Ronald Reagan once famously and accurately said that the nine most terrifying words in the English language are "I'm from the government and I'm here to help." That is even more true when it comes to "progressive" politicians and their grand plans for the blue cities they run, and that includes Seattle.
About five years ago, Seattle Dems had more utopian plans:
Seattle’s City Council has approved a new tax for the city’s biggest businesses and their highest earners, such as Amazon .
Called the “JumpStart Seattle” tax, the bill passed late Monday on a 7-2 vote and is expected to go into effect in 2021. Money from the tax will initially be used to fund coronavirus relief but will eventually go toward addressing housing and homelessness in Seattle.
Under the measure, businesses with at least $7 million in annual payroll expenses will be taxed 0.7% to 2.4% on the amount they pay Seattle-based employees, with tiers based on individual salary amounts above $150,000. The highest bracket targets companies like Amazon with annual payroll expenses above $1 billion. Those companies will be taxed 2.4% for employees making more than $400,000.
A couple of years before that, the Seattle City Council passed a separate plan that would ostensibly "fund more affordable housing and fight homelessness":
Amidst signs that read “Tax Amazon” and chants of “housing is a human right” the Seattle City Council voted unanimously Monday to impose a controversial tax on the city’s largest companies to fund more affordable housing and fight homelessness. The bill has become a thermometer for how cities interact with mega-corporations, after Amazon halted construction of a new office building pending the outcome of the vote.
“High-cost cities all over the country are looking toward Seattle,” Councilmember Lisa Herbold said before the final vote.
If other cities are looking at Dem-run Seattle, it should only be as an example of what not to do.
Do these "progressives" ever get tired of being so predictable?
— Rothmus 🏴 (@Rothmus) July 14, 2025
Yes indeed, another great success:
Completely unpredictable!
— AG (@AGHamilton29) July 14, 2025
2020 shot: Seattle passes "Amazon" payroll tax aimed at punishing large companies
2025 Chaser: Payroll tax revenue plummets as companies leave the city.
(h/t @Rothmus) pic.twitter.com/ZkYj6nQRTt
Who could have ever possibly seen this coming?
Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell released his payroll expense tax (PET) report for 2024 Tuesday, and its projections came up nearly $50 million short.
“Today’s announcement that PET revenues collected in 2024 were $47 million lower than projected requires action to ensure our budget remains balanced,” Harrell explained in a statement.
Lefty politicians never take the "effect" part of "cause and effect" into consideration, much like they don't think about what the FO might be before they FA.
Well, golly gee, would you look at that! https://t.co/pVG4VBxvxA
— Guy Benson (@guypbenson) July 14, 2025
What's even more insane is that they'll fix it by doubling down on the lunacy.
It does not even occur to them that Amazon could afford to move.
— Minam the Dwarf (@MinamtheD) July 15, 2025
They just did not see that one coming.
The story from a few months ago about Seattle's revenue shortfall concludes this way:
Newsradio Political Analyst Matt Markovich says the revenue drop is “concerning,” but notes that the $47 million can be made up in the next budget cycle.
We'll see, but for some reason I'm guessing the "solution" will be another prog plan that'll make it even worse.
