A recall supporter sent CHS this photo of reported anti-recall vandalism
Campaign organizers working to recall the Capitol Hill and Central District representative on the Seattle City Council asked for some unusual assistance last week for its efforts to get the issue on the ballot.
“The Recall Sawant Campaign will be sign waiving (sic) and signature gathering this weekend and would love any off-duty SPOG members (and friends and family) to join them,” campaign manager Henry Bridger wrote in an email last Friday.
The full invitation is below.
The call for Seattle Police union members to join the campaigning and information table efforts didn’t break any rules. But the call was more than a request for volunteers.
Bridger tells CHS he is also asking for law enforcement support because of safety concerns.
Opponents of the recall effort, meanwhile, say the email is yet another sign that the recall campaign is backed by political forces from outside District 3.
Bryan Koulouris of Kshama Solidarity says the effort to bring out off-duty police to be part of the recall is one of the many “signs of Astroturf” around the campaign.
“I approached them because we wanted more bodies there,” Bridger said. Sawant supporters have followed volunteers and there have been recent incidents on Broadway involving the campaigns, Bridger says.
“We all have a voice,” the campaign manager said. “I wanted officers to help us but also just in case we were approached.”
Bridger said he’s unsure how many if any off-duty, “plain clothes” cops joined the campaign’s on the ground efforts around Broadway over the weekend but he said the volunteers who did show had run-ins with Sawant supporters.
“Saturday, two of our volunteers — one guys walks up and starts yelling and taking a sign out of his hand — which was uncool,” Bridger said. “We’re taking this seriously.”
Koulouris says the Recall Campaign is exaggerating the situation. “If you live on Capitol Hill, you know Sawant people will be in front of grocery stores,” Koulouris said, adding that the Recall Campaign also chose the same area of Cal Anderson as a gathering point that Sawant campaign groups use when organizing.
The transition of the political fight over Sawant’s leadership from online comments to real-life arguments on Broadway comes as recall backers are claiming victory in a Sawant ethics violation as they work to gather the 10,000 signatures from District 3 voters to put the veteran councilmember’s recall on the ballot.
For Koulouris, bringing the Seattle Police Officers Guild into the recall debate is just fine.
“They have the right,” the Solidarity campaign rep said — not to mention many District 3 voters will be skeptical of SPOG political involvement against a councilmember who has been the harshest critic of the city’s policing and its strongest proponent for defunding the department.
But there are concerns about escalating the already taut political tension between the two campaigns. Koulouris said he, too, is concerned about the arguments and run-ins along Broadway last weekend with Sawant supporters becoming entangled with recall backers on the same Capitol Hill turf.
“The email probably explains some things,” Koulouris said. “Some of those people were cops.”
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Not sure a bunch of off-duty cops will be very persuasive in D3, but drumming up people for a rally is pretty standard organizing, right?
BTW, how’s Sawant’s relationship with SHARE these days? Still funneling government money to them despite their poor outcomes? And definitely NOT because Scott Morrow is still running that same scam where he requires people experiencing homelessness to participate in political activities in exchange for shelter?
What is SHARE?
SHARE is a non-profit of sorts that provides low cost ‘self managed’ shelter options. They also have a strong ideological perspective on homelessness services. The City has tried to defund them for quite a number of years because they have the worst outcomes of any shelter provider, possibly because they refuse to honor data entry and other basic contractual requirements. However, certain City Council members always re-add funding for them as a line item in the budget process.
Related (or possibly unrelated – they would say unrelated), they do quite a bit political advocacy around homelessness, advocating both for their own funding and for funding for ideologically like minded partner orgs. They’re very good at turning out people experiencing homelessness to City Council meetings, etc. Over the years there have been a number of accusations that they require those participating in their shelter programs to do this type of political advocacy, which would be illegal. Assuming they’ve found the legal side of that particular legal line though, I think of it more like a shakedown scam/mutually beneficial partnership between elected officials and the non-profits they fund.
Not too different from having off-duty cops organized, so I’m a little surprised by the breathless tone of this news report.
