It's probably the kiss of death for the hare-brained idea of an earnest, but loopy listener of the Dori Monson Show (KIRO m-f, 12-3p) named Jesse.
He wants to recall the Governor Christine Gregoire for telling Dori, there's "no projected budget deficit in our state," way back before there was one.
The Mighty Mite is encouraging this goof.
(Monson borrows Billo Reilly's business plan of mixing feigned outrage, phony populism, and sex offender stories to get some of the best ratings in the market despite his feminine first name),
Jesse set up a website called Idiot or Liar dot com. He called it that because "Down With the Queen" was taken.
Financial issues, Dori assured Jesse, brought down California's Gray Davis in a recall (Gov. Arnold sure improved things financially down there!) then he gave succor, hope and encouragement to this political novice attempting to bring down a leader who was handily re-elected just three months ago.
Dori played the devil's advocate but said he'd sign the petition.
After he'd put on listeners 6-to-1 who agreed angrily with Jesse, The Dorester said "I'm sensing a little momentum for this idea." This will go nowhere, Monson knows that but he's cynically investing in this as a future show topic.
Dori said "maybe this is the match that starts the forest fire."
The deficit is high because the business downturn across the country (far worse than anyone predicted before November) is not producing tax revenues. Gregoire and the Legislature are cutting budgets to the bone.
It's a crisis that nearly every state in the union is facing.
To blame it on Gregoire is ditto-headed partisanship that smacks of the cranky Republican party of Tim Eyman, and Dino Rossi, Gregoire's sleazy opponent for the past two elections. It's stuff like this that's put the GOP and conservatives like Monson in the political basement for decades.
For the self-described King of Seattle Talk Radio, it's just show-bait.
Dori said it: Getting such a thing on the ballot is overwhelming. Jesse would need to gather 750,000 signatures in 270 days, a much higher standard than is needed for initiatives. Dori did not mention to listeners that the Attorney General must rule the recall attempt meets the standards of "misfeasance or malfeasance."
(Our AG, Rob McKenna, while a stiff little man, and an R with gubernatorial aspirations, is not stupid like Jesse, or venal like Dori).
When the Governor registered with the PDC as a gubernatorial candidate in 2012 last week Monson wrote on his blog:
I thought our governor would be able to achieve complete financial destruction of our state in just two terms. But what else would she do? Like Greg Nickels and Ron Sims she has NEV-VER had a private sector job in her adult life.
Dori's had private sector jobs all his adult life. Like broadcasting from a hot tub at the Home Show; giving live-reads for floor coverings; or yucking it up with athletically-inclined, over-paid and medicated meat-puppets.
These jobs, by his lights are more noble and substantial than the ones on Gregoire's meager resumé of State Attorney General, and two-terms as governor.
Dori's never really stuck his neck out except to prognosticate over the public airwaves and collect an inflated wage doing it.
Public service schmublic service... Dori Monson has his little tin local constituency (8-9000 on a good day) and pretends his entertainment of them is more honorable or meaningful work than is an underpaid career serving the public.
If Christine Gregoire, a talented lawyer, had gone to a gnarly, Seattle law firm as she could have done at any point in her career, she'd be 10 times richer and wouldn't EV-VER have to know what the likes of Dori Monson says or does.
She chose a far more difficult path with far fewer rewards. (How did the right-wing ever sell dupes like Dori and Jesse the bill of goods that jobs fetching a public paycheck are not real jobs?).
None of Dori's strutting, blowing and roaring had any effect whatsoever on the last or any election. If this naive crank wants to be successful pulling down the governor, we suggest he stay away from the little guy on KIRO with the enhanced hairline.
his little tin local constituency (8-9000 on a good day)
Hmmm ... this seems a somewhat tenuous statement. National Aircheck's official estimate of KIRO's Saturday 6AM newscast is 60,000.
It seems a little unbelievable that a 6AM weekend newscast has 7 x the number of listeners as the #1 (really #2,
tip of that hat, KUOW) talk show in Seattle?
(Someone call FactCheck!) j/k
Posted by: Agathon | February 25, 2009 at 01:12 AM
Well assuming it's true that a majority of his listeners don't actually side with him, and I think he admits as much, then the chances that he could actually motivate a base of people into action is very slim. Opponents of his ideas are also listening, and likely out number listening proponents, and would energize in opposition to whatever the idea might be. He's like your grandpa; he might convince everyone in the room he can make a flying bicycle but nobody is going to help grandpa make one.
The Dave Ross lead in really does give Monson far more liberal ears than anyone on KVI the likes of John Carlson have.
But yeah, it's pretty clear Monson doesn't really want to be a public servant or adovcate, and again he admits as much, probably because unlike Gregoire he couldn't stomach the personal sacrifice.
