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I desperately needed to veg out tonight, so I popped open a beer and turned on the tube — and the first thing that flashed across the screen was a Mike?™ McGavick ad.

Hmm. Apparently, he’s running for CEO of Safeco. Best of luck, Mike.

This is the ad that torpedoes Dave Reichert. It features Reichert, in his own words, explaining how his handful of supposedly “independent” votes against the leadership, actually came at the behest of the leadership.

And so, when the leadership comes to me and says ‘Dave, we need you to take a vote over here because we want to protect you and keep this majority, I… I do it.

So… um, I guess… that must be what the Seattle Times means when they say Reichert has a “conscience-driven independent streak.” Yeah, that Denny Hastert… he’s a regular Jiminy Cricket.

Over on Postman’s blog, Reichert spokesperson Kimberly Cadena foolishly goes on the attack, accusing Democrats of distorting the congressman’s words:

“It’s shameless that Darcy and the DCCC has taken a portion of Congressman Reichert’s explanation of his stands against leadership out of context.”

Uh-huh.

Well let’s put Reichert’s words in context, okay? I’ve posted a full transcript of his entire speech that day, and here for your convenience is an extended excerpt in which he tries to explain “the big picture,” and how to play the Washington “game.” I know it’s a bit rambling and incoherent, but try to follow along.

I’ll tell you that back in Washington there are lots of games played and I just want to give you, we talk about freedom and we talk about America and we talk about the dream. The dream has to include everybody and there has to be compromise and we can’t have, I’ve been to district meetings in my district where people have said, “why in the world should I vote for you. It’s just like voting for a democrat for crying out loud.” I am going to vote libertarian and I said, “you know what sir, that would be a huge mistake and here’s why.” I’ve tried to explain to this person how things work a little bit back in Washington D.C. and why certain votes have to be taken. Sometimes the leadership comes to me and says “Dave we want you to vote a certain way” and they know I can do that over here. Another district isn’t a problem but over here I have to be very flexible of where I placed my votes. The big picture here is to keep the seat, keep the majority, and keep the country moving forward with republican ideals. Especially on the budget and protecting our troops who’re protecting this country and how that will be responsible with taxpayer dollars. That’s the big picture. Not the vote I place on ANWAR that you may not agree with or the vote that I placed on protecting salmon. You have to be flexible. So when the leadership comes to me and says , Dave you have to vote over here because we want to protect you and keep this majority, I do it. There are sometimes when I say no I won’t. There are sometimes when things come to the floor like Schiavo. I was one of five republicans that voted with the Democrats on Schiavo because that was the right thing to do.

How’s that for context? Not enough? Well view it for yourself.

Let’s just forget for a moment the Gary Ridgeway crack, in which Reichert trivializes the victims (they were only whores, after all) by jokingly comparing Democrats to a serial killer.

For the “big picture” is that Reichert serves a swing district, and in order to protect his seat and their majority, the leadership sometimes instructs him to vote against them. The Schiavo vote, well that’s the exception that proves the rule. That is the context of the excerpt used in the DCCC ad, and that’s entirely how it was understood by his fellow Republicans in the audience. How can I be so sure? That’s what his fellow Republicans have told me.

Back in early June when I first reported on this speech I recounted the incredulous reaction of a prominent GOP elected official who told me “Of course we understand that strategy… but you don’t come right out and say it in public!” And by coincidence we talked about this incident on Podcasting Liberally this week with state Rep. Toby Nixon (R-45), who was also in the audience that day:

[audio:http://horsesass.org/wp-content/uploads/Toby.mp3]

“It was shocking,” Nixon said. As he later clarified in the comment thread:

To be clear, by saying “it was shocking” I was expressing the surprise I felt at the time that Rep. Reichert was so open and frank about being approached in this manner, not at the fact that it happened. It is, in fact, quite common for majority party leadership to go to freshman members of their party and provide such guidance, in order to provide cover for those freshmen in their first re-election campaign when they are most vulnerable to challenge. It happens quite frequently in the Washington State House of Representatives, too.

