Here are a few things we learn from gubernatorial candidate Rob McKenna based on this audio taken yesterday before Kemper Freeman’s Eastside Transportation Association:
- He is a “deep deep skeptic of bringing light rail across [the] I-90” floating bridge.
- He “isn’t even sure how it is going to work.”
- He doesn’t understand “fixed rail on a floating bridge.”
- Regardless of his lack of understanding, he “envisions it be shutting down [for] winds.” And this worries him.
- He believes Sound Transit is a “significantly unaccountable regional transportation body.”
- He believes uninformed voters were duped by Greg Nichols in 1998 over the first public vote.
- He definitively sides with opponents of light rail on I-90 saying, “we have lost the key battles ever since.”
- He isn’t sure how to move forward on stopping light rail on I-90 (because of votes and bonding issues), but he is sure he can work with light rail opponents on it.
I need to say this again: Should he be elected, Rob McKenna will be Washington state’s Scott Walker.
There’s a meme in the mainstream media that chalks up these comparisons of McKenna to Walker as “demonetization” (with a figurative roll of the eyes).
In some ways this is fair. After all, aside from McKenna’s single biggest political blunder—joining the A.G. lawsuit against the 2009 health care reform law—he’s been cautious. He has dodged talking policy stands on hot-button issues where his views are likely to be unpopular. I mean, we can be sure McKenna doesn’t like light rail, same-sex marriage, public employee unions, death with dignity, etc. When asked about these things, he dodges. He bullshits his way out of expressing his opinion. He offers little about what a Gov. McKenna would do about particular issues. And, apparently, the state’s media aren’t skillful enough to coax non-weaselly answers from him.
So, we are forced to make inferences by an occasional controversial statement and by the people he endorses. We read between the lines. We parse his weaselly answers to try and understand what he’s dodging. We accept that he is a Republican in a state where moderate Republicans are nearly extinct.
Now we have a new piece of evidence—something stronger than inference from a dodged answer. We’ve know for a long time that McKenna doesn’t like Sound Transit and doesn’t care for light rail. But this is more: Rob McKenna has, essentially, made a campaign promise to work with Kemper Freeman, Jr. and company to find ways of killing light rail to the East Side.
Seems like something Scott Walker would do.
“When asked about these things, he dodges.”
Has he been studying public realtions with Sharron Angle?
He would have kept quiet about light rail over I-90 also, except that Kemper Freeman’s money was probably at stake. McKenna complaining about Sound Transit’s “accountability” is pretty hillarous when Kemper Freeman wants to buy regional transit policy with his money.
@1 More likely Cathy McMorris-Rodgers.
Maybe McKenna should just outright lie, ala chis “we dont have a budget proglem” gregiore..
What do you mean by “mainstream media”? The Republican Times?
Old Bobby boy is a piece of crap who allowed the AG office to be used as a tool to attack state employees.
“demonetization” ? “Demonizing”, perhaps?
McKenna’s going to lose. He’s not going to lose because he’s a Republican. He’s not going to lose because of his or Inslee’s policy positions. He’s going to lose because there’s no way for him, while running for governor, to hide that fact that he’s a major league asshole.
McKenna will win big with white suburban males in their 40’s and 50’s, but he’ll lose with damn near everyone else.
re 9: He’s the kind of guy you’d like to pour a beer on.
@7 Demonetization is what the GOP did to the middle class.
sarge,
Yep…that’s what I wanted. (Fucking spell-checker!)
First, the first successful vote for Sound Transit was in 1996, not 1998, and the ST2 vote was in 2008. Second, wasn’t Bellevue put in with Southeast Seattle into the 9th District?(Puts part of Kemper Freeman’s territory in a district that already has Light rail
Also, I wonder, it looks like SOUNDER is going to be pulling into Lakewood in October. The D-M Street Connector, which is connecting the City of Tacoma owned track at the existing terminal, with the Sound Transit owned track to Lakewood, is coming along pretty good. Should be open by October. Would Inslee and McKenna both try to attend the ribbon cutting? The new track was needed partly due to FRA regulations severing the track ST now owns from the BNSF main(when Tacoma LINK came online), and the fierce competition between the two railroads that originally owned the two sections of track.(Milwaukee Road and NOrthern Pacific).
With Maria Cantwell able to win her state wide election in a walk, and Obama assured of winning the state, THE most important statewide election in WA this year is for governor.
