Burke Taunts Mccaslin Challenger Baits Gop Commissioner, But Incumbent Won’T Bite At Forum

Bill Burke got personal Thursday night.

The challenger for the District 2 seat on the Spokane County Commission called incumbent Kate McCaslin a “bean counter” who doesn’t care about people.

The setting was a sparsely attended candidates forum sponsored by the Spokane Regional Chamber of Commerce.

“We have elected an accountant. We have elected a bean counter. The budget, the budget, the budget. People be damned,” said Burke, a Democrat looking to unseat McCaslin in the Nov. 7 general election.

McCaslin, a Republican known for keeping a hawk’s eye on the county’s budget, refused to jump into the fray. Aside from making a crack about how some candidates need “anger management,” the incumbent stuck to her record.

“I’ve kept my promises,” McCaslin, who is seeking a second term, told a crowd that consisted mostly of the candidates’ supporters. “I always try to consider what’s best for all the community.”

The candidates in the District 1 race - incumbent John Roskelley and challenger Karl Wilkinson - engaged in a more quiet discussion of their differences.

Roskelley extolled the virtues of the county’s nearly $13 million reserve fund, efforts the board has taken to protect quality of life issues and the dignity he believes has been restored to the board since he took office.

“I think we’ve done an excellent job in the last four years,” said Roskelley, a Democrat seeking his second full term. He served a partial term in 1995.

Wilkinson, a Republican, agreed that the commissioners have done some good things, “but I think we can do better.”

He said he’d spend more money on economic development programs such as the International Trade Alliance.

“This is a global economy that we live in,” Wilkinson said. “We’re a part of the world.”

Then Burke took center stage.

Speaking in a vigorous tone and often scowling, the promoter of Pig Out in the Park tore into McCaslin, saying she lacks vision and experience.

“All you’ve talked about at these forums is what you’ve done. What’s your vision?” Burke asked.

McCaslin said her vision includes providing everyone in her district with an opportunity to succeed.

The county can do that by maintaining its strong financial position and improving infrastructure, she said.

“You can’t give somebody a job, but you can give them opportunity,” McCaslin said.

Burke criticized her for not placing on the November ballot an initiative to increase the board of county commissioners from three members to five. “She’s power hungry,” he said.

McCaslin said she didn’t support putting the measure on the ballot because it didn’t appear to have community support. A group pushing the initiative gathered fewer than 400 signatures in a recent petition drive, she pointed out.

Burke then ripped her for not signing a resolution that gave sheriff’s deputies a retroactive pay raise. “She does not care about people,” he said.

McCaslin responded by saying she works for all the people in Spokane County, “not the unions,” and that she thought the pay raise was more than the private sector would have awarded.

“I want what’s equitable, nothing better or worse than the private sector,” she said.

McCaslin went on to say that by teaming with the city and the private sector, the county can make great strides in bringing prosperity to local citizens over the next four years. “I am so proud that we are a fit and ready team member,” she said.

Burke shook his head.

“I must be living in a different community than the commissioner,” he said, pointing out that there were 1,200 home foreclosures last year and that domestic violence continues to be a problem in the area. “It’s time to vote her out.”