And how cynical is this strategy? Again, Reichert’s own words:

“I know the leadership is already planning to protect me, right. They will develop a bill that increases money for education that I can vote on and say I do support teachers.”

Reichert’s “conscience-driven independence” was a carefully constructed myth, which Reichert himself frankly (and stupidly) debunked before a TV camera. Reichert understood exactly what he was saying. His audience understood exactly what he was saying. One can only assume that even the disenchanted Republican voter that served as a springboard for Reichert’s rambling anecdote understood exactly what Reichert was saying.

The only people who pretend not to understand the context of this quote is Reichert’s spokesperson… and the Seattle Times editorial board.

Congresswoman Cathy McMorris deserves re-election in the 5th District because she is a good fit for her conservative district.

So wrote the Seattle Times in their Wednesday endorsement of first-term Republican Rep. Cathy McMorris. Which raises a very important question for 5th District voters: are you going to let a bunch of Seattle liberals tell you how to vote?

These are the people who are sucking your hard-earned tax dollars West of the mountains to build their gold-plated tunnels. These are the people who want to take away your guns and tear down your dams. Hell, the Times even opposes I-933, an initiative designed to protect your property rights… and they have the gall to tell you who is or is not a good fit for your district?

Screw Seattle, that’s what I say, and screw their hand-picked, establishment, career politician Cathy McMorris. There’s a reason rancher, farmer and Democratic challenger Peter Goldmark drew so many Republican primary voters in bright red Okanogan County: the people who know him best — Goldmark’s own neighbors — know that he really is the perfect fit for his district.

As for those pansy, gay-marriage-promoting, liberal city folk at the Seattle Times, the only part of the 5th District they know is the four lanes of I-90 that runs through it… and a couple of crowded men’s room stalls along the way. (If you know what I mean.)

Since posting the audio of Sen. Pam Roach’s infamous “Roses” speech, several Olympia insiders have emailed me to fill in the back story.

Apparently, Roach’s floor desk was right behind that of much beloved Sen. Irv Newhouse, a Republican so well respected on both sides of the aisle that they renamed the Senate office building after him. The story goes that Roach insisted on keeping a fresh bouquet of roses on her desk, despite the fact that they were aggravating the ailing Newhouse’s allergies. A former Republican staffer recounts the tale:

At that time Irv had many health problems including allergies. He was sneezing and congested. He was so beloved everyone was concerned. She had been asked politely by several members from both parties to remove the roses just in case that was the source of problem. Anyone else would have removed them. But hell no with that bitch, just let the beloved elder statesman suffer.

Oh, and by the way Pam… sources tell me it was Sen. Bob McCaslin, a fellow Republican, who removed your damned flowers.

For those who missed it, here’s Roach’s legendary “Roses” speech once again:

UPDATE:
Oh yeah… this year the Democrats have their best shot at unseating Roach — possibly ever — in the form of challenger Yvonne Ward. Observers tell me this race is a dead heat, so go show Yvonne some love.

The No on I-920 campaign just started airing their first TV ad in Seattle and Spokane.

What’s great about this ad is that it simply presents the facts. There is absolutely nothing to dispute here. And if voters understand the facts, a majority will vote against I-920.

The Seattle Times came out against I-91 today — the citywide initiative that would prevent Seattle from subsidizing professional sports teams — and the Stranger’s Josh Feit cries foul:

And that brings me to my gripe with the Seattle Times’ NO endorsement. They conclude by stating: “The SuperSonics might not be delivering like a 30-year bond, but the team still has a positive impact on businesses.”

