I know most of you are glad that the election is finally over. Some of the races got downright ugly and lacked the decorum we would like our candidates and officeholders to exhibit.
However, there were several bits of humor that you might appreciate. In most cases, I am not revealing the name of the person who provided these pearls of wisdom, as running for public office is humbling enough.
One candidate for the King County Council said: “The county could balance the budget by cutting ferry service.” Problem? It was said to a group of Vashon Island residents, which may not have been the right audience for that statement.
“If elected I will treat all city employees equally, except police of course…” said a candidate for mayor. That should make city employees feel valued and safe from the budget axe.
Senate candidate Dino Rossi repeated his call for less government at several venues, but Oak Harbor seemed a particularly odd location, since the Navy base provides most of the economy for Whidbey Island residents. The newspaper editorial didn’t share his view.
When asked a question about the budget, one candidate for local office said: “We need to cut out the waste in government.” When asked a follow-up on a specific cut, the same candidate said: “I can’t oppose that, I want those people to support me.” Well, that’s politics for you.
One well-intended first-time candidate said: “Watch what I do, don’t listen to what I say.” They didn’t. He lost.
Another candidate said: “I will never discriminate against anyone due to sex, creed, national origin or religion…unless they’re gay and want to get married.” His equally open-minded opponent agreed with him.
From a candidate for local office: “I think the South King Fire and Rescue surcharge proposal is a terrible idea…but don’t quote me. I want the fire union to support me.”
When asked why the public should like a state budget that was full of cuts, one Tacoma area Democratic state legislator said: “I’m not a very good liar.” Hopefully, she meant she didn’t like the budget either, but I’ll bet that quote showed up in her opponent’s literature.
A candidate for the U.S. Senate, hoping to prove a point, invited the press to meet two business leaders who were complaining about how much money the federal government was wasting. What the candidate presumably didn’t know, but the press found out, was that both business owners were receiving federal stimulus money and wanted more. Maybe it was only the money that other people got that troubled them.
I think only three of us recognized it, but one of my favorites occurred in the race for Federal Way mayor. I have always liked Jim Ferrell’s humor, and here’s why. At one public debate, he criticized Skip Priest for bringing up education, as he didn’t think it was relevant in the mayoral race. Apparently after thinking about it, he decided the answer Priest gave wasn’t all that bad — because at the next debate, he used it. Priest complimented him for his insight.
To all of the candidates, thanks for an entertaining and lively election. Congratulations to all the winners.
