J.T. Wilcox talks during an interview inside his office at the State Capitol last January in Olympia.
Republican leaders in the state House of Representatives are urging Gov. Jay Inslee to be more specific and timely on his plans to reopen the government and lift some restrictions as the public enters its second month of a statewide stay-at-home order.
This comes as Republicans in both the House and Senate announced late last week a plan to safely restart the state’s economy by developing a task force, implementing broader testing, allowing certain sectors of the economy to immediately get back to work and by offering additional state assistance to small businesses that don’t qualify for federal programs.
On Wednesday morning, House Minority Leader and 2nd Legislative District Rep. J.T. Wilcox, R-Yelm, said in a Facebook post that Inslee missed a “critical opportunity” in his Tuesday address to explain the parts of the order that some people have found unfair.
“He risks a bigger disaster because these failures threaten the mandate of the public that he needs for truly effective orders now and in the future,” Wilcox wrote, asking for more transparency in the decision-making process. “The rejection of his authority started in small towns and rural counties. It is rapidly increasing in the Puget Sound area and all but the largest cities.”
Wilcox also said he would not approve of an extension beyond the current May 4 end date of the “Stay Home, Stay Healthy” order.
During Inslee’s Wednesday afternoon coronavirus press conference, a member of the media asked the governor about the House minority leader’s comments.
“We would be happy to share all the data that we have. I think I’ve been very open with not only the representative, but with the public,” Inslee said. “I will ask him again what it is he would like and we will try and comply. But, unfortunately, I’m afraid the situation is that some folks have decided to follow the sirened demands of Donald Trump rather than the health of Washingtonians, and that’s what’s at stake here.”
In response to those comments, Wilcox told the Nisqually Valley News that he believes it’s incumbent upon Inslee to narrow in on a specific plan in the next couple weeks, adding again that he believes there’s been a lack of transparency.
“It isn’t just showing the data, it’s showing what are the goals. And why would he not share that in his speech? It’s so critical to have citizens behind you … He’s never once shared any specific goal,” Wilcox said.
As the order’s end date comes closer, and as the possibility of Inslee extending that order looms, a number of residents in Washington state have questioned the constitutionality of his actions.
Last weekend, thousands of protestors took to the state Capitol building and dozens of angered anglers gathered at the Columbia Point Marina in Richland to protest the order. These separate events are just two of a number of protests that have erupted at state capitols around the United States as people defy state-mandated orders to combat the spread of coronavirus.
Wilcox hasn’t attended any public protest and noted that he doesn’t plan on doing so.
“It’s much more powerful if everyday citizens are speaking from the heart,” he said, adding that those acts are best left to people and not policy makers.
Wilcox said he believes the state House Republicans are broadly united against what he calls Inslee’s lack of transparency and restrictions on certain activities some in the public might deem unfair, such as fishing.
“Let working people do the things that are safe,” he said.
Wilcox went on to say that it’s quite possible that in June the state will have to do a large-scale budget adjustment. There will likely be significant cuts to the general budget, he said, but that will depend on how big of a financial crisis it is they’re dealing with and how much financial assistance the federal government can contribute.
“We don’t know what we’re dealing with, and we won’t for a little while ... There’s lots of people here who have a clear memory of what the recession felt like,” Wilcox said. “This is the time to hold your family close, hold your community close, keep your faith, and reach out to those who may not have those things.”