Says who? Even chamber of commerce folks who spoke to our edit board didn’t peddle that whopper. […] I’ve been reporting on this damn issue for several years now. And several recent studies, one by the University of Minnesota, one by the Lincoln Insititute, one by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City and another by the CATO Institute found that, if anything, professional sports teams may actually hurt local economies. The CATO study, for example, debunks industry claims that sports teams generate new consumer spending (they actually just suck up existing discretionary spending), and concludes, “the net economic impact [is] a reduction in real per-capita income over the entire metropolitan area.”

[…] The economic impact argument would be a convincing and compelling one…if it were true. It’s irresponsible of the Seattle Times to haul it out without proving it…or at least citing the source.

Um, Josh… you’ve missed the obvious source… Frank Blethen’s accountants. The business the team has the most positive impact on is the Seattle Times.

You don’t think the average reader slaps down their change for the Times’ op/ed section, do you? It’s scandal and sports that sells the dailies, and without the Sonics and the Storm, there’d be nothing to drive sales during our long, rainy winter. And just think of the additional advertising dollars a championship drive would rake in… should there ever be another Sonics championship drive.

Too cynical an analysis? How could anyone be anything but cynical about the Times’ editorial motives in the context of their incessant, dishonest shilling for estate tax repeal? Remember, this is the same paper that argued against the estate tax by unfavorably comparing our state’s tax structure to that of Sweden.

To the Times, I-91 isn’t about the Sonics or the fans or the business community… it’s about the Times.

From the Nation Journal’s subscription-only Hotline:

AD WATCH: He Did It
The DCCC is up with a new ad attacking Rep. Dave Reichert [R]. The ad features footage from a speech Reichert made in 5/06. REICHERT (from 5/06 speech): So when the leadership comes to me and says, ‘Dave, we need you to take a vote over here because we want to protect you and keep this majority, I do it.’ ANNCR: And when they told Dave Reichert to give billions to big oil, he did it. And a vote against cracking down on price gouging, he did it. Three times. Now we know why. Dave Reichert — another vote for Bush’s agenda (Hotline sources, 10/18).

Yeah, um… and this is the same guy the Seattle Times congratulated for having a “conscience-driven independent streak”…?

It’s not like Reichert’s admission was a big secret. I blogged on this speech back in June, as did the Stranger’s Eli Sanders. Video of the speech before the “Mainstream Republicans of Washington” has long been available on TVW. And even fellow Republicans who were there in the room that day roll their eyes and openly laugh at Reichert for admitting publicly — and on camera — what they all quietly understood. State Rep. Toby Nixon (R-45) was in the audience for Reichert’s speech, and just listen to this exchange between me and Toby last night on Podcasting Liberally:

“It was shocking,” Toby said — and it was. But apparently not to Times editorial writer Kate Riley, who in lavishing praise on Reichert chose to stubbornly ignore the congressman’s own explanation of his voting record.

It’s a funny world we live in where the media has grown accustomed to blindly repeating our politicians’ lies, and willfully ignoring their truths.

The No on I-920 campaign just hit the air today with its first TV ad, and I really wanted to share it with you… but Sandeep can’t seem to get into YouTube. So instead, here’s the Yes on I-937 campaign’s new ad:

Apparently, my incredibly foul-mouthed mockery doesn’t do much to hurt my credibility after all, for the same day I called a sitting state senator a "pig fucker" (repeatedly) a bipartisan crowd of reputedly respectable politicos and journalists joined me a our weekly meeting of Seattle’s Drinking Liberally.

We couldn’t quite convince Seattle Times editorial board member Bruce Ramsey to join us on the podcast, but state Rep. Toby Nixon (R-45) proved more foolish. Joining me and Toby in literally naked discourse were Will, Carl, Seattle P-I political columnist Joel Connelly, and Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales. Topics of discussion included the Times incredibly mean-spirited and over-the-top attack on Darcy Burner (apparently written by Kate Riley, go figure), the relative irrelevance of editorial board endorsements, Jimmy’s fascinating new political venture Campaigns Wikia, a refreshingly wonkish (though surprisingly entertaining) discussion of tax restructuring and education funding, and Toby’s startling endorsement of a state income tax.

