Actions speak louder than words, and no person is an island — both are common American proverbs that are pretty self explanatory. They remind us that respect is earned, and no one, even the very powerful, can go it alone.
Though giving a career politician slaps on the back makes us squirm, a lot, we feel compelled to suffer in the case of Congressman Rick Larsen. He recently held a series of public meetings on the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the last of which was in little old Clinton — a tiny corner of the 2nd Congressional District. By itself, a few town hall meetings are nothing to get worked up about. Elected officials are supposed to ask us what we think. But, this is common for Larsen, who’s something of a regular on the South End. According to his office, in the past three years alone he’s met with constituents, visited businesses or organizations, vetted proposed policy or checked in with voters at in-person meetings or town halls a total of 23 times.
We certainly don’t agree with all of his positions, and his say-it-like-it-is demeanor takes getting used to, but when it comes to being accessible, an “atta boy” seems due.
The 2nd district, which Larsen has held since 2001, includes all of Island and San Juan counties, along with a swath of the I-5 corridor that stretches from Everett to Bellingham. In all, about 650,000 people live within its boundaries.
Larsen is one of 10 congressional representatives from Washington, and two senators. One has to wonder if they meet with their constituents as often. Remember the last time Sen. Patty Murray or Sen. Maria Cantwell visited South Whidbey in an official capacity? We don’t. Gov. Jay Inslee has a better track record, at least since his election.
Our 10th district state lawmakers have done better. Sen. Barbara Bailey, R-Oak Harbor; Rep. Norma Smith, R-Clinton; and Rep. Dave Hayes, R-Camano, by tradition hold an in-person or tele-town hall meeting every year, typically in February and March, as a wrap-up or update of the legislative session. They’ve likely made other appearances on South Whidbey that we’re not aware of and deserve credit, but it’s clear that no one does as good a job of tromping their district as Larsen.
One could chalk up it up to the fact that members of Congress serve two-year terms — the same is true for state representatives — making it vitally important that they check in regularly with voters, but such arguments carry little weight in our opinion. What matters is that he shows up.
All lawmakers, be they state or congressional, lead busy lives but Larsen has made it a priority to connect with those he represents. He may not always vote the way we want, but at least you know he’ll be back so you can tell him so.
We could do worse.
