No Loss for Words

There is no doubt that the economy is on the minds of taxpayers in our country these days. Leadership at the highest level is confirming our belief that a turn-around will not come without significant cost. Electing candidates to any office that believe in re-distributing your wealth tend to do that.

The American Dream I grew up believing in is “You work hard, invest your money, be active in your community to make life better for everyone.” Not taking from the rich to give to the poor! Everyone earns their way the best they can.

The American people felt they needed to go in a different direction after eight years of George Bush. The message of “hope” that Obama preached sounded good to needy voters across the country. That coupled with an historic election of the first black president blinded voters to the facts about Obama’s true colors. (no pun intended) Everything we knew about him before the election suggested what kind of president he would be and his actions after the election should surprise no one.

Our party has at least two years of tough sledding ahead of us before the first opportunity to make things right. How we spend that time will have some bearing on our success as Republicans in 2010.

This year, we face a somewhat different challenge. The opposition party has been entrenched in the county executive’s office for 24 years and controlled the county council for a couple years now so they cannot point the finger at Republicans and lay blame for problems of their own making. Our challenge is to make them take ownership of the failures of their policies.

Property tax rates have never been higher even as property values have plunged. When our property values were increasing because of market forces and high developer costs, we seemed pretty happy about our windfall of equity. Now as our taxes are going even higher we are having trouble understanding why when our house is now worth $100,000 less than a year ago. The truth is the euphoria associated with a robust economy dulled our resolve to constrain the growth of government and it seemed that we would expand the economy to cover the long term liability. If it weren’t so painful, it would be comical. I talked about the necessity of adopting more conservative financial management policies long before the crash. When you are celebrating the inflated value of your 401K you tend to ignore warning signs.

My experience in city government taught me about adopting long term financial management policies during hard times so you know what your base line is and guide how you allocate new revenues during prosperous times. It prevents core growth of government and recognizes unpredictable revenue sources for what they are.

Much of the public discussion recently has been about whether Boeing will develop assembly facilities in another state for the Dreamliner. This is an easy issue to address. If you were a member of the management team at Boeing, how would you respond to a workforce that refuses to acknowledge the peril the company suffers as the result of a labor dispute or a government that fails to understand the impact of unreasonable L& I and Employment Security rates? There is no doubt that each of us would look to develop alternatives for the future. The company cannot be held hostage by either of them. If the net result is that the company leaves the state over time, it should not be surprising. If you believe keeping the Boeing Company is a high priority for our county, you need to demonstrate that by supporting Steve Dana.

For Snohomish County, Boeing is a big gorilla, but not the only one. Other businesses suffer from the same issues that might cause them to leave as well. Our responsibility as leaders is to develop a tax structure for all businesses that is competitive with other parts of the country and even the world. Other than agriculture products that grow in our unique climate conditions, manufacturers can locate where market force conditions can be considered. If our leaders fail to develop a strategy to address this issue, our county and state will be reduced to a service sector economy catering to a huge public sector government with no tax base; in an economic death spiral.
As much as we would like to blame someone else for our predicament, we have passed the point for blame. We all know how we got here.

This election is not about the past, it’s about the future and where we want to lead our county tomorrow. The choice you make in this county council election can either turn the ship of state back to safe harbor and the American way or further out into the storm of Socialism.

For Steve Dana, the core issues of the campaign are;

1. Jobs: Private Sector Job creation through supporting Economic Development initiatives. Nearly all of government’s funding comes from the private sector. Businesses create jobs that create the economy. Working to remove regulatory obstacles to private sector investment for business is one of my highest priorities. Historically, prosperity for America only comes when government has cleared the way for private businesses to be innovative and responsive to the needs of our country.

2. Restraining the Growth of Government: County Government has doubled in size in the past 20 years. Taxes and fees have exploded, county employment has skyrocketed and in spite of technology investments, productivity gains have not. Getting more done with less resources is what we do in the private sector. President Ronald Reagan was on the right track when he said “Government can’t solve the problem! Government is the problem!”

3. Land Use Policy and Property Rights: Traffic congestion from development inside and outside of urban growth areas has significantly impacted quality of life for all of us. “Concurrence” is the term that describes having adequate roads in place before development arrives rather than after. As the urbanized parts of the county annex into cities, development in rural districts will create conflict between interest groups that will need even handed reconciliation.

4. Financial Management: Funding necessary government functions will become critical as the tax base shrinks from annexations and other changes to the economy. Adopting conservative fiscal policies during these difficult times will prevent us from getting back on the spending band wagon as the economy improves.

5. Balanced Environmental Policy: Green Initiatives to address Global Warming/Climate Change will cost taxpayers a fortune without measurable benefits. Snohomish County Critical Areas regulations don’t give enough consideration to property owners and their rights. People and property owners should be protected from unreasonable government regulation. One of the founding principles of our country has been that we be free from unreasonable government interference in our lives.

From a political perspective, county elections are about picking a governing philosophy rather than a political party. If you want a bigger government that is more controlling, takes your property rights and your tax dollars while changing your behavior to make you comply; vote for the Democrat. If you want a smaller government that is less intrusive in your life that focuses on essential services and gives us fair value for our taxes paid vote for Steve Dana, the Republican.

My fellow Republican candidate from Arlington, the honorable John Koster indicated in a campaign outreach letter that he is the lone conservative on the county council and as such cannot solve the problems there single-handedly. I couldn’t concur more. John has been fighting the good fight, but victory is not possible without help. I am the candidate that can assist John Koster in his ongoing struggle. I have the tools, the knowledge and the integrity to stand with conservatives for today and on into the future.

In that regard, there have been questions raised within the Republican Party about whether I am as Republican as the next person. I guess that will be up to each of you to decide. My support of business, property rights, smaller government, lower taxes, and fair application of environmental regulations certainly compares favorably with any Republican in recent memory and sets me apart from any Democrat I know of. As Councilmember Koster said in his letter, “… we vote for a person – not a party. Character is still paramount.” I agree with Mr. Koster and offer my history in my community as a business owner, elected official and community service advocate as a testament to my character. My record as an elected official attests to my leadership and ability to work collaboratively with elected officials from all political persuasions across the whole county.

I face a struggle greater than John Koster in this election since I am a challenger rather than an incumbent. The entrenched opposition has the advantage of being elected twice already, but he also has been beaten once. He has the environmental community and the labor unions supporting him because they know he supports their causes. If those are your issues, Dave is your guy. If you think the rest of us need a voice in government, then you need to take action now to support Steve Dana with your dollars and any other way you can. Campaigning is really expensive.

I do not come to this election with either an ax to grind or at the bidding of any special interest group. My record and reputation was built upon respect for others with different viewpoints and fair consideration of the facts. I am the candidate John Koster was referring to when he quoted Edmund Burke “The only way I know for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.” Then he followed with “Are there enough good men left? If there are, will they do something… and soon?” As a Republican, I am stepping forward to serve my community, my party and everyone that holds our shared values in high regard.

“Leadership” is taking the tools you are given coupled with courage of conviction to step out in front of the issues to offer ideas and solutions to problems without regard for personal safety. Our country, state, county and cities have suffered greatly because of elected officials who fail to lead for fear of losing the next election. I got into this campaign because people asked “where are our leaders when we need them?”

I am the man stepping forward with the skills, the experience, the integrity and the character to do my part. The question is whether you will do your part by helping me get elected to help John Koster. The choice is yours! Please help me wage this battle so I can fight alongside John Koster to protect your interests. I would appreciate your support!