Sims and Rossi square off; Gregoire skips debate

By Ralph Thomas
Seattle Times Olympia bureau

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Attorney General Christine Gregoire, Sims' main opponent in the Democratic primary, declined to take part in the debate, which was sponsored by The Seattle Times and KING-TV.

Sims, the King County executive, and Rossi, a former state senator, met earlier in the day at a debate sponsored by the American Lung Association of Washington and other health-care groups. Gregoire declined an invitation to that event, as well.

"You again?" Rossi said to Sims when the two showed up last night at the TV studios.

During the hourlong debate, Sims and Rossi billed themselves as change agents with the sort of leadership needed to break the status quo in Olympia.

Sims repeatedly brought up his proposal to overhaul the state's tax system. He said his plan — replace the state sales tax and businesses taxes with a personal income tax — would stimulate the economy, provide tax relief to the working poor and boost state revenue.

"How do you sell it?" Sims said. "Easy, I tell people that money's going to go to education."

Rossi said his main goal as governor would be to create jobs and improve the state's business climate. "I do understand what the business community needs to thrive and grow," he said.

The biggest differences between Sims and Rossi surfaced in their answers to hot-button social-policy questions. Sims said he supports giving gays and lesbians the right to marry, Rossi opposes it. Sims said he opposes the death penalty, Rossi said he supports it in extreme cases.

Sims said he supports protecting a woman's right to choose an abortion. The "government has no place in that decision," he said. Rossi said he opposes abortion but said it's not an issue he would have much control over as governor. Given that Washington is such a pro-choice state, Rossi said some supporters have suggested he change his position on abortion.

"I'm not going to change my position on an issue of conscience just to become governor," Rossi said. "I'd rather not be governor."
 
Sims and Rossi said they supported the huge tax breaks Boeing got last year in exchange for building its new 7E7 jetliner in Washington.

Sims said he supports "tort reform" but stopped short of saying specifically what he would do to bring down medical-malpractice costs. Rossi said he favors placing caps on malpractice awards.

Rossi and Sims also used the debate as a opportunity to take a few shots at the absent Gregoire.

Rossi pointed out that, while he and Sims disagree on a lot of issues, "You are willing to show up, and I appreciate that."

Gregoire and her campaign gave a variety of reasons for skipping last night's debate — that she was too busy, that she didn't want to appear in a debate with Rossi until after the primary and that voters already have seen numerous exchanges between her and Sims. While Gregoire and Sims have crossed paths at numerous campaign forums, there has been little direct interaction between the two candidates. Often, they appeared at the same public event but at different times and did not share the stage together. The two campaigns in July agreed to meet for three debates. But the ensuing negotiations over the terms of those events were a debacle.

In an August letter to the Sims campaign, Gregoire's campaign backed out of two of the proposed debates, saying she only would have time for one showdown with Sims.

The only true debate between the two Democrats will be Friday — just four days before the election. That event, hosted by the Seattle City Club, will air statewide on TVW.

Ralph Thomas: 360-943-9882