Dino Rossi Vs. The Democrats: WA-8 Race News Roundup May 7

WENATCHEE, WA - No doubt, the Cascades split Washington in half - politically, weather-wise, and of course in terms of college sports. Does that mean we need to separate the two sides and create a whole new 51st state?

State Rep. Matt Shea, R-Spokane, thinks this might be a good idea. He'd like a new state made up of everything east of the Cascades called "Liberty." Dino Rossi will appear at a dinner this Saturday featuring Shea speaking about the topic "Liberty, the 51st state."

The 8th Congressional District is the only one in the state that spans the Cascades, from liberal-infested Western Washington to the gun-totting cowboys out in Eastern Washington. If Liberty came to be, the 8th would be literally torn in half.

The dinner is the Douglas County Republican Party's 2018 Lincoln Day celebration. Lincoln Day is a spring fundraising holiday for Republican organizations. Rossi spoke at the Kittitas County GOP Lincoln Day Dinner on April 14

Here's what else happened this week in the 8th.

NY Times was here: The world's biggest and most famous newspaper wrote an article about the 8th last week, focusing on Boeing and a possible trade war with China over Donald Trump's tariffs. Dr. Kim Schrier was quoted in the piece, including when she asked Rossi if he had anything to say about the issue (nothing so far). We definitely erred in reading the article because Rossi was in there responding to Schrier's criticism:

“You really can’t get down to a trade war. In the end it will be very disruptive. Hopefully this is more posturing than anything," Rossi told the Times.

Read the whole Times article here.

Raising tax return stakes: Jason Rittereiser has asked Kim Schrier to release two years of tax returns. Schrier two weeks ago released her last tax return, but Rittereiser has released the past two years of his returns.

Endorsements?

Shannon Hader: United Steelworkers Local 310A; Wenatchee Aluminum Trades Council (an umbrella organization that reps the steelworkers, but also brick layers, electrical workers, and aerospace/machinists); 45th Legislative District Democrats (Kirkland, Woodinville, Sammamish); and Dr. Mark Rosenberg of the CDC's National Center for Injury Prevention.

Jason Rittereiser: The Washington Federation of State Employees, a union that represents about 42,000 state employees; the Washington Interior and Exterior Systems’ Local 41 carpenters' union.

Kim Schrier: ALSO the Washington Federation of State Employees, a union that represents about 42,000 state employees (a dual endorsement).

Upcoming WA-8 events

• Dino Rossi: Douglas County event with Matt Shea.
• Shannon Hader: Meet Shannon Hader in Ellensburg! May 8 360 Majestic Heights Dr, Ellensburg, WA 98926-8232, United States; Meet Shannon Hader in Wenatchee! Wednesday, 6:30 PM Wenatchee Public Library
• Jason Rittereiser: Phone banking, May 8, 10, 17, 22, 24 more information here.
• Kim Schrier: Coffee with Kim: Women's Healthcare, May 12, 2 PM

Tips? Questions? Email neal.mcnamara@patch.com.

Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly indicated that the upcoming King County Young Democrats endorsement meeting an event being held by Shannon Hader. Find more information on that event here.

Image via Washington Secretary of State