Comments

1
What I like about Ivan is that he's as sensible and level-headed as I am.

That plus the eggs he sells.

Primaries are ne'er won by faint 'o heart, nor good intentions. Although a name change works wonders for judicial wins.
2
OMG...is that Ivan?
3
Ivan is a national treasure--when he's on your side.
4
Shit...if I read the entire first paragraph, I would have answered myself. Ivan is always good for some gloves-off political commentary, and I dig that about him.
5
Count me as Jivin' for Ivan--he makes politics fun.
6
Seriously, Ivan's a good egg. I thought you knew his SLOG handle, Michael ...
7
When I was running for office, one thing that annoyed me very quickly was mealy-mouthed party officials and politicians. Ivan (who was one of my stalwart supporters, by the way) was a breath of fresh air. Talk about someone who always tells it like it is! Not always perfectly tactfully, but damned if I've ever been able to say he was wrong.

And what in the hell was she looking for from the unions, if she was refusing their money? Just endorsements? That seems kind of disingenuous - modern politics, especially with open campaign finance laws, is a monetary horserace. They aren't buying legislation with that check; the idea is that it helps you get your message to more voters. You use it to pay for printed materials, ads, campaign staffers, etc.
8
That kind of bullshit and the general irrelevancy of them is why I've only gone to my LD once.
9
Nothing says Seattle politics like a morbidly obese West Seattle resident up in arms because people living in the U-District want more bike lanes so they don't have to drive everywhere and end up morbidly obese.

Great that he's making a difference in your neighborhood, but keep him out of mine.
10

Even when you have hots for one of the candidates, is 34th District legislative primary worth thousands of words of commentary?
Well, perhaps when it means not having to read more about Stan Rumbaugh's defeat.
11
First of all, Ivan can stop with the debt comments. I lent myself the money in hopes that I would be able to recover some of it. If not, I was going to simply contribute it myself. He can check the PDC because I will be doing that pretty soon.

I was actually asked by labor friends to run without PAC money. They really like public campaign financing because they know when push comes to shove corporate money will always outspend them. I knew full well going into this that running without PAC money would be hard but they felt and I agreed that we might be able to engage labor in a different way. Many unions agreed with me. The ones with the most money did not and I was personally attacked by one of them for my stance. So yes, indeed, PAC money made a difference in this race. Was it only because they felt their candidate was the only choice or because public campaign financing will ulimately take their finger off the trigger?

I was not foisted on the membership. The membership approved the rules and I campaigned hard for the nomination and endorsement. The other candidates simply didn't. Make no mistake that Ivan has every intention of running for Chair again. His scorched earth policy is at work here. Believe me, when Ivan shouts the loudest that is when he's looking out for number one the most and usually the opposite of what he says is true.

His latest comments have everything to do with his undermining of Tim Nuse in pursuit of regaining control of the 34th. That will happen over my and frankly a lot of other peoples' dead bodies. Ivan has done more to drive people from the district organization (many of them women) than anyone in living memory. I regret I apologized for him and explained away his behavior so many times and still remained his friend. Obviously that has changed.

Thanks especially to Tim and all the other supporters in the 34th membership who believe that public campaign financing is the only hope we have for a responsible and responsive government. Thanks also to them for believing that being a member of the 34th District Democrats means something more than being a political stooge and cyber bully.

12
I see. So if I don't support Marcee, I don't support public financing of elections? Because only Marcee supports public financing? And electing Marcee is the only path to public financing?

Sorry, Marcee. That's why I support candidates who have a grasp on reality. Joe Fitzgibbon has taken the clean elections pledge, and I continue to support public financing. You don't own the issue.

And I'm not running for chairman again, now or ever. Wherever did you get that through your head?
--
Ivan Weiss
13
Perhaps the most disappointing thing for me is trying to get my brain wrapped around the hipocrisy. When I joined the 34th in 2008, Ivan Weiss was chair and made it clear that members owed it to the district to support endorsed and/or nominated candidates. I can only imagine the stroke he would have had if PCOs split in their support of Dow Constantine for exec and ran with another candidates lit and marched against Dow in parades and wrote mean comments about the candidate in public forum.
Somehow this has changed now and PCOs have the right to so what they want - thought all stand before the membership with a promise to support the 34th as a Democrat. When an ex - chair begins attacking the current chair on a level that he cannot change, it reminds me of why some in the organization asked him not to run for chair again. What ever happened to thanking the candidates for a good race and moving on. I have mixed feelings about running for a seat in the district, getting an endorsement and not having the fullest support of the district that I have given time, sweat and money to and in return get undermined by those who have taught me about being a Democrat in the 34th.
As a board member what does this mean, what is expected of me. What do I tell voters when they ask what does an endorsement mean? I assumes the outgoing chair and current chair would work together to stratigize and ensure that the candidate gets the highest level of support. I know have to rethink what all this means because this is not how the ex-chair explained to me how the 34th works. This is not how I would imagine anyone speaking about another person in a public forum . This is not how I thought some of the best democrats I have come to know would behave. This tells me to be careful and that I should make my own way and be very careful. I mostly disappointed that one of our elected leaders went out if her way to support a candidate that might give the impression of insider track. I can only hope that we, the 34th, return to an LD that is respected, and can agree, as we have in the past, to support a candidate this wins an endorsement. When I decide to run for a seat, I can only hope that the support, effort, time and energy spent in the 34th, will return to me when it is my turn. I also hope that of that latter is the case, that I am not undermined, but asked to step aside or reconsider - that would be almost democratic. I want to always know where I truly stand with the LD that I support so fully.
14
For anyone who's got anonymous comments hidden, you should probably unhide @12.
15
Chris Porter @ 12:

