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Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Politics / City Cindi Laws to Slog: Shut Up, Racist Witch Hunters!

Posted by Bryan T. Bissell on Tue, Jul 28, 2009 at 3:45 PM

Cindi Laws, campaign manager for James Donaldson, responded to yesterday's post about Donaldson's endorsements mostly coming from professional athletes and Republicans with a long and rambling screed on the phone lumping me in with racists, anti-Semites, homophobes, and commie-baiters.

“Is James a Republican? Absolutely not,” Laws said, adding that Donaldson is firmly pro-choice, in support of gay marriage, an avid environmentalist, and a vegetarian.

Laws also claimed that Donaldson has been a dues-paying member of the 36th Legislative District Democrats “for years,” but a phone call just now to the 36th LD Dems revealed that in fact he has only been a paying member for five months.

Before Laws actually answered the question I had originally asked—Is Donaldson a Republican?—she talked at length about how offended she was that I marginalized Donaldson by lumping him in with a "minority group."

That minority group she spoke of? The Republican Party.

“So what if people happen to be members of a minority group?” Laws said of Donaldson's GOP endorsers.

Laws then tried to link the notion that guilt by association with Republicans was no different than dismissing a candidate for being Jewish, black, or even gay (not taking into account that being Republican is something one chooses) before playing the non-partisan mayoral race card and insulting both parties: “Guilt by association is ridiculous. Twenty percent of the city is Republican. When you are running for a non-partisan race like mayor you will represent people whether they are in the Idiot Party or the Republican Party. Sometimes there is not a lot of difference there,” Laws said, then added, “same as the Democratic Party sometimes.”

Then Laws said that raising the specter of the GOP was akin to McCarthyism. “I do find it very offensive that in Seattle if you know a Republican, you are considered guilty by association,” Laws said. “In the '50s this was called the red scare. Now it is the Republican scare.”

Laws then changed tack entirely and suggested that Donaldson's support had everything to do with his reputation as a Seattle SuperSonic (he played for the team for three seasons, from 1980 to 1983), and his commitment to bringing a pro team back to Seattle.

“People with money who can buy Sonics tickets are often Republicans,” she said.

Laws, who is not a Sonics fan, also said that she had not read the post, nor does she ever read Slog.

Comments (31) RSS

Oldest First Unregistered On Registered On Add a comment

That woman is a lunatic. I hope to never run into her in a dark alley.

Posted by Gordian on July 28, 2009 at 3:50 PM

People with money who can buy Sonics tickets are hallucinating.

Posted by Fnarf

on July 28, 2009 at 3:53 PM

To be fair, Bryan, the original post was basically you trying to fabricate a hatchet job out of a handful of donor records and some speculation. If I, a person with absolutely no vested interest in Donaldson's campaign, got that impression from your post (and it looks like a number of fellow commenters did as well), then it's no wonder that his campaign went apeshit on you. Don't want these types of reactions? Don't practice sloppy journalism.

Posted by Hernandez

on July 28, 2009 at 3:59 PM

Seattle's in real trouble if the goddamn basketball team is a legitimate campaign issue.

Posted by Matt from Denver on July 28, 2009 at 3:59 PM

Hilarious -- this is the same Cindy Laws who said in a PI editorial interview that Jews hated the Monorail, right? Forgive me if I take her credibility regarding cultural sensitivity (or the nature of reality) with a grain of salt!

http://www.seattlepi.com/local/237224_la…

And the same Cindi Laws who signed up to manage Pete Holmes City Attorney campaign, and then tearfully switched sides and now manages Carr's campaign?

http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/playi…

What a fucking idiot! Why would anyone would hire such an amateurish, incompetent campaign manager? And what does it say about the candidate(s)?

Posted by Murgen on July 28, 2009 at 4:04 PM

Can you post the audio?

Posted by Timothy on July 28, 2009 at 4:12 PM

I would totally agree with the Republican/red scare comment.

Posted by JF on July 28, 2009 at 4:25 PM

So good it had to be repeated 110 times and counting.

Posted by keshmeshi on July 28, 2009 at 4:30 PM

What is it with people running for public office trying to disguise their political affiliations? It is dishonest beyond words...

Posted by smade on July 28, 2009 at 4:30 PM

That spammer? Same IP as Cindi Laws.

BIG SHOCKER!

Posted by Baconcat on July 28, 2009 at 4:33 PM

Wow! This is the biggest spam wave I've ever ridden! KOWABUNGA, DUDES!

