Submitted By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
Recently elected Mukilteo, Washington Mayor Jennifer Gregerson hired a friend and fellow politician to the position of Policy Analyst position created after her election. Of the fifteen applicants who submitted interest in the position the mayor hired the person who provided a significant campaign contribution.
State Senator Marco Lias, who represents the21st district in which Mukilteo is situated is now a Policy Analyst.
His efforts provided $5,000 to the mayor’s election.
The Washington Public Disclosure Commission, the agency that oversees and publishes campaign contributions, indicated the following:
The PDC filings show that in October 2012, Marko Liias’ political fund donated $11,000 to the 21st Democrats, which is chaired by Jennifer Gregerson.
Two days later, the 21st Democrats gave $10,000 to the “One Washington Pac” which is directed by Marko Liias.
Then, a year later, the Pac spent more than $5000 on a direct mail flyer that helped Gregerson win the mayor’s race.
After the mayor was elected, the Policy Analyst position was requested by the mayor of the city council. The council created the position and State Senator Liias was awarded the job by the mayor.
Moreover State Senator Liias will be away from his duties as Policy Analyst while the state senate is in session. This requires months of absence from his position. Mayor Gregerson in an interview with King5 News stated: “We’ll be able to save money in our department by having months when he’s unpaid, and because he’s really qualified.”
The position was to be a full time position. So were the other job candidates allowed to take months off per year?
One has to wonder what constitutes “really qualified” over the other applicants who submitted resumes. According to Vote WA, Sentor Liias’ qualifications are as follows:
Education: (times and places of schools, colleges, major, degrees, activities, sports)
Attending, Public Administration, University of Washington
BSFS, International Politics,Graduated, Georgetown University, 2003.Profession: (profession and work experience outside politics)
Rep. Liias has worked as a freelance journalist, researcher, and most recently as a small business owner. For five years, Rep. Liias helped lead a small family business specializing in green residential construction. It was his involvement in the local chamber of commerce that led Rep. Liias to consider public service.Civic: (past and present organizations, charities involvement)
Member, American Society for Public Administration, 2003-present
Member, Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish County, 2003-present
Member, Built Green of King and Snohomish County, 2004-2008
Member, Mukilteo Chamber of Commerce, 2004-2008
Board Chair, Mukilteo Lighthouse Festival Association, 2005.
Political: (dates and titles of previously held political offices)
In 2005, Rep. Liias was elected to the Mukilteo City Council, where he served for two years. He sponsored the city’s first biofuels ordinance, to promote the use of biofuels at local service stations. Rep. Liias also helped position the City of Mukilteo as the lead opponent of commercial air service at Paine Field.In January 2008, Rep. Liias was appointed to the House of Representatives. In his first session, Rep. Liias sponsored new laws to promote affordable housing, improve consumer protection resources, and provide better training to school personnel.
After his election to a full term in November 2008, Rep. Liias was selected as Vice Chair of the House Transportation Committee. He also serves on the Agriculture & Natural Resources, Community & Economic Development & Trade, Education, and Rules Committees. Rep. Liias also represents the House of Representatives as a member of the Trade and Transportation Committee of the Council of State Governments – West
The information on other applicants is not readily available for this article nor the job description for the position.
According to King5 News, concerned city council members say Liaas shouldn’t be collecting two government paychecks, both funded by taxpayers.
“Our major concern is I don’t believe he can do both jobs at the same time,” said Council President Randy Lord. “There’s a perception that people believe that there’s payback.”
Councilmember Steve Schmalz, who lost his own bid for mayor in the primary, says a citizen asked him to look into campaign finance documents filed with the state public disclosure commission–and what he saw looks fishy.
“It looks like there’s a political debt that was paid back, that the mayor owed, this is like a political payback,” said Schmalz. “One could look at it that way if you follow the money.”
Mayor Gregerson offered a rebuttal: “I don’t think that there’s a conflict, I think he’s able to do the work for our city and represent us.”
Mayor Gregerson’s critics would say this looks like a conflict of interest and it just looks like it was rigged, “help me get elected and I give you a job.”
“That’s certainly not what happened and not what the process has been about,” Gregerson said.
When asked if this was rigged and if he promised the job, State Senator Liias said “No. The job didn’t even exist until Feb or March. I don’t remember when the job description was approved sometime this year. So certainly, I can’t be promised a job that doesn’t exist.”
The senator does not seem to recognize, at least as evidenced by his statement, that the position was created after the politician he provided money to was elected, and that he was the one who received the position.
Since the council can’t fire Liias and the mayor vows to keep him, it looks a stalemate.
The an old political practice seems to be true in Mukilteo. Campaign positions are financed, financiers receive jobs. But according to the mayor, he was really qualified.
By Darren Smith
Sources:
King5 News
VoteWa.org
City of Mukilteo
Washington Legislature Website
The views expressed in this posting are the author’s alone and not those of the blog, the host, or other weekend bloggers. As an open forum, weekend bloggers post independently without pre-approval or review. Content and any displays or art are solely their decision and responsibility.
Well, well, it looks as if state senator Liias scrubbed his original resume as posted on LinkedIn.
The former resume was almost identical to the job description for the new job , policy analyst, that used to be the old job title ,executive assistant to the city administrator.
