1. Eric Liu—a well-known writer, former RealNetworks executive, and Bill Clinton adviser, who had planned to challenge state Sen. Adam Kline (D-37)—pulled out of the race last night in front of a “stunned” meeting of the 37th District Democrats, according to District Secretary Tom Karwaki.
Liu had been considered a strong challenger to the 14-year incumbent.
UPDATE: This morning, Liu sent out a press release explaining his decision. He says the campaign was getting in the way of being a dad.
“I have been unable to be both the candidate I want to be and the father I want to be. At every turn so far, I have been choosing to sacrifice time with my daughter and my family so I can squeeze in one more campaign activity. A profound imbalance has resulted, even this early in the campaign, and it does not feel right.”
2. This year’s reorganization of city council committees—an annual tradition—rid the council of one of its more embarrassing committee acronyms, PLUNC (short for the Planning, Land Use, and Neighborhoods Committee). That committee is now the more pleasant-sounding Committee On the Built Environment, or COBE (pronounced Ko-bay) for short.
However, the reorg produced an even more problematic acronym: the Seattle Public Utilities and Neighborhoods Committee, or SPUNC.
And the council is still figuring out what to do about the Livable South Downtown plan—LSD for short.
3. The state Senate’s proposed capital budget, which passed out of committee yesterday, eliminates $39.5 million in funding for the Housing Trust Fund, which pays for low-income housing around the state. (The House version earmarks $100 million for the fund.)
According to Anna Markee, outreach director for the Housing Development Consortium, the senate proposal even takes away money that has already been allocated to agencies, but has not been dispersed.
In Seattle, at least six projects will be stopped or canceled if the Senate version passes, including housing for the homeless in Ballard, a home ownership project in Southeast Seattle, and redevelopment of the Gethsemane Lutheran Church downtown into 50 apartments.
The fund is traditionally held hostage by the Senate because it is one of House Speaker Rep. Frank Chopp’s (D-43) pet projects.
4. Low-income housing advocates weren’t the only ones cheering the House over the Senate in Olympia yesterday. Environmentalists, chagrined over the weekend when the Senate rolled back renewable energy tax incentives, were happy yesterday when the House Finance Chair Rep. Ross Hunter (D-48) included the $7.8 million exemption for green projects in the House revenue plan.
5. City Council will consider legislation this Wednesday that would rezone a piece of industrial land along 24th Ave. NW and NW Market St. in Ballard to commercial.
Environmentalist and Ballard resident Eric de Place, who works for the Sightline Institute, wrote a letter supporting the change, calling the area between 24th and the Ballard Locks a “dead zone” that is “ripe for more foot traffic.”
Industrial interests in Ballard are expected to oppose the change.
The voice of my fifth-grade English teacher is loud in my head this morning:
1. “Hostage” and “Bargaining Chip” are synonyms.
2. Eric de Place gets comedy points for putting “ripe” and “foot” together like that.
Fixed it. And it does make for a better headline.
It's really too bad Eric Liu is dropping out. For once the 37th could have had a strong voice that could persuade others to take urban issues under consideration.
Adam Kline is lazy waste of a good seat for Seattle in the state senate. He stakes claims on important issues for the city and its people, but makes no real effort to get them out of committee or even discussed. His unpleasant personality, a hostile know-it-all, doesn't help either.
This area here between the Locks and 24th? How is that a “dead zone”? I mean, it sounds like a good change, but what happens to the various existing businesses there? Or does this just mean that empty properties can convert to commercial?
Regarding the pronunciation of “COBE”: Is “environment” pronounced “Ayn-vyrn-ment?” Then why…
Its a bummer that Eric Liu dropped out. Kline is out of touch with reality.
It's our fault. We have not created a system where legislators can have a family life. We don't publicly finance campaigns so they have to spend hours and hours on the phone and raising money. They literally have to devote 2-3 hours a day to dialing for dollars.
Then as voters we seem to think that if they come to our door for a thirty second chat this is some kind of meaningful interaction, thus earning our vote, thus their advisers tell them to doorbell, doorbell, doorbell, thus htey have to spend about 100 days at six hours a day tramping around doorbelling. Most people aren't home, either. But if you don't do it the rumorbuzz blasts you for not doorbelling.