Posted by Massive Attack on July 28, 2009 at 4:44 PM

@7-300,302-501: Win

Also, I said it the last time Cindi was mentioned by name on slog: the woman cannot do anything without resorting to hackneyed, idiotic ad hominem attacks. She is an awful consultant and I am amazed she finds work.

Posted by Juris on July 28, 2009 at 4:45 PM

Wow, this one will stay at the top of the "Most Commented" list for, like, eternity.

Thanks for teaching us the true meaning of the word "juvenile" IIETARIG, you are a troll's troll...

Posted by COMTE

on July 28, 2009 at 4:46 PM

Tee hee hee... cyber attacks.

Posted by Ackham on July 28, 2009 at 4:47 PM

Mmmm, delicious spam served up by Cindi Laws' IT person.

Posted by Baconcat on July 28, 2009 at 4:49 PM

@ 7-242, 246-448,

You bring an interesting perspective to this discussion; may I read your leaflet and/or manifesto?

Posted by Original Andrew on July 28, 2009 at 4:55 PM

Baconcat, how can you tell?

Posted by Murgen on July 28, 2009 at 4:58 PM

That was the biggest ejaculation of spam I've ever seen! I bet that kid feels spent.

Posted by Cracker Jack on July 28, 2009 at 4:58 PM

That was a big wave.

Posted by kim in portland

on July 28, 2009 at 5:00 PM

@10 Is that conjecture or you got evidence?

Posted by Ackham on July 28, 2009 at 5:11 PM

@3 has an interesting viewpoint. I can't say I've ever heard her say anything anti-semitic.

Are you guys just bored or is the heat getting to everyone?

Posted by Will in Seattle

on July 28, 2009 at 5:12 PM

sorry, girls...
not spam.

I hit the "post comment" button to post the comment but the page didn't disappear like it usually does so I'm clicking away trying to get the comment to post and the next thing I know BAM!
there it is,
and is,
and is.

So I'll admit once I realized it was a glitch I clicked a few more times because it was kind of freaky but then I had to leave; can anyone tell me how high the count got?

(I blame slog's software, naturally-
of course the geniuses at IT blocked my IP and deleted the posts-
but here I am, back.)

@10- you are sooo full of it,
but you already know that, don't you.

Posted by troll of many names on July 28, 2009 at 5:32 PM

Man, call someone a Republican and all hell busts lose. It used to be calling someone communist that got that kind of rise out of people.

Posted by Vince on July 28, 2009 at 5:33 PM

re-posted because it was exactly what i was thinking
"To be fair, Bryan, the original post was basically you trying to fabricate a hatchet job out of a handful of donor records and some speculation. If I, a person with absolutely no vested interest in Donaldson's campaign, got that impression from your post (and it looks like a number of fellow commenters did as well), then it's no wonder that his campaign went apeshit on you. Don't want these types of reactions? Don't practice sloppy journalism."

you are like me, but with a louder voice. (im calling you lazy).

Posted by edie murphy beverly hills have eyes cleary on July 28, 2009 at 5:53 PM

@ 22, last I saw it was well over 500. Um, congratulations?

Posted by Matt from Denver on July 28, 2009 at 5:58 PM

@20: Conjecture, of course.

Our anonitards can't be so stupid that they'd just sit there hammering away to get their nonpinion posted.

Posted by Baconcat on July 28, 2009 at 6:02 PM

25 um, thanks (?)

26 don't be so sure...

Posted by it feels like a Friday night on July 28, 2009 at 7:40 PM

i assure you, cindi laws does not hate jews and she is not a lunatic. she does, however, have a knack for saying things that sound HORRIBLE out of context.

and i agree. sloppy journalism.

Posted by a jew on July 29, 2009 at 6:59 AM

Batshit crazy, that one. And not too much help to her candidates. This scene was classic Laws: http://publicola.net/?p=9371

Posted by bikechick on July 29, 2009 at 7:13 AM

Cindi Laws and Cleve Stockmeyer, the two elected members of the Monorail Board, single handedly (or double-handedly) drove the Monorail project into the ground with a unique head-in-the-sand approach to dealing with adversity.

Actually, Laws wasn't just reality-adverse...she pointed her finger at everybody else when the project tanked. Which seems to be a trend.

Why anybody would hire this woman to manage their campaign is beyond me. She must be the Consultant of Last Resort. As in, when no other consultant will take on your long-shot campaign, Cindi is there to scrounge up your business.

Tom Carr obviously hired her out of pity. He was a key member of the Monorail Cult, afterall. Will in Seattle can tell you all about those guys....

Posted by MarkStamper on July 29, 2009 at 11:47 AM