One great thing about the Freedom Foundation is that nearly everything we do is successful. Even when we appear to lose a battle, by the simple act of climbing into the ring and fighting, we’re always advancing in the overall war to defund and distract the political influence of government unions. A great example of our win-win policy is our door-to-door opt-out today program . The hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost dues to the S ervice Employees International Union ( SEIU) annually because of members opting out is a win. Still, we’re also winning because of the time and money SEIU is forced to devote to countering it. In response to our efforts, SEIU has recruited a small army of thugs to spread lies to prevent people from learning and exercising their rights. SEIU 775 is currently running ads offering to pay hired goons upwards of $50,000 a year to “encourage” individual providers to sign the membership cards, which entitles the union to skim money from workers...

Our Maternal Government When will the insanity of the nanny state end? From the prevention of alcohol sales between 2 am and 6 am to banning alcoholic energy drinks, there appears to be no end to the protectionist policies of the Washington State legislature? With the Senate passing the Distracted Driving Bill (5656) and the House passing Liz Pike’s “Student Driver” Bill 1159, the 2015 Washington State Legislative session is no exception. Will the day ever come when our elected officials fail to find and pass unnecessary legislation? Next year, we should expect to see bills ranging from the requirement of senior citizens to be forced to display decal warnings on their automobiles to a distracted driver law regarding the application of makeup or other personal hygiene while driving.

Typically my focus on organized labor has to do with public-sector unions , their lack of transparency , and forced dues as a condition of employment. Private-sector unions rarely appear on my radar, but I take exception to the latest outrage in my hometown. Joint Base Lewis McCord’s 555th Engineer Brigade worked with the city of Olympia to find a building to demolish for training purposes. There are plenty of old eyesores in Olympia, so a suitable candidate for demolition wasn’t a problem. A building on the contentious Isthmus, a skinny stretch of land separating Capital Lake and the base of Puget Sound, was chosen. JBLM was excited to work with the city of Olympia to get on-the-ground training for overseas missions. Meanwhile, the city, which struggles to keep revenue above spending , was happy to have JBML donate its services. The money isn’t there to clean up Olympia, and bringing down all the buildings is expensive, so any help we can get is welcomed and needed. To the ...

By Matthew Hayward Under current law, Washington’s governor can engage in secret, closed-door contract negotiations with more than 25 unions whose impact on taxpayers equals hundreds of millions of dollars in taxpayer expenses. The problem is these same unions contributed to the governor’s campaign to $5.8 million dollars. There is clearly a conflict of interest in allowing elected officials to negotiate how to spend tax dollars with their campaign contributors, especially during secret meetings. Notwithstanding the fact our current governor promised salary increases even before negotiations ever started, what kind of negotiating is that? In 2002 , a law passed under Gov. Gary Locke that exempts state negotiating sessions from the Open Public Meetings Act. This means state-level collective bargaining is not required to be done in public. On the other hand, nothing is saying they couldn't be. It’s time to turn on the cameras and microphones and hold our representative...