If jobs are the oxygen that fuels a nation’s economy, then politicians with their heavy-handed regulations, unions and high taxes, are the serial killers that strangle the creators of those jobs.

Right now, America is at a pitchfork moment. With millions unemployed and the numbers getting worse, not better, political leaders are beginning to smell the acrid odor and see the glow of the torches.  With the November 2nd mid-term elections looming, the steady steps of a torch and pitchfork-wielding populace get louder and louder as unions try to rally their members to prevent a complete meltdown at the polls.

For nearly two years, union bosses and their political puppets have been doing all they can to change America “forever“ into a nation modeled after a European-socialist utopia.  As a result,  businesses have been sitting on nearly $2 trillion that is not going towards job creation.  The explanation is fairly simple.  Businesses have a natural aversion to risk.  In this case, job creators’ risk aversion is caused by the political uncertainty of an anti-business, Democrat-controlled ruling class in Washington, D.C. and in certain states.

In addition to DC Democrats’ really bad, job-killing ideas like ObamaCare, Cap & Tax, the horrifically-misnamed Employee Free Choice Act, the budget-busting bailouts and numerous other job-killing ideas at the federal level, states also have a hand in helping to cripple or kill job creators.

Take, for example, Washington state, which is one of the Left Coast Triplets (California, Oregon and Washington) that has been so badly overrun by high taxes, union-bought politicians and other job-killing infestations that many employers large and small are looking for the fastest exit.  Yet, the political ruling class in those states choose to ignore reality and opt instead to pretend that everyone else but themselves are to blame when the jobless numbers stay high.

On November 2nd, voters in the state of Washington have the chance to handcuff some of the serial job-killers that are strangling job creation in that state.  Here’s how they can do it [repeat here: Yes, We Can!]:

• Unelect Patti Murray (D). Murray is one of the union bosses’ favorite senators. Murray supported ObamaCare, as well as continues supporting the job-destroying Employee Free Choice Act (aka “card-check”).  Murray’s opponent, Dino Rossi is a businessman who seems to know a little lot more about the hard work of creating jobs than career politician Murray.
• Defeat the SEIU Tax on Income initiative, I-1098. Last week, the Purple People Beaters’ union, the SEIU, funneled another $500,000 from its DC HQ to push its job-killing income tax measure in Washington.  [Higher taxes = More state workers = More SEIU dues = Vicious circle.]  While the SEIU has Bill Gates’ dad endorsing it (who doesn’t need his son’s money that much longer anyway), the former governor of Washington, Dan Evans, is strongly against the SEIU tax.
• End the union-supported, state-run monopoly on workers’ compensation by voting for I-1082. The state of Washington is one of four states in the nation that has its workers’ compensation system run by a government monopoly (called the Dept. of Labor & Industry).  According to the Seattle Times:

INITIATIVE 1082, which would open up workers’ compensation insurance to private competition, is heartily endorsed. This business-backed initiative would modernize workers’ comp, making Washington more attractive for expanding a business and creating jobs.

Employers will still be required to cover workers. I-1082 changes where they can buy coverage.

Now, large employers can self-insure, and most do. Smaller employers, singly or in groups, are required to buy coverage from the Department of Labor and Industries. L&I is a state monopoly — and is subject to long-standing complaints that it charges too much and its service is bad.

The most telling complaint is that the state does too little to get injured workers back on the job, and allows too many to give up and take lifetime pensions for total disability.

According to the pro-I-1082 website SaveOurJobsWA, Washington state has the second highest workers’ compensation rates in the nation and is heading for insolvency.  Obviously, there’s a lot of money being thrown out by the unions and trial lawyers to try to defeat open competition [PDF].

What’s even more fiendish is the fact that the entrenched bureaucrats at the state’s L&I appear to be hiding a large rate increase until after the November election.

This video, put together by the SaveOurJobsWA folks, seems to sum up the entire problem with the L&I monopoly.

You don’t have to be a small business owner (or an investor) to know that, when you strangle the job creators with excessive taxes, union-imposed regulations and state-run monopolies, there will be a correspondingly high amount of unemployment.

On November 2nd, Washington voters have a chance to put the serial job-killers away.  All they need to do is Get Out the Vote.

Cross-posted.

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“I bring reason to your ears, and, in language as plain as ABC, hold up truth to your eyes.”  Thomas Paine, December 23, 1776

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