BLAINE — Democratic Gov. Chris Gregoire and Republican challenger Dino Rossi, playing to a crowd of business owners, sparred over taxes, spending and traffic problems in the second debate of a bruising rematch campaign.
The debate was hosted by the Association of Washington Business, whose members are keenly interested in how the state will handle a projected $3.2 billion deficit in its next two-year state budget.
Gregoire pledged not to raise taxes, her strongest statement so far on her outlook for taxes in the next budget.
“I won’t raise taxes in tough economic times,” because businesses and families can’t afford it, Gregoire said. “We’re not going to be raising taxes.”
Gregoire also said she was already cutting spending, and revealed she had suspended plans to roll out a paid family leave program, a priority for Democratic lawmakers.
Rossi downplayed those pledges, saying Gregoire would raise taxes again. He pointed to the state’s 2005 budget, when spending and taxes were both increased.
“You and I have a bullseye on our backs, because she’s going to raise our taxes to solve the problem,” Rossi said.
Perhaps the night’s loudest applause came when Rossi decried Washington’s estate tax. Gregoire subsequently pointed out that the estate tax was approved by a large majority of voters.
Rossi later accused Gregoire of supporting an income tax, but Gregoire emphatically denied the accusation.
Tonight’s debate was one of about a half-dozen the campaigns have agreed to in the final weeks of their white-hot race.
Gregoire beat Rossi by 133 votes in 2004, after three vote tallies and a Republican court challenge. The rematch is expected to be one of the most competitive governor’s races in the country.
The pair are running very close in most polls, and in the Aug. 19 primary, Gregoire outpolled Rossi by just 2 percentage points. Both sides have multimillion-dollar campaign war chests, with even more money raised by third-party surrogates to help their chances.
The AWB crowd may be friendlier for Rossi than Gregoire, although the Democrat has worked to court the business community. Rossi was given an award from the group in an earlier portion of its annual summit, and the parking lot at the Semiahmoo Resort near the Canadian border was littered with a handful of bumper stickers supporting Rossi and other Republicans.
With Rossi on her heels, Gregoire’s campaign has taken on a much harder edge in recent days, targeting Rossi’s stances on stem cell research and the availability of emergency contraception, also known as Plan B or the “morning-after pill.”
Democrats also have gone on the offensive against Rossi’s party identification. Rossi, a Republican, chose to be identified as “prefers GOP party” on the state’s new “top two” primary ballot. Gregoire is identified as “prefers Democratic party.”
The candidates’ party preference carries forward to the November general election ballot, and Democrats have sued in an attempt to strike the longtime Republican nickname — GOP stands for “Grand Old Party” — from the ballot.
State elections officials say the state Democratic Party’s lawsuit is too late, and off the mark. Secretary of State Sam Reed, the state’s top elections officer, said some ballots sent to members of the military already have been voted and returned.
Reed, a Republican, also said state law does not allow him to alter a candidate’s party preference.
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