Editor,

When looking at the Saturday Whidbey News-Times, I noticed a couple of things. Letters criticizing Republicans for holding outdoor meetings without masks or distancing.

What about all the riots, so-called peaceful protests, without complaining about the same thing. Gov. Jay Inslee has ignored the U.S. and Washington state constitutions with his “kingly” edicts. He had 30 days for emergency powers which ran out in May.

Still, he has caused numerous small businesses to close their doors forever. He put restrictions on religious gathering, which is against the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. It amazes me that people are so fast to jump on the mandatory restrictions, when in a trial earlier this year the judge tossed the case because Governor Inslee said he never intended to prosecute those violating his edicts.

This is all over a virus that has a 98 percent recovery rate nationwide according to the CDC. Along with that, why all the rush to have to get flu shots. If the masks were good enough to protect from one virus, why not another of the same type?

The flu vaccination is a hit or miss on what the CDC thinks will be the prevalent virus for the particular year.

The second was the praise of Helen Price Johnson. She was not a great in any of her other elected positions. She is a progressive liberal from the get-go. She stood for increased taxes and more control by the government over our lives. In her statement in this paper she said she wanted to increase taxes on the rich, which causes prices for everything to go up, and included the unconstitutional capital gains tax, a type of income tax which is against the Washington state constitution.

Why anyone would vote for her if they like a smaller, more responsive government and taxes to be lowered I do not know.

This election the need is to replace the Democrats that have given us a 72 percent increase in the time Inslee has been governor. Vote for Republicans for a government that is a return to a government that listens to the voters. Not like passing a sex education bill that the citizens had already rejected at the last minute of the session.

Joseph Moreland

Oak Harbor