James Donaldson, the former Seattle SuperSonic now running for mayor, attempted to lampoon Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels this morning for giving City Light Superintendent Jorge Carrasco a $40,000 bonus. Donaldson told the Seattle P-I, "Mayor Nickels has his priorities all screwed up." Indeed, the economy sucks and one man’s forty-grand bonus is another man’s pink slip… AND HOW DARE THE MAYOR??!!

But Nickels spokesman Alex Fryer points out that Carrasco’s contract required the bonus for reaching several milestones, including Carrasco meeting his four-year tenure, reducing the ratio of debt to equity, and cutting outstanding debt from the 2001 energy crisis. The city council unanimously approved his contract last year—so they share part of the blame, if anyone is to be blamed for wasteful spending. But Carrasco takes a smaller salary than utility officials in neighboring counties—a fact that the Seattle Post Globe’s Kery Murakami pointed out in the article that Donaldson was responding to. Nickels had no choice but to fulfill the contract, which was public record.

So does Nickels have his “priorities all screwed up” on the issue of this bonus? Reached by phone this morning, Donaldson sung a different tune. He said Nickels's mistake was failing to make an announcement about the bonus. “The public requires some explanation about why it was deemed necessary to do so, especially in this economic climate,” he said. Fair enough, notice would be nice, but that’s different than Donaldson's assertion to the PI, which is essentially that Nickels shouldn't have done it.

Considering that Nickels has been such a lackluster “leader,” it seems Donaldson could make a stronger case of misplaced priorities (e.g., toy train to Paul Allen Land). In lieu of making a solid point, Donaldson's argument appears a specious attack geared to grab attention for his campaign.

Donaldson also knows all about high salaries and bonuses. In Donaldson's career as a pro basketball player, he said, his salary peaked out at about $800,000 plus nearly $200,000 in bonuses. “Our contracts were rife with bonuses," he said.