Buhner steps up to the plate for Rossi

By Ralph Thomas
Seattle Times Olympia bureau

	Jay Buhner
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OLYMPIA — No bones about it, former Mariners slugger Jay Buhner is backing former state Sen. Dino Rossi's bid to become the state's first Republican governor in 20 years.

Buhner headlined a fund-raiser for Rossi last night in Vancouver and will appear at two more Rossi events today in Spokane and Pasco. For $500, attendees were promised a meal and photo with Buhner.

Buhner and Rossi got to know each other a few years ago when their sons played on the same basketball team. Buhner said yesterday he has shied away from politics in the past but said he is eager to help Rossi.

"First and foremost, I'm a Republican, and being from Texas, I'm pretty partial to that," Buhner said in a telephone interview on his way to the Rossi fund-raiser.

"Dino and I share a lot of the same values and a lot of the same concerns," Buhner added. "He's a true down-to-earth, loyal guy and you can't say that about a lot of people, especially in politics."

This week's fund-raisers could push Rossi past the $1 million mark in the race for campaign cash. Rossi, the only prominent Republican running for governor, raised more than $200,000 last month and has taken in $827,000 since entering the race in November, according to the latest public-disclosure reports.

Rossi, a two-term senator from Sammamish, quit the Legislature in December and has been campaigning hard ever since to become the state's first Republican governor since John Spellman, who served from 1981 to 1985.

On the Democratic side, Attorney General Christine Gregoire still holds a comfortable money lead over King County Executive Ron Sims and former state Supreme Court justice Phil Talmadge.

Gregoire took in more than $1.4 million before having to put her fund-raising push on hold in December. As a state official, she is not allowed to raise campaign donations from 30 days before the legislative session until 30 days after lawmakers adjourn. That means she probably won't be able to start taking checks again until mid-April.

Meanwhile, Sims is trying to catch up. After retooling his campaign with a new political director and fund-raiser, he took in nearly $68,000 last month, bringing his total to $428,000. The campaign has set a goal of reaching $1 million by the end of March, said Sims spokesman Tim Hatley.
 
"It's starting to pick up," said Hatley. "This is a competitive race."

Sims got a big boost late last month when he won an endorsement from the Joint Council of Teamsters, which represents 50,000 workers and is one of the state's largest labor unions.

Talmadge's fund-raising is lagging. Though he has been running for more than a year, Talmadge has raised only $200,000. But half of that came out of his own pocket, including an additional $35,000 last month.

Both Rossi and Gregoire have said it will take as much as $5 million to run a competitive campaign. Gregoire spokesman Tim Zenk said he is not surprised at Rossi's fund-raising surge.

"They're going to have all the money they need," said Zenk. "That's all factored into our plan."

Ralph Thomas: 360-943-9882 or rthomas@seattletimes.com

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