Here is a good summary of what happened the city last tried to defund SHARE/WHEEL. https://sccinsight.com/2018/02/13/sawant-holds-political-rally-disguised-committee-meeting/. I love that the solidarity campaign is throwing out accusations of astro turfing when that is pretty much Sawant’s go to method of getting legislation passed.
I’m afraid I don’t keep up with the latest term for some activity. What is “astro turfing”?
From Wikipedia: “ Astroturfing is the practice of masking the sponsors of a message or organization (e.g., political, advertising, religious or public relations) to make it appear as though it originates from and is supported by grassroots participants.”
Sawant is famous for doing this during public comment by stuffing it full of her supporters (some probably there not by their own choice like SHARE residents) to make it seem like her resolutions have massive public support. It’s been less effective lately as the rest of the council knows her game now.
Astroturfing is a strategy where a specific message is crafted by an organized group around an issue and then is distributed to supporters who in turn bombard officials and the media with essentially the same language, with the intent of giving the appearance of a grass-root effort, when in fact it’s orchestrated in a top-down manner.
“Opponents of the recall effort, meanwhile, say the email is yet another sign that the recall campaign is backed by political forces from outside District 3.”
The majority of recall financial support for the recall is local while the majority of Sawant money is outside a lot further than district 3. The Sawant group is no different than Trump, constantly lying and deserve to be removed for the same reason.
I don’t like the cops in this city, but I get it. There will be harassment, just like there will be attempts to silence the opposition.
We all have the right to peaceful protest as well as peaceful political campaigning. The Sawant team continues to show immaturity by their aggressive tactics. I’ve had not less than 6 Recall Signs taken or defaced. Grow up.
Multiple signs on my block were slashed overnight the other day. The only ones they didn’t hit were the ones people had placed well back from the sidewalk.
I am a big supporter of the Recall Sawant campaign, and am a volunteer for the group. But I think it’s a mistake to ask for support from SPOG, because that just feeds into the myth claimed by Sawant supporters that pro-recall people are “right-wing.”
“Opponents of the recall effort, meanwhile, say the email is yet another sign that the recall campaign is backed by political forces from outside District 3.”
This claim, by the Sawant spokesperson, is laughable and hypocritical. It is a fact that the pro-Sawant group has raised way more money from out of D3, and out of state, than the Recall campaign has done.
Completely agree on SPOG. I understand the sentiment from the Recall backers and it’s not surprising members of SA are out trying to intimidate signature gatherers. They would probably be better served hiring private security than asking SPD for help though. I’d expect these issues to escalate as the summer goes on and they are allowed to go out in person to canvas. Be safe out there.
I agree. I am a union member and SPOG was kicked out of the King County Labor council because a majority of the unions that make up the council didn’t want them. And sadly their spokesperson Mike Solan is just like Trump when it comes to the media. He seems to only go on conservative outlets like KIRO radio and ignores or does not respond to requests for comment from non conservative news outlets. That kind of stuff does not play well in D, even for people who want her recalled.
Although I support the recall I think they have had a couple PR blunders lately- the mailers were in poor taste with all the stuff about Trump and contacting SPOG is just going to give ammo to the solidarity campaign.
They need to focus on highlighting the divisiveness of Sawant and that Sawant actually hurts progressives with her rhetoric and tactics.
“They need to focus on highlighting the divisiveness of Sawant and that Sawant actually hurts progressives with her rhetoric and tactics.”
And all the other non-recallable “I hate sawant” factors that are driving the recall campaign. It’s always so telling that even recall supporters give zero flips about the ‘issues’ that allowed them to check the “ethical violations” checkbox on the recall form.
Add public records practice to the list?
https://sccinsight.com/2021/05/11/gonzalez-scolds-durkan-over-public-records-requests-but-needs-to-get-her-own-house-in-order/
Off duty cops, off duty teachers, off duty postal workers, off duty grocery workers, off duty sanitation crew…Off duty whomever, represented by whichever union, can sign any petition they want if they live in D-3. Some residents of D-3 may believe Sawant hasn’t been representing the needs of ALL of her constituents…if these folks feel this way then sign the recall petition…if individuals are fine with Sawant’s performance then don’t sign the petition. It doesn’t matter what one does for work…just where they live.