The former employee ( U.S. veteran who worked for the city 8 years) basically performed same duties a Liias .
Marko Liias named was to mayor Gregerson’s transition team immediately after she was elected in 2013. The transition team duties include; assessing jobs such as city managers and other key personnel and directing who to keep and who to fire.
Liias has never worked professionally at any job with exception of his father’s construction company that went bankrupt. I do not recall the construction company ever being “green”.
Well there ya go. With that kind of background and his current accomplishment he really does have some political skills.
Who would’a thought?
Paul: Who is Elizabeth Dole?
BarkinDog – ordinarily I would tell you, but I think you should look her up.
I hope she got a hefty salary…
“not that she’s there” should be “now that she’s there.
Perception is reality. The perception is cronyism. She shouldn’t have gone down this road, but not that she’s there, she might as well keep him. She’s shown that she rewards those who back her financially. It may help her political career. Or not, if the voters are paying attention.
There is an argument to be made that we should get rid of all the nepotism rules and other restrictions for campaign staff and close advisers while in office.
If the politician makes wise choices for staff his chances of election or reelection are enhanced. But if the politician really does hire hacks and incompetents then the campaign and the government will run less well and the chances of election or re election are decreased. The problem cures itself.
And whatever you think of Hilary Clinton, her politics, or her associates, she has to be one of the most astute politicians on the scene today.
bfm – not sure how astute Hillary really is. She seems to be making a series of mis-steps lately. When asked what she had done at the State Dept, the best the State Dept could come up with was that she brokered selling some stuff to Russia.
How many other first ladies do you know that play a major role in the most powerful factions of a major political party, run for president, or run a major federal department?
Any one of those would make her more than distinguished, one of the outstanding talents of her generation.
bfm – Elizabeth Dole comes to mind.
Come on Paul. Are you just trying to make Hilary look good.
At this rate we might have to revise and call her the most influential woman in American politics since Eleanor Roosevelt – and I don’t even care for her style.
bfm – I do not think Hillary is either as smart or as savvy as people say. I think she gets a lot of good press, but there is nothing to back it. Look at her legal history. If it had not been for Bill she would never have gotten a job with Rose Law firm. If he had not made governor, she would never had been made partner. She failed the bar exam which makes you wonder about her intellectual capabilities. And she has accomplished nothing that would show her ‘smarts.’
” If it had not been for Bill she would never have gotten a job with Rose Law firm.”
Are you kidding. An ivy law school graduate with congressional experience couldn’t get a job at a regional law firm??? I’ll bet the wine for dinner alone cost $500 bucks and they offered to buy her a red mustang if only she would sign with them.
And she made partner didn’t she – do you really think they kept her for her good looks and cheery disposition?
bfm – they kept Hillary on because at first her husband was attorney general of arkansas, then made her partner after he was elected governor. If she was so hot she would not have been working for Legal Aid.
This is very small time corruption; downright penny ante. $5000? In San Diego, Mayor Bob Filner extracted a $100,000 “contribution” for a building permit.
Is he competent?, unlike Obamas appointees especially Hilliary Clinton and John Kerry
Politics as usual. City (or any other entity of) government wouldn’t have it any other way. It is just a coincidence the largest donor got appointed. Yeah, right.
John,
Please let us know what government jobs Bill Ayers was appointed to by Pres. Obama? The same question goes for Rev. Wright? You may not agree with Eric Holder’s views, but you can’t deny his qualifications as an attorney, or Rahm Emanuel’s political experience before he was chief of staff and, unfortunately elected Mayor of Chicago. I think you are confusing your disagreements with some of these people’s politics with cronyism.
rafflaw – Obama has appointed a lot of cronies to positions. High political donations have gotten you a higher position.
Mayors need advisors with a depth of political knowledge. A paid position is not evil. This guy may be well qualified. The amount of money is not that much. Cut the Mayor some slack here.
Follow the money. Works every time.
And we should be surprise about this because?
Cronyism looks like giving an appointment to the highest bidder…
Who are Bill Ayers, Eric Holder, David Axelrod, Valarie Jarrett, Rev. Wright, John Rogers, Jr., Tina Tichen, Susan Rice, Van Jones, Rahm Emanuel and how about this one, Charles Bolden, NASA Administrator. What??? Oh yeah. A for real “rocket scientist” that one. He has never even been accused of contemplating accomplishing anything and he was appointed by that brilliant, pot-smoking, international strategist and forward thinker from da hood, Barry Soetoro.
Cronyism to be sure.
The inmates have taken over the asylum.
Sooo, somewhere you have to be able to leverage the Policy Analyst position into providing more money than the outlay ($5000???). How much does the job pay, and what does the person do??? Anybody know?
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
Sample of the corruption in politics – that the politicians would be that blatant shows the contempt that they feel for the electorate.
“he’s really qualified”
As a policy analyst, it does seem he has a knack for implementing policies that create job.
It appears that anyone who supports the greening of America is suspect. What should be suspect are those that oppose the greening of America.
“We’ll be able to save money in our department by having months when he’s unpaid, and because he’s really qualified.”
Well, I’m convinced he is really qualified to be unpaid.
Incest.