mielke put it, the bridge is in "A-1 shape."

Others more ignorant about issues related to the bridge, say things like "I don't know how he comes to that conclusion on a interstate bridge that sits on 100 year old Douglas Fir pilings," and seem to be fixated on the idea that pilings, if they are in danger of failing (and the commenter offers no evidence that they are... just the age) can be replaced... and replaced without replacing the entire bridge.

None of the supporters of the bridge replacement have addressed the massive and permanent hit our local economy will take as a result of this effort. They either don't think of it, or they don't care about it.

Obviously, at some point, replacement of the I-5 bridge is something that should be considered. But not until a 3rd and 4th bridge have been built, or unless the bridge reaches a condition that makes it unrepairable.

And NO ONE indicates that to be the case.

So, bridge fanatics become closet OCD freaks, ignoring and belittling the opposition if it's opposition they don't happen to like. They lose site of the forest for the 100 year-old douglas firs... and they become fixated on forgetting that ANY opposition to this massive, colossal and unforgivable waste of money is GOOD opposition.

Political pragmatism is the order of the day... for everyone. And to suggest that those elected down here, while buried in a minority in Olympia are not doing all they can to stop the Pridemore/Wallace gerrymandering bill is both moronic and an insult to those who have done more before 9:00 a.m. to kill this deal then some disgruntled idiots have in the entirety of their lives.

Thanks again to all of the responsible public officials who represent us and actually LISTEN to those they would govern.

Illegitimus non tatum carborundum.

Local NewsFoes of bridge plans will rally in Portland
They’ll highlight possible alternatives to a 12-lane crossing
Thursday, April 2 8:17 p.m.

BY JEFFREY MIZE
COLUMBIAN STAFF WRITER


A collection of interests, from environmental activists in Portland to third-bridge supporters in Vancouver, will assemble in Portland this Sunday.

Their goal? Demonstrate unified opposition to the proposed Columbia River Crossing, which would replace the Interstate 5 Bridge with two spans, each with as many as six lanes.

The rally begins at noon Sunday in Tom McCall Waterfront Park, near the west side of the Morrison Bridge, and will include speakers, information booths and anything else to encourage opposition to the crossing project.

Rally organizer Joe Kurmaskie said the event will highlight alternatives to a project that opponents see as a throwback to the days when gas was cheap and the auto was king.

"Unless we've got another planet or two in our pocket, we are really going to have to change our habits," he said. "I don't think we can build our way out of congestion. It hasn't worked in Atlanta or Houston or Los Angeles."

Alternatives include tolling both the I-5 and Interstate 205 bridges, retrofitting the existing I-5 Bridge, tweaking freeway ramps and maybe even building a smaller replacement bridge, Kurmaskie said.

"This is a not a 'no build' rally," he said. "There is no consensus as to what all those alternatives should be. But there is consensus that this mega-bridge, 12 lanes, is going to create more problems than it's going to solve."

The crossing project also would extend light rail from the Expo Center in north Portland to Clark College and rebuild six freeway interchanges, four in Vancouver and two in Portland. The entire project, bridge, highway and transit, would cost $3.5 billion or more.

Sunday's rally will attract opponents from Oregon and Washington. Shumway residents John Kangas will lead a group of bicyclists that will assemble in Vancouver's Esther Short Park at 10:30 a.m. and pedal to the rally in downtown Portland.

More:

At least 2 out of 3 county commissioners get it: They say "railroad as important as bridge."

.

Man, did the Pravda Columbian throw a tizzy today, or what?

Clark County commissioner Tom Mielke has been a vocal critic of plans to replace the Interstate 5 Bridge

Boldt and Mielke come out and put the nonsensical, wasteful, unwanted I-5 replacement bridge/loot rail project into perspective, and the paper loses what little is left of it's mind.

Once one understands that an unwanted and unneeded project that will subject 10's of thousands of our county residents to what amounts to a $1200 or more yearly tax so they can work in Portland, the dramatic and obvious complete lack of importance for a project that has wasted 10's of millions of dollars already should become readily apparent.

The people of this county do not want any of this project. None. The idiots behind this massive waste of money know this, or else they would put it to a county-wide vote.

Have you heard about any effort to do that? *I* haven't.

To suggest that an unwanted, unneeded $4 BILLION transportation funding black hole is THE most important project for transportation in the region is idiocy wrapped in a cloak of moronic self-delusion.

A project that will accomplish NOTHING except to massively increase the tax burden to the commuting public, and those of us who despise paying taxes on something we will not be allowed to vote on, is to suggest that our in-county infrastructure needs have no place at the table; just like, come to think of it, the commuters and the rest who oppose this nonsense have no place at the table.

Steve Stuart, wholly-owned subsidiary sellout of David Barnett/Megacasino developer remains clueless or unconcerned about what the people here actually want. Like most who will not have to bear the daily burden of taxes and fees that HE is attempting to impose on others, what the people want is of no consequence to him.

Royce Pollard has become a complete liar on the project, and like his toady announced opponent, Tim Leavitt, has ignored any call for a vote on the subject, imposing his superior will over an increasingly cynical electorate. His typically moronic response to this effort:

"There is no project that's going to have a greater impact on the economic viability of our region in the future," Pollard said Thursday. "We have to be able to compete with the world. …We can't just close the borders, as I think Mr. Mielke might want."

...is, of course, an outright lie, start to finish. But then, that's what we've come to expect from bridge replacement/light rail proponents, who have no concern for any perspective but their own.

The problem is one of perspective. Unlike Mayor Pollard's lies, this project will have precisely and absolutely zero impact on our "economic viability." On the contrary, sucking out $4 BILLION desperately needed tax dollars that actually COULD make a difference when used to build 2 additional and much more badly needed bridges over the Columbia River shows, in comparison, precisely how unnecessary and worthless this unbelievably massive waste of money can be.

