Burke: What you’re voting for if you’re voting for state GOP

By Tom Burke / Herald Columnist

So Donald Trump is now convicted of 34 felonies, with lots of folks feeling justice is finally catching up with his decades-long grifting, lying and cheating.

But as he’s still likely to be the Republican presidential nominee, people are asking how the party of Lincoln, Reagan, Goldwater, McCain and the Bushes can nominate a sexual abuser, liar and tax cheat for the nation’s highest office; a good question, but not one I’m answering this week.

But while researching that question I read over the Washington state Republican Party platform and its resolutions (thanks to the Grays Harbor County GOP website) to see what the Republicans really believe, beside that Trump was sent by (their) god to save America.

Much to my dismay the party that once championed law and order and fiscal and personal responsibility now believes the MAGA-maniacal Trump, fascist and religious right doctrine of victimhood and revenge.

So, gentle reader, here’s what you support if you’re advocating for a Republican candidate, donating money to them, or actually voting Republican, according to the state GOP. (And here are the websites for the whole documents: tinyurl.com/WAGOPplatform and tinyurl.com/WAGOPresolutions

Let’s start with a few excerpts from the GOP Platform: (All bullets are direct quotes from the Platform; the italics are mine.)

• “(A) businesses shall not be required to perform services which violate the religious beliefs of their owners.” (So it’s OK to discriminate, as long as you discriminate in god’s name? [Errr…is that any god’s name or just the Christian god’s name?])

• “Laws should reduce and deter crime through the application of prompt, strong and appropriate punishment — up to and including the use of the death penalty.” (Hey! let’s bring back the noose, the firing squad, the needle, and Ol’ Sparky.)

• “We support the brave men and women of law enforcement.” (Unless they were defending the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 against Trump’s insurrectionists [who are not hostages] or enforcing a search warrant at Mar-a-Largo. Oh, and national Republicans want to defund the FBI.)

• “Return to same-day voting; with in-person voting with photo ID by U.S. Citizens; no ‘ranked-choice’ voting; hand-counted, paper ballots—eliminating digital ballot scanning and machine tabulation.” (Buh-bye mail-in voting.)

• “We oppose state or federal monies being used to indoctrinate our military with agendas such as Critical Race Theory, the 1619 project, or other programs that teach hatred and racism under the guise of equity.” (Makes sense, not spending money on stuff we’re not actually doing.)

• “Removal of individuals who are in the country illegally.” (Let’s deport 11 million people ASAP; after putting them in concentration camps.)

• “We believe that when the federal government abdicates its responsibility to defend American borders as required by federal law, the doctrine of federal supremacy shall no longer pertain, and the states are free to take such actions as they deem necessary to defend their own borders.” (Who’s the “we” here? Don’t “they” know they lost the war for “states’ rights” in 1865.)

• “We support bipartisan efforts to reform Social Security and Medicare programs.” (Remember, for Republicans, reform means end.)

• “We support each student providing payment for their own student loans.” (But we don’t support making members of Congress pay back their six- and seven-figure covid loans.)

• “We support the elimination of the federal Department of Education and returning its control and funding to the states.” (So states can ban books, end free school lunches, Pell grants, and abandon special needs students?)

• “We strongly oppose mandatory vaccination.” (Do they remember one million covid deaths?)

• “The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established to protect human health and the environment and clean up past pollution. We believe this regulatory agency has gone far beyond the clear limits of its statutory authority and should be abolished with authority returned to the states.” (To such Republican-led states as Indiana, Utah, Louisiana, and Ohio; four of the worst polluted in the U.S.? That’s a healthy choice.)

Now, let’s take a look at a few of the Washington GOP “Resolutions” approved by the party faithful.

• “(W)e petition our Washington State Legislators and school boards to eliminate gun-free school zones and provide trained K-12 school staff to protect students.” (More guns in schools and pistol-pack’n’ teachers? That’ll work.)

• “(W)e oppose the Wild Olympics Campaign and the Wild Olympics Wilderness & Wild and Scenic Rivers Act covering over 126,000 acres introduced by Democrat Rep. Derek Kilmer and Democrat Sen. Patty Murray, and favor a strict policy of no net loss of working forestland, working resource land, and private property.” (If the Democrats want it, we don’t; even if it’s a good idea.)

• “(W)e declare the 17th Amendment process of electing United States Senators by the popular vote to be defective, that it fails to represent the interests of the individual states, and we implore the Congress to propose an amendment pursuant to Article V of the Constitution of the United States to repeal the 17th Amendment in order to restore the states to their prior status as partners in the political process.” (Nothing screams “democracy” like ripping the right to vote for senators away from citizens and handing senatorial appointments [not elections] to state legislators.)

Oh, and just to remind folks how “powerful” Republicans are in the state of Washington: the Republicans hold zero statewide offices, are minorities in both chambers of the Legislature, and control just two of the state’s 10 U.S. House seats.

And with platforms and policies like these, is it any wonder?

(Note: We’ll soon be looking at the governor’s race and some other statewide issues/initiatives.)

Slava Ukraini.

Tom Burke’s email address is t.burke.column@gmail.com.