McKenna, like Rmoney, will do or say practically anything to get elected. A victory for McKenna would be a huge loss for Washingtonians. Yes, a McKenna victory in WA would end up feeling a lot like Scott Walker’s disaster in WI.
http://www.jayinslee.com/
@8
Does that make suburban white males in their 40s and 50s assholes (via the transitive property of asshole-ness)?
I am beginning to think so. I am led by polling that Republican candidates tend to win outright with whites, and men, tend me to think that my demographic is populated with assholes.
@14
I’m a suburban white male in my 40’s and I know quite a few other suburban white males in their 40’s & 50’s who aren’t assholes, but from what I’ve experienced the majority of them are assholes.
white males in their 40’s and 50’s also happen to be the majority of WA states tax base, in terms of contributions – IOW, middle aged whitey pays more than anybody else in taxes as a group.
@16
Some of them around me certainly act like they paid for everything in the state and therefor they own it. Is not being a complete dick too much to ask?
Because your demographic group pays more in taxes than the other ones doesn’t give you the right to blow red lights or yell at librarians because your kid racked up $5 in fines “well I already pay your salary, which is obviously too high!”
Shouldn’t the title of this one be McKenna’s lack of transportation agenda. It seems to me that he’s got nothing.
“I’m opposed to a bunch of stuff that I can’t do anything about and as your governor I’ll spend my time tilting at windmills!”
1. I never said it did
2. go hug your strawman
@19
I never said you did. I was describing the assholeish behaviors I see around me. That’s a direct quote from my trip to the library yesterday, not a strawman. And I think that’s pretty clear in what I posted.
Kemper Freeman bought himself a good soldier.
#20 continued…
Speaking of self-entitled, white, middle aged assholes in Gig Harbor…
Read more here: http://www.thenewstribune.com/.....rylink=cpy
Evidently, if you can’t recall having seen McKenna’s face recently, it’s because he’s consistently had his head up Kemper Freeman’s ass.
Because he wants to join a ‘well regulated militia’.
@24
Hells yeah! He’s a Sheep dog!
@25
Sheep dog?
@26
It’s the latest version of the American Male As Protector myth. A myth that got started way back when the pilgrim men did a terrible job of protecting the ladies from getting stolen away by indians and were so abusive and shitty towards women that many of the women who got snatched chose to stay with the indians. Checkout the book The Terror Dream: Fear and Fantasy in Post-9/11 America for more on the protector myth.
In this version of the myth people can be divided into sheeple, (sheep-people) wolves, and sheepdogs. The sheepdogs protect the sheeple from the wolves.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v.....r_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OW8BZ7pRt28
http://www.ohioccwforums.org/v.....38;t=14061
http://patriotsforamerica.ning.....r-sheepdog
@26
It’s the latest version of the American Male As Protector myth. A myth that got started way back when the pilgrim men did a terrible job of protecting the ladies from getting stolen away by indians and were so abusive and shitty towards women that many of the women who got snatched chose to stay with the indians. Checkout the book The Terror Dream: Fear and Fantasy in Post-9/11 America for more on the protector myth.
In this version of the myth people can be divided into sheeple, (sheep-people) wolves, and sheepdogs. The sheepdogs protect the sheeple from the wolves.
@27
I get the sense that person who wrote that book is a some limp wristed pansy who couldnt protect himself from an 11 year old girl with a broken arm.
just more BS from the people trying to pussify our society…..
Let me break it down for ya: most women(im talking about the ones who like men, not other chicks), want a strong MAN, not some phony, no-backbone having, milquetoast phish that modern society has been trying shove down our throats for the last 30 years.
in simpler terms, they wanna be with, and get fucked by, a real man – not some pasty, sensitive-type, she-man who cant even bench press his own weight, or be man-enough to step forward and take charge when threats arise.
and if you disagree, then perhaps you need to examine why (1) you are alone, or (2) your married to that “thing”….
and BTW Michael, when I said “you”, I mean the group “you”, not “you” specifically.
@29
Actually, the woman who wrote the book pointed out all the times where men failed to protect women and where women did a just fine job of protecting themselves.
Yeah, that’s a pretty good example of The Protector Myth. I’m sure there are plenty of women as well as men that believe in it. It’s like religion, if you’re a believer you’ll probably be happiest with another believer.
@30
I figured that, but thanks. Same with me.
The posts about The Protector Myth might seem off topic on a thread about Rob McKenna’s complete lack of a transportation plan, but they’re really not. A big section of the American population (left, right, and neither) has retreated into myths and The Protection Myth is a big seller for the Republicans and plays into their dislike of mass transit.