Polls

Local political consultant, Moxie Media—whose roster of Seattle clients has included Mayor Nickels, the monorail, Council Member Peter Steinbrueck, City Attorney Tom Carr, and Washington Conservation Voters—has a hand in a big-deal, anti-Bush, Zeitgeist 2006 race: insurgent Democrat Ned Lamont, who's challenging on-again-off-again Democratic incumbent Joe Lieberman in Connecticut. Moxie, Lamont's mail consultant, has done four pieces for the candidate since getting the gig in February. And Lamont is closing in. The latest polls show Lamont just six points behind at 46-40. In May, Lamont trailed 65–19. Rumor now has it that Lieberman, feeling the heat, may choose to run as an Independent.

Moxie's message, according to Moxie staffer

John Wyble, is straightforward: "This is a referendum on Lieberman, who is unable to stand up to George Bush." JOSH FEIT

Tolls

The Washington State Transportation Commission is holding a series of public meetings to gauge citizens' willingness to accept tolls on certain roads and bridges, including Interstate 90 at Snoqualmie Pass and the 520 floating bridge. Want to weigh in? You'll have to trek to Mercer Island. That's the site of the commission's only "Central Puget Sound" forum. Hmmm... wonder what diverse views on tolling a community of car owners who live on an island accessible only by bridge will have to offer? ERICA C. BARNETT

Goals

Democrats saw President Bush's visit to Seattle on June 16 as a great opportunity to get Eastside Republican Congressman Dave Reichert some negative publicity. With Bush in town for a high-dollar Reichert fundraiser, and with a recent Democratic poll putting Bush's popularity in Reichert's district at 26 percent, it seemed a natural moment to hammer the "Rubber-Stamp Reichert" theme that Democrats have been promoting in an attempt to make Reichert's popularity sink right along with Bush's. Democrat Darcy Burner, Reichert's opponent, pushed the mantra along with Dwight Pelz, the chair of the state Democratic Party, at a small rally that Friday at Westlake Plaza in downtown Seattle. But over at Boeing Field, Reichert happily posed with Bush as the two were deplaning from Air Force One. Perhaps there's a method to his madness. His Bush event took in more than $800,000, while a counter-fundraiser, held online by the Burner campaign, had taken in only $41,000 by press time. ELI SANDERS

Confused

Team Nickels came out against Initiative 87 this week—a six-year, 39 cents per $1,000 property tax that will raise $40 million a year for teachers and smaller classrooms.

A Nickels press release stated: "As written, the initiatives would require the district to increase spending on new programs and teachers, not address the growing $20 million budget gap it is already facing. Throwing money at the wrong problems will only make matters worse."

First of all, I-87 creates a dedicated fund, so Team Nickels is wrong—we wouldn't be siphoning money away from the school budget. Second, isn't it inconsistent of them to condemn I-87 for addressing the wrong problem, when their $117 million Family & Education levy (passed in 2004) directed money away from the basics? And actually, I-87 does direct money right at the basics: all-day kindergarten and smaller classes.

Perhaps it's that Team Nickels doesn't want a property-tax levy on this year's ballot because they don't want to compete with it. They're floating their $1.8 billion transportation levy this fall, and they also might have to go to the voters to defend their $4 billion tunnel project. They probably don't want their legacy projects being matched up against the kids. JOSH FEIT

Recused

Late last Friday, June 16, the mayor announced new proposed ethics rules for Seattle boards and commissions. The new legislation would require board and commission members to recuse themselves from issues where "potential financial conflicts exist." In his news release, Mayor Nickels quoted Bill Block, a member of the Seattle Center Advisory Commission and a member of the mayor's ethical advisory committee. Nickels's choice of Block as his ethical poster boy was somewhat surprising, since Block owns a portion of the Seattle SuperSonics, who are currently lobbying the mayor and city council for a $220 million financial subsidy for Seattle Center's KeyArena. NANCY DREW