Okay, it wasn't dinner. It was appetizers - fruit, crackers and cheese, to be precise, plus free coffee and tea - but last night I attended a fundraiser for Darcy Burner, who is running for Washington's Eighth Congressional District, against former sheriff, first-time congressman, Dave Reichert.
The fundraiser was at the Marriott Inn in Redmond, Washington, about fifteen miles from downtown Seattle. After signing in, we had our first surprise. The person who invited both of us is a member of the Democratic Women's Leadership Forum, so we found ourselves seated directly in front of the podium - literally, the best seats in the house. A second, nice, surprise was that the room was just about full to capacity - 300 or so concerned Democrats from the Eighth or surrounding areas filling up a hotel ballroom.
Darcy herself welcomed everyone to the event, thanked us for attending and introduced Governor Christine Gregoire, who opened her remarks with an emotional tribute to Governor Ann Richards. After a few remarks, she said, "For anyone else, we would have a moment of silence, but Ann would never stand for that. So, let's send her rousing cheer!"
We gave Governor Richards a five minute standing ovation.
Governor Gregoire proceeded to tear the current administration, and Congressman Reichert, into small pieces - politely. She talked about the issues of health care, national security, Iraq, eroding wages and homeland security, every time pointing out how the Republicans were wrong and listing how Darcy would do better. I hope she brings this much passion to her re-election campaign in two years! She wound up her presentation with a live auction for dinner at the Governor's mansion and two lucky couples will get to have dinner with her and the First Gentleman for the small sum of only $3500 per couple!
Sadly, the governor had to leave, but several other women spoke, including a union organizer, Trudy Inslee, the wife of Congressman Jay Inslee, and the president of Washington State's NARAL. Each of them emphasized a different election issue, talked about Darcy's strengths and pointed out the huge need for Democrats to retake Congress.
Another real highlight - although a difficult one - was when a women's advocate reminded us of how much the suffragettes went through to get all women the right to vote. It was incredibly moving. She pointed out that over half the voters now are women and a man in the audience yelled out, "Thank GOD!" which really broke the ice. Everyone laughed.
Darcy herself continued to serve as host for the event and gave a few brief remarks at the end. She seems very poised, intelligent, well-spoken and would make a far superior Congressperson to Dave Reichert. She is a former software executive from Microsoft, a Harvard graduate, and the sister and daughter of veterans, which gives her extra credibility on the Iraq war. She is also within a few percentage points of Dave Reichert and is on par, or close to him, in fundraising.
She has a strong chance of capturing the Eighth. If you have time, please check her out at
http://www.darcyburner.com