FORGED BY FIRE, CHALLENGER TIFFANY SMILEY TAKES ON A MEMBER OF THE RULING ELITE
Murray-Smiley Race For Washington’s Senate Seat-Part II
Dear Readers: While preparing for the Murray-Smiley senate debate, I began my research of both candidates. I had planned to write one article centered around their debate performances in Spokane on Sunday; but, Murray has a THIRTY-YEAR voting record and Smiley has never run for public office. Each deserved an article. Part One focuses on Senator Patty Murray and Part Two focuses on Novice Challenger Tiffany Smiley. You will find a link to the entire 10/23/22 debate at the end of each. Diane
At age 23 Tiffany Smiley found herself in a position no one wants to be in: her husband, Scotty, was severely injured in Iraq. Giving up her career dreams she spent years fighting with the Veterans Administration to ensure he got the medical care he needed. Mrs. Smiley is a remarkable woman. Mr. & Mrs. Smiley are a remarkable couple. You can read details of their struggles at the end of this article.
SMILEY FOUGHT VA SYSTEM & WON. WILL SHE FIGHT AS HARD AGAINST DC’S RULING ELITE?
Senate Challenger Tiffany Smiley, 38, focuses on “An Agenda Of Recovery And Reform” in six areas that are currently plaguing our nation and our people: economy, crime, homelessness, renewing trust in politicians & government, education, and energy & environment. If she is elected to represent Washington State in the US Senate Smiley promises to fight for Washingtonians as follows:
THE ECONOMY:
Smiley wants to permanently extend the 2017 tax cuts for the middle class, “paying for it” by permanently extending the cap on state and local tax (SALT) deductions. She will reduce the wasteful spending that has caused inflation and eliminate the giveaways that pay able-bodied workers more to stay at home than working.
Smiley will work to prevent the IRS from harassing American families and small businesses with Biden’s extra 87,000 agents. She will pursue free & fair trade agreements like USMCA that support almost a million Washington jobs and protect Washington workers, manufacturers and farmers from unfair trade practices.
It's "insane that Joe Biden and Patty Murray are sending a stadium full of IRS agents to force families making less than $75,000 to pay for someone else's law degree," Smiley said in a campaign ad.
Senator Murray has supported all Biden’s inflation-creating programs, and expressed little concern for financially struggling Americans during her debate.
CRIME & PUBLIC SAFETY:
Smiley promotes allowing law enforcement agencies to use federal grant dollars to pay hiring and retention bonuses to police officers. She wants to require local governments to fully fund their police departments BEFORE receiving any funding from the Department of Justice. Smiley also wants local governments who have defunded their police to be legally liable for personal and property damages. She believes in holding repeat offenders accountable by supporting prosecutors who prosecute recidivism.
Senator Murray voted to defund police. On June 11, 2020 she stood on the senate floor and talked of her support for the BLM/Antifa riots that were occurring throughout the nation, including in Seattle, WA. She stated “we need to re-imagine our nation’s approach to public safety.”
Smiley supports retention of Title 42 until REAL border security is achieved through physical barriers, increased manpower and technology. Recently, Smiley and several pediatricians visited the border to inspect conditions for children Biden separated from parents.
During the debate and during Biden’s tenure, Murray has pretended that the southern border is secure. Murray said she last went to the border during Trump’s presidency, and repeated the long debunked Democrat lie that he was putting kids in cages.
HOMELESSNESS:
Tiffany Smiley believes the most vulnerable among us need permanent housing and stability that helps them overcome their challenges while holding them accountable for their behavior. She wants residents to be given adequate opportunities for input before homeless shelters are placed in any neighborhood. We need to determine the most effective, proven programs that treat mental illness, break drug addiction, fight abusive relationships and provide job training & counseling BEFORE funds are distributed.
Smiley would ban taxpayer dollars from being spent on sanctuaries for drug users, and ensure patients with preexisting conditions are always protected from discrimination while fixing our broken health care system from the flaws of Obamacare.
RENEWING TRUST IN POLITICIANS & GOVERNMENT:
Term limits of 18 years or less are needed. Enacting term limits for Senators & Congressmen, because, according to Smiley, if a politician was elected before someone was born, they should not be on the ballot when that voter reaches voting age.
Smiley wants to revoke the annual salary for Members of Congress if they don’t pass a budget for that year. She says: “If every family at a kitchen table has to live within their means, so should government.” Smiley also wants to prohibit taxpayer funds from going to political campaigns.
EDUCATION:
The challenger would expand school choice to ensure low-income children equal access to a quality education, promote curriculum transparency to empower parents, and ban the teaching of divisive ideologies such as Critical Race Theory from elementary schools. Smiley wants to create and expand K-12 STEM education programs to ensure skills development for the future.