The show is 59:35, and is available here as a 26 MB MP3. Please visit PodcastingLiberally.com for complete archives and RSS feeds.

[Recorded live at the Seattle chapter of Drinking Liberally. Special thanks to Confab creators Gavin and Richard for producing the show.]

The DCCC hit the Spokane airwaves today in support of Peter Goldmark’s surging campaign against first-term incumbent Cathy McMorris. WA-05 is a supposedly “safe Republican” district the NRCC had no plans to defend, but with multiple polls showing the race within the margin of error — and closing — the DCCC decided to catch McMorris with her pants down just days before the absentee ballots start dropping.

Combined with Goldmark’s spectacular fundraising success (he once again doubled McMorris’s efforts in the third quarter, almost entirely from individual donors,) the DCCC’s media buy now puts this race on a virtually even financial footing. Of course the NRCC could also move money into the district, but with other surprisingly competitive “safe Republican” districts like nearby ID-01 already consuming half million dollar investments, they may just have to gamble that McMorris can hold the seat on her own.

How big is that Democratic wave that’s threatening to sweep the Republicans out of office? Big enough that it’s reaching all the way into the Inland Northwest, where just a few years ago Democrats were thought to be a dying breed. Yet another sign that the number of competitive House races continues to expand as we come closer to the election… and yet another confirmation of the netroots-endorsed, 50-state strategy.

If my righty trolls teased me about my fervent support for Darcy Burner (now locked in one of the hottest races in the nation,) they literally mocked me for aggressively pushing Goldmark. One can’t yet say that the Democrat has the advantage in either of these races, but if one or both win on election night, damn are we gonna have a good laugh at the Republicans’ expense.

And there’s nothing I like better than a good laugh. So please give generously to Darcy and Peter, and help them help us retake the House.

The Seattle chapter of Drinking Liberally meets tonight (and every Tuesday), 8PM at the Montlake Ale House, 2307 24th Avenue E. Stop on by for some hot conversation and ice cold beer as we head into the stretch run of the election season.

We’ll be playing the Mike! McGavick drinking game during his televised debate tonight at 9PM, and I’m told that Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales might stop by, along with a number of almost-but-not-quite confirmed guests from both sides the aisle. Should be a lot of fun.

Not in Seattle? Washington liberals will also be drinking tonight in the Tri-Cities. Here’s a full run down of WA’s ten Drinking Liberally chapters:

	Where:	When:	Next Meeting:
Burien:	Mick Kelly’s Irish Pub, 435 SW 152nd St	Fourth Wednesday of each month, 7:00 pm onward	October 25
Kirkland:	Valhalla Bar & Grill, 8544 122nd Ave NE	Every Thursday, 7:00 pm onward	October 19
Monroe:	Eddie’s Trackside Bar and Grill, 214 N Lewis St	Second Wednesday of each month, 7:00 PM onward	November 8
Olympia:	The Tumwater Valley Bar and Grill, 4611 Tumwater Valley Drive South	First and third Monday of each month, 7:00-9:00 pm	November 6
Seattle:	Montlake Ale House, 2307 24th Ave E	Every Tuesday, 8:00 pm onward	October 17
Spokane:	Red Lion BBQ & Pub, 126 N Division St	Every Wednesday, 7:00 pm	October 18
Tacoma:	Meconi’s Pub, 709 Pacific Ave	on hiatus	on hiatus
Tri-Cities:	Atomic Ale, 1015 Lee Blvd, Richland	Every Tuesday, 7:00 pm onward	October 17
Vancouver:	Hazel Dell Brew Pub, 8513 NE Highway 99	Second and fourth Tuesday of each month, 7:00 pm onward	October 24
Walla Walla:	The Green Lantern, 1606 E Isaacs Ave	First Friday of each month, 8:00 pm onward	November 3

I’d heard about state Sen. Pam Roach’s infamous “Roses” speech on the floor of the state Senate, but I’d never actually heard it before I was emailed this audio clip.

