Local talent often shies away from D.C.

Last week, Rep. Don Cox, of Colfax, announced he won’t run again for the Washington state Legislature. He’s 66. He’s served four terms. He wants to spend more time with his grandkids.

Last election season, several candidates for the Statehouse – even some Democrats – told our editorial board that, if elected, they would emulate the leadership of Cox, a Republican. In every state legislature, there are women and men like Cox who are respected and unafraid to tell it like it is. They possess skills that would enable them to serve as conscientious members of the U.S. Congress. Yet, often, they don’t run.

While in Olympia last week, I talked with folks about what needs to change on the national scene to attract to Congress more of the talent hiding in our state capitals.

Before delving into those changes, let me share some of Cox’s voting philosophy. Early on, he took advice from Clyde Ballard, former speaker of the state’s House of Representatives. So Cox voted his conscience first, even though that strategy “might take you a different direction than your district. And you might not get elected again,” he said.

If it’s not a conscience issue “then vote your district,” Cox said. “Rely on the people who sent you here.” After conscience and district? “Vote your party.”

I talked with Sen. Bob McCaslin, 79, a 25-year veteran of the Statehouse, about former state representatives who successfully ran for national office. Washington’s two U.S. senators – Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell – did stints in Olympia. Cathy McMorris, Eastern Washington’s representative in the U.S. House of Representatives, learned the ropes there, too. Idaho’s congressional delegation – Mike Crapo, Larry Craig, Butch Otter, Michael Simpson – all did time first in Boise.

But for every one who said yes, dozens more declined the opportunity to run, McCaslin said, mostly because they didn’t want to leave home and community to live in Washington, D.C. It takes most of the day to fly between D.C. and the Inland Northwest. Legislators are never off duty, even when they visit home. Plus, representatives run for office every two years. And the partisan fighting is exhausting.

“You have to have the genetic makeup to take that kind of abuse,” McCaslin said.

What needs to change? Some thoughts:

Allow candidates, and elected officials, to be human. Candidates for national office must be near perfect – or spin their lives to appear that way. Divorce is OK now, but try running for national office as a gay or lesbian person or someone who made major mistakes in their younger years. All will become campaign issues.

If you catch Don Imus on MSNBC, you’ll see a refreshing give-and-take between Imus and members of Congress. Imus teases them about their hairstyles and weight. They dish it right back. The candor remains as they segue into serious topics. It shows how things might be if elected officials didn’t guard every word. And if media types didn’t pounce on them for every misspoken word.

Pay them more. Members of the House and Senate now make $165,200 per year. I’d increase it to $200,000, plus encourage them to hide for a couple of weeks each year – away from e-mail, cell phones and constituents. The job is harder than it looks. When I covered Congress in the mid-‘80s, senators and representatives walked down halls, surrounded by demanding staffers and lobbyists. It reminded me of scarecrows being picked apart by crows.

Some of the legislators I visited with last week, toiling far from the limelight, spoke proudly of their work in public service. Some, like Cox, aren’t afraid to vote their conscience. We could use some of that home-state attitude in D.C. in the next election season, coming soon.