The next lie is Pollard's moronic and idiotic statement that Commissioner Mielke wants to "close the (presumably state) borders." It takes a genuine, gold plated ass to come up with that kind of bizarre rhetoric.

And, by the way, for sell out Commissioner Stuart, Pollard's response sure seems to fly in the face of your observation that this is a "lot of fuss over nothing."

The 2 commissioners did the right thing. I now await their effort to put this thing to a county wide advisory vote, so we can shut the pro-bridge/light rail loons up, permanently.

Two county commissioners say railroad as important as bridge

Thursday, February 12 10:21 p.m.

BY MICHAEL ANDERSEN
COLUMBIAN STAFF WRITER

A quiet short-line railroad that runs from west Vancouver up past Battle Ground is at least as important to the region's future transportation system as a new Interstate 5 bridge, two county commissioners say.

The rails, which the county bought for $2 million starting in 1986, currently carry three or four trains a week, usually with two or three cars each, in their busiest stretch.

Commissioners Marc Boldt and Tom Mielke feel strongly enough about the issue that they withheld the county's logo from a letter to state legislators that described the I-5 bridge as "our region's top transportation priority."

It's not that the $3.5 billion bridge project is unimportant, Boldt explained this week.

"But it isn't the most important," he said.

Boldt doesn't want to choose between it and other important projects, like the county's Chelatchie Prairie Railroad and various roadwork.

More:

.

Once again, the Pravda Columbian blows the call: In our view Feb. 12: Rail-Trail Boosted

.
Clearly, the leftists running the Pravda Columbian are among those idiots that think milk comes from Safeway instead of cows.

They whine and snivel because the commissioner that actually represents the area in question voted "no" on a state government waste of yet another million dollars.

Steve Stuart, wholly-owned subsidiary of Barnett Megacasino Developers, Inc; joins with the rag by pointing out that the "state grant is for a specific purpose."

Neither Stuart, who's vision is clouded by the corruption of his campaign donations from the powers behind the massive casino project that he so longingly supports; nor the fish wrapper idjits can grasp the concept behind Mielke's opposition: the state should not have provided this waste of our taxpayer dollars in the first place.

Here's a clue to the total moron that asked the rhetorical question:

What in the world was County Commissioner Tom Mielke thinking when he voted against the grant? The trail is in his district! Logic dictates that Mielke should be one of its strongest proponents.

YOUR logic, if you can call it that, is that if YOU want it, you're simply incapable of understanding how or why anyone could oppose you. And you thugs continue to do what you do best by ignoring the people... and ignoring facts. Mielke SAID in the SAME article you reference for your lapdog Stuart, this:

"There's been a lot of opposition to this along the way that's been ignored," Mielke said. "I guess I've always had a problem with it."

YOU just decided to selectively quote him; because, after all, except to a low-functioning squash like whoever wrote this editorial, actually DOING YOUR FRICKING JOB AND INCLUDING THIS QUOTE would have gone a LONG WAY TO ANSWERING YOUR IDIOTIC QUESTION.

The logic of a conservative in this matter is simple enough that you leftists should have been able to figure it out instantly: a TRUE representative of the people would concern himself with the negative impacts that will be felt by his own constituency, AND WHERE THIS MONEY IS COMING FROM.

Neither the clown posse running this disgrace to journalism or Steve Stuart give a damn about the impacts to anyone if those impacts interfere with their agenda. That explains why Stuart is committing political suicide by supporting a bridge that we do not want and loot rail that we do not want; and that explains why the Pravda Columbian is circling the drain.

Besides the issue of impacts, that you morons actually believe in the concept of "Free Money" is so completely, sickeningly bizarre as to be stunning in the level of tonedeafness you and Stuart exhibited with your bizarre comments.

There is no such thing as "free money," you idiots. I just shoveled almost $3,000 in Business and Occupation taxes to this state, and you seem incapable of understanding that this "free money" CAME OUT OF SOMEONE'S POCKETS. And HELLO! This state is facing a $6 BILLION deficit! Do we HAVE millions of taxpayer dollars we can waste?

As a liberal rag, it's not surprising that you don't get that. Whether it's this unneeded and unwanted million dollars or $4 BILLION dollars, you people are incapable of understanding that IT ALL COMES FROM SOMEWHERE.

Your inability to grasp these simple facts make both your publication and Steve Stuart a danger to our community. The sooner either of your are no longer able to impact government at any level, the better.

As for Marc Boldt, I will limit my comments to this: a true conservative would not have voted for this. That it's on this waste of paper's agenda is no reason to vote for it; that it's not in either Stuart's or Boldt's district made it an easy vote, because they will not have to deal with the impacts of this moronic effort. They, effectively, made those impacts Mielke's problem.

There. Have I answered your question as to what Mielke, and thousands like him were "thinking?" Get a clue... and get a grip.

County accepts $1M on 2-1 vote
Mielke objects to taking tax money for trail near railroad tracks

Tuesday, February 10 7:51 p.m.

BY MICHAEL ANDERSEN
COLUMBIAN STAFF WRITER

From the county government's perspective, it might have been free money. But new County Commissioner Tom Mielke said he was elected to look out for taxpayers.

So Mielke voted Tuesday to turn down a million-dollar state grant for a project he doesn't like: a three-mile recreational trail in Mielke's own district, beside the railroad tracks east of Battle Ground.

"There's been a lot of opposition to this along the way that's been ignored," Mielke said. "I guess I've always had a problem with it."

Mielke, who lives near Daybreak Park west of Battle Ground, was outvoted 2-1 by commissioners Marc Boldt and Steve Stuart. The county will accept the grant and move forward with the project.

The trail, supported by a federal grant as well as the state grant of almost $1 million, will run from Battle Ground's Fairgrounds Park to the front entrance of Battle Ground Lake State Park.

Mielke said he's concerned for the safety of pedestrians.

More:
.

