Morning Fizz
"I Don't Answer to Them."
Caffeinated News & Gossip. Your Daily Morning Fizz. (And apologies for the latest Morning Fizz post ever.)
1. Mayor Mike McGinn held a backyard fundraiser for his 2013 reelection campaign at his modest all-American Greenwood home yesterday evening.
About 75 people packed in around a table of hot dogs and burgers (veggie burgers too), yogurt and berries, orzo salad, angel food cake, brownies, and tortilla chips as McGinn stood on the steps in front on his mint-green backyard garage and gave a pep talk to his troops, still smarting from the recent defeat on the tunnel.
McGinn, in his trademark high-pitched Mike Tyson lilt, and with some Paul Krugman bravado, talked about investing in education and transit—promoting the $60 vehicle license fee ("not as high as I want") and the $231 million Family and Education Levy ("twice the amount of the prior one.")
"Some people don't like that," McGinn said, referring to the doubled families and ed levy. "They think it's too much. [They think] in a time of economic uncertainty we should back off the money." But McGinn, in a red polo shirt, Tevas, and shorts, disagreed: "No, that's the time to invest more." The crowd—not a member of Seattle's establishment in sight (unless you count longtime progressive activist Sharon Maeda )—burst into applause.
McGinn hit the same theme when he talked about resisting the urge to save money by "pushing wages lower ... pushing environmental costs on to future generations, and pushing health care costs on to workers ... That's called the low road," he said.
McGinn, of course, is all about "the high road." And fighting the establishment to take it.[pullquote]It's what we spend the money on, what we invest the money in, and what type of community we want. And I know that's what Seattle wants us to do that and that's what we're going to keep doing.[/pullquote]
"You'll hear from members of the business community, they'll say something like, 'Well, that's not good for business because they're going to tax us.' But the question is, what are we taxing for, what are we investing in, and are we taking the high road? That is the question. Is it the high road or the low road? Not does it cost money or not. It's what we spend the money on, what we invest the money in, and what type of community we want. And I know that's what Seattle wants us to do, and that's what we're going to keep doing."
McGinn only alluded to the tunnel once. As he finished his remarks and gave his fundraising pitch—the suggested donation was $50 (which came with an open bar and McGinn's pretty awesome R&B CD collection—Solomon Burke et al—humming in the background)—he had his say:
2. McGinn also talked about the high road-low road theme at a press conference earlier in the day about his jobs plan. (Erica was at the dentist so we missed it).
But the Seattle Times' Emily Heffter has a nice outtake starring the PI's Joel Connelly in which Connelly got up in McGinn's face about the limp performance (to date) of McGinn's weatherization jobs project.
3. In our report yesterday about state Sen. Steve Hobbs' "special interest" fundraiser (one of Hobbs' rivals for US Rep. Jay Inslee's open seat, state Rep. Marko Liias, accused Hobbs' of catering to corporate lobbyists), we quoted Hobbs' spokesman, Jim Kainber.
In response, a Liias fan emailed to say: "Good grief, even Hobbs' spokesperson is a LOBBYIST?! Doesn't that just validate Marko's concern? Kainber is the registered lobbyist for teacher-hating Stand on Children."
The Liias backer is referring Kainber's role as a lobbyist for Stand for Children, the group that pushes Obama-style ed reform, which we noted in our post.
Fizz emailed back: "Yeah, but that makes tons of sense. Hobbs is a big ed reform guy. I assume that's how he hooked up w Kainber."
But the Liias fan followed up with a good point: "Right, but imagine if Marko's spokesman was a salaried WEA lobbyist"and wondered if Stand for Children was making an illegal contribution of Kainber's time.
However, Kainber tells Fizz: "I was recently at SFC, [but] not lobbying for them this year."
4. Progressive Seattle state legislator Rep. Joe Fitzgibbon (D-34, W. Seattle, Burien) surprised folks this week by endorsing incumbent Seattle City Council member Jean Godden over challenger Bobby Forch. Forch, an African-American who got the endorsement of left-wing City Council member Nick Licata, is pitching himself as the social justice candidate.
Fitzgibbon tells PubliCola that "Forch is a good guy and would make a good council member," but says Forch "hasn't articulated why Jean should go." Moreover, Fitzgibbon says he appreciates Godden's "under the radar work on the budget" (she's the budget chair).
Mostly, Fitzgibbon stressed Godden's "out-front leadership on women's issues and paid sick leave," which Fitzgibbon framed as a feminist issue, saying he liked having "a female voice on the council."
(We have duly noted Fitzgibbon's feminist leanings in the past.)
Fitzgibbon, who is 24, also flipped the age issue on its head. "People give me crap for being young and give her crap for being old ... having someone who is late in life adds value to the council." (Godden will be 80 in October.)
As for Godden's initial plan to skimp on transit money—she advocated a $40 vehicle license fee as opposed to the $60 and $80 proposals which both came with far more transit money—Fitzgibbon, a huge transit advocate, said "She voted the right way in the end."
