Governor Jay Inslee has finally commented on the possibility of a presidential run after staying relatively silent on the issue through months of speculation.
Speaking to POLITICO on Monday ahead of a second trip to Iowa this year, Inslee said he is "not ruling out" a 2020 presidential run.
"We'll have a good candidate in 2020. I'm not ruling out a run," Inslee told POLITICO. "I think our country needs a Democratic Party to produce a nominee who's going to really be committed to climate change and defeating climate change and creating a clean energy economic message and clean energy jobs. I think we'll need a candidate who will do that. Right now I'm trying to help everybody in 2018."
Inslee, a two-term Democratic governor and former congressman, is best known outside the state for his focus on climate issues and renewable energy, but lately, he's getting noticed for a different role: adversary to President Donald Trump.
Inslee has continually spoken out against Trump's administration, including the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh. Inslee said the Supreme Court nomination process will prove contentious in a number of gubernatorial races across the county.
“I just feel that walking down the street. People are outraged at their efforts to ram through this candidate who just from his own predilection is a threat to women’s rights on the Supreme Court,” Inslee told POLITICO. “I think it will have some impact on women and we’re going to see more women voting who cannot condone that type of behavior … That’s an added reason, emotional commitment to go vote.”
TV appearances and speeches in Iowa and Florida have only fueled the flames of speculation.
"He's certainly trying to build a national profile, what that translates into would be anyone's guess," said Caleb Heimlich, state GOP chairman.
On social media, state Republicans have criticized Inslee for the state's troubled mental health system — Washington's largest psychiatric hospital recently lost its federal certification — and have commented on his travels. In May, the party tweeted that Inslee was "spotted promoting himself 1,762 miles away in Iowa ... still missing from Washington State."
With concerns over the health risks of Washington's smoke-filled skies, Inslee recently promoted the carbon fee that will appear on the fall ballot.
The initiative by the Alliance for Jobs and Clean Energy was certified for the November ballot after organizers collected approximately 375,000 signatures. If approved by voters in the fall, a fee of $15 per ton of carbon emissions would be levied starting in 2020. The fee would increase by $2 per ton of emissions – and the rate of inflation – every year. The initial fee would raise the cost of gas by approximately 14 cents per gallon.
Seventy-percent of the revenue raised through the carbon fee would be invested in clean energy. The rest would be spent on preserving clean water, forests, and communities impacted by carbon pollution.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
