Folks here in Washington are mad! Some damn judge has put a hold on our $30 car tabs, the ones we approved after taking the good time and trouble to fill out our ballots and putting them in the mail and everything.
And, folks in Washington are relieved because a judge had the good sense to block an initiative that screws up the transportation package we voted for 2 years ago!
Confused? Welcome to the Tim Eyman revolving initiative club.
Adroit members of the Washington voting community will note that we have voted for $30 car tabs 4 times now, yet we do not pay $30 for our tabs. Why? Because twice the initiatives were deemed unconstitutional and another didn’t garnish enough interest. Yet here we are for a 4th time, mainly because no one seemed terribly interested in what the transit measure that was passed 2 years ago for light rail, roads, and the like, would cost where car tabs were concerned, so people were outraged.
Outraged! Like I was when I realized I be one of the last persons to pay for an emissions test. That requirement ends in 2020.
The nerve!
Well, some.
Americans are deeply disinterested or disinclined to understanding how government works and are easily roused when faced with a change in thy pocketbook. We also have the bizarre belief that we should have good roads, effective government, and representatives who listen to us without having the onerous weight of taxes forced upon us.
Enter Eyman, he of the people’s initiatives. Over 21 years, he has foisted 24 of these delights upon the good people of Washington to no real effect. How so? Of the 24, only 2 have survived legal challenges and or the ballot: throwing out affirmative action (1998) and reducing the number of King County council persons (2003). Of the others, 6 were voted down, 7 were declared unconstitutional, 5 didn’t draw enough interest during canvassing, 1 was withdrawn, and the latest put on hold by the courts.
Naturally this is the doing of the deep state or the liberals in Seattle or…
Maybe it’s because Eyman has no real interest in passing initiatives that actually work as he does in fomenting anger and providing himself a paying gig. Don’t think so? Then why do his initiatives continue to fail basic legal challenges? After 21 years you’d think he’d have the right legal people advising him on this.
It sure doesn’t look that way.
But don’t worry, he running for governor and will no doubt get this all straightened out.
David William Pearce, Writer 