Wowwie. I just got this e-mail from two people, both with comments that amounted to: "Huh?"
Sen. Pam Roach sent this out, and I have added emphasis and/or side comments where I see fit:
Subject: Senate Republicans attack their own
The Washington State Senate Republican leadership that has watched its numbers drop to near historical lows and has no substantive input regarding the issues confronting the people of Washington, have now chosen to attack members of their own caucus to stifle the growing unrest of failed leadership.
Senator Pam Roach (R-Auburn) who missed being elected Minority Leader by one vote last year is the first member to be targeted under this campaign to muzzle critics. Senator Roach, the only State Senator re-elected from King County in the 2006 Democratic landslide has been pointing out the failure of Senate Republican Leadership to put together a cohesive and worthy platform from which to recruit and fund viable candidates and recover from the historical losses of 2006.
Let me just pause to make this clear: This message attacking Senate leadership was sent out because Roach feels like she's been attacked. I think.
"Our leadership is a disaster. We offer no plan for regaining the majority, we have no money to support viable candidates and now we attack our own," said Roach.
Roach has been accused of speaking critically of leadership around staff.
Apparently that wasn't a large enough forum. Keep reading. Trust me.
Minority Leader Mike Hewitt (R-Walla Walla) has verbally abused members in caucus, and has bent and exposed his backside to a female senator while screaming at her during a caucus meeting.
"He is a desperate man with personal problems," said Roach.
"Mike Hewitt has failed the Republicans on all fronts. Our leadership is drowning and like those who drown they are lashing out at and pulling down those who may be able to save them. Hewitt's personal issues and unprofessional conduct will drop us even further into the abyss of becoming a meaningless entity."
"Five years ago, Hewitt joined then leader Jim West, in attacking me fearing I would go public with questionable e-mails that were uncovered. They fired my aide who discovered and reported them, then Hewitt joined West in a campaign to silence me with smear and intimidation tactics."
Roach was exonerated.
"Now Hewitt, with his own closet full of skeletons, is resorting to the same tactics of intimidation and harassment," said Roach.
"I will not sit back and have my rights under the Constitution, the laws of the State of Washington and the Rules of the Senate be violated by this 'leader'."
"I will protect those rights and my rights as an individual in the appropriate forum. The people of Washington will have exposed to them the sad state of affairs that the Senate Republican Caucus is in due to the incompetence of our current leaders.