Seattle City Council Candidates

A few hours listening to blather is about all I could take this morning. Thank God there were muffins and Tim Harris from Real Change to distract.

The occasion was the Seattle King County Coalition on Homelessness Candidate's Forum http://www.homelessinfo.org/ held at Opportunity Place.

Jean Godden would make a wonderful grandmother. She says she understands and empathizes with homeless people because her family lived in a tent when she was a preschooler -- her father was in the army; Spanish American war? She didn't say.

Her opponent, Joe Szwaja did not show. Too bad, I think the room would have liked him. He's endorsed by the Green Party, and was their candidate for Congress in the 7th Congressional District, running against Jim McDermott (or as we know him locally, Representative For Life McDermott. We love him, really). Oddly, Jean Godden's campaign literature shows her standing in a rain-forest, and touts her environmental stands. http://joeforcouncil.com/default.shtml for more on Joe.

Judy Fenton, running against Sally Clark, confessed she didn't know anything, but she had children working with a Shoreline area homeless ministry. Tim Harris from Real Change told me privately he would be perfectly comfortable having Judy babysit his children. I imagine her needing help remembering the appropriate phone number for emergencies. "9 - 1 - what was that?"

Tom Rasmussen made a great impression, but of course, he's running unopposed. Apparently when you're unopposed you can be direct, forthright, well-informed. Or maybe it's the other way around. Being direct, forthright, well-informed leads to being unopposed?

Bruce Harrell made a very good impression; he's a Garfield graduate (go Bulldogs), had some decent and thoughtful answers. He's running for the spot vacated by Peter Steinbrueck.

His opponent is Venus Velasquez, the only candidate with school age children in Seattle Public Schools. She also spoke very well, though without the polish of trial lawyer Harrell. Either candidate would do the job.

David Della is opposed by Tim Burgess. It is noteworthy that I couldn't remember Tim's name after leaving the meeting. If you're going to talk through your hat, you must do so with authority.

OK, enough about politics. I feel icky now. R