Larry Seaquist: the Leader Pierce County Needs!
I am a dedicated voter. I view it as a duty, and living and working in the Washington Beltway hothouse, I have had the pleasure to meet some of our legislative luminaries. I want to tell you about an extraordinary friend and public servant who defines what we call “a Great American.”
I may be a dedicated voter, but I am not registered as anything. I remember Barry Goldwater from the distant days. The little girl feeling the blast of a weapon of mass destruction. Later in my life, I was part of the command and control apparatus that controlled ours, and part of the process of loading the weapons of mass destruction onto aircraft and ending civilization as we used to know it.
I was never happier than when my involvement with those sleek and ominous devices ended. But at the time, I was pretty confident that if the President felt the need to use one, I would help with all the professionalism I could muster. And living with nuclear weapons as next door neighbors was a neighborhood filled with trepidation. Larry Seaquist was the kind of man who had the courage to always do the right and appropriate thing. I would trust him with my life.
Really.
My parents voted Republican, I am sure. They may have even registered as such. I was much more pragmatic. I never registered with any party, for the reason that the Republicans had people like Dick Nixon, and the Democrats I encountered at the University all seemed to be in the grip of some crazed old Bolshies. My principles pushed me into not voting in favor of any party in particular, but rather inspecting the candidates and voting against the more evil ones as best I could determine their nature.
Late in my military career I was engaged in the bizarre world of budgeting in the five-sided adult care facility on the Potomac. There I met a remarkable Navy Captain. We hit it off well, and in slack times, we would hang out in some great places, like the ancient and elegant Army-Navy Club on Lafayette Square near the White House. Larry Seaquist was his name, and his resume was impressive.
He was a line officer of great distinction, serving for 32 years as a superb ship handler and an intuitive and inspirational leader afloat and ashore. He commanded four warships- a good officer is lucky to get a single command at sea. When I met him in the Pentagon, he was managing complex strategy and leading budget planning teams. Following his Navy days, he worked for a decade in peace-building and community development in countries facing conflict, which sadly includes most of the world community of nations.
Larry served 32 years in the Navy, where he commanded four warships. One of the highlights of any Navy career is to be selected to command one of the magnificent battleships that were brought back to service to harness the might of their guns for coastal bombardment. Ask someone who has seen one. It is a world changing experience.
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Larry’s ship was the dreadnaught USS Iowa (BB-61), where he was renowned for his innovative approach to keep morale at a high state. He would choose an enlisted crew member each day, telling them to be on the bridge at 1800 hours (six PM for landlubbers) and have a song ready to croon to the crew of the most powerful warship ever constructed. At the appointed hour, Larry would announce from the towering Bridge:
“I’d like to introduce you to today’s singing bosun mate,” at which time the crew member had to sing his original song over the ship’s 1MC announcement system to the entire crew. The notes rang throughout the massive steel armor and echoed through the adamant armored steel bulkheads and hatches.
Following his career in the Navy, he worked for a decade in peace-building and community development in nations around the world and make his home in Pierce County in Washington State. He continued to advise on international relations, but found his true calling in politics. He became one of the most successful members of theWashington House of Representatives from 2007 to 2015, where he represented the 26th legislative district (Gig Harbor, Bremerton, Port Orchard). While serving in the House, he chaired the House Higher Education Committee, and served on the Appropriations, Early Learning, and Health Care committees.
Beyond his vast experience at the national and local levels, he had a sense of humor and he is intuitive and fun to be around. I confess I am a bit jealous Pierce County gets most of his time and attention.
He is not done serving the citizens of our Republic. A dedicated public servant, Larry has worked with the Tacoma-Pierce County League of Women Voters to lead a multi-year project that required a deep understanding and prevention of homelessness. He has taught graduate courses in strategic planning at Evergreen State College.
He understands politics and much more, including the world of business. He is a member of the Gig Harbor Chamber of Commerce, the Key Peninsula Business Association, and the American Legion. His understanding of the way things work- in government, society and the world- is profound and measured by experience.
He put his experience to good use. In 2007, Larry was elected to the Washington House of Representatives, representing Washington’s 26th legislative district. It is a delightful area that covers the Kitsap Peninsula from Bremerton and Port Orchard in the north to Gig Harbor in the south.
Since leaving the Washington House of Representatives, Larry has worked as a Political Science professor at the Evergreen State College, and he speaks as an expert on national security and military issues.He sums it up this way:
“With chaos and confusion at the national level, Pierce County needs an executive with the proven skills and the creativity to enable our nearly one million residents to get firmly on the path to the healthy, housed, educated future that has always been America’s promise.”
In command at sea, in the Pentagon and in the legislature, Larry is the model of quality progressive leadership.
Heck, he is so good that I would consider relocating to Gig Harbor just to have the privilege of voting for him. He is that good. If you are a Pierce County voter there is really only one choice for quality in the Executive Office this November.
Larry Seaquist for Pierce County Executive (D). Vote for him to make County a better place in which to live- and lead!
– J.R. Reddig
Washington DC