Well, at least SOMEONE is showing some smarts: Portland cool to 12-lane bridge

.
First of all, we do not need or want an I-5 Bridge replacement. That Commissioner Tom Mielke campaigned against this waste of money is one of the top two reasons why he was elected, and Bridge and Light Rail lackey Pam Brokaw lost.

Many knew from the beginning that the CRC study was a sham; that the outcome was pre-ordained for the very "plan" we have now, and tens of millions of dollars have been wasted to get the pre-ordained outcome.

The ENTIRE IDEA OF REPLACING THIS BRIDGE IS TO GET LIGHT RAIL INTO VANCOUVER. PERIOD.

Yet, we're not asked if we want it.

I kinda get a little of the feeling that prisoners in this state used to get when they were going to be executed.

They weren't asked if they WANTED to be executed. Their choices were limited only TO THE "HOW" OF IT. You ARE going to be executed; the ONLY choice you get is do you prefer hanging, gassing or lethal injection?

That is not to say that prisoners should have the right to make their executions optional; but it IS to say that WE, THE PEOPLE, should NOT be given the same status as death row inmates. Our elected officials are not God. THEY are not going to pay for this, which makes it easy for THEM to commit those who DO have to pay for it to over $1000 a year in additional debt... all without asking us.

I will NEVER support ANY elected official that wants this without asking us; and I will do anything I can to get them out of office. And ANYTHING includes money, time, and public confrontation.

Enough is enough.



Portland cool to 12-lane bridge
Two officials say they might back 10-lane crossing over river

Friday, January 9 11:01 p.m.
BY JEFFREY MIZECOLUMBIAN STAFF WRITER

A pair of elected officials from the Portland area are far from sold on building a 12-lane replacement for the Interstate 5 Bridge and say it might be difficult to support even a 10-lane alternative.

“It’s possible that I could stretch to get to 10 lanes,” Portland Mayor Sam Adams said toward the end of Friday’s Columbia River Crossing project sponsors council meeting in Vancouver.

Metro Council President David Bragdon said he, too, might be able to support a 10-lane crossing, provided that it is correctly “priced” through bridge tolls.

A 12-lane bridge would have, in each direction, three lanes for through traffic and three auxiliary lanes for vehicles entering and exiting the freeway. It would mean fewer accidents, less congestion and less traffic diversion to the I-205 bridge than a 10-lane alternative, but it also would cost an extra $100 million.

Paring the project to just eight lanes would save an additional $85 million, but project engineers say that option would not meet the project’s adopted purpose of easing congestion.

Twelve lanes would be built on only a relatively short distance of the bridge-freeway-transit project that could cost as much as $4.2 billion, namely on the new bridge itself and a stretch of freeway, Mill Plain Boulevard to state Highway 500.

More:
.

Et tu, Brutus? A blast from the past - Williams: Mielke will lose.

Self-proclaimed Republican and utterly clueless Commissioner candidate Craig Williams gave the world the benefit of his political ignorance with this moronic email to the Columbian the day after Mr. Willams, with all of his "I know what I'm doing and Mielke doesn't" garbage, achieved a fabulous 4.73% of the vote (next to last out of an eight-candidate field) in the August 19th primary.

Politics Blog

Williams: Mielke will lose
Thursday, August 21 11:53 a.m.

The day after Tom Mielke ended fellow Republican Craig Williams's first race for county commissioner, Williams said Mielke has an "'anti-everything' message" that isn't likely to win in November.

"Tom had a lot of signs and name recognition, but he had nothing new to offer the voters and it showed," Williams wrote in an e-mail Wednesday. "Tom's message is an old one that carried only enough weight to inch him out of this primary. It will not likely carry him to a general election victory."

Mielke, 66, finished second in the primary with 23 percent of the vote. Williams, 43, finished sixth with 5 percent.

Williams, an energy trader, put more than $6,000 of his own money into the race. A religious conservative, he called on men to "increase their respect for womanhood" and on his party to increase its respect for environmental regulation.

"Every so often, conservatism needs to be redefined," Williams said Wednesday. "You know, the Ron Paul phenomenon in our country and in our county was another part of that."

Williams added that he hopes Mielke will win.

County Commissioner Marc Boldt, another Mielke backer, said Williams is mistaken about the future of conservatism.

"I doubt that he'll get a Christmas card from the Republican Party," added Boldt, 53.

michael.andersen@columbian.com
_________________________________________________

"Inch him out of the primary?" Mr. Williams, Tom received almost twice as much in the vote then his nearest competition. How is that "inching out?"

"You know, the Ron Paul phenomenon in our country and in our county was another part of that."

What "phenomenon" was that? All that money... and how well did Paul do?

A few words from the Clark County Democrat Newsletter about the Mielke ballot curing campaign.

.
Others have already written about the impacts of the Barnett/Harju/Mohegan/Paskenta corruption campaign and the effectiveness of the ballot curing effort put into place by the Mielke Campaign in conjunction with the Washington State Republican Party and the Clark County GOP.

Now, a few words on the subject from the loyal opposition, The Clark County Democrats newsletter:

THE DEMOCRAT
Clark County Democratic Party Newsletter
Volume 17, Issue 12 Serving Democrats with News and Opinion December 2008

Obama fever cooled, down ballot

While Clark County Democrats were gearing up for a joyous Nov. 4 celebration of the election of Barack Obama as the nation’s new president, Clark County Republicans were grimly beating the bushes for every last possible vote for their local candidates. ("Grimly?" Actually, the huge number of volunteers and party staff involved in this massive effort had a blast. "Grimly" might apply to some... but not to us. Kinda sounds like sour grapes to me. -ed)

Persistence paid. (yes.... it did, didn't it? -ed) Barring an unprecedented turnaround in the requisite machine recount of 168,405 ballots starting on Dec. 2, Democrat Pam Brokaw lost to Republican Tom Mielke by 207 votes. (It actually wound up at 2o9 votes, to be precise. - Ed) The Board of Clark County Commissioners will have an unfortunate 2-1 Republican tilt for the first time in more than three decades. ("Unfortunate" for some, it would seem. -ed)

Brokaw had a solid lead of around 4,000 votes when the first tally was reported on election night. David Carrier was looking likely in his underfunded race against Goliath Sen. Don Benton. ("Underfunded?" Benton spent $260,000 from all sources to win; Carrier spent $235,000 with $7,000 left over to lose. I don't think he can use "underfunded" as an excuse. -ed) Things looked somewhat less than hopeless for Democrat Jeanne Harris in her challenge to County Commissioner Marc Boldt. Democratic Gov. Christine Gregoire appeared on the brink of winning a majority of Clark County votes to add to her victory.

