TNT Editorial Board endorsement: Tacoma City Council Position 6 (at-Large)
With so many candidates to choose from, the board compared notes and found things to admire and critique about all of them. But one candidate managed to get all of our attention. That was Jessica Johnston, a resident of Hilltop who's active in the business community.
Her involvement in revitalizing downtown would be an asset. Johnston, 44, is vice president of the Downtown Tacoma Partnership, a chair of the City of Tacoma's Events & Recognition Committee and ambassador for the Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber. She's also a director of Court House Square downtown, and property manager for the KSP Buildings on Martin Luther King Jr. Way in Hilltop.
Johnston's focus goes beyond the basic interests of the downtown business community. She lists public safety, economic development with equity, and mental health and addiction services as her top three on a long list of issues she'd like to address. The approach combines a focus on revitalizing the city's businesses and neighborhoods with a desire to help people struggling with homelessness and other issues to stabilize their lives.
She spoke credibly on specific policy ideas for improving downtown Tacoma, like bringing city employees back to the office and increased communication between Tacoma Police Department and the Downtown Tacoma Partnership safety team.
It's true that Johnston's work has focused on downtown, and an at-large seat calls for a candidate who can represent the whole city's interests. Still, it's a point in her favor that she's in touch with the needs of a neighborhood that in many ways is the face of Tacoma. It's also a microcosm of the city's larger issues.
Other notable contenders were Krista Perez, Latasha Palmer and Todd Briske.
Perez, 39, boasts endorsements from Tacoma mayor Victoria Woodards, several sitting city council members, and Washington State house speaker Laurie Jinkins. Her experience in workforce development at the Washington State Department of Commerce is also noteworthy, giving her insight into programs that build job skills and help people earn higher wages.
However, she talked about workforce development to the exclusion of other policy areas and didn't put forward a clear enough vision of what else will move the needle for housing affordability, homelessness and public safety in Tacoma.
Palmer, 38, also names eye-catching endorsements, like city council member Jamika Scott, the Tacoma public school teacher's union and the Tacoma local of the grocery workers' union UFCW.
She already works directly on many issues facing the people of Tacoma. Among other things, she works in community organizations to address housing access and to prevent the displacement of longtime residents as the Hilltop neighborhood sees improvements. That made it surprising that her policy ideas for these issues lacked specifics.
And Briske, 45, impressed the editorial board with his passion for issues of housing affordability and road quality. While he's lacking in the experience or relationships some of the other candidates bring to the table, his genuine concern for Tacomans' quality of life was clear. He's not our pick for this city council position, but the board hopes he'll keep looking for opportunities for community involvement.
Also running are Hunter Henderson and Lindsey Wills. Henderson, 36, lost the board when he said he would support mandatory services for people experiencing homelessness and addiction, a clear violation of individual rights.
Wills, 37, who lists a career in local government permitting offices, focused primarily on making access to building permits easier for business and residential property owners. While it's an issue worth looking at, it's too small of a step to hang a campaign on.
The News Tribune Editorial Board is: Laura Hautala, opinion editor; Stephanie Pedersen, TNT president and editor; Jim Walton, community representative; Justin Evans, community representative; Bart Hayes, community representative.