So trying to raise $300,000 for a race like this and trying to spend 100 days doorbelling from March to July …well you certainly can't have a family, you have to be rich enough to not have to work, and we seem to want this as it's the way it works and it doesn't change.
Solution: candidates who pledge to communicate entirely through the internet; to not raise more than $5000 for internet costs and a few limited nos. of yard signs; candidates who pledge to NOT spend time dialing for dollars.
Hey Eric, why not try it?
New blood/new economy/efficiency/away with the dinosaurs of the past.
RE: SPUNC. This is totally appropriate for Seattle. Remember, you pick up most documents from the city departments housed in the penis-shaped office towner(looking “down” from Capitol Hill). In other words, pick up your SMUT, ride the SLUT to SHAG and get SPUNC all ovre.
Eric Liu is a smart, visionary, idealistic guy and an inspirational speaker. The State Senate would have bored & frustrated him.
Dropping out at this point tells me that this was more of a vanity project than a mission driven campaign. Yeah, campaigning sucks. It's brutal on candidates and families. But if you want to win, you do what it takes to make that happen. That means drawing distinct contrasts between you and your opponent. Eric was trying to make this a “nice” contest about the “position”, when he really needed to be saying was just what the Publicola commenters have been highlighting. And that means finding a way to make your family life work because, guess what, if he'd actually been successful & made it to Olympia, things would have only gotten harder.
The “I need to spend time with my family” is getting tiresome, especially from male candidates with wives who traditionally do the major part of the child stuff during campaigns (and afterward). Liu knew he had a child when he started putting out feelers. Until the system's changed, either do what marymary suggests or stay out. No matter what campaigns are like, politics isn't a polite game for delicate souls. Don't tease your supporters by dipping your toe in and then taking it out.
Adam Kline is a hard-working legislator who is strong on civil liberties, environment, social services and a number of other issues. He doesn't deserve the nasty personal attacks being made here.
Agree. Those nasty comments have been made before without any specific justifications — i.e., instances where he supposedly displayed the faults a commenter attributed to him. If you oppose a politician or candidate, it's only fair to give your reasoning.
If Lui were female, would you put up with comments like “make your family life work”? The truth is that the US is absurdly unsupportive of kids.
Trying to put Ballard commercial on the waterfront is like trying to put condos on the Duwamish. However, if there are genuine dead zones, then it is reasonable that empty warehouses and such be zoned for adaptive re-use that is compatible with existing businesses. It will be interesting to see what City Council does here. Georgetown is watching.
I would put one Adam Kline against 10 of your average Olympia legislators on any matter of civil liberties. He is an attorney, a former ACLU Board member, chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee and has been volunteering with the ACLU, Justice Works! and others to reform the Three Strikes Bill, which locks up more than just violent offenders. We need serious, knowledgeable, hardworking legislators such as Adam in Olympia.
Never hear of Eric Liu. Never met him and I am active in the 37th. I'm sure he is a nice guy, but I have no idea what his politics are. I do know Adam stands and fights for (negotiates, horse trades whatever) laws I agree with and is now in a position to actually affect the State Senate.
Even though a committee chair ship does not guarantee magic, why the heck would I support someone with unknown political background on the stuff I care about to have my State Senator be basically an ineffectual freshman?
The family excuse? Well every two years it's a busy few months. And each year there is two-three months away from the family. Otherwise, your time is your own. I know more people who travel for their living 12 months a year who would not be sympathetic. At least it's a graceful way to bow out. I was getting nervous about all the large contributions from outside the district.
All women make our family lives work on a daily basis. We juggle our kids and our jobs and sometimes it's overwhelming but that's what it takes to get it done. I doubt Liu was really that naive when he got into this race. Basically, I don't buy the line and I'm curious what the real reasons were.
Liu dropping out is good news not just for Adam but for senate Dems up this year across the state. In what will be a tough year, spending a ton of money on a D to D primary and general (top two) may have cost several seats.