SEATTLE NEWS ARCHIVES & FEATURES

Dori: Announcement of new SCOWA justice was a leftist mess

Apr 14, 2020, 6:39 AM | Updated: 10:09 am

helen whitener, Washington Supreme Court...

Judge G. Helen Whitener.

One crucial element was missing Monday as Gov. Inslee announced the newest appointee to the State Supreme Court. G. Helen Whitener will fill the seat of retiring Justice Charles Wiggins. In a 10 minute period during which Inslee introduced the judge, Judge Whitener spoke, and the media asked questions, we learned a lot of things about Whitener.

She’s an immigrant from Trinidad. Inslee bizarrely said, “I believe she is the first woman who is black in our community.”

Her bio tells us that Whitener and her wife are LQBTQI activists. And a 2015 article I found about her tells us she thinks the law is a “dynamic structure which must adjust to society.”

But after all that talk and all the research, there is one thing never mentioned: Our state constitution.

As Judge Whitener took questions from the media Monday, she was greeted by a liberal word salad, as one reporter asked, “I know you have had a tremendous focus throughout your career on equity, diversity and inclusiveness … how do you see your role as a Supreme Court Justice on advancing that work you have done?”

It is not the job of a Supreme Court Justice to advance social justice causes. It is their job to make rulings based on their constitutionality.

She replied, “as far as equity and inclusion … we are to be concerned about how our actions impact others.”

So, if she doesn’t like how someone’s action impacts another but the action is constitutional, which way will she rule?

When it came to the constitution during this press event … Zero. Nada. Zilch.

Democrats in our state have made clear their intent to finally achieve their Holy Grail — a state income tax. They will have to do an end-run around the constitution to achieve that goal. You would think that someone, anyone, in the press corps would have asked if she believes our state constitution is our absolute guiding legal document, or if it’s a “structure which must adjust to society.” Because ultimately, that’s infinitely more important than all the leftist buzzwords that were tossed around Monday.

Listen to the Dori Monson Show weekday afternoons from noon – 3 p.m. on KIRO Radio, 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the podcast here.

I-90 impersonating police...

KIRO 7 News Staff

Man arrested for allegedly impersonating police, pulling people over along I-90

A 20-year-old Spokane man was arrested in Ellensburg after allegedly impersonating a law enforcement officer.

29 minutes ago

wildfire smoke western washington...

Linzi Sheldon, KIRO 7 News

Wildfire smoke expected to bring hazy skies to Western Washington

Western Washington residents can expect hazy skies and the smell of wildfire smoke over the next several days as smoke from fires burning in Oregon and Canada drifts into the region.

35 minutes ago

heat wave western washington tuesday wednesday...

Ted Buehner

Heat wave coming to Western Washington Tuesday and Wednesday

July is usually the warmest month of the year, and the weather during the first half of this week is going to reflect that heat.

59 minutes ago

File - President Joe Biden speaks at the International African American Museum in Charleston, S.C.,...

Associated Press

Appeals court rejects Biden’s bid to block release of recordings of ghostwriter interviews

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal appeals court has rejected a request by Joe Biden to block the release of audio recordings and transcripts of his interviews with a memoir ghostwriter before he was elected president. A divided three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit suspended its decision until […]

1 hour ago

Verne the Patriot, a nutcracker sculpture, is unveiled in Luverne, Minn., Saturday, July 18, 2026. ...

Associated Press

A Minnesota town now boasts the world’s tallest nutcracker

LUVERNE, Minn. (AP) — Crossing the open farmland of southwestern Minnesota, you’ll encounter an otherworldly sight: a massive head with a beard, mustache and red-striped top hat looming over the horizon. Pull into the small town of Luverne and the figure — a nearly 66-foot (20-meter) tall nutcracker, decked out like Uncle Sam — comes […]

1 hour ago

SR 202...

Chris Sullivan

SR 202 near Fall City to close this weekend for emergency river embankment repairs

Work is moving to SR 202 near Fall City this week, creating a 16-mile detour for people trying to get around the area.

1 hour ago

Dori: Announcement of new SCOWA justice was a leftist mess