Transportation a tough job; Dems asked for it

As they began to campaign for full control of the state Legislature, Democrats must have thought that their tasks would be pretty simple. Go to Olympia, pass a transportation package, and then head home to defend the need for the minor tax increases they had enacted to pay for construction work.

That was months ago. Now the Democrats have full control of both houses of the Legislature, but the state’s finances have taken as sharp a turn as possible. Tax revenues are in a fall at the same time that needs for social service needs are rising.

In the Senate, the House and the governor’s office, it’s the Democrats’ job to work their way — the state’s way — out of a genuine mess. In both legislative houses, moreover, they must work with the barest of majorities.

For the Democrats, this may be a lesson in the meaning of the adage, Be careful what you wish for. You just might get it.

There are hopeful signs that Democrats have an understanding of the state’s needs, ranging from adjusting the budget for new realities to the transportation plan. It’s promising that House Democrats appointed a very capable leader, Rep. Aaron Reardon of Everett, to head a select committee on business competitiveness. But the study of the issue won’t be done in time for next year’s session.

The real question is whether the Democrats will have the resolve to act on the questions, like transportation, that are ready for action now or the ones, like the budget, that demand immediate action.

On the budget, the state faces daunting prospects. The simple alternatives are to raise taxes, which has bleak political prospects, or to just cut people, programs and desperately needed services, which ought to give anyone, especially Democrats, pause over the human costs. The most likely alternatives for minimizing service cuts would require dealing with unions representing teachers and other state employees on such bitter pills as pay freezes or unpaid vacations.

Beyond the budget, transportation remains the state’s most-pressing issue. Even with a recession that has pushed Washington to the top of national unemployment statistics, traffic tie-ups remain a serious problem. What will we see when good times return? Business will have every reason to flee the state if it becomes clear that Washington will waltz into renewed prosperity with its current transportation "system."

All through the campaign, Democrats said they would solve the transportation puzzle if given the chance. They have the opportunity. Already, though, it’s possible to catch the first hints that voters may have chosen a legislative donkey which will prove stubbornly unwilling to move forward. One key Democratic transportation leader in the House has already been quoted as worrying about the political impacts if Democrats pass a transportation package without some votes from Republican colleagues.

Democrats must understand that, given their campaign promises, they have no right whatsoever to hesitate about passing a transportation package, by themselves if required. Rather than fretting over the political calculations of whether Republicans will vote with them, they should concentrate on approving a reasonable transportation package that draws bipartisan support. After all, whether by initiative or a direct referral from the Legislature, any new transportation package will be decided at the polls. If the plan isn’t good enough to draw some GOP interest, it will have little chance with the public.

The Democrats face genuine challenges . But they asked for the job.

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