Public Periscope
Say what?
Ya gotta wonder, sometimes, if the candidates really know what their campaign staffs are saying. Take last week’s Spokane Rotary debate between Slade Gorton and Maria Cantwell … The Democratic challenger began her opening remarks with the standard statement of how glad she was to be here, contending “this was too good of an opportunity to pass up.” That was pretty amusing, considering her staff had spent more than a week signaling she wasn’t going to show because they were looking to force Gorton into a televised debate, and there was no live TV for the Rotary debate … After they made the 11th hour decision to come, Cantwell almost did have to pass up the debate, because Spokane’s notorious early morning fog had delayed flights at the airport.
Gorton’s introduction, which was written by the campaign for the moderator to read, had long quotes from various newspapers around the state which have endorsed his candidacy. In case the audience missed that, his opening statement borrowed even more verbiage from favorable editorials … It’s not surprising that Gorton is happy with endorsements that back him. What’s amusing is that Gorton’s staff has basically been at war with the media, complaining the press in general, and a couple of Seattle journalists in particular, have been unfair to their guy … Maybe they just figured it was easier to borrow the editorials than write their own stuff?
Who turned out the lights?
Televiewers of the City Council meeting on City Cable 5 Monday afternoon might have been surprised when the screen went dark as the council adjourned its regular session and slipped into a budget workshop. The same thing happened after the evening meeting, when cameras stopped rolling as the council debated the budget … It wasn’t an executive session, and other media and onlookers got to stay and listen. City Manager Hank Miggins said the cameras were turned off because workshops, which usually take place in a room without cameras, are not shown on the cable station … But there’s nothing that prohibits workshops from being televised. Viewers at home may have wondered if the city, which prides itself on openness, was hiding something.
Last Thursday Miggins said the city may have made a mistake in pulling the plug: “In retrospect, we probably should have left them on. People probably could have learned a lot by watching.”
Ante up
Gary Locke’s re-election campaign received a surprise donation of $1,000 from Aces Sports Bar and Casino in Spokane. Why a surprise? Well, Locke signed a 1997 bill that made such establishments legal, but later said he regretted that move. He and many legislators said they thought it was just a technical change in the law … But in a recent discussion with Aces officials, Locke “told us that he’s very glad that he did support it because of the benefit (gambling) has to the economy,” said Aces manager Jerry Heggestad … Locke campaign spokesman Peter McGraw said Locke hasn’t had a change of heart about gambling. “But he recognized the economic benefits it has had on those communities where it exists.”
Word to the wise
Public Periscope has offered rules on campaign signage from government agencies and utilities in recent months, but we offer this week’s tip from our Department of Common Sense. If you have a campaign sign in your yard for the candidate or ballot issue of your choice, congratulations. You are part of the democratic process and upholding the right of free speech that Americans hold dear. But take them down tonight … Put them in the garage, the basement or on the back porch until Wednesday. Tomorrow is Halloween, and yard signs are extremely tempting targets for ghoulies and ghosties and long-legged beasties and things that go Whack! in the night.