Tony Bennett’s sharp fall from small-town hero to public enemy No. 1 in Pullman is not terribly surprising. The real surprise is that Gov. Chris Gregoire has remained relatively unscathed by WSU despite continually stiffing public education. Though Gregoire is far better than the alternative we were presented with in November, she is beginning to look less and less like a Democrat each day.

Gregoire has trapped herself with her campaign promise not to raise taxes. It was a misguided promise that appears more and more impossible each day. Her newest proposal, the tuition surcharge, is blatantly a tax raise to public college students across the state.

Taxes are no fun, but all governments require a tax and spend system. If a government doesn’t tax its citizens, it cannot provide any services. Party politics aside, a minimal amount of government services are desired by all: a police force, a military, firemen, schools, roads and so on. The tax debate is about answering the question, “Who pays how much?” The students are paying their share. The estimated cost of tuition for for an out-of-state student for the 2008-09 year is $17,756 and for an in-state student it is $6,720. These costs are capped at a increase of 7 percent per year. Students are struggling to pay for college as is, and the surcharge to tuition will only increase the burden.

It’s not as if we are going to get anything extra in return for our money. We are actually going to get less. The state Senate proposed a cut of 20 percent for higher education. Paying more for less isn’t exactly what I had in mind when I decided to stay in-state.

Gregoire justified the surcharge March 17 with blatant hyperbole stating, “I do not want to close the door to students at this critical time. I want to keep those doors open.” Gregoire creates a false dilemma between her new surcharge tax and the closing down of every single public university in Washington. There are plenty of ways to balance the budget, and this surcharge is the wrong one.

Barack Obama is certainly a progressive leader for college students. He has already proposed a increase in government grants and a new federal tax credit for students. Gregoire campaigned with stickers saying “Obama/Gregoire” and handed out literature with quotations from Obama calling her a “progressive leader.” Gregoire’s hope that the costs of her new surcharge will be offset by Obama’s aid to students is just too ironic. Gregoire’s attempt at progressive leadership is essentially canceling out Obama’s increased aid for students.

I get it. Gregoire is a Democrat, and Democrats run the show in Washington, which is great. What’s not so great is when a so-called progressive begins acting like a DINO: Democrat In Name Only. That’s when members of both parties need to take the gloves off and begin fighting back. A large reason Democrats dominated in 2008 was their overwhelming majority with 18 to 29-year-olds, the youth vote. If Democrats forget who put them in office, they may soon find themselves out of a job.

All our lives, we are told that to make something of ourselves we must invest in our future by going to college. These words seem to be a bit hollow when our government keeps raising the cost of our investment.

Tony Bennett may be a deserter, but it appears more and more that Gregoire is even worse: a traitor. She has betrayed her commitment to progressive values and betrayed college students across the state.