Reject balloting changes; elect Louws, Jensen

We’re tired of party politics in Whatcom County elections.

Conservative? Liberal? Tea Party? Progressive? Don’t most of us just want reasonable neighbors who will take the time to listen, learn the facts and make fiscally prudent, morally sound decisions for our community?

Washingtonians have a strong independent streak. That’s why we don’t register by party in this state. It’s about time we remember that in Whatcom County.

Aren’t we better off with individual representatives who bring a wide variety of ideas to government? Enough of the party slates for nonpartisan offices and propositions!

When it comes to county government, most of us care about good roads and the health and safety of our families.

And, every two years, we tell our representatives how we think they did.

Don’t like them? Vote for somebody else. It’s the ultimate in term limits.

Why are we letting either side of the political spectrum change the county charter’s method for electing our representatives?

The method we have, voting by district in the primary and overall in the general election, has proven to keep politics in check. The current progressive council replaced a conservative panel. It can shift again. We vote every two years.

PROPOSITIONS

We urge you to say no to the parties and vote no on county charter amendments 1, 2, 3, 8 and 9. While the parties may not like it, the system isn’t broken for voters. Voters should reject them all.

We recommend a yes vote on Prop. 4 to double the word limit on ballot descriptions. Complex ideas should be more fully explained.

We recommend a no vote on Props. 5 and 6 that would make it easier to get a proposition or initiative on the ballot. We recommend a yes vote on Prop. 10 to require a supermajority of the County Council and the Charter Review Commission to place charter amendments on the ballot. Let’s not bear the expense for ideas that don’t have much support to start with or confuse the issues with amendments even our elected representatives can’t agree on.

We most strongly urge voters to reject Prop. 7, which would limit terms for council members and county executive. Voters already have the ultimate weapon for officials they don’t support. It’s the ballot, and we have one every two years.

Term limits for the county executive are dangerous. It’s not a ceremonial position. Leading an organization of 800 employees, managing a budget of $180 million and being accountable to the 209,000 people of Whatcom County isn’t a beginner’s job. If somebody does a bad job, they can be voted out. But why would we demand a successful executive leave? It’s an elected position, and anybody — no matter how unqualified — can run. What if we end up with two not-very-qualified candidates? One of them would win. And Whatcom County would lose. Vote no on Prop. 7.

There are many city and school elections, and ballots vary depending on where you live. We urge you to read your voter’s pamphlet and vote.

COUNTY LEADERS

County Council candidates Bruce Ayers, Todd Donovan, Kathy Kershner and Satpal Sidhu clearly are supported by the right or the left, but we found them all to be well-meaning citizens who would do their best for the community.

We decided this year to endorse only in two key leadership positions where we feel there are strong differences in competence.

We urge you to re-elect Jack Louws county executive and to elect Gary Jensen to the Port of Bellingham commission.

The port commission has had a low profile over the years but has huge responsibilities for economic growth. Georgia-Pacific redevelopment, environmental cleanup and airport operations are among the important countywide tasks overseen by the port commission.

Robert “Bobby” Briscoe is a Democrat-backed candidate with a platform of transparency and lower lease rates for his marine industry. He seems to agree with Jensen on most points. His supporters mostly slam Jensen for his past comments on the Gateway Pacific Terminal.

The port doesn’t have a vote on Gateway Pacific Terminal. And, as Jensen points out, we’ve all learned a lot about coal since the terminal was proposed. It seems likely to us that the business opportunity to ship coal will pass before the regulatory reviews are complete.

We believe Jensen offers proven leadership ability and knowledge of how governmental agencies must work from his time on the Ferndale City Council and as that city’s elected mayor. He understands the countywide issues facing the port. He supports adding members to the commission and moving meeting times to make them more accessible to citizens.

Jack Louws has a solid history of quiet accomplishment. Updating county computer systems isn’t very exciting, but it’s allowed staff members to be more responsive to the public. He’s worked well with other elected officials to protect Lake Whatcom water quality and kept the countywide emergency medical services intact. He understands how the county budget works and has been frugal with taxpayer money. He’s taken heat recently for support of the jail tax. But we admire him taking responsibility to find a solution to a jail that has been failing since long before he became county executive.

His opponent, Joy Gilfilen, is running a one-note campaign for prison reform. America should look at the policies that led to high incarcerations rates. Washington state should look at mandatory sentences and their impact on prisons. Neither of those are Whatcom County issues.

Gilfilen brashly talks philosophy but has no political experience, and seemingly no interest in the routine operations of government. We don’t see her building the relationships necessary for orderly government.

She charges that her opponent doesn’t listen to other ideas. But somebody not agreeing with you isn’t the same as not listening.

We must not let political gadflies fool us into thinking their study of issues makes them smarter than the experts we all employ. There’s no zero-basing government. Civic life doesn’t take a pause while newcomers debate philosophy. Governance is hard work. It’s a lot of details and regulations and mandates. Let’s not let passions get in the way of getting things done.

Let’s not play politics with local government. Vote no on Props. 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9. Vote yes on Props. 4 and 10 and for Jack Louws, county executive, and Gary Jensen, port commissioner.

This story was originally published October 27, 2015 at 5:01 PM with the headline "Reject balloting changes; elect Louws, Jensen."