Ladies and gentlemen, Washington State Representative Marko Liias! He’s thinking about running for Congress, and if elected, he would be the first openly gay Congressman from the West Coast.
Obviously, he has too many vowels in his name, but what else do we know about him? Let’s read and find out.
- He is a recipient of a Certificate of Recognition from an association of recreational fishermen for his work to increase crabbing opportunities. There are not a lot of candidates who can say that, that’s for sure!
- He sponsored Washington’s anti-bullying law, which just happens to have been signed into law this morning. Well, okay!
- He’s not the best at fundraising. Washington lawmakers are not allowed to fundraise during legislative sessions, but during a tiny 72-hour gap between sessions in April, Liias managed to squirt out a fundraising blast that netted him the princely sum of $2,000. One of his colleagues who did the same thing raised $12,000.
- He supported the state’s civil union legislation, but then, he would. He lives with his partner, Michael (who does not appear to have liked any of Marko’s posts on Facebook).
- He hates coal. Really hates coal. But he does like public parks and ducks, and does not want them to have to swim in oily water. So, he’s got the duck vote all wrapped up.
- He sponsored a bill that would allow the lead guitarist of Pearl Jam to use employee restrooms, provided he has a note from his doctor. Actually the law would apply to anyone with Crohn’s Disease, but we like the idea of it being tailored soley to apply to Mike McCready.
- And he sponsored a bill that would eliminate a math testing requirement in high schools. Oh really! FUCK CONGRESS, MAKE THIS MAN KING OF THE WORLD.
Mike
You all did a smashing job of making the guy sound dumb. After reading this post I went to his facebook page and was much more impressed than this post made me feel.
matt baume
At least we spelled his name right.
Marko
Thanks for the shout out! If anyone has questions or comments, serious or tongue-in-cheek, visit my Facebook page…
http://www.facebook.com/markoliiaspage
Andrew
Depending on what you believe our portion of the population is (most reputable sources put it at 4-7%) we need 17-30 representatives before we have true, equal representation. But a fifth can’t hurt.
I’m conflicted though, as someone whom decried racial based votes in the 2008 primary for supporting someone based on their sexuality. Hopefully Mr. Liias is someone I would support regardless, and I will do a little more fact-checking to see.
paul f
Those of you who shudder at some of my posts and lord knows, some of them are “out there”, I also have Crohn’s Disease. The full blown symptoms started in 1976. If you click the link in the above article you’ll know it isn’t fun. Multiple surgeries later I now have no large intestine and a couple of feet of small bowel taken out too. What’s left is about half of what I was born with. The bill he sponsored is an important one and not a laughing matter for those of us that it applies to. Too bad I live in Flori-duh and not Washington State. Good work Marko!