Jayapal didn’t hide her skepticism during Walkinshaw’s explanation of going “contrast” Monday night (Images: CHS)
We don’t know about any nasty women but a nasty ad has put the race to represent Washington’s 7th District in Congress into a new light.
“They’re not negative. They’re contrast ads,” Brady Walkinshaw equivocated Monday night in a candidate discussion at Seattle University that began with the unavoidable: questions about the negative “We Have A Choice” ad campaign and PramilaFacts.com site that attacks Pramila Jayapal’s record in Olympia as ineffective.
Monday’s Seattle U discussion, moderated by the school’s public administration program director Larry Hubbell and journalist Joni Balter, was held in Pigott Auditorium and was lightly attended. Its timing was coincidental to the new ad campaign but the argument made for a livelier than expected start to the hour-long discussion that eventually touched on the issues the 7th District candidates plan to tackle and ended with the kinds of topics only the best kind of student questions can raise: automation tax, TPP, transgender bathroom rights, and injection sites.
Before this week’s launch of the push by Walkinshaw to close the gap with Jayapal, distinctions in the race between two progressive Democrats have mostly come down to style and an underlying current of questions about party loyalty. While Walkinshaw has touted his focus on local issues and aligned himself with the Democrats of Barney Frank, Jayapal has been clear about her vision of her role in Washington D.C. as carrying Seattle’s socially progressive values to a national stage and has basked in the support of Bernie Sanders. “People confuse me all the time for Kshama Sawant,” Jayapal said with a smile Monday.
The race puts a rare opportunity on the line to represent Seattle in Congress where openings are often carefully managed to give party favorites an appointed head start on any competition. Longtime representative Jim McDermott announced his retirement earlier this year leaving the District 7 unusually wide open. Washington’s 7th congressional district encompasses most of Seattle, including Capitol Hill, Vashon Island, Edmonds, Shoreline, Kenmore, parts of Burien and Normandy Park.
For Walkinshaw, the late shift to a “contrast” campaign did not appear to be a totally comfortable one. It wasn’t easy for the current 43rd District state rep to look his competitor Jayapal in the eyes Monday night as she repeated her call for Walkinshaw to pull the negative advertising and website saying the country needs to be “done with negative attacks, particularly against women.”
Earlier Monday, Jayapal supporters held a media conference at the SEIU 775 headquarters denouncing Walkinshaw’s “hail mary” effort in the race’s final weeks and defending Jayapal’s record and attendance in Olympia. Some of Walkinshaw’s more prominent local supporters have said they are withdrawing their support after the negative advertising. “I’m disappointed in these attacks. This recent behavior changes everything,” Seattle City Council member Lorena González told The Stranger.
But Walkinshaw stuck to his guns Monday night, saying the facts from “nonpartisan nonprofit” FiscalNote backed up the criticism of Jayapal’s effectiveness and attendance record as a state senator. “I encourage everybody to watch the ad,” Walkinshaw said.
For her part, Jayapal said she hoped the race could get back on a more progressive track. “The whole point of this campaign should be on issues,” she said. “I really hope we return back to the issues.”
As Jayapal vows to take Seattle progressivism to D.C., Walkinshaw touts local focus in 7th District
SEIU 775 has also endorsed two Republicans for the Washington State House. They have a lot in common with Pramila – political opportunism.
This is a race not unlike Murray vs. McGinn for Mayor. Both basically the same on ideals, one just more effective. In this case, it’s Walkinshaw who is more effective.
Walkinshaw entered the race before McDermott retired (gutsy) and actually lives in the district. Two important facts this piece glosses over. Jayapal only considered the race after Walkinshaw’s entry encouraged McDermott to hang it up and create a wide open race.
“People confuse me all the time for Kshama Sawant,” Jayapal said with a smile Monday.
That doesn’t bode well.
Wow, Justin is really gunning hard for Pramila. Dude. Sometimes politicians get their record criticized. They should learn how to handle it professionally, and so should you.
1. This is a Pramila ad, not journalism.
2. It gets basic facts wrong. Lorena was never supporting Brady. She had previously duel endorsed Brady and Pramila, but stated that between the two of them she supported Pramila. “Longtime representative Jim McDermott announced his retirement earlier this year leaving the District 7 unusually wide open”; that wasn’t what happened, as you know. Walkinshaw challenged McDermott. McDermott not long after decided to retire. Pramila looked across the district line, decided to ditch the district she created, and entered a race that already had a strong, in-district progressive candidate.
3. I was at that debate. It didn’t look to me like Walkinshaw had any trouble pointing out that there really isn’t anything wrong with bringing up facts about the record of a candidate running for office.
4. If Pramila cared about “going negative,” I don’t think she’d be running batshit crazy ads comparing Brady’s campaign bringing up facts about her record to Trump’s treatment of women.
Are you accusing Justin of trying to help whom? The negative information including the ad is included for free. I cannot compare anything on FiscalNote as it appears that you need passwords and such to get to anything except the report on Jaypal, not all that bad considering it was her first term. In the meantime, that vote on the budget was after the session and many members missed the vote which was determined in advance and not close at all. Jayapal’s presence would have mad no difference at all. I am sad to see that desperation has not brought out the best in Walkinshaw.
Pramila’s attack ads don’t seem very reasonable. Go Brady!
Pramila did not run attack ads. It is Brady who ran attack-negative ads.
In today’s Seattle Times, Danny Westneat thoroughly discredits Pramila’s claim that Brady’s ad is sexist and anti-woman, as well as her implying that Brady is similar to Trump (by including Trump footage in her ad about Brady).
Brady’s statements about Pramila are TRUE….that does not mean it is an “attack ad.”
His were negative campaign ads. Interestingly, I have not seen the Jayapal ads Westneat referenced. It would help if they were posted here to compare with the ads that Walkinshaw aired. I have only seen the pro Jayapal ads that talk positively about her. Also the fiscal note site is closed so it is impossible to compare how they rate records. Comment will be continued to next one.
Continued– It appears that as a first term senator she sponsored several bills that were passed and some remain in the senate. He was also a first term representative. Westneat’s article made it seem like her campaign may have overreacted but unless they are also posted here, it will be impossible to compare. I will likely continue to favor Jayapal to replace McDermott. I believe she will be the more courageous, outspoken, and effective voice. Even if Hilary Clinton wins, we will need strong very progressive candidates to push her on many of the Democratic issues, not elected who will just pander to her. We need people who will really push her to do the right thing.