Our moment is over. But it was good while it lasted. Credit: RS
Our moment is over. But it was good while it lasted.
Our moment is over. But it was good while it lasted. RS

The morning after he folded up his presidential campaign on Rachel Maddow’s show and went home, Jay Inslee, as planned, launched his third bid for governor in an e-mail to supporters.

In a short thinkin’-on-it piece predicting this outcome, I argued that the press release would write itself. I got pretty close.

Here’s what I wrote:

“I might be giving up my campaign for president,” Inslee would say, “but I’m not giving up my campaign for the planet, or my commitment to the people of Washington State. Together, we will transform Washington into an emerald Narnia, and—just like we did with gay marriage and the fight for a $15 minimum wage—we’ll set an example for the rest of the country to follow. In fact, if you think about it, if every other state follows our lead, and if we call a collection of those states ‘the United States,’ then as governor of Washington, I’d basically become the president of the United States. Go Dawgs. And Cougs.”

And here’s what some communications staffer wrote:

We have provided the nation a road map for innovation, economic growth, and progressive action. And we’re not done yet.

I want to continue to stand with you in opposing Donald Trump and rejecting his hurtful and divisive agenda, while strengthening and enhancing Washington state’s role as a progressive beacon for the nation.

Which is why I’m announcing today my intention to run for a third term as Washington’s governor.

I’m excited to do so — because our great success as a state these last few years gives me confidence that we can continue to lead the nation in so many ways. Our multiple accomplishments have paved the way for much to come in the next term.

Kinda fun! I didn’t expect that someone would literally rephrase the same idea four separate times in four separate paragraphs right in a row, but I understand these things are written in duress.

Some writers are arguing that Inslee’s presidential run could have been the most important in the history of single-issue presidential campaigns, especially if it ends up influencing the next president’s climate policies.

While Inslee certainly elevated the discussion, I guess I’d only buy that argument if the next president takes up the issue in his or her first 100 days. As he said in his own case for president, though Inslee had the most robust climate policy of any of the other candidates, he was, perhaps more importantly, the only candidate promising to make fighting climate change priority No. 1. If the next president is a Democrat, I assume he or she will start his or her term by trying to pass major health care legislation, just like Clinton and Obama did. If the next president is a Republican, I assume we’ll just start burning down the Tongass National Forest.

Anyhow, Inslee’s announcement busts up the political game of Chutes and Ladders that Washington politicians have been playing over the course of the last several months. Attorney General Bob Ferguson, Lands Commissioner Hilary Franz, and King County Executive Dow Constantine made no secret of their intentions to run for governor. All those dreams died today.

In a statement, Ferguson confirmed that he’d continue to pursue another term as attorney general and threw his support behind Inslee, congratulating the governor for “promoting climate change as an urgent issue demanding immediate action.” Everyone lining up to run for AG—state solicitor general Noah Purcell, Seattle City Council member Lorena González, and state senator Manka Dhingra—will also fall back into their current roles.

Franz said she will “support his reelection for governor” and continue seeking reelection as commissioner of public lands, so no threat there.

With majorities in the senate and in the house, if elected again, Inslee will have the opportunity to sign more bills than ever. He could continue to work on climate change and let new leadership and fresh voices set the agenda on other issues. But, outside of fighting climate change, it’s unclear what his priorities will be. “We fully intend for Washington’s future to be every bit as dynamic, innovative, and inclusive as its past,” he writes in his pitch for a third term, picking three random words from a business-speak handbook and just tossing them in the air.

Rich Smith is The Stranger's former News Editor. He writes about politics, books, and performance. You can read his poems at www.richsmithpoetry.com