Op-Ed: Seattle Mayor Harrell must stand up to political violence

In late May, Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell was strongly criticized for his partisan statements regarding the clash between those attending a Christian rally and Antifa thugs at Capitol Hill’s Cal Anderson Park. The mayor criticized the Christians, yet he failed to condemn the violent progressive extremists who disrupted the event (23 black-clad and masked activists were arrested).

A couple of weeks later, many “No Kings” protestors took advantage of the mayor’s soft approach to extremists by committing multiple acts of violence, including beating up journalists. Reportedly, Harrell responded to the lawlessness by telling police officials, “Let them tucker themselves out,” instead of ordering the arrests of the suspects.

Harrell’s election-year strategy of placating extremist voters appears to have backfired. In the early August primary, the incumbent mayor trails a relatively unknown extremist (Katie Wilson) by 10% and 20,000 votes, as moderate voters have apparently abandoned thecentrist coalition the mayor won with in 2021.

Because of his poor primary showing, Harrell appears to have moderated his statements. The same Christian organization is planning another rally this Saturday at Gas Works Park. The mayor now asserts, “Everyone has a First Amendment right to make their voices heard, regardless of content or belief.”

I applaud Harrell’s new commitment to protect everyone’s constitutional rights. He should have said this in May. I hope his actions this weekend will back up his latest comments, and police officers will be allowed, if necessary, to perform their job and protect everyone’s rights.

Seattle has a history of ignoring the violence of extreme left-wing activists. While this often provides immediate relief for political officials, the long-term consequences never turn out well for the city or its political leadership.

In 1999, as King County Sheriff, I became involved in the public debate on the appropriate response to violent activists after multiple days of protests on Seattle’s streets during the World Trade Organization conference.

Then Seattle Mayor Paul Schell chose to ignore the violence from the militant anarchists and instead called them “peaceful protestors” and then chose to criticize police officers (who, I believe, showed remarkable restraint during the three days of violence).

Schell allowed the protestors to shut down streets and continue disrupting the conference. Seattle became known across the globe as a place where violent protestors, not the rule of law, controlled the city. Schell’s weak response to the violence became symbolic of his administration, and in 2001, he failed to make it past the top two primary elections in his reelection bid, receiving only 22% of the vote.

In 2020, protestors across the country took to the streets to express their outrage over the death of George Floyd. Unfortunately, in Seattle, anarchists and other violent activists used these large protests to conduct targeted violence for many days, culminating with the illegal takeover of many Capitol Hill blocks and the seizing of the Seattle Police Department’s East Precinct.

Again, the city’s political leadership minimized the violence. Mayor Jenny Durkan embarrassingly stated that the protestors were having their “summer of love,” and city councilmembers rushed to take selfies in front of the demonstrations.

Soon, the majority of the council would rush to fulfill the rioters’ demands and vote to “defund” the Seattle Police Department.

This did not turn out well for Seattle, as once again the world witnessed violent protestors easily dominating the city and controlling its political agenda. The city council’s “defund” vote and the lack of support from the region’s political leadership caused a mass exodus of well-trained officers from the Seattle Police Department. Crime rates skyrocketed as the severe staffing shortage meant police could not respond to many 911 calls. A growing number of crimes, including sexual assault, went uninvestigated.

Numerous expensive lawsuits were filed by the relatives of those who died in the so-called Capitol Hill Occupied Protest, or CHOP, and by businesses and individuals who believe the city did not protect their property or their rights, as the violence caused damage in downtown and the Capitol Hill neighborhood.

Durkan’s political career ended abruptly after she caved to rioters’ demands and refused to let police do their jobs. She soon announced she would not be running for re-election.

Harrell should have learned from Schell and Durkan that Seattle voters might be very liberal, but they don’t want the city controlled by violent extremists, and they expect their mayor and police to enforce the law – no matter the suspects’ political views.

The vast majority of people who protest are doing so peacefully. There are just a few actors, who the police know very well, who commit nearly all the violent acts and use the protests as cover. Yet violent activists rarely become peaceful because a politician caved into their demands. This always encourages them to become more violent and demand more in return. This only ends when they are caught and punished.

Real leaders must stand against violence, period. That includes political violence.

Being elected to office and having a title doesn’t make you a leader. Every oath of every office I have held always includes a pledge to enforce the law, to protect the public, and to uphold the Constitution. Honor your oath. A republic cannot function if those in power have one set of rules for its extremists while everyone else must follow stricter laws.

I believe Harrell wants what is best for Seattle, and I know he wants what is best for his political career. He can choose to follow the failed path of Schell and Durkan and ignore political violence, or he can be a real leader and do what’s right. He must hold accountable those who choose to turn one of our most cherished rights, freedom of speech, into freedom to destroy, insult and assault. Violence, all violence, has no place in our community.

Dave Reichert served seven terms as a U.S. representative from Washington state’s 8th Congressional District (2005 – 2019). He spent 33 years with the King County Sheriff’s Office, eight as the sheriff, the first elected in 30 years. In the 1990s, Reichert received national attention as the lead detective on the Green River Task Force.