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Rep. DeBolt re-elected House Republican Leader
Ericksen, Kristiansen, Buri, Schindler, Newhouse
and Strow also chosen for leadership team
House Republicans today re-elected
Rep. Richard DeBolt as their leader for the 2007-09 legislative term. DeBolt,
R-Chehalis, who was leader for the 2004 and 2006 sessions, said he
appreciates the renewed trust displayed by caucus members and is looking
forward to preparing the House Republican agenda for the upcoming
legislative session.
“The people of our state can have confidence that House Republicans will
continue to make sure the voices of families and employers and taxpayers
are heard in Olympia. It doesn’t matter how many members we have in the
House, we’re still the party with the ideas and ideals that appeal most
to Washingtonians, especially when it comes to being stewards of the
taxpayers’ money, limiting the burden of government regulations and
taxes, and keeping the size of government in check,” said DeBolt.
DeBolt was re-elected as House Republicans held their customary
reorganization following last week’s election of a new 98-member House
of Representatives.
"The House Democrats will have a comfortable majority in 2007 so our
caucus members know that we'll have to fight hard to make sure there’s
open debate and to arrive at sensible compromises in the course of
representing our constituents’ interests. They'll be counting on us to
raise questions and challenge assumptions on policy and spending
decisions,” DeBolt explained. "As a vocal minority it will be our
responsibility to ensure all citizens are represented by this
Legislature and governor that is under one-party rule."
“We'll also be proactive about offering constructive solutions to the
issues being addressed. And it’ll be interesting to see how the
Democrats balance the high expectations of their interest groups
stemming from the outcome of last week’s election with the realities of
governing, especially with regard to their respect for the taxpayers’
money.”
As leader, DeBolt is the chief spokesperson for the House Republican
caucus and works to develop and advance its agenda in collaboration with
other members of the Republican leadership team, as well as leaders from
the other three caucuses in the House and Senate. He will serve on the
Rules and Executive Rules committees, which select the bills that are
brought forward for House votes.
Also elected today were:
Deputy Republican Leader: Rep. Doug Ericksen, R-Ferndale, who
served as Republican Floor Leader the past two sessions. His job is to
assist DeBolt with developing policy, determining caucus priorities and
other duties.
Caucus Chair: Rep. Dan Kristiansen, R-Snohomish. The caucus
chairman’s duties include presiding over caucus meetings and determining
meeting agendas and times, working closely with Republican leaders on
committees, and communicating leadership proposals to caucus members.
Floor Leader: Rep. David Buri, R-Colfax. The floor leader’s role
includes developing plans for sessions in the House chamber, including
debate, and initiating or responding to majority party actions and
parliamentary actions, plus meeting with Republican prime sponsors of
bills and amendments.
Whip: Rep. Lynn Schindler, R-Otis Orchards. The whip’s job
includes maintaining party discipline during voting sessions in the
House chamber, and promoting attendance at committee meetings, caucus
meetings and floor sessions.
Assistant Floor Leaders: Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Sunnyside, will
return, to be joined by Rep. Chris Strow, R-Whidbey Island. They will
assist Buri with his floor leader duties.
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