Posted by: AuthenticAndrew | February 25, 2009 at 01:37 AM
LOL - I listened to about 15 minutes of his show today and it was obvious he was having a bit of fun because he knew it would get the panties of people like
this blogger up in a tight little wad and they would pound out paragraphs of painfully cross-referenced huffing and puffing in response to some throwaway comments, a state-of-affairs which he probably finds delightful and amusing.
Very obviously "Jeff" or "James" or whatever yay-hoo is talking about a recall couldn't tell his ass from his arm, and Dori
knows it. "Jeff" or "Jay" or whoever is one of the same band of local kooks who annually descend on Sam Reed's office to file initiatives like this - http://tinyurl.com/cqcy63 -
that never have a single signature gathered, are never harmonized by the Code Reviser and don't even pass muster by the Statute Law Committee. Every town has some local yokels who occasionally try to inject themselves into civic life and then realize, truthfully, it's just not open to any uneducated slob to walk in off the street
and get involved - there are gatekeepers to the debate and they keep the local crazies out.
Dori was just using the idiot du jour for his own fun.
Didn't strike me as anything more than a thought experiment crossed
with a spitball. He enjoys yelling "jump" from time to time and, when he does, his benefactors
and detractors both do --- as separately evidenced by (1) his callers, and (2) the considerable
length and apparent thoughtfulness and cross-referencing of this blog post in refuting a few minutes of
tongue-in-cheek talk radio.
Alright, that's all --- nice blog, BTW. Good to have some coverage of SEA talk radio outside of the FM snoozefest at radio-info ... look forward to checking back soon -
Posted by: Agathon | February 25, 2009 at 04:21 AM
Uhhh ... I think he was doing a comedy bit?
Whether or not it was funny (eh, I've heard worse -- not much worse, though) is perhaps a topic for a different discussion but it seems like it would be a tad off-kilter to start reading from the RCW in the middle of a stand-up routine.
"Why'd the chicken cross the road? Well, first, before I tell you the punchline I would like to assert that - in interests of full disclosure - the Revised Code of Washington 12.33.291 regulates poultry transfers across county thoroughfares to designated crosswalks, so, now that I've established that caveat and you understand the practical and real-world limitations of this scenario I'll move on to the punchline ..."
You guys must be a riot at parties! j/k ;)
Posted by: Agathon | February 25, 2009 at 05:01 AM
guess I shoulda quoted what I was talking 'bout ...
Dori did not mention to listeners that the Attorney General must rule the recall attempt meets the standards of "misfeasance or malfeasance."
Posted by: Agathon | February 25, 2009 at 05:06 AM
To blame it on Gregoire is ditto-headed partisanship that smacks of the cranky Republican party of Tim Eyman, and Dino Rossi, Gregoire's sleazy opponent for the past two elections. It's stuff like this that's put the GOP and conservatives like Monson in the political basement for decades.
Who does one blame for the nearly 25% growth in State Govt during her tenure?
Posted by: Habu | February 25, 2009 at 07:46 AM
When Dori says jump, no one gets out of their recliner. Carlson and Wilbur used to be able to motivate people to do stuff. Dori never has.
Posted by: Sartooth | February 25, 2009 at 09:38 AM
Who does one blame for the nearly 25% growth in State Govt during her tenure?
First, the growth of gov't, depending how you measure such a thing hasn't been anywhere that much, second, the population has grown. three, there's a legislature with considerable power as well. Four, I like more government. If our hands hadnt been tied by 695, and other anti-tax measures, we might not be staring at the huge infrastructure investment we must make. Five, some 68% of the budget is mandated by various other citizens intiatives. Gregoire and the Leg don't have that much power over spending. Six, Dori Monson is a little gleek with an extra toe on each foot.
Posted by: Sarge | February 25, 2009 at 09:50 AM
prempted by baseball
Posted by: slumdog | February 25, 2009 at 11:02 AM
Four, I like more government.
Then you should be happier than a pig in shit.
Posted by: Habu | February 25, 2009 at 11:36 AM
Sarge, then there is the education mandate, required by the biggest Citizen Initiative of them all, the State Constitution. Education is supposed to be the top priority. Our State Constitution had the benefit of being drafted a 100 years after the Federal Constitution, and some rights in it are more clarified, such as one of the Conservatives favorite causes, the Right to Bear Arms.
Posted by: EvergreenRailfan | February 25, 2009 at 12:25 PM
They want a recall, 4 months after an election in which Rossi was defeated by a larger margin than his previous attempt?
