Gov. Inslee on “No New Taxes” — Campaign Promises Then and Now

This week, Gov. Inslee turned heads when his office said he will ask for about $1 billion in new taxes when he unveils his new state budget, as the new legislative session prepares to get underway.  Did he blatantly lie to voters?  Read on and decide for yourself.

Gov. Inslee then:

(November 14, 2012 - crosscut.com)  At a press conference in Seattle, as reported by John Stang:

"Jay Inslee is sticking to his guns  — new taxes won't be needed to fix Washington's budget woes.      At a Wednesday press conference in Seattle, three reporters challenged Inslee on that plank of his candidacy for governor. Each time, he cited his campaign promise that the Legislature can raise money to meet a Washington Supreme Court mandate to increase school funding by creating enough new jobs to generate more state revenue — and without raising taxes.     "I think economic growth is the best way forward," Inslee said."

Gov. Inslee NOW:

(KATU 2 TV Portland)    December 9, 2014:

"OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — Washington Gov. Jay Inslee will propose a $1 billion tax package when he releases his new budget.    David Schumacher, director of the Office of Financial Management, told reporters Tuesday Inslee will propose a mix of cuts and revenues to deal with a multi-billion dollar deficit in the state's next two-year spending cycle."    (Note: revenues are political "buzzword" for taxes).

Gov. Inslee Then:   (From John Stang crosscut article)

His top priority for the upcoming legislative session, he said, will be job creation.

"His plans call for reforms in taxes, especially business and occupation taxes, plus tax breaks for fledgling companies; health care reforms; and cutting some regulations. Inslee would split some duties away from the state commerce department to create small agencies to concentrate on recruiting and training for life sciences, maritime, aerospace and military jobs and businesses."

Gov. Inslee NOW:   October 2, 2014, the respected CATO Institute released it's annual Governors report, rating each of the 50 state's leaders on their overall performance, politically, economically, and other factors.  From the CATO report:

Eight governors were awarded an “F”: Mark Dayton of Minnesota, John Kitzhaber of Oregon, Jack Markell of Delaware, Jay Inslee of Washington, Pat Quinn of Illinois, Deval Patrick of Massachusetts, John Hickenlooper of Colorado, and Jerry Brown of California.

From ShiftWA, October 2, 2014, about the CATO report:

"According to Cato, Inslee’s “F” grade “stems from his poor record on taxes.” Specifically, Cato points to Inslee’s broken campaign promises."  (Bold lettering added for emphasis).

So, you decide. Did Inslee lie just to get elected?   You may be a supporter of his, but unfortunately the cold hard facts point to no other conclusion than, he either forgot what he campaigned on, or he simply lied.