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The anti-tax landslide?

• Published November 07, 2007

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About 10:40 p.m. yesterday Tim Eyman called again, in a far more effusive mood. Baring some amazing surprise from King County, there’s no way I-960 could lose, he said.

And, what he really wanted to point out, he and his supporters won despite a $1.1 million campaign against them. At one point, Eyman said they hadn’t spent any money to pass I-960, they just talked to people and made their case. That’s a bit extreme, given the $645,000 given to the pro-I-960 committee.

But point taken. Anti-tax I-960 appears solid. Allowing school districts to raise levies with a majority vote, not passing. Thurston County sales tax to prevent juvenile crime? Shot down. Requiring government to keep a savings account? Passing. The massive roads and transit tax package in metro Puget Sound? No sir.

The cash spent to support the simple majority for schools doesn’t seem to have worked. Nor did the huge amounts of cash spent to stop R-67, allowing people to sue their insurance companies for triple damages.

In short, the trend is consistent: no to anything that might force people to pay more.

How much this will play into the presidential, congressional, gubernatorial shows next year?

UPDATE: To partly answer the question, Republican leaders read the tea leaves in a positive light this morning:

“Yesterday voters spoke out for responsible government, and Senate Republicans could not be happier about what they had to say,” says Senate Republican Leader Mike Hewitt.

House Republican Leader Richard DeBolt says, “Lawmakers cannot continue to ask taxpayers to bear the burden of tax-and-spend policies without regard to efficiency, accountability or delivering results as promised. Last night’s election results are a repudiation of a culture failure that permeates government at many levels.”

And Republican gubernatorial candidate Dino Rossi says, “Voters yesterday delivered a loud and clear message to Christine Gregoire that they don't want her taking more of their hard-earned money without seeing results.”

The Democrats have not been so eager to interpret the election results, at least not yet.

UPDATE 2: The Dems did respond, in a way. Gregoire put out two statements, on the transportation package, and on the rainy day fund. And the state party blasted Rossi.

Heres the governor’s take on Prop. 1: “This was tough vote. Local voters were asked to make a significant contribution to solving safety and congestion and I respect the decision of the voters in the Puget Sound area.”

And the state party took Rossi to task for failing to get specific about what he would have done differently: “For someone who touts his experience writing budgets as an Olympia insider, and who purportedly ran a public policy think-tank to research ‘issues affecting state government’ including ‘transportation,’ Rossi apparently has absolutely no idea what he’d do to improve transportation in Washington state.”