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In a move that surprised almost no one, the Building Industry Association of Washington (BIAW) has endorsed Dino Rossi, the Republican candidate for Governor. BIAW is the first trade association endorsement for the Rossi 2008 campaign.
“BIAW is committed to supporting candidates who champion affordable housing and the continued economic growth of this state,” said incoming BIAW President Brad Spears. “Dino Rossi clearly fits the bill.”
BIAW believes Washington State has for too long been run by governors who have little or no experience working in the private sector — most have spent the bulk of their career working for the government. Although Gregoire promised to “change the culture of Olympia” when she ran in 2004, BIAW insists it is all but impossible to do so when that culture is the only one our leaders have ever known.
“If we want to change the climate of our state government, which has existed for nearly 25 years, we must infuse a new breed of leader into the governor’s office,” said Spears. “A new breed of leader like Dino Rossi, who believes the governor should work for the citizens of the state, not work to protect the out-of-control bureaucrats running our state agencies.”
According to BIAW, Rossi’s populist-themed campaign platform mirrors the list of complaints it has expressed for the past three years. Gregoire ran as an opponent of tax increases, yet implemented the largest gas tax increase in state history and reestablished the death tax. She also declared in 2004 that she would “blow past the bureaucracy,” change the culture of Olympia and control government spending, yet since she has been in office, she has added 6,000 new state employees and increased state spending by 33 percent ($8.2 billion), leading the state toward a huge budget deficit.
“The future of Washington State hinges on the election of a pro-small business governor,” said Spears. “Christine Gregoire has been in office for three years and hasn’t made Washington more business friendly — Washington State businesses pay higher taxes than in most other states, we rank poorly on business competitiveness and we boast the highest rate of small business failure in the nation,” he said. “As Attorney General and Governor, Gregoire has demonstrated time and again her allegiance to big government and big business — we need to elect a pro-small business governor like Dino Rossi.”
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