1. Mayor Mike McGinn held a backyard fundraiser for his 2013 reelection campaign at his modest all-American Greenwood home yesterday evening.
About 75 people packed in around a table of hot dogs and burgers (veggie burgers too), yogurt and berries, orzo salad, angel food cake, brownies, and tortilla chips as McGinn stood on the steps in front on his mint-green backyard garage and gave a pep talk to his troops, still smarting from the recent defeat on the tunnel.
McGinn, in his trademark high-pitched Mike Tyson lilt, and with some Paul Krugman bravado, talked about investing in education and transit—promoting the $60 vehicle license fee ("not as high as I want") and the $231 million Family and Education Levy ("twice the amount of the prior one.")
"Some people don't like that," McGinn said, referring to the doubled families and ed levy. "They think it's too much. [They think] in a time of economic uncertainty we should back off the money." But McGinn, in a red polo shirt, Tevas, and shorts, disagreed: "No, that's the time to invest more." The crowd—not a member of Seattle's establishment in sight (unless you count longtime progressive activist Sharon Maeda )—burst into applause.
McGinn hit the same theme when he talked about resisting the urge to save money by "pushing wages lower ... pushing environmental costs on to future generations, and pushing health care costs on to workers ... That's called the low road," he said.
McGinn, of course, is all about "the high road." And fighting the establishment to take it.[pullquote]It's what we spend the money on, what we invest the money in, and what type of community we want. And I know that's what Seattle wants us to do that and that's what we're going to keep doing.[/pullquote]
"You'll hear from members of the business community, they'll say something like, 'Well, that's not good for business because they're going to tax us.' But the question is, what are we taxing for, what are we investing in, and are we taking the high road? That is the question. Is it the high road or the low road? Not does it cost money or not. It's what we spend the money on, what we invest the money in, and what type of community we want. And I know that's what Seattle wants us to do, and that's what we're going to keep doing."
McGinn only alluded to the tunnel once. As he finished his remarks and gave his fundraising pitch—the suggested donation was $50 (which came with an open bar and McGinn's pretty awesome R&B CD collection—Solomon Burke et al—humming in the background)—he had his say:
You may have noticed something about the last mayoral campaign. I didn't get a lot of money from the people that normally hand out money. They didn't want to give me the money because I was taking on something that they believed in and were defending. And they didn't want to give me that money, but there's a flip side to that, I don't answer to them.
2. McGinn also talked about the high road-low road theme at a press conference earlier in the day about his jobs plan. (Erica was at the dentist so we missed it).
But the Seattle Times' Emily Heffter has a nice outtake starring the PI's Joel Connelly in which Connelly got up in McGinn's face about the limp performance (to date) of McGinn's weatherization jobs project.
3. In our report yesterday about state Sen. Steve Hobbs' "special interest" fundraiser (one of Hobbs' rivals for US Rep. Jay Inslee's open seat, state Rep. Marko Liias, accused Hobbs' of catering to corporate lobbyists), we quoted Hobbs' spokesman, Jim Kainber.
In response, a Liias fan emailed to say: "Good grief, even Hobbs' spokesperson is a LOBBYIST?! Doesn't that just validate Marko's concern? Kainber is the registered lobbyist for teacher-hating Stand on Children."
The Liias backer is referring Kainber's role as a lobbyist for Stand for Children, the group that pushes Obama-style ed reform, which we noted in our post.
Fizz emailed back: "Yeah, but that makes tons of sense. Hobbs is a big ed reform guy. I assume that's how he hooked up w Kainber."
But the Liias fan followed up with a good point: "Right, but imagine if Marko's spokesman was a salaried WEA lobbyist"and wondered if Stand for Children was making an illegal contribution of Kainber's time.
However, Kainber tells Fizz: "I was recently at SFC, [but] not lobbying for them this year."
4. Progressive Seattle state legislator Rep. Joe Fitzgibbon (D-34, W. Seattle, Burien) surprised folks this week by endorsing incumbent Seattle City Council member Jean Godden over challenger Bobby Forch. Forch, an African-American who got the endorsement of left-wing City Council member Nick Licata, is pitching himself as the social justice candidate.
Fitzgibbon tells PubliCola that "Forch is a good guy and would make a good council member," but says Forch "hasn't articulated why Jean should go." Moreover, Fitzgibbon says he appreciates Godden's "under the radar work on the budget" (she's the budget chair).
Mostly, Fitzgibbon stressed Godden's "out-front leadership on women's issues and paid sick leave," which Fitzgibbon framed as a feminist issue, saying he liked having "a female voice on the council."
(We have duly noted Fitzgibbon's feminist leanings in the past.)
Fitzgibbon, who is 24, also flipped the age issue on its head. "People give me crap for being young and give her crap for being old ... having someone who is late in life adds value to the council." (Godden will be 80 in October.)
As for Godden's initial plan to skimp on transit money—she advocated a $40 vehicle license fee as opposed to the $60 and $80 proposals which both came with far more transit money—Fitzgibbon, a huge transit advocate, said "She voted the right way in the end."