Not to mention that even though only residents of D3 can sign the petitions, there is, as far as I know, no limit on who can distribute them, canvass them or support the campaign…. Do all of people who work the tables for her counter campaign live in D3?
Agreed. According to first hand information from someone on the recall campaign committee I was informed, due to Covid transmission concerns, ballots were only mailed to D-3 residents. Now if a person who received a ballot wanted to solicit others for signatures there is no stopping them…but the recall campaign itself has no organized plan for gathering signatures other than mailing ballots directly to D-3 residents.
Really, as the pool of people who can sign is very limited, even if there wasn’t any COVID, mailing them seems to be the most efficient, if perhaps not the least expensive way of getting signatures anyway…
I’ve asked the Sawant table folks before if they live in D3. They abruptly change the subject.
I think the only union members you’d get are like the pipefitters and electrical workers unions since they tend to be more conservative. SPOG was botted from the King County Labor Council so that tells you what union members in that group think about SPOG.
Whether you love her or hate her, this recall movement is clearly tainted ideologically as a right-wing crass scheme. I support Sawant’s work in the Council, even if I not always agree with some of her positions or tactics. That is normal in politics. This recall movement, however, is an abhorrent thing. Shame on it and its misguided supporters.
Any perspective is inherently limited whether yours or mine as the reality is very multifaceted. Myself and my neighbors have felt personally abandoned by her during the anarchy of summer 2020 and our lived experience is valid as any. Thus, we’ll shamelessly support the recall. Hopefully you can appreciate other people’s perspectives, respectfully.
Nice generalization Harry. I don’t feel it’s “clearly tainted ideologically as a right-wing crass scheme.” Trying to discredit it as such is a lame attempt of avoiding the specific points that the court felt were credible misdeeds. I’m not right wing. I’m not Republican. Pretty much a liberal democrat here. But my ideology is not what’s being debated here—it’s whether the actions of an elected representative have risen to the level of having her removed from office. This is sort of how the system works. The courts seemed to think that it is anything but tainted. You against it? Fine. Don’t sign the petition.
Look, if you’re being harassed by anybody publicly on either side of this, you need to film it and publish it so that other people can be the judge. It wouldn’t be a good look for Solidarity supporters doing what they are allegedly doing.
I mailed my petition in.
I want Sawant gone. She seems more interested in Revolution than representing the residents of D3. Her exposure and march on Mayor Durkan’s home after a previous Federal attorney’s murder was mean and reckless. Her words and behavior have only fed the destructive element that has broken windows and turned our city into a war zone.
There needs to be changes. She is one.
But, when the leaders of this campaign call on cops to support this recall they lose me. How many of them live in D3 ? They are number One on my change list. Some are no more than thugs. They weren’t even effective at what they are supposed to do protect people and property. They over reacted and went after legitimate protectors.
I signed the recall petition. I am not sending it it. I will not vote to recall. I will wait for the next election and choose another candidate.
“protesters” not “protectors” Spelling error.
Keep in mind that frankly I too would ask for police help as police know the law regarding when/how you can defend yourself and black bloc dressed folks are literally attacking those who they disagree with. It happened to that annoyingly loud street preacher (repeatedly), it has happened repeatedly to motorists and neighbors who’ve asked them to stop blocking the street or waking them up, and it just happened at the Israel protest. I too am against almost all of what they are protesting, but Seattle has made it clear that you can be physically attacked on camera and your attackers will not be prosecuted. Heck, you can lead police on a chase down the freeway, or tamper with the evidence at a murder scene and you wont be prosecuted. So I don’t doubt that these signature gatherers for the recall campaign are aware of the Twitter and Reddit campaigns to show violent opposition to their attempts at recall, and are afraid for their physical safety. I would be, and I am a prior supporter of Sawant’s first campaign.