There's no hypocrisy here. You just glossed over some essential facts in your eagerness to spew your usual incoherent brain dump.

When I was District chairman, I emphasized the need for all 34th District Democrats to support our endorsed candidates AGAINST REPUBLICANS, and not against fellow Democrats. During my four years as chairman, we didn't HAVE a contested primary between two Democrats, except for a couple of "nonpartisan" City Council races. In those cases, we had the good sense to dual-endorse, so that the District wouldn't be embarrassed and ridiculed for having backed a loser.

Even when we single-endorsed, I never presumed to tell members or PCOs it was "their duty" to support only who I wanted them to support. I'm not so immature, or so insecure, as to claim such authority, because it doesn't exist.

To be successful in politics, don't write a check with your mouth that your ass can't cash. That lesson escapes you every single time, just like the Roadrunner escapes the coyote.
--
Ivan Weiss
16
I meant @ 13:
17
@12, 13, 15, 16: A Democratic open seat is a rare thing and when one occurs, all bets are off. In an open seat race, the district Democratic organization's endorsement is just that--a good endorsement, but in no way binding on group members.

Four years ago, we had an open seat in the 43rd. There were six strong candidates, each with the support of various PCOs and other Democratic stalwarts. There was an endorsement meeting and Dick Kelley, the former district chair, came close to getting the endorsement, but didn't quite make it. Had Dick been endorsed, it would have been a great accomplishment and it might have helped his campaign (he finished last). But, none of the supporters of the other candidates would have switched allegiance or campaigned for him.

District organizations are also a club. Marcee Stone was the most popular club member and got the district's endorsement. Mike Heavey and Joe Fitzgibbon had greater support and pushed Marcee out in the primary. That's politics. Being a member of a district organization doesn't take away anyone's freedom of speech or their ability to support whoever they want in an election between multiple Democrats.
18
@ 17: No one is trying to "take away anyone's freedom of speech or their ability to support whoever they want" in the 34th.

There's two simple things driving this issue. There was a significant change to the endorsements process, which a rather loud minority of folks dislike. That's fine; but the members have voted TWICE now to approve the current process.

It doesn't seem odd to ask PCO's to carry the district's sample ballot and campaign lit of endorsed candidates. In a sense, that's really part of their job description. They're asked to pledge to support the district organization, and the Party. Marcee was also the "official" Democratic nominee, even if that isn't worth very much under our current primary system and in an overwhelmingly Democratic urban district. Vote and volunteer for whomever you want. Carry additional lit for non-endorsed candidates.

But is it too much to ask for nominal support of the organization's decision? As Tim pointed out in the original post, it wasn't even a close vote in either instance. If it was, Marcee would not have had the sole endorsement.

Too bad Eli couldn't ask himself whether or not this single endorsement is truly reflective of the organization's energy for endorsed candidates overall, or whether or not Ivan and an energetic minority of members are truly reflective of the work the 34th District is trying to accomplish in the community.
19
Michael @ 18:

I think the vote totals reflected who represented an "energetic minority" and who did not. The electorate at large, which the District organization is supposed to represent, does not give a rip about the endorsement rules or the endorsement process of any organization. The electorate at large has little patience with process and with petty process wonks, if it even considers them at all..

I don't know what other conclusion anyone could draw from these vote totals.
--
Ivan Weiss
20
@ Everyone -

Really? REALLY? This is the appropriate forum to get into this pissing match over who does what, how it should be done, etc, etc, etc.

While it is fun to watch (thank the Good Lord we don't have this in the 43rd...we just have Will), all you're doing is further undermining the Party.

Not that it matters much, mind you, but still.

I'm not saying who started it, but for the love of God, be adults, and stop it. The Primary is over, and now is the time for ya'll to focus on the kids who came out of it, and determine who is the best fit to represent your district, and get your ass off the couch and work hard to get that person elected.
21
My comment was removed ... why?
22
Sorry about 21 -- the comments weren't showing for me.

Ivan, I'll forget about you running for chair when you stop presuming to know anything about my personal finances.

Yes, I would have worked hard for public campaign financing, like no one else has or will. In fact, I'll still be working for public campaign financing.

The vote totals could also have something to do with the $50,000 of special interest monies that came into the campaign. Doh!

Please wait...

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