SEATTLE NEWS ARCHIVES & FEATURES

Dori: State Senator on the fence over supporting a potential Biden reelection

Apr 25, 2022, 5:53 PM | Updated: Apr 26, 2022, 9:44 am

mark mullet governor...

Sen. Mark Mullet (D-Issaquah) represents the 5th Legislative District. (Photo courtesy of Elect Mark Mullet)

(Photo courtesy of Elect Mark Mullet)

There’s no guarantee State Senator Mark Mullet will support President Biden if he runs for reelection in 2024, despite quickly swearing allegiance to his 2020 campaign.

“I think it would depend on who the Republican candidate was as, you know, I just have not been supportive of Donald Trump,” Mullet told Brandi Kruse on The Dori Monson Show. “I think it would definitely come down to who the Republicans are putting forward in terms of, are they going to pick a moderate? Are they going to pick somebody on the far right of the political spectrum? And then I think I’d be curious to know, on the Democratic side, if it’s going to be somebody in the far left, which does clearly make me uncomfortable.”

Biden: ‘No one should suffer or die because they cannot afford insulin’

“I’m not going to make any promises now because I just want to see what the playing field looks like in two years,” Mullet continued.

Despite the uneasiness in his allegiance towards Biden two years removed from the election, Mullet has been very supportive of the current administration’s efforts.

“I think he’s 10 times better than Donald Trump,” said Mullet. “And I still think he’s been a better president than what we would have seen from Elizabeth Warren or Bernie Sanders. I haven’t agreed with everything that’s happened, but at the same time, if I was to choose between Trump or Warren or Sanders or Biden, I would still choose Biden.”

Mullet acknowledged Biden’s age and health is a real concern for potential reelection.

“I think you’d want to make sure that you’re putting forward the right candidate for the Democratic Party; that you think he could be effective for the entire length of that that four year term,” Mullet said.

Mullet briefly met with Biden during his speech at Green River College, and experienced what Kruse described as “his declining mental state” first hand.

“He definitely had a hard time remember Suzan DelBene’s name,” Mullet said. “I think the crowd started chanting ‘Suzan!’ to try to help him out and give him an assist on that one. I mean, he’s definitely in his late 70s. He was having a hard time remembering the Washington state delegation down there.”

Biden may not even seek reelection if Trump is not on the ballot in 2024, according to Mullet.

“If Trump is on the ballot in ’24, there’s a higher probability that Biden runs again,” Mullet said. “Just because they know that he’s created a coalition that is capable of defeating him.”

Climate progress remains elusive for Biden on Earth Day

When asked if Vice President Kamala Harris would be a good candidate, Mullet said he preferred Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg.

Listen to Dori Monson weekday afternoons from noon – 3 p.m. on KIRO Newsradio, 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the podcast here.

puffin...

Julie Berg, KIRO 7 News

Officials expand testing at Point Defiance Zoo following puffin deaths

Testing confirmed that a rare strain of avian Chlamydia abortus likely caused the deaths of three tufted puffins at Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium.

24 minutes ago

Associated Press

Indictment says FBI shut down Russian plot to kill US individuals and target Ukraine supporters

NEW YORK (AP) — The intelligence services of the Russian Federation are plotting to carry out targeted killings in the United States and in European nations supporting Ukraine, federal authorities said Tuesday as they announced charges against five people who remain at large. An indictment unsealed in Manhattan federal court said a network of the […]

29 minutes ago

wildfires...

Jake Skorheim and Spike O'Neill Show

‘Stop taking my money’: Jake says lands commissioner’s op-ed ignores what’s actually fueling WA wildfires

KIRO host Jake Skorheim said Upthegrove left out the most important part in his op-ed on wildfires in Washington.

30 minutes ago

aurora avenue seattle viral video pimp war trafficking...

James Lynch

Man allegedly recruited woman into prostitution on Aurora Avenue while still in jail

A man accused of trafficking a young woman and forcing her into prostitution along Aurora Avenue is now facing multiple felony charges.

55 minutes ago

FILE - Leon Black, a billionaire who was close with Jeffrey Epstein, arrives for a closed-door inte...

Associated Press

House panel recommends contempt charge for billionaire Leon Black in Epstein probe

WASHINGTON (AP) — The House Oversight Committee voted Tuesday to recommend that billionaire Leon Black be held in contempt of Congress for failing to comply with a subpoena for testimony in the investigation of Jeffrey Epstein. Republicans and Democrats joined unanimously in the bipartisan vote after Black refused to appear this month for a sworn […]

1 hour ago

gun violence...

KIRO Newsradio staff

Gun violence reduction strategy sponsored by Rivera passes Seattle council

A new gun violence reduction strategy has passed the Seattle City Council.

2 hours ago

Dori: State Senator on the fence over supporting a potential Biden reelection