SEATTLE NEWS ARCHIVES & FEATURES

Dori: Fred Podesta just another bureaucrat shuffled around city departments

Aug 3, 2018, 3:11 PM

seattle, HR department, shadow city hall...

(File photo)

(File photo)

The City of Seattle is essentially shuffling deck chairs on the Titanic.

Mayor Jenny Durkan announced yesterday that Fred Podesta will “direct the work of the Navigation Team at the Human Services Department and oversee expanded outreach” in order to “better align the city’s response to the homelessness crisis.”

RELATED: How Dori would fix Seattle as mayor

I’m wondering, what is this guy’s expertise? Because we’ve been talking the last couple days about a crazy guy stalking a woman who is trying to sell her home. We’ve got drug-addicted vagrants taking over our streets. We’ve got the highest property crime rate of any major city in the country.

Looking into this guy’s background, I found that former mayor and alleged child rapist Ed Murray, two years ago made then-head of Finance and Administrative Services Fred Podesta the new director of City Operations, his liaison to the other departments.

Hold the phone — two years ago, this guy was the head of Finance and Administration, and then he became the liaison to departments for an alleged child rapist. And yesterday, Fred Podesta becomes the new point person for homelessness? What kind of expertise is that? The only thing that these city bureaucrats have any “expertise” in is feathering their own nests, going from one job to another.

People who were on the alleged child rapist’s staff still pollute Jenny Durkan’s staff. These are people who tried to cover up and enable Murray, while disparaging the victims of alleged child rape. They worked behind the scenes, like Sally “Dime” Bagshaw, trying to keep someone whom almost everyone believed was a child rapist in the mayor’s office.

You can’t be an expert if you go to three jobs in a 25-month period. You don’t have the skill set to deal with this incredible homelessness crisis. All you have a skill set for is to make sure that you can keep your $100,000 salary. What you have is a city government full of people like Fred Podesta who are experts only in their own self-preservation.

This is the problem in Seattle that we are all facing right now. I had a long conversation this week with a cop in Lake Forest Park. He said their city council and mayor are incredibly supportive. You don’t have council members calling cops murderers. When there’s a 911 call, the cops actually respond. In Seattle, you come to believe that when you call 911, nothing is going to happen, because they’re so understaffed. I don’t care what Carmen Best says, there is so much de-policing and crime tolerance in Seattle right now that addicts are coming here from all over the country.

A guy who was head of Finances and Administrative Services 25 months ago, and then the alleged child rapist’s liaison to departments is not ready to lead the expanded Navigation Team. Do you think Seattle is a better place than it was five years ago? The alleged child rapist added 1,600 city employees. He added $200 million to the city’s payroll to have a city that has gotten dramatically worse. That’s because there are too many bureaucrats and not enough cops.

If they fired those 1,600 people who are completely unnecessary to the functioning of this city, then they’d have some money so that they could actually solve problems and not shuffle bureaucrats like deck chairs on the Titanic.

FILE - Women pray at a memorial outside Utah Valley University after Turning Point USA CEO and co-f...

Associated Press

Report finds many security deficiencies at Utah university where Charlie Kirk was killed

OREM, Utah (AP) — A new report on Charlie Kirk’s assassination last year says his Turning Point USA organization insisted he speak outdoors despite security concerns, while the university where he was killed didn’t properly assess dangers like the possibility of a rooftop shooter. Those were among the key findings in an after-action report released […]

8 minutes ago

Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves speaks during an event with President Donald Trump about healthcare, i...

Associated Press

Mississippi’s governor awarded more than $104 million to improve rural healthcare. Where’s it going?

A handful of recipients accounted for a substantial share of the first round of federal awards to boost rural health in Mississippi, according to an analysis of funding conducted by Mississippi Today. Memorial Health System, based in Gulfport, received the largest share of funds — more than $15 million for 12 projects, while a consortium […]

23 minutes ago

thurston county sex offender chase...

Jack Bilyeu, KIRO 7 News

Wanted sex offender arrested in Thurston County after brief chase

A convicted felon who failed to register as a sex offender was arrested in Thurston County Wednesday night.

35 minutes ago

Associated Press

Takeaways from Trump-Xi summit: Lots of pomp and even more punting on tensions in US-China relations

WASHINGTON (AP) — Presidents Donald Trump and wrapped up a three-day Washington summit that was heavy on pomp but light on substance. The U.S. president delighted in the personal rapport he says he’s built with Xi, while the Chinese leader emphasized the two sides “must hold the line” to ensure there is “no conflict and […]

35 minutes ago

bagel seattle location...

MyNorthwest Staff

Award-winning Seattle bagel shop to open new location next May

Hey Bagel currently has a location in Seattle's University Village, but the company announced it is expanding into West Seattle next May.

45 minutes ago

Associated Press

New Mexico jury finds Facebook liable of deceiving users about privacy protections

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A New Mexico jury found Facebook liable Friday of deceiving users about privacy protections on the social media platform. It is now up to the judge to determine how much the company would pay, with attorneys representing the state asking for the maximum $5,000 penalty per violation. The two-week trial […]

56 minutes ago

Dori: Fred Podesta just another bureaucrat shuffled around city departments