Jim Moeller
Possibly the worst kept secret in town, long time 49th legislative district representative, Jim Moeller, labeled ‘da taxman’ by this blog due to his love of taxing the middle class (he claims to oppose the B&O tax) has switched his goal from being elected Lt. Governor of our state, as previously announced with his focus now on defeating 3rd Congressional District Representative Jaime Herrera Beutler.
Herrera Beutler, a Republican has held the seat since she was first elected in 2010 after Democrat Brian Baird decided to retire. She has so far held o ff challenges in the primaries from disgruntled Republicans that see her as ‘not pure enough’ and has easily defeated Democrat challengers.
In this 2016 election, she faces Democrat Mike McDevitt, an earlier announcement from another Democrat, Angie Marx, David Steenson, a Libertarian both of whom have yet to file as of this post and L.A. (Worthy) Worthington, stating no party. And now, Jim ‘Da Taxman’ Moeller announced his intent to face her.
With 2 days left in filing week, others could throw their hats in the ring as well.
Moeller has every right to make a fool of himself as he so chooses with this act, but it appears he is acting more out of his abundance of arrogance rather than common sense. And from where I have sat for several years now, common sense was never hi strong suit.
As I said above, I labeled him ‘da Taxman’ several years ago due to his incessant desire to raise taxes every year.
He is the author of the confusing and ill fated “Candy Tax: a few years ago that voters turned down after he successfully imposed it on the state by the legislature.
He was a staunch proponent of the now comatose Columbia River Crossing light rail project that would have forced voters to accept Portland, Oregon’s financially ailing light rail a few blocks into our community against our will.
He has openly expressed the city of Portland as more favorable to him than the city he was elected to represent, Vancouver, Washington.
When voters, for the fifth time passed an initiative requiring the legislature to achieve a two-thirds majority in order to increase our taxes, he willfully joined in with greedy teachers unions and other Democrat to file suit against citizens and invalidate his own constituents’ votes.
In Dec 2008 he even sent in a Letter to the Editors of the local newspaper seeking citizen help to identify where new taxes could be levied, just as we were seeing the beginnings of the ‘Great Recession’ that saw Clark County exceeding 15% unemployment.
Much like the purists holding power over the local Republican Party, he too has been known to openly oppose Democrats he feels also are not “pure enough” as he did with Jon Haugen in the 2012 3rd Congressional District race, even though Haugen was the sole challenger to Jaime Herrera Beutler.
Mr. Haugen saw the folly and discontent from voters with the CRC and expressed his doubts, earning him the ire of Moeller and a public declaration at the Democrats State Convention of Haugen not being a “True Democrat” and seeing the party endorsement withheld for a time.
Moeller’s arrogance is legend, once telling a female Republican challenger after defeating her, “I beat you like an old rug.”
And I believe it is that arrogance that will see him relegated to the dust bin of political history after this election.
Moeller, likely the most left-leaning liberal ever to grace our legislator, claiming now to be to the left of Bernie Sanders, has seen easy victories in far left 49th Legislative District where Republicans stand little chance at winning.
No doubt he would continue to easily win with such far left socialists. But he has now decided to stretch out and reach higher, unfortunately for him into the real world where far left socialism isn’t so desired.
If you will recall, the 2010 census gave Washington State a new Congressional District, so districts had to be redrawn to make room. And is always the manner, deals were made.
The 3rd Congressional District was redrawn to make it more favorable to Republicans in exchange for agreement on the lines for the Tenth Congressional District to be drawn to be more favorable to Democrats, that seat now held by Democrat Denny Heck who Jaime Herrera Beutler defeated in 2010.
Issues Moeller supports and favors will find little support out amongst the people across the 3rd Congressional District, especially his desire to take firearms away from the people, him once declaring, “I will refuse to conduct the business of the state as long as any ‘open carry’ nuts in the gallery,” even though open carry of firearms is completely legal in Washington State, many of Moeller’s fellow legislators also being armed on the House floor.
A most revealing comment made recently by Moeller, discussing the recent pay raise issue for Vancouver’s Mayor and city council members, was his admission of he didn’t get involved for the pay, but for “LGBT issues,” Moeller being one of the stronger proponents of pushing through homosexual marriage in the legislature, once even placing the state budget on the back burner to promote LGBT issues first and causing special sessions at increased taxpayer expense.
In regard to special sessions, Moeller has been legendary in his claiming amongst the highest per diem among fellow legislatures. He has drawn fore for high dry cleaning bills for his suits taxpayers were footing the bill for.
This is what Jim Moeller would carry to Washington D.C., as if we don’t have enough problems back there as it is.
Moeller now says, “My No. 1 goal is the community gets the representation it deserves.”
We sure as all hell do not deserve Jim Moeller and his tax happy ways ignoring constituents to push his special interests off on a still struggling middle class.
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