URGENT: We have far right petitioners stationed outside of Walmarts in Central and Eastern Washington. It seems that they are using an interpretation of the law to allow them on private property and are refusing to leave, the Walmart management has been trying to get them off property for a week. The police and sheriff are adamant that they will do nothing. The police and sheriff have stated that a court order is required, however our courthouse has no idea as to what they are referring to. Additionally it seems that our police and sheriff are colluding with MAGA party members. The Mayor, Deputy Mayor, a council member and County Commissioner are all working on this with me and a transcript was requested this morning of the Mayor's conversation with the police yesterday by a known MAGA member. The only way that anyone could have known the Mayor spoke to the police is if the police tipped them off. Summary, we have police and sheriff selectively enforcing an ambiguous law, deliberately making the process opaque and colluding with MAGA. We have nowhere to turn as the people that are supposed to be protecting us are working against us. I feel like I am in China again.
Why is the torture of rural America so difficult to reckon with?
The situation is so dire that, now more than ever, Democrats must support one another. Rural Democrats continue to give generously, but is there reciprocity? Evidence suggests that, against rational reasoning, Liberal Progressive Urban Democrats (LPUD) are not seeing our struggles in rural America? I know in my heart of hearts that Democrats would not let other Democrats suffer intentionally. So how can we be seen? The single greatest factor defining Republicans and Democrats is geography. Democrats hang on to urban centers and Republicans have swept through rural America. We know that Democrats living in rural areas are living under Republican ideology. The stories I can tell. . . Things I know, things I believe and I have experienced: One would think that rural America, Central Washington, is the Holy Grail of causes for LPUD: Depressed wages - Yakima County’s household income is half the state average Greatly decreased access to healthcare and Lower Medicare/caid reimbursement More likely to be first or second generation immigrant Home of indigenous people 37% more gun deaths in rural areas Greater threat of violence toward LGBTQ+ Increased threat of violence from MAGA We are the water and land that needs to be saved Genz, Latinx and even union members are trending right And the list is endless So why is it easier to pull teeth than to get LPUD to “see” us?
Washington State is the tenth largest donor to electoral politics with two-thirds going to Democrats. Mostly Seattle Democrats give over $100M. That is a lot of rain, but like IRL very little of it falls on the east side of the Cascades. During the last election cycle I raised a few thousand dollars from Seattle, but my Republican opponent raised millions! Why? I have spoken with and know the history of a number of nonprofits that have explored Central and Eastern Washington as places to invest. One very well known organization has stuck its toe in the water in Spokane and Yakima but ultimately pulled back. Another organization, which is excellent and does good work, stated that the competition for non profits to spend money in the Seattle area is so great that they need to find new places to spend their money. But even they have acknowledged that their big dollar donors are hesitant about investing in rural Central Washington.
A wonderful national rural organization, that I engage with regularly, went on the record to say that national nonprofits focused on rural issues are flush with cash, but sadly no one is building political infrastructure in rural areas. They are watching from a distance. Why is our very real plight invisible? Why can we not be seen? We are the crystal ball that shows the future clearly. Ohio’s issue 1 was defeated, but a review of the voting shows an almost perfect urban/ rural split. But what is most alarming is that the Republican votes are encroaching on the suburbs. We can look to Alabama, Texas and Florida to see how the Republicans can run roughshod with impunity. Here in Central Washington we see our statewide elected leaders losing by larger margins each election cycle. This is a damning trend that can only be stopped by seeing the problem and investing. That investment must be in rural America. The future strategy can not depend solely on hanging on to what Democrats have, but it must retake what we have lost. This is both good business and morally correct. To abandon Democrats to live a MAGA existence is not the Democrat way.
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