Gov. Inslee’s attempt to tie Bill Bryant to Trump is pathetic

Governor Jay Inslee continues to tie his Republican challenger Bill Bryant to Donald Trump and it’s getting rather pathetic.

“Both Donald Trump and Bill Bryant say they want to defeat the effort to increase the minimum wage,” Inslee said this week. In an ad, Inslee claims, “We all know who Bill Bryant is supporting for President.”

Related: Gov. Inslee’s office angry over Inslee’s own stance on taxes

Though he admits he’s just guessing: “…he has had months and months to disavow Donald Trump it is high time to act. Look if you are watching a house fire for six months and you don’t call the fire department, it’s pretty sure you are not against fire.” Wow. What a winning metaphor.

Bryant hasn’t actually taken a stance on the presidential election. It’s a smart and unavoidable move.

The strategy is rather simple: Bryant needs Independents and some Democrats to break from supporting Inslee, particularly in King County if he has any hope of winning. But he also needs Republicans to stand firmly behind him. Bryant won’t endorse Trump because it alienates Independents and Democrats who might consider voting for him, given how poorly Inslee has performed as Governor. But, Bryant won’t denounce Trump either because he doesn’t want to alienate Republican supporters who will see him turning his back on their Presidential pick. It’s a smart strategy in a blue state.

Inslee has Bryant in a corner on this, and continues to pretend that Bryant is supporting Trump for President. While Bryant is silent on who he will vote for, even a casual look at his background and positions should make it clear that he’s a moderate Republican who wouldn’t support Trump. He’s hoping you’re smart enough to realize that; Inslee, on the other hand, is so desperate, he’s hoping you’re too stupid to realize it.

Meanwhile, Inslee is avoiding any meaningful conversation about issues you actually care about. He did indicate this week that he’s supportive of the idea to possibly raise property taxes in the state to fully fund education. His campaign was upset with this admission, aiming to get MyNorthwest.com to change a story.

Inslee looks desperate. I’d be too with his track record in this state.

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