Why it matters.

"What difference does it make, they're all crooks."

You know you've heard it. Or...

"Those Democrats, they're just sellouts. Can't tell the difference at all."

You've heard that, too, haven't you?

Here's what difference it makes. If the Republicans controlled the Washington Legislature and Governor's Mansion, here's some of what would be coming down the legislative pike, according to Olympia Watch...

SB 5905: To allow immediate eviction of tenants committing crimes or "unlawful civil disruptions."

SB 5821: Requiring that girls under 18 notify a parent before getting an abortion, except in a medical emergency.

SB 5747: Freezing the minimum wage during bad economic times.

And the real corker, SB 5078, canceling all voter registrations and requiring re-registration by 2007.

There's an agenda, for you. Anti-tenant. Check. Anti-choice. Check. Anti-low income worker. Check. Anti-every damn registered voter in the entire state? Check.

Happily, our Democratic leaders in Olympia have seen that those items were assigned to an appropriately cylindrical file, but we've got to remember to make them run on the kind of stuff they actually try to do.