Solve the daily Crossword
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
13 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Beto O'Rourke Calls Ted Cruz ‘A Curse Upon the People of Texas,' Suggests His Vacations Incite Natural Disasters
"It's clear that he doesn't care about the people that he purports to serve or represent," he adds Beto O'Rourke thinks that Ted Cruz might be a curse on all the people of Texas. On Wednesday's 'Hasan Minhaj Doesn't Know' podcast, the host pointed out that Cruz seems to be on vacation when disasters strike Texas. He was out of the country during the statewide blackouts in 2021 and during the flood disaster over the summer. O'Rourke suggested that the senator might just be cursing the state of Texas. More from TheWrap Beto O'Rourke Calls Ted Cruz 'A Curse Upon the People of Texas,' Suggests His Vacations Incite Natural Disasters | Video Taylor Swift's 'New Heights' Episode Breaks Podcast's Record With 13 Million YouTube Views in a Day Paramount Countersues 'Top Gun: Maverick' Writer's Cousin, Who Claims He Wrote Key Scenes 'The Traitors' Sets Civilian-Only Spinoff at NBC 'I think he's a curse upon the people of Texas any way that you put it,' O'Rourke said. 'It's clear that he doesn't care about the people that he purports to serve or represent. You know, that should be damning in and of itself. And for me, it is. Even worse – and you know, this wasn't the case in 2018, but it certainly was in 2021 – his effort to incite an insurrection against the country's government in which he serves, to try to overturn a lawfully, fairly, democratically decided election.' He continued: 'In my opinion, that should bar him from any public service and really should prompt an investigation by the Department of Justice into his role in that insurrection attempt on the 6th of January 2021. And I think it's one of the big failings, honestly, of the previous administration and their Department of Justice. They didn't prosecute those like Donald Trump or like Ted Cruz who are responsible for that insurrection. And the fact that we nearly lost what Lincoln called The Last Best Hope of Earth.' On top of the ridicule over the summer Cruz got for being in Greece during the Texas flooding, the senator also went viral for getting in a shouting match with Tucker Carlson over Trump's battle with Iran back in June. 'How many people live in Iran, by the way?' Carlson asked. 'I don't know the population at all … I don't know the population,' Cruz replied. 'You don't know the population in the country you seek to topple?' Carlson asked. He then clarified that Iran currently has an estimated population of 92 million. 'How could you not know that?' Watch the full interview between Minhaj and O'Rourke above. The post Beto O'Rourke Calls Ted Cruz 'A Curse Upon the People of Texas,' Suggests His Vacations Incite Natural Disasters | Video appeared first on TheWrap.
Yahoo
13 minutes ago
- Yahoo
This MAGA "Biggest Loser" Star Had A Huge Meltdown Defending White People During A Talk About Slavery On CNN
Biggest Loser coach and Donald Trump supporter Jillian Michaels had a stunning meltdown Wednesday night while defending white people during a fiery debate about the president's efforts to rewrite US history. Michaels appeared on a CNN NewsNight panel with conservative commentator Scott Jennings, Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.), Democratic strategist Julie Roginsky, and legal analyst Elie Honig to discuss Trump's pick for Kennedy Center honoree. The conversation took a sharp turn when Roginsky, discussing changes Trump has spearheaded at the Kennedy Center and the Smithsonian Institution, accused the president of 'trying to change culture' and revise history so it does not offend his MAGA base. Related: 'Can you address some of those things in there? Because have you looked at some of the things in there?' Michaels asked, referring to historical displays at the Smithsonian Institution. 'Yeah. Yes, slavery was a bad thing we should talk about,' Roginsky said before Michaels interrupted. 'He's not whitewashing slavery,' the fitness guru argued. 'And you cannot tie imperialism and racism and slavery to just one race, which is pretty much what every single exhibit does.' @Acyn/ CNN / Via Related: The CNN panel erupted in cross-talk, and Michaels turned to Torres and asked, 'Do you realize that only less than 2% of white Americans owned slaves?' citing a contested figure. 'But it was a system of white supremacy,' Torres responded. As people continued to talk over each other, Michaels added that slavery is thousands of years old, but was interrupted by a stunned Phillip, who said she was 'surprised' that her guest was 'trying to litigate who was the beneficiary of slavery.' 'In the context of American history, what are you saying is incorrect by saying it was white people oppressing Black people?' Phillip asked. 