Then those last-minute Republican votes started to appear in subsequent tallies from the Clark County Elections Department. Obama held his six-point margin over the Republican ticket, but Brokaw’s edge diminished and finally disappeared. Benton’s numbers surged against Carrier. Boldt’s lead over Harris steadily widened. Gregoire fell a few points behind Dino Rossi in this area. The margins of all three Republican incumbent legislators in the 18th District got wider. (Just like we drew it up on the chalkboard, gang! -ed)

Of course, there was a lot of good news for Clark County Democrats. In the 17th Legislative District Tim Probst posted a solid win to join Democratic Rep. Deb Wallace in the state House of Representatives. Sen. Craig Pridemore and Rep. Jim Moeller handily won re-election in the 49th Legislative District, and Democrat Jim Jacks was elected by a solid majority to succeed Bill Fromhold. U.S. Rep. Brian Baird, D-Vancouver, had little difficulty in burying his Republican challenger. Statewide, Democrat Peter Goldmark unseated Republican Land Commissioner Doug Sutherland, and Democrat Jim McIntyre won his race for state treasurer.

Those chunks of good news may ring increasingly hollow in Clark County over the next two years as two Republicans who had hapless records as state legislators hold sway over dozens of decisions that add up to county policy and direction. Meanwhile we Democrats may waste a lot of energy fixing blame for our late-hour collapse into Obamamania as the Republicans beat their undergrowth for every last shot.

______________________________________________

Actually, it was a perfect storm.

Brokaw's support of bridge tolls and the megacasino, combined with her efforts through David Barnett to sell her seat to the Cowlitz Tribe appear to have resulted in an astounding level of blowback.

Combining that with a brilliantly planned and masterfully executed ballot curing effort, and you have Commissioner-Elect Tom Mielke achieving the politically impossible: the ascendancy of Republican control of the county commission in a democrat year in the face of the Obama tsunami.

Thanks to the Clark County Democrats for acknowledging our hard work and their failure to plan a post-election strategy. Thanks also go to David Barnett, who's last minute $76,500 bomb blew up in his face.

.

Study in contrast: The Columbian's editorial take on the Mielke victory.

.
As I have pointed out, in this cycle, the Columbian acted as if they were an arm of the Democrat National Committee. They endorsed democrats and democrats only for every open seat in every partisan race this election, from president on down, trashing Mielke like he was the political equivalent of a child molester.

In part, they wrote (October 10):

By contrast, Mielke is more of an obstructionist and a contrarian. His public service is lackluster at best.

Despite serving eight years as a state representative, Mielke in a recent communication with The Columbian could only list two relatively insignificant personal achievements in the Legislature. One was the Interstate 5/Northeast 219th interchange (although he voted against the nickel tax that funded it). The other was a process for a Clark County resident to inspect and bring automobiles to Washington state — not exactly milestone legislation.

He wants a third bridge, thinks we have “a perfectly good bridge” and opposes the proposed replacement bridge “with six lanes” (it’s proposed to have 10-12).

Mielke is a two-time loser to Democrats in runs for county commissioner, falling to Morris in 2004 and to Stuart in 2005. (We’ll give him credit for running close races, though, receiving at least 48 percent of votes each time).

That Mielke's legislative career closely mirrored Boldt's, whom they endorsed as an incumbent (Boldt's second endorsement from the Columbian in, I believe, 6 elections, and his first against a democrat) seemed to make no difference. They "liked" Marc and "hated" Tom, although they are very closely aligned on a broad spectrum of political issues; they gave credit to Pam for having held two file-clerk level jobs in local and federal government positions as if that qualified her for Commissioner, and they implemented that mindset and institutional obtuseness in their editorial policy that has helped lead them down the road of bankruptcy. And how's that working for them?

Brokaw was as qualified to be a county commissioner as she is to be, well, an editorial or newspaper editor... maybe more so, since she also did stints as Columbian and Reflector reporter. But she had no elective experience of any kind, no military service, no government background in any policy-making position.

That is, she wasn't qualified at all. But she was a democrat in the Columbian's pro-democrat crusade, so she got the nod and these people trashed Mielke like a rented step-child... because facts aren't at issue when, first, you have an agenda and second; you're going to do absolutely everything you can to see that agenda through, including trashing anyone who gets in the way.

All of that is the set-up for today's editorial on the Mielke victory.

More of a plea than a simple acknowledgment, they hope for Boldt to move left and to begin the process of implementing the Columbian agenda.

First, they attempt to remove the conservative and party element from the equation:

There’s a more dramatic element in this story than political parties, however, and there might be a more significant player than Mielke. The GOP majority probably doesn’t warrant heavy attention because of the axiom that, the more local the politics, the less partisan it becomes. City councilors in these parts don’t even run as party candidates, and county commissioners typically are more tied to issues of growth, jobs and quality of life than to the influences of political parties.

If only that hadn't endorsed democrats in every single open race, this might have had at least a grain of credibility. Unfortunately, they did and this observation, correspondingly, doesn't.

