The Washington State Republican Party has formally endorsed two measures on the Nov. 2 ballot –Initiative 1082’s privatization of workers compensation insurance and I-1107’s repeal of soda, candy and bottled water taxes. The moves on Saturday further line up the party with its anti-tax, deregulatory agenda

The GOP’s state committee also formally “nominated” Dino Rossi in the U.S. Senate race against Democratic Sen. Patty Murray and opposed Referendum 52, which proposes to issue general-obligation bonds to pay for school upgrades and extend the soda tax……. Read More

Here’s the strange thing, Patty Murray trails Dino Rossi in the SurveyUSA poll but just last week was leading him in the Rasmussen poll that has been giving Rossi his best numbers.

SurveyUSA has Rossi leading 52-45. It also has him tied in the Seattle area……. Read More

WASHINGTON — A federal grand jury on Thursday charged a once-powerful Washington lobbyist with evading federal limits on campaign donations by using straw donors to funnel hundreds of thousands of dollars to members of Congress, especially those with influence over military spending.

Read more – including donations to Norm Dicks……. Read More

Obviously, if you are the Big Thinker behind both U.S. Senate candidates likely to advance to the general election……. Read More

The 10-point agenda, whose name is a takeoff of Republicans’ 1994 Contract With America, offers a series of promises for candidates running for Congress and other elected positions to adopt. Hundreds of candidates and a few members of Congress, including Washington state’s Rep. Cathy McMorris Rogers, have made the pledge……. Read More

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

Leaders of both parties have believed for months that Republicans could win the House, where every lawmaker faces re-election. But a change of party control in the Senate, where only a third of the members are running and Republicans must capture 10 seats, seemed out of the question……. Read More

A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Likely Voters in Washington State finds Republican hopefuls Dino Rossi and Clint Didier both earning 48% support ……… Read More

The 39 candidates include 38 incumbents and only one Democrat is on the list — Sen. Tim Sheldon of Potlatch, who commonly crosses over to join Republicans on budget, tax and regulatory bills. Three South Sound Republicans were endorsed — Rep. Gary Alexander of Thurston County, House GOP leader Richard DeBolt of Chehalis, and Rep. Jim McCune of Graham……… Read More

The résumés of five Republicans making strong bids for the Legislature this year have at least one line in common: the Jennifer Dunn Leadership Institute, a program for conservative office-seekers …… Read More