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Senators
Senate Republican Priorities
Secure a Safer Washington
Extreme Democrat policies and an unwillingness to address the reality of our crime and drug overdose rates puts your safety at risk.
Fight For an Affordable Washington
Democrat overregulation continues to increase the cost of everything, including home prices, rent, food, energy, and gasoline.
Build a Better Future for Washington’s Children
State government has let down Washington’s youth. They are plagued with significant learning loss, poor physical safety and security at school, easy access to hard drugs such as fentanyl, and poor mental-health support.
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News from the Caucus
STATEMENT: State’s response to ballot drop-box arson does nothing to inspire confidence
VANCOUVER…- Sen. Lynda Wilson, R-Vancouver, offered this reaction to the arson that destroyed ballots in a Clark County drop box Monday morning. “The ballot box at Fisher’s Landing that was set on fire early yesterday morning is in my legislative district. Common sense suggests many of the hundreds of ballots that were destroyed were cast...
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The Elephant in the Dome Podcast: Senator frustrated about bureaucratic delay of school earthquake protections
Tens-of-millions of dollars set aside to protect schools from earthquakes is not getting spent, and state Senator Judy Warnick wants something done about it. The Office of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction is supposed to be distributing the money.
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Dan Evans set the standard for political leadership in Washington, Warnick says
Former governor and senator modernized state government, promoted higher education, advocated for the environment and defined what it means to be a Republican OLYMPIA – Dan Evans left such a deep stamp on the state of Washington that people today might have trouble believing one man could accomplish so much, said Senate Republican Caucus Chair...
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The Elephant in the Dome Podcast: Shortage of public defenders and prosecutors – a criminal justice crisis
Washington’s criminal justice system has a big problem – a shortage of public defenders and prosecutors. Senator Mike Padden, a former judge and the Ranking Republican on the Senate Law and Justice Committee is the featured guest. Washington Supreme Court justices take testimony on proposed changes to public defender standards – Learn you how you...
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AUDIO: Police pursuit, parental rights, income tax laws go into effect
New laws that go into effect this week (June 6) impact police pursuits, parental rights, and income taxes in Washington. Tracy Ellis reports.
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The Elephant in the Dome Podcast: Republicans applaud Center For Behavioral Health and Learning opening
Republican senators applaud the opening of the center, stressing its importance amid the opioid crisis. Senator Lynda Wilson highlights the need for both treatment and accountability.
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News from the Senators
Boehnke looks to improve rules for siting of power plants
Sen. Matt Boehnke, R-Kennewick OLYMPIA… The state Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council (EFSEC) held a special meeting on September 13 to approve the revised site certification agreement for the controversial Horse Heaven Wind Project. Sen. Matt Boehnke, R-Kennewick, believes the EFSEC’s process to approve the revised site certification agreement (SCA) did not properly account for...
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Infant fentanyl overdoses warrant felony charges, says Braun
CENTRALIA…Three infants in the Everett area overdosed on fentanyl over four days this week, including a 13-month-old who died. Senate Republican Leader John Braun, R-Centralia, shared the following reaction to these preventable tragedies. “It’s completely indefensible when an infant or child gets sick or dies because someone in the household is using deadly drugs such...
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Right to protest does not include blocking airport access, says Braun
CENTRALIA… Senate Republican Leader John Braun, R-Centralia, released the following statement following the anti-Israel protest that blocked access to SeaTac Airport for several hours today. “People have the right to peaceably protest, but they don’t have the right to put themselves and drivers at risk by blocking access to our busiest airport. I understand that...
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Braun appalled by Seattle teacher’s blatantly antisemitic comments
OLYMPIA…Senate Republican Leader John Braun, R-Centralia, today shared his reaction to comments made by Seattle school teacher Ian Golash during an interview posted Friday to X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. When asked if the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas terrorists on Israeli citizens was justified, Golash responded, “Yes.” As the...
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Sen. Braun on Sen. Rivers’ decision not to seek reelection: ‘We will deeply miss her leadership and service’
CENTRALIA… Senate Republican Leader John Braun offered this response to today’s announcement by Sen. Ann Rivers, R-La Center, that she will not be seeking a new term as the 18th Legislative District’s state senator: “Having served with Senator Rivers for more than a decade, from a neighboring district, I know how hard she has worked...
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Braun: Retiring Sen. Mike Padden Legislature’s strongest advocate of public safety
OLYMPIA…Senate Republican Leader John Braun, R-Centralia, shared the following sentiments after an announcement by Sen. Mike Padden, R-Spokane Valley, saying he will not seek reelection to the 4th District Senate seat he has held since 2011. Sen. Padden is currently the lead Republican on the Senate Law & Justice Committee. He was previously the chair...
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Washington State Senate Republican Caucus
The official Facebook page of the Washington State Senate Republican Caucus
Happy Thanksgiving! Proclaimed by President George Washington, the 1st American holiday occurred in 1789. It's a day of prayer and public Thanksgiving for the successful establishment of the new American republic.What are you thankful for today? #Thanksgiving #thankful #waleg
A message from Sen. Lynda Wilson:A lot of people will be cooking Thanksgiving dinner with natural gas, either because they installed a gas stove/oven or because their home already came with one. I’m going to guess many of them appreciate their gas appliances so much that they voted YES on I-2066, to repeal the law that put WA on a path to a natural-gas ban. The trouble is, I spent much of Friday morning at a special meeting of our State Building Code Council (I’m an ex-Officio member, we are not allowed to vote)… and I am NOT confident that a majority of the voting members give a hoot that a majority of WA voters want to protect access to natural gas. The governor appoints the voting members of the SBCC, and our outgoing governor made sure to pack the current group with people who share his hatred of natural gas. That’s why the council already changed WA’s energy code to prohibit the use of natural gas in new commercial construction and restrict the use of gas in new residential construction. But the majority of WA residents who voted on I-2066 (and 34 of 39 counties…nearly 36) don’t agree. The public-policy choice is simple. Will the SBCC cling to its anti-natural gas position, and the intent of 77 Democratic legislators – meaning those who passed House Bill 1589 this year, setting the stage for a natural-gas ban? Or will it honor the intent of the 1.93 million voters who repealed HB 1589, by passing I-2066? Keep in mind that the HB 1589 law set a course for the forced electrification of homes, which could cost millions of homeowners as much as $70K to replace gas appliances with electric versions. And as many people north and east of Seattle were just reminded, our state’s power grid has enough reliability issues already. There were already lawsuits against the building code council over the energy code changes. Inslee’s allies are expected to sue to overturn I-2066 once the measure takes effect (Dec. 5, after the election results are certified). Stay tuned, this is all going to get even more complicated. In the meantime, if you appreciate having natural gas as a choice, the passage of I-2066 is another reason to be thankful this Thanksgiving Day!
Homelessness: Last year, it was reported that WA spent $143 MILLION to get 126 individuals off the streets, while Gov. Inslee was requesting an additional $100 million more. That's over $1.1 MILLION PER PERSON. WA has spent $4 BILLION as the problem worsens. We have advocated in the budget and in legislation to use taxpayers’ dollars wisely to fund diversion, drug treatment, and non-profits with effective track records tackling homelessness. We have also pushed for legislation to outlaw "safe" injection sites allowing the usage of hard drugs. Brandi Kruse, Ari Hoffman, and Jonathan Choe: ow.ly/pnJf50UbwH8