They do, however, acknowledge one of the more politically amazing aspects of this stunning outcome:

If anything, the party angle to this story is interesting because Mielke managed to win despite a shift to the left by Clark County voters in this year’s presidential race. Locally, Barack Obama won by 6 percentage points in a county that had twice voted for George W. Bush. And yet Mielke withstood that shift, overcame a sizeable campaign funding disadvantage and emerged the victor.

Based on the numbers, this shows that something on the order of 2/3rds of that 6% (something on the order of around 6700 voters out of the 168,000 votes) proceeded to vote for Mielke after they voted for Obama... literally, since Obama was first on the ballot.

This "Rudy-like" story is worthy of it's own mini-series, at least. Tom had no right to win this: almost EVERYTHING was against him, from Brokaw's money and Barnett's corruption to the local media to a fractured local GOP; a result of a well-populated primary. and Tom's small, all-volunteer army.

The Columbian goes on to say such NICE things about Tom. The irony about this is that these "things" were just as "nice" back when they trashed Mielke.

Although The Columbian did not endorse Mielke, it’s easy to ascertain his attributes. He is a former four-term legislator and, with Boldt (who served five terms in Olympia), he understands state government. Also, Mielke adamantly opposes the proposed Cowlitz casino because, according to his campaign Web site, “the many negative impacts and the cost to the actual taxpayers” serve to make “opposition to this project an absolutely critical and continuing goal of government at all levels in the affected area.” However, he leaves the door open by opposing the casino “until all legitimate issues raised are adequately and realistically addressed.”

It’s also to his credit that Mielke promises to focus on job creation, aiming to make Clark County “the business magnet of the Northwest.” On the issue of growth, it’s good that Mielke believes: “Protection of open space and agricultural land along with our responsibilities to wildlife and our environment are a major priority.” Whether that commitment will be sacrificed on the altar of his less-government pledge remains to be seen.

All of these facets were in place and generally well-known before this paper choose to ignore them all in favor of, relatively speaking, the threadbare resume' of Pam Brokaw.

Why? Well, again... Brokaw is a democrat. If the shoe were on the other foot, so to speak, Mielke's legislative career and accomplishments would have received a glowing review as they endorsed HIM.

So, why the gracious acknowledgment/plea?

Is it because they fear their access to county government might be restricted as a result of their agenda-driven reporting, as opposed to fact-based driven reporting?

Could it be?

The paper then goes on to remind us all of one of the top issues that enabled a Mielke victory, the moronic I-5 Bridge replacement issue.

Clearly, the Columbian's secondary reason for endorsing Brokaw is that she was a rabid supporter of the Columbian's bridge toll/bridge replacement/light rail agenda. They properly saw Mielke as a huge threat to their agenda, so they made a decision at least in part to trash Mielke because of his party and that position.

It's simple, really. Brokaw falsely claimed that she hadn't taken a position on bridge tolls or the megacasino that this newspaper rails AGAINST.

She wrote:

The opposition misleads
Unfortunately my opponent's party is running a commercial about me that's just not true. The ad infers that I support bringing a casino to Clark County as well as tolls.

Truth is I have not taken a position supporting the casino. I've advocated having an agreement in place with the Cowlitz Tribe in case the federal government approves the proposal. The agreement needs to protect our community in a variety of areas including public safety, the environment, and transportation.

As for tolls, I haven't agreed to anything save for considering them as a possible funding component down the road. Know that fair, affordable government is core to my beliefs.

Yet, one need look no further than her list of campaign contributors to see, well, something quite different.

David Barnett of the Barnett/Harju/Mohegan/Paskenta mob sure liked her "non-position." He dropped $76,500 in the last few days of the election hoping to give the job, again, to yet another "I haven't taken a position on the casino" county commissioner.

PAC 48, the political arm of Portland's Local 48 Electrician's Union, would have gotten the gig to wire the new megacasino. They seemed to believe that Brokaw's "non-position" was worth a paltry $15,000.

Odd, isn't it? Barnett and PAC 48 sure seems to believe that Brokaw had "taken a position."

And Brokaw's support for this bizarre, unneeded and unnecessary bridge replacement, which is being done entirely to bring light rail to Clark County (Odd, isn't it, that the Downtown Mafia would waste $4 billion on a bridge replacement to spend $700 million on starting their multi-billion dollar light rail project) was well known.

Equally well known is the fact that to pay for this bridge, tolls would be mandatory.

Tens of thousands of those least able to afford it would suddenly find themselves on the receiving end of a $1200 or so tax in the form of bridge tolls so they could continue their privilege of driving to the Portland metro area to go to work.

Simply stated, you can CLAIM you "haven't taken a position." But any amount of critical thinking shows that by lacking the guts to take public positions on these huge, countrywide level issues, when combined with "following the money" and Barnett's last second, amateurish corruption efforts certainly don't stop one from "taking a position" in private.

To that end, the endorsement of Brokaw was not so much a result of doing what was right, endorsing the most qualified, or reflecting the needs of the county as a whole.

No, that endorsement was a result of Brokaw's absolute water-carrying of the Columbian's light rail agenda, combined with her party affiliation.

And only time will tell if this editorial "bridge-building" will have the desired effect.

I, for one, hope it does not. Clearly, the Columbian's endorsements were shown to be irrelevant (Just ask Kos Kid David Carrier) and reducing their access to county government because of their biased-driven agenda reporting might give them pause and move them back towards fact-based reporting, instead of this Pravda-based effort that has led them to the precipice of economic disaster.


Editorials
In our view Dec. 10: Changes at County
Mielke defied local trends to win election; Boldt could become the swing vote
Wednesday, December 10 1:00 a.m.

Next month the Board of Clark County Commissioners will settle into its first Republican majority in 32 years. On Monday, Tom Mielke was proclaimed the victor over Democrat Pam Brokaw after a recount left the Republican ahead by 209 votes.

