Bellevue Reporter Ignores My 48th District Candidacyy

 On May 14^th I filed to run as the 48^th District Representative for the position currently held by Ross Hunter.  I did so because for three years the media had simply ignored my many attempts to inform eastside residents about the problems with Sound Transits East Link light rail program.  My goal was to use the voters’ pamphlet to inform not only the 48^th District but the entire eastside about this debacle.

I was frankly surprised to find that no one else had filed.  Once my filing had been accepted I sent an email to the Bellevue Reporter announcing my filing and a copy of the “Statement” and “Biography” I had submitted for the pamphlet.  I didn’t expect this to be exactly "front-page" news, however I had thought they might have included it in the “Around Town” column.

Apparently someone filing to represent a major portion of Bellevue in the state legislature ranks behind such auspicious events as a “Bellevue women getting a PTA post” or  a “School prom for “seniors””.   I also think its note worthy that a quarter of the page was filled with a Sound Transit advertisement for a “Cost-Savings Open House”.   (The idea  Sound Transit is searching for ideas to “save money” is truly absurd.  Their East Link plan will spend 6-7 billion on a project that will cause gridlock on I-90, devastate Bellevue and do absolutely nothing to ease congestion on 405 and I-90.   They are also attempting to extort and additional 200 million for Bellevue for a tunnel even though eastside taxes make up about 40% of their revenue.)

The Bellevue Reporter snub of my candidacy wasn’t a total surprise. The Reporter could have put an end to East Link years ago if they had chosen to make an issue of East Link problems.  Instead, for three years they have essentially ignored my many attempts to expose how Sound Transit had lied to eastside residents about East Link.   Their 2008 DEIS made totally absurd claims that a light rail system, which at best, provided a  4-car train every 9 minutes, was like adding "10 lanes of freeway across Lake Washington" and that adding a 4^th lane to the outer roadway would provide sufficient capacity for all cross-lake vehicles.  

Frankly, they weren’t alone in the cover-up.  The Seattle Times editorial board ignored my attempts to meet with them to discuss these problems.   The local TV news organizations also ignored my suggestion they investigate these concerns.  Apparently, the media didn’t consider the  “possibility” of a monumental fraud by Sound Transit and the WSDOT worthy of some examination.

That’s why I run.

Bill Hirt