Election: Seaquist wrong choice for the legislature

Re: “We endorse: Seaquist, Caldier in Legislative District 26” (TNT editorial 9/13).

Your reasons for endorsing Larry Seaquist over Jesse Young in the 26th House race belie the facts.

Seaquist is no “bulldog independent”--his voting record in the House was 90% with his party.

If Seaquist’s senior-military-officer record counts for part of his qualifications, why doesn’t Young’s experience rising out of poverty to become his high school valedictorian and earn a scholarship to Notre Dame garner merit?

It’s hard to see Seaquist as a smart thinker on education when the Washington Supreme Court declared that the legislature failed to meet its requirement to fully fund education during his tenure. Over the past two sessions, Young helped pass legislation through both chambers to increase state education funding by $3M.

If Seaquist knows no higher priority than fixing K-12, why did he move money that was earmarked for education into an environmental fund?

Seaquist is an ill-mannered campaigner--as a fellow retired senior officer, I found his taking photos of an opponent exiting her car and allowing his supporters to denigrate another opponent’s military record to be conduct unbecoming an officer.

Larry Seaquist has shown that he is not the best fit for the 26th; Jesse Young is.

This story was originally published October 5, 2016 at 3:49 PM with the headline "Election: Seaquist wrong choice for the legislature."