January 12, 2024

NEWSLETTER: Hitting the ground running on key issues this legislative session

  Friends and Neighbors, WEEKLY VIDEO UPDATE The first week of session was busy and I have several things to share with you. First, take a few minutes to watch my weekly video update. LEGISLATIVE PREVIEWS Every year, the week before session starts, the leaders of the four caucuses participate...
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January 10, 2024

State-run detention centers like Green Hill School need security-protocol overhaul

Governor needs to be accountable, stop minimizing problems   OLYMPIA…Senate Republican Leader John Braun, R-Centralia, and Centralia Chief of Police Stacy Denham are disputing the governor’s recent claim that security protocols at Green Hill School, the state-run maximum-security detention facility in Chehalis, are “improved.” They provided the following statement in...
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January 08, 2024

Braun: Interstate 5 an unsafe, unreasonable protest venue

Blocking major highway through Seattle a matter of life or death for some   OLYMPIA…Senate Republican Leader John Braun, R-Centralia, made the following comments about this weekend’s anti-Israel, traffic-blocking protest across Interstate 5 through Seattle. “People have the right to peaceably protest, but they don’t have the right to put...
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January 08, 2024

NEWSLETTER: Session begins TODAY — you can testify in support of my bills — learn how

Friends and Neighbors, Today marks the beginning of the 2024 Legislative Session. We operate on a biennial schedule, so this is the “short” year. This means we meet for 60 days, during which time we are tasked with making minor adjustments to the biennial state budget adopted in 2023 rather...
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January 08, 2024

Governor continues to scapegoat others for his false claims about carbon tax effect on gas prices

OLYMPIA…Senate Republican Leader John Braun, R-Centralia, today responded to public comments recently made by Gov. Jay Inslee that attempt to divert attention from evidence in a Washington Policy Center blog showing the governor knew it was false to claim his “cap-and-trade” tax on carbon-dioxide emissions would not increase gas prices,...
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December 20, 2023

Braun bill aimed at getting chronically absent students to re-engage with classes, resume path to graduation

OLYMPIA… Chronic absenteeism is among the major obstacles preventing Washington children from recovering from pandemic-related learning loss. Senate Republican Leader John Braun, R-Centralia, has introduced legislation to help school administrators, teachers and parents get students to show up to school and take part in class. Senate Bill 5850 would provide...
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December 15, 2023

Poor awareness, rise in antisemitism necessitates more education about Jewish Holocaust of WWII

Bipartisan bill would make K-12 curriculum Nazi genocide of Jews mandatory   OLYMPIA…Senate Republican Leader John Braun, R-Centralia, and Sen. Jesse Salomon, D-Shoreline, pre-filed a bill today (Senate Bill 5851) for the 2024 legislative session that would make it mandatory for Washington’s K-12 public schools to teach the Jewish Holocaust...
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December 06, 2023

NEWSLETTER: Chronic absenteeism — Kids can’t learn if they keep skipping class

Friends and Neighbors, This will be my final e-newsletter for 2023. You will receive my next one during the first week of January, so I want to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. The 2024 Legislative Session begins Monday, Jan. 8. It will end Thursday,...
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December 01, 2023

NEWSLETTER: Did Inslee’s OFM and WSDOT pressure staffer to lie about expected gas price increases?

Several of my e-newsletters have highlighted news about the governor’s cap-and-trade program that would be more appropriately titled “cap-and-tax.” This is the policy that has resulted in a 50-cent increase to a gallon of gas — an increase that could climb much higher. As I shared before, the governor was...
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