A public comment before the Clallam County Commissioners included an unexpected moment: a self-described communist praising Commissioner Mark Ozias for attending a protest in Sequim. The speaker was longtime activist Tim Wheeler. His political lineage, activism, and connections to several local groups raise a broader question for residents: how much influence do openly ideological activists have in shaping local politics?
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“A few days ago, I went to the ‘No Kings Day’ demonstration in Sequim,” the public commenter told the Clallam County commissioners. “And who do I run into? Mark Ozias. Commissioner Mark Ozias and his wife. I think that’s outstanding.”
The remark drew attention not because of the protest itself, but because of the person delivering it. The speaker was Tim Wheeler, a longtime activist, Ozias supporter, and self-described member of the Communist Party.
It should surprise no one that Commissioner Mark Ozias and his wife, Lisa Boulware, might attend an Indivisible protest. The surprising part is who was praising them from the podium.
Tim Wheeler comes from a family with deep ties to communist activism in the United States.
A Family History Tied to Communist Activism
Donald Niven Wheeler, the father of local activist Tim Wheeler, was an American teacher and social activist who was deeply involved in communist politics and later accused of serving as a Soviet intelligence source during the Cold War. While studying economics at Oxford, he joined the Communist Party’s university branch. After further study in Paris, he left academia to fight with the International Brigades during the Spanish Civil War, a cause that drew thousands of international communists. He later returned to Oxford and completed his doctorate.
During the New Deal and World War II years, Wheeler worked inside the federal government, including positions at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Treasury Department, and the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the wartime intelligence agency that later became the CIA. While working in the OSS, Wheeler was allegedly connected to communist networks inside the government and associated with the Perlo Group, a Soviet spy ring operating in Washington. Researchers later claimed Wheeler had access to classified reports and planning documents about Nazi Germany and post-war Europe and that information from OSS headquarters may have been passed through him to Soviet intelligence.
Wheeler later appeared in the Venona decryptions, a collection of decoded Soviet intelligence cables, where he was reportedly identified under the code name “Izra.” He is also listed in historical records identifying suspected Eastern Bloc intelligence sources in the United States. Wheeler was never formally charged with espionage and insisted the accusations were politically motivated during the anti-communist investigations of the McCarthy era. In the 1950s, after struggling to find work due to blacklisting, he became a dairy farmer in Sequim before eventually returning to teaching.
Tim Wheeler’s Activism
Tim Wheeler has followed a similar ideological path. He writes for Communist Party USA publications, including the party’s official site and People’s World, a newspaper with historic roots in the American communist movement.
People’s World traces its origins to publications associated with the Communist Party in the early twentieth century and has long served as a voice for socialist and communist political perspectives.
Wheeler himself has publicly identified as a communist.
He has written extensively for party publications and spoken at national party gatherings. At the 32nd National Convention of the Communist Party USA in Chicago in 2024, Wheeler delivered a presentation outlining his views and activism.
A Local Political Presence
Despite the ideological background, Wheeler is not operating on the margins of local politics.
He has been involved in several activist organizations on the Olympic Peninsula and has maintained connections with local and national political figures.
According to activist histories and local political records, Wheeler was a founding member of the Sequim Good Governance League (SGGL) and part of its early leadership. The group included several people who later entered local politics, including:
Sequim School Board member and “nonpartisan” League of Women Voters member Patrice Johnston
Former Sequim City Council members Vicki Lowe and Lowell Rathbun
Current council member Nicole Hartman
Looking at the early roster of SGGL activists, many of the same names appear today in Indivisible Sequim, leading some observers to conclude the newer organization is essentially a continuation or rebranding of the earlier political network.
Wheeler has also played a role in advocacy related to the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe’s MAT clinic, publicly supporting the project during community debates. In fact, he received the first “Healing Clinic” T-shirt issued during the campaign.
He also founded Voices for Health and Healing, an advocacy group supporting the clinic, where he served as acting chair.
In addition, Wheeler serves as a trustee for the Clallam County Democratic Party.
A Broader Trend
While communism once seemed like a relic of Cold War history, recent political analysis suggests the ideology is seeing renewed interest in parts of the United States.
A report highlighted by the New York Post noted that candidates affiliated with communist organizations have begun winning small local races again after decades of absence. The article argues that younger activists and some progressive movements have shown increasing openness to socialist or communist frameworks.
Whether that trend remains fringe or grows into something more influential remains to be seen.
A Personal Perspective
I’ll admit something.
Until 2023, I didn’t really understand communism.
That changed when I interviewed someone who had fled a communist regime and eventually settled in Sequim. It was one of the first interviews I conducted and one I’m still proud of today. Hearing firsthand what life was actually like under that system opened my eyes.
It also made me realize that many Americans discussing communism have never lived under it.
That raises an important question.
Do you trust someone who praises communism but has never experienced it firsthand?
Or do you trust someone who lived under it, endured the oppression and shortages, and escaped to America grateful for the freedoms here?
One is theorizing. The other survived it.
The Planks of Communism
The Communist Manifesto outlines ten policy ideas historically associated with communist systems. Some observers see echoes of these ideas appearing in modern debates.
Examples sometimes cited include:
Abolition of property in land
Land is dedicated to public purposes. Some see parallels in modern “Land Back” activism and the expansion of land placed into federal or tribal trust.Heavy progressive income tax
A graduated tax system where some corporations and citizens pay taxes while tribal corporations and citizens are exempt.
Confiscation of property from rebels or emigrants
Critics point to the County/Tribe project that worsened flooding in the 3 Crabs area. Road relocation and resident eviction discussions have raised concerns about private property rights.Centralization of communication and transportation
Some critics argue local governments increasingly control public comment procedures and communication channels.
Of course, the United States is not a communist system.
But history shows that when communist systems take hold, those connected to the ruling networks often benefit the most. Power tends to concentrate among insiders.
In local government that can sometimes look like familiar patterns — appointments, preferred access, and what critics jokingly call the “Clallam Concierge Service,” where certain political allies seem to receive special treatment, protection, or influence.
Remember, seven months ago Tim Wheeler was filmed vandalizing public property. DNR Police documented the incident and wrote a report, yet Clallam County has still not filed charges. If you were caught on camera causing $10,000 in property damage, do you think the outcome would be the same?
That may not be communism.
But it is a reminder of something important.
In a county where people are often scrutinized for who they voted for or which party they belong to, it seems fair to also ask questions about who openly identifies as a communist, who they influence, and who they stand beside in local politics.
Because ideas shape power—and power shapes our community.