There’s a more dramatic element in this story than political parties, however, and there might be a more significant player than Mielke. The GOP majority probably doesn’t warrant heavy attention because of the axiom that, the more local the politics, the less partisan it becomes. City councilors in these parts don’t even run as party candidates, and county commissioners typically are more tied to issues of growth, jobs and quality of life than to the influences of political parties.
Outgoing County Commissioner Betty Sue Morris, whom Mielke replaces, is a Democrat, but that hardly ever has seemed to matter during her productive and influential time on the board.

If anything, the party angle to this story is interesting because Mielke managed to win despite a shift to the left by Clark County voters in this year’s presidential race. Locally, Barack Obama won by 6 percentage points in a county that had twice voted for George W. Bush. And yet Mielke withstood that shift, overcame a sizeable campaign funding disadvantage and emerged the victor.

More:
.

Congratulations to Commissioner-Elect Tom Mielke!

Few gave him any chance. Fewer actually gave him any money (Though I'm proud to say that I did) and he had to fend off the last minute corruption of the Barnett/Harju/Mohegan/Paskenta mob to get it done... but get it done he did.

Congrats, Tom... and welcome aboard.



Mielke’s long fight succeeds
He wins county post after three elections
Monday, December 8 6:55 p.m.

BY MICHAEL ANDERSEN
COLUMBIAN STAFF WRITER

Four years after he left the state legislature to make the first of three runs for county commissioner, Tom Mielke’s dream came true Monday.

By 209 votes, the Battle Ground-area Republican finally cracked through the ribbon in his photo-finish recount against Democrat Pam Brokaw. That was 2 votes ahead of his lead before the recount.

“This has been the longest, hardest campaign in my life,” Mielke said Monday.

Mielke, 65, will take office Jan. 2, replacing Democrat Betty Sue Morris of Felida.

Mielke and Marc Boldt of Hockinson will form the first Republican majority in 32 years on the county’s top board, and they’re likely to be pro-development, anti-regulation voices as the county enters a major overhaul of its rural development patterns.

Mielke said Monday that he’s been following the county’s budget process and has already found “five departments” in the county that seemed to duplicate one another's’ services and might be merged.

He said he wasn’t ready to specify which.

Mielke ran his campaign on a call for freer markets, no bridge tolls and scrapping the Interstate 5 bridge replacement project in favor of a third bridge across the Columbia River.

Mielke also criticized the Cowlitz Tribe’s plans for a casino near La Center and said he’d oppose tax or fee increases in the immediate future.


More:
.

Brancaccio blows it again:Press Talk: Mail call always interesting

.
I can only imagine how tough it must be to be the captain of the Titanic that is the Vancouver Columbian.

A generally clueless newspaper agenda that has eliminated most every pretense of journalism, a leftist political agenda, an "endorse democrats for open seats only" policy, circulation and advertising diving full speed into the toilet...

The embarrassment and humiliation of hosing the taxpayer to jack up your own property values in downtown... only to fail to be able to make your payments... I get that. I get that this newspaper is in the tank for the downtown mafia.

I even get the utterly bizarre idea that the way these clowns believe they can save this paper is to provide less... and charge more for it. I get all of that.

But what I don't get is the abandonment of all journalistic tenets in yet ANOTHER effort to attack someone you disagree with... especially after all of his drivel about civility and all that rot.

Lou kicks over the pail when he writes the following:

.

Good Policy: Think First

Then this sweet e-mail came to me:

“So now, Tom Mielke is our new county commissioner and not one word was printed today.

“I understand you endorsed Pam Brokaw but to have no story about the election of a new county commissioner reeks of either a bias or incompetence.”

— D.R.Slow down, my friend.

I’ll slip some humble pie on the grill for you.

I’m not even sure where to begin with this one. Mielke was locked in a very tight race with Brokaw for a county commission seat.

As the county continued to count ballots, we had several updates. Most of our stories showed Mielke adding votes to his slim lead.

On the day D.R. decided to write his e-mail, the day he said we had no story — we had a story. Whoops.

You’d think if someone was going to ship off an inappropriate, bitter e-mail, he’d have his facts right.Well, think again."

Well, unlike Lou, I AM sure where to "begin."

I'll begin by asking "how do we know any of this is true?"

I'll move to "why didn't you provide the date and time of the email in question, so we could look to see what he was saying?"

Then I'll segue into "several updates?" WHAT "several updates?" "Several updates" are what we get with the Coleman-Franken recount.

Mielke won the recount yesterday, and I don't see any mention of that on your web site.

You’d think if someone was going to ship off an inappropriate, bitter column, he’d put the facts out there so we could check them ourselves.Well, think again.

And this is the kind of "journalism" we've come to expect from this newspaper. And that is a damned shame.
.

Recount over: Mielke wins, again!

Posting has been light due to my efforts as an observer down at the elections office during the Mielke-Brokaw recount.

The results, apparently, gave Mielke an over-all increase of 2 votes so the final margin appears to be Mielke by 209 votes.

This goes to an outstanding job by the Clark County Elections Office under the management of Greg Kimsey over all, and Tim Likness specifically.

A change of 2 ballots out of over 168,000 is simply astounding. A story book ending to a story book campaign.

Congratulations to Tom and the people of Clark County who had the wisdom to return the county commission to Republican control.

Mielke wins!

.
Tonite, the Clark County Elections Office officially certified Tom Mielke as the winner in the Clark County Commissioner's Election for seat 1!



It was a fascinating race, by any measure. Tom was obviously underfunded, the democrats were clueless at the county level and completely stuck on stupid over the casino (where Barnett paid good money for a friendly majority) the idiotic I-5 Bridge replacement and light rail.

That and all of the other tax/fee increasers local dems love to foist on us so they can pay off their union buddies killed the deal... and for the first time in 30 years, the Clark County Commission is under Republican control.

Is this the shape of things to come in 2010, when people have had 2 years to soak in the disaster that is democrat control of government?

Stay tuned!
.

