There aren’t enough fuck-offs for whatever legislator this is:
Mayor McGinn described how a coalition of mayors presented a united front for transit funding, including Mayor Skip Priest (R – Federal Way). However, when the mayor talked with a Senate Republican leader, who he did not name, he was told, “We want Seattle to starve until we get what we want.”
Sen. Kohl-Welles said the votes were there in the Senate to pass the transportation package (House Bill 1954), but that leadership would not allow it to come up for a vote. In a telling sign that transit advocates did not have a presence in Olympia, the senator said “I wish you were down here with us.” She offered that “There is hope the governor will call a special session.”
It’s impossible to know for sure who said that, but it was either Rodney Tom or someone he has elevated to a position of power. Whoever it was, I’m sure they talk like that all the time, and so Seattle legislators must know who they are. It’s not OK that Seattle legislators aren’t pushing to starve their city or district.
But OK, fine. Our legislators favor a one sided congeniality over protecting their constituents. It’s terrible, but kind of understandable. What I don’t understand is that the non-Seattle legislators think Seattle will let ourselves starve.
Ideally transit solutions will come from the state, but Seattle is pretty good at figuring out work arounds when the state doesn’t do its job. Think of the Families and Education Levy. Sure it would be better if the state would fund education at an adequate level. But Seattle didn’t wait around for that when the state failed year after year with Republican and with Democratic legislatures. We passed, and recently expanded the levy to make up some of that shortfall. Oh, and by the way: we didn’t have to share with the people who want to starve Seattle.
It’ll be tough to do something like that to save Metro funding without the authorization from the state. But I’m sure Dow, and some of the King County mayors, have staff and attorneys working on something. It almost certainly won’t be as elegant as what they asked the state for authority to do, but they aren’t just going to give up on Metro, just let it starve.
If Mayor McGinn would permit the Whole Foods West Seattle project to go forward without holding it up until McGinn gets what HE wants, then Seattle would have food and wouldn’t starve.
Funny, sometimes, how things work both ways.
@1
Too stupid to post. Let me see if I’ve got your logic. If West Seattle doesn’t get a THIRD high-end grocery, Seattle will starve.
Idiot.
This sounds eerily familiar to what I heard in the sandbox at age two: “If you don’t play my way, I’ll take my toys and go home.” Me and my friends outgrew that by age three. I guess some people never do.
It’s time to OCCUPY MEDINA!* If you have never tried to drive through Medina, it has a 25 mph speed limit which the police use as an excuse to stop and ID everyone they don’t recognize. A demonstration in Medina would be great fun. Maybe a fleet of art cars and a flotilla of art boats?
*For those who don’t know, Medina is the burb with the bucks just south of the east end of the 520 bridge. The 1% of the 1% live there.
YES! Fuck over Seattle!
What I did to Detroit will show you the way.
Rodney Tom is a tool, one with no political power. The Republicans had to make him their “majority leader” because that was his price for joining their caucus. But that didn’t mean he had any influence over the other 24 members of that caucus, most of them hard-core Seattle-hating conservatives.
If Rodney Tom had dared do anything even remotely progressive, he would’ve had open rebellion on his hands.
@7 Rodney Tom had better be a good little Republican or he’ll have no party base at all, because we sure as hell won’t let him be a Democrat again.
@6 There’s precious little indication Rodney Tom had any such intention anyway…but whether he’s the madam of the “coalition’s” whorehouse or just one of the pimps doesn’t make a lot of difference.
@2 And could someone please tell me why “Whole Paycheque” with its presumably lower-paid non-union work force charges more for equivalent products than Seattle’s other (unionized) upscale markets?
@4 The main purpose of the low speed limit, plethora of “no left turn” signs and lots of cops in Medina (and Clyde Hill, etc.) is primarily to discourage afternoon car commuters returning to Seattle from trying to dodge the usual slowdown approaching the east end of the 520 bridge by driving through their peaceful little burgs and getting on via the 84th Ave onramp.
@9 They charge that much because they cater to a segment of the populace that enjoys bragging that they are making enough to afford to shop at Whole Foods.
Chances are whomever said that didn’t get and is not going to get what they want. So, maybe it’s time for them to exist life as an elected official and play a lot of golf.
There was enough bad sprinkled in with the good in that transportation package that voting it down was a good thing.
Whenever the GOP controls a chamber in Olympia, they waste our time with at least one stick-it-to-Seattle bill. In this case, it’s a non-bill: they denied us the right to tax ourselves (!) to save Metro.
Even if there was no failed horse-trading behind Sen. Crybaby’s vomit, it must give them some satisfaction to deny us the power to tax ourselves. They talk constantly about how taxes are too high, that lower taxes mean FREEDOM and endless magic prosperity. Seattle constantly ignores this rhetoric, taxes itself for civic improvement, and yet, the flow of population continues towards Setttle, and away from the areas which elect GOP politicians. Stopping us from disproving their ideology is the closest they’ll ever get to imposing it on us, so that’s what they do.
Keep in mind, this is Rodney’s last go around. He pulled the wool over the eyes of his constituents and switched to a Democrat when demographics showed he was going to lose. Got the congratulations and the votes of Democrats all over the Bellevue area.
Then he pulled his stunt this year.
Everybody knows now that he never had any intention of being a Democrat and only the burning desire to stay in the legislature.
If he goes back to the Republicans they don’t want him since he bailed the party in 2006. Democrats sure as hell aren’t voting for him again.
He can run for state office but the ads that are just like the Susan Hutchison ads will follow him forever.
He’s done in his ever blueing district so he’s done. Unless he wants to move to Colville. They vote Republican and probably haven’t heard of him.