Dear Speaker Ryan,
Welcome to Washington state, home to 7 million people and the best economy in the nation. As you flew in, I’m sure you noticed the unparalleled natural beauty that greets our visitors, from vast fields of abundant agriculture and the majestic Cascade mountain range to the shimmering waters of our Puget Sound and the busy waterways of our world-class ports.
While Washington is often thought of as a “blue state,” the reality is that our state is made up of people from all walks of life and myriad political orientations. Our legislature is divided, and with that comes robust, passionate — and sometimes strained — debate. Compromise is a necessity and progress is often incremental.
But our state is a place where leaders are often able to set aside ideology for the sake of the greater good. Here, bipartisanship has yielded tremendous results: passage of our state Dream Act, Medicaid expansion, a historic transportation investment package, clean energy innovation, unprecedented investments in education from early learning through college, and a best in the nation paid family leave program.
I’ve worked in politics a long time, Mr. Speaker, and I know it isn’t always pleasant or easy. There’s a certain level of cynicism that is par for the course. Yet what we’re witnessing in D.C. right now is beyond the norm. The Administration’s nativist rhetoric and political kowtowing to radicals is fueling an alarming level of divisiveness that extends far beyond the marble walls of Congress, into the dining rooms of our homes.
Elected leaders in Washington, D.C. have left the American people frustrated and anxious at best, and violently angry at worst.
Something has to change. You have the power to help bring about that change.
Read the rest of the story on the governor’s Medium page.