Fact Check

Fact Check: The Truth About Senator Eric Oemig

While we don’t claim to be unbiased, we are more qualified than anyone else to tell you the real facts about Senator Oemig.  If you arrived here wondering about some of the more bizarre claims you’ve heard about Senator Oemig, here are some facts to set the record straight.

Claim: Senator Oemig’s head explodes when he recites the pledge of allegiance.

Facts: Senator Oemig recently recited the pledge of allegiance at the Kirkland Rotary and his body remained intact (no spinning head either). Legislators routinely observe him recite the pledge on the Senate floor, including the phrase “Under God,” and to date no reports have been made of exploding heads or bodies bursting into flames.

Claim: Senator Oemig thinks Rossi is to blame for our budget woes.

Fact: While Rossi may think Rossi is, Senator Oemig does not. Senator Oemig has remarked how bad the Rossi budget was in the last economic downturn. Rossi increased class sizes, cut kids off healthcare, and taxed seniors. Senator Oemig prefers his own solution of limiting cuts to education, keeping needy kids on healthcare and closing loopholes that give out of state companies an unfair advantage.

Claim: Senator Oemig looks to the national party for his walking instructions.

Fact: Senator Oemig marches to his own drummer. Just ask many of his colleagues, Congressmen, and members of the Obama administration, who have gotten an earful from Senator Oemig on issues ranging from education, to unfunded mandates, to two wars, and to states’ rights.

Claim: Senator Oemig voted against the will of the people.

Fact: Some of the people passed a whole bunch of unfunded mandates for the state and some more of the people passed a bunch of initiatives directing the state not to pay for those unfunded mandates.  Senator Oemig forged a compromise to reunite the dueling directives of the people. Anyone who claims they can finance unfunded mandates that give automatic pay increases in this economy is math challenged, ignorant, and/or lying to you.

Claim: Senator Oemig is a witch.

Fact: Actually, nobody made that claim. That was Christine O’Donnell.

Claim: Senator Oemig dumbed down math requirements.

Fact: x = [-b +-  sqrt(b^2 - 4ac)] / 2a

Claim: The Seattle Times endorsed Senator Oemig’s opponent.

Facts: Actually that one is correct. However, they failed to disclose they came begging the legislature for a special tax exemption and Senator Oemig was one of the few who voted against it (because there were no performance requirements to earn it). Senator Oemig is endorsed by the Seattle PI.com and child, education, environment, and community advocates.

Claim: Senator Oemig cut education funding.

Facts: By every measure, education funding increased under Senator Oemig: per pupil, in total dollars, and as a percentage of the budget.

Claim: Senator Oemig is a big spender.

Fact: Senator Oemig is a skinflint. He reused his campaign signs from four years ago to save money. He gets angry every time some special interest group comes to Olympia looking for a special exemption or hand out with no proposal for how their plan will save taxpayers money in the long run. Those expensive flyers you’ve been getting from “People for Jobs”: they’re actually from out-of-state corporations, among others. They hate Senator Oemig because he fights for local small businesses and families.

Claim: Senator Oemig does not wear American Flag lapel pins.

Fact: Senator Oemig loves his country, is deeply patriotic, and supports the troops.  Sometimes he does not wear either of his two flag lapel pins, but he means no disrespect. He is just as likely to not be wearing socks on those days.

Claim:  Eric Oemig caused the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

Fact:  Seriously people.  Do we even have to respond to this one?  At this point the claims are getting a wee bit desperate.  But here goes in case you are still dying to know the facts:  Senator Oemig partially supports his ability to serve the public, including improving the environment, by owning a few shares in oil companies, among other stocks.  Both the Sierra Club and Washington League of Conservation voters rate Senator Oemig as 100% pro environment based on his record.  Senator Oemig likes the irony of the bad guys helping make his public service possible.  Just like he thinks they should pay a pollution tax to cover cleaning up their messes.  The bad guys don’t like it so much—they are busy writing large checks to his opponent Andy Hill.  Is Andy Hill going to just say no when they ask him to gut environmental regulations?  We know Senator Oemig just says no and then sticks it to the man for good measure.