Senator Karen Keiser, a member of the Washington State Senate representing District 33 and a member of the Democratic Party has recently released her new book “Getting Elected is the Easy Part: Working and Winning in the State Legislature.” The manuscript is a guideline to help lobbyists, first time lawmakers, members of both parties and other elected officials navigate state legislature institutions. The book combines her own personal experiences and observations after serving in the government for over 20 years along with documented research on culture and diversity considerations and is a must have for all legislative newcomers.
Keiser, a former news anchor woman, is a vibrant and charismatic superstar whose words are like that of fireworks plunging into the night sky and shattering the darkness. She was fun, eloquently outspoken, and of course very knowledgeable. A graduate of UC Berkeley, and John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University she assumed her Senate office in 2001.
We exchanged questions and answers regarding her book which would be a great read for anyone even vaguely interested in learning about politics……
I absolutely love the name of your book. That’s what caught my attention. What inspired the book and the title?
Well, I will tell you it was originally a chapter of a book, but when I was talking over the book with a friend of mine, he said that really should be the title, because that is a bit of the theme of the whole book. We spend an enormous effort to get people elected and then they get nothing. They are just left high and dry. They have no clue what they just walked into. It takes a hell of a long time to figure it out.
Have you figured it out yet?
I have. That’s why I wrote a book because I figured out a whole lot of stuff. During the pandemic I realized I had learned valuable lessons, and I really should share them.
Let me ask you this, are you going to get in trouble for sharing it?
What I did is share stories and observations and I share advice, but I don’t name names. But most people in the know will figure out who’s wh
You were an anchor woman. That seems to me like it was a pretty fun job, what made you want to go into politics?
It was a fun job. I think what happened was when Mount Saint Helens erupted a long time ago, it was like the end of the world. It was very exciting. After that, covering the state fair was sort of anti-climatic. I could have gone to Afghanistan or something but I was starting to raise a family so I thought, gosh I really should do something else and I ended up going into communications for 10 years. I thought I knew a whole lot about legislature, by then but I learned so much more after I got into the legislature.
What was your first day like?
In the legislature? It really was interesting. When I first joined the legislature, almost the first vote I had to take was a veto override of a bill the governor had vetoed. I was an absolute novice. I had no idea of the political consequences of voting to override your Governor’s veto. I have learned a lot. I must be a slow learner, but I eventually became quite successful. And then I saw all these wonderful new young women and people of color coming into the legislature in the last 10 years and it reminded me of my absolute bewilderment when I first joined the legislature which was mostly a male-dominated institution. I decided that they could use some encouragement. So that’s what inspired me to start writing and to see if I couldn’t help some of the new members learn a little faster than I did.
How much has the legislature or whatever it is you do changed since you have begun?
It has changed a lot. As I said it was and still is a stodgy, traditional institution. I think all state legislatures are. And it was run by a few “good ol’ boys.” It was a kind of club of good old white boys I should make it clear. Even though we considered ourselves liberal and progressive the fact is it was pretty closed to those not in the club. But it has changed. The last 10 years has seen quite a bit of opening doors and opportunities. For example, we finally have the first woman Speaker of the House in the entire history of the state.
Is there a message that you want people to get from reading your book?
I think now Congress is at a high level of dysfunction and impasse. So our state legislators really should step up and do the job. On issues from abortion, education, crime and climate, minimum wage to sex harassment, all can be improved on in the states. So, with all of the hot button issues getting stuck in Congress, it’s up to States to take the ball and run with it. We can get a hell of a lot done and affect a hell of a lot of people when we do that. Just put the populations of California, New York, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Colorado, Oregon and Washington together, and you got a big piece of the pie. Tens of millions of Americans can have better lives if their state legislatures act.
What’s the best thing that ever happened to you since you’ve been elected and then I’m going to ask you what the worst thing is?
I think the best thing that ever happened to me was being able to work with the White House on The Affordable Care Act and help get that passed and fully implemented in the states. It was awesome to meet President Obama and work in coordination with the White House and with legislators from other states to successfully implement the Affordable Care Act. That was a true highlight of the best thing. And the worst was being called a c u n t on the floor of the Senate.
I operate under the motto “don’t get mad get even.” So, I get even and I get good s h i t done. I’m at the point now that I’m saying you too kid, you can do that too.
As a young kid, is politics something you considered or something you kind of fell into?
I grew up in Iowa. We would go to Grandpa and Grandma’s house every Sunday for Sunday dinner. Very traditional. My Grandpa would be spending time in front of the TV watching Meet the Press. Then we would talk about it over Sunday dinner. So, I guess I was sort of born and bred into politics.
Is there anything political that you would want me to ask you?
I would say all politics is local. Which is what Tip O’Neill always advised. So, look to your own backyard if you would, and see what’s burning, because those problems don’t get fixed without that.
Is there anything in life that you would want me to ask you that no one has ever asked you but you wish you were asked?
That’s an open-ended question. I don’t usually answer open-ended questions because I put myself in peril, so don’t ask me that because I don’t do that anymore.
Now are you going to keep on running and running?
I am. Keep on keeping on. I don’t know how long an Energizer bunny can go but I will do my best.
Now, this book has been out for how long and how can people get it?
It has been out about 2 months. I’m a novice at the book business so I have been going around and talking at bookstores and signing books at bookstores locally. People can get it on Amazon. People can get it on-line at bookstore.com and Barnes & Noble. Or they can get it directly from my publisher which is the Washington State University press. I know WSU press likes to get their book orders directly.
Is there anything else you want to say?
I think that we too often run after the shiny objects and we have to be careful to look at the dark clouds too. I worry that we are heading in a really dark direction in this country. We have got to pay attention to where we’re going. Something has unglued the glue that made us function together. We have to find some glue. We can build us back together one state at a time if we have to.
To order “Getting Elected is the Easy Part, working and winning in the state legislature” go to: https://wsupress.wsu.edu/product/getting-elected-is-the-easy-part/
Also available on Amazon at: https://www.amazon.com/Getting-Elected-Easy-Part-Legislature/dp/1638640114
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