'Every single thing is like, oh, no, no, no, this is all because 'white people bad,' and that's just not the truth,' Michaels said. Related: Michaels then characterized a Smithsonian exhibit as claiming that people 'migrated from Cuba because 'white people bad,'' before accusing Roginsky of not knowing what's in the museum. But the exhibit Michaels called out didn't actually appear to make that argument. Later that night, she posted a photo of an exhibit that names US foreign policy as a contributor to political instability in Cuba and the Dominican Republic. The pictured exhibit did not expressly mention white people at all, except to note that some of the first Cubans to immigrate to the US were 'wealthy White Cubans.' @jillianmichaels / Via During her appearance on CNN, the fitness influencer also griped about other elements of the Smithsonian.'Do you know that when you walk in the front door, the first thing you see is the gay flag?' asked Michaels, who is married to a woman. She then started to criticize an exhibit that touches on gender testing in sports before Phillip interjected, 'We don't have time to litigate all of this.' Related: 'Of course we don't, because then you're going to lose the argument, and if everything is racialized, just like you're trying to do to me now,' Michaels told Phillip. 'Excuse me? Jillian, you brought up race,' Phillip said. 'This was a conversation about the arts, and you brought up race.' @Acyn/ CNN / Via This article originally appeared on HuffPost. Also in In the News: Also in In the News: Also in In the News:
Yahoo
13 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Pam Bondi threatens prosecution for leaders not complying with immigration officers
Pam Bondi, the attorney general, said Thursday she has sent 'sanctuary city' letters to the mayors of 32 cities and a handful of county executives, warning that she intends to prosecute political leaders who are not in her view sufficiently supportive of immigration enforcement. 'You better be abiding by our federal policies and with our federal law enforcement, because if you're not, we're going to come after you,' she said, speaking to a Fox News reporter. 'Our leaders have to support our law enforcement.' Bondi's letter asks the recipients to provide a response by 19 August that 'confirms your commitment with complying with federal law and identifies the immediate initiatives you are taking to eliminate laws, policies and practices that impede federal immigration enforcement'. Bondi cites an executive order issued by Donald Trump on 28 April which called for the attorney general to identify jurisdictions that 'obstruct the enforcement of Federal immigration laws' then to 'notify each sanctuary jurisdiction regarding its defiance of Federal immigration law enforcement and any potential violations of Federal criminal law' as a precursor to prosecution or withholding grants. Related: Florida governor says state will open 'deportation depot' immigration jail Each of the recipients appears to have received a near-identical letter, none of which specify what local laws or practices fail to comply with Bondi's assertions. Initial responses from state and local governments receiving the letters include a mix of incredulity and defiance. 'Nothing in Attorney General Bondi's letter is new and none of it has legal merit,' said Barbara Pierce, director of communications for the city of Rochester, New York. 'The letter reiterates many of the frivolous arguments that the federal government has already made in its pending suit against the City of Rochester. These same arguments were levied against the City of Chicago and were dismissed by the Federal District court for the Eastern District of Illinois nearly a month ago. We look forward to the opportunity to respond to Attorney General Bondi's letter, and continue to underscore the inaccuracies of the federal government's position.' Bruce Harrell, the Seattle mayor, said the letter's portrayal of his city and its laws was untruthful. 'Immigration enforcement is the exclusive responsibility of the federal government. The City neither interferes with nor carries out those federal duties,' he said. 'We have received and are reviewing the latest letter from Attorney General Bondi and strongly disagree with its assertions. Our laws and policies protect the safety, privacy and constitutional rights of all Seattle residents while remaining compliant with applicable law. We remain committed to our local values, including being a welcoming city for all. We will continue to defend our residents and our rights – and we will not hesitate to do so in court.' The office of Eric Adams, the New York City mayor, a Trump ally and embattled re-election candidate, offered a less strident immediate response. 'The job of a mayor is to protect the safety of every single person in their city – and that's exactly what Mayor Adams has worked to do every day for nearly four years,' said Kayla Altus, Adams' press secretary. 'Keeping New Yorkers safe also means making sure they feel safe, and Mayor Adams has been clear: no one should be afraid to dial 911, send their kids to school, or go to the hospital, and no New Yorker should feel forced to hide in the shadows. 'That's why the mayor supports the essence of the local laws put in place by the city council, but he has also urged the council to reexamine them to ensure we can effectively work with the federal government to keep violent criminals off our streets.' The letters follow the publication of a revised 'sanctuary jurisdiction' list on 5 August . The Department of Homeland Security withdrew a previous list after an outcry from rural sheriff's offices and conservative jurisdictions that argued the list was created without input from sheriffs and 'violated the core principles of trust, cooperation, and partnership with fellow law enforcement'. Solve the daily Crossword