The federal government should not be forgiving student loans in a way that is unfair to those who have already paid off their debts, and forces electricians and plumbers pay for the loans of lawyers and doctors. Smiley also wants to end the stigma and discrimination against students of all ages who choose not to go to college by expanding trade apprenticeships, on-the-job training and skill certification.
Smiley believes teachers are not being paid enough. In Washington State the average teacher’s salary is $79,000. She would pay for the raises by reducing bureaucracy at the U.S. Department of Education where the average salary is $126,000.
On August 11, 2021, Murray voted in favor of using tax dollars to promote Marxist indoctrination in public schools, but no extra funds for much needed REAL education: S.Con.Res.14
During Murray’s three decades in the US Senate the quality of public school education has declined significantly.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT:
Smiley wants to expand American natural gas production and oil refining capacity to regain energy independence and reduce gas prices in the short term. She also wants to expand clean energy capacity, including reducing regulations for nuclear, wind and solar power to diversify our energy supply in the long term.
Smiley would block the removal of energy-producing infrastructure (which Democrats are pushing for), including the Snake River Dams, that produce clean hydropower energy for Washington consumers and provide a lifeline for Washington farmers. Half of Washington’s households receive their electricity from the dams, AND the state provides 27% of America’s total utility-scale hydroelectric generation.
Smiley also wants local input and guidance on management of forests on federal lands in order to prevent wildfires and restore natural habitat.
During Sunday’s debate Murray repeated tired talking points about global warming and provided no new ideas for improving energy production, other than diminishing Americans’ lifestyles as Biden is doing.
Tiffany Smiley’s Life Story:
Growing up on a farm in rural Washington, Tiffany Smiley’s life was like that of so many other children – happily heading to school each day, playing sports with her friends, and dreaming of one day becoming a nurse so she could help families in her community. When she married her high school sweetheart, Scotty Smiley, and achieved her goal of becoming a triage nurse, Tiffany thought she had realized her piece of the American Dream.
In April of 2005, Tiffany’s dreams changed in an instant. The phone rang, and moments later Tiffany knew that their lives had irrevocably changed forever. Tiffany learned Scotty, while serving America in Iraq, had been severely wounded by a suicide bomber, causing him to fall into a coma and permanently lose sight in both of his eyes. Upon hearing the news, Tiffany immediately booked a flight for Walter Reed Medical Center near Washington, D.C, to be by Scotty’s side. When Tiffany arrived, Scotty was still in trauma care, and she was informed that Scotty would never be able to serve his nation again in uniform. Tiffany was even asked to sign a document, right there on the spot, consenting to Scotty’s immediate discharge from the Army.
The U.S. Military learned about Tiffany’s strength, courage, and resolve that day when she promptly refused. Rather than simply going along with Army protocols and the federal bureaucrats who were insisting she immediately sign the paperwork, Tiffany fought for her husband, his dreams, and for the care she knew he had earned. Tiffany pushed aside her professional dreams to focus on nursing her husband back to health, and fighting to ensure that Scotty’s recovery would not be compromised by inefficient government bureaucracy. She was determined that he would never become just another number in the unreliable VA system. To this day, Tiffany and Scotty have made fighting to ensure every veteran gets the benefits and care they deserve one of their highest priorities.
The farm girl from rural Washington took on the federal government… and won. Tiffany not only made sure Scotty received the care he needed, but her relentless efforts allowed Scotty to demonstrate that his remarkable abilities greatly outweighed any disability he sustained. Scotty went on to serve as America’s first blind active-duty Army officer, breaking barriers for many who followed along the way. Scotty would also earn his MBA from Duke University and was described by Duke’s Legendary basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski as an American hero.
Today, Tiffany and Scotty are the proud parents of three young boys. Her passion for helping others continues unabated today, illustrated by her unwavering commitment to empowering people who face adversity and fighting for critical reforms that help America’s veterans. Tiffany uses her life’s trials and victories to inspire many like her, including those who have felt held down, held back, or pushed around by elected officials and government bureaucrats. Tiffany and Scotty travel across the country sharing their remarkable story to help others discover and harness their power to confront and overcome life’s unexpected challenges. Tiffany also works with women in business, helping them shatter barriers, and encouraging them to never let life’s challenges stop them from realizing their dreams and their full potential. Now, Tiffany Smiley is running for the United States Senate to take that same fight and optimistic spirit to help Washington families achieve their American Dreams. Tiffany believes that now, more than ever, Washingtonians need a voice to find solutions to their unique problems and end the partisan gridlock in Congress.