On Wednesday, February 25 at 5:30 PM, Rep Joe Fitzgibbon, Democrat House Leader, appeared drunk at the House Appropriations Committee hearing. Rep. Fitzgibbon, who normally wears a jacket and tie, appeared disheveled in an open-collared white dress shirt. At times, he appeared to doze off and Representative Larry Springer, who sat next to Fitzgibbon, can...
On February 17, Mayor Wilson gave her first major speech since defeating incumbent Bruce Harrell in last November’s elections. From the moment she stepped on the stage at the Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center, it was evident Wilson’s inexperienced team had failed to perform basic advance work as the new mayor had technical issues with...
Washington taxpayers have been told for years that rising taxes and ever-larger budgets are necessary to solve urgent problems like homelessness, housing availability, crime, taxes, education, etc.) But spending has exploded as those problems are all worsening, and serious questions about how money is actually being used have gone unanswered. Instead of immediate, independent investigations...
Government policies and actions (or inactions) are placing burdens on Seattle’s big and small businesses. These struggling employers face: More taxes and regulations which neighboring cities and states do not face Public safety concerns which keep customers from visiting their neighborhoods A continuing retail theft problem with a revolving door justice system which immediately releases...
The week before last Thanksgiving, the Washington State Department of Ecology (DOE) released a report touting that its controversial and expensive Climate Commitment Act (i.e. the CCA or the “carbon tax” which has increased the price for a gallon of gas by approximately 50 cents in our state) had removed 7.5 metric tons of greenhouse...
As Nick Shirley’s investigative videos reveal the massive fraud that is costing Minnesota and American taxpayers billions of dollars, should King County and Washington residents fear the same thing could be occurring here? Sadly, the same reckless and lax conditions within Minnesota Governor Tim Walz’ administration are also present in Washington State – especially in...
As 2025 comes to an end, ChangeWA will look back by revisiting some of our most popular articles of the year. ChangeWA has quickly become the leading source of reliable information on the homelessness issue as more of our neighbors continue to suffer in crime- and drug-filled encampments and temporary housing as billions of tax...
Over the Thanksgiving holiday, Attorney General Nick Brown announced that Washington State joined a federal lawsuit against the Trump Administration to allow state and local governments to continue controversial “Housing First” homelessness policies. These ineffective measures, which disregard the role of mental illness and addiction in rising homelessness, have resulted in an 80% more people...
The holiday season is usually a very busy time for restaurants and bars. Yet a recent report shows that progressives’ taxes and regulation have forced establishments in Seattle and across the state to raise their prices to the highest in the country – making dining out too expensive for many lower- and middle-income workers. The...
There are two disturbing charts which show how progressive policies are hurting the average residential taxpayer. Four years since the end of the pandemic and Downtown Seattle’s vacancy rate has risen to over 33% – 1/3 of space available is empty. No new development being built. Businesses closing, moving to the Eastside (or out of...
Time to acknowledge something positive in Seattle… Those of us at ChangeWA celebrate the five-year anniversary of We Heart Seattle! When Seattle progressives’ public safety, drug, and homeless policies were causing the rapid decline of the city in 2020, Andrea Saurez and a small group of like-minded friends went into action. At first, they cleaned...
The leniency in Washington’s judicial system was recently displayed by the repeat offender (36 arrests and 20 convictions) who killed a 20-year-old woman as he attempted to flee police in Pierce County. Despite serving numerous short sentences in his life, the suspect clearly has never been “rehabilitated.” It appears he views his many brief lockups...
Spokane provides the latest example of how citizens are forced to correct politicians’ failed policies because stubborn elected officials refuse to admit that their extremist, “Housing First” policies have made problems worse. Housing First is the policy strategy that provides free taxpayer-funded housing for homeless individuals regardless of their addiction, mental health, or criminal status....
Among the regular stream of meaningless partisan statements issued by Governor Bob Ferguson’s communications team was one of last week which has received almost no attention from the local press. It is significant because it reveals the lack of accountability by our political leaders, and it helps explain why the Seattle/King County region and our...