A year after stepping down as minority leader of the House of Representatives, state Rep. J.T. Wilcox, R-Yelm, has announced plans to retire from the Legislature.
“By the end of this term, I will have spent 14 years serving in the Washington State House of Representatives,” Wilcox wrote in a letter to his fellow lawmakers Thursday. “That’s enough.”
First elected in 2010, Wilcox served as the House Republican floor leader for six years before serving as the Republican House leader for five years. In the announcement, Wilcox said Washington needs “a new generation to put our government back together.”
The decision to not seek reelection comes after he told The Chronicle last year he was “done with this bullsh-t” and said both sides of the aisle had resulted in “demonizing” one another instead of seeking accountability.
“You have a certain amount of capacity for watching people lie and avoid responsibility … I was heartsick,” Wilcox told The Chronicle last year. During the interview, Wilcox also said it was “time for a change” in leadership.
In his announcement Thursday, Wilcox offered a more modest assessment of the state’s government and praised younger lawmakers who have taken on expanded roles.
“Older members like Ed Orcutt and Joe Schmick are the most responsible people I’ve ever known,” Wilcox wrote. “New members like Kevin Waters, Stephanie Barnard, April Connors and Travis Couture are deeply committed to solutions for all of us, and willing to work with nearly anyone to help.”
Wilcox heralded his successor in leadership, Rep. Drew Stokesbary, R-Auburn, as “probably the most intelligent and talented person in the Capitol” and said he was “equally impressed” with Senate Minority Leader John Braun, R-Centralia.
The decision to retire after 14 years wasn’t easy, Wilcox wrote.
“I have mixed feelings about not running for reelection. The state is facing serious issues and I’ve never been a quitter,” Wilcox wrote. “The Legislature has become much too concerned about the origin of an idea rather than the quality of that idea.”
While he was often in the minority during his time in Olympia, Wilcox critiqued the “single-party thinking” that has “solidified into concrete" in recent years.
“I had confidence that leaders, though pursuing different policies, felt a deep commitment to the success of the things they passed and the best function of our state agencies,” Wilcox wrote. “It doesn’t feel exactly the same now.”
According to Wilcox, “Some political activists are more concerned about theatrics in politics and less concerned about results.”
While the performances can often score legislators political points, Wilcox said they “make it harder to really fix things.”
“The incentives line up with the ‘performance,’ not the results,” Wilcox said. “This is why the federal government is such a mess, and one of the reasons our state government is becoming less functional.”
With just over a week left in his final legislative session, Wilcox offered parting words for “whoever is interested in the opinion of a now-washed-up politician.”
“Government is full of good people who are capable of doing a good job. You don’t know the names of most of them,” Wilcox said. “They are dedicated staff lifers who are deeply committed to their nonpartisan approach of informing elected legislators, and they are the many elected Republicans and Democrats who don’t get featured in the media, don’t hunger for attention, and came to Olympia only to make Washington a better state. The system right now doesn’t give them as much influence as they deserve and need, but that will change.”
Wilcox offered some praise for the other side of the aisle, namely Reps. Larry Springer, Frank Chopp and Mike Chapman, and said as long as Democrats of that ilk are in the Legislature, “we will have people who can be partners in the coming reemergence of a government that works.”
