Helen Sommers: An Oral History

pg. 300
As might be expected, some of the Legislature’s
best-known members made good showings.
Locke, a Seattle Democrat elected to the House
in 1983, was named the delegation’s top legislator.
Insiders described him as an intelligent, hard-working
lawmaker who, since taking over the Appropriations
Committee last year, has honed his political skills
and consolidated power to become one of Olympia’s
leaders. And unlike many Seattle liberals, he moves
comfortably among business groups and conservatives.
His counterpart in the Senate, Ways and Means
chairman McDonald, R-Yarrow Point, also has
impressed those surveyed with his attention to detail
and willingness to work long hours sorting out
complexities in the budget. Considered a potential
candidate for governor, McDonald has become a
forceful spokesman for GOP lawmakers on a wide
range of issues.
Sen. Phil Talmadge, D-Seattle, was rated as
both the smartest and hardest-working member of
the delegation. He might have finished even higher
than No. 7, except that many said he lacks political
graces, often angering his colleagues with a bullying
manner and unwillingness to play second fiddle.
Still, even his critics concede Talmadge has left
his mark on important legislation in a staggering
variety of areas.
In many cases, the lawmakers who fared poorly
in the survey are those who are perceived to be illprepared,
who don’t show much initiative or who
simply don’t know how to work with others.
Rep. Paul King, D-Mountlake Terrace, received
the lowest marks in the delegation. Although he is
entering his eighth year in the Legislature, King
hasn’t sponsored much meaningful legislation,
and critics say he hasn’t worked hard to get up to
speed on any issue.
A fellow caucus member said that in the House,
where Democrats dominate with a 63-35 majority,
there’s plenty of competition for leadership positions
and it’s easy for low-profile lawmakers such
as King - as well as Reps. Ernest Crane, D-Auburn,
and Karla Wilson, D-Lake Stevens, who also received
low ratings in the survey - to slip toward the
back of the pack.
Sometimes those rated low in the survey got
there after a long slide from the top or the middle.
Al Williams, for example, was considered a
solid lawmaker when he entered the House in
1970 and when he was appointed to the Senate in
1978. But now, say those who work with him, the
Seattle Democrat has grown ineffectual, putting
little energy into legislation and using the Senate
Democrats’ minority status as an excuse for his
lackluster performance.
Notably, Williams and his two 32 nd District
seatmates - Reps. Joanne Brekke and Dick Nelson
- perennially run away with their races in one of the
state’s most solidly Democratic enclaves. All three
finished in the bottom half of the survey.
Another showing that might surprise voters
is that of O’Brien, the Seattle Democrat who is
speaker pro tempore of the House. After 50 years
in Olympia, O’Brien remains popular in his district,
and he is a living legend at the Capitol; the House
office building was recently named after him.
But in the trenches of day-to-day lawmaking,
he is considered past his prime. Only Williams
ranked lower in the survey’s “energy’’ category, and
O’Brien simply isn’t a player any longer in major
legislation, insiders said.
If it’s hard to get noticed as a back-row House
Democrat, it’s an even tougher job in the minority
House Republican caucus, which doesn’t control
any committees and can’t block Democrats on
many issues.
In that context, showings by Reps. Jean Marie
Brough, R-Federal Way, and Louise Miller, R-
Woodinville, are particularly impressive.
Both women were described as persistent and
congenial, an apparently winning combination
that has helped them build working coalitions with
some members across the aisle. Last year, for example,
Brough and Miller were among the leaders
of a so-called women’s caucus that walked out of
a House session to call attention to their demand
that mammogram testing be included in a larger
health bill. The tactic worked: The testing provision
was added.
Women in general did well in the survey. Of the