Jesse Salomon for WA State Senate 42nd LD

Jesse Salomon is running for Washingtons 42nd Legislative District State Senate seat. He was a Dean delegate to the Democratic National Convention. I've crossed path with Jesse often in the past few months and I've been very impressed. The other day, I had the chance to interview Jesse.

Q: What moved you to become a candidate for the State Senate?

Jesse: I was tired of hearing myself complain about the direction the radical right (Bush and company)are taking our Country. By dedicating myself to running for office I feel like I am channeling the sorrow I feel in a positive direction.

Also, on a local level, we are dealing with a changing Whatcom County. I really love it here and I want to make sure we do a better job managing growth and preserving open space and farmland. I also think we need to invest more in early childhood learning, lower the cost of college tuition, and find a comprehensive way to make health care more accessible and affordable for everybody.

I have also made clean and renewable energy a centerpiece of my message. I will discuss that more shortly.


Q: What qualities make you a progressive candidate?

Jesse: I want to unite people in a positive way across the ideological spectrum with issues like clean and renewable energy. Developing a clean and renewable energy industry will help create living wage jobs for liberals and conservatives, ensure clean air and water, and help us move towards energy independence. This is populist and progressive.

The Republicans use wedge tactics and scapegoating of the less powerful (e.g. immigrants) to divide people and implement regressive changes that benefit only the wealthy, under the guise of creating opportunity or keeping us safe. I loath that kind of cynical politics, and feel that the best way to fight it is with positive and community building politics.


Q: You've just doorbelled all across Whatcom County, what did you find were voters biggest concerns?

Jesse: Mostly, people talked about the need to increase accessibility and affordability of Health Care, prevent urban sprawl, strengthen our public education system, ensure we have clean air and water, and the need to add more living wage jobs. On the conservative side, people were angry about illegal immigrants, and gay marriage. Of course, people are also concerned about the war in Iraq.


Q: Do you have (progressive) answers for the things that most concern the voters?

Jesse: Let'’s look at a couple things that concern voters: the war in Iraq and a clean environment. It is my conviction that if we develop clean and renewable energy in Whatcom County and the US, we will decrease the perceived need among some to "secure oil fields abroad." At the very least, there will be a compelling political argument against oil interventionism if we have a secure supply of energy at home. Additionally, we are seeing shrinking ice caps here in the Cascade Mountains as a result of global warming. Clean and renewable energy will help us move away from fossil fuels and the warming it creates.

George Lakoff, alternative political strategist author of Don't Think of an Elephant and Moral Politics, who I think can help lead the left out of the political wilderness, writes alot about strategic initiatives. This is the opposite of Republican Wedge tactics, where they create hatred of one group (e.g. gays and lesbians) to unite other groups. Strategic initiatives from the left will unite left leaning groups such as environmentalists with right leaning groups like farmers in a positive way.

For example, the development of clean and renewable energy on farms through bio-digesters (driven by methane from cow waste), bio-diesel and wind power will;

A. help boost the farm economy

B. help the environment by decreasing pollution and helping stop the conversion of farmland into urban sprawl

C. contribute to national security by decreasing our dependence on foreign oil.

In doorbelling, I am finding that clean and renewable energy has support across the ideological spectrum, which is exactly what I am hoping for.

Jesse's looking for grassroots support. If you're impressed with what he has to say, please sign up.

Jesse's opponent incumbent Dale Brandland (R) is well funded, but I wonder just how hungry for re-election he really is. You might remember that back in April Brandlands offered to hand his job over to someone else:
"I've had enough," he said on the (Senate) floor, which was mostly empty because Democrats were still in caucus. "You don't like the way we do this job, then come down and do it yourself. I'm outta here."

He seems to have done his best to be the invisible Senator. Last weekend at Ferndale's Old Settlers Picnic, I talked about the upcoming election with dozens of people and most of them only knew Brandland as the guy who used to be Sheriff.

There are plenty of reasons to put Brandland into retirement. He's not our friend. He's regularly opposed legislation that protects citizens.
Dale Brandland:

• Opposed 2005 Senate Bill 5452 (Prohibiting genetic testing as a condition of life insurance).
• Opposed 2005 Senate Bill 5327 (Creating an office of privacy protection).
• Opposed 2005 Senate Bill 5275 (Prohibiting the use of consumer credit histories for personal insurance renewal decisions).
• Opposed 2006 Senate Bill 6508 (Requiring minimum renewable fuel content).
• Opposed 2005 Senate Joint Memorial 8014 (Requesting that the privatization of social security be rejected).
• Opposed 2006 Senate Bill 6185 (Modifying the Family and Medical Leave Act).
• Opposed 2005 House Bill 1636 (Adopting a wage ladder for child care workers).
• Opposed 2005 Senate Bill 5069 (Establishing a family leave insurance program).

Brandland hasn't sponsored much legislation, but the bills he has sponsored are awfully unappealing.
Some of the Bills Brandland sponsored

• SB 5133 To take away privileged communications between spouses.
• SB 5553 a pilot program for electronic fingerprinting technology.
• SB 6063 Limiting damages against health care providers.
• SB 6072 Providing for omnibus civil liability reform.
• SB 6106 disclosure of health care information for law enforcement purposes.
• SB 6680 a biometric matching system for driver's licenses and identicards.
• SB 6719 the exchange of criminal history records for noncriminal justice uses.