Spokane lawmaker gets free pass on press-bashing. Why?

Let’s start with the moral of the story and work our way back: Words have consequences, or at least they should.

When Washington state Rep. Matt Shea, R-Spokane Valley, stood in front of a crowd last Saturday and lambasted the media, calling them, “dirty, godless, hateful people,” we immediately saw it for what it was: a watershed moment for House Republicans to stand up and repudiate such remarks.

We called state Rep. J.T. Wilcox for a response. Surely the highest-ranking minority member would have some choice words on Shea’s verbal attack. Surely Wilcox would no longer support Shea’s appointment to a new state task force that’s supposed to affirm the public’s interest in open government and a free press.

But the Yelm Republican shrugged it off, saying, “We both had different experiences with the media.”

Wilcox then referred us to a social media post he’d written hours after Shea’s outburst – though Wilcox says the post had nothing to do with Shea’s tirade. On Facebook, Wilcox narrates his own mostly congenial relationship with the press, saying, “I’ve learned a great deal from them.”

We can praise him for his healthy perspective on the role of the Fourth Estate, but his condemnation for someone who doesn’t respect it is nowhere to be found. And that’s worrisome.

No doubt Shea’s poisonous insults got more than a few cheers from the Spokane pro-gun rally that called itself “Liberty or Death.” Nothing riles up a crowd in person or on social media than dissing the press. Don’t like the message coming from the news? Then shoot the messenger.

By not condemning Shea’s words outright, Wilcox offers no reassurance these and similar attacks will stop, or at least have consequences. But House Republicans still have a chance to affect the culture for the better, and they can start by asking Shea to step down from a state task force on public records.

Yeah, that’s right. A guy who makes his distrust of the press no secret — a man known for blocking journalists on social media — which various courts have found a violation of the First Amendment in some circumstances — was appointed to a 15-member task force of lawmakers, media, open government and public advocates, tasked with reviewing how the Legislature should maintain and disclose public records.

It’s akin to asking a flat-earther to join a navigation team. How can Shea possibly be helpful to a group that’s supposed to be about collaboration and common ground?

The task force, announced in March after the Legislature’s reckless attempt to exempt itself from state Public Records Law, is off to a shaky start. Slow to get going, the group’s first official meeting is finally set for Sept. 5, and the outline of topics clearly suggests a continued misguided interest in withholding public records.

But including Shea as one of eight lawmakers on the task force is a real credibility burner. Wilcox says he hasn’t lost confidence in Shea. “He’s an attorney,” Wilcox said. “He’ll represent the caucus, not himself.”

That may be true, but Shea’s all-out assault on the free-press should disqualify him. Replacing him would send a message that “radical rhetoric” has no place on this important government task force, as Gov. Jay Inslee said via Twitter on Tuesday.

While they’re at it, how about replacing him with one of the 21 legislators who actually voted against that terrible bill last session -- perhaps one of the eight lawmakers from Pierce County who wisely rejected Senate Bill 6617.

The four pillars of a functional government — a legislature, an executive, a judiciary and, yes, a free press — work together like a compass. Compromise one, and lose all direction.

This story was originally published August 22, 2018 at 1:30 PM.