Rossi, Gregoire hold fifth and final debate

By Bryan Bissell, PolitickerWA.com Reporter

The two gubernatorial candidates, Democratic Gov. Chris Gregoire and former Republican state Sen. Dino Rossi, met tonight at the KING-TV studio in Seattle for their fifth and final debate of the campaign season.

Given that the campaign has been going at full speed for nearly a year at this point, and that the two have had four direct debates already in which to sort out their differences, there were few policy differences brought up tonight.

However, the two candidates did get the opportunity to weigh in on an entirely new set of topics that, like the last few debates, had a local flavor.

In Seattle, the two traded barbs on the governor's role in leadership on retaining the Sonics and pushing for public transit. Rossi blamed Gregoire for not doing enough to push the local ownership group of the Sonics, which he endorsed during the campaign, while Gregoire shot back that Rossi had voted against public funding of the Seahawks stadium and that he did not do enough to increase the Republican side of the meager 15 votes that existed in the state Senate for pro basketball arena funding.

The two were also asked if their no tax pledges extended to so-called sin taxes, which they both said was the case, and whether or not the projected budget deficit would bring along with it fewer government programs. On the latter question, both eventually said it would not, but only after pressed by the moderators after having first dodged the question to talk about increased revenues.

Both Rossi and Gregoire also gave, arguably, the most telling closing statements of any of the five debates relative to why they should be elected.

Rossi, clearly, stuck to the change mantra. He sincerely thanked Gregoire for her years of public service, but suggested it was time for a change mainly by asking voters if they had heard of anything that Gregoire would do differently than in 2004. He did not think so.

Gov. Gregoire, on the other hand, touted her strengths. She brought up policies enacted under her watch and tried to spin some of her potential negatives back in her direction. Gregoire said she heard no specifics from Rossi during the debates, and said that although she has been derisively called both too serious and too tough, that those were precisely the two attributes Washingtonians needed in their governor during these uncertain times.

The general election will be held on November 4, just twenty days away, at which point Washingtonians will ultimately decide whose closing argument was most persuasive.

Bryan Bissell is a PolitickerWA.com Reporter and can be reached via email at noreply@politicker.com.

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