The Columbian nails it: In our view Nov. 25: Casino MOU is Folly

.
Let's be clear, here: there is precisely one reason why the current commissioners would even consider slamming together yet another iteration of the MOU with the Barnett/Mohegan/Cowlitz Mob, and that reason is Tom Mielke.

David Barnett has spent $200,000 of his hard earned(?) dollars corrupting our local government. Steve Stuart is a wholly-owned tribal subsidiary; Betty Sue Morris has had a mysterious drive that occasionally seemed to exceed even Barnett's to get this thing built; ignoring the wide array of government, civic and local groups protesting the imposition of this economic black hole on the people of this county in favor of people that do not, and never have, lived in Clark County.

With Mielke taking Betty Sue's seat, the likelihood of any agreement getting signed grows weaker by the second... so if an agreement is going to be signed, it has to be before the end of December.

So, one wonders: when Stuart sniveled yesterday that “They’re going to twist whatever we do to suit their own needs,” was he talking about everyone wise enough to oppose his desire to ram this thing through before Mielke gets in? Or just the Columbian?

No need to be bitter, Mr. Stuart. Like Pam Brokaw, we already know what you are. At this point, we don't even need to discuss the matter of price.



In our view Nov. 25: Casino MOU is Folly
County’s disdain for Cowlitz proposal is clear; no need to impart any other message

Tuesday, November 25 2:00 a.m.

Here’s an unusual answer to one of life’s most crucial questions: “No, I won’t marry you, but let’s sit down and discuss the prenuptial agreement.” That’s essentially what Clark County commissioners are telling promoters of the Cowlitz tribal casino that’s proposed for a site on Interstate 5 near La Center.

On April 7 all three commissioners signed a resolution declaring “our opposition to the development of a major commercial gaming facility in the unincorporated area of Clark County.” That sounds pretty much like a “No!” to us, certainly negative enough to send casino lobbyists courting some other prospective bride.

And yet, as The Columbian’s Jeffrey Mize reported Monday, the commissioners are back in the dating game, talking once again with tribal officials about a memorandum of understanding. “I can tell you that we are getting closer to getting things back to the public, which we had promised originally,” County Commissioner Steve Stuart said.

The resurrection of MOU negotiations is both hypocritical and ill-timed. The commissioners’ intent is clear: They want to cover all bases. If — heaven forbid — the mega-casino is ever approved by the federal government, the commissioners want a signed document that would enable them to extract mitigation efforts from the casino builders. But the commissioners already have all the document they need: that April resolution. The bride-not-to-be told her suitor how little she likes him, and how much she fears that he will lower the quality of life in her community. End of discussion.

More:
.

Stuart, bought and paid for by Barnett and the Cowlitz Tribe, works to sell us out for a casino.

By now, we should all know the story. The first shill for the Cowlitz was David Barnett.

Barnett had the advantage of being the Chief's (John Barnett) son. So, he became the "casino developer."

Now, the entire purpose of jamming a megacasino down our throats here in a community that doesn't want one is to first, enrich Barnett; second, enrich the Mohegan Tribe (Casino financiers) of Uncasville, CT and only peripherally to take care of Cowlitz Tribal Members, the vast majority of whom do not and never have lived anywhere close to Clark County.

Barnett is a bully. He has used threats and intimidation, belittlement and allegations of "racism" against most of the main opponents of this project; He has been the recipient of at least two restraining orders, one from a local woman running a casino opposition group, and one he was having an affair with in Seattle (He was married at the time). He has since been replaced by a mouthpiece lawyer, Phil Harju, who's escapades are discussed here:

Among other episodes by Mr. Barnett have been his three separate efforts to use his money to buy politicians that, first; once bought will remain bought; and second, will do everything they can to support his organized crime effort of ramming one of the largest casinos on the planet down our gullets whether this community wants one or not.

Barnett first used his money to corrupt our elections back in 2004. Late in that election, Barnett laundered something like $25,000 through a democrat-front group, heavily relied upon by our local fishwrapper and democrats, (Washington Conservation Voters) to attack a candidate for the state House at the last minute because he was a casino opponent.

Who benefited from Barnett and the tribe's corruption? Pam Brokaw. Brokaw lost... and Brokaw has again benefited from Barnett's corruption during our recent Commissioner's Race.... and again, appears to have lost.

Brokaw has a large number of political faults, not the least of which is her arrogance. Arrogance, of course, is one of the many things that goes before a fall.

She was telling anyone who would listen that she was going to kick Mielke's butt. The problem with that kind of talk is that when you keep telling people you're going to beat someone like a rented mule, they tend to think that you don't need their financial support.

So, all of a sudden, Mielke found some messages... messages that apparently resonated, since he was one of the few able to stem the Obama tide in an open seat. And Brokaw panics.

And the next thing you know, Brokaw admits meeting with Barnett. And all of a sudden, because time is running out and Brokaw can't be caught dead accepting cash directly from Barnett, Barnett stupidly uses one of his companies to drop $75,000 into the campaign (otherwise known as "nuking") in the last 5 days.

Only this time, he was caught and the Columbian ran with it, exposing the corruption of Brokaw and Barnett in time to make a difference.

Based on these figures and the thousands provided by a union PAC that would benefit from the construction of this megacasino and the almost $100,000 that Barnett has spent on Brokaw shows that we know what she is... anything else is just a matter of price.

But the other recipient of Barnett's largess was none other than Steve Stuart. Except in Stuart's race against Mielke, Barnett's corruption was more successful.

Barnett wised up a little more with Stuart's race. He again laundered money through an outside organization, but knowing that his money was political poison, he violated a dozen or so state/federal laws by bundling his cash through yet another leftist front group out of state, "Progressive Majority." (For so-called "independent expenditures" that were by no means "independent" as required by law) It was $100,000 in cold, hard, cash with one purpose in mind: to corrupt our election and buy himself a county commissioner. He was successful in both endeavors.