Hmm. Did Roach choose the musical accompaniment herself, or was it added in post-production?

We’ve come to expect political nutcases like Roach as a fact of life, but the wonks tell me that her Democratic challenger, Yvonne Ward, may actually be gaining the upper hand. Go show Yvonne some love.

From a NY Times editorial:

Voters in Ohio can be forgiven if they feel they have been beamed out of the Midwest and dropped into a third-world autocracy. The latest news from the state’s governor’s race is that the Republican nominee, Kenneth Blackwell, who is also the Ohio secretary of state, could rule that his opponent is ineligible to run because of a technicality. We’d like to think that his office would not ultimately do that, or that if it did, such a ruling would not be allowed to stand. But the mere fact that an elected official and political candidate has the authority to toss his opponent out of a race is further evidence of a serious flaw in our democracy.

Yeah, well, nothing would surprise me in Ohio anymore.

It’s curious to note that after pulling out of their House, Senate and gubernatorial races, the Ohio state GOP is focusing its efforts on holding the Secretary of State’s office — you know, the Ohio Republican base.

Makes one wonder why King County Republicans are so determined to make the county Auditor an elected office, huh? No wait… no it doesn’t.

I’ve just faxed the complaint above to the Legislative Ethics Board, and if you think this is over the top or in poor taste, I’d just like to point out in my own defense that I never once mentioned the gender of the pigs in question. (Although believe you me, I’ve heard rumors…)

Am I unfairly casting aspersions? Well, go check out Darryl’s post on Hominid Views about the lying piece of shit robo-call he received on behalf of state Sen. Luke Esser:

Recording: An ethics investigation has been opened against Rodney Tom. Rodney Tom took compensation for days he didn’t work. Rodney Tom has one of the worse attendance records in the legislature. Rodney Tom has missed 84 votes. Again, Rodney Tom is being investigated for ethics violations.

In fact, Rodney Tom is not under any sort of investigation, ethics or otherwise, and Esser knows it. What the robo-call refers to is an informal complaint filed by Esser buddy, contributor and former roommate George Aiton — a complaint that served as the direct inspiration for my own malicious missive. (Go check it out.) All I’m doing is following their lead to its logical conclusion.

Apparently, Esser and Aiton’s idea of “common decency” consists of filing a frivolous complaint against one’s opponent, and then dishonestly inflating it into a full-blown Ethics Board investigation. I know such dirty tricks aren’t unusual for Luke Esser or the WA state GOP, but it speaks volumes to his sense of propriety.

UPDATE:
If you’ve got the money to put into an IE on a robo-call in the 48th LD, feel free to use this script:

Recording: An ethics investigation has been opened against Luke Esser. Luke Esser fucked pigs. Luke Esser is one of the worst pig fuckers in the legislature. Luke Esser has fucked 84 pigs. Again, Luke Esser is being investigated for ethics violations.

I suppose it’s pretty damn low and dishonest to accuse Esser of fucking pigs, but well… somebody did file a complaint accusing him of such, so I guess it’s, um, kosher.

UPDATE, UPDATE:
For those of my readers who are too dimwitted, dense or self-righteously prudish to appreciate this post, I believe this brief dissertation on political parody might be enlightening.

UPDATE, UPDATE, UPDATE:
For your listening pleasure, a recording of Luke Esser’s lying robo-call attacking Rodney Tom. Anybody up for recording my script above?

SEIU president Andy Stern will be stopping by a special Monday night edition of Drinking Liberally, from 5:30PM to 7PM, to talk about his new book, A Country That Works. So please join me tonight at the Montlake Ale House, 2307 24th Avenue E, for a pint of beer, free appetizers, and some fascinating conversation with one of the modern labor movement’s most influential leaders.

Don’t know who Andy Stern is, or what the letters SEIU stand for? Check out David Postman’s latest post.