Death Threat? Baloney

Now that some of the state’s pundits and politicians have finished rounding up the usual outrage over Sen. Jim West’s verbal shot at a notorious lobbyist, let us attempt to put this little tempest into a teapot, where it belongs.

The Building Industry Association of Washington, fined last month for violating campaign finance laws, angered West with an ad it placed in the March 4 Spokesman-Review. The ad urged readers to put pressure on West for not supporting a couple of bills that purportedly would benefit school children. The ad neglected to mention that the bills would cost taxpayers $70 million and would benefit the building industry to the tune of $20 million.

West, a reliable supporter of business including the BIAW’s business, viewed this bill as a bad deal for taxpayers. Indignant about the ad, he sent BIAW moguls a few e-mails calling them “stupid.” And, he snarled into BIAW voicemail that its top lobbyist, Tom McCabe, was “dead.”

Were West’s remarks juvenile? Yes. Did they hand a box of rotten tomatoes to his political foes? Yes. Did he learn the hard way the need to use voicemail and e-mail with care? We hope so.

The capital city’s constables were duty bound to investigate, but it would be absurd to bring charges. In a town where “dead” is political parlance for “toast,” there is no way West intended a real death threat.

Olympia has been witness since statehood to end-of-session hostage-takings, frauds, backstabbings, ambushes, rip-offs, shell games and ostentatious partisan screams. No one bleeds or dies, but plenty of schemes do. It’s how our society wages the war of ideas - peacefully.

Players who daintily denounce the battle are just sneakier at hiding their daggers.

McCabe, according to a spokesman for Gov. Gary Locke, has a reputation for “take no prisoners” aggressiveness. And West has a passionate temper.

So, here’s the story: A senator blew his stack and snarled at a lobbyist, who deserved it. We are shocked, shocked.

, DataTimes The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = John Webster/For the editorial board