Notes from the Chair, September 2009

The cause endures, the hope still lives
and the dream shall never die.

—Senator Edward Kennedy (1932-2009)

I woke on the morning of August 26th to read about the passing of the Liberal Lion. We knew it was coming. Let us hope that Gov. Patrick is able to get the law in Massachusetts changed soon so that he can appoint another Democrat. No one will ever be able to fill the shoes, but torch has been passed to us, and our children. We have a lot of work to do, and we’re ready.

Our September meeting will feature the General Election Endorsements as the primary agenda item. (ouch, bad pun). Any endorsements that we have made will stand if our endorsed candidate(s) made it through the Primary election. Any race where we have not made an endorsement will be eligible for nominations, and any ballot measure will be up for consideration as well.

These endorsed candidates made it through to the General Election:

• King County Executive: Dow Constantine
• Port of Seattle Position 3: Rob Holland
• Port of Seattle Position 4: Max Vekich
• Seattle City Council Position 4: David Bloom
• Seattle City Council Position 6: Nick Licata

Races where we have not endorsed a candidate yet include King County Council Position 1, King County Sheriff & Assessor, Port of Seattle Position 1, Seattle Mayor, Seattle City Council Positions 2 & 8, and Seattle School Board Districts 5 &7.

As of this writing, the signatures for Referendum 71 are still being confirmed. Similar the Seattle Bag Fee, we will be asked whether the citizens of the State of Washington approve the law that was passed.

“This bill would expand the rights, responsibilities, and obligations accorded state-registered same-sex and senior domestic partners to be equivalent to those of married spouses, except that a domestic partnership is not a marriage.”

“Should this bill be Approved  or Rejected?”

One other item that will be on the ballot in November is the latest attempt by Tim Eyman to drown our government in a bathtub. Initiative 1033 would limit the 2010 budget to 2009 numbers, after the Legislature had to cut Billions of dollars thanks to the economic recession. The state of Colorado tried this a few years ago, and it was a huge mistake. If you would like to learn more, contact Steve Zemke and go to http://no1033.com.

The Seattle Housing Levy, which we voted to support in April, will also be on our ballots. See SaraJane’s article on page 4.

Other measures on the ballot will be posted on our website as soon as we know about them.

Thanks to the membership approval of the Raymond T. Cole Fund, Committee pages are up, including a blank Letter of Intent. We have already gotten a few ideas that are far beyond what I expected, and it’s fantastic. Please keep them coming!

Chad Lupkes, Chair