Take a quick look at this article. Guess what's wrong with it...
Which month of the calendar is this?
Blog: All politics is local
July 22, 2011
The excellent Fire in the Park fundraiser event is this Saturday, and we all know Vancouver City Councilor Bart Hansen loves public safety. He loves public safety enough to pose, high school senior photo style, on a fire engine:
Best comment? Al Angelo III's: "What month of the calendar is this!?!"
Hansen will emcee the event, which will pit local chefs and firehouse chili aficionados against their peers in a cook-off to benefit Share.
The event will be from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Esther Short Park. Admission is free. Chili tasting is $1 a cup, and tasters will be part of a people's choice award for best chili.
For afficianadoes, the use of official fire equipment and official uniforms infers agency endorsement and is, therefore, a violation of state law.:The event is sponsored by the Vancouver Firefighters Union (who also sponsor Hansen with $800 in campaign donations for his reelection run this year and an endorsement).
RCW 42.17.130The democratian knows this, of course, but like all democrats and those who work for their agenda (See their cover-up of Rep. Jim Jacks misconduct in Olympia that led to his expulsion from the House) the paper, instead of pointing out the violation doesn't even mention it, instead using it as a campaign piece for the candidate in question.
Use of public office or agency facilities in campaigns — Prohibition — Exceptions. (Effective until January 1, 2012. Recodified as RCW 42.17A.555.)
No elective official nor any employee of his [or her] office nor any person appointed to or employed by any public office or agency may use or authorize the use of any of the facilities of a public office or agency, directly or indirectly, for the purpose of assisting a campaign for election of any person to any office or for the promotion of or opposition to any ballot proposition. Facilities of a public office or agency include, but are not limited to, use of stationery, postage, machines, and equipment, use of employees of the office or agency during working hours, vehicles, office space, publications of the office or agency, and clientele lists of persons served by the office or agency. However, this does not apply to the following activities:
That's the sliminess from the local rag that I've come to know and appreciate.
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To be fair, I haven't seen anything that associates that photograph with his campaign. Have you?
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely. This entire thing is campaign related; he's up for re-election and he's illegally used both equipment and uniformed firefighters during their work hours.
ReplyDeleteFurther, this language is clear:
"The event is sponsored by the Vancouver Firefighters Union (who also sponsor Hansen with $800 in campaign donations for his reelection run this year and an endorsement)."
Perhaps, had the union not endorsed him, this MIGHT have not run afoul of the law.
But the law is equally clear:
"...may use or authorize the use of any of the facilities of a public office or agency, directly or indirectly, for the purpose of assisting a campaign for election of any person to any office..."
If not "direct," this is certainly "indirect," because the other candidates were neither included in the picture nor will they have the opportunity to get similar pictures for any fund raising purpose they might want.
In short, this whole thing was a scam designed to be a free campaign commercial for Hansen that expressly excluded his political opponent(s) and thus, is a violation.
To avoid this sort of thing and surely because it was supposed to be for a charity, Hansen should have included his opponent(s). His failure to do so was both deliberate... and political... and thus, particularly when combined with the union endorsement, the utilization of the equipment and uniformed firefighters is expressly forbidden in the statute.
Thanks for stopping by.