The cracks are showing in Mayor Harrell’s “One Seattle” brand as he pledged to unseat his enemies and withhold funding from the Regional Homelessness Authority unless they ramp up encampment sweeps.
Conservative talk radio host Jason Rantz published revealing quotes from Mayor Bruce Harrell on Monday that blamed everyone but himself for the problems facing Seattle. In them, the Mayor promised to campaign against his enemies on City Council, who he ridiculed for being “inexperienced” and having “thin” resumes.
“Quite frankly, I’m working on the city council races,” Harrell said per Rantz. “Seven are up next year. I’m looking at people running for office. I’m talking to the judges about some of their policies, and we’re looking at those races. Like I say, politics, I know politics, and this is not child’s play. In order to get the city on the right track, I have to be that tenacious. You don’t see mayors doing that. I’ve already talked to two potential candidates for city council. There’s nothing unethical about that. That’s what I can do. I choose to do that.”
The Urbanist reached out to the Mayor’s Office with follow-up questions about the Mayor’s remarks and to offer an opportunity to confirm or deny their veracity, but, like other publications, did not receive a response. The Mayor did touch on his comments when asked at a press conference announcing his Parks District Budget this morning, but claimed to not remember exactly what he said.
“A couple of them… their resumes are quite thin. I say that as a nice way to say they’re inexperienced,” Harrell reportedly said.
Harrell sought to defuse his comments by admitting he also is inexperienced as mayor, but he did confirm he had conversations with some candidates seeking to challenge the incumbents and said some weren’t getting the job done. He declined to specify which councilmembers he was hoping to oust. The Stranger has since reported that the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce (which backed Harrell) is targeting Councilmembers Lisa Herbold (District 1) and Tammy Morales (District 2) and sought to recruit Meta/Facebook lawyer Rob Saka and Chukundi Salisbury to be their respective opponents.
