
	Chris Mulick has worked for the Herald since 1998 and has served as the statehouse correspondent covering state government and politics since 2000. He works year-round out of the Herald's Olympia bureau on the state Capitol campus. Have a question? Send Chris an e-mail and he'll answer the best questions regularly.

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Friday, Sep. 19, 2008

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Politics 101: Think before you grandstand

Every now and again reporters get a press release that is quickly followed by “corrected” versions of the press release. And you know what that makes us do — actually read the old press release.

True story. I once got a press release, two corrected versions and a retraction of the whole thing all within 25 minutes.

Yesterday Senate Republicans issued a statement from Sen. Joe Zarelli, R-Ridgefield, responding to the new revenue forecast and in the process may have impugned some motives. That’s a no-no in the Senate and a revised statement was issued three hours later.

For instance, here’s how one sentence read from the original.

“When it comes to budgeting I think most Washingtonians would prefer the Legislature and the governor to be conservative instead of liberal in spending their tax dollars.”

And here’s the revised version.

“When it comes to budgeting I think most Washingtonians would prefer the state to be conservative instead of liberal in spending their tax dollars.”

Here’s the old version of another statement.

“The governor has implemented a couple of ideas I suggested for putting the brakes on spending, although she didn’t go as far as she could have.”

And the revised version.

“A couple of months ago I suggested ideas for putting the brakes on spending. Although some were implemented, they didn’t go as far as I’d like.”

And once more. The old version...

“The taxpayers deserve to know now, not a month or two from now, how the chief executive officer of the state plans to turn things around.”

And the new version...

“The taxpayers deserve to know now, not a month or two from now, how the state plans to turn things around.”

Class dismissed.

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