booth gardner - Washington Secretary of State

stage of each legislative session,” wrote Worth Hedrick, the weekly’s Olympia correspondent.
“Conversing with the 34-year-old freshman Tacoma Democrat is akin to filling your lungs
with fresh air after spending a day in the smoggiest section of an urban area, or comparable
time listening to the political wrangling that often pollutes the air of the legislative chambers.
Gardner is a supremely confident young man who … also happens to be the stepson of
Norton Clapp, chairman of the board of Weyerhaeuser and head of the Seattle Chamber of
Commerce – one of the state’s foremost Republicans and wealthiest men.”
“I have innate confidence in myself – confidence
that I can do a good job no matter what I’m asked to do,”
Booth told the reporter, adding that he had “no axes
to grind” and a lot of practical experience in business,
education and social services. His basic philosophy was
that “before a guy gets into politics he should be wellgrounded
in community activities. What really counts is
getting in and working at the floor-level so you get dirt
under your fingernails.”
Gardner described himself as an “achievementoriented
individual,” but emphasized that he was in “no
frantic rush to get things done in the Senate.” He didn’t
plan to “plunge headlong into the legislative treadmill
before he learns a great deal more about legislative
and political processes.” Gardner set three basic goals
for his first session: To “understand the structure of
state government and inner-relationships”; to learn
Senator Gardner in 1971. Gardner Family Album.
parliamentary procedure “for that rare instance when you have to be fast on your feet
on the floor” and to get involved in “one or two key pieces of legislation.” He became
chairman of the Manufacturing & Industrial Development Committee, co-sponsoring a bill
to diversify the state’s industrial base and create more jobs in rural areas. He also backed
a bill calling for “tight” seacoast management and, like Gov. Evans, championed a state
income tax. To the dismay of many, Gardner also promptly signed onto a bill to place the
Legislature under the Open Public Meetings Act. Moreover, he refused to sign any bill the
first day he saw it, which seasoned Democrats found annoying. “They don’t understand
what’s wrong with me” for not trusting their judgment, he said. “I’m basically nonpolitical.
I don’t care about politics except as a means of helping me get things done. My only
allegiance is to my constituents.”
“In the long run,” Hedrick surmised, “it may well prove fortunate for the Democratic
Party that Booth Gardner believes most Republicans can get along fine without his help.”
Maybe not. There were enough curve balls in that welcome-to-Olympia writeup to
win a Cy Young Award. As a fledgling legislator, Booth’s batting average was way short of
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