Candidate Jason Rittereiser: Dino Rossi will be a rubber stamp for Trump

In order to separate himself from the crowd in the 8th Congressional District race against Republican nominee Dino Rossi, Democrat Jason Rittereiser is hoping his Ellensburg roots will give him a leg up.

But it’s a recent campaign ad that’s brought him some attention. The ad criticizes Trump’s public comments after his meeting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Helsinki.

“We just witnessed Trump denounce American law enforcement and let Russia get away with attacking our nation,” Rittereiser says to the camera. “Here in Ellensburg, we call that treason.”

Though he’s locked in a tight contest with rival Democrats Kim Schrier and Shannon Hader, Rittereiser says the ad isn’t about getting attention.

“I didn’t come out with strong rhetoric against the president to increase my name recognition,” Rittereiser told KIRO Radio’s Dave Ross. “I came out to stand against the president because it’s the right thing to do. The president stood on a stage in foreign soil, and sided with Vladimir Putin and the Russian government against American law enforcement. That, to me, is absolutely outrageous.”

RELATED: Hader runs for 8th District, says Rossi only has “smooth talking points”

Rittereiser grew up in Ellensbrug in a law enforcement family, and got a degree in economics at the University of Washington. After working for Congress Member Rick Larsen,  he went to law school and served as a criminal prosecutor in King County, specializing as a labor employment lawyer who focused on workers’ rights.

“But you’re not running against Trump,” said KIRO Radio’s Dave Ross. “You’re running against Dino Rossi.”

“If you want to know what a politician really thinks,” Rittereiser responded. “Follow him around in an off-year. Dino Rossi was a Trump delegate in his off-year. If people think that he’s going to be anything other than a rubber stamp for the Trump administration, then he’s pulling one over on them.”

Rittereiser sees the 8th District as a microcosm of the country

“We have farming and ranching communities in Eastern Washington. We have high tech big business, we have small business, manufacturing, and labor,” Rittereiser said. “What I hear at the doors most often is people’s concern about an economy that’s not necessarily working for them, paying more for childcare, healthcare, and education.”

Prominent among his concerns is the recent tax bill and what it says about government priorities.

“People in this district don’t expect government to solve all their problems, they expect government to understand them,” Rittereiser said. “And when we pass a tax bill that’s really a tax scam, that shifts wealth in this country to big corporations and the richest among us, that’s not helping working class people.”

“If you look at Amazon, Amazon pays zero percent in federal income tax. Boeing is somewhere around 3 percent. And so the notion that we were going to lower the corporate tax rate to 15 percent to help these corporations is just a complete farce.”

RELATED: How this candidate aims to unify both sides of the Cascades

Along with taxes, Rittereiser believes the country needs an infrastructure bill with bipartisan support to address roads, bridges, and ports.

“There’s nothing more frustrating than sitting in congestion that we can address,” he said.

He hopes it will also address the energy grid, in order to take advantage of the influx of investment in renewable technology in the 8th District, like wind and solar energy.

“The infrastructure plan also has to include an investment in broadband technology — 700,000 homes don’t have access,” he said.

To speak about these concerns, Rittereiser has been scooting all around the district during primary season, and says he’s driven over 20,000 miles in an effort to meet as many people as possible. His campaign began with 30 town halls in 30 days, and he’s been closing it out with 10 town halls in the last 10 weeks.

“The reality is what it takes to win in this district, and what people are looking for, is someone who shows up.”

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