The scam being perpetrated on the voters of Washington in Initiative 1501 is no longer a local scandal.

For the second time in two days, a major international media player is calling out SEIU for trying to pull the wool over the public’s eyes. First it was the National Review, which published an article headlined, “In Washington State, Unions Advance a Ballot Measure to Keep Members in the Dark.”

Now comes a scathing editorial in this morning’s Wall Street Journal.

The newspaper’s editors pull no punches, giving the piece a headline that reads, “The SEIU’s Ballot Fraud: The union tries to hoodwink voters into protecting its dues.”

“Service Employees International Union (SEIU) is funding a ballot measure that advertises itself as the Seniors and Vulnerable Individuals’ Safety and Financial Crimes Prevention Act,” the editorial explains. “What the ballot measure would really do is prevent home-care workers from being informed that they have the right to opt out of the union.”

Zing.

Make no mistake, the word “fraud” has a specific, legal definition, and a cautious publication like the Wall Street Journal doesn’t throw accusations like that around lightly. The ballot title and verbiage most voters will depend on when filling out their ballots was a deliberate attempt to deceive, and it was approved by an attorney general who’s made no secret of his allegiance to SEIU and his contempt for the Freedom Foundation.

The ballot measure is just the latest evidence that SEIU is in full panic mode. Its leaders can read spreadsheets, too, and they know 1,600 home healthcare providers in Washington opted of SEIU 775 during July alone.

That number will only skyrocket now that the Washington State Supreme Court has cleared the way for the Freedom Foundation to start contacting caregivers in earnest using a contact list provided by the Department of Social and Health Services. I-1501 is simply a backdoor attempt to do what the courts and the Legislature have already done – rewrite the state’s Public Information Act to save SEIU’s lying hide.

But that ship has already sailed.

It’s no accident most voters still haven’t heard I-1501’s backstory and have no idea what’s really in it, and you can rest assured if it passes there will be a vigorous court challenge.

In the meantime, kudos to the Wall Street Journal, National Review and every major newspaper in the state for calling a fraud a fraud.