Rantz: Mayor Harrell needlessly turns Seattle Christmas tree lighting into a political soapbox
Dec 1, 2024, 3:54 PM

Westlake Christmas tree ceremony on Friday in Seattle. (Photo: Jason Rantz)
(Photo: Jason Rantz)
Seattle mayor Bruce Harrell had one job at last week’s Christmas tree lighting ceremony: lead the countdown, smile, and let families revel in the holiday spirit. Instead, he decided to hijack the event with a meandering political monologue he didn’t fully memorize, transforming what should have been a unifying moment into another reminder of how far left Seattle’s leadership has veered.
In the middle of what was supposed to be a Christmas tree lighting celebration, Harrell couldn’t resist slipping in lines about “reproductive rights,” fighting “racism,” and loving the “LGBTQ plus community.” These aren’t controversial sentiments in Seattle, where left-wing politics dominate. But even if most attendees agreed with his positions, was this really the time or place?
For a city already bruised by division and failed left-wing policies, Harrell’s tone-deaf politicizing was not just unnecessary, it was inappropriate.
At tonight’s tree lighting ceremony, Seattle mayor Bruce Harrell got unnecessarily political. Here’s the speech, tree lighting , and fireworks show. pic.twitter.com/1Y2et3kkXH
— Jason Rantz on KTTH Radio (@jasonrantz) November 30, 2024
How did Bruce Harrell clumsily politicize the Seattle tree lighting ceremony?
The Downtown Seattle Association, which organized the event, strategically placed the stage on the second floor of Westlake Mall this year. This change was clearly in response to last year’s disruption by antisemitic, terrorist-sympathizing activists who commandeered the event. While this move prevented any hostile takeover of the stage, it came with a drawback: the crowd of over a thousand attendees couldn’t actually see who was on stage.
Ironically, that might have worked in Mayor Bruce Harrell’s favor. He clumsily opened his speech with the redundant refrain, “This is our home,” repeating it twice. So far away, the audience was spared the sight of his slight eye twitch as he fumbled to remember how to awkwardly tie his opening into his oft-repeated “One Seattle” mantra. The lack of visibility turned out to be an unintentional saving grace for Harrell’s uninspired delivery.
“You came here to celebrate a tree lighting, but I think it’s a little more than that,” Harrell explained.
But, no, it wasn’t supposed to be more than that. People came to enjoy a holiday tradition, not to hear a campaign-style rally about Seattle’s “long game” of proving its progressive credentials to the rest of the country, framing his leadership as on the defense against a non-existent threat from president-elect Donald Trump.
“It is very important that we realize that we are rebuilding this great city,” Harrell said, at least being honest that we do, indeed, need to rebuild what Democrats destroyed in Seattle. “And we will, in this state, prove to this country why we believe in reproductive rights, why we love our LGBTQ plus community, why we will fight racism and social justice for all.”
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Us vs. Them in Seattle
It’s not so much that his speech didn’t really make sense. Why are “we” proving anything to the rest of the country? Are there liberal mayors elsewhere wondering if Seattle is really progressive or if we’re just faking it for attention? Of course not.
But therein lies the problem: Harrell’s comments didn’t just miss the mark—they actively undermined the spirit of an event meant to be apolitical. He talked about building a city of “love” and “oneness,” yet his speech was made in the context of the divisive rhetoric from progressive activists encouraging people to skip Thanksgiving or Christmas dinners if their relatives voted for Donald Trump.
Harrell essentially dragged that same us-versus-them mentality into a tree-lighting ceremony meant to unite, not divide. And for what? Harrell received a small smattering of boos from the crowd when he was first announced. Those weren’t likely conservatives in the audience, but progressives farther to the Left of Harrell. Perhaps the mayor politicized the Seattle tree lighting ceremony to show he’s one of them — a progressive — so he can get ahead of the inevitable far-left challenger when he announces his re-election campaign.
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Inventing the threat of Donald Trump towards Seattle
Let’s be clear: there is no credible threat from Trump in Seattle. This city is as solidly blue as they come.
Harrell wasn’t rallying Seattleites against a tangible enemy—he was preaching to a choir that already agrees with him, making the moment all the more performative. And for what purpose? To remind everyone just how virtuous Seattle is compared to those backward red states?
It didn’t stop there. Harrell proclaimed, “We will not be a great city until every child is safe, every single child, every person. We will treat those who are sick. We will lead by love.” Noble sentiments, I guess, but where’s the action? Harrell seems only capable of delivering the same “bold” speech ad nauseum, shoe-horn in the “One Seattle” theme, and then go back to doing nothing but hoping the problem addresses itself.
This is the same city where fentanyl addicts and violent criminals have turned downtown into a dystopian landscape. Perhaps instead of delivering platitudes at a holiday event, Harrell could have taken the opportunity to outline real solutions to make Seattle livable again. But no—announcing concrete plans might force him to admit how badly his administration is struggling to contain the chaos.
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Not even the Seattle tree lighting ceremony could be free of politics
His tree lighting celebration speech also underlines the hypocrisy of Seattle’s political class.
While Harrell talked about rebuilding a city of safety and hope, he hasn’t addressed why so many families avoid downtown altogether. He waxed poetic about seeing children walking the streets again, as if this is some groundbreaking achievement. It’s not. It’s the bare minimum that any functioning city should provide. Heaven forbid he acknowledge it was far-left policies that destroyed the city Harrell says he wants to rebuild.
Harrell’s attempt to tie the Christmas tree to some broader social justice agenda came across as forced and self-serving. He said, “This tree, this symbolism of this tree, is going to give us all a little warm feeling.” But that warm feeling didn’t come from his lecture on progressive values—it came from the holiday itself. The lights, the music, the fake snow, and the tree—that’s what people came for, not a reminder that Seattle politicians believe they’re morally superior to the rest of the country.
A missed opportunity at the Seattle tree lightning ceremony
The holidays are one of the few times a year when people genuinely seek out unity, setting aside political differences to celebrate together. Harrell had the chance to foster that spirit. Instead, he used the platform to stoke the same old political grievances, making what should have been a feel-good moment into yet another sermon on Seattle’s woke priorities.
“We know who we are, Seattle,” Harrell bellowed.
Yes, we do. We’re a city that desperately needs real leadership, not speeches pandering to the base. Harrell should have focused on what we all share: a love for our families, our traditions, and the joy of the season. Instead, he let politics overshadow the simple act of lighting a tree.
That’s a shame—and a missed opportunity to bring Seattle together when we need it most.
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