He went out of state because he knew that, at the time, out of state expenditures had a much looser standard for reporting. In fact, Barnett's cash wasn't revealed until late December after the election.

By then, it was too late. Barnett and Stuart had scammed the people of Clark County into electing Stuart over Mielke. Remembering this and knowing about it is an important element of perspective when reviewing Stuart's efforts to ram an MOU with this corrupt tribal administration BEFORE Mielke takes office.

Stuart denies that, of course. But Stuart has been bought and paid for. So, when you read this article in today's Columbian, keep all this in mind.

County-tribe casino deal in works
If new pact will have needed support from board is unknown
Sunday, November 23 10:23 p.m.
BY JEFFREY MIZE
COLUMBIAN STAFF WRITER
Clark County and the Cowlitz Indian Tribe are making progress toward replacing a casino agreement that was struck down two years ago.

“I can tell you that we are getting closer to getting things back to the public, which we had promised originally,” Commissioner Steve Stuart said last week. “What we bring and whether it will be satisfactory to anyone, I can’t tell.”

Stuart said the county does not yet have a draft proposal to replace the 2004 memorandum of understanding covering the tribe’s plans to build a casino complex west of La Center.

A state hearings board struck down that agreement because there wasn't enough public involvement.

The county doesn't want to fall into the same pit again. Earlier this year, commissioners had three hearings to take public testimony on what residents want to see in a new agreement.

Stuart said the county would report back to the public on county-tribe discussions before any draft agreement is completed.

But with Commissioner Betty Sue Morris, a Democrat who has been a commissioner for more than 12 years, retiring in early 2009, there might not be two votes to approve any new county-tribe deal.

Republican Tom Mielke holds a 197-vote lead over Democrat Pam Brokaw, based on the latest returns released Friday. The race is almost certainly heading to an automatic recount, but Brokaw likely will have trouble making up such a significant deficit.

Mielke generally has taken an anti-casino stance, so much so that Cowlitz casino developer David Barnett spent $59,000 on anti-Mielke mailers and $17,500 on automated phone messages in the campaign’s waning days. (I'm sure that Mize just "forgot" to mention that Barnett paid $100,000 for Stuart back in 2004, and that Stuart remains well-bought.)

Commissioner Marc Boldt, a Republican who won a second four-year term in this month’s election, always has opposed the casino project and has said he wouldn't have signed the 2004 deal if he had been in office.

Stuart said he understands that casino opponents will question if the county is trying to push an agreement through before Morris retires.

“They’re going to twist whatever we do to suit their own needs,” he said. “That’s their job. They’re the opposition. I don’t blame them for it.” (Of course you don't - edit)

Tom Hunt, a spokesman for the anti-casino group Citizens Against Reservation Shopping, said he doesn't understand why commissioners would want a new memorandum of understanding, especially since they were so critical of a final environmental impact statement on the Cowlitz casino.

“The county’s was the tribe’s harshest critic,” he said. “And yet willy-nilly, they are willing to sit down and negotiate an MOU.”

The 2004 agreement requires the tribe to comply with county building and health codes, to build roads and intersections to keep traffic flowing, to pay for law enforcement and prosecution of misdemeanor crimes, and to compensate the county and other local governments for lost property taxes. It also required the tribe to establish an education and arts fund with 2 percent of net gambling revenues to support charitable activities in Clark County.

After the agreement was declared invalid, the tribe enacted a gaming ordinance that embraced those same provisions. The tribe also granted the county a limited waiver of tribal sovereignty, which allows the county to sue the tribe if it fails to live up to its commitments.

The federal government, through the final environmental impact statement, appears to have accepted the gaming ordinance as a substitute for the invalidated 2004 agreement. And that raises questions if the tribe has any reason to make concessions in hopes of signing a new deal.

Phil Harju, the Cowlitz Tribe’s vice chairman and spokesman, said the tribe always has been open to discussion on a government-to-government basis with the county. But he declined to discuss what the tribe would like to see in a replacement agreement.

“The tribe is not negotiating with the county in the newspaper,” Harju said.

Jeffrey Mize: 360-735-4542; jeff.mize@columbian.com.

The Mielke - Brokaw race for Clark County Commissioner.

This race has it all.

A razor-thin lead. Political corruption of the worst kind by the megacasino developer has he tries to buy yet another county commissioner.

One candidate essentially unqualified by service, temperament, education or experience to be a county commissioner, a wholly-owned subsidiary of David Barnett... a local version, come to think of it, of Barack Obama. (Well, except for his education, maybe... since he hasn't released his transcripts) with every advantage: massive democrat support from the local daily newspaper who wrote an endorsement of her that showed such hatred and vitriol against Mielke that I thought the paper was going to burn in a flash.

Entirely financed by casino interests while she protests that "Truth is I have not taken a position supporting the casino."

It takes a peculiar brand of political ignorance to trumpet the fact that you lack the courage to take a position on one of the major issues confronting this county. The big question? WHY DIDN'T YOU TAKE A POSITION?

Reading comprehension is also a problem. Brokaw writes: "I've advocated having an agreement in place with the Cowlitz Tribe in case the federal government approves the proposal."

Guess what? by writing that, YOU TAKE A POSITION. And the position you take is SUPPORT OF THE CASINO.

Sheesh.

And then, she lied about her position on tolls for the unwanted, unneeded and collassaly wasteful I-5 Bridge replacement. She wrote: "As for tolls, I haven't agreed to anything save for considering them as a possible funding component down the road."

OK, here's a bulletin. THERE IS NO POSSIBLE WAY TO BUILD THIS BRIDGE WITHOUT TOLLS. This woman must think we're stupid.

To support this bridge and the light rail the downtown mafia wants is to support tolls.

In Ms. Brokaw's world, up is down and down is up. And I earnestly hope that Mielke's lead of 190 votes holds up. The last thing we need is a delusional county commissioner.