Is PETA going after Governor Jay Inslee?

Governor Inslee was on the Dori Monson Show to talk about the nightmare we call Bertha.

It’s two years behind schedule and it’s over budget and a lot of folks are calling for the governor to pull the plug on this money pit of a project.

But he’s not ready to. He told the Dori Monson Show that we need to force the contractor, Seattle Tunnel Partners, to finish the project.

Only he used some disconcerting language:

“Imagine you hire a contractor to remodel your house,” Inslee told Dori. “What does a responsible homeowner do in that situation? You ride them and beat them like a cheap mule if you will. We are going to hold these people and this contract — they will be responsible.”

Beat them like a cheap mule? That’s violent imagery that is decidedly anti-animal! And PETA isn’t too happy!

I asked them about the governor’s language and PETA Senior Vice President Lisa Lange had some suggestions for Inslee:

“PETA would have preferred that the governor said something more like the following: ‘I am going to make sure that our contractor works as hard as mightily strong and focused ants, who are known to work with little to no rest through an entire day and can lift 50 times their body weight, until the job is done, or beavers, who work at night and can carry mud and stones with their small forepaws and timber between their teeth to build a sturdy structure.'”

So much more animal-friendly than the mule-hating Inslee!

Any bets on whether a team of ants and beaver can finish the viaduct before Seattle Tunnel Partners?