Washblog

My comment:
Particle Man says:

Well, SJ I have no issue with your opinion about abortion other than that I do not agree with it. But I have been reading your dribble about our Gov for a few years now and have no doubt that you will never vote for her even when you are presented with a fast talking empty suit who lacks the ethics we should all demand in our elected officials. As for leadership skills, your claim about the Governor could not be more off the mark. But I think you know that. So go ahead and vote for Rossi, a guy with no leadership or managment experiance. He is a huckster and will bring state government to the level of the used car lot and don't trust that odometer as he for sure will roll that back for a fast buck.
01/24/2008 at 9:35 am

Generated this reply:
SeattleJew says:

38. Particle Man

Sighhh!!!

As of now I find it unimageane that I will vote for Rossi. Every day that passes and the hidden Nazi in Clark County remains hidden is enough to stop me form supprting him.

As for the other issues, I simply do not have the data to make the judgments you make on Rossi. The best data I have is form people I have met who tell me he is bright and a good leader but tyhey are Rossi-itic.

In CG's case I have a lot more evidecne to make me unenthusiastic, objective evidence. I dealt with the AG when she ran it and it was badly led, very badly. In my opinion she took adisastrous hand off approach to the AG office at the uW that had=s and is consting us tens of millions of dollars. While I appreciate her role in th tobacco settlement, my limited understanding is that she was no the major figure she says she was. More importantly, after the vicory, WAstate fucked upo its use of these dollars.

I won't re-explore my feeligns about her role as gov. Folks I trust say she os a good negotiator and admin. I accept that. What bothers me is a near total lack og=f what we need most ,, leadership. Put another waym CG is no Ron Sims, Mike Lowry, or Dan Evans.

So hell, this is an imperfect world. I will not get to choose MY candydate for Guv and will need, sadly to choose between Rossi and CG. As I said above, his unamerican behavior in the Clark County issue is more than enough for me NOT to vote for him. Assuming he knows better, than a failure to do something to out this swastika carrying GOPper is a terribke evidence that Rossi also lacks leadership.

Frankly, the State needs better pols. If the Demo party is to be as dominant as it looks now, this is the time for some strong leaders to emerge. One reason I support Darcy is that I am convinced she has those abilities. I susedd NOT to support Murry, but the evidence of her leadershiop has more than changed my mind. Cantwell ... zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. The Repubican AG is impressive (I would defntiely vote for him over CG).

So tell me ...

who do YOU see as new leader matierial in eother party or are we on a downward cycle?

So here is my reply:

It's funny in a way SJ, you list off some good folks. Though Evans predates my WA residency, I think history regards him positively with reason. Ron Sims and Mike Lowry are great men who have done much for this state and deserve our thanks even on their worst days. In regard to Rossi, I too have been told what a personable man he is and I have marveled at his ability to speak the words which resonate with many voters.

In regard to Governor Gregiore and leadership I am confident that your view is shaded by the AG history you identified. I cannot speak to her abilities or shortcomings as the figurehead and chief administrator of the states largest law firm. What I will say is that her call to public service has never been about personal wealth and that she has the highest ethical standards. It may just be that she is far more suited to the role of Governor and in this role she has been a great leader. This is in evidence by the successful negotiations seen by the public and those behind the scenes.

Sure folks will have much to say about the viaduct but even here one should remember that she could have opted out of that debate and left the fight to Seattle, KC and DOT but a year ahead of time she elected to be where legislation directed the debate if locals could not get their act together. And given the issue, this project remains on track with the agreed to scope being worked on every day.

Now back to Rossi. Here you have a guy who a person might admire for his ability to sell a used car without wheels to almost anyone. On one level, I get that. "Man can he sell" In government though it is not about how many cars you can sell. In fact the job is more about protecting the buyer while enabling the just sales to move forward. Let's set aside the fact that Rossi has NO management experience what so ever and just evaluate where he might lead us based upon his past political and business record.

Dino's most consistent cry has been for less government regulation and this is central to my point since he has continually bent the rules laid out on our society for campaigning, ethics and business. The choices he has made in these areas should and do matter.

Even if you SJ, and I cannot agree on central issues like choice, the decision of who to support should come easy for you when looking objectively at the character issues whirling around Dino.

For years Dino worked for and closely with a realtor who devised a scheme to defraud folks of their life savings and resulting in the bankrupting of a savings and loan as well as this mans conviction on several counts of fraud. Dino continues to earn his paycheck even while the FBI investigation known to employees was closing in. Even when his boss went to prison. Even after his release Rossi continued to work with him and follow him from company to company with only a few loyalists. The Seattle Times told most of this story.

In all of Dino's campaigns he has never been endorsed by a fellow republican and this is as result of the same dirty tactics and lies he has used against his democratic opponents. These tactics cost him his first election and yet he learned nothing from that experience. Forward Washington and failing even now to report early expenses in his current campaign including airfare and hall rental for his East Side kick off.
What trumps even these choices and actions is what Dino did while the Senate Ways and Means chair. At a time when the Ducharme's (father and son) were actively lobbying Dino's committee, Dino entered into a multi million dollar apartment building purchase in which Dino was the real estate agent. These facts were also reported on in the Times but the fact that Dino took over $100,000 in commissions in the purchase and sale of this building in addition to profits divided in secret represents a significant breach of ethics. And this from a guy who told us he was a realtor when in fact he was only an agent.

So, why should we care? Why should this trump even your views on the "choice" issue SJ? Because without ethics, the well being of our state will be lost. Without ethics, Dino as governor would slash regulations to pay off his friends. Look at his record. Why should we expect anything more? When has he not tested the bounds set by the laws of this state? The answer is never.