SEATTLE, Wash. -- Former Washington state Republican Party Chair Chris Vance launches his campaign for U.S. Senate Tuesday, challenging four-term incumbent Patty Murray for her seat in 2016.
"We are less than 30 days from another government shutdown. In a nutshell that's why I'm running for the U.S. Senate," Vance told KING 5. "The partisan gridlock in Washington D.C. is nothing short of a national disgrace."
Vance says he will run on a platform of bipartisanship and working across the aisle to tackle issues including the rising national debt and immigration.
"I've spent the past several years writing about these problems, talking about them in the media. I've decided to try and do something about it and, after 24 years in the Senate, Patty Murray is part of the problem," said Vance.
"It would be wrong to blame this entire mess on her but it would be equally wrong to say she's not part of the problem," Vance said.
The state Democratic Party fired back with a statement calling Vance's strategy "bizarre and out of touch."
"Vance's plan is to try and fool voters into thinking Patty Murray, the Senator who crafted the only bi-partisan budget deal in the last two years, who worked with Republicans on a workforce bill, a bi-partisan No Child Left Behind fix, and more—who even Republicans have called 'an honest broker', a 'straight shooter' and an 'incredibly skilled lawmaker'—is actually, in fact, a partisan," wrote Democratic Party spokesman Jamal Raad in a statement.
In a 2010 article, Vance was quoted as calling Murray a "lawmaker's lawmaker…who works quietly behind the scenes," according a McClatchy DC article.
However, Vance now argues Murray is contributing to the partisan gridlock in D.C. and he criticized the 2013 Murray-Ryan Budget.
"All it did was keep the government open and kick the can forward while the debt continued to rise," said Vance.
Vance says he wants a return to the Simpson-Bowles framework, named for the chairs of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform. The commission was created by President Obama in 2010. The draft proposal included reforms to Social Security and the tax code.
"My highest priority is getting the debt under control. The debt is crushing the life out of our economy," said Vance.
He named healthcare and immigration as other top issues requiring immediate attention.
"I believe we have to have better border security. We have to have a path to legality for those who are already here. We need to have a better visa system and we need a coherent guest worker program. If that sounds familiar all elements of bipartisan 2013 senate plan that passed and died in the House," said Vance.
Vance also said he wants to change the rules in the Senate to eliminate procedural tools which increase partisanship.
"Only in the United States senate can one member stop everything from happening. The filibuster is ridiculous. It's not in the constitution. It only exists in the rules of the Senate and I'm going to work to try and convince fellow senators to change the rules of the Senate to operate like any other parliamentary body," said Vance.
Vance, who has his own consulting firm and serves as an adjunct lecturer at University of Washington's Evans School, also serves as an advisor to State Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn. He served as chair of the Republican Party in Washington from 2001-06. Prior to the position, he served as a King County Council member and a state representative in the early 90s.
"I haven't run for office in 15 years. The reason I'm taking on this challenge is I'm worried about America," said Vance.
While the influential D.C. publication Roll Call called the 2016 Washington Senate race "safe Democrat," according to a Rothenberg & Gonzales Political Report earlier in the summer, the State Democratic Party is already gearing up for a war of words.
"I am looking forward to working with you over the next 14 months to highlight to Washington voters Chris Vance's real record of poisonous partisanship, extremism and George Bush idolatry," spokesman Jamal Raad said in an email to media.
"I am just going to focus on running my campaign and telling the truth to the voters of the state of Washington about bringing Republicans and Democrats together to solve major problems and I'm confident voters will be receptive to that message," Vance said responding to the criticism.
Murray is seeking her fifth term in office in next year's election.
