Dino Rossi's Bush-style campaigning shows his disdain for open government

Dino Rossi may not be very forthcoming about his Bush Republican values, but at least we know from his behavior (and his campaign's actions) what he thinks of transparency and open government:

Off-duty police officers last week forcibly removed a Democratic Party cameraman from a news conference where the Seattle Police Officers' Guild was giving its endorsement to Republican Dino Rossi.

Guild members threatened the young man with arrest and made an emergency call to 911, bringing uniformed officers to the scene. Cameraman Kelly Akers was warned about trespassing.

News conferences are supposed to be public events, so how it is possible for someone like Akers to be trespassing at one?

So much for freedom of the press.

Lest we forget, early American newspapers were partisan rags, and the pamphleteers were fiercely opinionated. There was hardly any objective reporting in those days, or established mass media outlets.

Freedom of the press back in the 1700s and 1800s basically meant the freedom to be a partisan author or publisher. That's what the Founders wanted to protect. These days we have cameras, but the meaning of the Constitution hasn't changed.

The real question, though, is what is Dino Rossi afraid of?

"We don't allow them in to collect attack video," Rossi spokeswoman Jill Strait said.

Attack video? What Akers wanted to film was the same event that KING 5, KOMO 4, and KIRO 7 were all invited to record. Akers simply showed up at Rossi's press conference to exercise his First Amendment rights.

And Rossi's handlers, apparently fearful that the Democratic Party might catch some campaign-ending gaffe on tape, reacted by physically assaulting Akers.

Who's really engaging in attack politics here? Dino Rossi's minions. Literally.

"We're sorry that it had to end that way," Strait said of Thursday's incident. "But he wouldn't have to be escorted off the premises if he had just left when he was asked to. I really think he was trying to provoke an incident by refusing to leave."

All Akers wanted to do was attend the press conference. The provocation was provided by off-duty Seattle police officers who got in his face, grabbed him, and demanded in harsh, unfriendly voices that he leave. Dino Rossi irresponsibly allowed this to continue and did nothing as Akers was pushed out.

Rossi's minions are so desperate to keep the cameras away that they have even resorted to fencing off areas of public parks with yellow Caution tape.

Perhaps the slogan for Rossi's campaign should be Keeping the Public Out of the Public's Business. Seems like a fitting way to sum up his bid for office.

While Rossi supporters do their best to keep Rossi's events as staged and orchestrated as possible, Rossi is busy knocking Governor Gregoire as behind the wall of a closed-off, out of touch Democratic establishment in Olympia.

Apparently what Rossi is really doing is foreshadowing what his own Bush-style administration would be like.

Chris Gregoire, meanwhile, is running an open and accessible campaign. The doors at her events are open and Republican operatives are allowed to film her speaking. Gregoire isn't afraid of the public - she knows she serves the public, and she embraces the idea of open government.

Dino Rossi wants to be governor pretty badly. Since coming up short in his first bid, he hasn't done much except lay low and contemplate taking on Chris Gregoire again. And from the day he announced his decision to run, he's done his best to constantly surround himself with yes-men and yes-women, avoid discussing his views on issues that Washingtonians care about (like reproductive rights) and distort the accomplishments of his opponent.

Rossi has shown himself to be a George W. Bush wannabe who would take a wrecking ball to our government. Washington State can't afford that. We need to keep Chris Gregoire as our governor. She works for us.