Posted by: Coiler | February 25, 2009 at 12:56 PM
coiler is right, unfortunately the people have spoken loud and clear that they want massive wasteful and fraud-laced gov't.
California recalled Davis and where are they 5 years later? Bankrupt & sinking like a wooly mammoth in a tar pit.
Recall Gregoire? why bother?
Woody Held Stats
Posted by: woody held | February 25, 2009 at 01:24 PM
I agree, why bother.
"The deficit is high because the business downturn across the country (far worse than anyone predicted before November)"
But you have to admit that Dori was on the case & pointing attention to Queen Chris's excess/irresponsible spending for years and years while she denied any deficit until immediately after the election.
She is definitely a lying POS but that's okey-dokey around here as long as she's a lying Dem.
Posted by: Brian | February 25, 2009 at 04:04 PM
>>Dori's had private sector jobs all his adult life. Like broadcasting from a hot tub at the Home Show; giving live-reads for floor coverings; or yucking it up with athletically-inclined, over-paid and medicated meat-puppets.<<
I always get a kick out of comments like this. They always result from one thing and one thing only:
Envy.
Tell me if YOU were a talk show host that you wouldn't take a single endorsement deal. Uh-huh.
If you're going to take Monson to task on what he does on the radio do it on what he says outside of the commercial breaks, not during them.
Posted by: RobP | February 25, 2009 at 04:35 PM
Nobody is saying it's wrong to accept an endorsement deal, but in the spectrum of dealings there are those that make a difference at a cost to themselves and those that do remotes from hot tubs at homeshows. The reality of it speaks for itself.
Posted by: AuthenticAndrew | February 25, 2009 at 04:48 PM
Can't think of a single reason to be jealous of Dorki. Yeah he makes more money, but...ew...
Posted by: sparky | February 25, 2009 at 06:31 PM
Sparky, has your school put the new signs up saying that if they dont graduate, they are letting thier country down and will be subject to deportation because they will just become a burden on society. I think that sums it up on what the President said last night dncha think.
Is this the equivalent of Bush's "Either you are with us, or against us". Except instead of terrorist which dont exist anymore in this Administration, but to this countrys next generation. Are they the new bad guys. Sorta like, we are leaving you this big debt but you have to prove to us that you can repay it.
Posted by: Nevets | February 25, 2009 at 08:31 PM
Take what happened in California with Grey Davis, then project it on to DC and if the out of control spending and march to big government socialism continues for another 3 years, people will elect a new President in 2012. Remember this is America, although over 40% would want him reelected even if we go bankrupt and we get plundered by terrorist attacks and 100% of the progressives. Just sayin..
Posted by: KS | February 25, 2009 at 08:59 PM
You must have listened to a different President than I did.
Posted by: sparky | February 25, 2009 at 08:59 PM
Take what happened in California with Grey Davis, then project it on to DC and if the out of control spending and march to big government socialism continues for another 3 years, people will elect a new President in 2012. Remember this is America, although over 40% would want him reelected even if we go bankrupt and we get plundered by terrorist attacks and 100% of the progressives. Just sayin..
Posted by: KS | February 25, 2009 at 09:00 PM
Nevets: Yeah, that's exactly what he said... (worst comparison EVER).
Queue Nevets' tepid insults
Posted by: mercifurious | February 25, 2009 at 09:06 PM
Didn't Dori have a bankrupted book shop in Lake Forest Park at one time? He couldn't make it, as I recall. He does better selling conservative crap than he does selling books to thinking people.
And he makes more money at it. Just goes to show what a bunch of dummies conservatives are.
Posted by: joanie | February 25, 2009 at 09:10 PM
More blanket generalizations. My turn...And progressives aren't dumb by believing that we can spend our way back to prosperity with a $1.3 Trillion deficit ??
Make me laugh, then gag..
Posted by: KS | February 25, 2009 at 10:09 PM
Sparky, this the from the President I listened to. I think I put it quite correctly in my post above. Now which country do you live in again?
"And dropping out of high school is no longer an option. It's not just quitting on yourself, it's quitting on your country"
"There is, of course, another responsibility we have to our children. And that is the responsibility to ensure that we do not pass on to them a debt they cannot pay."
Posted by: Nevets | February 26, 2009 at 06:47 AM
Keep the love coming, GG.
Posted by: joanie | February 26, 2009 at 07:47 AM
New York, California, and Illinois have all had a Democratic Governor leave before his term expired so I don't take this lightly.
Posted by: Mike Barer | February 26, 2009 at 02:34 PM
Hey, poster that rhymes with cart with the phony name, stop focusing on Joanie and deal with the topic at hand. Try contributing something of substance for a change or take a hike...
Posted by: Oregon Coast | February 27, 2009 at 07:07 PM