Camden: State campaign season starts

While we don’t encourage candidates to wait until Friday afternoon to file — it’s a pain in the neck for anyone trying to compile the full list of candidates for dozens of offices when that person would much rather be sipping a beer in the sunshine — we know some people will. If you do, be sure to check for closing time of the elections office in your particular county.

Although most offices on the 2019 ballot are nonpartisan, the Washington Democratic Party sent out a mass email last week urging recipients “(fill in the first name), you should run for office.” It was a large enough delivery list that some Democrats who are already in office got the missive, as did some reporters.

To which, we here at Spin Control have to say, “Thanks, but no thanks.” We’ll stick with trying to keep folks honest from the sidelines.

Just making a point

The Legislature tends to pass hundreds of bills in the final days of the session, which have to be signed within 20 days of their arrival on the governor’s desk. That means that for about three weeks after the session ends, Gov. Jay Inslee signs a boatload of bills almost every day when he’s around.

It’s a constant stream of people filing in to watch him put pen to paper and add his signature to the proper line, then smiling for the camera to record the event for posterity. Sometimes the process gets interrupted, like last Tuesday, when one of the bills involved a change in liability for beekeepers in urban areas.

That prompted Inslee to mention that his wife, Trudi, got a second-place ribbon two years ago at the state fair for the honey raised in the hives on the lawn of the Governor’s Mansion. The hives were installed a couple of years ago, along with signs on the nearby sidewalk that alert pedestrians there are bees at work.

“First place,” said Trudi Inslee, who was attending bill signings as she usually does. They bantered back and forth for a few seconds over the placement, then slipped into his nearby office to emerge with the actual ribbon, that was framed and on display.

It was a red, second-place ribbon. “Still something to be proud of,” Inslee said.

“Never doubt Jay,” Trudi Inslee said. “Never doubt the governor,” he agreed, as they shook hands good-naturedly over the display.

Should voters support someone who is brave enough to contradict his wife and prove that he’s right on television? Or be wary of someone foolish enough to do so?

Forewarned is …

With the Legislature gone, there’s more time to wade through the hundreds of emails arriving every day and not automatically delete anything that isn’t about legislation, government action or politics.

This can turn up some interesting but clearly misdirected emails like the one that started “With the recent news of shark attacks in Florida, Hawaii and now France, it is so important to inform The Spokesman-Review audience about the dangers and what can be done to protect yourself in the ocean.”

It was tempting to send Jessica of the Chic Blvd marketing firm a map that would show how far Spokane is from the ocean.