Dori: Don’t fall for state Dems last-minute ‘reverse psychology’

For more than a decade, Washington State Democratic Party chairperson Tina Podlodowski has refused nearly 20 invitations to come on The Dori Monson Show and talk politics.

That’s why it raised antennae for Monson when Podlodowski asked to come on his show just hours before Tuesday’s general election. Her message: To urge voters “not” to write in candidate Brad Klippert for secretary of state.

That’s bogus, Dori told Podlodowski and his listeners. It was actually a stunt straight out of Psychology 101.

“I hate this about politics,” Dori said. “It’s pretty obvious that it’s reverse psychology.”

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The back-handed message, Dori continued, is actually designed to incite Republican voters to do just the opposite of Podlodowski and Inslee’s warning: To write in Klippert’s name as a show of solidarity against Democrats – and thereby drawing votes away from the Democratic party’s real concern: Independent candidate Julie Anderson.

In a last-minute barnstorming mission with Gov. Jay Inslee, Podlodowski claims Republican Klippert is nipping at the heels of Democrat and incumbent-by-appointment Steve Hobbs. She points to a Northwest Progressive Institute poll that she claims shows Klippert is surging in the project ballot count.

This is a false interpretation, Dori told Podlodowski. Instead, the poll shows that without Klippert in the race, Anderson would be holding a slight lead over Hobbs.

“What you’re really afraid of is Julie Anderson,” Dori insisted.

Podlodowski disagreed, claiming write-in candidates have been elected in the past.

With the rare opportunity to interview Podlodowski, Dori then turned the subject to the state’s 10^th District legislative race between incumbent Greg Gilday (R-Stanwood) and Democrat Clyde Shavers. In a letter to several news media groups last week, Shavers was called out by his father for falsely representing his nuclear submarine military service, an alleged career as an attorney, and residency within the district which covers Island County, and parts of north Snohomish and Skagit counties.

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Shavers’ father, Brett, wrote to the Lynnwood Times, also disputing his son’s campaign claims that he has experienced homelessness and grew up in a farming family.

Clyde Shavers has since backpedaled on claims he made in his campaign materials, but state Democrats have not commented on his apparent misrepresentations.

When Dori tried asking Podlodowski about Shavers, there was a long pause. Though KIRO’s phone and computer lines appeared to be intact, she seemed to indicate she could not hear Dori, suggesting there was an apparent phone snafu before discontinuing the interview.

Either Podlodowski’s own phone disconnected, or she no longer wanted to answer Dori’s questions.

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