Sen. Maria Cantwell in West Seattle @ WA Public Campaigns event

U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell was in West Seattle tonight – our photo shows her on the big-screen at Brockey Center on the South Seattle Community College (WSB sponsor) campus as she keynoted the 4th annual awards banquet for Washington Public Campaigns. She reiterated her support for public campaign financing – suggesting we wouldn’t have had to endure damaging deregulation-related debacles if we had it – and recalled her largely self-financed, political-action-committee-contribution-free 2000 campaign. Cantwell’s in her second term, which runs till 2012. The event was described as the biggest banquet for the group yet – more than 300 people (its “Dessert Dash” alone raised almost $6,000). WPC has a strong West Seattle link because its past president is Marcee Stone, who gave up that role in order to run for office – eschewing corporate and political-action-committee money in keeping with what she’s been fighting for – in the 34th District House Position 2 race. Stone emceed tonight’s event; award recipients (listed here) were State Sen. Eric Oemig (45th District) accepting the Public Leadership Award, Washington Community Action Network honored as Organization of the Year, and Elsie Simon as Volunteer of the Year.

P.S. Public campaign financing is on the agenda for another West Seattle event that’s just two nights away – Washington Public Campaigns will be featured at the next Community Forum presented by Sustainable West Seattle, 7 pm Monday at the Senior Center of West Seattle in The Junction (more details on the SWS website).

3 Replies to "Sen. Maria Cantwell in West Seattle @ WA Public Campaigns event"

  • Bunnypug June 20, 2010 (11:10 am)

    I notice the link to award recipient Washington Community Action Network isn’t working. Their web site is washingtoncan.org I want to make sure folks can find them online because they are an outstanding organization. Congrats!

    • WSB June 20, 2010 (11:12 am)

      Working now – thanks!

  • Craig Salins June 21, 2010 (12:39 am)

    Thanks for this story!

    It’s going to take a virtual tidal wave of citizen action to achieve real reform of our campaign finance system – that is, public funding of campaigns, or Voter-Owned Election Campaigns.

    But there’s nothing more important, if we want to recapture the democracy we’re promised in our nation’s founding documents and values. Sadly and outrageously, we’re losing our citizen voice to Wall Street special interests, seemingly more every week. Why was health care reform watered down? What is Congress reluctant to enact tough regulation of the financial services/banking industry? – as Senator Cantwell so eloquently talked about at the June 19th Awards Banquet. What corporate interests are influencing our nation’s energy policies, skewed to their gushing profits?

    We must demand that lawmakers work for the people, not the lobbyists! And that will require changing the campaign finance game – so that our elected folk can run for office without becoming beholden to special interest campaign financiers.

    Partly, it’s informing our friends and neighbors. Partly, it’s raising our voices as one powerful chorus of citizens.

    We can do it – and we must!

    – Craig Salins
    WA Public Campaigns
    http://www.washclean.org

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